NFL 2020: Offseason

billt721 wrote:
Top_Shelf wrote:

Nobody is going to hate Mahomes because he has fun and he doesn't take himself too seriously.

That's awfully optimistic. I think I'd probably have used the same words to describe Cam Newton a few years ago and that didn't stop a whole lot of people from hating him.

I don’t think this checks out.

Cam Newton: Arrests &More Scandals The NFLMVP Candidate HasOvercome

TheGameguru wrote:

To be real he's probably the main weed guy for most of the team and his inner circle.. theirs always one for the most part in any circle of athletes/teams. He wasnt really doing this to sell on the street but rather at cost for probably 50 or so close friends/teammates. I had a buddy that would frequently go to Pittsburgh and drive home with a trunk full of 1lb weed bags (not 157 but probably 50-60) to distribute at cost to various friends.

And I could believe that if he was third on the depth chart, was a rookie, or was on the practice squad. But Robinson was a multi-millionaire starter last season. Surely he could now afford to sub-contract the transportation part!

But, of course, this is of academic interest only. He is now unemployed, unemployable and - shortly - will be spending the next 20 years ineligible to join the general workforce.

Top_Shelf wrote:

Brady is an insufferable cheater who takes himself too seriously.

Would never think someone would dislike an athlete for their drive. All the media an extra stuff sure but I find drive a rare commodity in athletes these days.

Honestly, I find the opposite. We tend to focus on the problems, but the NFL is filled with players working their asses off, whether it is to make the squad, move up the depth chart, or to win on Sunday. While half of every one of them will fail, because they are all facing off against each other, that doesn't diminish their drive.

It's fans that want to pin "not trying" on every athlete that loses. It is the rare athlete that gets to that level of competition without having already been weeded out by not giving 100%. They come through, but that is the rarity. So, yeah, if Brady helps sell that lie, that he is somehow more driven, or cares more than his teammates than his opponents, then that sucks.

And that could end up being what flips it on Mahomes. Because that dude is a vocal leader. Right now, its an easy, breezy offseason. It's what the offseasons are like when they are 9-7 and missing the playoffs, or getting knocked out in the wildcard round. If teammates stop feeling like he is with them, but lecturing them instead, Mahomes will get the same baggage.

What's Peyton's legacy in that regard? I don't think people think of them the same.

Jeez, I didn't think considering Tom Brady as coming off as arrogant was controversial in the least.

I agree with Jay. You've gotta work your ass off in the NFL. It's folks like Jamarcus or Manziel who flame out hard.

Jayhawker wrote:

So, yeah, if Brady helps sell that lie, that he is somehow more driven, or cares more than his teammates than his opponents, then that sucks.

Whoa, who said anything about wins / losses?? He clearly ins't as athletically gifted as many of his contemporary's so he had to make up for it in other ways. I have always thought his competitive nature to be his strongest motivator. Hell, he won a SB at 41 and didn't choose to go out on top. Yes every NFL player works their ass off, compared to a non athlete, but there is always a scale. Athleticism, drive, reflexes, endurance, ect.

Jayhawker wrote:

What's Peyton's legacy in that regard? I don't think people think of them the same.

I'm not really sure what you are asking because I think you might have been responding to something I never implied or said. But I will give it a go. Strongest attributes: Football IQ & Touch on the ball?

Edited for clarity

Hah, I wonder if someone who works on West World is a huge Lynch fan or if he is a huge West World fan!

garion333 wrote:

Jeez, I didn't think considering Tom Brady as coming off as arrogant was controversial in the least.

I don't think it is either. Sort of like I am not surprised at all when people don't like Rivers. Both are guys you love or hate. I think Mahomes is more likable than Favre. Everybody likes Mahomes. If you don't it's because you are a 49ers fan or from the NFC west (and I'm a chargers fan or at least I was.)

EvilHomer3k wrote:
garion333 wrote:

Jeez, I didn't think considering Tom Brady as coming off as arrogant was controversial in the least.

I don't think it is either. Sort of like I am not surprised at all when people don't like Rivers. Both are guys you love or hate. I think Mahomes is more likable than Favre. Everybody likes Mahomes. If you don't it's because you are a 49ers fan or from the AFC west (and I'm a chargers fan or at least I was.)

Honestly, I grew to like Philip Rivers. I think I mostly misunderstood him.

And his final presser of the season was pretty damn great. Sometimes funny, sometimes informative, and sometimes pretty emotional. I don't want to say this is a different side, but rather it kind of puts him in a better context. After watching this, my thought was that I hope he gets a job on TV when he retires. I want to hear him talk football more.

Rivers was a bit more hot headed and irritating when he was younger. He's cooled a bit as he aged, as we all do.

Part of me likes Rivers because he always seems like a genuine guy that tries. Another part of me immediately dislikes anyone that has nine children.

I am shocked that the NFLPA approved the CBA with a 17th game.

What?

garion333 wrote:

What?

I assume they mean this.

NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith confident players will approve CBA.
The reps have approved the CBA. It's now up to the full membership vote.

Ooooh, I thought he was talking about it being done. I'm not surprised the NFLPA allowed the 17th game in there, they're punting it to the players. Clearly the owners think this is important (cause money) and the NFLPA is likely using what will be an overwhelming no from the players be the answer (especially if it's only a $250k paycheck).

According to that article, the league minimum ($570,000 for a 1 year player in 2019) goes up $100,000. And for those players getting more than $4.25M will receive the full value of a game check, not the $250,000 that a weekly salary is currently capped at.

Also

Smith said the percentage that will go to the players could rise above 48.5% in the future, which could mean a $3 billion to $5 billion increase over the life of the deal to the players.

Not sure how important that is to the players vs a 17th game. I guess we shall see.

Marshawn Lynch's speaking engagement at Princeton's Class Day isn't going over well with students:

“Among articles that praised his NFL career and philanthropic contributions, we came across articles discussing Lynch’s reticence with the media and his terse responses at press conferences. In 2013 and 2014, for example, Lynch was fined $50,000 and $100,000 for refusing to speak to the media. During the 2015 Superbowl Media Day, Lynch famously responded to multiple questions with variants of ‘I’m just here so I won’t get fined.’ With no other frame of reference, such reports caused confusion over the set of criteria that led to his nomination,” the letter said.

Did they not watch football back in high school?

Of course Legion's on football sabbatical when the talk's centering around the possibility that the Niners sign Brady and the possibility the Jags trade Foles.

Rat Boy wrote:

Of course Legion's on football sabbatical

I am returned. February has ended, and with it, my month of mourning.

when the talk's centering around the possibility that the Niners sign Brady

This has about a 0% chance of happening.

and the possibility the Jags trade Foles.

This has about a 100% chance of happening.

Well maybe less than 100%. The Jags are 100% selling, but finding a buyer isn't as slam-dunk.

The upside for the buyer is that the only guarantees they'd be on the hook for are his 2020 guaranteed salary. A team with lots of cap space could take a shot on Foles even as just a placeholder for a rookie, paying only $15 million for him this season, and have the option to keep him for two more years with ~$20m cap figures per year, or dump him and be free and clear.

The big question is, will there be enough interest in Foles for a trade to happen where the Jags actually receive something, or will the only way they can move him be by including a draft pick of their own?

Speaking of the Jags though, they are also trading AJ Bouye to the Broncos for a 4th round pick, clearing a bunch of cap space. Space they could use on Yannick Ngakoue, except Ngakoue has come out publicly saying that he is not interested in signing any long-term deals with the Jaguars. Jags are going to franchise Ngakoue, but it could end up being a tag-and-trade scenario.

2020 should just be a year of getting cap healthy again for the Jags. Dump the big contracts, rebuild the offensive and interior defensive lines, and build a competent Gruden offense around the young guys that took big steps last year: Minshew, Chark, and Fournette.

*Legion* wrote:
when the talk's centering around the possibility that the Niners sign Brady

This has about a 0% chance of happening.

Oh swell, now it's going to happen.

Rat Boy wrote:
*Legion* wrote:
when the talk's centering around the possibility that the Niners sign Brady

This has about a 0% chance of happening.

Oh swell, now it's going to happen.

I have a hard time seeing them paying market rate for a quarterback when they have to extend Kittle, Buckner, and make decisions about re-signing Armstead, Sanders, and Ward. Garoppolo's cap number for 2020 is $26.6m. Moving him would only free up $22.4m of that, and I doubt Brady will take only $22m. So every dollar above that eats into 2020 cap space that they don't have a whole lot of. Getting Goodwin and McKinnon off the roster will help some, but only a bit. After that, you get into restructures, and the options there are fairly modest at this point too (the team already made the most obvious one with Kwon Alexander's deal)

Panthers trading OG Trai Turner to the Chargers for OT Russell Okung.

Trai Turner just got voted to his 5th straight Pro Bowl, only about 1 or 2 of which he actually deserved. Getting voted in last year was an absolute joke - his 30 allowed pressures being tied for 14th highest among all guards, and he reached that total while playing only 13 games. (Granted, none of those Pro Bowls have been 1st-team, and many of them have been as an injury replacement, including this one, but still.)

Okung had essentially a lost season in 2019, suffering a pulmonary embolism that shelved him from the summer up through the first half of the regular season, then he returned rusty for a few games before a groin injury put him back on the shelf. His performance numbers all dropped, but almost all of that seems attributable to the injuries and rust.

Panthers will eat $9m and change in dead money on the trade, and get Okung on a 1-year rental. The Chargers will get 2 years of Turner in return, and will net a savings of about $4 mil on 2020's cap.

If you don't follow Leonard Fournette on Instagram, you should.

Between all of the Jags departures last year, and now the trade of AJ Bouye and the statement from Yannick Ngakoue about not wanting to come back, Fournette has only two non-deleted posts up on his account:

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/GiIWJ0Q.jpg)

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/A8nlnQU.jpg)

*Legion* wrote:

Panthers trading OG Trai Turner to the Chargers for OT Russell Okung.

Trai Turner just got voted to his 5th straight Pro Bowl, only about 1 or 2 of which he actually deserved. Getting voted in last year was an absolute joke - his 30 allowed pressures being tied for 14th highest among all guards, and he reached that total while playing only 13 games. (Granted, none of those Pro Bowls have been 1st-team, and many of them have been as an injury replacement, including this one, but still.)

Okung had essentially a lost season in 2019, suffering a pulmonary embolism that shelved him from the summer up through the first half of the regular season, then he returned rusty for a few games before a groin injury put him back on the shelf. His performance numbers all dropped, but almost all of that seems attributable to the injuries and rust.

Panthers will eat $9m and change in dead money on the trade, and get Okung on a 1-year rental. The Chargers will get 2 years of Turner in return, and will net a savings of about $4 mil on 2020's cap.

Okung is only 31 so he def has time to get back on track and have a healthy season.

CBA removes all substance abuse suspensions

While the harshest penalty of a minimum banishment of at least one year still exists under the new CBA, a player who fails to cooperate with testing or clinical care seven different times arguably doesn’t want to remain in the league. Players who cooperate with testing and their clinical programs will never be banished. Indeed, they’ll never even be suspended, no matter how many times they test positive.

Does this mean they reinstate players currently banished? If this was in place while he was playing Josh Gordon would be a HoFer,

garion333 wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

Panthers trading OG Trai Turner to the Chargers for OT Russell Okung.

Trai Turner just got voted to his 5th straight Pro Bowl, only about 1 or 2 of which he actually deserved. Getting voted in last year was an absolute joke - his 30 allowed pressures being tied for 14th highest among all guards, and he reached that total while playing only 13 games. (Granted, none of those Pro Bowls have been 1st-team, and many of them have been as an injury replacement, including this one, but still.)

Okung had essentially a lost season in 2019, suffering a pulmonary embolism that shelved him from the summer up through the first half of the regular season, then he returned rusty for a few games before a groin injury put him back on the shelf. His performance numbers all dropped, but almost all of that seems attributable to the injuries and rust.

Panthers will eat $9m and change in dead money on the trade, and get Okung on a 1-year rental. The Chargers will get 2 years of Turner in return, and will net a savings of about $4 mil on 2020's cap.

Okung is only 31 so he def has time to get back on track and have a healthy season.

I'm not sure exactly what Carolina is doing with this deal. My best guess is that the Panthers are buying a 1- or 2-year patch for the open sore that has been the LT position. (Speaking of which, Matt Kalil still counts $9.8M toward Carolina's cap this year. Ouch.)

Panthers Twitter is speculating that (a) LT Greg Little gets moved to guard to make way for Okung, or (b) he's actually pretty injured and the Panthers have to find an LT asap. Little played only four games in 2019 and ended the season on IR. I'm going with (b) for now.

I think it's some of (b) and some of (c): they're not sure if he's any good yet, and don't want to bet the 2020 season on him.

Okung takes care of the position for 2020. Little can either play well enough that he gets onto the field at guard and shows the team they can slide him back in at tackle in 2021, or he can continue to struggle and the team can explore extending Okung's contract.

Can we talk XFL here?

I am loving Jerry Glanville's aviators + Trump hair tonight. I don't care that it's minor league football. It's paid pro player football in March!