| Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com thinks June 1 is on its way to be yet another big day in the NFL’s year-round calendar. The best way for the circus to make money is when the circus isn’t in town. In American sports, no league has mastered that reality like the NFL. From the Super Bowl to Week 1, the league has developed many ways to attract attention and drive interest when it’s not football season. Prior to 2006, June 1 was the occasion for a fresh wave of free agency. In 2026, June 1 made a major comeback. The trades of defensive end Myles Garrett, defensive end Jared Verse, and receiver A.J. Brown made it a big week for the NFL. And it raises the question of whether the league and its teams will further embrace the possibility of making deals on June 1 in the future. It’s a point raised at the tail end of an article from ESPN reviewing the trades that happened last Monday. “I think the league will [lean into] the June 1 thing,” an unnamed AFC executive told ESPN. “It’s the summer, it’s slow, and these deals are good engagement for the league.” They also need to be good for the teams involved, and the primary benefit for the seller comes from trading bloated contracts in the hopes of reducing the cap consequences in the current year. That’s why June 1 used to be a major date for free agency; before teams could release up to two veterans with a post-June 1 designation in March, they had to hold the contracts until June in order to spread the dead money over two years. But if teams are willing to move highly-paid veterans — and if other teams are willing to give up significant compensation to get them — June 1 can become yet another date to circle, every year. And, yes, at some level, the NFL wants to have more tentpole events at a time when the three-ring circus is in mothballs. After the Browns proposed expanding the universe of future picks that could be traded from three years to five (and the Rams coincidentally agreed), Rams president Kevin Demoff said, “Nothing creates more interest in the NFL than trades. This is why Cleveland’s proposal to allow teams to trade picks up to 5 years out as opposed to 3 years out makes so much sense. More picks to trade = more trades = more interest & team building options.” The option of building a team and generating interest with June 1 trades has been hiding in plain sight, for years. In 2026, the NFL got a taste of what that day could become, if the trend continues. |
| NFC NORTH |
| CHICAGOThe Bears have all but moved to Indiana – as the Board of Directors does Kevin Warren’s bidding and announces a vote that the Hoosier State is the team’s “priority”. Dan Wiederer of The Athletic: The Chicago Bears board of directors voted Friday to further explore Hammond, Ind., as the team’s priority location for its next stadium. The vote comes less than a week after the spring session of the Illinois Legislature concluded with no solutions and no new legislation available to allow the Bears to proceed with a stadium project on the 326-acre property they own in suburban Arlington Heights, Ill. For months, the Bears have vowed to complete an evaluation by late spring or early summer of two potential locations for a new stadium: Arlington Heights or Hammond. In a joint statement Friday, Bears chairman George McCaskey and president and CEO Kevin Warren confirmed the team’s plan to advance its stadium development project approximately 25 miles from Chicago in Indiana. “We believe a world-class stadium project in Hammond will transform the region, connecting Northwest Indiana to the South Side of Chicago through the Loop and across neighborhoods and suburbs stretching north of the city,” they said. “It will bring Chicagoland together and deliver new opportunities to its residents and businesses.” Friday’s development marks the first time the Bears’ board has voted on the stadium situation, confirming the organization’s serious interest in a potential project in Indiana. The vote, however, does not represent a “no turning back” moment in this prolonged saga. The Bears still face a heavy lift in working with local and state officials in Indiana to solidify a plan for a new stadium. Illinois lawmakers remain confident the Bears will allow them to work toward a new plan to keep the team. Given the repeated delays in passing legislation in Illinois that would help the team with tax certainty and infrastructure needs, Friday’s announcement shouldn’t come as a surprise. Still, it’s not a final decision to build in Indiana, either. In February, with the Bears in mind, Indiana signed into law a bill to create a stadium authority empowered to acquire land and create financing mechanisms for a new stadium. The team intends to select a stadium site in Hammond and proceed with exploring negotiations and planning within that state. For an Indiana project to launch, the Bears still need to select the exact location of a stadium site, then complete, among other things, ongoing environmental and traffic studies. The team is also working toward receiving concrete assurances on how any such stadium project would be financed, with the newly established Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority heavily involved. Eventually, if the Bears check a multitude of boxes in Indiana, they would still need to present plans to the NFL stadium committee and the league finance committee. Indiana Gov. Mike Braun posted on X that his state was ready to welcome the Bears, emphasizing the potential economic boost for that region. “We look forward to building a partnership as strong as the ’85 Bears defense, creating opportunities and economic growth that will benefit our state and the Bears organization for decades to come,” Braun said. By the same token, if Illinois officials remain serious about keeping the team and are confident a plan to move forward can materialize via legislation, they now face new pressure to accelerate their efforts to keep the Bears in the state — and specifically at the team’s desired site in Arlington Heights. Illinois state Rep. Kam Buckner, who was one of the leads in getting a Bears-backed megaprojects bill approved by the House earlier this spring, said in a statement that he had talked to Warren early Friday, and that the Bears president committed to continuing discussions around a possible Illinois stadium project, despite the team’s push to advance their exploration of Hammond. Buckner said the team’s statement Friday described “a process that is continuing, rather than reaching a conclusion.” “Neither the statement nor my conversation with Kevin suggested that Illinois is off the table,” Buckner said. “In fact, our discussion was forward-looking and centered on continuing conversations.” Matt Hill, a spokesperson for Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, identified Friday’s development as yet another shift in the Bears’ stadium location desires. “Today,” Hill said, “appears to be another instance of that after Illinois leaders have been working with the Bears in good faith. Governor Pritzker has always been clear that he wants the Bears to stay in Illinois and remains open to a sensible solution that protects taxpayers.” Remember, the location in the wilds of Indiana is actually closer to The Loop than the other site in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Whether or not it is close enough to the bulk of the team’s fans in the northern and western suburbs is another question. |
| GREEN BAYThe Packers gave up a king’s ransom for EDGE MICAH PARSONS – and they won’t have him for September. Brian Martin of YahooSports.com: Micah Parsons’ approximate return date from the season-ending ACL injury he sustained last year has just been revealed and it should be of interest to the Dallas Cowboys. According to Ian Rapoport, Parsons is currently on schedule to make his 2026 NFL debut in mid-October. That means his first game back could be against his former team, the Cowboys, in Week 6. The Cowboys are scheduled to hit the road to take on the Green Bay Packers October 18, which coincides with Micah Parsons’ potential season debut according to the nine-month timetable it generally takes to fully rehabilitate from an ACL injury. Currently five months in his rehab process, he still has four months to go. That could mean he has the Week 6 matchup with the Cowboys circled on his calendar. Parsons returning against the Cowboys makes sense for a number of reasons. Not only does it fit the timeline, but being able to make his season debut at home against his former team only adds to the intrigue about what should be an important NFC matchup. He’ll no doubt do everything in his power to be fully healed and ready to go by Week 6. As a former Cowboys player who spent four years with the organization, we all know what kind of impact Micah Parsons can make on the field. The five-time Pro Bowler and three-time First-Team All-Pro has the ability to be a gamebreaker all by himself. And with the concern for Dallas’ bookend tackles (Tyler Guyton, Terence Steele), his potential return date in Week 6 should be somewhat concerning. If Parsons does return mid-October against the Cowboys it would mark the second time he’s faced his former team since he was traded prior to the start of the 2025 NFL season to the Packers. That 2025 Week 4 matchup went into overtime, resulting in a 40-40 tie. Parsons originally suffered his injury on December 14, 2025. |
| NFC EAST |
| PHILADELPHIABrooks Kubena of The Athletic ponders why WR A.J. BROWN is no longer an Eagle. Years from now, when factions of the Philadelphia Eagles fanbase bicker over would-haves and could-haves, a subject will be summoned — still sullen and sore: Why couldn’t A.J. Brown stay with the Eagles? Why, when elements for an alternative seemed abundant? What was so irreparable, so insufferable? These questions pervade in the present, in the wake of Brown’s departure to the New England Patriots by trade. The wide receiver’s half-year silence invites the sort of speculation that annoyed him. Conventional interviews did not interest him. Brown’s playful wink on a February podcast with former Patriots Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman — when Edelman said, “We’re all Patriots” — served as the sort of public comment quintessentially depicting Brown’s character. Deniably innocuous. Eventually prescient. Debatably translated until Brown defines its meaning. Could Brown have said the full truth aloud? And how would Philadelphians have responded — both within the team facility and without? Things were fine, we were all told. That sideline spat in the NFC wild-card loss? When Eagles security chief Dom DiSandro had to separate Brown and coach Nick Sirianni? All good. Sirianni said they “have a special relationship.” They laugh and cry and yell at each other. That friendship Brandon Graham said changed? When Brown and quarterback Jalen Hurts responded that the edge rusher misspoke (although Brown later said some reports about their relationship were true)? All fine. A day after Brown gave Hurts a postgame dap in the locker room and deuced, Hurts said they’re “in a great place.” Hurts spoke for them again after Brown was absent for Wednesday’s OTAs, saying, “nothing’s changed” about their relationship. The dissonance is palpable because Brown’s misery was indisputable. Brown called his football life “a s— show” on a Twitch stream in November. “Business as usual,” Sirianni later insisted. When a reporter asked Brown that week if he still wanted to be in Philadelphia, DeVonta Smith, Brown’s locker mate, interjected, “Why wouldn’t he be?” Smith’s rhetorical question became clairvoyant. And it still lacks a public answer. At Brown’s May 3 football camp in Allentown, Pa., he was cordial to reporters who made the trip but did not make himself available for an interview. Could Brown and the Eagles have reconciled? Such an outcome lacked a clear and available solution. This was not Myles Garrett decrying organizational ineptitude until the Cleveland Browns dropped $160 million on the edge rusher’s doorstep. (Garrett still forced his way out after another losing season prompted a coaching staff overhaul.) This was not Jonathan Taylor demanding fair compensation until the Indianapolis Colts paid the running back commensurate with his Pro Bowl status. This was an age-28 All-Pro with a $96 million contract who decided he no longer wanted to play for a franchise that reached two Super Bowls in his tenure, won one and is positioned to pursue another. Winning, in and of itself, is not enough for an impeccably gifted and self-motivated athlete who existentially must be involved in the act of winning. Brown never hid this. Review his past remarks, and you will come to conclusions about Monday’s watershed trade that are reasonable, even mature: Brown was a bad fit for the way the Eagles played offense; his skill set was a bad fit for Hurts’ limitations; Brown had no faith either would change under Sirianni; those confines created game-oriented frustrations that catch fire under the Philly media microscope. But deducing rational reasons falters when questioning how the Patriots can guarantee Brown a greener pasture when it is the game itself that creates Brown’s confines. Can the Patriots better offer Brown what he wants? Can top personnel executive Eliot Wolf, coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels — who have each experienced the fallouts of the NFL’s win-or-be-fired stakes — sincerely make Brown’s desires a top priority? Can a young Drake Maye, whose gaps were preyed upon in Super Bowl LX, develop his game to overlap Brown’s strengths in ways Hurts didn’t? The Patriots were willing to send Eagles general manager Howie Roseman a trade package that could prop open the Super Bowl window Roseman swung open by acquiring Brown in the first place. Brown’s talent alone attracted suitors. (The Los Angeles Chargers reportedly also showed interest.) But New England’s trade effectively grants Brown the proverbial Change Of Scenery that buries the receiver’s unsaid motivations. It should be noted that Brown’s contract did not have a no-trade clause. The Eagles considered Brown’s desires with this move — and willingly sent him to an immediate contender, where 1) the former Tennessee Titan will reunite with Vrabel (they spent three years together in Tennessee), and 2) Brown joins a team he’s long favored (he posted childhood pictures of himself wearing a Patriots jersey on social media after the trade.) After fighting off those who called him a diva, after fending off those who called him the second coming of Terrell Owens, Brown is leaving Philadelphia in such a way that will not spare him from being crudely cast in those caricatures. And the Eagles must reconcile with letting another Canton-caliber receiver leave the city. Remember: A year ago, after Sirianni was awarded a new multiyear contract, Brown told reporters, “I told him I’m done when he’s done.” Did that relationship change? “Business as usual,” Sirianni had said. Was managing Brown’s misery usual? And if so, was laughing, crying and yelling a “special relationship” or a miscalculation of Brown’s breaking point? Were team-first principles dogmatically distributed to a nuanced player more aware of his direct influence on success? How much more on the same page were Sirianni and Brown privately than their public interaction in Buffalo — when Brown deadpanned Sirianni in the tunnel as the coach taunted Bills fans after a defense-oriented win in which a feckless Eagles offense gained 190 total yards? “My expectation is he wants to be here,” Sirianni told reporters in a precombine roundtable. “You guys know me. I’m not gonna say, ‘Hey, here’s what I thought this player should have done.’ Like, just know I’m always communicating with our guys, whether it’s something on or off the field that’s going on. And we’re always in constant communication about it. I think where you get in trouble is when the job description’s not clear — that’s on and off the field — of what you’re expecting in different things. But I’ll never get into, ‘Hey, this is what I think should have happened or that.’” The job description initially seemed clear. Do not forget that there was a long time before this relationship seemed bound for divorce. Once-viral videos of Brown and Hurts still circulate on social media: their giddy laughter on a FaceTime call after the 2022 draft-day trade; Brown telling NBC Sports Philadelphia in the airport that he’s “excited to play with my best friend”; their coordinated on-field dances and celebrations during a two-year stretch in which Brown had the team’s top two single-season receiving marks. Was there anything the Eagles could have done as they publicly defended Hurts as a team-first “winner” through the regression of the passing game, but privately encouraged Brown to be quieter after he took matters of his self-worth into his own hands? None of the optics in 2025 favored Brown. Owner Jeffrey Lurie met with Brown during a November practice after the receiver’s series of social media posts. In early October, Hurts and running back Saquon Barkley spoke with Brown in the parking lot after the team’s first loss. After the season ended, when a reporter asked Roseman if trading Brown was “a nonstarter,” Roseman sidestepped the opportunity for a definitive answer and gave a cagey response that seemed to imply the Eagles wouldn’t move on from Brown unless they could find another “great player.” “It’s really hard to find great players,” Roseman later added during his own precombine roundtable. “I think A.J. is a great player. I think from my perspective, we’re looking to improve in all areas, and you don’t do that by subtracting.” It took the Eagles seven years to field a 1,000-yard wide receiver before Roseman acquired Brown. Lurie partly values Roseman because of his strategic aggressiveness to make sure great players are locked down long term. Roseman is now reshaping a wide receiver room into what he’s called a “basketball team” of depth and versatility, which wasn’t required with Brown’s dominance on the field. Just how far-reaching will the ramifications be for the departure of the wide receiver Sirianni often called the greatest in team history? And years from now, when factions of the fanbase ask why their greatest receiver couldn’t stay in Philadelphia, is that a question A.J. Brown and the Eagles will be asking themselves, too? |
| NFC SOUTH |
| TAMPA BAYQB BAKER MAYFIELD says his extension isn’t happening anytime soon. Jenna Laine of ESPN.com: Speaking publicly for the first time this offseason, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield said that contract extension talks “are not anywhere close to what we were thinking” and that it’s “time to get something done long-term.” General manager Jason Licht has said multiple times this offseason that there isn’t a specific timeline the Bucs are working off of. But Mayfield said he and his agent, Tom Mills, provided one: by training camp, which will open in late July. “Obviously, yes, I would love to have a long-term deal done, but they know my deadline: As soon as training camp starts, we’re not doing any contract stuff. It’s all ball,” Mayfield said. “It’s not up to me when that gets done by. So hopefully before that. If not — still going to have a good year.” Mayfield is entering the third year of a three-year contract extension signed in 2024. “We’d love to be here long-term. And as of right now, that’s not exactly the case, but I’m under contract for 2026,” Mayfield said. “And the guys in that locker and the staff know that I’m still going to be me. I’m still going to do everything I can to help this team win a Super Bowl. And to me, that’s the priority. Everything else will take care of itself.” Mayfield and his wife, Emily, just welcomed their second child, Maverick, this offseason. They’ve become fixtures in the Tampa community, supporting local diaper banks and early childhood learning programs, donating equipment to a high school football team and awarding college scholarships to walk-on athletes. But Mayfield is averaging $33.33 million per season — 16th in the league in terms of quarterback pay. It should be noted, however, that fellow journeyman quarterback Sam Darnold, who just won a Super Bowl, is making $33.5 million. But Mayfield wants to be rewarded with long-term security. “I think first and foremost, regardless — we’ve built roots here in Tampa,” Mayfield said. “We love the community. We love to be here. They’ve embraced us, and we enjoy being here and obviously going to raise kids here. But yeah, contract stuff — it’s happening, it’s starting, the talks and whatnot, but not anywhere close to what we were thinking.” Mayfield also called the loss of franchise scoring leader Mike Evans in free agency “disappointing” and said he thought Evans would remain with the team his whole career, having already spent 12 seasons there. Instead, Evans signed with the San Francisco 49ers. “There’s no way to sugarcoat it — it’s disappointing to not have him back,” said Mayfield, who conveyed his disappointment by sending teammate Chris Godwin a text message with a sad face emoji. “Just the caliber of player he is — he’s a Hall of Famer — I thought he deserved to be a Buc for life. Things happen. But luckily, him and I have a great relationship. [We’re] still good friends for life. I’ll be cheering him on except when we play them, if it comes down to it.” Mayfield sees it as an opportunity for Godwin, who is entering his 10th season, to make even more of an impact. He is also a home-grown Buc as a third-round draft pick in 2017 and is now the elder statesman of the Bucs’ wide receivers room. “He’s always been an unbelievable leader, but for him to really take charge of that room, and for the guys that, with all the injuries that we had, a lot of guys played last year,” said Mayfield, expressing excitement about Jalen McMillan, Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson too, so to also have J-Mac, Chris and Emeka really, really healthy right now, feeling good — to lead those guys and just to watch the steps from Year 1 to Year 2 when it comes to Meck and Tez and watching them help Ted Hurst out as well — so there’s a lot of weapons in that room. And so when you lose a guy like that, you got to have a lot of people fill those shoes, not just one person, and we have that.” This isn’t the first time that Mayfield has encountered uncertainty or expressed frustrations about the pace of discussions. Extension talks moved slowly in 2024, and Mayfield said at the time that they were filled with “ups and downs.” He and Evans exchanged text messages back then, as both players were negotiating new deals, and both players wound up returning in 2024. It’s unclear if they’ll continue doing that while wearing different jerseys, but Mayfield feels having that prior knowledge of the team’s inner workings and coming away with a contract that felt fair last time — is “beneficial.” “I think anytime you have prior knowledge, that definitely helps,” Mayfield said. “But also, they know who I am. They know it doesn’t matter what the contract is. That’s not going to change my work ethic, the leadership aspect of it, what I try and bring to the guys, try and elevate everybody. So yes, there’s helpful things when it comes to negotiating, but at the same time, it really comes down to just you worry about giving somebody that much money, if it’s going to change them, if it’s going to change their attitude, how they show up every day in the building — and for me, that’s not the case.” He has long said that the Bucs got the best version of him — a player who set personal bests in 2023 and 2024 and led his team to division titles those years — because they let him be himself. The team’s playoff appearances were no small feat considering they were playing with $80 million in dead money in the first year after Tom Brady’s retirement, meaning many young players were asked to take on bigger roles. It also meant they didn’t have much cash to spend on a quarterback. That’s where Mayfield came in. The Bucs were the 2018 first overall draft pick’s fourth team. He took a one-year, “prove it” deal worth up to $8.5 million and threw for 4,044 passing yards and 28 touchdowns in 2023. Then in 2024, he threw for 4,500 passing yards, and recorded 41 passing touchdowns. Mayfield couldn’t replicate that in 2025, however, throwing for 3,693 yards and 26 touchdowns, with the team never having its entire healthy starting offense or even anything close to it. That could ultimately work in his favor if a deal doesn’t come to fruition this offseason, if he’s able to rebound strongly. “They gave me a chance at a point in my career when I really needed it and helped me out, but I think I did the same as well,” Mayfield said. “So it’s time to get something done long-term and I would love to be here long-term, but regardless, I think we’ll be here in the offseason.” |
| NFC WEST |
| ARIZONAQB JACOBY BRISSETT remains unhappy with his compensation package, but he will report for the Cardinals mini-camp. Josh Weinfuss and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com: Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett will report for Arizona’s mandatory minicamp this week, sources told ESPN, after holding out for all of the team’s offseason program while he awaits a reworked contract for this season Brissett was at risk of being fined a total of $107,911 if he didn’t show up, according to the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement. Brissett missed the entirety of Arizona’s Phase 1 and Phase 2 as well as all three of the Cardinals’ OTAs. The Cardinals’ minicamp will consist of practice Tuesday and Wednesday. While Brissett will be in attendance, it’s uncertain how much on-field work he will do, sources said. Brissett wants a restructured contract for this season, the second of a two-year deal he signed in March 2025. His deal currently pays him $4.88 million, with the potential to grow to $5.39 million, of which only $1.5 million is guaranteed. By comparison, Gardner Minshew II, whom Arizona signed as a free agent in March, had $5.14 million guaranteed by the team for 2026. A deal is unlikely to get done in the next day, a source told ESPN, so Brissett will be reporting without a new deal in place. In May, a source told ESPN that both sides were “significantly” far apart. Brissett will report as the Cardinals’ presumed starter after being told earlier this offseason that he would fill that role. Brissett started 12 games for Arizona last season and finished 2025 as the NFL’s top-ranked quarterback from Week 6 — when he was given his first start with Kyler Murray injured — on dropbacks, play-actions, completions and attempts. Brissett was second in passing yards and fourth in completion percentage above expected. |
| LOS ANGELES RAMSEDGE MYLES GARRETT aspires to at least 75 more sacks before hanging it up. John Breech of CBSSports.com: Myles Garrett made NFL history last season as he set the record for most sacks in a single season with 23. Now that he’s in Los Angeles, Garrett is setting his sights even higher: He wants to become the NFL’s all-time sack king. During an interview with the Rams’ official website this week, Garrett was asked how much longer he thought he would play and how many sacks he might end his career with. “I don’t know how much longer I want to play, but I know there’s a big goal out there, that’s 200,” Garrett said. Every pass-rusher in the NFL knows that number: It’s the career record for most sacks and it’s held by Bruce Smith. The Pro Football Hall of Famer spent 19 years in the NFL and is the only player in league history to hit the 200-sack mark. Smith picked up his 200th sack in the second-to-last game of his career back in 2003 and his record has stood unmatched in the 23 years since then. As a matter of fact, no one has come close to topping the record. Julius Peppers ended his career with 159.5 sacks in 2018, which is the highest number that any player has put up since Smith’s retirement in 2003. Garrett currently has 125.5 sacks, which is the third-most among active players behind only Von Miller (138.5) and Cameron Jordan (132). Miller is 37 and Jordan will turn 37 in July, so those two essentially have no shot at breaking Smith’s record, but Garrett could make it close, which is his goal. “I want to eclipse that or I want to make it close,” Garrett said of Smith’s record. “I have a good relationship with the guy who has that record and being able to go get that one would mean a lot to myself, and to him as well.” After spending the first nine seasons of his career in Cleveland, Garrett will now be heading to L.A. after being traded to the Rams on Monday in a move that sent shockwaves through the NFL. If Garrett sets the all-time sack record, there’s a good chance that it will come in L.A. Can Garrett actually break the record? The seven-time Pro Bowler is in position to possibly break Smith’s record because he racked up 124.5 sacks before turning 30, which is the most in NFL history. He topped a record that had previously been held by Reggie White, who recorded 108 sacks before turning 30 (Garrett has only played one NFL game since turning 30 on Dec. 29 and he recorded exactly one sack). Garrett is a five-time All-Pro who has been an absolute machine throughout his career, but there’s no guarantee he’ll break the record. At 30 years old, he certainly has a chance, but the problem for Garrett is that 30 years old is when pass rushers usually start to see their production fall off. To catch Smith, Garrett will need to rack up at least 75 more sacks. Over the course of NFL history, there have only been five players EVER who tallied at least 75 total sacks after turning 30 (via SI): Bruce Smith: 108Kevin Greene: 97.5Chris Doleman: 93Reggie White: 90Julius Peppers: 78.5 Through his first nine seasons, Garrett has averaged 13.9 sacks per year and it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s able to keep that production up for at least the next three or four years. In Cleveland, he racked up sacks even though the Browns were almost always playing from behind. Things should be different in Los Angeles, though. If the Rams play with a lead, their opponent will likely throw more, creating more sack opportunities for Garrett. Garrett is under contract with the Rams for the next five seasons and if he can average 14 sacks per year in that span, that would put him at 195.5 in 2030, leaving him just five sacks shy of breaking the all-time record at a point when he’ll be just 35. At this point in his career, Garrett is still on the field for almost every play and that’s how he likes it. “I want to be the most dominant force on the field,” Garrett said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a passing down or if they plan on rushing the ball. I want to lead the league in [tackles for a loss] and also in sacks. I want them to always view me as a problem.” Even if he falls off slightly and only averages 10 sacks per season over the next five years, that would still put him at 175.5, leaving him 25 shy of the record. Although he’s playing almost every defensive snap now, it might make more sense for him to become more of a situational pass-rusher once he hits his mid-30s. That’s what Miller did at age 36 last season and he was able to rack up nine sacks with the Commanders even though he was on the field for less than 40% of their defensive plays. Jordan was even more productive, racking up 10.5 sacks at age 36 while playing just over 50% of the defensive snaps in New Orleans. If Garrett is putting up numbers like that at age 36, then it seems like a lock that he’ll top Smith’s record, but even if he falls short, Garrett is almost certainly going to end up ranked in the top three on the all-time sacks list, which currently looks like this: 1. Smith: 200 sacks2. White: 198 sacks3. Greene: 160 sacks4. Peppers: 159.55. Chris Doleman: 150.5 With just 35 more sacks, Garrett will pass Greene for third on the all-time list and barring injury, that will almost certainly happen. What it all means is that if Garrett stays in shape and stays injury-free, we could be seeing some huge sack numbers from him for the next six or seven seasons, and there’s a good chance he’ll end up breaking Smith’s record. |
| AFC NORTH |
| PITTSBURGHThe Steelers believe 31-year-old DB JALEN RAMSEY still has the skill set to dominate like Hall of Famer Charles Woodson did for Coach Mike McCarthy’s Packers teams. Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com: Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy will be coaching Aaron Rodgers again this season and another one of his Packers stars came up during last week’s OTAs. Charles Woodson won defensive player of the year and helped the Packers to a Super Bowl while playing a versatile role in the back end of their defense. That came after a long and successful run at cornerback with the Raiders and changing positions gave his career a stellar second act. Steelers secondary coach Joe Whitt was on the Packers’ staff in those days and he believes Steelers defensive back Jalen Ramsey “has a similar skill set, similar size, similar speed” to the Hall of Famer. Whitt said he expects the Steelers to use Ramsey in a similar fashion as a result and McCarthy concurred with that view of how Ramsey fits into their plans. “When Charles came to Green Bay — when we moved him inside and he played the nickel — I thought his game went to a whole different level,” McCarthy said, via Chris Harlan of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I thought Jalen has the same ability. He’s a special piece to our defense. He can play nickel, he can play corner, he can play dime and can also play safety. I’m really looking forward to working with him, but yeah, I can see exactly why Joe says that. That’s an excellent comparison.” Ramsey is still getting used to the new defense things and said that things “have to evolve,” but that he has taken pride in “being able to do different things” on the field and the prospect of a back half of a career similar to Woodson’s should be an appealing one. |
| THIS AND THAT |
| BRENDAN SORSBYA Texas judge has restored the eligibility of Texas Tech QB BRENDAN SORSBY. He had been suspended by the NCAA after his chronic gambling was discovered. The NCAA is not happy. John Brice of USA TODAY: Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby’s college football career, effectively, just got a Hail Mary reprieve. The District Court of Lubbock County, Texas, on Monday, June 8, awarded Sorsby a temporary injunction against the NCAA, thereby restoring Sorsby’s eligibility. The NCAA, which ruled Sorsby permanently ineligible to play for his gambling activity, issued a scathing statement on the decision via X, the social platform formerly known as Twitter. “The NCAA strongly disagrees with the court’s ruling in Sorsby’s case and is deeply concerned about the damaging, far-reaching and broadly destabilizing ramifications of the outcome – which undermines and corrupts the integrity of sports,” the NCAA wrote. “The NCAA is committed to supporting student-athlete mental health but must continue to aggressively defend against actions that defraud college athletics and threaten competitive integrity, such as betting on one’s own sport.” Brendan Sorsby wins vs NCAA: ‘As disastrous a ruling as there has ever been in modern sports’The NCAA could elect to appeal the judge’s decision, USA TODAY Sports, has learned, just as Sorsby would have been within his rights to appeal the judge’s ruling had his request for injunctive relief been denied.– – –Notably, Sorsby bet dozens of times on his initial college football program, Indiana University, during his freshman season, and on Monday, June 1, in a Texas courtroom, Sorsby petitioned judge Ken Curry for injunctive relief. In granting the temporary injunction, Curry wrote on behalf of the court that “Applicant has demonstrated he will suffer a probably, imminent, and irreparable injury if the court does not grant this temporary injunction because he will be unable to participate as a member of Texas Tech’s 2026 football team, including Texas Tech’s 2026 football season and: “1. Benefit from the elite coaching, training resources, camaraderie, and regimen that only being a member of a Division I football team can provide. “2. Build the skills necessary to maximize his own success during the college football season, as well as that of Texas Tech’s football team and each of its players, and “3. Make an informed decision regarding whether to enter the 2026 NFL Supplemental Draft.” The NCAA noted in its own court filings in response to Sorsby’s formal request for injunctive relief that Sorsby had not voluntarily sought to enter the outpatient treatment center to treat Sorsby’s “gambling addiction” until he and Texas Tech officials were notified that he was under investigation for his gambling activity. Court documents showed that Sorsby admitted to dozens of bets on his own initial college football team, the Indiana University Hoosiers, during the 2022 season. Sorsby, who admitted to placing multi-leg “prop bets” on Indiana’s games and his teammates, argued that he never bet against his teammates or their performances. |
| LOOKING FOR THEIR FIRST LOMBARDI TROPHYThere are 12 teams that have yet to hoist Lombardi. Erik Edholm of NFL.com ranks them from 1 to 12 in order of likelihood to do so in Super Bowl 64. (Before we look at it, we are guessing it is Texans to Cardinals): The list of franchises that have never won the Super Bowl is the same today as it was eight years ago, when the Eagles were defending champions for the very first time, having beaten the Patriots in Super Bowl LII. Twelve of the 32 teams have yet to hoist the Lombardi Trophy — that’s three-eighths of the NFL. Eventually, one of them will break through. But who first? Some of the teams on this list were in the playoffs last season and have been consistent contenders. Others have been mired in mediocrity (or worse) for more than a decade. All 12 ringless teams are listed below from closest to farthest away from competing for a title — and some of them have to be on any self-respecting short list of Super Bowl candidates in 2026. 1 Buffalo Bills2025 record: 12-5The Bills rank first here because of Josh Allen. Buffalo has won at least one playoff game for six straight years, and Allen has an 8-7 record in the postseason, but the Bills have not reached a Super Bowl since the 1990s. With Allen, they’re in the race nearly every year, though they failed to take advantage of a perceived weak AFC field last season. Have the Bills improved their defense enough? It might not be a one-year fix. That’s where the majority of Buffalo’s questions lie, although it remains to be seen if the additions the organization made at wide receiver will be upgrades. The division also appears more competitive a year after the Patriots made a surprise run to the top. Whether the Bills can finally break through or not is unknown, but this appears to be the best-equipped team on the list to make that happen in the short term. 2 Detroit Lions2025 record: 9-8Even after a 9-8 slip-up season, missing the playoffs, the Lions appear well-equipped to bounce back. Some of that record might have come with bad luck. Detroit was plus-68 in scoring differential (eighth-best in the league) with a 3-5 record in one-score games. Head coach Dan Campbell’s hyper-aggressive approach backfired down the stretch with all the fourth-down failures. There might be some who believe the Lions are on the downswing, but Campbell has lived by this sword previously and had success. His team is also fairly loaded, everything considered, with a battled-tested QB in Jared Goff, other strong offensive components and some firepower on defense. The division is a monster, and the Lions aren’t sneaking up on anyone these days, but the schedule lines up pretty favorably to take back the NFC North. Even in the stacked NFC field, you have to give Detroit a chance at breaking a championship-less run that is going on nearly 70 years now. 3 Houston Texans2025 record: 12-5Despite losing the division last season after two straight AFC South titles, the Texans actually fielded the best of DeMeco Ryans’ three squads since the coach took over. They went on the road in the playoffs to send Mike Tomlin home before losing in New England. Houston’s defense shined in both games while C.J. Stroud struggled. The Stroud question is probably the biggest thing holding me back on the Texans right now, and that isn’t something I expected to write after the quarterback’s breakout rookie season. Stroud has flatlined since then and held back the team from its ultimate potential. The defense is already one of the three best in the NFL, and it wouldn’t stun me if the unit ends up on top by season’s end. If Stroud and the offense can find another gear (after failing to pass the 20-point mark in more than half their games last season), then this absolutely could be the next franchise to break through. 4 Cincinnati Bengals2025 record: 6-11The Bengals can compete for a title with Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins operating at peak performance, just as they were in the 2021 and ’22 seasons. The problem? They are seldom all healthy at the same time. Chase has only missed seven games in five years, but Higgins has missed 16 games over that same span and Burrow has been out with injury for significant chunks of two of the past three seasons. Since losing in Super Bowl LVI and reaching the AFC Championship Game in the following season, the Bengals are a combined 24-27. Head coach Zac Taylor has held onto his job, and The Big Three will get another crack at it, but the Bengals are on borrowed time a bit. The other big roadblock to success has been on defense. The Bengals have withered away on that side of the ball over the past four years, going from quite competent to pretty putrid last season. They’ll need to make a healthy jump in production on defense in order to regain contender status, but there are some pieces to work with on that side of the ball. 5 Los Angeles Chargers2025 record: 11-6The Chargers are 22-12 under head coach Jim Harbaugh in the regular season with two 11-win campaigns, but they are 0-2 in his two playoff appearances. Last season represented a small backstep, as well, with the Bolts winning games by far closer margins and failing to take advantage of the Chiefs’ first down year in more than a decade. At his best, Justin Herbert can make a team a Super Bowl contender, even as his critics fairly point to his playoff shortcomings as evidence that he can’t. This season could end up being a big test of that theory. If the Chargers’ offensive line (which received more reinforcements this offseason and returned its two best blockers from injury) can improve, there will be fewer excuses for Herbert. Mike McDaniel calling plays also is a wild-card factor in this equation. The Chargers’ defense has been mostly excellent over the past two seasons, but new coordinator Chris O’Leary has big shoes to fill with Jesse Minter taking over the Ravens’ head-coaching job. In half a dozen years as an NFL head man, Harbaugh has shown an ability to win regular-season games at nearly a 70 percent clip and has zero losing seasons, but his postseason record (5-5) doesn’t match that level of performance. 6 Jacksonville Jaguars2025 record: 13-4Last season appeared to accelerate the Jaguars’ chances of not only making the franchise’s first Super Bowl, but also potentially winning it. Trevor Lawrence had arguably his best season as a passer and runner in Liam Coen’s debut campaign as head coach, with Jacksonville stealing the AFC South crown and earning the second-most victories (13) in the franchise’s history. Was last season fool’s gold or an indication that the team is here to stay? Lawrence is just now entering his prime, turning 27 in October, and there are some underrated pieces around him, as well as Coen’s sharp design, which paid immediate dividends in 2025. Defensively, the Jaguars were as good as they’ve been since the elite units from 2017 and ’18, even without a fearsome pass rush. After a quiet offseason, it’s fair to wonder whether the Jaguars have enough to make a title run. They were closer last season, but the first-round home loss to the Bills is a reminder of how far they still must go. 7 Carolina Panthers2025 record: 8-9How close are the Panthers to competing for a title? That depends on how much you buy into last year’s progress. On the one hand, they finished 8-9 and were outscored by 69 points on the season. But on the other hand, Carolina rebounded from a 1-3 start, beat the Rams at home in late November, won the division and nearly knocked off the Rams again in the playoffs. After adding edge rusher Jaelan Phillips and linebacker Devin Lloyd, the front seven appears to be in good shape. Carolina’s defense might rise with a secondary that showed an ability to make big plays last season, but the Panthers must get better on third and fourth downs and kick the pass rush into a higher gear. All that said, the Panthers’ ability to vie for a Super Bowl in the coming years rests more on Bryce Young than anyone else. The former No. 1 overall pick has had some brilliant moments, but also some maddeningly cold stretches; it’s been far too inconsistent, even week to week. If Young can thrive with some intriguing weapons and a refurbished offensive line, then Carolina’s path to a title is far clearer. 8 Minnesota Vikings2025 record: 9-8The Vikings are an extremely difficult team to gauge in terms of championship readiness because of the unsettled nature of the quarterback position, both short and long term. Kyler Murray has arrived to push J.J. McCarthy, and for all we know, that competition could be good for both in advancing their careers. But could it yield a championship in Minnesota? Murray should have every chance to win the starting job, but he’s on a one-year deal with a no-franchise-tag clause, so the Vikings have this season to determine whether he’s the man for the job long term. With only one winning campaign to his name and an 0-1 playoff mark, Murray has yet to show he can get his team close to a Super Bowl. McCarthy has even farther to go in his development. The Vikings have a talented coach in Kevin O’Connell, one of the best players in the game in Justin Jefferson and a first-rate defense led by the excellent Brian Flores. There are some redeemable qualities about this team, which closed last season with five straight wins. Winning a Super Bowl this season — while competing in one of the tougher divisions — feels like a stretch until we receive more clarity at QB. 9 Atlanta Falcons2025 record: 8-9Like the Vikings, the Falcons remain in QB purgatory until a winner is declared in the Tua Tagovailoa-Michael Penix Jr. battle. Tagovailoa appears to be the favorite in the race, and he quarterbacked two playoff teams in Miami, but there are health questions about both quarterbacks — and about the team as a whole. Also like the Vikings, the Falcons were a four-win team entering December of last season. Atlanta played stronger in December, but it wasn’t enough to save Raheem Morris’ job. Two-time Coach of the Year Kevin Stefanski has engineered two strong seasons recently in Cleveland, and he has talent to work with in Atlanta, but bringing it all together won’t be instant-coffee quick. The Falcons have some elite offensive talent, and the defense could level up. The secondary appears to be a strong group, and the reloaded defensive front could be effective, especially if James Pearce Jr. avoids a lengthy suspension. The Falcons might be closer to contention than some believe, but how close they are to a Super Bowl is anyone’s guess now. 10 Tennessee Titans2025 record: 3-14Cam Ward didn’t have a great rookie season, and he doesn’t yet resemble a quarterback capable of leading his team to a Super Bowl, but we once heard the same things about the past two Super Bowl-winning QBs, Sam Darnold and Jalen Hurts. Time will tell if Ward ever can reach that level, but for now, I’m considering him a potential asset on the Titans’ quest to make their second Super Bowl and win their first. Ward is surrounded by some interesting skill-position talent, and the offensive line added help. Perhaps a new scheme will breathe some life into this offense, but the biggest worry is keeping Ward upright after he was clobbered as a rookie, taking a league-high 55 sacks. Defensively, the Titans have a long way to go, but they added as many as a dozen potential new contributors this offseason. This franchise has reason for optimism. Robert Saleh and all three of his coordinators have head-coaching experience. Ward and a promising 2025 draft crop, along with three or four rookies who could carve out starting jobs, offer some real hope. But the Titans are only nominally closer to a title now than they were a year ago and still have some mountains to move on that front. 11 Cleveland Browns2025 record: 5-12I had them higher on this list prior to the Myles Garrett trade. I can’t really blame Cleveland for moving on from the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, but the timing and the return are both fair to question. This essentially pushes the clock back even more on the Browns’ pursuit for a Super Bowl — even if it does increase their long-term chances to finally lift a Lombardi. The Browns’ young nucleus looks terrific after two strong draft classes. The 2025 rookie crop was the best in the NFL last year, and that’s even with both QB selections yet to fully prove themselves. This season sets up as a possible Deshaun Watson-Shedeur Sanders battle, which certainly raises some red flags, but if either one can straighten out his game, he’ll be leading a team that has risen the talent ranks considerably in recent years under general manager Andrew Berry’s roster building. Will it all result in some wins? Talk about Super Bowls all you want, but until the Browns can stack back-to-back winning seasons — which last occurred in 1988-89 — it’s all a bit hollow. Stop me if you’ve heard this before: The Browns’ future does appear bright. The optimism feels founded in some respects. Yet until there is a far stronger product at quarterback, it’s hard to forecast Cleveland’s Super Bowl-less streak ending this season — and maybe next. 12 Arizona Cardinals2025 record: 3-14At the bottom are the Cardinals. There’s no clear-cut long-term option at quarterback right now — unless you consider third-round pick Carson Beck to be that — and possible starter Jacoby Brissett remains at odds with the team over his contract. Throw in what was an underachieving defense last season, a conundrum in Marvin Harrison Jr. and a surprisingly old roster, along with playing in the gauntlet that is the NFC West, and you can begin to imagine the chore that new head coach Mike LaFleur faces in the desert. It’s not a completely lost cause, however. If all that talent on defense comes together, Arizona could have a fairly competent unit, especially with a fierce group up front (depending on whether or not it trades Josh Sweat). The secondary also looks like it could be pretty good. Rookie RB Jeremiyah Love should give the offense a boost, Trey McBride is a certifiable stud, and it’s far too soon to give up on Harrison, who’s still just 23 years old. But with QB questions, offensive line concerns and an absolutely brutal schedule, this does not have the look of a team that’s a few pieces away from a title run. Identifying the right quarterback this season or next offseason is a crucial goal for an organization that hasn’t been a serious contender for more than a decade. There are definitely some teams on the list that could do it. |
