RB DALVIN COOK was at Jets camp over the weekend, but he left Florham Park without a deal.  Jordan Dajani of CBSSports.com tries to handicap things:

Dalvin Cook will be in a new city by the time Week 1 rolls around, but what city that is and what logo he’ll be sporting on his helmet has yet to be determined.

Back in early June, the Vikings officially cut ties with the star running back after six seasons in Minnesota. The move primarily had to do with money, as the Vikings — who are now slated to feature Alexander Mattison — saved $9 million in cap space with this transaction. Now, Cook is looking to not only ink a new deal, but land in a situation where he can maximize his talent. With multiple contract offers since his release from Minnesota, the Pro Bowler is fielding interest from nearly the entire AFC East division, according to ESPN.

However, Cook isn’t willing to accept his hometown Miami Dolphins’ current contract offer — though he does have interest in joining the Dolphins — and doesn’t see an urgency to sign with a team right now, according to an ESPN report. So, Cook flew out to New York for a weekend visit with the Jets, according to CBS Sports NFL Insider Jonathan Jones.

“You could pretty much put them at the top,” Cook said about the Jets during an appearance on CBS Sports HQ. “It’s a great situation for me, to go play with some great guys, especially Aaron Rodgers, with him being such a high-caliber player that he is. So, it’s pretty high.”

Despite Cook “putting the Jets at the top of the list” and spending nearly all day Sunday at their training camp, per ESPN, he left their facility without a signed contract. That lends hope to other teams as well as reveal that his market is cooler than he anticipated.

Cook’s comments about the Jets and subsequent visit are certainly notable, but he also said the Dolphins are not out of the running just yet.

“They’re right there in the mix,” said Cook. “Like you said, that’s my hometown. Being home is always good — especially for me. That’s my city. I love my city, I love giving back to my city, to the community, to the kids and everything about it. They’re right there at the top of the list, too.”

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel addressed the potential of a Cook signing on Friday. “I kind of look at it like this: If it works on both sides, it makes sense for somebody,” McDaniel said. “You’re adding a player to the team. The organization and the player, all the things that they both need, need to be met for it to work. He’s a free agent, and he’s visiting the Jets. And that’s why I have to say.”

Cook also mentioned another potential landing spot with the Dallas Cowboys, telling ESPN: “Dallas been right there, just need to turn that page the last few years. TP (Tony Pollard) is a great running back, just partnering up with a great running back, a great running mate, it would be good, hey I don’t know.”

However, ESPN’s Ed Werder said he was told at Dallas training camp that the Cowboys are happy with Tony Pollard as their lead back.

Following quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ pay cut that he took on Wednesday, the Jets now have nearly $16 million in cap space ($15,981,274 million to be exact per OverTheCap.com). That could provide Gang Green plenty of room to offer Cook a deal with the financial terms he is looking for.

There’s certainly a need on the Jets’ end given that dynamic second-year running back Breece Hall is beginning training camp on the PUP list after tearing his ACL in Week 7 last season.

Earlier in July, Jets coach Robert Saleh said of the team’s interest in Cook, “Obviously you never want to say no to a great player. I’ll leave (GM) Joe (Douglas) to that one.”

Cook has made the Pro Bowl in each of the last four seasons, and has rushed for at least 1,135 yards in each of those four campaigns. He’s the only NFL player to rush for 1,110-plus yards in each of the last four years. In 2022, Cook played a full season for the first time in his career and rushed for 1,173 yards and eight touchdowns while averaging 4.4 yards per carry. Since 2019, Cook has the third-most rushing yards (5,024), second-most rushing touchdowns (43) and second-most rushing first downs (258). He leaves the Vikings as the franchise’s third-leading rusher with 5,993 yards, trailing only Robert Smith and Adrian Peterson. His 47 rushing touchdowns rank fourth in Vikings history.

Clearly, Cook still has plenty left in the tank and teams appear to be lining up for his services now that he’s on the open market. With that in mind, let’s check out five potential landing spots for one of the best running backs in the NFL.

1. Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins have long been viewed as one of the top landing spots for Cook. He’s a Florida native — born in Opa-locka and played his high school ball at Miami Central. The Miami Herald previously reported this offseason that the Dolphins could be “a real possibility” if Cook were to be released, and have since reported they’ve offered him a contract. The Vikings got to play in Miami last year, and that was special for Cook.

“This is what I dreamed about, this is a kid’s dream, just living in it, trying to take advantage of the moment,” Cook said, via SI.com. “If you know me, I just like to have fun. So I try to enjoy the moment, man, because you don’t get these back. We only play Miami every so many years, so gotta take advantage of these type of games.”

The Dolphins don’t necessarily have a need at running back with Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson, Devon Achane, Myles Gaskin, Salvon Ahmed and Chris Brooks, but that won’t stop head coach Mike McDaniel from exploring this opportunity. He found success with the San Francisco 49ers scheming for the run, and wants Miami to run the ball better than it did in 2022.

2. New York Jets

The Jets went all in on the here and now after pulling off a blockbuster trade for Aaron Rodgers, so they’ll be a team to monitor that is looking to add top tier talent like Cook. There’s also a bit of need here with second-year back Breece Hall working his way back from an ACL tear that cut his rookie season short. (Saleh said the team wants him back for Week 1 but also wants to do right by him and won’t rush him back.) Cook could come in and carry a significant workload early until Hall is back to full strength and then the two could form one of the more dangerous backfields in the NFL.

There’s also been some recruiting by Cook’s former teammate in tight end Tyler Conklin, who said on “Good Morning Football” that “there’s plenty of room” for him in New York.

3. Buffalo Bills

The Bills have a few options at running back with James Cook, Damien Harris and Latavius Murray on the roster, but the expected season-ending injury to Nyheim Hines was a blow. Cook would provide an immediate upgrade at this position. Cook has crossed 1,110 yards in each of the past four seasons. The last time the Bills had a 1,110-yard rusher was in 2017 with LeSean McCoy, and their leading rusher from the last four years is now with the Houston Texans.

Cook signing with a legitimate contender and joining forces with his younger brother is something that potentially could happen.

4. Chicago Bears

For starters, the Bears have the cap space to acquire Cook, who has given Chicago plenty of headaches during his time in Minnesota. Cook would be an upgrade over the Bears’ current group of backs that includes D’Onta Foreman, Khalil Herbert and rookie Roschon Johnson.

Cook would fit like a glove inside the Bears’ offense. He’d get a chance to run behind a revamped line that includes rookie first-round pick Darnell Wright. Cook would also play alongside quarterback Justin Fields, who is poised to have a breakout season.

5. Arizona Cardinals

Arizona has the cap space to acquire Cook. They also have a need at running back behind James Conner, who given his injury history would benefit by having a back of Cook’s caliber to share a backfield with.

The addition of Cook would give the Cardinals one of the NFL’s top offenses as far as personnel is concerned. Like Chicago, the Cardinals acquired one of the top linemen in the draft in Paris Johnson Jr.. Arizona also has a talented young quarterback in Kyler Murray along with a talented receiving corps, which is led by Marquise Brown after the team recently released DeAndre Hopkins.

NFC NORTH

DETROIT

Peter King on the new-found relevancy of the Lions:

-Driving into Lions camp at 7:20 a.m. Saturday in a steady rain, there was this strange sight. Fans, lines of them, waiting for the gates to open for the 8:30 a.m. practice, people in Honolulu blue getting rained on for the privilege of watching a team that finally, maybe, possibly, could turn the corner to competence in 2023.

The NFL is such a narcotic. The Lions haven’t won a division title in 30 years. They’ve won one playoff game in 65 years. They were one game over .500 last year. And here we are, scores of the faithful waiting in the rain to see them. When they got into the makeshift training-camp site, you could tell these people knew their stuff.

“Thanks for staying Johnson!” one guy yelled to offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who turned down the chance to interview for the Panthers’ head-coaching job in the offseason.

“THE SUN GOD!” another yelled when wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown caught the ball from Jared Goff. St. Brown was named after Amon-Ra, the Egyptian sun god.

“Need you right now Sam!” was the shout-out to the second-round tight end Sam LaPorta, drafted to fill a big need.

We’ll get to know these guys soon enough. In the biggest surprise of schedule release night, the league decided on the Lions as the opening-night foe for Super Bowl champ Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium. Bold. Bold, and dangerous. The league bypassed four big-time home games on the schedule—versus Miami, Philadelphia, Buffalo, and Cincinnati—for the Lions, choosing to make those four matchups tentpole national TV events in the last 10 weeks of the year. Instead, the league chose the lowest-rated NFL defense in 2022 as the first 2023 foe for the league’s state-of-the-art QB (Patrick Mahomes) and offensive brain (Andy Reid).

So here’s the sense I got from these upstarts: We’re ready for this, and we’ll show you. At midseason last year, head coach Dan Campbell was 4-19-1 in his first year-and-a-half on the job. No clue how to win, no clue how to shut down a good offense. Once Jared Goff stopped turning it over and being inefficient and trusting guru-of-the-passing-game Ben Johnson, and once some young impact defensive weapons got some confidence and experience in a simplified playbook, Detroit won eight of its last 10 and was a whisker from making the playoffs.

“I’m just happy for the Lions, for us as a team to finally get some people to watch,” wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown said. “I’m not saying we’re gonna go out there and win. I don’t know what’s gonna happen. I’m just glad that we have an opportunity to show what we can do. Obviously I think we’re ready. But that might be a biased opinion. We have to prove it to everyone. We have to prove it to ourselves.

“The Lions haven’t done much for the last—you name it, decades. They haven’t won many games. Haven’t won many playoff games. So for us, we gotta go out there and prove it. Every week.”

I had a couple of questions about the 2023 Lions coming into camp. One: The running game wasn’t broken last year—Jamaal Williams and D’Andre Swift scored 22 rushing TDs and averaged 4.5 yards a carry—and the Lions tried to fix it. Why? Two: Is the defense any good?

Turns out the Lions wanted Williams, the NFL’s rush-TD leader with 17, back, but couldn’t agree on the price. He went to the Saints as a free agent. In came ex-Bear David Montgomery, a reliable inside-the-tackles guy. Decent replacement, but I don’t get why the Lions didn’t think Williams was worth the $6-million-a-year they paid Montgomery. The fleet rookie back, Jahmyr Gibbs, should be an upgrade over Swift. Gibbs gives the Lions something they really needed—a backfield force in the passing game.

As for the D, simplifying the weekly phone book into a pamphlet was the big deal, Campbell thinks. “We went back to the basics,” Campbell said. “Our guys got calmed down by the simplicity.” After Halloween, coinciding with the 8-2 finish, Detroit held Green Bay to 25 points in eight quarters. The Lions have two second-year players in the defensive front, Aidan Hutchinson and James Houston, who will be problems to play against for years. Campbell needs them to be problems for Patrick Mahomes Sept. 7.

The feisty St. Brown reeled off the 16 receivers drafted ahead of him in the ’21 draft (he got them all right) and told me he looks at the list three times a day. “I will never forget,” he said. He delights in knowing his 196 catches in two years is more than any of the 16 receivers drafted before him.

I like players who play with chips, and coaches who coach with them. Campbell does. He says he was giddy when he heard his team would play the great Mahomes in the opener. Hmmm. Giddy to face Mahomes. I’m not sure I would be, but Campbell knows these fans who stand in the rain to watch a July football practice have his back. If he’s giddy, they’re giddy.

And Frank Schwab of YahooSports.com has the Lions at #7, with a bullet, in his preseason rankings:

The Detroit Lions weren’t playing for a postseason spot by the time their regular-season finale kicked off. They were eliminated when the Seattle Seahawks won earlier in the day.

What happened that night in Lambeau Field said even more about the direction of the Lions than a playoff berth would have.

There was a lot of complaining about the way the NFL set up the Week 18 schedule, with the prevailing complaint being that the Green Bay Packers were being given an easy setup to win and make the playoffs against a disinterested Lions team. It’s like none of those people had paid any attention to the Lions the past couple seasons.

A Dan Campbell team wasn’t going to lay down and give the Packers a pass to the playoffs. They had plenty to play for, like the team’s first winning record since 2017. The Lions showed a lot of heart and played well, overcoming a fourth-quarter deficit to get a 20-16 win. The Seahawks went to the playoffs but it felt like the Lions were the big winners. The win seemed far more significant than just keeping the Packers out of the playoffs.

Campbell’s speech after the game was telling.

“To do what you guys did, it shows the character of this team and what you’re about,” Campbell said in the locker room, via MLive.com. “We didn’t doubt it at all. Coaches didn’t doubt it at all. You guys didn’t doubt it. And, schedule makers, the whole deal, Seattle. You guys didn’t even bat an eye. You came out there and you respected it and did that — you earned your respect today. I couldn’t be more proud. These coaches couldn’t be more proud. Guys, do you understand, when I say this is a special group, this is a special group.

“And, by the way, this is just the beginning. This is just the beginning. All right, because now the idea will be down the road that all roads go through Detroit. That’s the way we got to think. That’s the way you got to think. But, man, when you can win on the road like we just did to a team that is doing everything it can to get it, man, it speaks volumes about who we are and what we’re capable of. I couldn’t be more proud. I’m serious, man. I’m just telling you right now, I’m going to drink some beer tonight.”

It has been a long time since the Lions and their fans could feel this kind of optimism going into a season. It was earned over the second half of last season.

The Lions started 1-6. Over the rest of the season the only losses were in the final seconds on Thanksgiving to a very good Buffalo Bills team, and a deflating loss at the Carolina Panthers. It can be misleading to only remember the Lions finishing 8-2 and ignore that 1-6 start. They were pretty bad to start the season and at one point it was worth wondering if Campbell was on the hot seat. But the Lions did rally. The offense took off. The defense got tougher. They had some impressive wins, like beating a hot Jacksonville Jaguars team and knocking off future playoff teams like the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants. The Packers win allowed the Lions to go into the offseason believing they are on the cusp of bigger things.

“We got nine wins this season, and we were 5-1 in the division,” Campbell said after the Week 18 win, via the Detroit News. “We got better. And next year? We’ll be better.”

The Lions have a miserable history, and that’s one reason to be skeptical that they will cruise to a division title, even though they’re the clear betting favorite in the NFC North. But the Lions look pretty good on paper. They just can’t wait until November to start playing well.

Offseason grade

The Lions had a good offseason. They needed to get better in the secondary, so they paid cornerback Cameron Sutton (three years, $33 million), safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson (one year, $6.5 million) and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (one year, $6 million). It was tough for the Lions to see Gardner-Johnson go down with a knee injury early in camp, though the Lions are optimistic it’s not serious. Moseley came on a discount because he’s coming off a torn ACL, but Detroit has become a destination for free agents. Players see the culture Dan Campbell is building. The Lions lost running back Jamaal Williams but added David Montgomery, and that’s probably an upgrade. The draft haul was debated. The Lions had extra picks from the Matthew Stafford trade with the Los Angeles Rams, and they shocked many by using their two first-round picks on non-premium positions: running back Jahmyr Gibbs at No. 12 and off-ball linebacker Jack Campbell at No. 18. The Lions had extra picks in the second and third rounds too, and grabbed tight end Sam LaPorta, safety Brian Branch, quarterback Hendon Hooker (a decent gamble when he slid to the third round) and defensive tackle Brodric Martin. Whether the Lions maximized the value of those picks is questionable, but adding six top-100 picks in one class will have an impact.

Grade: A-

Quarterback report

The Lions gave Jared Goff a vote of confidence in the offseason. They could have tried to chase a top quarterback in the draft, but instead they traded down from the sixth overall pick. The Lions drafted Hendon Hooker in the third round, but that’s a modest investment in a quarterback that got some first-round buzz by some analysts. Goff played well enough to earn the Lions’ trust. He looked like an afterthought in the Matthew Stafford trade just to even out the salaries, but he has been way more than that. Goff threw for 4,438 yards and 29 touchdowns last season. He fits offensive coordinator Ben Johnson’s offense well. Goff has been criticized through the years but the Lions believe in him.

“He’s really a perfect fit for what we do and what we ask,” coach Dan Campbell said, via the Detroit Free Press.

BetMGM odds breakdown

Detroit fans love betting on their teams, so the Lions aren’t going to be great value at the betting window as they get hyped up this offseason. The Lions are +130 favorites to win the NFC North at BetMGM, despite zero division titles since 1993. No other NFC North team has shorter than +280 odds. The Lions’ win total is 9.5, and the over has -145 odds due to bets on Detroit. Bets on the over and the Lions to win the division make sense. They’re favored to win the NFC North for good reason. They played very well at the end of last season (though, again, that 1-6 start can’t be dismissed because it happened before the hot streak). Detroit fans might be homers when it comes to betting, but their optimism could be justified.

Yahoo’s fantasy take

From Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski: “Yahoo drafters are keen on Jahmyr Gibbs — over the last seven days, his ADP has risen to 41.9. But the Lions have used platoon backfields in recent years, and I’m wondering if Gibbs has enough upside to justify this lofty cost.

“Last year the Lions were content to use D’Andre Swift between the 20s and Jamaal Williams as the designated scorer at the goal line. Perhaps a similar plan will follow, with Gibbs and David Montgomery stepping into the vacated roles. Mind you, Montgomery has not been an efficient short-yardage back in recent years, but Gibbs might not have the body to handle a heavy workload. He measured 5-9, 199 pounds at the combine, and logged a modest 294 carries in his last two college seasons.

“The Lions should have a decent offense and a particularly strong offensive line; the foundation is sturdy here. But I don’t like Gibbs quite as much as the market does. I’ll need him to slide a little bit before I consider selecting him.”

Stat to remember

Last season the Lions got 20.5 sacks from rookies, which is an NFL record according to the team’s site. Aidan Hutchinson had 9.5 sacks (Detroit thanks the Jacksonville Jaguars for taking Travon Walker over Hutchinson at No. 1 overall last year) and sixth-round pick James Houston had eight. They’re the first pair of rookie teammates to each have eight sacks in a season.

The Lions have a lot of questions on defense but some young players give them hope for a large improvement. Hutchinson could be a future NFL Defensive Player of the Year; there’s a reason the Lions ran the card to the table after the Jaguars picked Walker. If this year’s rookie class that includes linebacker Jack Campbell and safety Brian Branch pays off right away, the Lions should have a nice defensive core for years to come.

Burning question

Can Jameson Williams turn this around?

Williams didn’t have a great rookie season, though his only catch went for a 41-yard touchdown. That was fine though. The Lions knew when they drafted Williams 12th overall that he was coming off an ACL injury late in his final college season. Last season was practically a redshirt year. Then came the suspension.

Williams was suspended six games for violating the NFL’s gambling policy. Whether you agree with the policy — Williams’ suspension was for betting non-NFL games at the team facility — it showed a remarkable lack of judgment from a player who already hadn’t done much as a rookie. Williams can be a huge asset as a big-play threat the offense needs after his suspension is up, but there’s pressure now. A second lost season in a row would put him on the road toward being a possible draft bust.

Best-case scenario

OK, we need to talk about the Lions as Super Bowl contenders. Yes, the same team that has won one playoff game since 1957. If they’re this high in the rankings, there has to be a reasonable argument to be made for them winning a championship. And there is. Once Ben Johnson returned as offensive coordinator, it ensured Detroit should be pretty good on that side of the ball again. The personnel additions to the defense and the natural progression from some young players on that side could lead to a huge leap. The division doesn’t seem too tough, and there’s a path for the Lions to get a No. 1 seed if the NFC North is bad. If it wasn’t for the Lions’ putrid history, we’d have no problem envisioning them as one of the teams that can win a Super Bowl, or at least make it that far.

Nightmare scenario

We’ll let Dan Campbell tell you what the problem might be.

“I think as always, the thing that’s going to worry you is the hype train,” Campbell said last week, viaNFL.com. “I mean this thing has just taken off and it’s out of control right now, and that’s fine, as long as we stay focused on the job at hand and the work.”

Maybe the offseason hype has the Lions too overconfident. We’re not that far removed from them being a 1-6 team with some ugly losses in that stretch. It’s not like you can’t envision a doomsday scenario in which the Lions’ lack of receiving depth is a problem, Jared Goff reverts to how he looked late in his Rams career, the defense is better but still bad and the Lions are the offseason darling that fizzled out. It would be crushing to the Lions and their fans if this season, which has so much excitement leading into it, ends without a playoff berth. But it could happen.

The crystal ball says …

The Lions are in a bit of a weird spot. They didn’t even make the playoffs last season, yet they’re one of the most talked-about teams of the offseason. I want to believe. Many, many teams use “culture” as an empty buzzword, but it really seems like Detroit has built one. Their win over the Packers to end last season spoke volumes. I think Detroit does well on offense again and improves on defense. We might be a year away from the defense making a leap into the top 10 or 12 of the league, and that could preclude a playoff run. But a division title, on the 30th anniversary of the Lions winning the NFC Central, seems reasonable. And that would be a pretty good season for the Lions.

MINNESOTA

EDGE DANIELLE HUNTER is now a happy man.  ESPN.com:

After a contract conflict that extended into training camp, the Minnesota Vikings and pass-rusher Danielle Hunter have agreed to a new one-year deal that can be worth up to $20 million, a source confirmed to ESPN on Sunday.

Hunter will receive $17 million guaranteed, the source said. Hunter can earn $3 million in sack incentives, and the new agreement prohibits the Vikings from using the franchise or transition tag on him next season, a source confirmed.

Sources said the Vikings had evaluated trade options for Hunter, who had skipped organized team activities and mandatory minicamp as he sought an increase on his $4.9 million base salary for this season prior to the new agreement.

Coach Kevin O’Connell said Saturday that he had spoken daily with Hunter, who reported to training camp but had not yet participated after missing the offseason program.

“My hope is that we can work towards him being out on the practice field with us sooner rather than later,” O’Connell said.

Hunter returned last season after two years of injuries and recorded 10.5 sacks, even after transitioning from a 4-3 defensive end to a 3-4 outside linebacker. Hunter and fellow pass-rusher Marcus Davenport are both playing on one-year deals now, with Davenport making $13 million.

NFC EAST

DALLAS

Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com says WR CeeDEE LAMB is all in with QB DAK PRESCOTT:

Dak Prescott has complete command of the Cowboys’ offense.

That’s the word from Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who said on 105.3 The Fan that unlike in the past, when head coach Mike McCarthy or former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore was making the decisions, it’s Prescott who’s calling the shots.

“All the offense is in Dak’s hands now. It’s not necessarily being called from Mike or Kel since last year. It’s all on Dak. However he’s feeling versus the coverage, if he likes the matchup, we’re gonna call that play.”

Much has been made this offseason of the need for Prescott to play at a high level after his NFL-high 15 interceptions last season. The Cowboys are showing confidence in Prescott by giving him more ownership of the offense.

NEW YORK GIANTS

22-year-old EDGE KEYVON THIBODEAUX is disgusted by what he sees on video from the 21-year-old KEYVON THIBODEAUX.  Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com:

Giants pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux is now happy with how he played as a rookie last year.

Thibodeaux, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft, was highly critical of his own play in comments to reporters today and said he expects to be significantly better in year two.

“Last year’s film kind of disgusts me a little when I look at myself. I get a little cringe feeling. It definitely is a platform to continue to grow,” Thibodeaux said, via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.

Thibodeaux started 14 games as a rookie and showed flashes of the talent that made him such a high pick, but he finished the season with only four sacks. He thinks he’s going to get a lot more in 2023.

NFC SOUTH

TAMPA BAY

First round rookie DT CALIJAH KANCEY was taken off the field in a cart.  Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com:

Buccaneers defensive tackle Calijah Kancey was carted off the field Sunday with a right leg injury. Coach Todd Bowles said after practice that Kancey has a calf strain and will undergo an MRI to determine the severity.

The first-round draft pick was turning the corner on a drill when he pulled up, Jenna Laine of ESPN reports. Kancey let out an expletive when he realized he couldn’t put weight on his leg.

The University of Pittsburgh product is expected to join Pro Bowler Vita Vea inside. Kancey earned first-team All-America honors in his junior year, totaling 7.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss.

The Bucs have raved about him during the offseason program and through the first week of training camp.

“The number of ‘wow’ plays that he had in shorts was more than I was even expecting,” General Manager Jason Licht said at the start of camp, via Laine. “That doesn’t necessarily always translate to making a bunch of plays in the NFL his rookie season. I’m not saying that he’s going to for sure be an All-Pro his first year or anything like that. But seeing this defense kind of mold into what Todd [Bowles] really does like in that explosive, penetrating front that can get pressure up the middle, as well as off the edge, with all the tools that we have with Devin [White] and Lavonte [David], it’s going to be exciting, that’s for sure.”

NFC WEST

SEATTLE

Injured running backs in Seahawks camp.  Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com:

The top two running backs on the Seahawks’ depth chart are currently out of practice with injuries.

Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III has a groin injury, and rookie second-round pick Zach Charbonnet has a shoulder injury.

Seattle head coach Pete Carroll said that with groin injuries to running backs, the team likes to be cautious, so Walker could be out a few weeks.

“He doesn’t feel bad. It’s not a terrible injury or anything like that. We just don’t want to aggravate it now and make it something that lingers through camp,” Carroll said, via ESPN.

As for Charbonnet, Carroll said the team isn’t sure how he hurt his shoulder and will need time to determine how long he’ll miss.

“It just kind of crept up on him, really,” Carroll said. “He didn’t get hit or anything like that. Just all the sudden, he started to feel something, so we’re just checking him out and being really cautious right now.”

Walker is coming off a rookie season in which he had 228 carries for 1,050 yards and nine touchdowns, finishing second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting. He and Charbonnet are expected to be the 1-2 punch at running back this year, but with both of them down backups DeeJay Dallas and Kenny McIntosh will get plenty of work.

AFC WEST

DENVER

Peter Schrager had this to say when he heard Coach Sean Payton’s vivisection of Nathaniel Hackett and the previous regime in Denver:

@PSchrags

Sean Payton’s comments …

There’s intentionality in everything he does. He’s had all summer to chart everything he does out. He sees it (football, the media, the reaction) all as a giant chess board. He doesn’t just talk without a purpose specifically meant for HIS team.

We wonder if walking them back less than a week later was on that chart. Jordan Dajani of CBSSports.com:

On Friday, Payton apologized for his remarks in front of reporters, and said he regretted his words 40 minutes after the interview.

“Listen, I had one of those moments where I still had my FOX hat on and not my coaching hat on,” Payton said, via NFL Media. “I said this to the team in the meeting yesterday, we’ve had a great offseason relative to that. I’ve been preaching that message, and here I am, the veteran, stepping in it. It was a learning experience for me, it was a mistake, obviously. I need a little bit more filter.”

Payton also apologized to Coach Saleh.

“I think the world of Robert. I know him. I don’t know Nathaniel. But at the right time. It certainly will bring more interest in the game when we play them, but that seems like years from now. But I’ll handle it the right way,” Payton said, via Pro Football Talk.

One player that is well-positioned to share his opinion on this scuffle between Payton and the Jets is veteran offensive tackle Billy Turner. He not only played for the Broncos last year, but is now a member the Jets. Turner took to social media to respond to Payton and didn’t hold back.

“Seems like someone started training camp and is trying to soften the blow after realizing what he’s in for this season. F****** bum,” Turner wrote. He also used the hashtag #BountyGate referencing to Payton’s scandal that got him suspended for the entire 2012 season. Turner finished with the hashtag #childish.

Wonder what happened exactly 40 minutes after he made his remarks.

Peter King:

I think that interview with Jarrett Bell is one Sean Payton would like to have back.

I think that is the understatement of July. As one head coach told me over the phone as we wound our way from the Jets to Steelers, “That crosses the line. Sean broke the code.” It’s one thing to say to Russell Wilson: I’ve got your back. Me and you against the world, Russ. It’s another thing to lay waste to a good coach not ready to be a head coach, Nathaniel Hackett, and to football people still in the Denver building (“20 dirty hands”). Just way over the line. In some ways, Payton may have put more pressure on Wilson, because he totally, unequivocally absolved him of all blame in the disastrous 2022 season. Now, if Wilson doesn’t revert to top-QB form, Payton has set himself and Wilson up as punching bags—even after walking his comments back.

AFC NORTH

BALTIMORE

Peter King is back from his extended sabbatical.  And this is his big schedule nugget – about how the Ravens will be well-rested for December.

I think I’m going to go down a scheduling rabbit hole here, but it’s stuck with me through my time off. Here goes. One potentially decisive scheduling factoid in the AFC North was lost in the mega-coverage of the schedule release in May, and that’s the major rest advantage for Baltimore down the stretch of the season … and the potential physical beatdown the Steelers could face at the same time.

The Ravens will play one game in a span of 23 days between Nov. 17 and Dec. 9, which could lead to significant healing for a stretch run with two noted physical foes—San Francisco in week 16, Pittsburgh in week 18.

The Steelers will play four games in that same span.

Baltimore plays Cincinnati at home on Thursday, Nov. 16, and will wake up in home beds on the 17th with nine days off before facing the Chargers in L.A. on Sunday, Nov. 26. Then comes the week 13 bye, followed by a home game against the Rams on Sunday, Dec. 10.

Pittsburgh will play three straight Sundays starting Nov. 19 in Cleveland, and then at Cincinnati and then home with Arizona. The Steelers then play New England at home on Thursday night Dec. 7. So that’s actually four games in 19 days for the Steelers.

What’s interesting, to me, is that Ravens coach John Harbaugh could have a relatively luxurious decision or decisions to make in mid-November. Say a key player comes out of that Thursday night game on Nov. 16 with a strained calf or bum ankle. If Harbaugh is confident in his receiver and corner depth, he could give them 23 days to heal for the last five games. It’s the kind of decision coaches rarely have the chance to make in the health-crushing world of the NFL.

AFC SOUTH

INDIANAPOLIS

RB JONATHAN TAYLOR, who it should be said is looking to be paid more or traded, showed up at camp with back pain.  The Colts are said to be looking for a way not to have to pay him at all.  Stephen Holder of ESPN.com:

Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, who has requested a trade, reported back pain during his pre-training camp physical that was deemed to be from an injury that was not sustained while playing for Indianapolis, a league source told ESPN.

The situation now has the team considering whether to place Taylor on the non-football injury list, which could result in Indianapolis withholding his salary, the source said.

Taylor failed his physical, the source said, because of a combination of a previous ankle injury for which surgery was performed earlier this year and the back injury. The team’s medical staff had not previously discussed a back issue with Taylor, and the Colts were unaware of the problem until Taylor reported Tuesday, the source said.

There’s some belief that the back issue stems from an old injury, but Taylor continues to complain of discomfort, according to the source.

On Sunday night, in a message posted on X, formerly Twitter, Taylor said he “never had a back pain.”

All of this comes on the heels of a dramatic scene Saturday night when Taylor, who has been on the physically unable to perform list since reporting, met with Jim Irsay on the Colts owner’s luxury motor coach parked adjacent to the practice field during the team’s evening workout.

Shortly after Taylor and Irsay emerged from the hourlong meeting, news broke that Taylor had requested a trade in a conversation with the team last week.

Taylor has been seeking a contract extension, but Irsay has said on multiple occasions that the team does not intend to sign him to an extension at this time. Irsay told ESPN last week that the club has not even made a contract offer to Taylor, the NFL’s leading rusher during the 2021 season.

This Tweet spotted by Peter King:

Jonathan Taylor wants to play for a GM who builds his team around a star running back, so he has requested a trade to 1997.

–“Jeopardy!” champion and big NFL fan James Holzhauer, in a Saturday night Tweet.

– – –

Meanwhile, rookie QB ANTHONY RICHARDSON has been having surgery.  Myles Simmons of ProFootballTalk.com:

It’s usually not a good thing when a team’s quarterback has to undergo a medical procedure early on in training camp. But this one doesn’t seem to be much of a concern for Indianapolis.

The Colts announced on Monday morning that Anthony Richardson had a nose procedure on Sunday to correct his nasal spectrum.

“He will miss practice today and depending on how he feels we expect him to return tomorrow,” the team said in a statement.

While it’s clear that Richardson — the No. 4 pick of this year’s draft — will be the team’s starter eventually, he has not yet been named QB1.

The Colts also have Gardner Minshew and Sam Ehlinger at the position. It’s likely that Minshew will take the bulk of the reps at Monday’s practice from behind center.

AFC EAST

NEW ENGLAND

Will RB EZEKIEL ELLIOTT end up with the Patriots?  Bryan DeArdo of CBSSports.com:

Notorious for giving former standout players a second or sometimes third chance, it made plenty of sense that Bill Belichick was bringing in a two-time league rushing champion for a visit. On Saturday, the Patriots hosted free agent and former Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott, according to Jordan Schultz.

Elliott left without a deal, but the sides will remain in touch, per NFL Media.

Elliott, who recently celebrated his 28th birthday, was released by the Cowboys on March 15 after Dallas placed the franchise tag on fellow running back Tony Pollard. The Patriots could use extra depth behind starter Rhamondre Stevenson after Damien Harris signed with the Bills this past offseason. Ty Montgomery was injured during practice on Thursday and is considered day to day. New England recently worked out Leonard Fournette and is trying to get a visit with reigning league rushing champion Dalvin Cook.

According to ESPN, Belichick reached out to Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones directly for some intel before inviting Elliott for a visit.

Elliott, the former Ohio State standout, was the fourth overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. He led the league in rushing as a rookie while helping the Cowboys post a 13-3 record. Elliott was his second rushing title two years later as Dallas captured the NFC East title. He was selected to his third and most recent Pro Bowl in 2019 after rushing for 1,357 yards and 12 touchdowns.

The last three seasons have been less than stellar, however. Elliott ran for 979 yards in 15 games in 2020 while playing the most of the year without starting quarterback Dak Prescott. He ran for 1,002 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2021 while helping the Cowboys clinch a playoff berth.

In 2022, Elliott posted career-lows of 876 rushing yards and a 3.8 yards-per-carry average. He did match his career high with 12 touchdown runs while helping Dallas win 12 games.

If signed, Elliott would join a long list of former stars signed by Belichick later in their careers. That list includes running back Corey Dillon, receiver Randy Moss, safety Rodney Harrison, linebacker Junior Seau, cornerback Darrelle Revis and wideouts Antonio Brown and Josh Gordon, among others.

More from Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com:

On Sunday, coach Bill Belichick was asked about the reported Elliott visit. As he often does, Belichick had nothing to say.

“Yeah, again, I’ll pass on the guys that aren’t on our team,” Belichick said. (The wire for Saturday confirmed the visit.)

So Elliott obviously could be on their team, not as a workhorse but as a member of a committee approach that gets used, or not used, based upon the game plan in a given week.

Belichick was nevertheless asked about the importance of running backs to be able to do a little bit of everything, including pass protection and running between the tackles.

“Yeah, I don’t know,” Belichick said. “I mean, we run the ball, we throw the ball. James White didn’t run the ball between the tackles very much, he was a pretty good player for us. LeGarrette Blount did, he was a good player for us, too. So, yeah, I don’t know.”

So that’s the reality. Belichick wants a group that can collectively do it all, and he’ll then deploy them based on what they do. And Ellliott obviously could be part of that group.

The Cowboys cut Elliott early in the offseason. He has not generated much interest, possibly because of his contractual expectations.

At this point, Elliott — like Dalvin Cook — benefits from the possibility of an injury to a running back, or maybe a surprise retirement like the one on Saturday from former Patriots first-rounder Sony Michel.

NEW YORK JETS

Last week, Broncos Sean Payton launched an attack on Jets OC Nathaniel Hackett that was either candid or brutal or both.  It certainly violated some of the unwritten rules of the coaching fraternity.

QB AARON RODGERS, like all the Jets, is very aware that the teams meet in Denver in Week 5. Rich Cimini of ESPN.com:

Defending offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers jumped into the Sean Payton controversy Sunday with a scathing rebuke of the Denver Broncos coach.

“It made me feel bad that someone who has accomplished a lot in the league is that insecure that they have to take another man down to set themselves up for some easy fall if it doesn’t go well for that team this year,” Rodgers told NFL+ in a sit-down interview after practice. “I think it was way out of line, inappropriate, and I think he needs to keep my coaches’ names out of his mouth.”

Rodgers said Payton’s comments about Hackett “were very surprising” and out of character “for a coach to do that to another coach.”

In an interview with USA Today last week, Payton called Hackett’s 15-game run with the Broncos last season “one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL” and said there were “20 dirty hands” around quarterback Russell Wilson’s career-worst season that included 16 touchdown passes and a league-high 55 sacks.

Payton also jabbed the Jets, suggesting they were infatuated with the “pomp and circumstance” of a blockbuster offseason that included the acquisition of Rodgers. Payton hinted that the Jets were a “dream team” that is doomed to failure.

The Broncos’ new coach, hired in the offseason after one season as a Fox Sports analyst, eventually apologized for his remarks, calling them “a mistake.”

The Jets and Broncos play in Week 5 in Denver.

For Rodgers, this wasn’t just a critique of any coach. He and Hackett are very close. Rodgers said Sunday that “my love for Hack goes deep,” adding that Hackett is “arguably my favorite coach I’ve ever had in the NFL.”

Rodgers and Hackett worked together from 2019 to 2021 when Hackett served as the Green Bay Packers’ offensive coordinator under Matt LaFleur. Rodgers was the NFL MVP in two of those seasons, helping Hackett land the Broncos’ head-coaching gig.

It was a disastrous year for Hackett, who went 4-11 before being fired. Jets coach Robert Saleh hired Hackett to replace Mike LaFleur, a move that was instrumental in luring Rodgers to New York.

“We had some great years together in Green Bay,” Rodgers told NFL+. “[We] kept in touch. Love him and his family. He’s an incredible family man and an incredible dad. And on the field, he’s arguably my favorite coach I’ve ever had in the NFL. Just his approach to it. He makes it fun, how he cares about the guys, just how he goes about his business with respect, with leadership, with honesty, with integrity.”

Payton’s stinging criticism certainly created a stir around the Jets, with Saleh also speaking out in Hackett’s defense.

“I kind of live by the saying, ‘If you ain’t got no haters, you ain’t popping,'” Saleh said. “So hate away. Obviously, we’re doing something right if you’ve got to talk about us when we don’t play you until [Week 5].”

THIS AND THAT

RONDÉ BARBER

Cornerback Rondé Barber goes into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this week and Dan Pompei of The Athletic tells us what made him worthy:

On the wall in the office of Titans trainer Todd Toriscelli is a framed, signed photograph.

It’s a picture of Ronde Barber — soon to be Pro Football Hall of Famer Ronde Barber.

Toriscelli spent 17 seasons as the trainer of the Buccaneers — the first 16 of those with Barber.

The photograph is hung with the hope that it will be noticed and a young player will ask, “Who is that?” And even if that doesn’t happen, Toriscelli will bring up Barber in his annual meetings with rookies.

What will he tell them?

Well, he could say Barber was the one who sealed the 2002 NFC championship with a pick-six that sent the Bucs to the Super Bowl — the photograph is of that play.

Toriscelli could tell them Barber was voted All-Pro five times and all-decade for the 2000s.

He could say he is the only player in NFL history with 45 or more interceptions and 25 or more sacks.

The trainer could point out Barber scored 14 non-offensive touchdowns, more than all but three players ever.

He could tell them that Barber watched tape like a quarterback and that he would never leave the facility before reviewing tape of that day’s practice.

But that isn’t what Toriscelli wants them to know.

This is the story Toriscelli tells.

Barber is one of two, Toriscelli says. His twin is Tiki.

To young Ronde, it seemed like Tiki was better than him at everything. He was bigger, stronger, faster, more athletic and savvier in sports. In baseball, Tiki was positioned at shortstop and Ronde was sent to the outfield. He couldn’t beat Tiki in the 100 meters, so Ronde ran hurdles.

Their football coach, seeing star potential, lined up Tiki at running back, where the best athletes played. Ronde was primarily a safety. Tiki was a starter from day one in high school football. Ronde had to earn his playing time.

At Virginia, Tiki played as a freshman; Ronde was redshirted. Tiki was chosen with the 36th pick in the 1997 NFL Draft; Ronde went 66th.

“I was,” Ronde would say, “always a half-step behind.”

But it was a glorious half-step. It was the half-step that would push Ronde beyond Tiki and almost everyone else he viewed as competition. It was the half-step that was responsible for the insecurity that made Ronde different.

Ronde had what he calls a fear of failure. In high school, his opportunity to play came when another player was injured. Same thing in college and in the NFL. So once he was on the field, Ronde would not come off.

This is how Barber would say it: “I always had this sense that I felt like I wasn’t doing my job if I was letting anybody else do my job.”

Toriscelli brings up Barber’s rookie year. He had a strained hip flexor, so Toriscelli put the cornerback on the injury report. Barber didn’t like that.

“Hey, Todd,” he told him in the cafeteria. “Take me off the injury report and don’t ever put me on it again.”

Toriscelli was floored. “I’m like, ‘OK. I don’t even know this guy.’”

But Toriscelli took Barber off the injury report and rarely put him on another. Barber went the last nine seasons of his career without being listed on an injury report.

It wasn’t because he never was hurt, of course. In his career, there was a high ankle sprain, a quad strain, a knee sprain, a broken left thumb and subsequent surgery, a fractured forearm, a concussion, a right hamstring strain and more.

Barber never missed a game because of an injury in 241 opportunities. He started 215 straight — the seventh-longest streak in NFL history. Willie Wood has the next-longest streak for a defensive back at 154 games. Barber’s streak could have been 230 games, but he volunteered to let Brian Kelly start ahead of him in 1999 when he had a pulled hamstring, even though Barber knew he would play nickel in the game.

He never spent a day on injured reserve and never came off the field because of an injury.

Toriscelli talks about Barber’s second season — his first as a starter. In a December game against the Steelers, Barber tried to punch the ball out of Jerome Bettis’ hand. Instead, he broke his own thumb in five places. The following day, Barber had surgery and had five pins inserted in his hand, and the expectation was that he would miss the rest of the season. But on Wednesday when the Bucs were preparing to practice, Barber stunned his team by jogging out to the field in full gear, still wearing his post-op gauze and dressing.

“You can’t go out there — you can’t even get that wet,” Toriscelli told him.

Barber’s reply: “No one other than me is ever lining up at that position. Not even for practice.”

So Barber practiced, and a week and a half later, wearing a cast on his hand, made an interception.

Toriscelli brings up 2002. On Thanksgiving, Barber tore his MCL in a game against the Packers. Three games later against the Lions, he completely tore the PCL in the same knee.

Most players would have gone on injured reserve. Some would have taken a handful of games off. A few might have sat out for a week or so and then tested it.

The day after the game, Barber worked out, going from a walk to a jog to a run on the treadmill. Then he iced and did it over again. He was testing his pain threshold. On Wednesday, he ran on the field before practice, pushing himself the same way.

It went like that for the rest of the season. If he could practice, he did. When he couldn’t, Barber acted like he was practicing in the beginning periods when the media was present. When the reporters left, he’d go to the sideline.

Every week, Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin and the other coaches told Toriscelli there was no way he would play. Barber’s goal always was to practice on Friday because Kiffin had a rule that if a player practiced on Friday, he could play. So no matter what, Barber practiced on Friday.

That season, Barber made it through all 16 regular-season games, plus three postseason games. In the fourth quarter of the NFC Championship Game against the Eagles, he stepped in front of wide receiver Antonio Freeman and intercepted Donovan McNabb.

Then came the hard part. With his bad knee, Barber had to run 92 yards to score — that’s the picture on the office wall.

“He was kind of galloping,” is how former Bucs safety John Lynch put it.

Toriscelli has one more injury to talk about.

In the 2011 season, Barber stuck out his arm to tackle Michael Turner. The shin of the Falcons’ running back slammed into Barber’s forearm, shattering it.

The Bucs were 4-11 at the time, and they were in the fourth quarter of the final game of the season. Despite the circumstances, Barber kept playing

Between series, Toriscelli asked to see Barber’s arm.

“That’s broke,” Toriscelli told him. But Barber insisted on finishing the game. The two of them ran to the training room, where Toriscelli cast the arm. Barber returned to finish. The following week, he had surgery to place an eight-inch plate and eight pins in his arm, which remain today.

There’s something that needs to be understood, Toriscelli tells the rookies. Given Barber’s size and style of play, his toughness was almost beyond comprehension. Barber was 5-foot-10. He usually started games weighing 183 pounds and ended them at maybe 178, which almost always made him the smallest man on the field.

Sometimes small defenders cash their checks with finesse, but Barber went after ball carriers like a guided missile.

He made 1,251 tackles in his career. According to Pro Football Reference, that’s the most in history by a cornerback. His 88 tackles for a loss are more than any cornerback or safety.

Lynch was one of the most feared hitters and consistent tacklers in pro football, and Barber learned to tackle by watching Lynch refine his technique in the end zone. Lynch took a long stride, a short stride, put his feet in a staggered position and then hit the goal post with his chest. That’s what Barber did, over and over. Then in a game, he’d hit the ball carrier the same way and often roll-tackle him.

Barber had to be a sure tackler because he frequently played nickel corner. He could be considered the first great nickel corner. And the way the Bucs used the nickel corner was to make him a smaller version of the strongside linebacker. That meant being responsible for gaps in the run game and being able to deal with offensive linemen looking to turn defensive backs into roadkill.

Barber took on those players who weighed nearly twice as much as him and often got the better of them. He had different ways of doing it. Back then, it was legal to cut them and he did it well. Barber also would jump just before taking a hit from a big man. This would enable him to absorb a blow, land on his feet, then use his quickness to dart around the slower blocker.

And every so often, Barber would explode into a lineman caught in an awkward position. He did it against Vikings right tackle Chris Liwienski on a blitz. Lynch and his teammates still talk about seeing the 6-6, 325-pounder flying backward in the air after colliding with little Ronde.

Like his twin, Ronde had some freak in him. But he also worked exceptionally hard for his strength. In the offseasons, Barber put in a challenging 15 minutes of stair climber training before team workouts.

Toriscelli talks about the videos Barber showed him of the twins training in a small New Jersey gym during downtime. In an era when teammates were working out with rubber bands, the Barbers were doing lunges with 300 pounds on their backs. And during the season, Barber never skipped a lift. Then he followed his weight work with hundred-yard striders.

Later in his career, Barber extended his usefulness through muscle activation therapy. Then he learned from Lynch how to warm up with Egoscue, which restores balance and symmetry without undue straining and stretching.

It helped Barber play at a high level until he was 37 — four years after he first seriously contemplated retirement.

Toriscelli emphasizes this — Barber’s longevity mostly was the result of mindset. Ronde, the supposedly less gifted twin, was the first Barber to be a Pro Bowler, first All-Pro, and now he will be first in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He became the player Lynch talks about in the 49ers’ draft meetings as the model for toughness.

That photo is on the wall of Toriscelli’s office because he wants the Titans to know what toughness looks like.

And this is how he wraps up his story.

“I’ve been around a lot of good ones, thousands of players,” he will say. “But he’s the toughest human being I’ve ever been around. I know what the human body is capable of because I worked with Ronde Barber.”