NFL News

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JARRAN REEDDL, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS


Chiefs signed DT Jarran Reed, formerly of the Seahawks, to a one-year, $7 million contract.


Reed's contract features $5 million in guarantees. The Seahawks attempted to trade Reed after a contract dispute but weren't able to find any bidders. They ultimately released him a year after re-signing him to a two-year contract. Reed played all 16 games for the Seahawks last season and racked up 6.5 sacks plus a forced fumble. He peeked at an impressive 10.5 sacks three years ago. Now 28 years old, Reed projects as a high-end rotational player for the Chiefs. He'll join a loaded defensive line alongside Chris Jones and Frank Clark. Despite the Kansas City offense being their calling card, they've also managed to form a talented pass-rushing and remain the team to beat in the AFC.

SOURCE: Jeremy Fowler on Twitter
Mar 28, 2021, 8:01 PM

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JIMMY GAROPPOLOQB, SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
ESPN's Jordan Schultz reports the Patriots are not planning on pursuing a trade for 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo.


New England has been speculated as a potential landing spot for Garoppolo throughout the offseason and the 49ers trading up to the No. 3 pick does point to them moving on from him. Garoppolo started his career in New England and went 2-0 as a starter before being traded to San Francisco. Unless the Pats have checked in on Garoppolo in the past 24 hours, this report does contradict a previous report that pointed to New England still being interested. Schultz points out that the Patriots don't have an abundance of cap space to take on the final two years of Garoppolo's contract. Cam Newton's first season with the Patriots was lackluster, to say the least, but he showed enough as a runner for Bill Belichick to bring him back for the 2021 season. With the role of veteran passer already filled, it's more likely that New England chooses to add a passer via the draft instead of trading for one. If the draft approaches and San Francisco still hasn't found a team willing to pay up for Garoppolo, the Patriots could re-enter the conversation with a low bid.

RELATED:

• Cam Newton

SOURCE: Jordan Schultz on Twitter
Mar 28, 2021, 2:22 PM

[Iron Lion]

If they are willing to give us another return like the MS trade, 3 1sts (One a switch of #7 for #19) and a 2021 3rd. I hope we pounce.... 7 1sts in the next 3 years would be awesome...

Yes, let's destroy 7 promising careers instead of just 3.

[jaadam4]

If they are willing to give us another return like the MS trade, 3 1sts (One a switch of #7 for #19) and a 2021 3rd. I hope we pounce.... 7 1sts in the next 3 years would be awesome...

I would hate to miss out on Parsons, Chase, or Slatter but it would definitely stack chips for future drafts. If LA or the Skins completely fell on their face and Detroit ended up with multiple top 10 picks Detroit would go from rebuilding to rebuilt.

Also all of those 1st rounders carry that 5 year rookie contracts which help long term.

[Futureshock]

I'll put this here...



NCAA faces its long-overdue reckoning

Posted by Mike Florio on March 31, 2021, 11:51 AM EDT

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At a time when the NCAA is preparing for one of its signature annual high points, the NCAA could be on the brink of dealing with its biggest loss in years, if not ever.

Oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court in a lawsuit led by former West Virginia running back Shawne Alston included questions from justices that suggest the NCAA finally may be facing its reckoning over the failure to compensate football players and other athletes for the billions in revenue they generate.

It’s an antitrust claim, alleging that the NCAA places illegal artificial on the ability of colleges to compete for players, limiting the total expense that any school will incur for its athletes. A federal appeals court previously ruled that the NCAA was not permitted to limit benefits to educational expenses only. Although the decision did not call for the payment of salaries, it opened the door for items like, via the New York Times, “musical instruments, scientific equipment, postgraduate scholarships, tutoring, study abroad, academic awards and internships.”

The NCAA’s best argument is that fans somehow value amateur status. That argument, frankly, is hogwash wrapped in bullshit.

“Consumers will likely come to view NCAA athletics as just another form of minor league sports,” the NCAA argued in written filings to the Supreme Court.

Actually, most consumers view NCAA sports like football and basketball as another form of MAJOR league sports, with the only difference being that the players aren’t fairly compensated for their abilities, risks, and sacrifices.

The plaintiffs are represented by Jeffrey Kessler, a long-time counsel for the NFL Players Association. Accounts from the oral argument show aggressive questioning of both sides, with Justice Brett Kavanaugh making the most spirited attack against the NCAA. Via Gabe Feldman, Kavanaugh asked whether the NCAA is using the notion of amateurism as “cover for exploitation of college athletes.” Also, Justice Clarence Thomas (who rarely poses questions to the lawyers during any oral arguments), asked whether the NCAA tries to limit compensation for coaches in the same way it tries to limit compensation for athletes, in the name of amateurism.

Added Kavanaugh, via Nicole Auerbach of TheAthletic.com, “It does seem . . . that schools are conspiring with competitors to pay no salaries to the workers who are making the schools billions of dollars on the theory that consumers want the schools to pay their workers nothing.”

Although many of fans will argue that the athletes should be happy with a “free education,” few would balk at the athletes getting a fair share of the revenue they generate. That’s ultimately what this is about, as it relates to college football — fairness and equity to players who have no choice (thanks in part to the inherently unfair three-year waiting period implemented by the NFL and NFLPA) but to play college football for peanuts in order to have a chance to make a lot more as a pro.

[Futureshock]

Blood in the water...


Lawsuits against Deshaun Watson reach 21

Posted by Mike Florio on March 31, 2021, 11:23 AM EDT

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Attorney Tony Buzbee had promised 20 assault lawsuits against Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. The number has now reached 21.

Via multiple reports, the civil complaints filed against Watson have increased from 19, with two more new lawsuits.

The legal process will unfold with Watson eventually responding to these complaints. One possibility will be to file a motion to dismiss one or more the cases, based on the decision by all plaintiffs to proceed under a pseudonym. Attorney Rusty Hardin has complained on multiple occasions about the fact that the plaintiffs have proceeded anonymously, which could be a clue that an initial attempt to attack these cases on that basis could happen.

If the lawsuits proceed through trial, the litigation could take two full years, or more. Eventually, the NFL will have to decide whether to place Watson on paid leave while the 21 cases (and counting, possibly) work their way through the court system.

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Week Four of preseason will now be a bye week

Posted by Mike Florio on March 31, 2021, 10:05 AM EDT

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With only three preseason games, the preseason nevertheless will begin when it usually does.

Packers CEO Mark Murphy said Tuesday that what was the fourth week of the preseason will now be a bye week. This means that there will be two weeks between the end of the preseason and the start of the regular season.

Under the four-game preseason, all teams typically played the final exhibition contest on Thursday, two days before the roster cuts from 90 to 53.

With three weeks in the preseason, the NFL apparently will try to maximize viewership by clustering the games on weekends.

“One of the hopes quite honestly is that you would have more teams play [preseason games] on Saturday and weekends,” Murphy said.

Murphy still expects final roster cuts to be made on Labor Day weekend. With the preseason ending a week or more earlier, teams could decide to begin making cuts well before the deadline for finalizing a 53-man complement of players.
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Gabe Jackson: I want to be a part of an organization that wins like Seattle

Posted by Myles Simmons on March 31, 2021, 9:06 AM EDT

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Gabe Jackson was the third selection of the Raiders’ 2014 draft class, following edge rusher Khalil Mack and quarterback Derek Carr.

For seven years, Jackson was a key piece of the Raiders’ offensive line. But in that time, the franchise had just one winning season. Even when the club went 12-4 in 2016, Carr’s injury prompted a quick exit from the playoffs.

But now Jackson is a Seahawk, sent to the Pacific Northwest via trade earlier this month. And he sounds ready to put all the losing behind him.

“[I’m excited about] the team, the players that I know are there, the coaching staff, the fan base, the 12s. I remember playing against them and how loud it gets there,” Jackson said, via John Boyle of the team website. “They win. I want to be a part of an organization that’s like that.”

From 2014-2020, the Raiders compiled a 47-65 record. In that same span, the Seahawks have gone 74-37-1 with six postseason appearances.

Las Vegas may be an emerging playoff contender, having finished 8-8 in 2020. But Seattle is already there — and has been for nearly a decade.

[Futureshock]

Jason McCourty “excited to get somewhere and play football”

Posted by Josh Alper on March 31, 2021, 8:40 AM EDT

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The Patriots have made a lot of moves this month, but none of them has involved the return of cornerback Jason McCourty.

McCourty remains unsigned for the 2021 season and it is not because he’s unsure about his plans for a 13th NFL season. During an appearance on NFL Network Wednesday, McCourty made it clear that he wants to continue his career and shared what kind of situation he’d like to be in this year.

“I just want to be somewhere I’m wanted and an opportunity to compete and help the guys around me,” McCourty said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. “As an older player now, I really look forward and love being able to mentor the younger guys, and be able to kind of help them grow, as well as going out there competing and trying to win games. So wherever that may be, I’m going to be excited. This will be Year 13, so each year, you’re closer to the end. This could be it. I’m just excited to get somewhere and play football.”

McCourty started 11 games, appeared in every game, and played 65 percent of the defensive snaps for New England last season. They haven’t added anyone at corner this month, but it’s unclear if that means the door is still open for a return.

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Devin McCourty: In my 11 years, the Patriots haven’t had an offseason like this

Posted by Myles Simmons on March 31, 2021, 8:31 AM EDT

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After finishing 7-9 in 2020, the Patriots have been the big spenders of free agency, with the club signing several high-profile players.

Team owner Robert Kraft said recently that New England “always made fun of the teams that spent a lot in the offseason.” But following the first losing season in well over a decade, the Patriots changed course to right the ship.

In doing so, the club has added some juice for longtime veterans like safety Devin McCourty.

“[I]n my 11 years there, we haven’t had an offseason like this. So it’s exciting,” McCourty said during a Wednesday appearance on Good Morning Football. “I think as fans and people that watch the sport, they always want their team to spend big in free agency. I’m all about trying to get a better team and going out there and competing and trying to get back to the playoffs. I’m excited, getting to meet some of these guys through texts already. But I can’t wait to get back together and start to build for this season.”

New England may not be done making significant moves, with cornerback Stephon Gilmore reportedly “very open” to an extension with the club. Either way, the Patriots seem like a team eager to get back to the other side of .500 in 2021.

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NFL finally gets 17 games; when will the league get 18?

Posted by Mike Florio on March 31, 2021, 6:38 AM EDT

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The NFL always gets what it wants, even if it takes a little time.

As it relates to the expansion of the season, it took more than a little time. Still, the NFL eventually got what it wanted.

The league wanted more regular-season games for well over a decade, but the push was derailed by the incongruity of its Congressionally-induced sensitivity to brain health in October 2009. The notion that the league was simply sliding the dividing line between preseason and regular-season from four and 16 to somewhere else simply didn’t fly — especially as concussion lawsuits began to pile up in 2011 and 2012.

Commissioner Roger Goodell tried to make his case for an 18-and-two structure indirectly, by repeatedly questioning the quality of preseason games. That never really gained any footing.

Then came the 2020 labor deal. As talks commenced, the league made it clear to the NFL Players Association that the next Collective Bargaining Agreement would be based on a 17-game regular season. Sensing the league’s resolve, the union opted to negotiate the deal on that basis. Otherwise, 2021 would have featured another offseason lockout and another deadline-driven early-August deal in which the players, unwilling to miss games and forego game checks, would have given the owners what they wanted all along, an extra game.

Actually, the players should regard their longstanding resistance to expansion of the season as a partial, albeit temporary, success. The league didn’t want 17 games; it wanted 18. And it still does.

As recently as July 2019, Commissioner Roger Goodell was asked about the “push” for 18 games. In response, he didn’t say, “We don’t want 18 games. We only want 17.” Instead, he explained that the league was talking to the union about restructuring the season.

Around that same time, 17 games first emerged as a viable compromise. That quickly gained traction.

This doesn’t mean the league has abandoned the desire to play 18 games. It means that the league has tabled it, waiting for the right time to renew the effort to slide the needle again, from three and 17 to two and 18. (That’s surely one of the reasons why the NFL has kept the preseason at three games; if they move to two now, they sacrifice part of their future leverage to get to 18.)

The question becomes when will the league get to 18? The next CBA, a decade from now, presents the next cleary opportunity to take an easy-way-or-hard-way stance with the union on 18 games.

But any terms between the parties can be changed at any time. As gambling becomes legalized in more and more states, the extra money to be earned by the league and players will mushroom. It will create the impetus to generate more inventory, for example, in the form of another slate of 16 regular-season games.

So if the league already wanted 18 games before the Supreme Court opened the floodgates for legalized gambling on May 14, 2018, it definitely will want 18 games once the green water begins to cascade.

Whether that happens when the NFL can exercise its right to short-circuit all of the new TV deals at or near the end of the decade or when the next CBA is being hammered out, likely between a new Commissioner and a new NFLPA executive director, it’s coming.

Mark Cuban once said of the NFL, “Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered.” But here’s the third part, thanks to this age of legal sports betting: “Boars run wild.”

With 17 games, the rampage begins. It will not stop there.

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NFL likely to play games in Germany, South America

Posted by Michael David Smith on March 31, 2021, 5:41 AM EDT

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The NFL’s international expansion plans were a significant part of Tuesday’s announcement of 17-game seasons, and games appear to be coming to Germany and South America.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell mentioned both Germany and South America on a call to announce the addition of a 17th game. The most likely South American country to host an NFL game would be Brazil.

The NFL has long had eyes on Germany for several reasons: It’s a big, wealthy country. It has a large English-speaking population. And American football has a fan base there, including many fans who supported the German teams in the now-defunct NFL Europe league (which also operated under the names World League of American Football and NFL Europa).

Beginning in 2022, the NFL will require four teams every year to give up a home game to play internationally, and additional teams may volunteer to play international games.

Starting in 2005, the NFL has played four regular-season games in Mexico City, six in Toronto and 28 in London. International games will only increase in the years ahead.
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The rich get richer.



O.J. HOWARDTE, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS


Bucs head coach Bruce Arians said O.J. Howard (Achilles) should be ready to participate in the team's offseason program.


Arians said Howard hasn't suffered any setbacks in his recovery from an Achilles injury he sustained in Week 5. Howard functioned as Tampa's primary pass-catching tight end before his injury, catching 11 of 19 targets for 146 yards and two touchdowns in four games last year. He saw more targets and produced more receptions, yardage, and touchdowns than Rob Gronkowski. “What a huge addition to have him back because he was having a great year,” Arians said. “I think, again, the sky’s the limit for what he can do in this offense.” Howard, 26, could retake the role Cameron Brate took over near the end of the 2020 season.

RELATED:

• Cameron Brate
• , Rob Gronkowski

SOURCE: ProFootballTalk.com
Mar 31, 2021, 11:32 AM

[Futureshock]

OJ Howard vs Pitts

Who would you choose?

[Futureshock]

NFL may allow defensive backs, linebackers, running backs to wear single-digit numbers

Posted by Michael David Smith on April 1, 2021, 10:01 AM EDT

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The NFL is considering a rule that won’t necessarily change the game on the field, but will change the way the game looks, and a rule that players have long advocated for: Loosening the restrictions on jersey numbers, including allowing more players to wear single-digit numbers.

A proposal that owners will vote on at the upcoming league meeting would allow single-digit numbers to be worn by more players than just quarterbacks, kickers and punters, who are the only players currently allowed to wear single digits.

Under the proposal, defensive backs, linebackers, running backs, fullbacks, tight ends, H-backs and wide receivers would all be allowed to wear jerseys in the single digits. Defensive backs and linebackers could wear any number from 1 to 49, while running backs, fullbacks, tight ends, H-backs and wide receivers could all wear 1 to 49 and 80 to 89.

Quarterbacks, punters and kickers would still be required to wear numbers 1 to 19, linemen would still wear 50 to 79, and defensive linemen and linebackers could also wear 90 to 99.

One of the most visible differences between college and pro football is that college players have more jersey number options. Soon that difference may disappear.