| The NFL has denied QB BRENDAN SORSBY’s application for the supplemental draft which tees up his attorney Jeffrey Kessler for the kind of legal action he loves. Mike Florio is not impressed by the NFL’s reasoning for turning down Sorsby: The NFL is sticking it to Brendan Sorsby. PFT has confirmed that the NFL has decided not to conduct a supplemental draft in July 2026. This means that Sorsby will not enter the NFL until the April 2027 draft. Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the NFL believed there was insufficient time to fully investigate his gambling activities. That’s a cop-out, in our view. They could have (and perhaps should have) begun exploring the matter from the moment it became clear — in late April — that Sorsby may end up applying for the supplemental draft. Also, the league didn’t have to investigate Sorsby’s gambling to determine whether he is or isn’t eligible to be drafted. There’s no rule regarding eligibility for the draft that relates to gambling prior to entering the NFL. The next question becomes whether Sorsby will fight the NFL’s decision in court. Because Sorsby has not yet been drafted, he’s not part of the union. Lawyer Jeffrey Kessler, who won a temporary injunction restoring Sorsby’s NCAA eligibility 15 days ago, could file a lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order and/or a preliminary injunction. The NFL currently has two players who engaged in similar gambling behavior to Sorsby while in college. Patriots receiver Kayshon Boutte bet on LSU games in which he played for LSU (Sorsby didn’t play in any of the Indiana games on which he wagered); Boutte was never punished in any way by the league. Saints quarterback Hunter Dekkers permanently lost his NCAA eligibility for gambling on Iowa State while he was on the Iowa State roster. His entry into the NFL was not delayed. But, as mentioned recently, the NFL has a reputation for making the rules up as it goes. Someone believed Sorsby deserved to miss a year of football — and that someone decided the best way to do that would be to keep him out of the 2026 draft. On cue, here comes Kessler per Pete Thamel: @PeteThamelBrendan Sorsby’s attorney, Jeffrey Kessler, tells ESPN of the NFL’s decision to not hold a supplemental draft: “It is a violation of the CBA and the law. We will pursue this immediately with the NFLPA.” |
| NFC SOUTH |
| TAMPA BAYThe Buccaneers announced their new radio play-by-play announcer on Tuesday. Tony Castricone comes from the U. of Washington to follow in the footsteps of the legendary Gene Deckerhoff. On Tuesday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced the hiring of Tony Castricone as the team’s new radio play-by-play announcer and team insider. Castricone succeeds legendary broadcaster Gene Deckerhoff, who retired after the 2025 season following nearly four decades in which he became one of the franchise’s most recognizable and respected voices. Castricone is a veteran broadcaster with more than two decades of experience. He spent the past nine years as the University of Washington’s Director of Broadcasting, which included handling radio play-by-play for the schools football and men’s basketball teams. He also was the voice of the Clemson men’s basketball team from 2014-17 and worked more than seven years with IMG Academy, handling play-by-play as well as serving as a studio host, network manager and content producer. The Buccaneers conducted a lengthy hunt for a replacement for Deckerhoff and found a fitting successor in Castricone. Coincidentally, Castricone was hired by Washington following the retirement of Bob Rondeau, who had been the voice of the Huskies for 37 years. |
| AFC WEST |
| KANSAS CITYDT MICHAEL PENNEL, Jr. – a 35-year-old who has played 138 NFL games since 2014, most often and most recently (8 games in 2025) with the Chiefs – is a person of interest in a 2021 death in the Dominican Republic. The body of Carli Guzman was discovered earlier this year on a property he owned at the time of her disappearance. T.J. Quinn and Juan Rocio of ESPN.com: Witnesses told police in 2021 that NFL veteran Michael Pennel Jr. had an ongoing relationship with a young woman whose body was found on a property he owned when she went missing, an ESPN investigation found, contradicting Pennel’s claim that he did not know her. Pennel did not respond to a message seeking comment before this story was published. After it was published Thursday afternoon, however, Pennel called a reporter to insist he had no relationship with Carli Franchesca Guzmán Roche, whose body was discovered in January 2026. He directed ESPN to an attorney in the Dominican Republic, Ariel Durán. “I don’t understand any of this. I don’t know who you’re talking to, who’s saying this — I don’t know this woman. I wasn’t in the country (when Guzmán disappeared),” Pennel said. Durán said Pennel had nothing to do with Guzmán’s death and that documents will exonerate him. According to interviews with people close to the victim and police records reviewed by ESPN, Pennel and Guzmán frequently spent time together when Pennel was in the Dominican Republic, where he owned a property in the resort area of Puerto Plata until 2025. Her family reported her missing on Sept. 11, 2021, but her body was not found until January 2026, when the new owner was doing excavation work. Records also show that several people told police early in the 2021 search that Pennel had connections with Guzmán worth investigating. But investigation records show no indication that police interviewed him, despite having visited his property with several of her family members days after she was reported missing. Pennel acknowledged he was never contacted by authorities about Guzmán’s disappearance in 2021. During that September 2021 visit to Pennel’s neighborhood, Guzmán’s grandmother and a family attorney told ESPN, a strong odor of decay was obvious, but police told the family the smell probably was from a dead animal, and they did not expand their search to the place from where the smell was emanating — Pennel’s backyard. Durán told ESPN on Thursday that it was Pennel’s two associates, one of whom was staying at the villa at the time of Guzmán’s disappearance, who told police they had sprayed the property for pests and that’s what probably caused the smell. Guzmán’s body was identified last March. Dominican officials reopened the case at that point and told ESPN that Pennel is a “person of interest” in her death. Prosecutors say they are pursuing the case as a homicide, although no cause of death has been released. Pennel said in an April text in reference to the identification of Guzmán’s body: “This isn’t a story. I’m not legally involved. This is fake news being reported. I’d advise you to speak with my agent/lawyer … before writing a false story. Damaging my reputation.” Pennel signed with the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 15, 2021. The police search got underway when Guzmán was officially declared missing on Sept. 13. Police documents also showed: Guzmán’s grandmother was so insistent with police that Pennel’s property could contain clues to her whereabouts that they let her accompany them to his address Two American friends of Pennel, identified as LeAndre Kemont Jefferson and Tyree Lamont Davis, were interviewed by police. Jefferson’s local address was in the same gated community as Pennel’s. Neither man could be reached for comment. Davis told an investigator that Pennel and Guzmán were friends and that Pennel had last seen her in January 2021 at the airport in Santo Domingo before they departed together in a taxi. ESPN determined that the mobile phone number Jefferson provided to police as his own was actually registered to Pennel. Pennel told ESPN on Thursday that it was Davis who had a relationship with her, not him. Durán said Pennel, Davis and Jefferson were lifelong friends who grew up playing football together. Durán said Jefferson is living in the Dominican Republic but does not know where Davis currently lives. In his 2021 statement to police, Davis said he and Pennel had a falling out months earlier because of a dispute over a woman. Records show that Jefferson was arrested for trying to smuggle two kilograms of cocaine into the United States in 2020, but in January 2026, the case was dropped at the request of then-U.S. Dept. Attorney General and current acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche. According to media reports in the Dominican Republic, Pennel had a previous encounter with Dominican law enforcement. Reports said that Pennel and two different American men, Torrey Johnson and Jabrion Burnside, were arrested for possessing a 9 mm pistol in May 2021. The two men could not be reached, and law enforcement officials would not release an arrest report, saying it was confidential under Dominican law. Durán told ESPN that the gun belonged to one of the other men, not Pennel. A court document reviewed by ESPN shows that Pennel was never formally charged in the case. Multiple sources told ESPN that the case has been deeply sensitive within the Dominican Republic, which relies on foreign tourists and has worked in recent years to promote an image as a safe vacationing site and shed a reputation for political and law enforcement corruption. Sitting in her home with two ESPN reporters, Guzmán’s grandmother, Paula González, said Guzmán used to talk about Pennel, usually referring to him as “el futbolista,” or “the football player,” and that when he would come to the island, he usually sent a taxi for her to come spend time with him. González said she once saw Guzmán talking to Pennel over videoconference, and that González had seen him in person. Shown a picture of Pennel, González said, “Yes — no doubt. Strongly, no doubt” that he was the person her granddaughter was seeing. Pennel denied ever speaking to Guzmán on a video call. “I was never on FaceTime or [met] any of her family.” In 2021, “the grandmother [didn’t] even know my name to tell police. Because I don’t know her,” he said via text. In September 2021, González said, Guzmán told her she was going back north to be with “her athlete friend.” She said her granddaughter called her Sunday, Sept. 5, and said she was still with Pennel. She said she was fine but that she wasn’t feeling well and would come back home Monday morning, González said. By late the next day, no one had heard from her, and the family became concerned. González said she called a friend of her granddaughter, who according to investigation records told police she wasn’t with Guzmán but believed Guzmán had been with Pennel in recent days. González said she then called police, telling whoever answered the phone that her granddaughter was missing. “He said, ‘Look, you should come here, because this smells fishy. Here in Puerto Plata … this is a cemetery. Here is where young girls disappear,'” González said. ESPN was able to review a document from the Dominican Investigative Court of the Judicial District of Puerto Plata known as a “certification” that states that “there is not any Criminal Lawsuit filed against MR. MICHAEL MAURICE PENNEL JR” as of May 25, 2026. Such a letter is given after being requested by one of the parties. It means the person has not been charged as of a certain date, but does not rule out that the person could be under investigation or face future charges. Pennel, who is currently a free agent, said he shared that document with the NFL. |
| AFC NORTH |
| CLEVELANDBrowns owner Jimmy Haslem provided his expertise to the big NBA trade, this time getting picks as opposed to the pile of choices he sent to the Texans for QB DESHAUN WATSON. Mike Florio: Jimmy Haslam is one of the rare sports owner to have his fingerprints all over a pair of massive deals in two different sports in the same month. With the Milwaukee Bucks trading Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat, barely three weeks after the Cleveland Browns traded Myles Garrett, Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports reports that the Browns owner was a “driving force” in the decision to pick the Heat deal over an offer from the Boston Celtics that included Jaylen Brown. As O’Connor explains it, “Haslam didn’t want to risk Jaylen Brown wanting out of Milwaukee in a year after dealing with Giannis and Myles Garrett trade demands.” Instead, Haslam wanted the “certainty” that comes from having draft picks. (Until, of course, those players selected with the extra picks want out, too.) Haslam’s involvement with the Bucks is no surprise. It became clear last month that he’d be taking a more active role in the NBA team he partially owns. Which serves as a reminder that owners always have the right to take an active role in roster management — regardless of whether they have the skills, knowledge, and/or ability to do so. In Cleveland, Haslam has been the common denominator through the last 14 years of dysfunction. Now, dysfunction could be descending on Wisconsin’s NBA franchise. At least dysfunction is easier to spell than Antetokounmpo. Haslem has had a 25% stake in the Bucks since 2023. |
| AFC SOUTH |
| INDIANAPOLISCB SAUCE GARDNER is a year younger than the world knew. Stephen Holder ofESPN.com: The rest of the world seems uncertain about exactly how old Sauce Gardner is, but the Colts cornerback has no questions about the matter. During a recent back-and-forth with reporters about his leadership role as a veteran defender, he pointed out that he is still pretty young. “I’m 24, by the way,” he said. That might have surprised quite a few people. Because, in many corners of the internet, Gardner is listed as being 25. Somewhere along the way, it became accepted as fact that Gardner was born Aug. 31, 2000. It says as much on a number of online references, including his profiles on ESPN.com, Pro Football Focus and Yahoo Sports. But as it turns out, Gardner was actually born Aug. 31, 2001. Like he said, he’s 24. The Colts’ website and NFL.com reflect the 2001 birthday. “It’s crazy that I’m saying this once again,” Gardner said last week as the Colts wrapped up their final offseason practice. Gardner later told The Athletic that he has always specified his birthday as being in 2001 and said his driver’s license confirms it. “When it comes to the paperwork and everything I’ve signed, it all says ’01,” he told The Athletic. “So I don’t know where or how it got messed up unless people just get it straight from Google.” The Colts have had his birthday correct in their materials since the team acquired him in a blockbuster trade last year, a team spokesman said. Indianapolis sent two first-round picks and wide receiver Adonai Mitchell to the New York Jets for Gardner, who is expected to be a centerpiece of the Colts’ defense this season. Gardner might be entering his fifth season, but he is still as young as other players who are beginning their NFL careers. Los Angeles Chargers first-round pick Akheem Mesidor turned 25 in April and hasn’t played his first NFL snap. |
| TENNESSEEBig money for DT JEFFREY SIMMONS. Turron Davenport of ESPN.com: The Tennessee Titans have agreed to a three-year contract extension with defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, his agents told ESPN’s Adam Schefter and NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo. The deal is worth $105.8 million with $100 million guaranteed. “Jeffery Simmons is a pillar for our franchise and embodies what it means to be a Titan. He’s the premier defensive tackle in the National Football League and you win with players like Jeffery,” Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi said in a statement. “Not only is his leadership on the field what we want our program to represent, but off the field, he sets the standard for our community. Simmons posted a career-high 11 sacks last season, breaking Jurrell Casey’s franchise record for most sacks (10.5) in a season by a defensive tackle. Along with his 11 sacks, Simmons led all NFL interior defensive linemen in solo tackles (39), tackles for loss (17), sacks (11), sack yards (79.0), quarterback pressures (60), pressure rate (14.5) and forced fumbles (tied 3). He was named first-team All Pro and was selected to the Pro Bowl for the fourth time in his seven-year career. “Tennessee has become a second home for me. From day one, this organization believed in me, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue to pour into this franchise and community,” Simmons said in a statement. “I want to thank God, my family, my teammates, Ms. Amy [owner Amy Adams Strunk] and the entire Titans organization for believing in me. My job isn’t finished. I believe in this locker room and this staff, and I’m focused on helping this team get back to competing for championships.” Simmons was the 19th overall selection by the Titans in the 2019 draft. He has appeared in 99 games with 97 starts, accumulating 383 tackles, 42.5 sacks, 27 passes defensed, eight forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries over the course of his career. He is a five-time captain, three-time All-Pro player and three-time Walter Payton Man of the Year winner for the Titans. |
| AFC EAST |
| NEW ENGLANDDoes Scotland have a stadium that could host an NFL game? Asking for a krafty friend. Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com: Paul Revere wouldn’t have had a chance against the Tartan Army. The recent Scottish takeover of Boston — they drained the city of its beer — left a significant impression on Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Via Nicole Yang of the Boston Globe, Kraft has informed NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell that the Patriots are interested in playing a regular-season game in Scotland. Scotland had not previously been mentioned as a potential site of an NFL game. It’s another example of the overall impact of the ongoing World Cup. America is getting an extended glimpse of the intense passion that fans from other countries have for soccer. That’s the feeling into which the NFL is hoping to tap through its ongoing global experiment. And while a certain amount of that vibe can be captured by exporting domestic teams to foreign soil for one-off games, the deeper message is unmistakable. To truly attract the intensity that soccer fans from other countries have brought to the United States, the NFL needs to put franchises in other countries. The pie-in-the-sky outcome would entail dropping eight new teams beyond our borders. A four-team Atlantic division could be put in one conference, and a four-team Pacific division could be added to the other. Forty total teams. Ten four-team divisions. That would be a big swing for Big Shield. It also could be exactly what the NFL needs to give American football the kind of international lift the league craves. And, if/when an NFL team from another country has a big game in the U.S., thousands of fans from that country could do what thousands of fans from other countries are currently doing. A check of Wikipedia shows Murrayfield Park in Edinburgh with 67,144 capacity, built in 1925 and the home only of the Scottish national team. In Glasgow, there are three stadiums with capacity of roughly 50,000 to 60,000, none built later than 1903. Of the eight stadiums in the country with more than 15,000 capacity, Murrayfieid in 1925 is the most recent build. Although from the pictures, it looks like most have had some more recent renovations. |
| THIS AND THAT |
| ALEX FREEMANA key member of the United States World Cup soccer team is the son of a Packers legend. Sam Borden of ESPN.com: Antonio Freeman has had his own incredible Seattle moments. But the former Green Bay Packers receiver said watching his son, Alex, score for the United States in a World Cup game on Friday was “10,000 times better” and kicked off “the best Father’s Day weekend ever.” Speaking to ESPN at the U.S. team’s training site, the elder Freeman said his phone overheated on Friday afternoon and that he had over 400 text messages from friends and family by the time the U.S. completed its 2-0 victory over Australia. Freeman also said that he was particularly moved by how the U.S. players celebrated his son’s first World Cup goal. “That’s the most heartwarming thing for me as a parent is to see his teammates, who are all a bunch of accomplished men playing in their own exclusive leagues overseas, just to rally around the youngest kid, [the] baby boy on the team and the excitement that they had in their eyes,” Freeman said. “As a parent, it just lets you know that your kid’s being protected. They’re watching over him.” Antonio Freeman, who won a Super Bowl with the Packers and was first-team All-Pro wideout, had a memorable day in Seattle in 1996 when he caught two touchdown passes in a big win over the Seahawks. The emotions of that day were nothing, though, compared to what he felt at Seattle Stadium when Alex shined. “Watching him score — he said it was ‘full circle,’ but for me it was like the next chapter, another book and he’s going to be able to write his own book from a play like that,” Freeman said. “That slowly separates you from the connection to Antonio Freeman and now the landscape opens for you to take your own show as Alex Freeman, pro soccer player.” Freeman concluded his interview with ESPN with an unprompted “Go Alex!” into the camera as he raised his arms over his head, and he believes the U.S. absolutely could make a deep run in this tournament. Like any U.S. fan, though, he’s concerned about getting injured attacker Christian Pulisic back healthy as soon as possible. “If we can get No. 10 back,” he said. “We got to get my guy back now and just have everybody healthy. When you’re entering the playoffs or a system like this, a knockout system, it’s about who stays healthy.” He added: “I think the sky’s the limit for this team.” The U.S. wraps up group play on Thursday against Türkiye and are already assured top spot in Group D and a spot in the round of 32. Freeman’s rise has been remarkable in the last year – from the fringes of MLS to a spot next year in Spain’s top league with a good side Villareal. More here from Jeff Carlisle of ESPN.com. Freeman’s progression — both for club and country — has been shocking. This time a year ago, he was three months into his first year as a starter with Orlando City SC, and had just received his first call-up to the U.S. squad. Now he is playing with LaLiga side Villarreal, and his displays at right back in manager Mauricio Pochettino’s hybrid sometimes-three-other-times-back-four system have been so accomplished that the U.S. manager has felt comfortable enough to push Sergiño Dest into a more attacking role as a winger. “I feel like the past year, it’s been a lot. It’s been a lot of changes that I’ve had to adjust to,” the younger Freeman told ESPN in an exclusive interview. “And I feel like a year ago today, if you told me I was playing in the World Cup, it would be like, ‘Who are you kidding?’ … It means that the chances are coming even faster now. It’s now, how do I take them? How do I fulfill them and be happy with what I’m able to provide? I feel like knowing that, it is surreal, right? But I think you have to take it step by step.” Freeman has done just that in this World Cup, astutely picking his spots to go forward, but also providing speed in the back to solidify a defense that at times has looked vulnerable in transition. Pochettino, who has been around the coaching block more than a few times with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, marvels at Freeman’s improvement. “The evolution is massive. He’s so humble [a] guy,” Pochettino said after the Australia match. “He have an amazing profile. He want to learn. He always listen. It’s a player that you know that you really enjoy being with him. Not only coaching, but being with him. He’s a lovely guy and he’s an amazing player. For me [he has the] potential to be one of the best players in his position on the world.” He is only 21. More from an earlier ESPN.com story after his Team USA debut last summer. United States and Orlando City SC fullback Alex Freeman said he had a “secret love for soccer” growing up after not following the same sporting footsteps as his father, former NFL player Antonio Freeman. “Growing up, I always got asked if [American] football was the path, but when I was younger, I always had a secret love for soccer, and I feel like it was more than any other sport,” said the 20-year-old to media ahead of a Gold Cup match vs. Saudi Arabia. “I had to pick, and I think soccer was the clear choice by far.”– – –“What’s happening this year, I feel like it’s an honor. I feel like it’s a blessing,” said Freeman. “Obviously the World Cup in 2026 is always something that I’m going to work to.” Freeman also played basketball as a kid. Alex’s mom rejects the notion she directed him away from American football. “The real story is Alex didn’t want to play football and he didn’t want to tell his dad that,” Alex Freeman’s mom Rochelle Hinkle said. “They all use me as an excuse. He just wanted to make his own lane and his own path. He didn’t have, I guess, the words to say it then.” Regardless of how the choice was made, the former All-Pro wide receiver and Super Bowl champion said he got chills when he saw his son Alex walk onto the field on June 7 to make his U.S. debut against Turkey. “He has on a USA jersey,” Antonio Freeman said after the game. “He’s representing his country. That’s probably the top level of recognition you could possibly get.” |
| WORST OFFSEASONSJordan Dajani of CBSSports.com has a list of teams that had the worst offseasons: The NFL offseason is about to give way to the NFL preseason. Which teams did the most to improve over the past few months? The Los Angeles Rams revamped their secondary and traded for superstar pass rusher Myles Garrett, while the New York Jets created an entirely new defense, traded for a new starting quarterback and made three first-round picks. Several teams appeared to improve on paper this offseason, but what about the teams that didn’t? The Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks lost important pieces such as running back Kenneth Walker III, safety Coby Bryant and offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. The Philadelphia Eagles, meanwhile, lost offensive line legend Jeff Stoutland, are working with yet another new offensive coordinator and traded away star wideout A.J. Brown. It’s safe to say Jalen Hurts is under a microscope in 2026. Let’s break down the five teams that had the worst NFL offseasons, starting with a club in the NFC South. 5. Atlanta FalconsIt’s the beginning of a new era in Atlanta, but it remains to be seen whether that era will be successful. The offseason certainly didn’t get off to the right start for the Falcons, as Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist James Pearce Jr. faced several troubling charges after a scary domestic dispute. Pearce got the deal of a lifetime, as all charges will be dropped if he completes a pretrial intervention program. However, the NFL will likely still suspend him. I have questions about a lot of what the Falcons did this offseason. Matt Ryan is a franchise legend, but how will he fare as the president of football in Atlanta? He has more organizational power than new general manager Ian Cunningham, which is why the Chicago Bears did not receive a compensatory pick. Ryan hired two-time NFL Coach of the Year Kevin Stefanski, formerly of the Cleveland Browns, to serve as the lead man, but he comes with questions as well. Stefanski was part of the egregious Deshaun Watson trade that led to Baker Mayfield being pushed out of Cleveland, and he’s gone 8-26 over his last two seasons despite having an elite defense led by a generational pass rusher. The Browns went 5-12 last year with the No. 4 defense in the NFL. Why couldn’t Stefanski’s offense get off the ground? Some would argue Stefanski didn’t have the right quarterback in Cleveland. OK, but the situation is arguably worse in Atlanta. Michael Penix Jr. is coming off the third torn ACL of his football career and is 4-8 as an NFL starter. Then the Falcons made the puzzling decision to quickly sign Tua Tagovailoa. The Miami Dolphins had to take on an NFL-record $99 million in dead cap just to get rid of the former No. 5 overall pick, and there’s no denying Tagovailoa has regressed since his Pro Bowl season in 2023. Stefanski has coached some weird quarterback rooms over the past couple of years. Now he’s just collecting lefties. I was shocked Drake London received a $141 million deal. That $35.2 million AAV makes him the No. 3 highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL, ahead of superstars like Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb. London is a solid player, but I don’t think he’s a top-three talent at his position. You know who I do think has the potential to be a top-three player at his position? Running back Bijan Robinson and tight end Kyle Pitts. Where is their money? The Falcons better get moving before the Detroit Lions and Jahmyr Gibbs beat them to the punch in resetting the running back market. The Falcons had what I would describe as a middle-of-the-road draft (Lead NFL Draft Insider Ryan Wilson ranked it No. 14), so there’s nothing to complain about there other than Atlanta not having a first-round pick because of the Pearce trade. The Falcons also stuck to the bargain bin in free agency. Their two biggest deals totaled just $9 million in value. Those contracts went to kicker Nick Folk and punter Jake Bailey. I don’t think a team “loses” free agency just by not signing anyone, but did the Falcons really get better this offseason? Atlanta has legitimate weapons on offense and some pieces on defense, but if it doesn’t have a quarterback, regression is imminent. 4. Green Bay PackersThe Green Bay Packers are one of six NFL teams to have made the playoffs in each of the past three seasons. There are NFL franchises that have never made the playoffs in three straight seasons, but expectations in Green Bay are different. The Packers have finished as the NFC’s No. 7 seed in three straight seasons, and no one was picking them to win the Super Bowl this past year after they limped to the finish line on a four-game losing streak. Green Bay has established itself as a middle-of-the-road team, and the problem is I think it got worse this offseason. Green Bay lost its most reliable wide receiver in Romeo Doubs, linebacker Quay Walker and left tackle Rasheed Walker in free agency. The Packers also parted ways with cornerback Nate Hobbs and offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins, and traded pass rusher Rashan Gary to the Dallas Cowboys and wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks to the Eagles. As far as additions go, the headliners were veteran linebacker Zaire Franklin, defensive lineman Javon Hargrave and South Carolina defensive back Brandon Cisse. Then factor in that star pass rusher Micah Parsons is expected to start the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, which means he will miss at least four games, and the Packers should be worried about star running back Josh Jacobs, who is facing domestic violence charges. When you look at the NFC North, the Bears are coming off their best season in more than a decade, the Lions are always going to be competitive and the Minnesota Vikings have reason for optimism with new quarterback Kyler Murray. Talking heads have tried to label the Packers as sleepers in 2024 and 2025, ever since that impressive 2023 playoff run in Jordan Love’s first season as a starter. However, I feel less optimistic about Green Bay than I have in years. 3. New England PatriotsThere’s a narrative that some are afraid to address the Mike Vrabel drama. It’s the biggest story of the offseason, yes, but we also deal in facts, and neither party will come out and admit what we saw in the photos published by the New York Post/Page Six. We have a resignation letter from Dianna Russini and worthless word salad from the Patriots head coach in his press conferences instead. This became a bona fide football story when Vrabel stepped out of the office for the final day of the 2026 NFL Draft, but this is also a leader of men who was shamed for a major personal mistake. Alleged mistake. Vrabel would love for this story to fade away, but has his confidence taken a hit? What about the way his players view him? The reigning NFL Coach of the Year was always seen as a hard-nosed, authoritative figure capable of getting the most out of his players. How about now? To make a list of NFL teams that had the worst offseasons and not include the Patriots would be disingenuous. To make matters worse, the Patriots are the prime regression candidate in 2026. After going 14-3 last season with help from the easiest schedule since the turn of the millennium, the Patriots have the sixth-toughest schedule in 2026, including the toughest Weeks 1-4 strength of schedule by any team in 40 years. They open with a Super Bowl rematch against the Seahawks, then face the Pittsburgh Steelers, travel to the Jacksonville Jaguars and visit the Buffalo Bills. All four teams made the playoffs last year. Imagine if the Patriots get off to a slow start in September. That could breathe even more life into the controversy New England and its fans want to go away. People are still waiting for the next shoe to drop. What will The Athletic’s investigation find, and what will Russini have to say in the future? 2. Arizona CardinalsIt’s hard to imagine a 3-14 team getting worse, but DraftKings has assigned the lowest preseason win total to the Arizona Cardinals at Over/Under 3.5. It’s not just because they reside in the toughest division in the NFL. In fact, Arizona became the first team in NFL history to finish nine games worse than the rest of its division rivals last year. The fact of the matter is that one of the worst teams in the NFL did not get better this offseason. The Cardinals fired Jonathan Gannon for Mike LaFleur, who spent the past three seasons as the offensive coordinator for the Rams. However, we all know that offense is Sean McVay’s baby. The last time we saw LaFleur in charge of an offense was in 2021 and 2022 with the Jets and Zach Wilson. They ranked in the bottom eight in the league in both total offense and scoring offense. His top offensive lieutenant in Arizona is Nathaniel Hackett, who was one of the worst one-and-done head coaches in NFL history. He spent last year as a defensive analyst with the Packers. The Cardinals were also a team expected to be in the market for a new quarterback. Instead, they will just run it back with Jacoby Brissett, who went 1-11 last year. Granted, he played better than Kyler Murray, but where would Brissett rank among starting NFL quarterbacks right now? He does have a dynamic new running mate in No. 3 overall pick Jeremiyah Love, but I don’t think he can carry an entire offense by himself. It will take a collective effort from Love, Trey McBride, Marvin Harrison Jr. and much better play from a revamped offensive line. It’s understood that Arizona is in a rebuild, but Monti Ossenfort should start updating his LinkedIn profile. The Cardinals didn’t inspire optimism with their coaching hires, failed to draft a top quarterback prospect and selected a running back at No. 3 overall. Unsurprisingly, they are expected to be the worst team in the NFL this season. 1. Jacksonville JaguarsThe reigning AFC South champion Jaguars did not earn high marks from pundits when it came to free agency or the draft. The Jags objectively got worse in free agency, losing linebacker Devin Lloyd, running back Travis Etienne, cornerback Greg Newsome II and safety Andrew Wingard. The only players Jacksonville signed from outside the organization this year were reserves Chris Rodriguez Jr., Ameer Abdullah, Dane Jackson and Trystan Colon-Castillo. In the draft, the Jaguars put together what many would call the worst class this year. It’s not fair to judge an entire draft class before the players have taken a single snap, but the picks were a bit confusing. The Jags drafted Texas A&M tight end Nate Boerkircher at No. 56 overall. He’s going to be an older rookie who caught just 19 passes for 198 yards and three touchdowns last season, but offensive coordinator Grant Udinski has said he’s going to change their offense. What? Jaguars 2026 NFL Draft classPlayer Pick selected CBS Sports’ prospect rankingTE Nate Boerkircher, Texas A&M 56 86DL Albert Regis, Texas A&M 81 140OL Emmanuel Pregnon, Oregon 88 65S Jalen Huskey, Maryland 100 230EDGE Wesley Williams, Duke 119 356TE Tanner Koziol, Houston 164 233WR Josh Cameron, Baylor 191 217WR CJ Williams, Stanford 203 475EDGE Zach Durfee, Washington 233 394LB Parker Hughes, MTSU 240 480 While the Jaguars rank No. 1 on our list of worst offseasons, they are different from the rest of the teams included because there are still reasons to be optimistic about them. Jacksonville won the division last year with a first-year coach, had an MVP finalist in quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and saw the defense rank No. 1 in rushing yards allowed per game and No. 2 in takeaways. I really do like Liam Coen’s coaching staff, as both Udinski and defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile received head-coaching interest this offseason. That will likely be the case next offseason as well. Plus, the Jaguars did not get major contributions from No. 2 overall pick Travis Hunter, who played in just seven games before being shut down due to injury, or wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., who took a step backward after a remarkable rookie campaign. Can you imagine if both of those players take a step forward in 2026? So, the Jaguars appear to have had the worst offseason in the NFL when it comes to additions and subtractions. But I still wouldn’t be surprised to see them win the AFC South again. Maybe James Gladstone is a football genius and Nate Boerkircher is Travis Kelce. So, the Jaguars appear to have had the worst offseason in the NFL when it comes to additions and subtractions. But I still wouldn’t be surprised to see them win the AFC South again. Maybe James Gladstone is a football genius and Nate Boerkircher is Travis Kelce. |
