Mr. Scot

If you think there are no other sources reporting that Jackson wants a fully guaranteed contract, well...

The idea of Steven A being right and pretty much everybody else being wrong is a little too farfetched for me.

Reich apparently does.

Stephen A Smith is pretty much the only guy who's said that and it became pretty obvious that Jackson's camp was using him as a mouthpiece. Smith isn't exactly what you'd call a journalist.

That would make it pretty clear they're serious. Person speculated that it's Frank Reich driving the interest. Looking at it from the outside, that would seem to make sense. I know Fitterer prefers the draft and develop route but Reich was pretty effusive about Carr in his combine presser.

We never got confirmation of what the offer actually was but I do remember someone saying the offer wasn't as impressive as fans might have believed.

Doesn't seem too likely. I know fans love the idea of being bold and trading up to #1, but being smart is more important than being bold.

Also, according to Peter King, the market may not be what people think. If a team wants Jackson, it’s disguising its intentions well. I couldn’t find legit evidence of one in Indianapolis, talking to GMs and coaches and other club officials. There may be one (Jets? Falcons?) but I couldn’t find it. And if the Ravens put the non-exclusive tag on Jackson, good luck in forcing him to play in 2023 for $32 million ($4.2 million less than Ryan Tannehill’s slated cap number) after visions of jillions have been dancing in his head.

I don't, primarily because Scott Fitterer has yet to show any willingness to trade away first rounders. He puts a lot of value on those picks. It's also been said that we like nearly all of the top prospects so a trade to #1 wouldn't be necessary to get a guy we want. Going to #3 or #5 would probably be enough. Mind you, all this is pending whether we pursue Derek Carr or not.

I wouldn't bet on that. It's possible we're one of the teams that spoke to them to gauge the price, but I don't believe we'd give that up.

From what I've read, there doesn't seem to be any indication so far that the Panthers are exploring this as an option.

Poles was quoted as saying that he absolutely believes he can get a 2024 and a 2025 first in exchange for this year's pick (that'd be along with this year's). So unless you're willing to trade three firsts, you're not in the running.

Excerpts from the article... First-year coach Frank Reich, who had five veteran quarterbacks in five seasons with the Colts, seems to be driving the Panthers’ pursuit of Carr, although owner David Tepper and his wife, Nicole, were part of last week’s interview, as well. Carr is said to be seeking a contract worth $35 million a year, and the Panthers seem reluctant to go that high. The Jets are waiting on Aaron Rodgers’ decision, which will have a domino effect on Carr’s market — and those of the other free-agent quarterbacks. ... The issue for the Panthers is where they sit in the draft order. They can’t sit at No. 9 and expect to have Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud or Will Levis fall to them. My sense is the Panthers — like a lot of other teams — like Richardson’s raw talent, but not enough to draft him high. But if Richardson’s record-setting performance Saturday changed the way other teams view the 6-4, 244-pound athlete, it could bump one of the other guys down a spot. ... Still, as Fitterer said, if you’re sold on one of the quarterbacks, you have to go up and get him, which means trading away a couple of future first-round picks. There was buzz in Indy the Panthers are interested in swapping spots with Arizona at 3, which would guarantee they’d get one of the top three QBs. But “you better be right,” Fitterer said. “You better have conviction if you do move up. (Because) when you do that, you’re all in.” ... Carr is the safe choice. As mentioned last week, he’s better than the three guys whom Matt Rhule brought in for what became an annual game of musical chairs. And even if you don’t necessarily agree with Reich’s five-year window for Carr, he gives the Panthers a great chance to immediately take control of a bad division. Whether it’s Carr or a trade up, it would behoove the Panthers to get something done this week so they’ll know where they stand before the March 15 start of free agency. ... In addition to Carr, the Panthers had inquired about Rodgers, ESPN’s Adam Schefter said on air last week. Sources with knowledge of the situation said that is not accurate. Fitterer last year called Seahawks general manager John Schneider, his former boss, to ask about Russell Wilson. Schneider essentially told Fitterer not to bother because of Wilson’s intentions to stay out west. But Fitterer apparently hasn’t even made that type of exploratory call with Rodgers. ... The Panthers have expressed interest in possibly re-signing Sam Darnold, who is set to become a free agent next week. Darnold played his best football under Steve Wilks down the stretch last season, and it wouldn’t be that surprising if the Panthers considered him as a possible bridge quarterback. But sources said the talks have been preliminary. ... “Bozeman is a priority. You can’t have everything you want. But I see him as a leader on our offense,” Reich said. “Obviously, I don’t know him. I just got here. But watching him on film and understanding who he is as a person, you hope that works out.” Fitterer said he told Foreman during exit interviews that the Panthers wanted to bring him back. “We’d like to get a deal done with him. We’ll see how it goes,” he said. “It’s got to fit for him, it’s got to fit for us.” ... When Fitterer was asked last week about the team’s biggest needs other than quarterback, the first position he mentioned was tight end. So Fitterer likely was smiling Saturday when one tight end after another — most of them big dudes — put up impressive times in the 40. Given the deep free-agent class of tight ends, this is a good year to be a team needing a difference-maker at the position. The next position Fitterer pointed to was wide receiver, and has said previously he’d like a wideout who can take the top of the defense. So it makes sense the Panthers have shown interest in Chiefs free-agent receiver Mecole Hardman, who ran a 4.33 40 in 2019 before Kansas City took him in the second round. Hardman, who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, would be a nice complement to DJ Moore. Hardman should have plenty of suitors, with Spotrac projecting a four-year, $41.6 million contract for the former Georgia wideout.

"Expected to be interested" is pretty much speculation, though it would make sense given the connections. Staley has however specifically stated that he wants to keep all of our current three runningbacks and gave plenty of praise to D'Onta Foreman.

From the article... I hear that … the Jets are willing to wait out Rodgers. Nobody really knows what Rodgers is thinking about his future even after he spoke about it on a podcast this week, his first public comments since going on a four-day darkness retreat. He didn’t sound like someone who planned to retire, pushing back on the idea that his skills are declining. So the next question becomes: What team does he want to play for? The Raiders appear to have removed themselves from the running, while the Titans have said they plan to bring back Ryan Tannehill. It’s shaping up as Packers, Jets or bust for Rodgers, unless a mystery team plans to enter the fray. ... Around the league, there is an expectation that if Rodgers doesn’t retire, he’ll likely return to the Packers — and that they’d welcome him back with open arms. But Rodgers hasn’t recently been communicating with Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst, so that’s mostly guesswork. The Jets hired one of Rodgers’ closest friends (Nathaniel Hackett) as offensive coordinator, but I’ve heard that hasn’t helped provide any insight on his decision yet. Despite all of that, the Jets are willing to wait for Rodgers to make a decision because they believe the quarterback, even at 39, gives them the best chance to not only make the playoffs, but compete for the Super Bowl. Yes, it would cost a lot, both in terms of financial and trade compensation, but the Jets view getting a quarterback of Rodgers’ caliber as worth all of that — even if it also means adding the drama that follows him around. ... I hear that … If Rodgers does wind up back in Green Bay, the Jets should be viewed as the favorite to land Carr. His meeting in New Jersey recently with Saleh and others went well and the Jets view Carr as a quarterback who can get them over the hump and contend in the AFC. But that doesn’t mean it’s a perfect fit. Carr must be able to handle the scrutiny and criticism that comes with being the Jets quarterback. An NFC scout also cited concerns about how Carr handles pass-rushing pressure in games, noting that he started to become contact-averse after he suffered a fibula fracture at the end of the 2016 season and as he struggled with a rib injury in 2022. ... If the Jets do go full steam ahead in their pursuit of Carr — they haven’t offered him a contract yet — how much will it cost? The expectation is that his next contract could average in the $35 million to $40 million range, though the structure of the deal (in terms of guaranteed money and cap hits) is what really matters.

Best wishes from me

Kleiman writes for BroBible. He's not a legit source but the people he quotes usually are. He got fooled by the phony rumor that we were calling about Aaron Rodgers though. THe guy who talked about the Packers being disgusted with Rodgers is longtime beat writer Bob McGinn. He's as legit as they come.

Lotta people will be watching Bijan Robinson.

Big Uglies are up along with runningbacks...