NFL News

[Futureshock]

He was scared

Sean McVay thought 49ers might draft Kyle Pitts with the third choice

Posted by Charean Williams on July 7, 2021, 8:42 PM EDT

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From the time they traded up to No. 3 on March 26, the 49ers had everyone fooled about who they were targeting. Mac Jones initially was the popular guess.

Trey Lance, who ended up being the choice, and Justin Fields also were considered candidates.

Kyle Pitts even wondered whether the 49ers traded up for him.

Even though the 49ers already have one of the best tight ends in football in George Kittle, Rams coach Sean McVay admits he also considered Pitts a candidate for San Francisco.

“I thought there was a possibility that Kyle was going to go Pitts at three,” McVay said on the Flying coach podcast he co-hosts with Peter Schrager of NFL Media, via 49erswebzone.com. “In all seriousness, because he’s such a visionary. I’m telling you, I didn’t think it was going to be a crazy thought because you go back to when New England had the two-tight end set, and they were doing things totally different. You think about what Kittle. And then, the thing that makes sense is that, hey, Jimmy [Garoppolo’s] produced all the way. This isn’t a production thing. This is an availability thing that you’re saying, ‘We can’t have that,’ like, all the things.

“But I was like, ‘If it’s not Mac Jones — and I hadn’t studied Trey, just because there wasn’t a lot of film exposure going back a couple of years, and we weren’t in that market, so I didn’t know other than watching him throw at his pro day that you’re saying, ‘Alright, you can see a lot of the things that you would like and that would make sense.'”

The 49ers’ clandestine operation worked as even Lance said he didn’t know he was the choice until the phone call from the team.

“[Shanahan] had everybody fooled, and he got the people that he knew we’d be looking to to fool us as well,” McVay said.

[Futureshock]

New movie takes a swipe at the Dolphins

Posted by Mike Florio on July 7, 2021, 6:51 PM EDT

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Usually, pop-culture jokes about bad football teams usually are reserved only for truly bad football teams. The Dolphins are not a bad football team, and yet they’re the butt of a joke in a new movie.

As explained by Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (via Sports Business Daily), The Tomorrow War includes multiple cracks at the recent fortunes fo the Fins.

“So, do the Miami Dolphins ever win the Super Bowl?” Chris Pratt’s character asks at one point in the time-travel film.

Later, after Pratt’s character returns from the future, the character played by J.K. Simmons asks, “So how was the future? The Miami Dolphins still suck?”

As Kelly notes, other teams would much better fit the joke. Teams like the Lions or the Browns or the Jets. Indeed, the Dolphins are becoming competitive, and they still have more Super Bowl trophies in the case than the Bills, Jets, Browns, Bengals, Titans, Jaguars, Texans, Chargers, Eagles, Vikings, Bears, Lions, Saints, Panthers, Falcons, Seahawks, Rams, or Cardinals.

[Futureshock]

Jerry Rice thinks he’d have double the stats in today’s game

Posted by Mike Florio on July 7, 2021, 5:02 PM EDT

USA TODAY Sports

Hall of Fame receiver Jerry Rice created a statistical bar that never may be matched or beaten. Rice believes that, if he were playing today, he’d be even better.

“First of all, the game really favors the wide receiver now, because you can’t put your hands on him,” Rice told Brother from Another, which is on location today and tomorrow in Lake Tahoe. “Linebackers can’t take shots at you coming across the middle anymore. It’s kind of hard because it’s hypothetical, I probably might be able to like double everything.”

Given what he did at a time when the sport was much more brutal than it now is, it’s hard to doubt him. Watch any game from his era. Receivers got banged around all day long. With greater freedom to run his routes and to catch passes without the risk of getting blown up, Rice probably would be even more dominant now than he was then.

So when will another Jerry Rice come along and put up double his numbers? We’re still waiting for that next receiver who combines incredible God-given talent with a relentless work ethic and desire that involves never talking days off or plays off and always trying to get the most out of every snap in which he’s involved.

[Futureshock]

Kyle Shanahan’s feared Julio Jones would be traded to the Rams

Posted by Josh Alper on July 7, 2021, 4:08 PM EDT

USA TODAY Sports

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was unhappy to hear that Matthew Stafford was going to the Rams in a trade this offseason, but that feeling would have been even worse if another big-name offensive player had landed in Los Angeles.

Shanahan shared his feelings about Stafford on the Flying Coach podcast with Rams head coach Sean McVay and Peter Schrager and then went on to say that his “biggest fear” was that the Rams were also going to swing a trade for wide receiver Julio Jones. Jones wound up going to the Titans, but the Rams were mentioned along with the AFC South team as a possible trade partner before the deal went down.

The eventual destination made Shanahan happy and said the 49ers didn’t make a stronger pursuit because of what a trade would have meant to the 49ers’ future assets, but told McVay and Schrager he would have been willing to throw caution to the wind if it looked like the Rams were closing in on the wideout.

“That’s actually the most frustrating thing for me,” Shanahan said. “I always say, ‘Let’s do it the right way,’ which, there’s no right way or wrong way, but you don’t want to have to risk your future to compete in one year. And that’s the hardest thing about being in our division because I know how Sean rolls. That’s very similar to me. And I can see that in the other two guys in our division. Julio would have helped everybody, but you know what it’s doing to your organization for that year and the years to come. That’s a really risky thing, but man, if Sean’s getting him, I’m going to risk that. I know that’s how he thinks, that’s how we all think. You’ve got to compete with your division first.”

McVay said he felt the same way as Shanahan, who referred to the NFC West’s offseason as an “arms race” that should make for some entertaining divisional action this fall.

[jaadam4]

No.

This.. not a chance

[Futureshock]

NFL teams brace for stadium hiring struggles

Posted by Mike Florio on July 8, 2021, 8:45 PM EDT

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Good news for the NFL: Fans will be back in stadiums this year. Bad news for the NFL: Fans will be back in stadiums this year.

There’s a bad-news component to a return to football normalcy because, as a league source tells PFT, teams are bracing for struggles when it comes to hiring stadium workers.

The game-day experience, from parking-lot attendants to ticket takers to concessions workers to ushers to security and beyond, entails well over a thousand employees per stadium. Last year, most of those persons had little or no work. Now, with a year away from it, teams have become concerned that many won’t want to come back.

From COVID concerns to the basic fact that the allure of working for an NFL team in an NFL stadium may have diminished since 2019, teams realize that they may face a real challenge when it comes to hiring workers — the same type of challenge with which many businesses throughout the country have dealt. As many will say, the simplest solution entails paying more money to the stadium workers. And that may be precisely what happens. However, to some extent and in some fashion, those costs inevitably will flow through to the customer.

Then there’s the reality that some teams (i.e., the smart ones) will develop a proactive plan for dealing with the problem (including but not limited to automation of tasks, where possible) and that other teams (i.e., the dumb ones) will end up undermining the experience for fans by playing it cheap and/or not having around strategy when it comes to staffing the stadiums.

[Futureshock]

Harrison Smith: I don’t plan to leave Vikings, but the NFL is the NFL

Posted by Josh Alper on July 8, 2021, 4:49 PM EDT

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Vikings safety Harrison Smith said recently that he’s “going to look at those things and see what we can do” about extending his stay with the team now that he’s in the final year of his contract.

During an appearance on the All Things Covered podcast with Bryant McFadden and Vikings teammate Patrick Peterson, Smith reiterated his desire to remain with Minnesoa while using something Peterson said on a previous episode of the show to acknowledge how long relationships between players and teams can come to an end.

“Yeah,” Smith said, via Will Ragatz of SI.com. “I mean I don’t know what happens at the end of careers. I was listening to, it might’ve been the [episode] with Champ [Bailey], Pat Pete was saying at that ten-year mark, sometimes things change. I don’t plan on that happening, but the NFL is the NFL. It’s always wild. But I’ll always consider myself a Viking no matter what.”

Peterson signed with the Vikings after 10 years in Arizona, so his comments come from personal experience that Smith hopes he’ll be able to avoid.

[Futureshock]

Will another team trade for N’Keal Harry?

Posted by Mike Florio on July 8, 2021, 11:20 AM EDT

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The Patriots spent a first-round pick on receiver N'Keal Harry in 2019. Whether a failure or drafting or development or some of both, it’s looking like it’s over for Harry in New England.

His agent has asked for a trade, an obvious move if the Patriots are willing to do it and, frankly, a potential disaster if the Patriots have not yet decided that they don’t want him.

Regardless, the ball sits on the tee. Will another team kick it?

An unnamed source from a team with no currently obvious needs at the position predicts that the Patriots, if willing to trade Harry, could get a fifth-round pick for the first-round prospect — possibly with another pick flowing from New England to the new team as part of the usual balancing act reflected by so many other trades, like a 2023 seventh-rounder.

Before another team trades for Harry, that team needs to figure out whether Harry simply needs a change of scenery. He’s not producing, and he’s had injuries. The Patriots quite possibly have concluded that he just can’t perform well enough at the NFL level. If the exercise of due diligence uncovers any attitude issues, that could destroy his market.

There’s a financial component as well. Harry will earn $1.4 million in 2021 and $1.87 million in 2022. Of the remaining salaries, only $673,000 is guaranteed for skill, injury, and cap. The fact that the Patriots would avoid that obligation becomes a factor in trade talks. However, if he’s waived and unclaimed, chances are he’ll land with another team and make at least that much elsewhere.

[Futureshock]

Check the quote (BOLD)




Anthony Lynn: Justin Herbert should have a “great foundation” going forward

Posted by Myles Simmons on July 8, 2021, 10:03 AM EDT

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The Chargers appear to have struck gold in drafting Justin Herbert last year at No. 6 overall, with the quarterback setting several rookie passing records en route to winning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.

But as good as Herbert was, his former head coach Anthony Lynn was still fired following the conclusion of the season.

Lynn is now the Lions’ offensive coordinator. But during an appearance on the Compas on the Beat podcast, Lynn explained to Gilbert Manzano and Fernando Ramirez how he didn’t want to set up Herbert to fail by playing him too early as a rookie.

“I loved Justin coming out. He was our guy and [G.M.] Tom Telesco loved him, but we did a lot of work on Justin,” Lynn said. “I did not want to expose him too soon. I’ve seen what that has done to some top picks — especially at the quarterback position. And how sometimes, those young men never recover because they’re living in a day and age where media is just right there. I mean, social media, and things spread, and some of these kids are just not mentally strong enough to overcome a lot of the negative vibes that they get early in their careers. I think that’s pretty obvious when you look at the quarterback position.

“But Justin had to go in and play. We didn’t have any choice. Tyrod [Taylor] got his lungs punctured. Justin found out as the ball was literally in the air — I’m grabbing Justin saying, ‘You’re the starter.’ And the way he handled that situation, I tell you what, he couldn’t have handled it any better.”

Herbert and the Chargers didn’t win that Week Two matchup with the Chiefs, but he threw for 311 yards with a touchdown and interception and also rushed for a TD. Herbert continued to look like he belonged the next week, throwing for 330 yards with a touchdown and interception in a loss to the Panthers.

After finishing with 4,336 yards, 31 TDs, and 10 picks in 15 games as a rookie, Herbert is well on his way to becoming one of the game’s elite quarterbacks.

“There’s a lot of things that went on that you guys will never know about [from] behind the scenes,” Lynn said. “But that’s part of him being a young, rookie quarterback. But overall, the way he handled that situation, I could not have asked for anything better. And I just think that’s going to be a great foundation for him going forward.”
__________________________________________________ _________________________________

Quinn screwed the team and himself by not having a poker face and being able to manipulate the situation before the 2020 draft.

[Futureshock]

The other part of that, as it relates to the current situation with the Lions is they decided to go with a OT over some notable QBs this April. That's ok IF this OL are moving Heaven and Earth and they make the running game a fixture in Detroit; OR Goff turns out to be better then most people think he is; OR those QBs they passed on (Fields, Jones) are not as good as QBs who are available to them in 2022 or 2023. They could have drafted a QB this year and groomed him for 2023. The Lions stuck with Goff until then. But, if he doesn't work out they will probably be fielding a rookie QB in 2023.

[Fraquar]

If if's and but's were candy and nuts. You got a veteran QB - you build everything else on that team, until such point in time he dictates by his play that you do otherwise. You give him the best chance to succeed - whether it be directly or indirectly (by drafting a defensive player). End of story, anything else is cutting his nutsack - putting him in a position where he's expected to succeed and giving him nothing that could possibly help him do that.

[edindetroit]

The other part of that, as it relates to the current situation with the Lions is they decided to go with a OT over some notable QBs this April. That's ok IF this OL are moving Heaven and Earth and they make the running game a fixture in Detroit; OR Goff turns out to be better then most people think he is; OR those QBs they passed on (Fields, Jones) are not as good as QBs who are available to them in 2022 or 2023. They could have drafted a QB this year and groomed him for 2023. The Lions stuck with Goff until then. But, if he doesn't work out they will probably be fielding a rookie QB in 2023.

And then what, stick the rookie out there to get creamed with no grooming?

[edindetroit]

Former Bears LB Barkevious Mingo charged with indecency with child in Texas

https://wgntv.com/sports/former-bears-lb-barkevious-mingo-charged-with-indecency-with-child-in-texas/amp/

[Futureshock]

And then what, stick the rookie out there to get creamed with no grooming?

Well, I'd rather do that then take a lesser prospect. I really like Thibodeaux (sp?) and i really see the 2022 QBs available to draft as one of those years there is not a true game changer at QB. All of those dudes will be backups or out of the league by their second contract.

Passing on QB (in the draft this year) basically was passing for the next 2 years. I don't want someone just because he was the best of a bad bunch.

Also, by then this OL should give any QB a lot of time and winnable "down & distances."

If not, things really have gone wrong.

[Futureshock]

How could you tell?



Jay Cutler worries about CTE

Posted by Mike Florio on July 10, 2021, 8:58 PM EDT

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Former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler played long enough to take plenty of hits. Now that his career is over, Cutler is concerned that he’s taken too many hits to the head.

“I’ve damaged enough things and brain parts and heart and everything in my life, if I make it to 80, or anything after that, I’ll be happy,” Cutler told Clay Skipper of GQ, via the New York Post.

Does he think about Chronic Traumatic Encephelopathy?

“Oh, absolutely,” Cutler said. “I would say definitely my memory isn’t the same as it was five years ago. The amount of concussions I’ve had are probably in the double digits. It’s gonna catch up to me at some point. I’m just trying to delay it as much as possible.”

Cutler says he’s been cutting sugar and increasing fish oil intake to guard against potential cognitive problems.

Like the vast majority of players, however, Cutler has no regrets and he’d do it all over again.

“Absolutely I would,” Cutler said. “I wouldn’t even question it. I’d sign up in a heartbeat. The relationships that I made, the memories that I have, the lifestyle it’s accustomed me and my kids [to]. It outweighs the benefits. In my mind. There may be some people that say, ‘Hey, that’s crazy.’ But I’d do it all over again, no question about it.”

The consequences of CTE still aren’t fully known or understood. Still, every player who played football long enough to get to the NFL understandably has concerns about what the future may entail.