The Daily Briefing Thursday, January 6, 2022

If California and Los Angeles goes into a lockdown mode with massive health restrictions, the NFL has signaled its willingness to bolt for more welcoming climes, even with just five weeks to the SoFi Stadium-scheduled Super Bowl.  The AP:

The NFL, not surprisingly in the midst of a rise in COVID-19 cases, has looked into other potential sites for next month’s Super Bowl.

That’s not unusual because the league does so every year. But with Los Angeles the site for this year’s title game, and restrictions increasing for attendance at indoor events, it has become more noteworthy.

“We plan on playing Super Bowl 56 as scheduled at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 13,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Wednesday. “As part of our standard contingency planning process that we conduct for all regular and postseason games, we have contacted several clubs to inquire about stadium availability in the event we cannot play the Super Bowl as scheduled due to weather-related issues or unforeseen circumstances.

“Our planning process for the Super Bowl in Los Angeles is ahead of schedule and we look forward to hosting the Super Bowl there to culminate another fantastic NFL season for our fans and clubs.”

AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys, reportedly is one of the facilities that was contacted. The stadium hosted the Rose Bowl in 2021 when it was switched from Pasadena because of COVID-19 restrictions in California.

Earlier Wednesday, the Grammy Awards were postponed indefinitely. They were scheduled forCrypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Jan. 31. Organizers cited health and safety concerns.

The Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium is scheduled for Feb. 13.

NFC NORTH

CHICAGO

QB JUSTIN FIELDS is a victim of the pandemic.  Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com:

Bears head coach Matt Nagy said on Wednesday that the plan for Week 18 was for rookie quarterback Justin Fields to get the start against the Vikings, but that plan is going to have to change.

The ankle injury that kept Fields out of the lineup the last two weeks is not the reason for the change. Fields was placed on the COVID-19 reserve list on Thursday and it is unlikely that he’ll be cleared to return in time to play on Sunday.

Andy Dalton started for the Bears in last Sunday’s rout of the Giants and is now likely to move into position to start again this weekend. Nick Foles would be the backup.

If Fields’ rookie season is over, it will end with 10 starts and 12 overall appearances under his belt. He was 159-of-270 for 1,870 yards, seven touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He also ran 72 times for 420 yards and two touchdowns.

GREEN BAY

QB AARON RODGERS has some thoughts about Hall of Fame voter Hub Arkush and his decision to vote for the MVVP.  Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com who also has comments about the Packers not planning on resting many players in Detroit on Sunday:

– Aaron Rodgers had strong words for the MVP voter who said this week that he would not cast his vote for the Green Bay Packers quarterback because he’s “the biggest jerk in the league” and “a bad guy.”

Those comments came from Hub Arkush, a Chicago-based reporter who owns one of the 50 votes for The Associated Press’ Most Valuable Player award.

“I think he’s a bum,” Rodgers said Wednesday. “I think he’s an absolute bum. He doesn’t know me. I don’t know who he is; no one knew who he was, probably, until yesterday’s comments. I listened to the comments, but to say he had his mind made up in the summertime, in the offseason, that I had zero chance of winning MVP, in my opinion, should exclude future votes. His problem isn’t with me being a bad guy or the biggest jerk in the league. He doesn’t know me.”

Arkush, who is the editor of Pro Football Weekly and contributes to other Chicago-area media, made his comments on Chicago radio station 670 The Score and has since said he regrets saying he would not vote for Rodgers because of his issues with the quarterback’s off-the-field habits, such as his decision not to get vaccinated.

“His problem is I’m not vaccinated,” Rodgers said. “So, if he wants to go on a crusade and collude and come up with an extra letter to put on the award just for this season and make it the Most Valuable Vaccinated Player, then he should do that. But he’s a bum and I’m not going to waste any time worrying about that stuff. He has no idea who I am. He’s never talked to me in his life.”

– – –

In a subsequent appearance on the station, Arkush said he regrets putting other voters in a position to have to answer questions about their votes.

“The only thing I can do going forward is respect what I failed to respect last night and just not talk about it anymore until after the awards have been given,” he said Wednesday.

In a column, Arkush wrote that he “made a terrible mistake” with his remarks and that “there is no one else to blame, and I am here to try and apologize.”

Although the AP award, which Rodgers has won three times (including for last season), is considered the official MVP award, the NFL is not involved in the process.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur said the only thing that should be considered in the voting is how someone plays on the field.

“I don’t know what else could factor into it than how somebody goes out and performs on a weekly basis,” LaFleur said. “If people are going to judge people for differences of opinion or things that they have no idea what the heck they’re talking about, then I think that just kind of discredits that award. I think we hold that award in high regard. I think most do. And I think it’s an absolute privilege to be able to vote for that award. To consider anything else outside of what you see when that player’s out there playing I think is a disservice to everybody.”

The Packers lost the game Rodgers missed due to the COVID-19 rules but still managed to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs with one game remaining. They’re 13-3 heading into Sunday’s regular-season finale at the Detroit Lions.

“I think the MVP should be about the most valuable player on the team,” Rodgers said. “A lot of times it goes to the best player on the best team, and we’re the best team. So if voters want to use the offseason or don’t like my stance being unvaccinated, that’s their prerogative. I don’t think it’s right, but that’s their prerogative.”

Rodgers has thrown 35 touchdown passes and had had only four passes intercepted (two of which came in the season opener) for 3,977 yards while completing 68.6% of his passes.

He likely will have the chance to add to those stats Sunday against the Lions because LaFleur said he does not plan to hold out healthy players even though it’s a so-called meaningless game. However, that does not mean those players will play the entire game.

“We did some studies in terms of how other teams have fared when going into the final week of the season that had a bye, and it was overwhelmingly in favor of giving the guys at least some time,” LaFleur said. “And so, certainly you weigh in that information, but you also talk to your players and these guys want to play. So that’s how we’re going to go about it.”

MINNESOTA

Mike Florio on the Vikings and expensive QB KIRK COUSINS:

As the Vikings move toward the conclusion of Kirk Cousins‘s fourth year with the team, they have a problem.

The quarterback who has delivered one playoff appearance during his time in Minnesota, and whose untimely COVID positive has delivered the de facto final nail on the prospects of another one, has one year left on his contract. He has a cap number of $45 million, along with a fully-guaranteed salary in 2022 of $35 million.

In February, Cousins told #PFTPM that he’s not inclined to re-do the current deal. If so, the Vikings enter his lame-duck season with a healthy dilemma. Keep him or trade him?

He’s been good enough, at a time when the organization seems to be content to be just good enough. While it seems that Cousins and coach Mike Zimmer may be inching toward the point at which they no longer can coexist, there’s a chance that ownership will decide to kick the can and roll the dice on a team that, while likely not good enough to contend for a championship, will be relevant until late in the regular season, and possibly will make it to the playoffs.

If the Vikings decide to move on, the question becomes whether someone would take Cousins’s current salary, or whether the Vikings would have to pay a large chunk of it to facilitate a deal. While Cousins doesn’t land in Brock Osweiler/Jared Goff hot-potato territory, which would require the Vikings to give another team one or more draft picks to take the Cousins contract off the books, it may not be easy to find a team that gladly will pay Cousins $35 million in 2022 — especially if he’s not inclined to extend the contract on the way through the door.

If the 49ers hadn’t invested three first-round picks and a third-round pick in quarterback Trey Lance earlier this year, a potential Cousins and Kyle Shanahan reunion would have made sense. Ditto for the Rams and Sean McVay, if L.A. hadn’t gone all in with Matthew Stafford. Who else would want Cousins?

Much of it depends on the looming coaching carousel, followed by the now-annual question of which veteran quarterbacks will be on the move. Through it all, the Vikings may simply be inclined to make a series of excuses for their chronic failures in 2021 and try it all over again in 2022.

NFC EAST

WASHINGTON

Admirals wasn’t on the list of “finalists” put forth by the WFT, it was Armada.  But then there is this.  Jenna Lemoncelli of the New York Post:

The Washington Football Team’s new name might’ve gotten spoiled weeks before the team’s scheduled announcement on Feb. 2.

On Monday, CBS Sports reported that a website, “WashingtonAdmirals.com,” redirected to the WFT’s official website, WashingtonFootball.com.

Although the domain no longer leads to the official site of the NFL squad, the name “Admirals” is reportedly one of nine different names being considered for the club’s new mascot — including “Armada,” “Presidents” and “Red Hogs.”

Boomer Esiason of the “Boomer and Gio” show on WFAN said Monday the team’s new name is “The Admirals.”

The WFT has not yet addressed the reports about its new name.

CBS Sports noted there is a Major League Quidditch team that currently holds the name Washington Admirals. The franchise is reportedly based in the Washington, DC, area.

We’re okay with Admirals as a general principle (pun coming), it’s an okay name.  But wasn’t Washington a general?  And is there anything nautical associated with Washington compared to San Diego or San Francisco or Seattle or New York or Boston, etc.

NFC SOUTH

NEW ORLEANS

They may only be 8-8, but Mike Triplett of ESPN.com says the Saints coaching staff did a fine job in 2021:

One of coach Sean Payton’s favorite expressions that he lifted from mentor Bill Parcells is, “You are what your record says you are.”

But the New Orleans Saints’ 8-8 mark probably deserves a half-dozen asterisks and a few chapters worth of footnotes to fully appreciate it. The Saints can make the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season Sunday if they beat the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Rams beat the San Francisco 49ers.

That would be a remarkable achievement, considering:

Future Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees retired in March.

The Saints had to gut their roster, shaving $111 million to fit under the NFL’s reduced salary cap, then could barely afford to add reinforcements in free agency.

The team had to evacuate for Hurricane Ida in August and spend the first month of the season living in Dallas, while playing their first “home game” in Jacksonville against the Green Bay Packers (which the Saints won 38-3).

Superstar receiver Michael Thomas and kicker Wil Lutz were among those who never played a down this season because of injuries. Then, after the Saints got off to an unlikely 5-2 start, quarterback Jameis Winston suffered a season-ending ACL tear in Week 8.

New Orleans has set an NFL record with 58 different starters used this season, according to ESPN Stats & Information, because of injuries, COVID-19 issues and suspensions. The offensive line was supposed to be the strength of the team, but All-Pro offensive tackles Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk and Pro Bowl guard Andrus Peat have missed a combined 25 games. The Saints have used four different starting quarterbacks and 10 different starting O-line combinations. And that total of 58 offensive and defensive starters doesn’t even include the four kickers they’ve used.

 “When you go all the way back to the start of the season, it feels like two and a half years ago we were evacuating to Dallas during the hurricane. I mean, It doesn’t feel like that’s part of this season,” said Payton, who laughed while reflecting back on all the challenges. “I’m trying to think of a good way to describe it. Like, there’s a certain bar or temperament for news that you normally have. And then when it keeps coming and coming and coming via text or in meetings, then pretty soon that bar gets raised because you just keep getting hitting in the side of the head. And at some point you’ve gotta smile and then bow up a little bit and get ready for the challenge still.

“This stretch has been, I don’t want to say exhausting, but it’s been one of those where you just get on to the [next task]. Nothing surprises you.”

Actually, check that.

Payton did admit he was a little surprised two weeks ago when two newly signed players were being fitted for their equipment in the pregame locker room on a Monday night while the Saints were missing 20 eligible players because of a COVID outbreak.

“I’ve just never seen anything like that before,” Payton said with another laugh. “You keep getting different curveballs, and it gets back to that mantra where, ‘Hey, no one really cares about your challenges.’ In fact, there’s a group of people that are glad you have ‘em.

“I think the players and staff have handled a lot of challenging things not always perfectly, but we’ve managed to keep our head above water, keep grinding and keep fighting.”

Payton probably won’t get much love for Coach of the Year – partly because his offense has plummeted to 29th in the NFL in yards per game. But that’s even more evidence of how gritty this team has become while leaning heavily on its defense. And the entire coaching staff deserves some love for the way it has handled so much adversity.

Especially defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, who — oh by the way — had to fill in as the interim head coach last month while Payton himself was sidelined by COVID-19. The Saints went on the road in that game and shut out Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 9-0.

Allen should once again have some head coaching opportunities in the coming weeks after his unit has become the Saints’ lifeline, allowing just one total touchdown in their past three victories.

Although Payton acknowledged that this year has been unique, he said the team goes into every season building a staff and roster that can handle adversity.

Quarterback Taysom Hill said one of the things that has always separated Payton and his staff is their ability to know the team’s strengths and weaknesses and to have a clear vision for what it will take to win each specific game.

“And I think you’ve seen that more this season than any I’ve ever been a part of,” Hill said. “We’ve had so much personnel change. And, man, those guys just continue to stay up later and later to make sure they put guys in the right spot and figure out the best way to win.”

Hill also credited Payton for knowing when to back off and cut back on reps when the injuries and losses piled up during a five-game losing streak in the middle of the season.

“He changed things up and tried to take care of guys and continue to motivate people even when that was obviously an unfamiliar thing for this team,” Hill said.

And veteran linebacker Demario Davis, who joined the Saints in 2018, said this team’s culture is the best he has ever been around.

“There are no words to express how proud I am to be a part of a culture like this one — a team like this, a coaching staff like this, all of my brothers in the locker room,” Davis said. “The journey that we’ve been through this season could make a lot of people maybe fold or hang it up. But this team has been resilient, has continued to fight the entire time.

“For us to be going into the last week of the season to have a chance to chase the crown is remarkable in regards to all that we’ve been through.”

For the record, Payton stood by Parcells’ axiom and insisted that no asterisk will be needed on this season, win or lose.

“We have a chance to be 9-8 and going into the postseason, or 8-9 and then just file that one away and whatever, you’ll be able to explain to anyone why we were 8-9,” Payton said. “But 9-8 and into the postseason is exciting to me, and it’s gonna require us to play well in this game.”

It also would require a little help from the Rams, who would be the Saints’ opponent in the first-round of the playoffs if they got there.

TAMPA BAY

Chris Cwik of YahooSports.com tries to sum up the war of words and actions between WR ANTONIO BROWN and the Buccaneers.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown continues to take shots at the team following his bizarre exit from Sunday’s game. Brown released text messages Thursday in which he called out Tom Brady, Bruce Arians and Brady’s trainer Alex Guerrero.

The team apparently decided those messages were the final nail in the coffin, and released Brown on Thursday.

The Bucs said they tied to get Brown to undergo an evaluation on his injured ankle, but he did not comply.

Brown posted various text exchanges on Instagram and Twitter. The main one accused Guerrero of charging Brown $100,000 and then not working with him. Brown added a message to his IG story directed at Brady.

The texts — which Brown claimed are between Brown and Guerrero — tell a different story. Brown asked Guerrero for $50,000 since the two will no longer work together. Guerrero responded saying he understood, and that he was willing to send the money to Brown. The original message Brown sent out also featured the routing number and account number for his bank account. Brown deleted that message.

Brown also sent out an exchange purportedly with Arians. In the text exchange, the two discuss playing in Week 17. Brown mentioned his ankle injury in the message. Following Sunday’s game, Arians claimed he did not know about Brown’s injury.

Brown also posted a photoshopped image of the “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York” movie cover. In the image, Brown’s head is photoshopped on Macaulay Culkin’s head. Arians and Brady portray the Sticky Bandits in the image.

After all that, Brown released a tweet saying his teammates, including Brady, have been good to him.

Brown created a stir Sunday when he took off his uniform, threw items into the stands and walked off the field during the Buccaneers’ game against the New York Jets. Arians claimed Brown was no longer a member of the team afterward.

A day after the game, Brown reportedly claimed he was too injured to play, but the Buccaneers tried to force him back onto the field. Arians said he was not aware of Brown’s injury.

Brown escalated the situation Wednesday, releasing a lengthy statement through his agent alleging the Bucs injected him with a “dangerous” painkiller. Brown also claimed a coach said Brown would be cut if he didn’t play.

The NFLPA will investigate the situation. Brown will not be punished by the NFL for his actions in Sunday’s contest, which the Buccaneers won 28-24.

The Buccaneers initially delayed Brown’s release, but finally cut ties with Brown on Thursday.

Brown reportedly asked for his $2 million in incentives to be guaranteed prior to Week 17. The Buccaneers declined, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht claimed Brown did not inform the team of his injury before the game against the Jets. Schefter also reported Brown “had to be calmed down” over his lack of targets during Week 17.

Brown’s incentives were tied to his receptions, yards and touchdowns.

Arians addressed the situation Thursday, saying he was not aware of Brown’s injury before the game against the Jets. Arians also confirmed Brown was frustrated about his targets at halftime.

Arians approached Brown after he refused to enter the game. Arians claimed Brown was angry because he wasn’t getting the ball. That’s when Arians told Brown to “get the F out of here,” which led to Brown taking off his uniform and walking off the field.

Cwik doesn’t cover last night’s missive from Brown and/or his lawyer.  Mike Florio:

Buccaneers receiver Antonio Brown finally has broken his silence regarding his situation with the team. And he has plenty to say.

Regardless of whether he actually wrote some, all, or part of the statement, it has been approved by him for release on his behalf. Among other things, he accuses Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians of pressuring Brown to play while injured.

 “Because of my commitment to the game, I relented to pressure directly from my coach to play injured,” Brown said. “Despite the pain, I suited up. The staff injected me with what I now know was a powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller that the NFLPA has warned against using, and I gave it my all for the team.”

Brown says he played “until it was clear that I could not use my ankle to safely perform my playing responsibilities,” and that “the pain was extreme.”

Brown contends that he took a seat on the bench, and that Arians approach him “vey upset” and shouted, “What’s wrong with you? What’s wrong with you?” Brown claims that he told Arians that Brown’s ankle was bothering him.

According to Brown, Arians continued to press Brown to play. Brown said he couldn’t. Brown claims that Arians shouted, “You’re done!” and made a throat-slash gesture.

“I didn’t quit,” Brown said. “I was cut. I didn’t walk away from my brothers. I was thrown out.”

Brown’s statement also contends that G.M. Jason Licht confirmed in text messages to Brown’s representatives that he did indeed tell Arians about ankle pain during the game on Sunday.

“I acknowledge my past,” Brown said, “but my past does not make me a second-class citizen. My past does not forfeit my right to be heard when I am in pain.”

While many things regarding Brown’s situation remain unclear, his statement provides one key aspect of clarity. He’s having surgery on the ankle, and he won’t be playing again this season. Once that settles in, everything else is just details. He was under a one-year deal with the Buccaneers. He’ll become a free agent in March. And if he eventually signs with anyone, it won’t be the Bucs.

Or the Steelers.

Or the Raiders.

Or the Patriots.

The DB’s first thought on seeing the statement crafted by an attorney representing Brown was – did the attorney get paid up front?

Florio has more thoughts:

Arians claimed that Brown at no point in the game complained to the trainer or the doctor about his injured ankle, and that Arians wasn’t notified about any issues with the ankle. Arians also made it clear that Brown’s reluctance flowed from frustration over the number of footballs being thrown his way.

“He was very upset at halftime about who was getting targeted,” Arians said. “Got that calmed down, players took care of that. It started again on the sideline. We called for the personnel group that he had played in the entire game. He refused to go in the game. That’s when I looked back and saw him basically wave off the coach. I then went back, approached him about what was going on. ‘I ain’t playing.’ What’s going on? ‘I ain’t getting the ball.’ That’s when I said, ‘You’re done, get the eff out of here.’”

Asked about the throat-slash gesture that Arians allegedly made to Brown, Arians laughed and suggested that it was the motion with his finger, telling Brown to leave.

“You can’t force a player to play,” Arians added. “I mean, they have that choice. It’s their body. He decided to play. He and Mike both were on pitch counts. And we were trying to manage that the best we could in the first half.”

Arians’s explanation defies common sense, frankly. The mere that that Brown was on a pitch count shows that THEY KNEW Brown was injured. And if Brown, who clearly had an injury, truly didn’t want to play because he wasn’t getting enough targets, why wouldn’t he blame it on his ankle? He had a built-in excuse. Even if the ankle wasn’t bothering him, Brown’s easiest play to justify not playing would have been to say that his ankle is bothering him.

It’s also now clear that Brown left the field during the game because (drum roll, please), HIS HEAD COACH TOLD HIM TO.

To the extent that Brown had frustrations about targets, the Bucs only have themselves to blame. Despite his history of erratic, selfish behavior, they gave him a contract that tied compensation to production. (The Rams, in contrast, tied Odell Beckham‘s 2021 contractual extras to team achievements, not individual statistics.)

The Bucs clearly were on notice of Brown’s concern regarding his ability to reach his incentives. G.M. Jason Licht acknowledged on Thursday that Brown and his agent had asked for the balance of Brown’s incentive package to be guaranteed. The team declined to do so.

Thus, Brown had to earn it. To earn it, he had to play — and to get the ball. So he fought through injury to have a chance to get the money, and he became frustrated when he wasn’t getting the ball.

Again, why give someone like Brown that kind of incentive? He was pissed off because he was losing chances to earn his incentives. And when he indeed chose to stop playing, why wouldn’t he have mentioned his ankle? You know, the ankle that had him on a pitch count?

Indeed, it could be argued that Arians should have affirmatively asked whether the ankle was an issue, instead of waiting for Brown to utter magic words that arguably didn’t need to be uttered.

They knew he was injured. They knew he wanted to earn his incentives. They knew he was upset that he wasn’t getting chances to get closer to his incentives. Then, when he refused to play, they didn’t bother to think that maybe it was because of an ankle injury that he was willing to deal with in order to reach his incentives. Then, after he left the field during the game, Arians didn’t bother to correct the perception that Brown left on his own volition, and not because Arians told him to “get the eff out of here.”

There’s plenty of blame to go around on this one. The Buccaneers handled it poorly, from the moment they agreed to pay him incentives based on individual performance until the instant that they released him. Brown handled it poorly, especially when he decided to make a major stink on social media in order to get himself released. (Then again, it worked.) And Arians handled it poorly, poorly enough that he probably should be wondering whether an ownership group that has no qualms about pushing coaches out the door (Tony Dungy, Jon Gruden, Raheem Morris, Greg Schiano, Lovie Smith, Dirk Koetter) will decide that it’s time to elevate Byron Leftwich or Todd Bowles, while they still can.

NFC WEST

SEATTLE

LB BOBBY WAGNER hopes to remain a Seahawk in 2022.  Brady Henderson ofESPN.com:

A week after acknowledging his uncertain future with the Seahawks, All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner struck a more hopeful tune Wednesday, saying he has “a lot of optimism” that he’ll be back in 2022 for an 11th season in Seattle.

Wagner said he hasn’t given up on the possibility of playing in the team’s season finale either, saying he’s going to get “as much treatment as I possibly can” on his sprained knee in the hopes of suiting up Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium.

“I’m going to take it one day at a time,” said Wagner, who hurt his knee on the opening play of the Seahawks’ blowout win last week over the Detroit Lions and didn’t return. “I have a lot of days before Sunday and we’re going to see what happens.”

Last week, Wagner answered in the affirmative when asked if he has wondered whether he’ll be back with the Seahawks next season given his huge cap number. The Seahawks’ defensive captain and longest-tenured player (along with quarterback Russell Wilson) said there’s “obviously” going to be some changes on the heels of Seattle suffering double-digit losses for the first time since 2009 and added, “Whether or not I’m part of those changes, I don’t know.”

On Wednesday, Wagner was asked if that uncertainty has given him any more incentive to play Sunday.

“Not really, because in my mind I don’t feel like this is my last time,” he said. “I don’t feel like this is my last time putting on a Seahawks uniform. I don’t feel like this is my last time doing that. I understand there is a business side to this, but there is a lot of optimism on my end that I’ll be back. So I’m not worried about it. Obviously, I can’t control everything. I can only control my part. And my part on this is I feel like I love this city. I love this team. I love the Seahawks. So I always wanted to be a part of a franchise’s good times and bad times and every time. So this is a team that I would love to be able to be a part of for a very, very long time.

AFC NORTH

CLEVELAND

QB BAKER MAYFIELD may want out.  Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

Baker Mayfield must resolve his differences with Kevin Stefanski in case they need to co-exist next season.

Even if Mayfield does mend the fences, he might not be back if the Browns decide to upgrade, which seems likely at this point. But he and Stefanski can’t run it back unless they hash things out and find a path forward.

Mayfield’s issues with Stefanski bubbled below the surface most of the season, with Mayfield feeling like Stefanski’s playcalling didn’t always put him in position to succeed or play to his strengths, sources told cleveland.com.

Stefanski didn’t necessarily dispute that Tuesday after announcing that Mayfield would sit out the season finale against the Bengals and have his torn labrum repaired as soon as possible. If Mayfield’s shoulder specialist, Dr. Orr Limpisvasti of the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles, can squeeze him in this week, Mayfield will board the soonest flight out.

“As a team, we’ve been very, very inconsistent this season – as an offense certainly,’’ Stefanski said. “All things that we will look at long term here once the season is over and have a chance to look at all of it, but certainly, there are frustrations there.”

Dating back to October, Mayfield felt the run-heavy, three-tight end scheme didn’t play to his strengths, and Stefanski wasn’t calling enough of the play-action bootlegs that Mayfield excelled at last season. The discord escalated to the point where Mayfield at times would’ve preferred offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt call the plays. But Stefanski kept the responsibility, and Mayfield grew increasingly frustrated.

As the season wore down, Mayfield publicly criticized the playcalling on at least two occasions, saying after the 24-22 victory over the Ravens that the calls “got too conservative” and after the 26-14 loss to the Steelers that rookie right tackle James Hudson III wasn’t given enough chipping help against T.J. Watt, who recorded four of the Steelers’ nine sacks. Like Myles Garrett before him, Mayfield lamented the lack of in-game adjustments to the Steelers’ pressure.

“This is the NFL,” he said. “You have to be able to adapt midgame and we didn’t do a good enough job as you could tell.”

After a 13-10 victory over the Lions, Mayfield stalked off the field and refused to conduct his required postgame press conference, a sign of his disillusionment through the second half of the season.

Asked Wednesday about his relationship with Mayfield, Stefanski said “in terms of relationship with any of the players, it’s something we always as coaches work on and try to challenge our guys and support our guys, so I feel no different with Baker. I know it’s easy to look at the frustration that we’ve had offensively and you want to pin it all on one player, and that’s just totally unfair.”

He was also asked about Jarvis Landry not speaking to the media since Odell Beckham Jr.’s departure except at his Thanksgiving charity event, and whether there was a morale problem.

“He does not have a morale problem,’’ Stefanski said. “I will ask him [why he hasn’t talked to the media] and I will report back to you. But he’s been great.’’

If Mayfield doesn’t get reassurance that things will change next season, he’ll consider asking to be traded. He’s under contract for $18.858 million in his fifth-year option year, but at this point, it’s uncertain if the Browns even view him as their starter for 2022.

If they went strictly by the numbers, they’d certainly conclude that Mayfield isn’t the quarterback to win Super Bowls. He’s 27th with an 83.1 QB rating, having completed just 60.5 percent of his attempts for 28th in the NFL, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

His stats in clutch situations are worse: He’s 35th in fourth-quarter passing with a 50.9 completion percentage and 64.5 rating, and 30th in third-down passing with a 50% completion percentage, three touchdowns, six interceptions and a 52.5 rating. He’s 0-5 this season in potential gamewinning drives.

But there were extenuating circumstances that must be taken into account. He suffered the fully torn labrum in his left shoulder in Week 2, and was never the same. Van Pelt came to Mayfield’s defense last week, noting the shoulder harness “handcuffed” and “hamstrung” his performance, and Van Pelt was eager to see him healthy next season.

The pass-catchers underperformed all season, but it was tough to determine if that was largely Mayfield’s fault, or their own. Certainly, Beckham has flourished with the Rams with five TD catches in his last six games after stagnating here. Tight end Austin Hooper has languished with Mayfield, and hasn’t played up to his $10.5 million salary yet.

Hooper has dropped six passes this season according to Pro Football Focus, tied for the most among tight ends. That represents about 10% of his 61 targets, and Hooper is having the worst season of his six-year career. His 38 receptions for 345 yards and three touchdowns are about half of the 75 for 787 yards and 6 TDs he had in his final season in Atlanta in 2019, his second straight Pro Bowl campaign.

Landry, who lamented a lack of chances at the charity event, is having his worst season of his eight-year career and will probably be gone. Donovan Peoples-Jones and Mayfield have struggled to connect on the deep ball, and Rashard Higgins mostly disappeared. Is it because of Mayfield’s inaccuracy? The scheme and playcalling?

It hasn’t helped the All-Pro right tackle Jack Conklin (torn patella) has missed most of the season and that Jedrick Wills Jr. had a down year largely because of an ankle injury. Stefanski has had to run a lot of 13 personnel — three tight ends — to help keep Mayfield upright. Defenses have also hemmed him in and made him throw from the pocket, and Stefanski hasn’t been able to call as many keepers — those play-action rollouts that Mayfield excelled at least season.

The rift between Mayfield and Stefanski wasn’t necessarily evident in the building, but more of a low-key vibe permeating the offense. But it was pervasive enough that it must be dealt with in the offseason before the two sides can decide how to proceed. All parties must lay their cards on the table and resolve their differences or there’s no sense in running it back.

Of course, it could all become a moot point if the Browns decide to acquire a veteran quarterback. Two who could become available in trades are Derek Carr and Kirk Cousins, who played for Stefanski in Minnesota and would undoubtedly love to play for him again. Jimmy Garoppolo, heading into the final year of his contract at a cap hit of $27 million but with only $1.4 million in dead cap space, might become available now that the 49ers drafted Trey Lance.

AFC EAST

NEW YORK JETS

More on why the Jets ran a 4^th-and-2 sneak when they needed one really good play to beat the Bucs.  Rich Cimini of ESPN.com:

Jets offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur issued an emphatic mea culpa Thursday, saying he blew the call that may have cost New York an upset victory last Sunday against the Buccaneers.

“It’s 100 percent on me,” said LaFleur, commenting for the first time on Zach Wilson’s ill-fated quarterback sneak late in the 28-24 loss to the defending Super Bowl champions. “I’m disappointed with myself for two reasons. I pride myself on communication and, in our unit, on execution. … And I failed at both of those.”

LaFleur reiterated what coach Robert Saleh said after the game — that the plan on fourth-and-2 from the Bucs’ 7-yard line was to give the ball to Braxton Berrios on an end-around. But somehow, the communication got botched. Wilson was given the option to run a sneak if the Bucs didn’t have a defender in the A gap, which they didn’t.

“The total intent was to get Braxton the ball. He was balling, and I failed to get that relayed,” LaFleur said. “Our quarterback did exactly what he was supposed to do in that moment.”

It really is a shame, because up until their final play, the Jets ran an almost error-free offense that featured an interesting collection of plays.

THIS AND THAT

GRADE A BARGAIN FREE AGENTS IN 2021 –

AND WHO COULD BE NEXT

Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com:

When I used to grade every NFL free-agent signing, my average grade tended to be somewhere between a C-plus and a C. Why were my grades so low? Well, the reality is that most of the prominent signings or veteran trades you see during the first 72 hours of the window typically don’t work out.

For every Trent Williams, there’s typically a Kenny Golladay and a Bud Dupree. The Bills would make their Stefon Diggs trade 10 times out of 10 again, but they nearly ended up making a move first for Antonio Brown, who didn’t work out quite as well for the Raiders. Guys struggle in a new location. They get injured. They age out of the players they used to be. This stuff is hard.

Today, though, we’re going to focus on the positive. I’ve selected nine players acquired in the 2021 offseason who have turned out to be relative bargains for their respective new teams. I’ve also tried to identify a player expected to hit free agency or the trade market in 2022 who might represent a similar sort of appealing bargain for a different organization this upcoming offseason. I’ll start in Wisconsin, where the 1-seed in the NFC has been able to get through a rash of injuries with a series of surprisingly valuable additions (these are in no order):

De’Vondre Campbell, LB, Packers

Campbell’s path from frustrating Falcons linebacker to Pro Bowl snub has been stunning. I wrote about his emergence when I covered my All-Underrated Team earlier this season. He has always been a good athlete and rangy against the run, but his improvements in coverage this season have been dramatic.

The Packers signed Campbell to a one-year deal for $2 million, just a single season removed from him signing a one-year, $6 million contract with the Cardinals. Both teams used voidable years to bring the size of his cap hit down, which has led to a universe in which the 28-year-old is taking up nearly four times as much on Arizona’s cap in 2021 ($4 million) as he does on Green Bay’s ($1,192,000). After settling for two consecutive one-year deals, Campbell should have no trouble finding a significant multiyear deal this offseason.

2022 example: Jarrad Davis, LB, Jets

Davis was a highly regarded player coming out of Florida in 2017, but after Matt Patricia took over in Detroit, the Lions didn’t get much out of their first-round pick. Davis signed a one-year, $5.5 million deal with the Jets last offseason, but he missed the first half of the season because of an ankle injury and has allowed a passer rating of 127.8 in coverage this season. He won’t get that much money this offseason, which would make him an interesting buy-low option for teams at linebacker.

Rasul Douglas, CB, Packers

Douglas’ emergence as a playmaker for the Packers might even be more surprising than Campbell’s. A 2017 third-round pick by the Eagles, Douglas didn’t play at all as a rookie and never seemed to consistently gain the trust of his coaches. After allowing a 114.2 passer rating across six starts in 2019, Philadelphia cut him and let him go to Carolina, where he started 11 uninspiring games for a team that was desperate for cornerback help.

The league was not impressed. Douglas was cut by the Raiders and Texans this offseason before joining the Cardinals’ practice squad. The Packers snapped him up in October and he almost immediately became an impact player. He has allowed a 44.8 passer rating in coverage and intercepted five passes, taking two of them to the house for touchdowns. He has helped the Packers get by without the injured Jaire Alexander, and while he wouldn’t stand in the star corner’s way when Alexander returns, he has helped push the oft-frustrating Kevin King out of a starting role. It’s pretty incredible for a veteran making just under $1 million this season.

2022 example: Sidney Jones, CB, Seahawks

Jones was selected one round before Douglas by the Eagles in the 2017 draft. He played only 29 snaps as a rookie as he recovered from a torn Achilles, and while there were high hopes that he would emerge as an impact corner, he never delivered on that promise. He was waived in 2020 and spent a year toiling for the Jaguars.

Back in the Pacific Northwest, a desperate Seahawks team turned to Jones this fall. He struggled in his first pass at the job, but after getting a second chance over the past six weeks, Jones has been much better. He’s allowing an 87.3 passer rating in coverage this season, so there’s some evidence that he might be better than his reputation.

Trey Hendrickson, Edge, Bengals

This one is only tangentially related to the Packers! (I could also mention Dennis Kelly and Corey Bojorquez here, too.) A few years ago, I didn’t love Za’Darius Smith’s deal with Green Bay, which paid an edge rusher with one year of production like he was a superstar edge rusher. Smith has missed virtually all of 2021 because of a back injury, but as he racked up 26 sacks between 2019 and 2020, the Packers would happily do that deal again. I was wrong about Smith.

Fast-forward to 2021 and I was similarly underwhelmed by the Bengals guaranteeing $20 million to Hendrickson after one impressive season with the Saints. I might need to start being more optimistic about impressive pass-rushers in small samples, because Hendrickson has been great for the Bengals. He has 14 sacks, 27 knockdowns and 12 tackles for loss this season, serving as the primary pass-rusher for one of the league’s most improved defenses. He was a second-team All-Pro when I compiled my roster last week.

2022 example: Harold Landry, Edge, Titans

Landry was more productive across his first three seasons than Smith or Hendrickson, but he has broken out in 2021, racking up 12 sacks and 22 knockdowns for the Titans. Tennessee signed Bud Dupree last offseason to serve as the primary pass-rusher, so there’s a chance it lets Landry leave in free agency. Some team is going to pay him like he’s going to be the guy from 2021 throughout his new deal, and while I would have been skeptical of that possibility in the past, I’m going to be more open-minded this time around.

Charles Harris, Edge, Lions

Harris, the No. 22 overall pick in the 2017 draft, failed to impress during his first three seasons in Miami. The Dolphins declined his fifth-year option and dumped him to the Falcons in 2020. Harris signed a one-year, $1.8 million deal with the Lions last offseason, and given a chance to play regularly, he has been one of their best players.

He has 7.5 sacks, 15 knockdowns and 10 tackles for a team that has faced the third-fewest pass attempts in the league. He often pops up in Detroit’s best moments, like when he had a sack and a half and made three tackles on one drive in December’s upset win over the Cardinals. He might not be a superstar, but Harris has gone from looking like a bust to playing like a valuable part of an NFL team.

2022 example: Takkarist McKinley, Edge, Browns

Unfortunately, this one might have to be a 2023 example, as McKinley ruptured an Achilles in December and might not be ready to start the 2022 season. I liked the comparison up to that point, as McKinley was the No. 26 pick in the same draft who flashed early in his career but never launched in a larger role. McKinley was having a competent season as a backup pass-rusher for the Browns before going down; I wonder if he’ll catch on with the 2022 version of the Lions (who might be the Lions themselves) this offseason.

Kendrick Bourne, WR, Patriots

Another member of the All-Underrated Team, Bourne represents the best value from New England’s offseason spending spree at receiver. I don’t doubt that quarterback Mac Jones has been helped by all the veterans — and tight end Hunter Henry has nine touchdowns — but Henry, Jonnu Smith and Nelson Agholor have a combined average annual value of $36 million on their deals and have 1,261 total yards this season. Bourne’s three-year, $15-million deal, on the other hand, has been a bargain.

The former 49ers wideout has been the poor man’s Deebo Samuel, racking up 776 receiving yards while adding a quietly impressive 117 rushing yards on 11 carries. He doesn’t have Samuel’s ability to make an impact as a traditional running back, but when you’re averaging 11.8 yards per target, you’re doing something right. His mark there leads the league, just ahead of the guy with 11.6 yards per target in second place … Samuel. In a league in which signing a successful free-agent wide receiver is virtually impossible, Bourne has been the exception to the rule.

2022 example: Cedrick Wilson, WR, Cowboys

Like Bourne, Wilson has been a useful player on a team that has plenty of exciting options ahead of him at wide receiver. Given opportunities by injuries to Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup, he has been productive with the Cowboys, averaging 8.8 yards per target this season. He’s also a valuable trick-play quarterback, as he threw one of the best passes you’ll see from a non-quarterback in this casually flipped 35-yard pass to CeeDee Lamb against the Vikings earlier this season. You know Bill Belichick appreciates that.

Cordarrelle Patterson, RB/WR, Falcons

If we’re going to talk about lesser versions of Samuel, I have to bring up Patterson, who carried the Falcons’ offense for most of the first half of the season. Signing a one-year, $3 million deal, it would have been fair to expect him to resume his role as one of the league’s best kick returners while serving as an occasional option on offense. We had seen him flash as a receiver earlier in his career, and the Patriots and Bears had both given him reps as a running back, but he had never been the focal point of any offensive attack.

Well, on 200 touches from scrimmage this season, Patterson has scored 11 touchdowns. He has scored touchdowns on fades and run them in as an I-formation tailback. Ironically, it has actually been one of his worst seasons as a kick returner, but I’m sure the Falcons don’t mind. Arthur Smith’s team won’t make the playoffs, but Patterson has been one of the biggest reasons Atlanta has made it to seven wins.

2022 example: Cordarrelle Patterson, RB/WR, Falcons

The closest comparison might be the Jaguars’ Tavon Austin, another former first-round pick who was a great (punt) returner early in his career and who also has spent time in multiple roles on offense. If you aren’t as concerned about physical skills or the ability to play running back, you could look toward the Jets’ Braxton Berrios, who just completed his most impressive game as a pro.

With all due respect to those guys, there’s not really anybody else like Patterson in football. With his performance being touchdown-heavy and mostly coming in the first half of the season, I’m not sure everyone will believe that he can be an impact player on offense again in 2022. The Falcons have every reason to bring him back, but he might end up needing to prove himself again next season.

Carson Wentz, QB, Colts

The price wasn’t exactly cheap, as the Colts will end up sending first- and third-round picks to the Eagles for the privilege of acquiring their quarterback, but Wentz has returned to his 2018-19 form since joining Indianapolis. I’m not sure we’ll ever see the 2017 Wentz again, and the 2016 No. 2 overall pick has been lucky in terms of dropped interceptions, but he ranks eighth in Total QBR, 12th in passer rating and 12th in adjusted net yards per attempt.

Wentz has also been healthy for the entire season after undergoing foot surgery during the summer. Getting a top-12 quarterback in his late 20s for a first- and third-round pick is a great deal for the Colts, who had no path to a solution under center after losing Andrew Luck and Philip Rivers to retirement. With the Eagles eating more than $45 million in bonuses before dealing Wentz, the Colts have him under contract for just over $25 million per season through 2024, which is reasonable in a league in which the going rate for veteran quarterbacks is north of $40 million per year.

2022 example: Baker Mayfield, QB, Browns

Mayfield won’t be signing an extension this offseason, which makes the calculus different, but I wonder if there’s some upside in going after Mayfield in the hopes of buying low on a young starter. Public sentiment on him has fluctuated more wildly from year to year than it has in league circles, and I don’t think many teams perceive that he has the same sort of upside Wentz has, but the 2018 No. 1 overall pick is coming off a season marred by a serious shoulder injury.

Like Wentz, we know that Mayfield is more dependent on his offensive line playing well than other quarterbacks. When his line has played at a high level — notably in the second half of 2018 and during 2020 — he has been a viable starting quarterback. I suspect that the Browns will let him play out his $18.9 million guarantee in 2022 and make their final decision at quarterback after that season, but if general manager Andrew Berry & Co. do decide to take a swing on one of the superstar passers this offseason, Mayfield might represent a useful option for the right team.

Morgan Moses, OT, Jets

When the Bears franchised Allen Robinson last winter, they probably weren’t expecting their star wide receiver to be thrilled with his $17.9 million tag. Once it became clear that the top of the wideout market was generally settling for one-year deals, though, he signed his tag. The Bears were forced to make several moves to clear out cap space, first cutting cornerback Kyle Fuller before designating OT Charles Leno as a post-June 1 release. Washington signed Leno and then cut its own tackle in Moses, who caught on with the Jets on a one-year, $3.6 million pact.

Leno has been an excellent addition for Washington — and he just got a contract extension — and Moses has done just fine for himself with the Jets. Expected to be the swing tackle behind Mekhi Becton and George Fant, the Week 1 injury to Becton led the Jets to move Fant to his old spot at left tackle and promote Moses into a starting role. Moses has held his own, as he has allowed only 2.5 sacks without committing a holding penalty across 15 starts. In a league in which teams are always desperate to get their shopping done immediately, the success of Leno and Moses on the cheap are a reminder that you can find useful players hitting free agency in May and June, too.

2022 example: Billy Turner, OL, Packers

If we’re looking for a veteran lineman who might become a cap casualty, an option who came to mind was Turner, who has a cap hit of just under $9 million for a Packers team projected to be $37.5 million over the expected 2022 mark. I would expect that number to change as they either re-sign or trade Aaron Rodgers — and the 30-year-old Turner has been a useful lineman during his time in Green Bay — but they could move forward with Dennis Kelly or Yosh Nijman on the right side on a much smaller salary.

Bryan Anger, P, Cowboys

Let me finish by throwing a punter on the list. Anger was cut by the Texans halfway through a multiyear extension and then signed a one-year deal for $1.2 million with the Cowboys. Dallas actually cut him briefly in September in a bit of guarantee manipulation before immediately bringing him back. He has been brilliant for the Cowboys, who have fielded the league’s best punt unit this season. And to be fair, while it’s easy to criticize the Texans for letting go of a player who turned out to be valuable, Houston is just behind Dallas in second place for punt value this season.

2022 example: Brett Kern, P, Titans

Anger’s numbers were right around league average in 2020 by the measures at Puntalytics, and while the Texans created cap room by releasing him, we saw the 33-year-old excel elsewhere. Kern has been about league average this season, and the Titans could free up $3.2 million in cash and cap space by releasing their longtime punter. As one of the league’s best punters in 2019 and 2020, though, I still think he has plenty left in the tank.