The Daily Briefing Thursday, September 2, 2021

NFL players can wear social justice messages on their helmets again this season and “It Takes All of Us” and “End Racism” will be stenciled in end zones for the second straight year as part of the league’s Inspire Change platform.

The league will also bring back the “Say Their Stories” initiative and for the first time, each team will highlight its social justice work during a regular-season home game in Weeks 17 and 18.

“We are committed to Inspire Change and the social justice work that inspires change for the long term,” Anna Isaacson, NFL senior vice president of social responsibility, told The Associated Press.

The six messages players can choose from as part of the helmet decal program are: “End Racism,” “Stop Hate,” “It Takes All of Us,” “Black Lives Matter,” “Inspire Change” and “Say Their Stories.”

The end zone stencils will be placed on the field for all clubs in all home games, except when another cause is being recognized. For example, during a club’s Salute to Service game, “End Racism” will be replaced with “Salute To Service” in one end zone and “It Takes All of Us” will remain on the opposite side.

CHICAGO

Three rookie QBs are starting in the AFC East, QB TREY LANCE is close in San Francisco – and the one who looked the best in preseason is on the bench.  GM Ryan Pace defends Chicago’s cautious pace.  Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com:

Bears General Manager Ryan Pace is standing by the team’s decision not to start rookie quarterback Justin Fields.

Pace said today that the Bears are confident in their plan to make Andy Dalton the starting quarterback and have Fields learn from the sideline.

“There’s no need to rush Justin,” Pace said.

But there is one major reason that Pace and head coach Matt Nagy could change their minds: If the Bears aren’t winning games with Dalton at quarterback, Pace and Nagy will be on the hot seat. At that point, the one and only way for Pace and Nagy to save their jobs is to show Bears ownership that Fields is developing into a franchise quarterback. And Fields can’t show that unless he’s playing.

So while Pace and Nagy may not want to rush Fields right now, it’s easy to envision a scenario in which Dalton falters early in the season, and Pace and Nagy decide they’re in a rush to find out if Fields can save their season, and their jobs.

One person’s “not rushing” is another’s “holding back.”

DETROIT

An update on DT MICHAEL BROCKERS.  Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com:

The Lions traded for defensive tackle Michael Brockers this offseason with designs on him playing a leading role on their defensive front, but they didn’t get a lot of time to see him in action this summer.

Brockers has been sidelined with an undisclosed injury until recently and he’s working his way back toward full participation with a little over a week to go before the team faces the 49ers. Lions head coach Dan Campbell thinks he’ll get there, but admitted that the team may take a different approach if they think it’s the better way to prepare Brockers for the next 16 games.

 “I think we feel like he’ll be ready Week One,” Campbell said, via the team’s website. “He is still improving, he is. It’s just at a snail’s pace right now. The fear is that if you put him in too early right now, do we take away everything that we’ve gotten, the gains that we have gotten by holding him [out]? I think that’s the tough trick right now. I know this, if you said we had to play right now, he would go play. But yet, if we thought we could get him to that almost 100 percent range by holding him a little bit more, is it worth it? Well, knowing that we have a long season and he’s played a lot of football, I just tend to be a little more conservative with him, that’s all.”

The Lions took Levi Onwuzurike and Alim McNeill in the second and third rounds of the draft, but they’d like a veteran presence on their defensive line and we’ll find out next week if Brockers is in position to provide it.

NEW ORLEANS

The Saints had their choice of the NFL’s three Florida cities for the Week One opener – and Jeff Duncan of NoLa.com says they chose Jacksonville to make it hard on Green Bay fans to get there:

Moments after the news broke Wednesday that the New Orleans Saints would play their “home opener” against the Green Bay Packers in Jacksonville, Florida, disappointed Who Dats lit up social media.

“What a stupid place to play!”

“Who wants to go there to watch a game?”

“Of all the Florida cities, this is the one we pick?!”

Well, actually, yes.

Jacksonville’s relative inaccessibility and unattractiveness as a destination location were the exact reasons the Saints elected to play there.

The Saints aren’t going to Jacksonville to get married. They’re going there to play a football game. A big one. Against a worthy opponent, an NFC rival. And winning the game was the No. 1 factor in the scheduling equation for the Saints.

“We’re conscious of everything when it comes to preparing for an opponent,” Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said when asked about the selection process during a conference call with local reporters on Wednesday. “There’s just so many variables. I don’t want to get into all of the variables. The main thing is to have a suitable place to play that both teams have access to.”

Loomis, as usual, was being cagey. Like everything else the Saints and head coach Sean Payton do, considerable thought and attention to detail went into the decision.

After conversations with three sources familiar with the process, here’s how it all went down:

As you can imagine, there were a lot of moving parts to negotiate.

FOX Sports, which had featured the game in its coveted 3:25 p.m. CT time slot as its America’s Game of the Week, asked the league to do what it could to keep the game on Sunday afternoon. Moving the game to Saturday was not an option because FOX already had a marquee Oregon-Ohio State matchup scheduled that afternoon.

Secondly, the league now requires all games to be played in NFL stadiums because they are wired for replay communication to the league offices in New York and familiar to their network broadcast partners.

The Saints, meanwhile, did not a want a repeat of the “Katrina Season” in 2005, when they were forced to play their “home opener” against the New York Giants at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. The “visiting” Giants, of course, won the game 27-10.

With the memories of that grim 3-13 season fresh in their minds, the Saints went to work. The first order of business was finding an available stadium that met the conditions set forth by FOX and the NFL. Fortunately, league officials keep a ready list of stadiums for each week of the NFL season as a contingency plan in case of emergencies. From hurricanes to wildfires to terrorist attacks, the league is adept at relocating games on a moment’s notice.

From that working list, the first option was AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, because of its proximity to the Saints’ temporary set-up in Dallas. But it was quickly ruled out because of a conflict with a concert.

The Saints then started to consider other options, with an eye toward a Southern location. After all, if the Saints were going to have to play home game on the road, they at least wanted it to be somewhere logistically convenient for them in Dallas and their loyal fan base across the Gulf South.

Florida quickly became a target. Not only were all three of the league’s home stadiums available on opening weekend but the Sunshine State’s legendary heat and humidity would theoretically provide a home-field advantage for the Saints, who were accustomed to practicing in triple-digit heat indices at their Metairie training camp. Aaron Rodgers’ career 3-4 record and pedestrian 78.1 passer rating in the state did not go unnoticed.

From there, consideration was given to which location offered the most potential for a home-field advantage.

The Saints were familiar with Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium and own a 13-7 all-time record there, but team officials were concerned a game at their NFC South rivals’ home field could attract too many Bucs-turned-Packers fans, potentially transforming it into a hostile environment.

Likewise, Miami was downgraded because of its attractiveness as a destination location.

Think about it. If you were a Packers fans, where would you rather travel? South Beach? Ybor City? Or Jacksonville?

The Saints even took it a step further. They had a staffer look up Green Bay flights on Expedia and compare the difference in costs and itineraries between Jacksonville, Miami and Tampa. Predictably, Jacksonville was the most difficult and costly destination for Packers fans.

The Cheese Heads still might migrate south for the game, but the Saints certainly didn’t want to make things an easier for Packer Nation to make the trip.

So as you can see, there was a method to the Saints’ madness. They did what they could to make the best of a difficult situation.

Who knows? All of this effort and analysis might go for naught. The league’s reigning MVP might strafe the Saints’ thin secondary and turn TIAA Bank Field into Lambeau South.

But it won’t be because the Saints didn’t consider every detail and try to give themselves the best chance possible to start 2021 on a winning note.

So the Saints turned down the opportunity to let QB JAMEIS WINSTON make his first start with New Orleans in the stadium he knew so well – for good and bad.

SAN FRANCISCO

Coach Kyle Shanahan does not feel obligated to tell the media, fans and gamblers who will be at quarterback when the 49ers play in Detroit next Sunday.  Grant Gordon of NFL.com:

With an easy grin and a slight chuckle, it’s pretty clear Kyle Shanahan’s having some fun with this.

Having previously stated he had a “pretty good idea” who his starting quarterback would be for Week 1 against the Detroit Lions, Shanahan on Wednesday told reporters, “I bet you guys could figure it out,” shortly after telling them he didn’t need to make an announcement as to whether Jimmy Garoppolo or rookie Trey Lance would get the nod.

And so it goes that the 49ers head coach, who began training camp saying there was no open quarterback competition, has yet to make anything official.

With the majority of Wednesday’s questions coming in relation to Tuesday’s cutdown day, Shanahan was asked if he’d be unveiling who would return punts for the 49ers.

“We’ll see,” he grinned.

The follow-up was if he’d announce it the same time as he’d announce the starting quarterback.

“I don’t need to announce the quarterback, I don’t think I need to announce the starting punt returner, either, but I bet you guys could figure it out,” Shanahan said.

Of more concern to Shanahan seems to be the health of Lance, who’s dealing with a chipped finger that was prognosticated to keep the first-rounder out seven days. While that timeline holds, Shanahan spoke of caution despite the perceived minor tag of the injury.

“I mean, anytime you’ve got a small chip, it could linger,” Shanahan said. “I hope it doesn’t, I’m hoping he’s back there next Monday. He seems positive about it. But we gotta be smart with it, too. Sometimes when it’s a real little thing like that, it’s hard to believe it’s still hurt. But we gotta make sure he doesn’t go back out there and have a setback right away, too.”

At practice, Lance was primarily listening, doing things on the side, such as working on his footwork, Shanahan said.

Still, he appears on track to be ready to return to practice next week and in plenty of time for the season opener. Whether Lance or Garoppolo gets the start, well, at this rate, perhaps that won’t be known until after kickoff.

LAS VEGAS

GM Mike Mayock knows the honeymoon is over for his partnership with Coach Jon Gruden.  Grant Gordon of NFL.com:

Not since 2016 has the Silver and Black found its way into the postseason dance.

For Las Vegas Raiders general manager Mike Mayock, he’s entering his third season with the club, and making his first trip to the playoffs is the onus for the campaign ahead.

“Jon [Gruden] and I will both tell you that we feel like we need to be a playoff team this year, and I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,” Mayock said Wednesday, per ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez. “You guys are all going to put that in your headlines, and I understand it, but that’s what the expectation is. We think we’ve done the infrastructure work necessary to put us in position, and we’ve got to take care of business.”

Indeed, Mayock’s prognostication about his comments making headlines has come true, but predicting the Raiders’ fate in 2021 will prove more difficult. After all, Las Vegas shares the AFC West with the two-time reigning AFC champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers aren’t to be slept on either.

Nonetheless, a pivotal season awaits the Gruden-Mayock regime.

Since returning to the Raiders, Gruden has produced a 19-29 record in three years, with the team going 15-17 over the last two seasons with Mayock in the building.

Having come under fire for draft choices — particularly in the first round — who have not panned out, Mayock believes the Raiders’ younger charges struggled last season due to havoc caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Admittedly, every team had to deal with the same chaotic offseason, but Mayock believes things were perhaps a bit more arduous for the Raiders youngins.

“The lack of training camp, I’m not sure if people really understand — all 32 teams dealt with it, so I’m not complaining, please don’t take it that way — but it’s just a different developmental path for the young guys, right?” Mayock said.

And that path has a few more twists and turns within the Raiders’ system.

“I was frustrated because I felt like, in our system, on both sides of the ball, it’s tough on young guys,” Mayock said. “The volume is tough, especially on offense. It’s tough. So no offseason camp was brutal. COVID, managing COVID was hard.”

Things are unlikely to get any easier for Mayock and Co., who are still looking for sustained production from developing youngers such as Clelin Ferrell, Johnathan Abram, Damon Arnette, Henry Ruggs III and this year’s surprise first-rounder, Alex Leatherwood.

But with every new season comes new hope and aspirations. This time around, there’s a bit more of a normal(ish) offseason for the Raiders to build off of, as well.

“I’m fired up, and it’s part of A) being back to normal, but B) more just the accumulation of three years,” Mayock said. “My dad used to say, ‘Don’t worry about whether or not the horse is blind — just load the freaking truck.’ That’s where we are. We’ve assembled 53 players. We think we’re going to be a pretty good football team. We’re not hiding from expectations.”

HOUSTON

John McClain of the Houston Chronicle, an authoritative source, says the Texans will not be rushed into a trade for QB DESHAUN WATSON and his value is undiminished in their eyes – with thoughts from the always thought full Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com:

The Texans want to trade quarterback Deshaun Watson. Watson wants to be traded. Eventually, it will happen.

As explained by John McClain of the Houston Chronicle, it will happen “when somebody makes [G.M. Nick] Caserio the offer he wants.”

 “The Texans’ plan for Watson hasn’t changed since March,” McClain added. “Trade him when someone meets their demand, whenever that is. I think Caserio will get close to what he wants after the season if there’s clarity about Watson’s legal situation.”

The Texans, who per McClain are content to keep him on the active roster all year and pay him, reportedly want three first-round picks and two second-round picks for Watson. Teams have objected to that demand, given that his unresolved legal issues (22 civil lawsuits, 10 criminal complaints, and a vague FBI investigation) make his unavailability uncertain for 2021 and beyond.

Caserio’s position necessarily implies that the Texans view this not as a short-term transaction for Watson’s next team but a 10-year investment. Notwithstanding any absences in the short term, whether paid leave or an eventual unpaid suspension or both, this situation eventually will be resolved and Watson’s career will continue. Just as Ben Roethlisberger‘s did after allegations of off-field sexual misconduct. Just as Mike Vick’s did after two years in prison for dogfighting.

By March 2022 there should be more clarity regarding Watson’s legal situation. There’s also a chance things will remain murky. This year, it costs the Texans $10.54 million to pay him to not play while they wait for the offer Caserio wants. Next year, it will cost $35 million to continue to kick the can, if Caserio doesn’t get the offer he wants.

Assuming that the passage of six months leads to some clarity (the biggest concern at this point comes from potential indictment, prosecution, conviction, and incarceration on felony charges), the Texans become far more likely to get what they want, and perhaps more. After the season, more teams will be looking for new quarterbacks. Those teams could bid the package up to even more than three ones and two twos, potentially.

That’s the primary reason for a team like the Dolphins to move now. As Simms and I discussed on Wednesday’s PFT Live, at some point Watson’s arrival in Miami won’t do much to help the team win in 2021. But at some point it wouldn’t be a move for 2021. It would be a move for 2031 and every year in between.

In the deadline-driven NFL, the deadline is the closing of the trade window, on the Tuesday after Week Eight. If Tua Tagovailoa fails to show signs of becoming the franchise quarterback he was drafted to be, the Dolphins could make an offer close to what Caserio wants in the hopes of getting Watson before the bidding begins in the offseason, with perhaps seven or eight teams vying to get him.

The other wrinkle in all of this is Watson. Even if the Texans are willing to carry Watson on the active roster, pay him $10.54 million, and make him inactive every week, Watson may not be happy about being placed on ice for so long, even though he had a clear role in the creation of the current mess. He wants out now, not later. As 32 teams start playing football, he could get antsy. While T.O.-style shirtless driveway situps likely aren’t in the offing, an awkward relationship could get even more tense.

Both Caserio and coach David Culley have declared Watson’s status as a one-day-at-a-time proposition. That approach may work for only so many days, from Watson’s perspective.

And so maybe it ends not when the Dolphins make the Texans an offer they can’t refuse, but when the Dolphins make the Texans an offer they won’t refuse. Even if it’s less than three first-round picks and two second-round picks, there’s a chance it will be close enough that the Texans will take it, if only to finally be done with it.

Lindsay Jones of The Athletic cannot understand why The Commish has not acted regarding Watson and why any team would want him until the underlying issues are resolved.

It is beyond time for Roger Goodell to use his sweeping disciplinary power to remove Deshaun Watson from the Texans’ active roster.

Watson is facing 22 civil lawsuits as well as active criminal investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct. For nearly six months, Goodell and the NFL have tried to apply precedent to an unprecedented situation. The result is that everyone, from Watson, to the Texans, to other teams rumored to be interested in acquiring the star quarterback, to Goodell himself, looks bad.

And now, with 53-man rosters set and just 10 days until Week 1, the optics will only get worse.

“There’s no finite answer. There’s no definite answer at this point,” Texans general manager Nick Caserio said Wednesday.

Goodell needs to provide one by placing Watson on the commissioner’s exempt list.

Only Goodell has the power to keep teams from considering whether they can get a deal on a franchise quarterback. Only Goodell has the power to take the decision away from the Texans of whether to allow Watson to practice, suit up on game days or even play. Goodell has rarely been conservative in using his disciplinary power before, so this is an odd time to remain so judicious.

So what if the NFL has never placed a player facing civil lawsuits on the commissioner’s exempt list? The breadth and seriousness of the allegations against Watson are unlike anything the NFL has ever faced.

Goodell needs to look at Watson’s situation in a vacuum and see that every day that goes by without league intervention allows for speculation about Watson’s football future to persist. Instead, the focus should be on Watson’s legal issues and the women who have accused him of sexual misconduct.

Trade compensation? Practice reps? Spare me the Football Talk right now.

While Watson’s legal team and the NFLPA might challenge a decision by Goodell to remove Watson (with pay) from the Texans’ active roster, this is a rare case where the commissioner would not lose in the court of public opinion. It’s hard to imagine finding anyone beyond those closest to Watson who believes the best thing is for him to be playing — or even practicing — football right now.

The NFL’s new collective bargaining agreement, ratified in March 2020, only slightly reduced Goodell’s disciplinary power, in that it changes the off-field disciplinary process for off-field behavior issues. After an internal investigation, initial punishment is handed down by a designated “disciplinary officer.” If the player (and NFL Players Association) chooses to appeal, Goodell is the final arbiter.

This is a change from the prior CBA, in which Goodell both issued the discipline and ruled on the appeal.

But that’s not what is at stake right now. That process is something to consider whenever the NFL’s internal investigation is complete and the league is trying to decide if Watson will ultimately be suspended without pay. The personal conduct policy sets a six-game baseline suspension for players who are found to have committed domestic violence or sexual assault.

For now, Goodell has the commissioner’s exempt list, even if he has never used it for a similar case.

First, some background on this list. Goodell and his staff, after consulting with experts in the domestic violence field, created the commissioner’s exempt list in 2014 in response to a series of high-profile, off-field incidents involving NFL players. Among them: The mishandling of Ray Rice’s discipline from his domestic violence case, and a criminal indictment against then-Vikings running back Adrian Peterson on charges of child endangerment. Placement on this list was meant to serve as an in-season paid suspension, and to take the decision away from teams of whether a player should be on the field. Those teams have competitive reasons for wanting their best players on the field, no matter what’s going on off it.

The language in the league’s personal conduct policy says the list would be narrowly tailored for players who were facing criminal charges or were under indictment for domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse or violent crimes involving weapons.

But the policy also gives Goodell broad authority to place a player on the list if the league’s own investigation indicates a personal conduct policy violation. This is how Kareem Hunt landed on the commissioner’s exempt list, after video showed the then-Chiefs running back attempting to kick a woman in a hotel hallway. Criminal or civil charges were never pursued, but Hunt was eventually suspended eight games.

This language matters in the Watson case, because while the 22 civil cases have been well documented and at least 10 women have gone to police, law enforcement officials in Houston have yet to file criminal charges. Watson’s lawyer confirmed to The Athletic last month that the FBI is also investigating.

The NFL is conducting its own investigation of the allegations made by the women, who revealed in their civil filings a pattern of disturbing sexual misconduct by Watson after the quarterback hired them for massages. But the league has indicated that its own investigation has been slow, in part because it doesn’t want to interfere with concurrent investigations by Houston police.

But with so many accusers, of course this was going to be a slow process. That makes the use of the commissioner’s list all the more appropriate: It’s not a determination of guilt, but a means to continue investigating more fully, without football in the way.

The delays have only made the situation more awkward for the Texans and the football-watching public, which is left to sift through reports about Houston’s trade demands and Watson’s playing preferences.

Watson, who wanted out of Houston before his legal issues surfaced in March, reported for training camp and practiced sparingly. He didn’t play in any of the Texans’ three preseason games, and recently has been seen working with a trainer on a side field while his teammates practice.

On Tuesday, he officially made Houston’s 53-man roster. Yet a day later, Caserio provided no updates on when or if Watson would play this season, or if the team might try to move him off the roster.

“I’m not going to get into speculation about what could or couldn’t happen,” Caserio said. “Again, each day, we take information, we process it and try to make the right decision, the best decision at the time. That’s what we did. He’s on our roster, he’s on our team. What’s that mean moving forward? Again, it’s a one-day-at-a-time proposition and endeavor.”

The NFL and Goodell had the benefit of time in the offseason, and could delay any sort of decision in the spring and for most of summer. Goodell could have indicated to the Texans and other teams that placement on the exempt list would be forthcoming. That wouldn’t necessarily mean a team couldn’t still try to trade for Watson, but knowing that he would be unavailable for the immediate future would be a deterrent.

And let’s be clear: There needs to be a deterrent to other teams pursuing a trade for Watson right now.

For as much as we often hear teams say they’ll do their due diligence on players they want to acquire, this usually means nothing more than asking former teammates and coaches for a scouting report. Is he a good teammate? Will he be a fit in our locker room? Will he be a distraction?

There is not a single team in the NFL equipped to answer the real questions surrounding Watson right now, and shame on any team that would even consider it. Maybe Goodell and his staff can’t answer them either, which is all the more reason for the commissioner to finally step in, set a precedent and put football last.

INDIANAPOLIS

It looks like QB CARSON WENTZ is set to start the opener as he comes of the COVID list.  Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com has news of all the Colts shuffles:

The Colts have quarterback Carson Wentz back on the active roster.

The team announced that Wentz has been activated from the COVID-19 reserve list on Thursday. Wentz, center Ryan Kelly, and wide receiver Zach Pascal were all placed on the list earlier this week after close contact with someone who tested positive. NFL protocols require unvaccinated players to miss five days while testing negative before they can return to the team.

Kelly and Pascal have also been activated.

Wentz was planning to ramp up his practice work this week as he continues his return from foot surgery earlier in the summer. He’ll now have a bit more than a week to show the Colts he’s ready to go before the opener against the Seahawks.

The Colts cleared space for the returning players by placing quarterback Sam Ehlinger, wide receiver T.Y. Hilton and wide receiver Dezmon Patmon on injured reserve. Hilton had neck surgery and General Manager Chris Ballard said on Wednesday that the team expects him back sooner rather than later. Ehlinger is dealing with a knee sprain that leaves Jacob Eason as Wentz’s only counterpart on the quarterback depth chart.

TENNESSEE

Turron Davenport of ESPN.com on the retirement of DL JURRELL CASEY:

Former Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jurrell Casey announced his retirement Thursday after 10 seasons in the NFL.

Casey spent his first nine seasons with the Titans and was considered one their most consistent and dependable players. The five-time Pro Bowler played three games with the Denver Broncos last year before suffering a season-ending biceps injury. He was released by the Broncos this past February.

“This is a proud day for Jurrell, his family and the Titans family,” Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said in a statement. “There is no greater model for what a player can achieve both on the field and in the community than Jurrell. His five Pro Bowls and two Community Man of the Year awards are part of a tremendous legacy for others to follow.”

– – –

Only three teams in the NFL have winning records in each of the last five seasons – and the Titans are one of them (also Seattle and Kansas City).  Coach Mike Vrabel has been there for the last three.  Dan Pompei of The Athletic takes a look (edited significantly):

The Mike Vrabel you think you know said he would fight every coach in the NFL if it meant the Titans would move up in the NFL standings.

The Mike Vrabel you think you know is all pushups, planks and squat thrusts on the sideline three hours before a game.

The Mike Vrabel you think you know refuses to acknowledge his 46 years, so he grabs the pads and mixes it up with his players at practice.

The Mike Vrabel you think you know talks trash like Conor McGregor.

“Little buddy,” he says to receiver A.J. Brown during a training camp practice, “just wait for that tackling drill on Monday, little buddy.”

The Mike Vrabel you think you know is Bill Belichick II. How could he not be after playing eight years for him and sharing three Super Bowl victories?

So you think you know the big-jawed head coach of the Tennessee Titans.

But do you really?

With the seventh-best winning percentage among his peers, Vrabel is universally respected as one of the best young coaches in football.

Vrabel often was referred to as coaching material during his 14-year NFL playing career as an outside linebacker, as if he were a mahogany tree destined to become a bookcase. But he didn’t think about doing anything after football except watching grass grow.

Then on May 30, 2011, Jim Tressell unexpectedly resigned as head coach of Ohio State, and defensive coordinator Luke Fickell became interim head coach. Vrabel had not retired from playing yet, but Fickell, who was Vrabel’s host when he visited Ohio State as a high school recruit and the best man at his wedding, asked him to coach linebackers. How could Vrabel say no?

When Urban Meyer replaced Fickell the following year, he made Vrabel his defensive line coach. Vrabel relished some aspects of the job that many coaches abhor. “He loved recruiting, going to people’s houses, talking to the parents and kids,” his wife, Jen, says.

Once the recruits were his, he fostered the relationships, trying to understand their stories. He wanted to know what made them who they were and what was important to them. The Vrabels hosted the defensive linemen for cookouts and pool parties at their house.

It really was a return to Vrabel’s roots.

Mike credits his father Chuck Vrabel with teaching him how to be a teammate. Vrabel was playing in a little league baseball game and asked two friends if they would come over afterward to swim and have a sleepover. When Mike told dad that a couple of kids were coming, Chuck said, “Either the whole team is coming, or nobody is coming.”

As a sophomore at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, Vrabel started on the varsity football team on Friday nights. When his sophomore classmates played Saturday morning, Mike made it a point to be on the sidelines, offering cups of water and words of encouragement.

“It didn’t matter that he was the varsity guy,” his father says. “It was more important to him that they were friends … I would say he values friendships above all.”

As a player in the NFL, Vrabel was known as the kind of teammate who lifted all around him. He had to sweat out making the roster as a special-teams contributor the first four years of his career in Pittsburgh. Through force of will, he became a team captain on a dynasty, an All-Pro and a two-way player. And finally, he was a not-as-good-as-he-used-to-be veteran who was valued because of his intangible influence.

On the day Belichick traded Vrabel, this is what he said: “Mike Vrabel epitomizes everything a coach could seek in a professional football player: toughness, intelligence, playmaking, leadership, versatility and consistency at the highest level.”

He showed qualities, in other words, that could make an exceptional coach.

Three years into his coaching career at Ohio State, Vrabel was hired to coach linebackers with the Texans. Bill O’Brien’s program was different from Meyer’s or Belichick’s in that O’Brien welcomed family member involvement. If Vrabel ever became a head coach, he thought, that’s how he would do it.

Vrabel became a head-coaching candidate after two years as O’Brien’s linebackers coach and one year as his defensive coordinator. He interviewed with the Colts, Lions and Titans. Most head-coaching candidates are sought after because of cutting-edge strategies or distinguishing runs of success. Not Vrabel.

His rapid ascension was about his presence and his human touch.

Titans center Ben Jones texted Vrabel one morning before a practice last spring. He was running late for work because one of his kids had been ill overnight.

“Family comes first,” came the reply.

The head coach of the Titans makes sure his players know he thinks OTAs are voluntary. Anything else would be hypocritical. Vrabel didn’t always attend OTAs when he was playing. He spent his offseasons in Columbus and prioritized coaching his sons, Tyler and Carter.

When he wasn’t coaching, Mike, like many parents in the stands, sometimes had difficulty hiding frustrations.

“I was really bad,” he says. “I’d mumble. Every at-bat, I was like, oh, get your elbow up, load your back foot. And I don’t know anything about baseball.”

Tyler had been a defensive lineman, but he was not a natural. That was unexpected because he is “the son of.” Jen says it was “a disaster” when Mike watched Tyler play football early in his high school days.

“I’d tell him you don’t always have to say everything that comes to your head,” she says. “You don’t have to say it aloud. You can think it and not say it.”

Tyler came to work with his father at the Texans’ offices and got to know Jones, who was on the Texans at the time, guard David Quessenberry and offensive line coach Mike Devlin. They brought Tyler into their offensive line world, and it felt like home to him. He sat in their position group meetings, participated in their drills and lifted weights with them.

Tyler became an offensive lineman when he began his senior year of high school. He’s now a senior starter at left tackle for Boston College and an NFL prospect.

It took time for Mike to understand Tyler’s struggles weren’t his struggles or a reflection of him. Something clicked when Vrabel heard ESPN’s Mark Schlereth say the only thing you should tell your kids about their sports is you can’t wait to see them play.

“Now I watch the game probably how my grandma used to watch me,” he says. “I just watch Tyler. I don’t even know if it’s a good play or bad play, I just watch him. Then I’ll be like, ‘What happened on the play? Was it a completed pass?’”

Tyler, offensive tackle, is his own man now. So is Carter, a third baseman at Volunteer State Community College in Gallatin, Tenn. Whereas Mike is clean-cut, both sons have long hair and full sleeve tattoos on their arms. Carter wears earrings. “We try to support them and love them, but that’s who they are,” Mike says.

Letting go can be challenging for parents whose children are coming into their own. It also can be challenging for head coaches. Vrabel has come to terms with having less direct control over games as a head coach than he did as a linebacker. Now, he thinks of himself as an “influencer” of his team rather than an authoritarian.

He tries to communicate to his players in different ways so his message is understood by everyone. Vrabel knows not every player can absorb the game plan by looking at play diagrams or sitting in a classroom. His appeal to Titans owner Amy Adams resulted in a “mobile classroom” in the Titans’ indoor facility that enables players to walk through plays while watching tape on 12-foot screens on wheels.

Vrabel is sensitive about learning issues.

In grammar school, Carter, who has a bold nature like his father, didn’t read as well as was expected. He found it difficult to sit at a desk all day. It took him hours to do 30 minutes of homework. As a quarterback, Carter couldn’t understand the play call. He was frustrated and angry. His parents tried everything to help him and to help themselves, even family counseling. It was, in Jen’s words, a “long struggle.”

The NFL gives much to its players and takes much in return. Vrabel wonders what moving so much during his playing career took from his family. “I think,” Vrabel says and then pauses. Deep breath. “I think sometimes Carter gets the short end of the stick.”

Once Vrabel was settled in Columbus as an assistant at Ohio State, he thought he was in the best place for Carter, so the plan was to stay there.  It was with trepidation that he took the job with the Texans, and initially, Carter struggled with it. But over time, Carter found teachers in Houston and then in Nashville who brought out his best.

Carter is in a good place now. So is his family.

Everybody, Vrabel knows well, is dealing with something in their life. Vrabel makes it a point to know what that something is for every player and coach on his team.

“One thing I’m proud of and grateful for is when I stand up in front of the team, there will be many players sitting very closely to one another who all have shared something with me, or I know they are dealing with something,” Vrabel says. “It’s a parent who’s sick, a child they haven’t seen. They may not know that a person sitting five feet away from them is dealing with the same thing. But I do because I’ve had conversations with them.”

– – –

Vrabel encourages his assistants to take time off to see their kids’ games in the offseason. “If they have something to go to at 3, I want them to get out of here,” he says.

Before camp started, Vrabel had a pool party for his coaches and their families at his home. Another day, he had the team’s rookies over. He made chicken wings with a dry rub on his Green Egg.

Vrabel fancies himself a grill master and hones his craft with help from TikTok. On “TikTok Tuesdays” he prepares dinner with a TikTok recipe.

“It’s a stupid pleasure,” he says.

“He’s addicted,” Jen says.

Whereas Jen asks Mike for advice on her fantasy football team, Mike asks her advice on the Titans. They met as Ohio State freshmen in a time management class and have been together since. Mrs. Vrabel undoubtedly has an influence over the team that is favored to win the AFC South.

“She knows a lot about the game,” Vrabel says of his wife, who was a volleyball setter for the Buckeyes and still is sixth in all-time assists at the school. “She has seen me play over 200 football games. She’s seen me, coach. I think she has a good grasp on what you need, the decisions we make. We have conversations about the game, the team, what the message should be.”

Jen encourages him to focus more on the journey and less on the destination. He is good at reveling in the moment.

– – –

The Mike Vrabel you think you know is sounding like Belichick. If you didn’t know better, it could be the voice of the Patriots coach, not the Titans coach.

“Say what you want,” he says. “I’m just telling ya, this is what he’s going to do. I’m just telling ya, this is what they are going to fucking do.”

This is his Belichick imitation. But sometimes, his words sound like Belichick’s without trying. “It’s only natural to hear a voice for eight years that you say some of those things,” he says.

He tries to be like Belichick in how he pays attention to detail, the way he prepares for every possibility, and how he stresses accountability.

“I try to explain to the players that I coach you how I’ve always been coached,” Vrabel says. “There are a lot of things I learned from Bill.”

Jen says her husband and Belichick are very different people, but she can see Belichick’s influence on him.

“Mike is like him with the media — doesn’t want to say anything to anybody, and he thinks it’s kind of funny,” she says.

– – –

Vrabel has coached the Titans to three straight winning seasons. He might not have to cut off a valued body part to get to where he wants to be.  The real way to get there, he knows, is less startling.

“This will only be my fourth year, so we’re trying to build something here, build some consistency, have an identity, understand what our culture should look like, and continue to host playoff games and make playoff runs,” he says.

His wife says Vrabel is learning it’s about more than winning or losing.

“Sometimes, I am like, ‘Can we just play a game with the family, and if you don’t win, you’re not mad?’” she says. “That’s a part of him, but it’s a part we’re working on.”

While he works on it, Vrabel knows grilling chicken wings for rookies and holding babies will only get him so far.

“You are never going to get the ‘Attaboy, what a great guy,’ unless you win,” he says. “You can impact lives and I think you can be real and honest and empathetic and try to help guys, but you also have to win.”

After Vrabel said he would cut off a valued body part, he added that Jen gladly would do it for him.

A priest friend texted Jen shortly after.

“Is everything OK?” the priest asked, prompting chuckles.

Yes, everything is OK. Better than OK.

People just don’t know Mike Vrabel.

Here is a recent scouting report on Tyler Vrabel from two draft gurus at NFL Draft Bible:

Summary:

Pulido: Tyler Vrabel is a starting-caliber offensive tackle in the league at either tackle spot due to his length, foot speed and strength. He could be in consideration for the end of the first round. Vrabel uses size, intelligence and movement skills to win in the pass game. He is a very solid starter for Boston College at the right tackle spot. He uses his pure strength and aggressiveness to win in the run game. Vrabel can work a little bit on his stance as he lets his shoulders get over his knees and he can overreach a bit. Vrabel is going to play and start on Sundays and could be a name that sneaks into the first round.

Ezring: Experienced starters with decent technical bases often draw attention in the draft process. Tyler Vrabel is one such player who also offers intriguing positional versatility at either tackle or guard spot. That said, the Boston College standout struggles against power, speed, length and refined hands. He is a developmental piece with high-level backup and spot starter potential.

NEW YORK JETS

The Jets and Coach Robert Saleh are giving LB REUBEN FOSTER a chance. Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com:

Jets head coach Robert Saleh coached linebacker Reuben Foster when he was the defensive coordinator with the 49ers and he’ll get a chance to catch up with Foster on Thursday.

Foster’s agent Malki Kawa told Ian Rapoport of NFL Media that Foster will be working out for the Jets.

Foster was a 2017 first-round pick for the Niners and had a solid rookie season, but he was waived during the 2018 season after serving a two-game suspension to open the season and being arrested in November on a domestic violence charge. He was claimed by Washington and returned to the field after the criminal charges were dropped, but tore his ACL and LCL in his first practice with the team in 2019. He has not played since suffering the injury.

The Jets placed linebacker Jarrad Davis on injured reserve on Wednesday. C.J. Mosley, Blake Cashman, fifth-round pick Jamien Sherwood, sixth-round pick Hamsah Nasirildeen, and waiver claim Quincy Williams are the linebackers on the active roster.

THIS AND THAT

SURPRISES

ESPN’s correspondents give us their hunches on who or what could “surprise” for all 32 teams – although we would say some of these “surprises” (see Jacksonville and Philadelphia for starters) are things we kind of expect.

Arizona Cardinals

Don’t be surprised if … Chandler Jones leads the league in sacks.

What I’m hearing: Jones was upset earlier in the offseason that the Cardinals hadn’t given him a contract extension, and he was interested in being traded to a team that would. But Arizona made it clear that it wasn’t going to trade the linebacker, and Jones is back in the building and has been all-in, according to people who’ve spoken with him.

He had just one sack in an injury-shortened 2020 season — he injured his right biceps in early October — but over the five seasons prior, he had 9.5 more sacks than anyone else in the league. Healthy, eyeing free agency and teamed with J.J. Watt, Jones is in position to dominate.

Atlanta Falcons

Don’t be surprised if … Calvin Ridley leads the league in receiving yards.

What I’m hearing: The trade of wide receiver Julio Jones to the Titans makes this almost a little too obvious, but there are multiple reasons to expect the Falcons will lean on Ridley. Their second-best receiver is a rookie — tight end Kyle Pitts, whom they think is special but like any rookie could have growing pains. Ridley himself has all of the characteristics of a No. 1 wide receiver, which is why they drafted him in the first round in 2018. And the Falcons have big questions on the front and back ends of their defense and could be trailing in games a lot this year as a result.

Many point to how run-heavy Tennessee was when new Falcons coach Arthur Smith was its offensive coordinator. But with no offense intended toward running back Mike Davis, Smith doesn’t have Derrick Henry in Atlanta. Smart coaches coach to their rosters’ strengths, and this roster’s strength is the passing game.

Baltimore Ravens

Don’t be surprised if … the offense gets off to another slow start.

What I’m hearing: No, it’s not because of the J.K. Dobbins injury, though that certainly doesn’t help. The Ravens will be able to run the ball with Gus Edwards, Ty’Son Williams and of course quarterback Lamar Jackson. The concern for the offense is that health issues have kept Baltimore from doing the work its planned to do on its passing game this offseason.

Jackson missed time early in camp after a positive COVID-19 test, and just about every wide receiver has missed practice time because of injury (Marquise Brown returned to practice this week, but rookie first-round pick Rashod Bateman will miss more time). You have to trust this coaching staff to get it together, as it did in the latter part of the 2020 regular season when the Ravens won their final five games. But it could look rough out of the gate.

Buffalo Bills

Don’t be surprised if … Devin Singletary is the lead running back ahead of Zack Moss.

What I’m hearing: The Bills say conditioning was the main reason Singletary didn’t follow up on his promising rookie year with a strong 2020. They say the lack of a true offseason program last year affected some players more than others, and Singletary was one of them. He’s in better shape now and has had a strong camp.

They still like Moss, a third-round pick last year, and will use him. But if last year’s split morphs into something that tilts a little more toward Singletary, don’t be surprised.

Carolina Panthers

Don’t be surprised if … Brian Burns has his first double-digit-sack season.

What I’m hearing: Over his first two seasons, Burns has often flashed the ability that led the Panthers to draft him in the first round in 2019. But the reason he could take a Year 3 jump is that Carolina feels good about the front-seven group around him. Whether it’s the second-year development of 2020 second-round pick Yetur Gross-Matos or the performance so far of free-agent signing Morgan Fox, this team has what its coaches consider to be several positive developments on defense in training camp.

Chicago Bears

Don’t be surprised if … Damien Williams is more than just David Montgomery’s backup.

What I’m hearing: Williams, who opted out of the 2020 season after starring for the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV, is the No. 2 running back on the depth chart. The Bears like Montgomery and can’t ignore the fact that he rushed for more yards (598) than anyone but Derrick Henry (948) and Jonathan Taylor (651) over the final six weeks of last season.

Chicago, however, wants to inject some variety into its run game, which struggled in short-yardage situations even once Montgomery heated up. Williams knows the offense from his time in Kansas City with Matt Nagy mentor Andy Reid. And with Tarik Cohen still working his way back from an ACL tear, there’s a role for him in it.

Cincinnati Bengals

Don’t be surprised if … the offensive line isn’t as bad as you think it is.

What I’m hearing: The Bengals allowed just one sack and seven QB hits in the preseason, and while preseason results aren’t predictive, it matters at least a little that they played against Tampa Bay and Washington starters in two of those games.

They’ve taken a ton of grief for drafting wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase instead of tackle Penei Sewell at No. 5 overall, but they did pick three other offensive linemen in April, sign Riley Reiff in free agency and bring back offensive line coach Frank Pollack to oversee the overhaul. If 2019 first-round pick Jonah Williams is who they drafted him to be, the unit protecting Joe Burrow might not be the liability it’s so often assumed to be.

Cleveland Browns

Don’t be surprised if … the Browns let Baker Mayfield play out this season without a contract extension.

What I’m hearing: They did pick up Mayfield’s fifth-year option for 2022, and they know they can franchise him in 2023 and 2024 if it comes to that. But while they’re willing to extend Mayfield’s contract at a nice number, they’re not eager to do it if he wants to be paid in the upper-$30 million-to-lower-$40 million range like the other quarterbacks at the top of the pay scale, including fellow class of 2018 signal-caller Josh Allen.

The Browns could do with Mayfield what the Cowboys did with Dak Prescott and go year to year.

Dallas Cowboys

Don’t be surprised if … Ezekiel Elliott bounces back.

What I’m hearing: Yeah, it’s easy to roll your eyes when you hear the same old “He’s in much better shape” stuff. I get it. But by all accounts inside the Cowboys’ building, Elliott is motivated to put last season behind him and should benefit from a healthier offensive line than he had. (Elliott rushed for just 979 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 4.0 yards per carry.)

The team must believe that left tackle Tyron Smith, in particular, is healthier than he has been in years as a result of procedures he had done this offseason to address long-lingering injuries. Especially as Dak Prescott shakes off the rust, count on Elliott to look like the Zeke of old.

Denver Broncos

Don’t be surprised if … Javonte Williams is the lead running back sooner rather than later.

What I’m hearing: The Broncos have been impressed with their second-round pick and project to use him a lot in his rookie year. Melvin Gordon remains an impediment to the clear-cut lead back role for Williams, and the Broncos are likely to use both of them early in the season, assuming good health for both.

But there are plenty who expect Williams to perform in such a way that renders the competition moot. He should get a lot of work.

Detroit Lions

Don’t be surprised if … Jamaal Williams leads the team in rushing.

What I’m hearing: More than once over the years, new Lions offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn has made it clear he likes to use multiple running backs — that he models this philosophy on the Carolina teams that used both DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart.

Yes, the team has 2020 second-round pick D’Andre Swift on the roster. But it gave Williams a two-year, $6 million contract with $3.5 million guaranteed as a free agent. Detroit definitely plans to use him. Add in the fact that Swift has been dealing with injuries throughout camp, and it’s set up for Williams to assume a large role.

Green Bay Packers

Don’t be surprised if … Jaire Alexander gets a contract extension and Davante Adams doesn’t.

What I’m hearing: The Packers haven’t been able to see eye to eye in extension talks with Adams, their star receiver who is eligible for free agency in 2022. They have Alexander under contract through 2022, but he’s scheduled to make $13.3 million in 2022 on his fifth-year option. Knocking down the cornerback’s number with an extension would help the Packers with the significant cap problems they’ll confront next year, and their history shows they’ve been much more likely to stretch on second contracts (i.e., Alexander) as opposed to third contracts (i.e., Adams).

This doesn’t mean Adams is out of there, just that he doesn’t seem likely to get an extension before or during the season.

Houston Texans

Don’t be surprised if … Davis Mills starts some games at quarterback.

What I’m hearing: The Texans like Tyrod Taylor, and let’s be honest — who isn’t rooting for Taylor to finally have some good luck and not lose his job to a rookie for once? But for the Texans, this season is about finding out who will form the core of their team for the long term, and the 32-year-old Taylor likely doesn’t fit that description.

Mills, their third-round pick in April’s draft, certainly could be, and it would behoove them to find out what they can about him before making decisions about the quarterback position next offseason.

Indianapolis Colts

Don’t be surprised if … Jonathan Taylor leads the league in rushing.

What I’m hearing: The Colts love Taylor and insist he can be not just an every-down back but a dominant workhorse. When I visited their camp, I heard from multiple people about the improvements Taylor has made this offseason in the passing game — both as a pass-catcher and as a blocker.

The Colts will want to be run-heavy to take pressure off Carson Wentz and lean on their outstanding offensive line, and Taylor could pile up massive yardage totals as a result. He was the NFL’s third-leading rusher last season, putting up 1,169 yards and averaging 5.0 yards per carry.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Don’t be surprised if … Laviska Shenault Jr. leads the team in catches.

What I’m hearing: You saw a little bit of it in Sunday’s preseason finale against Dallas, but the Jaguars know they’re going to have to design some ways to mitigate the protection issues Trevor Lawrence will deal with in his rookie season. Shenault is a versatile outlet who can catch the ball near the line of scrimmage and do something with it after he has it in his hands.

Some of that work likely was ticketed for rookie running back Travis Etienne, but he’s out for the year after having surgery on a Lisfranc injury. The Jaguars have good wide receivers in Marvin Jones and DJ Chark, but Shenault is going to be an important safety valve for Lawrence and could end up peppered with targets as a result.

Kansas City Chiefs

Don’t be surprised if … Clyde Edwards-Helaire still doesn’t get the third-down and goal-line work for Kansas City.

What I’m hearing: The Chiefs signed Jerick McKinnon for his value as a pass protector and pass-catcher. Edwards-Helaire, their 2020 first-round pick, is still a work in progress in some of those roles, and we could see a continuation of last season’s rotation that took him off the field in certain situations. He still finished the season with 181 carries and 36 catches on 54 targets.

As for the goal line, it’s hard to predict what kind of trick play Andy Reid will dream up when the Chiefs get in close. But his tendency toward creative scoring solutions tells us he’s not likely to just slam it in with a power run every time.

Las Vegas Raiders

Don’t be surprised if … Bryan Edwards is the Raiders’ top wide receiver.

What I’m hearing: While it’s still safe to assume tight end Darren Waller is Derek Carr’s go-to guy, the Raiders would like to get more out of their wide receivers this season. Henry Ruggs is the first-round pick from last year and the headliner, but Edwards had an outstanding 2020 camp and was ticketed for a bigger role than you think before injuries derailed him.

The big, 6-foot-3 third-rounder from last April’s draft projects as the “X” receiver in the Raiders’ offense, and both Carr and coach Jon Gruden are enamored with the mismatches they can create with him.

Los Angeles Chargers

Don’t be surprised if … this is Mike Williams’ last season with the team.

What I’m hearing: Williams, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 draft, is playing on a $15.68 million fifth-year option salary and is eligible for free agency next offseason. The Chargers drafted Joshua Palmer in the third round in April, and they’ve been impressed with what they’ve seen from him. Palmer should have a role in the offense this season.

He might not supplant Williams, but it’s important to remember that (a) Williams has never had a 50-catch season, (b) they haven’t given him a contract extension and (c) they’re building around a 23-year-old second-year quarterback in Justin Herbert. That doesn’t mean they’re looking to “go young,” but if Palmer strikes them as a building-block piece for the long term, he’s certainly going to be a lot cheaper to keep on the books in 2022 and beyond than Williams.

Los Angeles Rams

Don’t be surprised if … Sony Michel gets more carries than Darrell Henderson Jr.

What I’m hearing: It sounds as if the Rams believe Henderson and the newly acquired Michel complement each other stylistically, which indicates they could use both as a committee. But one big reason they acquired Michel after Cam Akers suffered his season-ending Achilles’ injury was that Henderson has had a hard time staying consistently healthy.

L.A. is a second chance for the former Patriots first-rounder Michel, and if he can stay on the field and the Rams play with the lead enough, his style and Henderson’s health history could combine to make Michel the back on whom the Rams lean the hardest.

Miami Dolphins

Don’t be surprised if … Jaylen Waddle challenges for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

What I’m hearing: Unless and until a significantly better option emerges, the Dolphins have plenty of incentive to make second-year quarterback Tua Tagovailoa successful. They drafted Waddle No. 6 overall to be an electric playmaker with the ball in his hands, and he’s the kind of guy Tagovailoa should be able to find quickly while under duress.

Add in his likely contributions in the return game, and Waddle (assuming health) will be in position for a lot of highlight-reel plays and a lot of yards.

Minnesota Vikings

Don’t be surprised if … rookie quarterback Kellen Mond gets at least one start.

What I’m hearing: Kirk Cousins has missed just one game in the past six years. He’s underrated from a number of standpoints, and his durability is one of his obvious strengths. But he’s also staunchly anti-vaccine, and if you’ve been paying any attention this offseason, you know COVID-19 is still likely to affect this season in some way.

The NFL’s rules make unvaccinated players far more likely to miss time for COVID-19-related reasons than vaccinated players. All Cousins has to do is be identified as a close contact late in the week of someone who tested positive, and he’s out for the game. Mond is a third-round pick who looked raw in the preseason, but if Cousins has to miss a game and the Vikings aren’t in the playoff race, they might decide to get a look at him.

New England Patriots

Don’t be surprised if … the Patriots lead the league in rushing — even though Cam Newton’s not the quarterback.

What I’m hearing: They love their offensive line. They love their defense. They believe they have tremendous depth at running back with Damien Harris, James White, J.J. Taylor and preseason standout Rhamondre Stevenson. Rookie first-round pick Mac Jones — named the starter on Tuesday — can sling it, no doubt. But the Patriots’ identity is likely to be the run game. And if they’re good enough that the offense is playing with the lead more often than not, they will lean on it hard.

Bonus note: They like Harris a lot, but not so much in the passing game. Don’t be surprised if we’re sitting here a year from now talking about Stevenson, who rushed for 216 yards in the preseason, as the lead back in this offense.

New Orleans Saints

Don’t be surprised if … the Saints end up with Stephon Gilmore after all.

What I’m hearing: As of this past week, the Patriots were still open to the idea of trading Gilmore, who now has to miss the first six weeks on the physically unable to perform list. Gilmore is known to be unhappy with his contract, which is up after the season. While there was optimism a month or so ago that he and the Patriots would get something worked out, they still have not.

The Saints have a need at the position and high enough hopes for this year that you can’t rule out them making the move for the missing piece if they still have a need as we get closer to the trade deadline. These teams have done high-profile deals before.

New York Giants

Don’t be surprised if … Saquon Barkley plays in Week 1.

What I’m hearing: The Giants’ coaching staff and front office are leaving it up to the doctors to clear the running back for game action as he continues to recover from last year’s torn ACL, but there does seem to be some optimism that he has a chance to play in their opener.

Whether Barkley would take on a full workload right away or split carries with Devontae Booker is all to be worked out, but after a careful offseason, it seems as if the Giants could get their most important offensive player back in time to play a full season.

New York Jets

Don’t be surprised if … Corey Davis catches 85 passes from Zach Wilson.

What I’m hearing: The two have a real connection and a high level of trust. Wilson, the No. 2 overall pick in April, has played better in the preseason than many expected him to, and Jets coaches think their team’s defensive line (at least when Carl Lawson was healthy) did a good job making life difficult enough for Wilson in practice that he was prepared to shine once the games started.

Wilson has a big arm and a lot of confidence, and Davis is a former first-round pick (2017) who spent the first couple of years of his career fighting through injuries before being supplanted on the Titans’ depth chart by A.J. Brown. It’s a connection that could turn out to be a fun one for the Jets and their fans.

Philadelphia Eagles

Don’t be surprised if … DeVonta Smith leads the team in catches and receiving yards.

What I’m hearing: I know, I know — I said the same thing about Smith’s Alabama teammate in the Dolphins blurb. But there is nothing but opportunity in the Eagles’ wide receiver corps, and they traded up in the draft to steal Smith from the division-rival Giants (No. 10 overall) with the idea that he would play a major role early on.

Smith’s training camp injury was a minor setback, but the team says he’ll be ready to go and hit the ground running right away. He’s as polished and pro-ready a player as there was in April’s draft and should be an asset to Jalen Hurts right out of the gate.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Don’t be surprised if … Alex Highsmith has double-digit sacks.

What I’m hearing: The Steelers expect big things from their 2020 third-round pick, who’ll play the edge rush spot opposite superstar T.J. Watt. While Watt will command a lot of much-deserved attention, Pittsburgh indicates Highsmith is ready to be a full-time starter and make up for the loss of Bud Dupree in free agency.

San Francisco 49ers

Don’t be surprised if … they really do rotate quarterbacks during games, at least early in the season.

What I’m hearing: The 49ers gave rookie Trey Lance the opportunity to beat out Jimmy Garoppolo for the starting job in camp, but they didn’t feel he progressed far enough to do it. Given Garoppolo’s past injury issues, getting him off the field now and then isn’t a terrible idea, and rotating the quarterbacks gives coach Kyle Shanahan a chance to play with new concepts and mess with the heads of defensive coordinators.

There will come a time, likely this season, when Lance will take over as the unquestioned starter. But until that time comes, Shanahan is more than willing to apply a creative solution as long as it works.

Seattle Seahawks

Don’t be surprised if … Russell Wilson sets a career high in passing yards.

What I’m hearing: His single-season high is 4,219 yards, set in 2016. Eight NFL quarterbacks surpassed that total in 2020. Wilson was ninth with 4,212, and there’s an extra game this season, so you’re sitting there saying, “No duh, Dan.” The fact is, Wilson has never been a high-volume passer, just an incredibly efficient one. Coach Pete Carroll always wants his offense to lean on the run game as much as possible. But the hiring of new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, a Sean McVay disciple from the Rams, signals a desire to play faster and more up-tempo, and Wilson could end up throwing more just because there will be more plays.

If Wilson wants to throw more — and if Seattle really wants to convince him to stay there long term — it might be a good idea to let him “cook” a little bit the way he did early last season. The only caveat is that they need to keep winning or else Carroll might decide to order a change back to the old standby.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Don’t be surprised if … Antonio Brown is the Bucs’ most productive wide receiver.

What I’m hearing: Yeah, I said it. And no, I didn’t forget about Chris Godwin or Mike “I have 1,000 receiving yards every season” Evans. But Tom Brady loves Antonio Brown. It’s the reason Brown is there.

Brown didn’t show up until Week 9 last season because of his suspension, so it took him a while to get going in the offense. But he was still second on the team with 62 targets over the final eight games — one behind Evans and seven ahead of Godwin. A full offseason together heading into a full season together should only deepen the belief Brady has in Brown’s abilities.

This is an embarrassment of riches and could certainly vary week to week, but I don’t think it’s right to just assume Brown is the No. 3 there. And if he is, it won’t be by much.

Tennessee Titans

Don’t be surprised if … Bud Dupree has a big year.

What I’m hearing: Many teams were surprised when the Titans gave Dupree a big contract in free agency, because they worried the linebacker wouldn’t be ready for the season coming off a torn ACL. But Dupree was in great spirits and doing a lot of practice work when I visited this camp a few weeks ago, and there’s a lot of belief there that he’ll be back to himself and ready to go in Week 1.

Only Jacksonville and Cincinnati had fewer sacks last year than Tennessee’s 19. This team needs the help.

Washington Football Team

Don’t be surprised if … Taylor Heinicke starts some games in 2021.

What I’m hearing: The outside world is stunningly fired up about Ryan Fitzpatrick coming in as Washington’s quarterback, which probably says as much about their 2020 QB situation as their 2021 one. Fitzpatrick has started 16 games in a season three times in his 16-year career, most recently in 2015 for the Jets, and has never played on a team that reached the playoffs. Even over his last two seasons in Miami — which were regarded as two of the best he has had — he still threw 33 touchdown passes and 21 interceptions in 24 games. Not exactly superstar numbers, and he turns 39 in November.

Look, we are all rooting for Fitzpatrick to hit it big at the tail end of his fascinating career. It would be great if it happened. But there’s little in his history to inspire confidence that it will. Washington poked around on quarterbacks in Round 1 of April’s draft because it knows it will need a long-term answer. Don’t rule out the possibility that Fitzpatrick has a hiccup or two that leads them to take a look at other options.