NFL News

[Whitley]

Honestly all the black vs white and how racist / bigoted America is really pisses me off. I've lived here on the continent of Africa for 16 years. If you want racist, bigoted rule you should come over here and see what racism really looks like. Its not just for the white people either, these gov'ts want their own people to be completely stupid and uneducated so they can continue to cheat elections and gain votes by hate. Watching America turn on itself when they have everything going for them is hard to watch.

That has been the corporate/Republican agenda for decades now. It has always been a long term project.

[froot loops]

Take that stuff to the politics thread.

[dpatnod]

Not at all. I'm saying our great country is rotting from the inside out. We should be leading the world and protecting our identity instead of following the medias bus driving skills.

Just today Republican Marjorie Traitor Green called for a 'national divorce', with 'red' states seceding from the country. It's not all driven by the media.

[jaadam4]

I'll bow out of the political conversation as this topic went off the rails. Tomorrow I'll take some pics of the townships or "locations" where the majority of the population lives at so you guys can gain a better understanding of when I say the gov't wants people stupid. I don't mean looking at their phones or marching to their beat, i mean literally dumb and hungry.

I won't be able to get pics on the inside as I'd never make it out. Literally

[chemiclord]

You must have missed my post where i said that i don't give a shit about anyone other than Detroit Lions and I hope that they all fail no mater the color. I also said that maybe all the owners did say "nobody hire Eric Bieniem because he's black". That's always a possibility but maybe just maybe there's another reason that he's only been brought back for a second interview by ONE team

He's interviewed with 15 teams and only the JETS brought him back a second time. Is race literally the only thing this could be?

For a guy who doesn't give a shit about KC, you have sure had a lot of thoughts about their former OC and his head coach credentials.

[whatever_gong82]

What we learned about every NFL team: 32 lessons from the 2022 season

By Mike Jones

Feb 21, 2023

The dust has settled from the 2022 NFL season, and now teams have turned their attention to the future. Next week, the NFL Scouting Combine kicks off, followed shortly after by free agency and the draft.

In the meantime, we’re taking a look back at the lessons learned from each franchise, and what they could mean for teams going forward.

AFC

Kansas City Chiefs (14-3): The Chiefs are the NFL’s latest dynasty. Seven straight AFC West titles, five straight AFC Championship Game appearances, four Super Bowl appearances, two Lombardi Trophies. In the age of the salary cap and free agency, that kind of consistent excellence is really hard to achieve. Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and Brett Veach already have us wondering if this franchise can challenge Tom Brady and Bill Belichick’s records in New England.

Buffalo Bills (13-3): Buffalo is too Josh Allen dependent. The quarterback delivered yet another MVP-caliber season, but the load proved a bit too heavy for him to carry alone against Cincinnati in the divisional round. The Bills should’ve gotten Kareem Hunt at the trade deadline to arm Allen with a consistent run game. This offseason, Brandon Beane certainly must find a running back, another reliable receiver to pair with Stefon Diggs and additional pass-rushing help.

Cincinnati Bengals (12-4): Joe Burrow is that dude. He may have even leap-frogged Allen for the No. 2 spot on the elite QB list led by Mahomes. He’s eligible for a contract extension now, and the Bengals must check that off their to-do list. Then they must be as creative as possible at extending other key players and adding additional pieces (help at tight end and defensive back would be nice) to extend this window of contention.

Los Angeles Chargers (10-7): Brandon Staley still has more growing to do. From his decision to play key veterans in a meaningless Week 18 game (losing big-play wideout Mike Williams in the process) and the collapse in the wild-card round, the coach showed that decision-making and leadership in the NFL can be a painful process to learn.

Baltimore Ravens (10-7): Actions speak louder than words. Ownership and management can profess love for Lamar Jackson, and Jackson can pledge allegiance to the team, but another season has come and gone without Baltimore having awarded the face of its franchise the massive pay day he deserves. Now the future of their union is in doubt.

Jacksonville Jaguars (9-8): Trevor Lawrence is going to be OK, and maybe more than OK. It took roughly half the season, but Doug Pederson helped the 2021 No. 1 draft pick turn the corner, which in turn helped propel Jacksonville to the playoffs.

Miami Dolphins (9-8): The Dolphins have a chance to be very good under Mike McDaniel, but much of their success hinges on the health of Tua Tagovailoa, and Miami’s ability to acquire a viable option for QB2.

Pittsburgh Steelers (9-8): Mike Tomlin still has it. Make that 16 straight seasons (his entire head coaching career) without a losing record after this year’s rebound from 1-4 to finish 9-8 as Kenny Pickett displayed growth.

New England Patriots (8-9): Belichick is good, but not good enough to thrive without an offensive coordinator. The decision to entrust Matt Patricia with the offense cost New England another shot at the playoffs and also possibly stunted Mac Jones’ growth.

New York Jets (7-10): Zach Wilson is not the answer, at least not yet, and not with Mike LaFleur as his play-caller. The Jets are looking for a veteran quarterback after Wilson (the No. 2 pick in 2021) failed to make it through his sophomore season without being benched. Then, Robert Saleh and LaFleur mutually agreed to part ways. LaFleur had followed Saleh to San Francisco in 2021, but the first-time play-caller struggled to get the Jets offense in gear.

Tennessee Titans (7-10): The decision to trade A.J. Brown instead of paying him proved costly — both for now-fired general manager Jon Robinson and the Titans. Tennessee struggled offensively all season without an impact wide receiver. It didn’t matter who played quarterback and how much of a workload Derrick Henry embraced. Those struggles contributed to a seven-game losing streak to close out the season.

Cleveland Browns (7-10): Deshaun Watson had far too much rust to work off to save the Browns’ season, and it might be harder than expected for him to recapture his elite form after missing nearly two seasons of action.

Las Vegas Raiders (6-11): Josh McDaniels’ success may have had more to do with Belichick and Brady. Despite all the Jon Gruden turmoil, Rich Bisaccia got this team into the playoffs in 2021 — a rare feat for an interim. But McDaniels struggled to direct an effective and consistent offense while going 6-11, and Derek Carr became the scapegoat.

Denver Broncos (5-12): 1) There’s a reason why the Seahawks were so willing to part with Russell Wilson. 2) There’s a big difference between being a non-play-calling offensive coordinator for Aaron Rodgers and running your own show.

Indianapolis Colts (4-12): It always pays to maintain a good relationship with the big boss. You might even mess around and get to test drive being an NFL head coach despite zero qualifications!

Houston Texans (3-13): It doesn’t matter how hard you get your guys to play despite facing long odds every single week. If ownership and management want a tank job and only view you as a place-holder, you’re nothing more than a place-holder.

NFC

Philadelphia Eagles (14-3): Prioritizing the offensive and defensive lines always pays off. Jalen Hurts’ growth from promising prospect to bona fide star ranked among the most impressive stories of the year. But the Eagles never would have made their dominant run to the Super Bowl had they not owned the best offensive and defensive lines in football. And, had that defensive line performed up to its standards set in the regular season and first two playoff games, Philly would’ve beaten Kansas City.

San Francisco 49ers (13-4): Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch are the best coach-GM tandem in the NFL. No other team could lose two starting quarterbacks and still make a run at a Super Bowl. The vision Shanahan and Lynch share for talent evaluation and roster construction, and Shanahan’s abilities as a leader, offensive architect and game-planner, means San Francisco always has a fighting chance.

Minnesota Vikings (13-4): Not even a steady quarterback, the best wideout in the game and a creative young coach can deliver a franchise to supremacy when your defense can’t stop anybody. That’s a big reason why the Vikings got bounced from the opening round of the playoffs, and why Kevin O’Connell has replaced Ed Donatell with Brian Flores.

Dallas Cowboys (12-5): Dak Prescott is a quality NFL quarterback, but it’s clear he and the Cowboys are at their best when Prescott isn’t asked to play superhero, and Dallas instead leans heavily into the run-first/stingy defense identity. Will Kellen Moore’s exit lead to a smarter approach for Prescott and the Cowboys?

New York Giants (9-7-1): Brian Daboll is a good coach. That’s it. That’s the lesson. Now the Giants just need to figure out the contract futures of Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley and continue fortifying Daboll’s roster.

Seattle Seahawks (9-8): Sometimes less is more. Geno Smith > Russell Wilson. Smith’s surprising effectiveness translated into greater consistency for the Seahawks as well as improved financial flexibility and additional draft picks, as Pete Carroll and John Schneider rebuild on the go.

Detroit Lions (9-8): After that weird introductory news conference and rocky 2021 campaign, it seems that Dan Campbell does indeed know how to lead. His Lions are trending in the right direction and would surprise no one if they scratch, claw and bite their way into the playoffs next season.

Washington Commanders (8-8-1): Gambling on Carson Wentz not once, but twice, was a bad move and it cost Ron Rivera and an otherwise pretty solid squad a much-needed playoff appearance.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9): Bruce Arians had more to do with Tampa Bay’s success than anyone gave him credit for. Thinking Tom Brady and Byron Leftwich could handle the offense on their own, and that Todd Bowles could juggle head coach duties and the running of an aging defense, now seems like a great miscalculation.

Green Bay Packers (8-9): Aaron Rodgers missed Davante Adams more than anyone imagined, and now it may be time for the Packers and the future Hall of Fame quarterback to go their separate ways, because the Super Bowl contention window appears to have closed.

Carolina Panthers (7-10): Not even two top-five quarterbacks from the 2018 draft could help the Panthers overcome the ineptitude of Matt Rhule. Steve Wilks turned the sinking ship into a respectable outfit, but Frank Reich got the permanent head coach job instead.

New Orleans Saints (7-10): Sean Payton’s abrupt departure left a significant hole in the organization. Without him to mask the deficiencies of the Saints’ journeyman quarterbacks, New Orleans suffered its first losing season in six years.

Atlanta Falcons (7-10): Arthur Smith got more out of this team than many expected as the Falcons hovered around .500 much of the year despite enduring a roster overhaul and salary cap hell. Now, the Falcons enter this offseason with resources and optimism.

Los Angeles Rams (5-12): The “F— them picks” approach did translate into a Super Bowl victory, but there’s always a price to pay, and it came in the form of an epic collapse in 2022 because the Rams lacked talented, young reinforcements to call on when aging veterans got hurt.

Arizona Cardinals (4-13): Kliff Kingsbury was indeed highly overrated. Now after hitting the reset button again, the Cardinals are hoping the same description doesn’t apply to Kyler Murray.

Chicago Bears (3-14): Smart coaches know how to pivot, and the best thing Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy did was scrapping the plan of using Justin Fields in a traditional sense and instead tailoring the Bears’ offense to his strengths. Now the quarterback has a season to grow on and just needs more around him to take the next step forward.


Mike Jones joined The Athletic as a national NFL writer in 2022 after five years at USA Today, where he covered the NFL, and eight years at The Washington Post, where he covered the Washington Commanders. He previously covered the Washington Wizards for The Washington Times. Mike is a native of Warrenton, Va.

[Nick Pappageorgio]

Reading the Daniel Jones/ Saquan Barkley thing…The franchise tag value for RBs is only 10.1m. That’s crazy

[ghandi]

Speaking of Daniel Jones, it is rumored he wants 45M plus per year on his next deal...No way is he worth that.

[wcfwtf]

In a free market economy ones worth is depended on what 1 person will give you.
You don’t get paid what your worth, you get paid what the job is worth

[froot loops]

He had a good year and free agents always get more than you think they will get. Jones has a 5th year option in 2023 for 23 million. The cap should be land between 245-250 million for 2024 and will probably be at $328 million in 2027. 45 million for decent quarterbacks is likely to be the baseline going forward.

[Futureshock]

I hope the Giants sign Jones to a long term contract. He sucks

The word on the street is he's asking for $45 mil/yr and they will be franchising him.

[ghandi]

but its these contracts that will make it difficult for the Lions with Goff....If Jones gets 45M, then I imagine Goff will want at least 50M...You can see why some people are saying the Lions should take Stroud if he is there at 6.

[froot loops]

A winning Super Bowl team is going to have to figure out a way to make it work with paying a quarterback 45-50 million. If the cap does go up 120 million in 5 years, who gives a shit?

[Futureshock]

No one can give a good reason to replace Goff because there's not a good reason. This year was his true test and I would give him a solid A-. He can be better in away games and I think he will be going forward.

[froot loops]

It's always enticing to think that you can get Pro Bowl production from a quarterback making peanuts. You are paying 10 million and other teams playing 45 million, great deal! But you could be like the Jets, they have had two successive quarterbacks on cheap rookie deals and now they are looking at possibly a third straight quarterback on a rookie deal.