Browns coach Mike Pettine was as shocked an anyone about the ouster of CEO Joe Banner and GM Mike Lombardi, but he’s confident he’ll work well with new GM Ray Farmer. “(The shakeup) was nothing that was talked about obviously during the interview process, but it was a clear message from the owner (Jimmy Haslam) of his commitment to bringing stability to the franchise looking forward, and I just look forward to working with (Farmer),’‘ Pettine said, according to Mary Kay Cabot of the Plain Dealer. “I can already tell we’re going to have a tremendous relationship.” More from around the league:
- Tim Graham of the Buffalo News wonders if the Bills can afford to franchise tag Jairus Byrd again. Byrd was less than thrilled with Buffalo last season when the team hit him with the franchise tag and this time around it would cost the Bills a whopping $8.299MM to do it again. That’s probably too much for a safety, which is why a long-term deal might make more sense. It remains to be seen whether the Bills are willing to pony up the kind of long-term deal that Byrd probably seeks.
- The Buccaneers should go out and sign quarterback Mike Vick this offseason, writes Tom Jones of the Tampa Bay Times. As shown in Luke Adams’ run down of this year’s free agent QBs, Vick is likely the cream of the crop.
- Saints tight end Jimmy Graham says he’s not concerned about being designated as a tight end or wide receiver, tweets Larry Holder of The Times-Picayune. “That’s not for me to decide. I’m going to do and I’m going to play what ever I’m asked to do. It’s that simple,” Graham said.
- Should the Redskins go after any of the recently released Saints? Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com runs them down one by one.