HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

League Expects Full Season In 2020

May 3rd, 2020 at 10:56am CST by Rory Parks

Here’s some good news for football fans. Sources close to the situation tell Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that there is an “extremely small” chance that there will be no NFL season in 2020.

The league expects to release the 2020 schedule on May 9 as planned, and it will look like the usual 17-week, 16-game itinerary. It will be structured to allow for contingencies, but even if those contingencies are necessary, the NFL thinks it can play a full slate of 256 games and that the season can unfold just as it otherwise would in home stadiums that are open to fans from the jump.

While that position will surely attract plenty of skepticism, it’s expected that testing for COVID-19 will be simple and efficient by the time August rolls around. In addition, testing is expected to be widely available to the general public by then, which will allow the league to justify testing all of its players and other personnel on a daily basis.

Some reports have indicated that the league could impose a social distancing requirement for fans within stadiums, but Florio says that will not happen. After all, while those requirements could perhaps be enforced in the seating area, it would be impossible to enforce them in bathroom and concession queues and when entering/exiting. So if stadiums are open, they will be fully open, and it will be incumbent upon the fans themselves to stay away if they are susceptible to the virus. The league will likely protect itself by requiring some sort of “assumption of the risk” acknowledgment for fans who purchase tickets.

None of this means that training camp will open on time or that the season will get underway in September. But a delayed start to the season, which we discussed last week, would still allow for a full schedule to be played. And as long as the information the scientific community has gathered on the behavior of the virus is not proven “dramatically incorrect,” NFL fans can remain hopeful. Indeed, Florio says that real progress in testing is being made outside of the public eye, which is obviously great news for fans and non-fans alike.

Florio also says the NFL remains serious about moving some games to Saturdays in the event the college football season is cancelled, though the first iteration of the NFL schedule is not expected to include Saturday contests.

Bengals To Decline John Ross’ Fifth-Year Option

May 3rd, 2020 at 10:07am CST by Rory Parks

This won’t come as much of a surprise, but the Bengals have declined wide receiver John Ross‘ fifth-year option. Ross will therefore become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2020 season.

As a 2017 draft choice, Ross’ fifth-year option would have been guaranteed for injury only, but given his injury history, that was not a gamble Cincinnati was willing to take. Plus, as a top-10 pick in the 2017 draft, Ross’ option would have been worth a whopping $15.68MM, which would not have made sense for the team even if Ross had managed to stay completely healthy throughout his first three years in the league.

The Washington product was brought in to serve as a speed merchant and to add some sizzle to a passing offense that had become a middling unit despite the presence of A.J. Green. That did not happen. Instead, he failed to impress head coach Marvin Lewis in training camp in 2017, and between injuries and generally uninspiring play in practice, Ross played in only three games as a rookie and did not record a catch.

Though he started 10 games in 2018, he managed only 21 catches for 210 yards — which was a disappointment in terms of both overall output and yards-per-catch average — and after a hot start to 2019, he missed another eight games due to injury. The Bengals selected promising Clemson product Tee Higgins with the first pick of the second round in this year’s draft, and they are clearly preparing for life without Ross (which will probably look strikingly similar to life with Ross).

Andy Dalton To Sign With Cowboys

May 3rd, 2020 at 9:00am CST by Rory Parks

Just a couple of days after the Bengals released QB Andy Dalton, the Cowboys are bringing him back home. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, Dallas is signing the Texas native to a one-year, $3MM deal that can reach $7MM with incentives (Twitter link).

One immediate response to the signing is that it could be a leverage play for the Cowboys in their continuing negotiations with Dak Prescott. But according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, that is not the case (Twitter link). Rather, Dallas believes it has a legitimate chance to win the Super Bowl this year, and it’s not often that a team can add a quality, highly-experienced backup this late in the offseason.

And while Jelani Scott of NFL.com writes that Dalton is happy to be returning to his home state, the fact that he is signing with the Cowboys knowing that he will be the backup is telling. We heard immediately after Dalton’s release that the Patriots and Jaguars were interested in his services, and the three-time Pro Bowler would have theoretically had an opportunity to compete for the starting job with those clubs. So as Albert Breer of SI.com observes, perhaps New England’s and Jacksonville’s reported interest amounted to little more than due diligence (Twitter link).

On the other hand, Todd Archer of ESPN.com says Dalton’s decision to sign with the Cowboys was at least partially motivated by the coronavirus. Given the uncertainty created by the pandemic, Dalton — who lives in Dallas — was eager to stay at home even if that meant eschewing a better opportunity elsewhere (though since teams’ offseason programs look like they will remain virtual for the foreseeable future, it seems as if a better opportunity simply wasn’t presenting itself).

The last report concerning Prescott and the Cowboys suggested that negotiations between the two sides were going very well. Prescott has his detractors — just like Dalton — but he has not missed a game in his four-year career, and Dallas certainly hopes that trend will continue in 2020. But if Prescott does miss time, Dallas will have the luxury of inserting a capable signal-caller who has guided his team to the playoffs and who has a winning record over 133 games as a starting QB.

And Dalton, who expressed disappointment that the Bengals did not release him early enough for him to have a chance to catch on with a team that had not already addressed its quarterback position, will have the opportunity to truly explore unrestricted free agency in 2021, when the market will presumably be much less robust than it was this year.

The Cowboys are also rostering Cooper Rush, who has served as Prescott’s backup in each of the past three seasons. Rush is set to earn a non-guaranteed $2.1MM in 2020, but while the team doesn’t have a ton of cap space, it probably has enough to sign its draft class and get through the season (especially if Prescott signs a multi-year deal, which should lower his 2020 number). So even though Rush will be demoted to QB3, he still has a good chance of making the team.

Broncos Notes: Draft, Lindsay, O-Line

May 2nd, 2020 at 3:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

At pick No. 83, the Broncos drafted center Lloyd Cushenberry. The starting snapper for national champion LSU is the early favorite to be Denver’s Week 1 center. However, he may well have been the Broncos’ second choice for this role. The Broncos had a deal in place to move up to No. 79, where they would have taken Temple center Matt Hennessy, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports. The Jets were set to drop from No. 79 to No. 83 and add a Day 3 pick from the Broncos to do so, Mehta notes. The Falcons, however, scuttled these plans by drafting Hennessy at No. 78. Instead of moving up for Cushenberry, the Broncos stood pat. Interestingly, the Jets’ signing of two-year Broncos starter Connor McGovern created a Denver need at center. With the Falcons interrupting a Jets trade-down maneuver, Gang Green took defensive end Jabari Zuniga at No. 79.

Here is the latest out of Denver:

  • Melvin Gordon‘s two-year, $16MM Denver deal surprised many, with the Broncos already featuring two-time 1,000-yard rusher Phillip Lindsay. Count Lindsay as one of those surprised by the move. “It caught me off-guard,” Lindsay said during an interview with NFL.com’s Terrell Davis (video link via The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala). “It was like, ‘OK, I’ve put in work.’ It makes it seem like they don’t respect you enough to know the work you’re putting in. I was really upset at the beginning. I’m not gonna lie.” Lindsay said soon after he has since come around to the prospect of splitting time with Gordon, viewing the ex-Charger as another weapon in a retooled offense. As a 2018 UDFA, Lindsay is extension-eligible. He is set to make just $750K but has not indicated plans for a holdout.
  • Although the Broncos passed on Garett Bolles‘ $11MM fifth-year option, they did not draft a tackle. The team passed on both Ezra Cleveland and Josh Jones in Round 2, doing so to take Penn State speedster K.J. Hamler at No. 46. The Broncos passed on the blockers because they did not view either as having the chance to beat out Bolles or Elijah Wilkinson at left tackle, per Troy Renck of Denver7. Wilkinson, who played right tackle most of last season because of Ja’Wuan James‘ injury, is set to compete with Bolles for Denver’s starting left tackle gig.
  • Despite Bolles’ penchant for holding penalties and failure to thus far live up to his first-round billing, the Broncos are not in the market for a free agent tackle, Jhabvala notes (subscription required). Jason Peters, Donald Penn, Kelvin Beachum and Cordy Glenn are the most notable names available.

Bears To Decline Mitchell Trubisky’s Fifth-Year Option

May 2nd, 2020 at 2:46pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Bears will not exercise Mitchell Trubisky‘s fifth-year option, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter).

This will put the scrutinized former No. 2 overall pick in a contract year. Chicago acquired Nick Foles from Jacksonville this offseason. Although the Bears have liked Trubisky’s attitude since Foles’ arrival and are set to make this an open competition, per Pelissero, they are passing on extending his contract through 2021. This was the expected course of action, and the Bears are following through with it.

Because Trubisky was a top-10 pick, his option would have come in at $24.8MM. Based on the fourth-year quarterback’s track record, that price is quite lofty. While the Buccaneers and Titans respectively picked up Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota‘s options last year, the Bears are passing on their respective top-three draftee.

GM Ryan Pace pulled the trigger on a one-spot trade-up for Trubisky, climbing from No. 3 to No. 2 in 2017. At that point, Trubisky was viewed as a top-caliber prospect. But the one-year North Carolina starter has not lived up to expectations. The fact that Patrick Mahomes (pick No. 10) and Deshaun Watson (No. 12) have lapped the Bears starter has opened the door for endless scrutiny. Because Watson was picked 12th, his fifth-year option will come in at $17.5MM.

Trubisky regressed last season, finishing 28th in QBR. This prompted the Bears to bring in competition. They were close to an Andy Dalton trade before acquiring Foles later in March. The former Super Bowl LII MVP is viewed as the favorite to be Chicago’s starter this coming season. That would torpedo Trubisky’s value in free agency.

In 2018, Trubisky posted a 95.4 quarterback rating and threw for 24 touchdowns against 12 interceptions en route to a Pro Bowl nod (as an alternate). Last year, however, marked a step back. Trubisky threw 17 touchdown passes against 10 interceptions, and the Bears’ talented defense couldn’t make up for the offense’s shortcomings. The Bears went 8-7 in Trubisky’s 15 starts and finished .500 on the season, leaving them short of the postseason. Trubisky also battled hip and shoulder injuries, the latter requiring surgery.

Myles Garrett is the only member of 2017’s top five to see his fifth-year option exercised. Trubisky, 49ers defensive lineman Solomon Thomas, Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette and Titans wideout Corey Davis are now on track for 2021 free agency.

Jets Interested In Andy Dalton

May 2nd, 2020 at 1:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

An unexpected Andy Dalton suitor has surfaced. The Jets are exploring the recently released quarterback, Rich Cimini and Ben Baby of ESPN.com note.

This would likely be as a backup for Sam Darnold, and Cimini adds that the Jets are at the “due diligence” stage of this process. The Jets re-signed 2019 backup David Fales and drafted Florida International’s James Morgan in the fourth round.

A Dalton addition would prove interesting, with the nine-year Bengals starter obviously having accomplished far more than Darnold at this point. Darnold has ranked 25th and 28th in QBR in his two NFL seasons. Adam Gase and GM Joe Douglas were not with the Jets when Darnold was drafted in 2018. Dalton, then, would be the team’s first big quarterback investment since Gase and Douglas entered the picture.

A Darnold-Dalton depth chart would understandably insert competition into the equation, with the latter having three Pro Bowls on his resume. Each invite came as an alternate, but Dalton certainly is a much bigger name than any of Darnold’s backups thus far.

Thus far, the Jaguars have been the team most connected to Dalton. New Jacksonville OC Jay Gruden worked with the veteran passer in Cincinnati. The Bears were close to a Dalton deal in March.

NFL Not Planning To Use Centralized Location For 2020 Season

May 2nd, 2020 at 1:36pm CST by Sam Robinson

The NFL is planning to release its schedule at some point late next week. It will include the usual 17-week, 16-game slate, though contingency plans are believed to be built into teams’ schedules. One notable adjustment, however, is not yet on the table.

While the NBA and Major League Baseball have discussed holding games at centralized locations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL has not put such a scenario on the table, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports. Empty stadiums have been discussed, but as of now, it sounds like those sites will be in teams’ home cities.

This proves interesting because of the increased personnel the NFL requires compared to the two other top American sports. NFL teams will have 55-man rosters this season, which obviously dwarf the NBA or MLB’s game-day numbers. Each team then employs dozens of coaches, training staffs, executives and various other personnel. Based on the current landscape, that would require a massive coronavirus testing undertaking — one that would include fewer variables if centralized location(s) were used. Coupled with the uncertainty of playing games in the states ravaged most by the pandemic, the viability of holding contests in certain cities is in doubt. Travel may still be an issue by this point as well.

The NBA has discussed congregating at Disney World in Orlando, while the MLB season occurring at spring training sites in Florida and Arizona surfaced weeks ago. As of now, no NFL teams are allowed in their respective facilities. As long as any state has a stay-at-home order, the NFL’s offseason must continue to unfold virtually.

The NFL’s schedule is also not expected to include Saturday games, Fowler adds. This comes after a report indicated the league has discussed moving some games to Saturdays — in the event college football postpones or cancels its season. It is not clear if this means the NFL will not still consider moving games to Saturdays, but it sounds like the Thursday-Sunday-Monday setup will be what appears on the schedule when it’s released next week.

Latest On QB Andy Dalton, Bengals

May 2nd, 2020 at 11:47am CST by Ben Levine

Before he was released earlier this week, there was some optimism that Andy Dalton would land in Chicago. As Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic writes, the Bengals “were very close” to trading the veteran quarterback to the Bears back in March, and Dalton himself believed that’d be his ultimate landing spot.

Instead, Chicago shifted focus to Nick Foles, sending a fourth-rounder to the Jaguars for the former Super Bowl MVP. When the Bengals/Bears trade broke down, Cincy’s front office quickly discovered that they didn’t have any trade options for Dalton. As Dehner writes, two potential suitors, the Colts and Buccaneers, solved their quarterback issues via free agency, and rival front offices soon realized that the Bengals weren’t going to retain Dalton’s pricey cap hit.

Dalton believes the waiting game ended up hurting his chances of finding an ideal landing spot.

“There were several different factors,” Dalton told Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “This year there were a good amount of quarterbacks that were available. I think it would have worked out differently if I had been a free agent when the new league year started. I was still under contact and that hurt me. I’m sure teams knew they were going to take a quarterback No. 1 and they would release me and there was no reason to rush into anything.”

With the Bengals zeroing in on LSU’s Joe Burrow with the first-overall pick, Dalton recently approached president Mike Brown, director of player personnel Duke Tobin, and head coach Zac Taylor for clarity. Ultimately, the organization decided to simply release the 32-year-old.

While Dalton opines that the waiting game impacted his ability to find a new team, it sounds like he may still have some options. We heard earlier this week that the Jaguars and Patriots could be among the teams interested in the veteran quarterback.

49ers QB Nick Mullens Signs ERFA Tender

May 2nd, 2020 at 10:29am CST by Ben Levine

Unsurprisingly, Nick Mullens will be back in San Francisco next season. The quarterback has signed his exclusive rights free agent tender, according to the 49ers website. It’s a one-year deal worth around $750K. Mullens was tendered as a ERFA back in March.

The 2017 undrafted free agent out of Southern Miss has spent his entire career with the 49ers, including a 2018 campaign where he started eight games. That season, he led San Francisco to a 3-5 record as a starter, completing 64.2-percent of his passes for 2,277 yards, 13 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.

With Jimmy Garoppolo fully healthy for the 2019 campaign, Mullens settled into a backup role and ultimately appeared in one game. The 25-year-old will compete with C.J. Beathard and undrafted rookie Broc Rutter for the same role in 2020.

Meanwhile, after signing nine undrafted rookies earlier this week, the 49ers have added another player to their roster, as the organization announced the signing of University of Washington running back Salvon Ahmed. As a junior, the running back ran for 1,020 yards and 11 scores.

Lions Expected To Decline LB Jarrad Davis’ Fifth-Year Option

May 2nd, 2020 at 9:35am CST by Ben Levine

It sounds like Jarrad Davis will be hitting free agency sooner than expected. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Lions won’t be picking up the linebacker’s fifth-year option. Davis will now become an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

Detroit selected the Florida product with the 21st-overall pick in the 2017 draft, making him the second linebacker off the board (Haason Reddick). Davis has been relatively productive during his three seasons in Detroit, compiling 259 tackles, 10 sacks, and five forced fumbles in 41 games (41 starts).

That includes a 2019 campaign where he compiled a career-high three forced fumbles to go along with two sacks and 63 tackles. However, Davis was limited to only 11 games thanks to an ankle injury, and before landing on the IR, Pro Football Focus listed him as the lowest-rated linebacker in the NFL. The Lions front office apparently agreed with that assessment, leading to them declining his fifth-year option.

The Lions have been busy revamping their linebacker depth chart this offseason, bringing in Jamie Collins Sr., Reggie Ragland and Elijah Lee. Detroit also selected Notre Dame linebacker Julian Okwara in the third round of last week’s draft.

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