The NFL may have a reason to look into the reported 33 pages of text messages (via Jenny Wilson of the Hartford Courant) between Patriots coach Bill Belichick and former tight end Aaron Hernandez. As ProFootballTalk.com’s Mike Florio writes, the league’s recent labor deal limits the amount of interaction between coaches and players during the offseason. The text messages, which were sent between February and May 2013, suggests some kind of communication.
However, the rule, which states “players’ activities may not be directed or supervised by any coaches,” can be interpreted very broadly and might not suggest a violation. Furthermore, the previous Peyton Manning/Adam Gase controversy proved that the league is willing to ignore some transgressions.
Let’s see what else is happening in the NFL’s East divisions…
- ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak gives Bills linebacker Randell Johnson a 75 percent change of making the squad, adding that Kiko Alonso‘s injury certainly helped his case.
- The Eagles have plenty of options moving forward if Nick Foles struggles in 2014, writes Sheil Kapadia of PhillyMag.com. Since Foles is signed through 2015, the Eagles could delay extending the quarterback and draft a rookie to add some competition.
- Giants guard Chris Snee is “still on track” to recover from his various ailments and should be ready for the start of training camp, reports Jordan Raanan of NJ.com. The veteran’s presence would be huge for the offensive line, but there are still plenty of question marks regarding his durability.
- Prince Amukamara, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Walter Thurmond and Zack Bowman have pretty much locked up their respective spots on the Giants cornerback depth chart. ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano discusses who will earn the final cornerback spots, siding with Trumaine McBride and Jayron Hosley, who is suspended for the first four games. The writer suggests that Charles James and Bennett Jackson could also be in the running.