NFL News

[Futureshock]

Report: Packers not looking for multiple firsts, still negotiating with Jets

Posted by Josh Alper on March 15, 2023, 12:50 PM EDT

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Aaron Rodgers is set to make his first public comments of the week on Wednesday afternoon and there was a report about where things stand in trade discussions between the Jets and Packers before the quarterback’s appearance on The Pat McAfee Show.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that talks between the two sides are ongoing and that there has been no agreement on terms of a deal that would send Rodgers to the Jets for the 2023 season.

A report on Wednesday indicated the Packers might be looking for multiple first-round picks in return for Rodgers after seeing quarterbacks Matthew Stafford and Russell Wilson dealt for those kinds of packages in the past. Those situations were very different from the one the Packers find themselves in with Rodgers, however, and Pelissero reports that the team is not looking for that kind of return.

The continuation of talks makes it clear that they haven’t heard what they’re looking for and, as PFT reported, they might not feel great urgency to settle on that front at this point in the calendar.

[kayrone]

I hope those negotiations drag out for months.

[Futureshock]

[Futureshock]

The new league year begins at 4:00 p.m. ET; here’s what it means

Posted by Mike Florio on March 15, 2023, 10:32 AM EDT

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Free agency began, as a practical matter, on Monday at noon ET. It technically starts today at 4:00 p.m. ET.

That’s when the 2023 league year begins. It’s when the new contracts that agents have negotiated with new teams can be signed. It’s when trades can be finalized. Before those transactions become official, either side can back out, without consequence.

It’s also the moment at which teams must be in compliance with the new salary cap, based on the 51 highest-paid players on the team. It could prompt some teams to cut players or restructure contracts as 4:00 p.m. ET approaches.

And it will result in a second wave of free agency, as players who have contracts with high cap numbers or significant payments that become due or guaranteed in the early days of the league year are cut.

It’s always smart for agents to include early triggers in as many years of their clients’ contracts as possible. Whether it’s a roster bonus or a salary guarantee or something else, these devices force the team to make a decision early, allowing the player to hit the market at a time when budgets haven’t been exhausted.

That’s why some teams will hold onto some of their allocated cash, because players who currently aren’t available land on the market. Some will be expected. Some won’t be.

It will all play out today and through the rest of the week.

[Futureshock]

Rule change could make failed fourth downs reviewable by the booth, not coach’s challenge

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 15, 2023, 4:41 AM EDT

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The Texans are proposing a new NFL rule that would add failed fourth downs to the list of plays that can only be reviewed by the replay assistant, and not by a coach’s challenge.

Currently replays are initiated from the booth on turnovers, scoring plays, in overtime and in the last two minutes of either half.

If the NFL adopts the Texans’ proposal an offensive team that goes for it on fourth down and is ruled short of the yard to gain would not be able to throw its challenge flag to have the play reviewed. Instead, the replay assistant in the stadium or the league’s officiating office would determine whether the play was close enough to call for a replay review.

According to the Texans’ proposal, the reason the team is proposing the play is “Competitive equity and pace of play.”

Like all rule changes, the Texans’ proposal would require a three-fourths majority of the league, or 24 teams, to vote in favor of it in order to be adopted.

[Futureshock]

Packers may be content to wait until the draft to trade Aaron Rodgers

Posted by Mike Florio on March 14, 2023, 10:17 PM EDT

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As the Packers, Jets, and Aaron Rodgers are locked in a three-way stare down straight out of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, the Packers feel no compulsion to blink.

Per a league source, the Packers are willing to wait until the draft to trade Rodgers, if that’s what it takes to get what they want.

With Rodgers habitually absent from the early phases of the offseason program, it’s not as if he’ll be in the building between now and April 27. And with a $58.3 million option bonus that has a lengthy exercise period (the Packers can pick it up at any point from tomorrow until Week One), Rodgers has a very manageable cap number into September.

Basically, they get the benefit of the multi-year proration without having to pay the $58.3 million.

So the Packers can just wait. It’s indeed a game of chicken, but from Green Bay’s perspective the car isn’t close to the cliff. The Jets, on the other hand, may feel compelled to get something done — especially as they begin signing Rodgers’s friends and former teammates.

[Futureshock]

P.J. Walker is an unrestricted free agent after Panthers do not tender him

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 15, 2023, 3:53 PM EDT

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Panthers quarterback P.J. Walker is hitting unrestricted free agency.

The Panthers have decided not to tender Walker in free agency, according to Mike Kaye of the Charlotte Observer.

Walker does not have enough accrued seasons to qualify for unrestricted free agency, which means the Panthers could have made him a tender offer that would have allowed them to match any offer any other team made. But they’ve decided to let Walker walk.

With Andy Dalton and the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, as well as 2022 third-round pick Matt Corral and Jacob Eason on the roster, the Panthers figure they already have enough quarterbacks.

The 28-year-old Walker started five games for the Panthers last season, completing 59.4 percent of his passes with three touchdowns and three interceptions.

[Futureshock]

Oh to have been a fly on the wall when he got the call...

Cowboys inform Ezekiel Elliott he is being released

Posted by Josh Alper on March 15, 2023, 3:36 PM EDT

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Running back Ezekiel Elliott is about to become a free agent.

NFL Media reports that the Cowboys have informed Elliott that he is being released. The move has been expected for some time and a report on Wednesday morning indicated that it might come at the start of the new league year on Wednesday afternoon.

According to multiple reports, the move will be processed as a post-June 1 cut. The Cowboys will see $10.9 million in cap relief as a result and they’ll be left with $5.82 million in dead money on this year’s cap.

Elliott ranks third in Cowboys history in rushing attempts, rushing yards, and rushing touchdowns after spending the last seven seasons in Dallas. He posted career lows in attempts, yards, and yards per attempt in 2022 and the Cowboys used their franchise tag on Tony Pollard in a clear signal about the future of the position.

[CGVT]

Oh to have been a fly on the wall when he got the call...

Even though we all know, regardless of occupation, that "they" will take any opportunity to replace you with a younger, cheaper tool whenever it is in their best interest, it is a bit of a gut punch when the reality hits home.

When my career in the Coast Guard was winding down, I was a Command Mater Chief and I asked to extend my retirement date by three months so that I could retire in the summer and go out the same time as the CO that I worked for. It would have been a smooth transition for the incoming command.

I got a letter back from HQ saying, "extending your enlistment would not be in the best interests of the Coast Guard."

Fuck me! I had been doing things in the best fucking interest of the Coast Guard for 30 fucking years...

Fuck those fucking fucks. Ha!

I'm not a Zeke fan by any means, but even if he knew deep down that the day would come, this has to sting for him.

[jaadam4]

The broncs have been way off in the value of players. This is laughable


Report: Broncos want at least a first-round pick for Jerry Jeudy trade

Posted by Myles Simmons on March 15, 2023, 12:56 PM EDT

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As the Broncos look to re-tool for their first year under head coach Sean Payton, one of their key receivers might be on the way out.

Reports emerged earlier in the week that Denver had been discussing trading Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, and K.J. Hamler. Now a new detail has emerged for what the club would like in return.

According to Jeff Howe of TheAthletic.com, the Broncos are seeking at least a first-round pick for Jeudy.

A first-round pick himself in 2020, Jeudy has not quite produced at a top-receiver level. He recorded 52 catches for 856 yards with three touchdowns as a rookie. He dealt with injury issues in 2021, finishing the season with 38 receptions for 467 yards and no TDs.

Even with Denver’s myriad offensive issues in 2022, Jeudy led the team with 67 receptions, 972 yards, and six touchdowns in 15 games.

If a team acquires Jeudy, that club can choose whether or not to exercise Jeudy’s fifth-year option for 2024.

Howe also reports that the Patriots are one of the teams that has called about Jeudy.

They can "want" all day long. That's not happening

[jaadam4]

I wonder what the compensation is going to be. The Jets 1st and a player?

[Futureshock]

DJ Moore: It’s going to be real special in Chicago

Posted by Josh Alper on March 15, 2023, 4:18 PM EDT

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Wide receiver DJ Moore officially became a member of the Chicago Bears on Wednesday afternoon.

The new league year got underway at 4 p.m. ET and the Bears and Panthers wasted little time officially announcing the trade they agreed to last week. The Bears are sending the first overall pick in this year’s draft to Carolina for Moore, the ninth overall pick, the 61st overall pick, a 2024 first-round pick, and a 2025 second-round pick.

We don’t know who will be selected with any of those draft picks, but Moore can start preparing for life with his new team now. Moore said that it “means a lot” that the Bears wanted him as part of the deal.

“It’s going to be real special,” Moore said, via the team’s website. “I’m glad to be a part of the groundwork that’s being laid. And to just build that foundation of winning, it’s going to be something special.”

Quarterback Justin Fields also weighed in on a deal that should benefit him through Moore and other additions to come in the future.

“I’m excited to add a guy like DJ to our offense,” Fields said. “He’s proven he can be an explosive playmaker in this league, and I look forward to getting to work with him and the rest of our receivers so we can take the next step as an offense. I’ve gotten to know him a little bit and I know he’s ready to put the work in to help our team win. I can’t wait to get our whole group on the field together and see how we can put it all together.”

The Bears will keep working on putting that team together and the group will get their first chance to get on the field together in a few weeks.

[Iron Lion]

So just like Favre, Rodgers' last play as a Packer is an INT at home to end the season before going to the Jets.

[ghandi]

So just like Favre, Rodgers' last play as a Packer is an INT at home to end the season before going to the Jets.

Who says history doesn't repeat itself?

[jaadam4]

Who says history doesn't repeat itself?

Who says history doesn't repeat itself?