THE DAILY BRIEFING
AROUND THE NFL
| If The Season Ended Today in the NFC:
x-Philadelphia East 13-1 1 8-1
yx-Minnesota North 11-3 1 6-3
yx-San Francisco West 10-4 1 8-2
Tampa Bay South 6-8 1 6-3
x-Dallas WC1 10-4 2 7-3 NY Giants WC1 8-5-1 3 4-5-1
Washington WC1 7-6-1 4 4-5-1
Seattle 7-7 2 5-6 Detroit 7-7 2 5-4
Green Bay 6-8 3 5-5
Two division titles are already clinched, while two NFC East teams are in the playoffs with the Eagles on the cusp of a title (even if they lose to Dallas this week, they would have to lose both of the last two at home – New Orleans, Giants) to not win the division.
In the Wild Card chase, the Lions can jump two spots if three events – all somewhat expected – happed on Sunday.
If the Lions win at Carolina, if the Seahawks lose at Kansas City and the Commanders lose at San Francisco – Detroit is in the playoff with wins in the last two games.
As for the NFC South – it rates a special look.
Tampa Bay 6-8 3-1 6-3 at Arz CAR at Atl
Carolina 5-9 3-1 4-5 DET at TB at NO
New Orleans 5-9 2-3 4-6 at Clv at Phil CAR
Atlanta 5-9 1-4 4-6 at Balt ARZ TB
The Buccaneers have beaten Atlanta, swept New Orleans and lost to Carolina.
Is it over if Tampa Bay wins this week and the other three lose? Not quite, if Carolina beats the Buccaneers and wins at New Orleans – and the Falcons rise up and help their rival with a Week 18 win over Tampa Bay, the Panthers are still the division “winners” takings a tie at 7-10.
Swept by Tampa Bay, New Orleans almost certainly needs to win out and get to 8-9 ahead of the Buccaneers.
Can there be a 4-way tie at 7-10? You betcha. Several ways, favoring Carolina or Tampa Bay.
Can the division winner be 6-11? There can, if all the non-division games are lost and Carolina and Atlanta beat the Buccaneers. Then New Orleans has to beat Carolina in Week 18. But the Panthers would still be the champs in a four-way tie at 6-11. |
| NFC NORTH |
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DETROIT
Frank Schwab of YahooSports.com moves the Lions into his top 10:
9. Detroit Lions (7-7, LW: 11)
The Jets game seemed like the one Detroit needed in the playoff race. And it came down to executing a fourth-and-inches play that went 51 yards to tight end Brock Wright for a touchdown. When is the last time the Lions made a clutch play like that? The Lions are far from a lock to make the playoffs but given how well they’re playing, you have to like their chances.
And Dan Hanzus of NFL.com, an early Lions believer has Detroit up to #7:
7 Detroit Lions
Previous rank: No. 10
The Lions can win ugly, too. Dan Campbell’s Grit Monsters went to the Meadowlands and struggled to break through against a stellar Jets defense … until it mattered most. Facing fourth-and-inches at midfield with two minutes to play, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson (his head coach stock going up by the week) called a brilliant misdirection play that resulted in a 51-yard touchdown for Brock Wright. The Lions have won six of seven with an opportunity to move into NFL playoff position if they can take out the Panthers on Sunday. “A lot of these close games are starting to lean more toward us than them,” said Jared Goff. “That hasn’t always been the case around here. We fully believe in each other and know that somebody’s going to make a play to do something right.”
The DVOA analysis of ProFootballOutsiders.com also has the Lions soaring. This from Mike Tanier:
The Detroit Lions are not just on a three-game winning streak and a 6-1 tear in their last seven games. They are not merely positioning themselves for a playoff berth that appeared unattainable when they started the year 1-6. Dan Campbell’s Lions are now also on pace to do something the franchise has not done since the days of Barry Sanders.
Sunday’s 20-17 victory over the New York Jets propelled the Lions into ninth place in the pre-Monday Night Football Week 15 DVOA rankings. If the Lions can stay in ninth place after their final three games, it will be their first top-10 finish and highest DVOA ranking since 1997, when Sanders rushed for 2,053 yards and the Bobby Ross-coached team went 9-7.
The Lions’ DVOA rating climbed from 6.2% to 7.8% in Week 15, putting the team on pace to record its highest figure since 2011 and sixth-highest figure of the last 40 years.
The Lions offense now ranks sixth in the NFL in DVOA. Per the raw data, they rank fourth in yards per game (375.1), sixth in net yards per play (5.8), second-lowest in sack rate (3.9%), and third in red zone touchdown conversion rate (70.6%).
The Lions defense has climbed to a semi-respectable 22nd in DVOA. Among other signs of defensive progress, opponents have rushed for just 72 yards on 39 carries (1.8 yards per carry) in the last two Lions games.
The Lions special teams now ranks eighth in the NFL, having fueled victories over the Jets (Kalif Raymond’s punt return touchdown) and Vikings (C.J. Moore’s fake punt, a 66-yard Jack Fox punt). The Lions rank second in the NFL in both punt return average (14.6) and kickoff return average (26.2). Michael Badgley is 15-of-18 on field goals since taking over at kicker. |
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GREEN BAY
Matt LaFleur made those who bet the under happy Monday night as Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com buries the lead:
Leading 24-12 with 1:39 left, the Packers had first-and-goal at the Rams’ 1-yard line on Monday night, and they decided to kneel down three times to end the game, rather than score another touchdown. Packers coach Matt LaFleur said that’s what he’ll always do in that situation.
“I didn’t think about that. I just think there’s a way you handle winning in this league. I’ve got a lot of respect for those guys we’re competing against,” LaFleur said.
It was pointed out to LaFleur that point differential is one of the playoff tiebreakers, but LaFleur responded that playoff tiebreakers aren’t something he thinks about during a game. He also said he wasn’t bothered by the Rams using their timeouts late in the game even as there was virtually no chance of them winning.
“If I knew that was going to be the difference, certainly, you do what you’ve got to do, but I think there’s karma involved in that, and I don’t want to be about that, and I’ve got too much respect for them,” LaFleur said. “I’m not worried about that.”
The people who were worried about it were those who bet the point total on Monday night’s game: The over/under was 39.5 points, meaning the under hit, but the over would have hit if the Packers had scored another touchdown. |
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MINNESOTA
Time to dig out the record books for most fourth quarter comebacks in a season.
This at ProFootballReference.com shows Kirk Cousins on the brink of matching the record of Matthew Stafford:
Fourth Quarter Comebacks
Player 4QC Year Tm
Matthew Stafford (28) 8 2016 DET
Kirk Cousins (34) 7 2022 MIN
Derek Carr (25) 7 2016 OAK
Peyton Manning+ (33) 7 2009 IND
Game-Winning Drives are a slightly different category – you can have one of those without trailing – but Stafford’s 8 GWDs in 2016 is also the record. There just is a longer list of players, including Cousins (2022), at 7. Ten in fact.
As for Cousins, he had 13 4th Quarter Comebacks in his first 127 games (122 starts), before racking up 7 in his last 12 games, starting with Week 3 against Detroit.
– – –
Coach Kevin O’Connell is among those who note a disturbing pattern in recent attempts to defend against WR JUSTIN JEFFERSON.
Minnesota Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson has absorbed three illegal hits this month, including two in Saturday’s historic comeback victory over the Indianapolis Colts, and the team is growing increasingly suspicious about it.
Coach Kevin O’Connell has brought it up, unprompted, twice in the past three days. Speaking Monday to reporters, O’Connell said sarcastically that Jefferson had “surprisingly” taken several shots from Colts players. He added: “Clearly there is an emphasis on the teams we’re playing. Some of those hits, they don’t just seem to be by accident at times.”
Jefferson twice needed medical attention in the fourth quarter Saturday. The first instance came after Colts safety Rodney Thomas hit him when he still had protection as a defenseless player, and resulted in what O’Connell called a rib/chest contusion. The second was a hit to the head by Colts cornerback Stephon Gilmore, requiring Jefferson to leave the game for a concussion check.
In Week 13, New York Jets safety Jordan Whitehead also hit Jefferson in the head and neck area. There have been several other hits in recent weeks that the Vikings protested but ultimately were not flagged. Jefferson visited the Vikings’ practice facility Sunday for treatment, but O’Connell expressed confidence that he’ll be available for their Christmas Eve matchup against the New York Giants.
“I think we’ve got to protect him a little bit better,” O’Connell said Saturday. “Great to get the flags, but … he’s too important to our league. Seems like a weekly occurrence at this point.”
Jefferson has played more snaps (881) and run more routes (573) this season than any other receiver in the NFL. He leads the league in receptions (111) and yardage (1,623) through 14 games. |
| NFC EAST |
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NEW YORK GIANTS
Find a person who in August had the Giants clinching a playoff berth with two weeks still to play. It can happen Saturday.
New York Giants (8-5-1) (at Minnesota (11-3), Saturday, 1 p.m. ET, FOX)
New York clinches playoff berth with:
NYG win + DET loss + SEA loss OR
NYG win + DET loss + WAS loss OR
NYG win + SEA loss + WAS loss
Seattle and Washington (scenario three) are both substantial underdogs at Kansas City and San Francisco respectively. |
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PHILADELPHIA
The QB JALEN HURTS sprained shoulder that swung the game odds in favor of Dallas may not be so serious after all. He played over a quarter in the win at Chicago after it happened. Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com:
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts has a sprained right shoulder, but John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports that X-rays were negative and an MRI confirmed it was only a sprain.
Hurts’ availability for Saturday’s game against the Cowboys is in doubt, and coach Mike McCarthy said the team is preparing for Hurts and Gardner Minshew.
But the good news for the Eagles is the injury is not considered serious, per Clark, and will require only “some rest and some rehab.”
“I’m told there is no doubt: Jalen Hurts will be ready for the playoffs,” Clark wrote. “One Eagle told me, ‘He’s a tough MF.’”
Hurts was injured late in the third quarter when Bears defensive end Trevis Gipson drove Hurts into the frozen ground after the Eagles quarterback kept the ball on a zone-read. Hurts was slow to get up.
“Yeah, it wasn’t the first time I’ve been slow [to get up],” Hurts said after the game when asked about it. “Won’t be the last. I didn’t play a really physical game, and it was real cold, too. So happy we were able to find a win and find a way.”
Hurts was helped to his feet by left tackle Jordan Mailata, and Hurts didn’t miss a snap.
“The one that scared me, he just laid there,” Mailata said. “I ran over and said, ‘Stay down.’ And he said, ‘Pick me the f— up.’ And I said, ‘Yes, sir.’”
In the fourth quarter, after his injury, Hurts went 6-of-9 for 102 yards and had six rushing attempts for 9 yards and a touchdown.
The Eagles need only one win in their final three games to clinch the division and the No. 1 seed in the NFC. |
|
WASHINGTON
Coach Ron Rivera says QB TAYLOR HEINICKE remains his QB, at the moment. John Keim on the glimmer of a waver:
The Washington Commanders will stick with Taylor Heinicke at quarterback — for now. But coach Ron Rivera said Monday that he’ll consider making a change to Carson Wentz if they don’t “get back on track.”
Heinicke has started the past eight games after Wentz suffered a broken right ring finger on Oct. 13. Washington has gone 5-2-1 with Heinicke starting, but the offense has struggled. Wentz was active Sunday for the first time since his injury.
After Sunday night’s 20-12 loss to the New York Giants, the Commanders (7-6-1) dropped to the seventh and final playoff spot with an upcoming road trip at the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) on Saturday. Washington leads both the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions by half a game so it’s likely the Commanders will have to win two games to clinch a playoff spot.
“The biggest thing is sticking with Taylor and with what we’re trying to establish,” Rivera said. “[But] it is something to be quite frank that I do have to think about at some point. But if we can play the way we’ve played and do the things we’ve done, then we’ll stick where we are.”
Washington’s offense has not fared well most of the season after scoring a combined 55 points the first two games. Under Heinicke, Washington ranks 13th in total yards, but 25th in scoring, 25th in the red zone and 27th on third down. Washington’s offense has scored more than 23 points only once in the past 12 weeks and has scored 19 or fewer in four of the past seven games. The Commanders have relied on their run game and defense to go from 1-4 to their current mark.
On Sunday, Heinicke completed seven of 13 passes for 55 yards in the first half. He lost a fumble on a blindside hit by defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux inside the 5-yard line. Thibodeaux recovered and scored.
Rivera said he did not consider switching quarterbacks at halftime. In the second half, Heinicke completed 10 of 16 passes for 194 yards and a touchdown. He also fumbled at the New York 5-yard line late in the game when he failed to secure the ball on a scramble.
“I thought he responded very well,” Rivera said of Heinicke’s second half. “We continued to move the ball up and down the field. We have to be aware of our ball security.”
Both quarterbacks have thrown 10 touchdown passes; Wentz threw six interceptions in six starts while Heinicke has thrown five. But Heinicke’s mobility and ability to elude the rush remain attractive, especially when facing one of the NFL’s best pass-rush units in San Francisco.
Rivera made it clear he still believes in Heinicke, telling him that in a postgame meeting in his office.
“My conversation was, ‘Hey, look, we had some really good moments during this game, we did some really good things but we’ve got to build on it and we’ve got to finish in the red zone,'” Rivera said.
Washington traded for Wentz this past offseason, sending two picks to the Indianapolis Colts and absorbing his $28 million cap hit. The Commanders will end up having surrendered two third-round picks for Wentz. He does not have any guaranteed money remaining on his contract so the team could cut him after the season with no cap penalty. Heinicke will be a free agent after the season.
– – –
Jonathan Jones of CBSSports.com has some scoop on the forced sale of the Commanders.
The first round of the bidding process for the sale of all, some, or potentially none of the Washington Commanders closes at the end of this week, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.
The Commanders announced Nov. 2 that Dan and Tanya Snyder had hired Bank of America Securities to “consider potential transactions.” Though the team hasn’t confirmed whether it’s for part of the team or the entire franchise, league sources have indicated for weeks that it’s likely for the entire team.
A Commanders spokesperson declined a request for comment Monday night.
League sources have estimated the full franchise would sell between $5.5 and $6.5 billion, far eclipsing the previous NFL record set by the Walton-Penner group when it purchased the Denver Broncos for $4.65 billion. Wise bidders would also need to have earmarked another $500 to $900 million to help fund a new stadium that would surely come following new ownership.
At the NFL league meetings last week in Texas, commissioner Roger Goodell said he doesn’t know whether Snyder will sell the entire team.
“I don’t have any expectations on that,” Goodell said Wednesday. “Dan’s statement that he put out said he was exploring that. And we will continue to work with him on that.”
Mary Jo White, the former chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, continues her probe into Snyder and allegations of both sexual assault and financial improprieties with the team. The league has said there’s no timetable for White’s investigations to conclude. Snyder has denied allegations of wrongdoing.
The Washington Post reported last week that the investment bank was “moving forward with the process” for Snyder to consider offers.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has expressed interest in the club, and he’s thought to be partnering with Jay Z, according to sources. CBS Sports has previously reported Bezos’ interest, as well as interest from Mat Ishbia, Joshua Harris and Byron Allen.
The Post reported that other bidders could include Clearlake Capital co-founders Behdad Eghbali and Jose E. Feliciano, as well as Todd L. Boehly.
Bezos has the deepest pockets of any interested bidder, plus a footprint in D.C. with his ownership of The Washington Post. But that exact ownership could stand in the way of Snyder ever selling to Bezos.
Any sale of the team — for part or all — would have to be approved by three-quarters of all NFL team owners.
The NFL has shown an interest recently in diversifying ownership groups. The Walton-Penner group is led by Wal Mart heirs and executives that needed no financial help to acquire the Broncos. Still, the group added limited partners including Condoleezza Rice and Mellody Hobson.
“The NFL member clubs support the important goal of increasing diversity among ownership,” read a joint statement from all NFL teams in the spring. “Accordingly, when evaluating a prospective ownership group of a member club pursuant to League policies, the membership will regard it as a positive and meaningful factor if the group includes diverse individuals who would have a significant equity stake in and involvement with the club, including serving as the controlling owner of the club.”
Looking at the Clearlake Capital possibility – would Iranian-born Behdad Egbali count as “diverse” on the NFL scorecard? What about Jose E. Feliciano, born in Puerto Rico? He is married to Black singer Kwanza Jones. |
| NFC WEST |
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SAN FRANCISCO
Frank Schwab of YahooSports.com is touting QB BROCK PURDY as about to be the first rookie QB to start and win a Super Bowl.
On Oct. 23, the NBA season was five days old, the Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies clinched berths in the World Series that day, C.J. Stroud and Hendon Hooker were runaway Heisman favorites with Caleb Williams well behind at about 14-to-1 odds, Frank Reich was the Indianapolis Colts’ head coach and the start of the World Cup was about four weeks away.
It’s also the last time the San Francisco 49ers lost.
The 49ers lost 44-23 to the Kansas City Chiefs to fall to 3-4 that day. They’ve won seven straight since and the average margin has been 16.6 points. Only one game, a 22-16 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, was decided by less than eight points.
San Francisco is a classic Super Bowl pick. It’s at the right time. The Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs or Buffalo Bills have been the best teams over the course of the entire season but the 49ers are arguably the best team right now. They have a punishing defense and probably the best set of offensive playmakers in the NFL.
And picking them to even win the NFC is asking the 49ers to do something that has never been done in the first 56 years of the Super Bowl era.
Here’s the list of rookie quarterbacks who have started a Super Bowl:
…
Yep. Zero. Kurt Warner and Tom Brady barely played before taking over during a championship season, but they weren’t rookies.
Now let’s look at the list of third-string quarterbacks to start the season who have started a Super Bowl:
…
Correct. None. There have been more backups than you remember to win a Super Bowl — Jim Plunkett, Trent Dilfer, Brady, Warner, Nick Foles, Jeff Hostetler and Doug Williams among others — but they were all second-team players. Third string? Hasn’t happened.
And just for kicks, here are is the list of Mr. Irrelevants (aka the last pick of the NFL draft) who completed a pass in an NFL game before Brock Purdy:
…
Yeah, that list should be familiar by now.
The Purdy story is catching on, but the scope of it is still underrated. Purdy has played surprisingly well through his three games since taking over for injured Jimmy Garoppolo, who took over for injured Trey Lance. Because Warner and Brady came out of nowhere, it seems like a rookie quarterback has played in a Super Bowl. Since so many backups have won Super Bowls, it doesn’t feel like a third-stringer doing it is that big of a deal. Since quarterbacks from all rounds of the draft have started Super Bowls, it isn’t a big stretch for the last pick of the draft to do it.
But what Purdy is trying to do is unprecedented, in a few ways.
If Purdy can even take the 49ers to a Super Bowl, it will be a huge blow to those who support the notion that a team needs an elite quarterback to win big. Teams can win championships with great teams around average quarterbacks. That’s been done before. The Purdy experiment is pushing that idea to an extreme.
There’s no reason to doubt the 49ers. Going two months without a loss is impressive. It’s not like Garoppolo was indispensable. He was just asked to get the ball to the 49ers’ star players in the rhythm of Kyle Shanahan’s scheme, just like Purdy is doing. The defense will keep the 49ers in any game.
Are you picking the 49ers to make the Super Bowl? That’s reasonable. Though you’re also picking something that has never happened in NFL history, on a few layers. |
| AFC NORTH |
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BALTIMORE
Ravens fans are restless about the makeup of the current coaching staff. John Harbaugh pushes back. Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com:
If the Baltimore Ravens didn’t realize the level of outrage toward their struggling offense, they got a sample of it when they walked up to the team facility Sunday morning.
Someone left several makeshift, handwritten flyers that read “Fire Greg Roman” scattered just outside the entrance, calling for the ousting of the Ravens’ offensive coordinator. Baltimore outside linebacker Tyus Bowser posted a video of the pieces of notebook paper on Instagram with the caption “Well alright then” before deleting it.
In the 13-3 loss in Cleveland on Saturday, the Ravens scored their fewest points in a regular-season game in 14 years. Baltimore’s offense has been sputtering since the bye week, scoring a league-low 13.8 points over the past five games.
On Monday, Ravens coach John Harbaugh was asked if he was going to make any changes on his coaching staff.
“We’re not getting into all that,” Harbaugh said. “I mean, you guys can talk about all that and I respect that. I love the fans talking about everything they can talk about. We’re together man. We’re a team. We’re spending all of our time getting ready for the Atlanta Falcons with every ounce of energy and fiber we got with a bunch of very, very good people at what they do, who understand everything about our team better than anybody else possibly could. You know the end of the bar talk conversation is for the people sitting at the end of the bar.”
Harbaugh said he has spoken to Bowser about what he posted on social media and believes Bowser has talked with Roman about it.
“When stuff like that happens, you communicate with one another, and you find out there’s really not much there, in terms of what people are thinking and all that,” Harbaugh said. “I could go on a social media rant, but I don’t know why anybody lives there.”
Asked if he was interested in how the flyers got to the entrance of the facility, Harbaugh said, “I don’t care how they got there. I don’t care. I’m not security. Security has got to worry about that. It’s paper — paper.”
Earlier this month, someone posted a video on Twitter in which fans were shouting obscenities at Roman while he walked from the stadium to his car after the game. “Get the f— out of here, Greg,” one fan shouted.
In Roman’s first season as Baltimore’s offensive coordinator, the Ravens were nearly unstoppable. Baltimore averaged an NFL-best 33.2 points per game, as quarterback Lamar Jackson led the league with 36 touchdown passes and set a single-season rushing record for quarterbacks with 1,206 yards.
Now, in Roman’s fourth season as playcaller, Baltimore has had increasing difficulties getting into the end zone. The Ravens are 16th in scoring (21.7 points) and 17th with 30 touchdowns.
“There are going to be times, and you’re going to go out there and you’re going to have a bad day,” Harbaugh said. “We don’t want them. … Nobody’s more ticked off about it or can’t sleep about it more than the coaches and the players, but the thing is you have to pull yourself off the mat and go win the next game.”
It’s unknown whether Jackson will come back for Baltimore’s next game. Harbaugh declined to say whether Jackson would return for Saturday against the Falcons after missing the past two games with a sprained knee.
“I think I’m going to climb behind the barricade of it’s probably not the time to put a lot of information out there on our injuries, just for competitive purposes,” Harbaugh said.
A ranking of 16th in scoring for the current Ravens offensive personnel, with a part-time Jackson, seems pretty good. Although the recent trend – 13.8 points per game in the last 5 games – isn’t promising. |
| AFC SOUTH |
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INDIANAPOLIS
And now, the season is over for RB JONATHAN TAYLOR who once seemed indestructible. Ian Rapoport:
@RapSheet
#Colts star RB Jonathan Taylor was diagnosed with a high-ankle sprain sustained in Saturday’s game against the #Vikings, sources say. He’s still meeting with doctors, but it’s considered highly unlikely that he’ll play again this season.
Someone we know as well as you can know someone made him the first pick of a Fantasy Draft (we weren’t alone there). His season ends with 861 rush yards (it felt like less) and 4 rush TDs. |
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JACKSONVILLE
As we’ve seen with his ranking of Detroit at #7, Dan Hanzus of NFL.com has a significant recentcy bias in his rankings. So to with the 6-8 Jaguars who he had 8 spots ahead of the 7-7 Titans:
11 Jacksonville Jaguars 6-8
Previous rank: No. 17
The Jaguars are for real. Doug Pederson’s team wiped out a 17-point second-half deficit and walked off the Cowboys on Rayshawn Jenkins’ dramatic pick-six in overtime. The 40-34 win served as the latest showcase for Trevor Lawrence’s sudden ascension to franchise star status, while also moving Jacksonville within a game of the death-spiraling Titans in an AFC South photo finish that no one saw coming. The Jaguars can put a tremendous amount of pressure on Tennessee with a prime-time win over the slumping Jets on Thursday Night Football. As for Lawrence: The 2021 No. 1 overall pick has a passer rating of 111.1 with 13 touchdown throws and one pick over his last five games, looking like one of the best quarterbacks in football during that stretch. It’s all happening. |
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TENNESSEE
QB RYAN TANNEHILL was carted off the field Sunday, but Coach Mike Vrabel is counting on him to tough it out this week against Houston. Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com:
Vrabel made it clear if quarterback Ryan Tannehill can play this weekend, he’ll play.
Tannehill reaggravated his ankle injury against the Chargers, but he returned to the contest.
“He’ll work extremely hard to get back, and (try to) find a way to make the game, like he always has,” Vrabel said of Tannehill. “Again, we’re never going to question his toughness, or his willingness to get back and help us win.”
“If Ryan is healthy and Ryan can play, Ryan will be our quarterback.” |
| AFC EAST |
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MIAMI
The Dolphins have lost three straight, although they still are above the playoff line. The 8-6 Dolphins have now had two 3-game losing streaks. Kevin Patra of NFL.com:
The Miami Dolphins knew their three-game road trip to start December could involve plenty of pitfalls, but the three-game skid still stings.
Miami lost in San Francisco, L.A., and Buffalo to drop from 8-3 to 8-6, clinging to the No. 7 seed in the AFC currently.
“We know exactly what we ended up doing in those three games. That definitely wasn’t the desired outcome,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Monday, via the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “We knew exactly what the trip was going to be like. We knew what those three games against good opponents — we knew it was a challenge, and we were kind of excited for that challenge.”
The Dolphins now head home for a Christmas date with Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers.
“We love our home venue, but it’s not exactly like, ‘Oh, finally. We’re home,'” McDaniel said. “It’s more that we needed another opportunity to play football. It’s a bad taste that you want to try to get rid of.”
During the three-game losing streak, Tua Tagovailoa completed fewer than 60 percent of his passes in each outing, something he did just once in his first nine games played this season (Week 4 at Cincinnati; left with injury).
The losing streak marked the second time this season that McDaniel’s club has had a three-game skid (Weeks 4-6). They bounced back from the first swoon to win five straight.
McDaniel believes Miami can use the experience of the road losses to buffer a playoff push down the stretch.
“We allowed ourselves to utilize every experience because of our intent and our commitment moving forward,” he said. “If we choose to do it and if we execute everything that we haven’t and utilize those experiences, we’ll look back and say those were very beneficial.”
The Dolphins close the season at home against the Packers, at New England, and at home versus the Jets with all teams battling for a playoff spot.
Miami’s season – 3 wins, 3 losses, 5 wins, 3 losses.
Would 3 wins to close out make it a Season Palindrome? |
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NEW YORK JETS
How good is CB SAUCE GARDNER? The Lions discounted throwing to any receiver he was covering. Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com:
The Lions paid Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner the ultimate compliment on Sunday, but Gardner wasn’t happy about it.
Detroit never once threw a pass to the receiver Gardner was covering, showing just how much the Lions respect the rookie cornerback. Gardner, who grew up a Lions fan, said on Monday that he hated being taken out of the game like that.
“I wasn’t targeted yesterday, not once,” Gardner said. “I don’t know what their mentality is or mindset is when they go up against us, but yesterday, I wasn’t targeted. I take that kind of personally because I actually wanted to make a bigger and a better impact on the game, especially going against my hometown team. . . . I didn’t get targeted so I didn’t get that opportunity.”
Gardner said he recognizes that the Lions were showing him respect, but he badly wanted them to test him.
“Definitely it is a huge sign of respect, but if I catch the ball and I get a pick-six I could put points on the board, or catch an interception and flip the field, something to get us some points,” Gardner said.
Now Gardner is getting ready to face the Jaguars on Thursday night, and hoping that Trevor Lawrence throws a pass in his direction.
The Lions did scheme well enough to get WR AMON-RA ST. BROWN free from Gardner’s tentacles for seven catches with other coverage. |
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THIS AND THAT |
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THE 2023 QB MARKET
As seen by the verbose Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com. His analysis is long, so we will only go to his “Most Likely QB To Pursue”:
The NFL quarterback carousel spins every year, and the 2023 offseason will be no exception. While there’s still plenty of football to go this season, there are plenty of teams that have one eye on their present and another on their future. Some of those organizations are in position to make the playoffs, but unless they’re one of the teams clearly in the mix for the Super Bowl with a quarterback any other team would envy, they’re just getting by under center.
Going through the league’s quarterback situations and where they stand right now, I counted 19 teams that have a reasonable chance of starting a new quarterback in Week 1 of next season. Let’s run through those 19 and look into what happened to each team in Week 15, what their quarterback situation might look like in 2023 and who they could add this offseason. Some might only make an addition if their team craters over the final few weeks of the season. Others have been spending the entire season scouting new quarterbacks, knowing they’ll be in the market for a replacement this spring.
I’ll go through these teams alphabetically, beginning with a team that gave a rookie his first start on Sunday:
Atlanta Falcons
Current starter: Desmond Ridder
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: A young quarterback in the first round. The Falcons project to pick No. 7 overall, per ESPN’s Football Power Index, and with Ridder in the fold, a late-season burst of victories seems unlikely. They used a third-round pick on Ridder, which suggests it sees him as a possibility as their quarterback of the future as opposed to an inevitability.
Plenty of teams have used similar midround selections on quarterbacks and then taken another a passer toward the top of the draft the following year, including the Jets with James Morgan and Zach Wilson, the Browns with DeShone Kizer and Baker Mayfield, and the Panthers with Jimmy Clausen and Cam Newton. If the Falcons don’t have a passer they love in this rookie class, they’ll draft the best available defensive lineman, sign a veteran and give Ridder a chance to start in 2023. If there is a young quarterback they admire, though, I don’t think the organization lets Ridder stand in the way.
Baltimore Ravens
Current starter: Tyler Huntley
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: Marcus Mariota. I support the logic of pursuing a backup quarterback who plays in similar ways to your starter, but Huntley hasn’t been good enough to consistently move the ball when Jackson has been out. Mariota probably won’t be looking at starting opportunities after an up-and-down season in Atlanta, and he can serve as a hybrid quarterback if Jackson misses more time with injuries.
Carolina Panthers
Current starter: Sam Darnold
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: One of the rookies in the 2023 draft class. The Panthers have unsuccessfully tried to land veterans Matthew Stafford and Wilson, and they could go into the mix again if someone such as Derek Carr or Kirk Cousins is on the trade market. Carolina is projected to have the No. 9 overall pick in the draft, and it could make a meaningful attempt to get its long-term solution under center.
Detroit Lions
Current starter: Jared Goff
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: Goff has been too good to justify any sort of immediate shift because of talent, but if the Lions want to capitalize on landing a top-five pick from the Rams in the Matthew Stafford deal, they could use that selection to take a quarterback of the future to play behind Goff. It would take a stunning turn of events in December and January for the Lions to dump him.
Green Bay Packers
Current starter: Aaron Rodgers
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: A backup to take the place of one of these quarterbacks. Given the deadlines imposed by Love’s fifth-year option and Rodgers’ option bonus, the Packers realistically need to make a decision this spring about their 2024 and 2025 quarterback. Trading one of these passers would open a spot on the roster for another one to take his place.
Houston Texans
Current starter: Davis Mills
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: A rookie with the No. 1 pick. The Texans have an 88.3% chance of landing the top selection in April’s draft, per ESPN’s Football Power Index. While they have needs at other positions, it would be a shock if they didn’t use that selection on a quarterback. Caserio could also pursue a veteran to serve as a steady hand behind that rookie, although Mills also seems capable of serving as the team’s No. 2.
Indianapolis Colts
Current starter: Matt Ryan
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: One of the rookies in the 2023 draft class. The organization has cycled through veteran options since Andrew Luck’s stunning retirement in 2019, and it’s become clear that team owner Jim Irsay has grown tired of the rotating quarterbacks. The Colts project to pick No. 7 overall in April’s draft, which should line them up for one of the class’s top signal-callers.
Las Vegas Raiders
Current starter: Derek Carr
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: I think they’ll make a serious run at Brady. The Raiders don’t need a splashy hire to sell out games in Las Vegas, but adding the greatest player in league history is an economic boon for any team. Brady’s familiarity with McDaniels and the offense and the impressive group of playmakers are only a bonus. McDaniels already was fired once for getting his quarterback situation wrong in Denver. On top of all that, Brady would probably come at a lower cost than Carr over the next couple of seasons.
Los Angeles Rams
Current starter: Baker Mayfield
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: Assuming Stafford is able to return, it would make sense for the Rams to make backup quarterback a priority for their 2023 roster. A reunion with Mayfield could make sense for all parties involved if he plays well over the final month of the season, assuming he doesn’t draw offers to start elsewhere.
Minnesota Vikings
Current starter: Kirk Cousins
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: A backup. Cousins is the most likely starter for the Vikings in 2023.
New England Patriots
Current starter: Mac Jones
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: The Patriots have to at least call Brady’s people to inquire whether he would like to return to New England to finish out his career. It would be uncomfortable to bench Jones for a 45-year-old quarterback who already has one retirement under his belt, but they can’t let a dominant defense wait for Jones or Zappe to catch up and improve. They could also pursue Garoppolo, who was traded by New England to the 49ers just before the trade deadline in 2017.
New Orleans Saints
Current starter: Andy Dalton
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: Without their first-round pick in the 2023 draft as a product of their trade with the Eagles, the Saints won’t be in position to add the premium prospect they need. Cap issues will likely limit them to a low-cost veteran option or two at quarterback, with a Bridgewater reunion as one obvious path to pursue.
New York Giants
Current starter: Daniel Jones
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: One of the rookies in the 2023 draft class. When Bills general manager Brandon Beane and coach Sean McDermott arrived in Buffalo in 2017, they inherited Taylor and made an unexpected trip to the postseason in their debut campaign. They still went out after the season and traded up for Josh Allen. Schoen and Daboll likely will try to find their own Allen in the draft, either in 2023 or 2024. Daboll spent a year as the offensive coordinator at Alabama, so I suspect he’s getting all the intel he needs on Bryce Young from former boss Nick Saban.
New York Jets
Current starter: Zach Wilson
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: Garoppolo makes too much sense for a team with a championship-caliber defense and plenty of young offensive playmakers. The organization was committed to Wilson, but after starting his career with two disastrous seasons, the Jets shouldn’t sacrifice competing to see whether Wilson can turn things around. And likewise, they are the perfect landing spot for Garoppolo if he wants to compete for playoff berths every season.
The Jets could choose to keep Wilson on as the backup for the oft-injured Garoppolo or trade him for draft capital. They won’t get anything close to the No. 2 overall pick in return for him, but a midround pick could be possible if a team picking toward the end of the round wants to take a shot at a former top prospect. The Buccaneers and Vikings come to mind as possible landing spots in a Wilson deal.
San Francisco 49ers
Current starter: Brock Purdy
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: A veteran to serve as the third-stringer behind Lance and Purdy.
Seattle Seahawks
Current starter: Geno Smith
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: A rookie with the top-five pick from the Broncos. Smith has been extremely valuable and should get an opportunity to start again in 2023, but he’s already 32 and will be much more expensive next season. It would make sense for the Seahawks to both bring him back and draft their quarterback of the future in April.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Current starter: Tom Brady
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: The Buccaneers have a veteran core on both sides of the ball, so I would be surprised if they went for a long-term project at quarterback. I suspect they’ll make a serious effort to bring back Brady, but they’ll be in the running for one of the other veterans in the market if he retires or heads elsewhere. This would be the perfect landing spot for Derek Carr, although a more realistic option might be Geno Smith or Jacoby Brissett.
Tennessee Titans
Current starter: Ryan Tannehill
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: The final three games might weigh more heavily in Tennessee’s future than they do for other teams around the league. If the Titans continue to collapse and blow their massive lead in the AFC South to the Jaguars, I wonder if that spurs more changes, which could include starting over at quarterback with Willis and a veteran passer. If they hold on and right the ship and even win a playoff game, they seem more likely to stick with their core and give Tannehill an extension for cap relief.
Washington Commanders
Current starter: Taylor Heinicke
Most likely QB they’ll pursue: Tom Brady. Remember that the Commanders tried to trade for Russell Wilson before coming up short and landing Wentz instead. Bizarrely, while Wentz has struggled, missing out on Wilson has been one of the best things to happen to this franchise. I would expect Rivera to look toward veterans who represent significant upgrades on Heinicke, and he can pitch Brady on an excellent defense and a burgeoning group of offensive playmakers. The idea of Brady in burgundy seems bizarre, but then again, who thought the greatest player in league history would wear pewter?
To recap – Barnwell has six teams going after rookies, and even in a promising class that seems to be one or two too many.
And his pursuit of Brady by Las Vegas, Washington and sort of Tampa Bay, leaves an opening. |
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2023 DRAFT
Army linebacker ANDRE CARTER II is rooting for the massive Omnibus Bill to be pushed through Congress before it adjourns for this session.
After an outcry over the future of Army star linebacker Andre Carter II, politicians scrambled to alter the language of a recently passed Congressional bill that clears his path to the upcoming NFL draft.
New language formally filed Tuesday morning in a piece of end-of-year legislation will restore the opportunity for Carter and other current academy upperclassmen at Army, Navy and Air Force to defer military service to pursue professional sports.
A provision has been included in the Omnibus Appropriations Measure, expected to pass this week, to make Carter and other current academy upperclassmen eligible for a waiver that will allow for a legacy exception for a 2019 ruling that allowed deferred service to play pro sports. This provision appeared on the Senate appropriations website Tuesday morning.
A bill that passed the Senate last week would revoke that 2019 ruling. Carter, who is projected by ESPN’s Mel Kiper as the No. 22 pick in next year’s NFL draft, finished the final regular-season game of his career on Dec. 10. The amended language that emerged Tuesday morning reads that the recently passed amendment “shall only apply with respect to a cadet or midshipman who first enrolls in the United States Military Academy, the United States Naval Academy, or the United States Air Force Academy on or after June 1, 2021.”
Soon after an ESPN report published on Friday revealing the disappointment by both Carter’s family and Army officials over the timing of the ruling and the impact on Carter, a bipartisan effort began in earnest in Washington to figure out a way to exempt Carter from the ruling. The new language provides an exception for Carter and others, who went to Army and other academies expectating to be allowed a deferral of service.
The language, which was added to the much larger Omnibus Appropriations Measure, could be passed and approved by the president as soon as Friday. The inclusion of the new language sent a wave of relief over Carter’s family.
“Thank you to the members of congress who stepped up, spoke out and worked expeditiously in support of Andre and other service academy cadets and midshipmen who made decisions in reliance on the 2019 policy allowing deferral of service,” Carter’s parents, Melissa and Andre, wrote in a text message to ESPN. “The goodness we saw in people this past week will forever be imprinted upon us.”
Carter is poised to be the highest-drafted Army player in more than a half-century. Carter is universally regarded as a top-50 draft prospect, which would make him the highest-drafted player from the academy since 1947. |
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