NFL News

[edindetroit]

After another playoff failure, will changes be coming to Buffalo?

Posted by Mike Florio on January 23, 2023, 8:21 PM EST

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Bills coach Sean McDermott reacted to another disappointing playoff loss the only way he could. He said that the team will keep knocking on the door.

At some point, however, it’s fair to wonder whether McDermott will continue to be the one who knocks.

Before the 2022 season began, we addressed the intense pressure the Bills were facing in 2022. The expectations were crippling. It wasn’t fair to the Bills, not with so many great teams in the AFC.

And now that the Bills have exited in the divisional round for the second straight year, losing only their second ever home playoff game, it’s fair to wonder what may be happening behind the scenes, as McDermott contemplates potential changes to the coaching staff — and as ownership potentially contemplates potential changes to key positions like head coach and General Manager.

That’s not to say changes should be made. The point is that only ownership has the power to make those decisions, and that it’s possible for ownership to conclude that, as quarterback Josh Allen enters the front end of his prime, the team’s current power structure has taken the team as far as it can.

At the same time that ownership ponders (if it is) the future of coach Sean McDermott, McDermott ponders (if he is) the future of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier. Ownership possibly will be placated by a half measure, similar to what the Chargers did after losing in the wild-card round.

But ownership also may decide that it needs a head coach who is an offensive expert. An offensive expert who can be joined at the hip with Josh Allen.

As it stands, the Bills have started to become an incubator for head coaches. A year after Brian Daboll went from being offensive coordinator to head coach of the Giants, his replacement (Ken Dorsey) had an interview with the Panthers. (Whether the rules should have allowed Dorsey to be distracted while preparing for the Bengals is a very different — but very real — issue.)

Dorsey could get the job in Carolina. Or he could be fired. Or everyone could be fired. Or everyone, including Dorsey, could get another year.

At this point, no one knows. And what anyone outside the organization thinks doesn’t matter.

Only ownership makes that call. And like owners of past teams that consistently got onto the porch but couldn’t kick in the front door, it’s possible that the owners of the Bills will decide that, in order to get over the top, changes need to be made.

Their fans want to clean house

[Futureshock]

Thanks to the Lions, sure they will...

If there’s a trade, will the Packers get more for Aaron Rodgers than they got for Brett Favre?

Posted by Mike Florio on January 24, 2023, 11:03 AM EST

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One of the perfunctory, quota-filling, box-checking Sunday Splash! reports from divisional round weekend wasn’t really news at all. As is often the case.

There’s a very real possibility Aaron Rodgers will be traded!

Yes. Yes, there is. We knew that five days earlier, when Rodgers made it clear on Pat McAfee’s show that Rodgers believes he could be an MVP with another team — and when Rodgers basically read off a ransom note of players he wants the team to keep, or else. It was more than enough to get us to look at every possible landing spot for Rodgers, which obviously would happen via trade.

The question then becomes finding a trade partner for Rodgers. It needs to be a team he’s willing to play for. Even though he doesn’t have a no-trade clause, he made the 100-percent dead-on balls accurate observation last week with McAfee and company that no team for which he doesn’t want to play will be trading for him.

So what will Rodgers want? Where will he want to play?

Will he want to play for a team that is stacked at every position except quarterback? On the surface, why wouldn’t he? At a deeper level, that puts even more pressure on Rodgers to be the difference maker.

Maybe the play will be to go to a team that will have reasonable expectations, even if he’s on that team. Peter King suggested the Jets in his latest edition of Football Morning in America, a fitting repeat of the Brett Favre career arc. King also floated the Patriots and the Raiders.

The Packers will want compensation for Rodgers. The Jets gave up a conditional fourth-round pick for Favre, which could have (but didn’t) become a first-round pick. It’s hard to imagine Rodgers yielding much more than that; for the Green Bay front office, the value primarily comes from unloading his $58.3 million compensation package for 2023, and secondarily from, you know, Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead.

Also, it’s one thing to give up a pair of first-round picks for a young player. It’s quite another to give up major draft-pick compensation for a guy who is clearly on a year-to-year arrangement. Hell, there’s a chance (remote but still not implausible) that Rodgers would decide after the offseason program that he made a mistake, and that he shouldn’t continue his career at all.

Wherever he plays in 2023, he needs to be all in. He needs to be fully engaged. If he’s with a new team, it becomes even more important to be present and engaged. He’ll need to get to know his new teammates. More importantly, they’ll need to get to know him.

So, yes, it’s a real possibility that he’ll be traded. That’s not news. It’s obvious. He’ll either play for the Packers, retire, or play for someone else.

[Futureshock]

Bengals now favored over Chiefs in AFC Championship Game

Posted by Michael David Smith on January 24, 2023, 10:47 AM EST

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The Chiefs opened as one-point favorites over the Bengals in the AFC Championship Game, but most of the money is going Cincinnati’s way.

The Bengals are now the favorites, by 1.5 points at most sports books and up to two points at some.

Patrick Mahomes‘ ankle injury is the obvious explanation for why bettors are putting their money on the Bengals. Although Chiefs coach Andy Reid indicated that Mahomes will play, whether he’ll be healthy enough to play at the high level he usually plays at is another question.

The No. 1 seed is rarely an underdog in the conference championship game, and when it is an injury to the starting quarterback is usually the reason: The last No. 1 seed to be an underdog in a conference championship was the 2017 Eagles, who were three-point underdogs against the Vikings in the NFC Championship Game as a result of starting Nick Foles in place of the injured Carson Wentz. The Eagles won that game, and the Super Bowl.

[Futureshock]

Tom Brady’s response to Jim Gray was a strange overreaction

Posted by Mike Florio on January 24, 2023, 10:17 AM EST

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Last night, a surprisingly belligerent quote emerged from quarterback Tom Brady‘s podcast, during which he was asked about his football future for 2023 and replied with a pair of F bombs.

“If I knew what I was going to fucking do, I would’ve already fucking done it,” Brady said. “I’m taking it a day at a time. . . . I appreciate you asking. Thank you.”

The situation becomes even more bizarre when considering the precise question posted by co-host Jim Gray.

Gray, as demonstrated by the audio of the show, didn’t give Brady the Pete Rose treatment. Gray didn’t even ask Brady if he knew what he was going to do. Gray simply asked Brady if he has a “timetable” for making a decision.

Although they laughed it off quickly, Brady’s broken-brain Andy Bernard wall punch in response to Gray’s question may have been aimed at concealing the truth, as Brady admits he routinely does. Currently, teams other than the Buccaneers aren’t supposed to talk to Brady. Recent history tells us that teams often do talk to Brady when they’re not supposed to.

Brady’s timeline will be to find out who’s interested at a time when he’s not supposed to know it. His timeline will be to weigh his options and make a decision, at or about the time free agency opens — and at or about the time other teams are permitted to talk to him.

There can be real consequences, even though tampering often happens without scrutiny or consequence. Last year, the league took a first-round pick from the Dolphins for tampering with Brady and former Saints coach Sean Payton. Brady surely doesn’t want to be responsible for causing more teams to lose first-round picks.

[jaadam4]

Bill O’Brien is the new Patriots OC.
Also saw the rumors yesterday that Matt Patricia could separate with the Patriots.

great hire. I’d love nothing more than to see rocket pencil boy be fired. He has zero redeeming qualities

[ghandi]

Belichik was probably waiting to see if the Raiders were going to fire McDaniels.....

[Futureshock]

AARON RODGERSQB, GREEN BAY PACKERS
ESPN's Adam Schefter doesn't believe the Packers will trade Aaron Rodgers to an NFC team if they were to trade him this offseason.


Schefter notes that trading Rodgers would free up roughly $60 million in guaranteed money for the Packers, who are already in a tight spot as far as 2023 cap concerns go. There's no guarantee the Packers would trade Rodgers this offseason, but there are a number of AFC teams who would be interested should he come available -- like half of the AFC West and the New York Jets. Of course, the future hall of famer could also opt to retire, something he's mulled over for the last few offseasons. Regardless, it's setting up to be another eventful spring for Rodgers and the Packers as both sides try to figure out what's best for themselves next season.

SOURCE: Adam Schefter on ESPN
Jan 24, 2023, 1:20 PM ET

[Futureshock]

Belichik was probably waiting to see if the Raiders were going to fire McDaniels.....

Who wasn't?

[Futureshock]

MAC JONESQB, NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS
MassLive's Mark Daniels reports Mac Jones is "very excited" to work with new Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien.


Jones and O'Brien overlapped briefly at Alabama, where Jones worked with O'Brien during the pre-draft process in 2021 and helped O'Brien learn the ins and outs of Alabama's offensive system. O'Brien served as New England's offensive coordinator from 2009 to 2011, before he landed the Texans head coaching position. "Considering O’Brien learned Josh McDaniels’ system first, he now can mix and match the Patriots former system and Alabama’s current offense," Daniels said. "That should create an offense that best fits Jones’ skill set." Jones took a major step back in 2022 following a hopeful rookie campaign. How much of that can be pinned on former OC Matt Patricia is up for debate.

SOURCE: MassLive.com
Jan 24, 2023, 11:57 AM

[LightninBoy]

Thanks to the Lions, sure they will...

If there’s a trade, will the Packers get more for Aaron Rodgers than they got for Brett Favre?

Posted by Mike Florio on January 24, 2023, 11:03 AM EST

Getty Images

One of the perfunctory, quota-filling, box-checking Sunday Splash! reports from divisional round weekend wasn’t really news at all. As is often the case.

There’s a very real possibility Aaron Rodgers will be traded!

He’ll either play for the Packers, retire, or play for someone else.

[Futureshock]

AARON RODGERSQB, GREEN BAY PACKERS
NBC Sports' Peter King reports Jets owner Woody Johnson would "happily" acquire Aaron Rodgers in a trade.


ESPN's Adam Schefter recently reported that a Rodgers trade is a "very real possibility" this offseason after the Packers failed to make the postseason. King said moving Rodgers would hardly be a heavy lift for a team like the Jets since Rodgers' "cap numbers in the next two seasons would be $48.3 million, combined. That’s certainly manageable. As for the compensation due Green Bay, my guess is the Pack would want at least two first-round picks." The Jets last week interviewed former Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett for the team's offensive coordinator job, perhaps to attract Rodgers' interest. Rodgers worked with Hackett in Green Bay before Hackett landed the Denver job. With a talent-packed roster and no viable starting quarterback options on the roster, the Jets would seem to be a solid fit for Rodgers. Jordan Love would presumably take over for the Packers if Rodgers is dealt this offseason.

RELATED:

• Zach Wilson
• , Jordan Love
• , Mike White
• , New York Jets

SOURCE: FMIA
Jan 24, 2023, 10:51 AM

[jaadam4]

There’s no way the Pack would seriously hand the reigns to Jordan Love right? He’s frigging terrible. I would 100% “Love” that.

[Futureshock]

IDK if they just said it to calm the fan base, but, they have repeatedly said how happy they are with him.

[Futureshock]

Report: Colts plan second interview with Jeff Saturday

Posted by Josh Alper on January 25, 2023, 6:48 AM EST

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The Colts are moving on to a second round of interviews for their head coaching job and interim head coach Jeff Saturday reportedly remains in the mix.

Saturday went 1-7 after taking over the team in the wake of Frank Reich’s firing, but neither that record nor his lack of coaching experience appear to be working against him at this point. Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press reports that the Colts plan to interview Saturday again.

Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero is also set for a second interview and, per the report, seven or eight total candidates are expected back for another meeting.

While the team is moving to second interviews, Maaddi also reports that they’d like to interview 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans for the first time. Ryans will not be able to interview with the team until the 49ers season is over, however, and a win on Sunday would mean that the Colts would have to put the rest of the process on hold until mid-February to make that happen.

[Futureshock]

Brandon Beane: Bengals have advantage of Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase on rookie contracts

Posted by Michael David Smith on January 25, 2023, 4:46 AM EST

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Bills General Manager Brandon Beane says one of the reasons it’s tough to keep pace with the Bengals is that Cincinnati has its best players on inexpensive rookie contracts, while Buffalo does not.

“They right now are on the advantage of a rookie quarterback contract,” Beane said of Joe Burrow. “They had some lean years, and without getting too much into their build, I don’t want to suck bad enough to have to get Ja’Marr Chase. He’s a heck of a talent, I’d love to have him, but you got to go through some lean years to do that. They were able to get Burrow No. 1 and Chase [No. 5] and those guys are on their rookie deals. We’re paying Stefon Diggs a pretty hefty number. We’re paying Josh Allen a pretty hefty number. So there is the constraints of the cap. They have a really good team and they’ve got some good young players. We’re gonna try to get as many players as we can through the draft and through free agency, but again, our cap situation is a little different.”

Beane said the NFL has not told teams what the 2023 salary cap will be, but Beane expects the Bills to be over it heading into the offseason. That means the Bills’ first priority will be making moves to get under the cap, rather than signing expensive free agents.

“We’re going to have to get under the cap by moves, roster cuts. . . . There’s not gonna be a Von Miller signing or something like that. We’re going to have to work to get under the cap so we can operate this year,” Beane said.

Beane said there are moves that the Bills can make to reduce salary cap hits this year, but those moves end up pushing salary cap hits into future seasons, so Beane doesn’t want to make too many such moves.

“I don’t want to in two years be $100 million over the cap, like we’ve seen teams have to do. I’m not looking to do that,” Beane said.

Burrow will likely sign a lucrative contract extension this year, and Chase likely next year, so the Bengals won’t have that advantage for long. But for now, it’s an advantage that makes Beane jealous of the Bengals’ situation.