dave mcbride

Really? I posted it as a gift article. Not sure why that isn’t working … Anyway: “If you think he’s pissed off now, wait until this summer,” said one longtime NFL executive, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss players under contract to other teams. “That kid is going to be pretty upset with what they do.” No matter what Brown has in store, don’t expect Burrow to go quietly. When asked after Week 15 about the possibility of a future without Higgins (a foregone conclusion in NFL personnel circles), Burrow deadpanned: “I’d be very disappointed in that. … Tee is a need.” That rhetoric can easily escalate moving forward. Surely, Burrow is aware that with each force-fed pass to Chase around the end zone, he is driving up the price for his owner, who allowed the superstar wide receiver to play for just $4.9 million this season. Chase playing next season on the fifth-year option seems incongruous — or at least begging for a significant holdout — and Hendrickson playing his final season at $16 million is probably a lark, and the reality is Burrow is covering up a roster in disrepair after suspect drafts and acquisitions. “I don’t think Mike Brown is going to spend big enough to fix it,” said one general manager who spoke on the condition of anonymity because GMs are not permitted to speak about other teams’ transactions and personnel. “This guy is almost 90 years old. He’s not changing now. I’m telling you, Burrow is going to be disappointed. “The offensive line is not any good. That’s almost like a total rebuild. Higgins is going to walk. I don’t think Hendrickson is going to be back. Their defensive backs are not good. They need an overhaul back there. They haven’t developed young pass rushers. “Burrow is already getting fed up. You can see it. We could see it [when our team faced him]. … That’s a smart kid. He knows what it takes to win. He’s seen it himself. From the way he’s been talking, you can kind of tell that he wants to be consulted and have a voice in what they do, but that’s not how Mike Brown does things.” … “I’m not saying this will be Carson Palmer all over again,” the longtime exec said. “But I’m not saying it can’t get there eventually, either. Some of us have been doing this long enough to remember how ugly that got.” It took Palmer vowing never to play for the Bengals again to finally secure his departure. Of course, Brown, nobody’s fool, shipped the disgruntled passer to the Raiders, a franchise that was losing even more frequently than his own. Butting heads with Brown tends to come at a cost, and this quarterback is not one to back down.

https://wapo.st/3VWoqxi (Gift article)

Re: Cook -- https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/27/sport/james-cook-bills-best-running-back-spt/index.html

"The Times of India (TOI) has a circulation of over 4.4 million newspapers and a reader base of 13 million. It is the largest English newspaper in India and has the largest circulation of any English-language newspaper in the world." Just sayin'.

On the next two deep sideline throws, he kept up with his man and walled him off at the end. No chance of completions on either.

But the difference is staggering. The Bills have just 3 players in this category, and 20 teams have 10 or more (and 25 eight or more).

After the first td, he had fantastic coverage on two subsequent deep sideline throws in which he basically ran the receiver's route and gave Maye no chance.

Thank you.

Do you really trust your kicker to make a 50 yard fg on a day in which his kickoffs can’t reach the end zone?

It was 3rd and 16 and they were punting anyway.

Best arm punt of his career.

The scheme looks very solvable.

You simply can’t compare. What I recommend is looking at his Rate+ and Cmp+ stats, where 100 is average. He was literally above average in rate+ every year of his career except for his very bad final season, when he was a shell of himself due to accumulated injuries and some hard living. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/K/KellJi00.htm Hardly any qbs had the sorts of completion percentages back then compared to what you see today. He was above average — and sometimes well above average — in completion percentage every year except 1995.

Kelly ruptured his bursa sac in his throwing arm late in the 1992 regular season and was never the same after that, arm strength-wise. Before that, he had a gun. As for lack of mobility, that is true late in his career, but not early on. He went to Miami because Penn State recruited him to play linebacker and he wanted to play qb.

There are many quotes from executives on other teams as well. And this TOTALLY tracks with Johnson's MO over the last 25 years. He makes Dolan look like the Rooney family. And @Gregg is absolutely right about Rodgers.

Btw, this whole story is incredible. Gobsmacking.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6005172/2024/12/19/woody-johnson-jets-madden-sons/ ‘Woody Johnson decided to do his own research. The New York Jets’ owner was at his house in Palm Beach, Fla., last February, discussing potential offseason acquisitions with team decision-makers as they watched game tape. Wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, a former Denver Broncos first-round pick, flashed on the screen. Jets general manager Joe Douglas expressed interest, according to someone familiar with the meeting. Johnson took out his phone and started typing. A few weeks later, Douglas and his Broncos counterpart, George Paton, were deep in negotiations for a trade that would have sent Jeudy to the Jets and given future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers another potential playmaker. The Broncos felt a deal was near. Then, abruptly, it all fell apart. In Denver’s executive offices, they couldn’t believe the reason why. Douglas told the Broncos that Johnson didn’t want to make the trade because the owner felt Jeudy’s player rating in “Madden NFL,” the popular video game, wasn’t high enough, according to multiple league sources. The Broncos ultimately traded the receiver to the Cleveland Browns. Last Sunday, Jeudy crossed the 1,000-yard receiving mark for the first time in his career.’

3 year contract.

To quote @Beast, the book ain’t closed at all. Still early days.

The Orlovsky clip is the answer to all of these questions about Cooper.

Joe Burrow is about as elite as Allen.

I think Cincy has a shot at getting in still. They're at home against the Browns and Broncos and end on the road at Pitt. Denver is at LAC, at Cincy, and home vs KC -- all tough matchups. The Chargers are probably all set because their final two games are against NE and the Raiders. They just need to win one. If they end up 9-8 (with one of those losses being to the Broncos this week), they'll have the head-to-head vs Cincy and a split vs Denver. The Steelers might not need that final game, but I'm guessing there's a decent chance they will depending on the outcome of the Ravens game and what Houston does. If they don't need it, it'll be easier for Cincy. Anyway, it's conceivable that Cincy wins all three and Denver loses all three. The Chargers will be motivated this week because there is a real chance that they can clinch a playoff spot with a win. Miami might have a chance too - they have the Niners at home and end with two on the road vs bad teams: Cleveland and the Jets. And the Colts have a path to 9-8 because of their ridiculously easy schedule: home vs TN, road vs NYG, and home vs Jax. If all five of them end up 9-8--a real possibility!--I have no idea who the final two entries will be based on tiebreaker rules. (It's also conceivable that Baltimore could end up 9-8, but that's not going to happen. They'll beat the Browns at home in the final game for sure.)

Yep, same situation last week but the reverse. The rams won the points-off-turnovers battle last week 7-0 (blocked punt) and won by 2 points, and the bills won the same battle vs the lions, 7-0, and won by 6 points.

I was just doing my part! He clearly needed to be fired up, and him reading this thread may have done the trick! 😀