NFL News

[Futureshock]

Joe Barry: Packers have to find consistency on defense

Posted by Josh Alper on May 17, 2023, 10:00 AM EDT

Getty Images

The biggest storyline of the Packers offseason has been the transition at quarterback from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love, but offense isn’t going to be the entire story of the 2023 season in Green Bay.

Defense will play a major role in the fate of the Packers this season and the unit’s work last year led to in-season chatter about changing defensive coordinators. Joe Barry remained in the role through the season and the Packers opted not to make a change this offseason after seeing improved results in the later weeks of the year.

On Tuesday, Barry identified the area he believes the Packers need to address in order to have a more successful season in 2023.

“You mentioned [Rodgers] and his honors. It really doesn’t matter on our side of the ball, the defensive side of the ball. That’s the thing that we’ve got to do week in and week out,” Barry said, via Jason Wilde of Madison.com. “We’ve got to show up and play our best version of football, our best version of defense. We can’t be up one week and down the next. We’ve got to find that consistency and show up every single week. The last five or six weeks of the season, we found that. We don’t have time to waste 10 weeks. We’re in May. That’s what OTAs are for. That’s what the offseason is for. That’s what training camp is for. But we’ve got to be much more consistent than we were a year ago, week in and week out.”

The effort to put forth a more consistent effort will include first-round defensive end Lukas Van Ness and four other draft picks. Preparing them for the fall will be a key part of the rest of the offseason work in Green Bay.

[Futureshock]

We didn't make this list...

https://www.the33rdteam.com/category/analysis/four-nfl-teams-who-failed-2023-offseason/

ANALYSIS 4 NFL Teams Who Failed 2023 Offseason


Jeff DiamondAward-Winning NFL Executive

May 16, 2023 7 min read

[froot loops]

The NFL is going to dabble in streaming but I doubt they go away from the broadcast networks very soon. It's the league's biggest advantage, all the other sports retreated to cable and it left the broadcast networks to the NFL and supercharged the popularity.

[Futureshock]

Gardner Minshew has been “really impressed” with Anthony Richardson

Posted by Myles Simmons on May 17, 2023, 2:52 PM EDT

Getty Images

Gardner Minshew followed Shane Steichen to Indianapolis this offseason, joining his former Eagles offensive coordinator who’s now the Colts head coach.

But No. 4 overall pick Anthony Richardson is the focus for the organization at quarterback. And Minshew has gotten a positive impression from the rookie.

“I’ve been really impressed, a lot of times the bigger guys with big arms aren’t as quick with some of the RPO stuff and underneath, [but] he’s very quick and his feet are really quick,” Minshew said on Wednesday, via Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan. “And I think he gets the ball out fast and can process fast.”

Minshew and Richardson actually worked out at the same facility in Florida before the draft, which is where Minshew took notice of his now-teammate.

“Obviously, the first thing is just how impressive the ball jumps out of his hand,” Minshew said. “Physically, he’s got everything you want.

“Then getting around him and seeing how he works, how he takes criticism, wants to learn and get better, all those things are really, really encouraging.”

It remains to be seen whether Minshew or Richardson will be behind center when the Colts take on the Jaguars to open the season at home. But for now, Minshew thinks Richardson is doing the right things to prepare to play.

“He’s making the right checks, doing that kind of stuff. And that’s how you kind of gradually earn respect and, eventually, earn that kind of leadership spot,” Minshew said. “I think he’s coming out with a great attitude, very humble, willing to learn, willing to admit he’s wrong. Those are all very important things in the process of getting better.”

[Futureshock]

Jim Trotter wins Bill Nunn Jr. Award for long and distinguished journalism career

Posted by Charean Williams on May 17, 2023, 1:46 PM EDT

Getty Images

Jim Trotter, who made headlines recently when his contract was not renewed by NFL Media, has won the 2023 Bill Nunn Jr. Award. The Pro Football Writers of America announced Wednesday that Trotter’s peers have voted him the 55th winner of the award.

The Nunn Award is given to a reporter who has made a long and distinguished contribution to pro football through coverage. The award is named for Nunn, who, before his Hall of Fame scouting career with the Steelers, worked 22 years at the Pittsburgh Courier.

Trotter was hired by The Athletic as a national columnist soon after NFL Media’s controversial decision to part ways. He becomes the first journalist from The Athletic to win the award.

Other 2023 finalists for the Nunn Award were Mary Kay Cabot (Cleveland Plain Dealer), D. Orlando Ledbetter (Atlanta Journal Constitution), Gary Myers (author) and Barry Wilner (Associated Press).

Trotter spent five years as a reporter and columnist for NFL Media after previously working for ESPN for four years and Sports Illustrated for seven years.

He has reported extensively on player activism and social justice.

Trotter also has worked for the San Diego Union-Tribune (1989-2007) and The Tacoma News-Tribune (1987-89). He was the same sports staff with 2007 Nunn Award winner John Clayton at the Tacoma paper.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame will honor Trotter in Canton later this summer.

[Futureshock]

Ejiro Evero on Jeremy Chinn: A weapon we’re definitely going to try to utilize

Posted by Josh Alper on May 17, 2023, 1:37 PM EDT

Getty Images

After the Panthers hired Ejiro Evero as their new defensive coordinator earlier this year, safety Jeremy Chinn said he was “super excited” about the change because Evero would move him “a little bit closer to the line of scrimmage again.”

The presence of safeties Vonn Bell and Xavier Woods opens the door to using Chinn in more of a hybrid linebacker-type role, but Evero was less forthcoming this week when it came to the specifics of what the coming season has in store for Chinn. He made it clear that he envisions Chinn’s role being a prominent one, however.

“We think very highly of him,” Evero said, via Augusta Stone of the team’s website. “I think he’s a heck of a player. He’s a weapon that we’re definitely going to try to utilize. And I know he’s an asset for us to have.”

Chinn has 294 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries over his first three seasons. The 2023 campaign is the final one of the 2020 second-round pick’s rookie deal, so his performance in whatever role Evero comes up with will have a lot of weight on his NFL future.

[Futureshock]

I do not agree with Florio here...

Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch: TNF switch from broadcast to streaming is a “disaster”

Posted by Mike Florio on May 17, 2023, 1:09 PM EDT

Getty Images

For the NFL, streaming isn’t the future. It’s the present. One executive whose business model arguably could end up being stuck in the past had something to say about the 2022 shift of Thursday Night Football from one of the networks he runs to Amazon.

Via Joe Flint of the Wall Street Journal, Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch made this comment at the MoffettNathanson conference regarding the notion that Amazon’s reach for TNF is down 42 percent following the shift from Fox: “If I’m an NFL owner, that’s a disaster for me.”

Frankly, it all comes down to how an owner defines “disaster.” Amazon is paying considerably more than Fox was for TNF. That’s not a disaster. The audience is smaller than it would have been on three-letter network TV.

The NFL knew the audience would shrink with the prime-time pivot to streaming. The NFL is now trying to do what it can to boost the prime-time audience, from doubling up on the number of times a team can be asked to play on Thursday after playing on Sunday to the looming vote on the ability to flex Thursday night games late in the season.

In this regard, the NFL isn’t simply thinking about where the puck is going. It’s attempting to apply a slap shot to the projectile.

By moving one of the prime-time packages to streaming and by shifting both a late-season Saturday night game (Bills-Chargers, December 23) and a prime-time wild-card game to Peacock, the NFL isn’t waiting for the shift to streaming to take root. The NFL is sprinkling seeds and tilling soil.

Whether it’s successful isn’t the issue. The league had to do it. Faced with a choice between being on the cutting edge of the future of TV consumption or being dragged into tomorrow kicking and screaming, the NFL is opting to embrace the not-so-new world of streaming.

[Futureshock]

XFL draws 1.43 million viewers for championship game

Posted by Mike Florio on May 17, 2023, 11:43 AM EDT

Getty Images

XFL 3.0 didn’t perform as well on TV as XFL 2.0. But XFL 3.0 actually finished its season, which makes it a positive.

Via Bill Shea of TheAthletic.com, the XFL attracted an average viewership of 1.43 million for the championship game between Arlington and D.C. on Saturday night. The game was televised by ABC.

It was the highest number since Week One, when a pair of games on ABC generated 1.5 million and 1.6 million viewers.

“It performed within our expectations,” ESPN’s vice president of programming and acquisitions Tim Reed told Shea. “We ended on a high note.”

in the 10-week regular season, the XFL averaged 622,000 viewers per game on ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, FX, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes. Eight games televised by ABC attracted average audiences of 1.13 million viewers.

The championship game, won by Arlington, brought 22,754 fans to the Alamodome in San Antonio.

There’s definitely room for spring football. It holds its own. And perhaps a merger of the XFL and USFL could make it even bigger.

Still, how profitable will it ever be? That’s the question. And if it ever becomes incredibly profitable, that’s when the NFL shows up and buys the whole thing.

The XFL originally debuted on 2001. The first game, on a Saturday night in February, racked up an estimated 54 million viewers.

[Futureshock]

Mike Macdonald: David Ojabo “looks great” with a full year in the program

Posted by Josh Alper on May 17, 2023, 11:30 AM EDT

Getty Images

Ravens edge rusher David Ojabo‘s rookie year was marred by the torn Achilles he suffered while working out ahead of the draft and he was only able to make three appearances at the end of the season because of how much rehab work he had to do for the injury.

Ojabo was around the team while working his way back into playing shape, however, and defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald said on Wednesday that he believes that having a “full year in the program” was a great benefit to the 2022 second-round pick.

“He looks great,” Macdonald said. “I feel like he’s put on some good weight and looks stronger. Looks fast right now. I think, more than anything, mentally he’s in a great spot as well. You’re gonna see a lot of confidence from him throughout the process, it’s great to see him in good spirits.”

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said in March that the team will be counting on Ojabo and Odafe Oweh stepping up as pass rushers this season. Macdonald’s comments suggest the team likes the way Ojabo is approaching that task.

[Futureshock]

Report: Two more officials apparently leaving league

Posted by Charean Williams on May 17, 2023, 3:25 PM EDT

Getty Images

Two more officials are leaving the NFL, brining the offseason retirement/departures to 12. Mark Schultz of Football Zebras reports that field judge Mike Weatherford and line judge Mike Dolce no longer are with the league.

Weatherford and Dolce apparently are not leaving willingly, per Schultz, and appealed their departures. Two officials successfully appealed their departures in 2020.

Weatherford has spent 21 years in the NFL, working as a field judge and as a side judge. He worked as a swing official last season.

His last on-field assignment was in the 2020 wild-card round, and he worked 11 playoff games in his career, including Super Bowl XLV.

Weatherford, from the Chickasaw tribe in Oklahoma, was one of two Native Americans on the officiating staff. Jerod Phillips is the other.

Dolce worked in the NFL only three seasons, most recently on Shawn Smith’s crew. He worked his first playoff game last season, getting an assignment for the Chargers-Jaguars game.

The NFL has not had as many officials leave in a single offseason since 2013 when 14 left. Ten officials departed last year.

[Futureshock]

Packers’ linebackers coach expects Quay Walker to learn from his ejections

Posted by Michael David Smith on May 17, 2023, 3:14 PM EDT

Getty Images

Packers linebacker Quay Walker was ejected from two different games last season, once for shoving a Bills practice squad player who wasn’t in uniform on the sideline, and once for shoving a Lions trainer who was on the field to tend to an injured player. To get ejected twice for the same offense would suggest Walker is not good at learning from his mistakes.

But the Packers believe he’s going to learn. Packers inside linebackers coach Kirk Olivadotti said today that he believes Walker understands it can’t happen again.

“He and I have spent a lot of time on that subject,” Olivadotti said, via Matt Schneidman of TheAthletic.com. “At the end of the day, it comes down to me trusting him, him trusting me. He’s more than willing to learn from all his mistakes, especially those.”

Olivadotti wants Walker’s mind to be on the next play, not on what anyone else on the other team — in uniform or out — is doing.

“Play to the whistle, and then be so busy in between snaps that you don’t even notice what’s going on between plays,” Olivadotti said he told Walker to do, via Ryan Wood of USA Today.

Walker was lucky he wasn’t suspended for his actions, especially the second offense. The Packers want to be certain there won’t be a third offense.

[edindetroit]

I have all these streamig services but I refuse to cater to this. Most fans fall outside of being able to afford all these services after they take care of stuff like, IDK, like food shelter and clothing, etc... If the Lions aren't on there I won't watch.

For NFL streaming, the future is now

Posted by Mike Florio on May 16, 2023, 4:11 PM EDT

Getty Images

As the world continues a slow pivot away from cable/satellite to streaming, there will be major NFL-related signposts along the way.

This year, it’s Peacock getting an exclusive wild-card playoff game.

That announcement created much more of an uproar than last week’s disclosure that the Week 16 Saturday night game between the Bills and Chargers also will be exclusively streamed on Peacock. It makes sense; the regular-season Peacock news was subsumed within the broader schedule release and the various viral schedule-release videos.

Monday’s development became a sudden and unexpected bolt of lightning.

But are we really surprised? The wind has been blowing in this direction for years. Already, the entire Thursday night package streams on Amazon. Also, ESPN+ had an exclusive London game last year.

The future is coming. The future is now. Viewing habits are changing, and the migration of NFL games to streaming will force that process along.

Then there’s the fact that Peacock costs only $4.99 per month and $14.99 per year. What can you buy for $4.99? (Other than an electronic copy of Father of Mine, which you should do if you have not. Use a different $4.99 for your first month of Peacock.)

One of the complaints we’re hearing is that people already have too many streaming subscriptions. They don’t want to buy another one.

A streaming commitment isn’t permanent. You can dump any, some, or all of the streaming services you have. It’s really not hard to do it. Try it with one of them right now. (Not Peacock, though. Please.)

Peacock has plenty of great content. More live sports than any streamer. The Office, and the extended Superfan episodes for many of the seasons. And a certain morning show known as PFT Live.

Plenty of movies are on Peacock before other streaming services. Entertaining new series debut on a regular basis.

Yes, PFT has a distribution deal with NBC. Yes, I separately work for NBC, and for Peacock.

Regardless, it’s $4.99 a month. And if it didn’t land at Peacock, it likely was going to another streamer — possibly one that costs more than $4.99 a month.

Because they all cost more than $4.99 a month.

I don't know, you pay by the month and can quit anytime. Might be worth five bones.

[froot loops]

I have Peacock for the EPL games. I think Florio and the people who say that streaming is the future of football are getting over their skis. The NFL has one great advantage over the other sports that turbo charges it's popularity and that is the broadcast networks. All the other sports retreated for the money of cable and it hurt them popularity wise. It's going to take a lot to get them away from showing the local team on the broadcast networks. Most of these streaming deals are fiddling at the margins.

[edindetroit]

Joe Barry: Packers have to find consistency on defense

Posted by Josh Alper on May 17, 2023, 10:00 AM EDT

Getty Images

The biggest storyline of the Packers offseason has been the transition at quarterback from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love, but offense isn’t going to be the entire story of the 2023 season in Green Bay.

Defense will play a major role in the fate of the Packers this season and the unit’s work last year led to in-season chatter about changing defensive coordinators. Joe Barry remained in the role through the season and the Packers opted not to make a change this offseason after seeing improved results in the later weeks of the year.

On Tuesday, Barry identified the area he believes the Packers need to address in order to have a more successful season in 2023.

“You mentioned [Rodgers] and his honors. It really doesn’t matter on our side of the ball, the defensive side of the ball. That’s the thing that we’ve got to do week in and week out,” Barry said, via Jason Wilde of Madison.com. “We’ve got to show up and play our best version of football, our best version of defense. We can’t be up one week and down the next. We’ve got to find that consistency and show up every single week. The last five or six weeks of the season, we found that. We don’t have time to waste 10 weeks. We’re in May. That’s what OTAs are for. That’s what the offseason is for. That’s what training camp is for. But we’ve got to be much more consistent than we were a year ago, week in and week out.”

The effort to put forth a more consistent effort will include first-round defensive end Lukas Van Ness and four other draft picks. Preparing them for the fall will be a key part of the rest of the offseason work in Green Bay.

Consistently bad I hope.

[edindetroit]

There’s definitely room for spring football. It holds its own. And perhaps a merger of the XFL and USFL could make it even bigger.

They could call it SUXFL.