Evil Hurney

A team that likes a player enough to give up a 2nd + extras probably also likes that player enough to use the 5th year option on them. They are expecting that player to be around more than 1 year so they are taking a risk to save a significant amount of money in a future year. If Darnold had continued his pace from the first 4 games we'd be looking at extending him for ~$30M a year.

We "basically" recouped the picks. During the draft the Panthers were able to add a 3rd, 4th, and 6th (plus several other picks). I've only listed the ones relevant to "paying off" the Darnold trade. While they didn't add a 2nd they did add a 3rd in the current year. Generally a 3rd in the current draft is worth a 2nd in a future draft; the 2nd that was given to the Jets was in a future draft (the upcoming one).

Good OL don't typically make it to FA. Charles Leno might be the top guy since I expect the guys above him to get re-signed. "Offensive Line 1) Orlando Brown Jr., T, Kansas City Chiefs 2) Brandon Scherff, G, Washington Football Team 3) Terron Armstead, T, New Orleans Saints 4) Wyatt Teller, G, Cleveland Browns 5) Duane Brown, T, Seattle Seahawks 6) Charles Leno Jr., T, Washington Football Team 7) Riley Reiff, T, Cincinnati Bengals 8) Laken Tomlinson, G, San Francisco 49ers 9) Ben Jones, C, Tennessee Titans 10) Jason Peters, T, Chicago Bears" https://www.profootballnetwork.com/2022-nfl-free-agents-top-free-agents-by-position-available/

PJ will start. Shaq basically indicated that is what the players are expecting. I wouldn't be surprised if there are some Cam packages for AZ though. Basically a collection of plays/schemes he's already comfortable with.

You still need PJ to play well this week. What is gained by taking the wind out his sails before he even steps on the field? In short, it's just coach speak and there was enough said by Rhule and others to indicate Cam will start as soon as next week.

Weak bottom half of the NFC means you only need 8-9 wins to get the 7 seed. Our top 5 defense and an average offense is good enough to achieve that. Once you are in the playoffs anything can happen.

Yup. I seem to recall people clamoring for Trubisky since he hasn't been under the microscope this season.

It would be silly to not start him after that performance.

Agreed. It's nice to be a fan of a team that is able to and willing to make such moves.

Squirrel!

I feel like Cam returning is a likelihood given the names listed. Also to me, Drummond is the interesting one in that mix. I feel like he is there to talk non-football things like role, expectations, and messaging.

Gregg Williams approves of this message, per unnamed source

It's pretty likely that it will only take 9 wins gets the 7-seed. So a few wins might be enough.

DA and Barkley were there in Josh's rookie year. Barkley stayed on for two more seasons after that.

Seems to me that NFL head coaches are underpaid compared to players and their peers in the college game.

If Matt is coming here to mentor Sam like he did Josh Allen, fine. If Matt is coming here to actually play, oof. His career interception rate is almost double Sam's! (6.1% vs 3.3%) For reference PJ has a career interception rate of 7.0% (albeit with a small sample size)

That changed for draft picks after 2017. "For any Drafted Rookie selected in the first round of the 2018 or any subsequent Draft, the entire Paragraph 5 Salary for the Fifth-Year Option shall become guaranteed for skill, injury, and Salary Cap-related termination, effective upon the Club’s exercise of the Option. " -https://overthecap.com/collective-bargaining-agreement/article/7/section/7/(g)(v)/

I wouldn't be surprised if the shoulder wasn't 100% yesterday. I was thinking as much when watching the game The first interception was a bad pass, not a bad decision. The third interception seemed like one that didn't get where it was intended to go, but could have also been a bad decision (it seemed like DJ had the back pylon though). Why was he playing on a partially injured shoulder? Likely because he gave us the best chance to win. That should tell you what they think of PJ as a starter. Also, slightly related, CMC didn't look to be 100% yesterday either. Seemed a tick slow. Grateful he made it out without reinjury though.

!RemindMe 4 Months

"Once a player returns to practice from injured reserve that does not mean he’s activated. It actually starts a 21-day "clock" for the team to activate the player. If he isn’t activated within the 21-day window, he reverts back to IR and has to stay there the rest of the season." - https://985thesportshub.com/listicle/nfl-injured-reserve-rules-2021/ Basically, CMC can practice this week without needing to come off IR. Once they want him to play he does have to be activated.

Cam to my knowledge hasn't played in this type of system. If it's only for 1 game you create the additional unwanted distraction for the rest of the season. Cam isn't going to want to be a 1-game starter and then gracefully become the backup to Sam. Cam doesn't seem wired that way.

If we are planning to go/stay young at QB then someone more experienced than Brady. Also, if we are staying with Sam I'd like it to be someone with a similar system/vocabulary. If we are planning on bringing in a Russell or Aaron then I'm fine with an up and comer.