MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Tua Tagovailoa lands on injury report



On one hand, he fully participated in practice. On the other hand, he’s on the injury report.

Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was listed on the first Dolphins injury report of the year as fully participating in practice despite a hip injury.

Presumably, it’s the same hip injury that he suffered last season at Alabama. (It would be quite the coincidence if it were a different hip injury.) Though he’s not expected to play against the Patriots on Sunday, it’s telling that the supposedly healthy Tagovailoa is still dealing with the aftereffects of the 2019 injury.

The fact that he fully participated in practice means it’s no big deal. The fact that he’s on the report likely means that he received some sort of treatment for the injury.

Limited in practice for the Dolphins on Wednesday were tight end Mike Gesicki (glute), cornerback Xavien Howard (knee), cornerback Byron Jones (achilles), receiver DeVante Parker (hamstring), linebacker Kyle Van Noy (hand), and receiver Preston Williams (knee).

NBC

The Dolphins open the season with their annual trip to New England and a showdown with the Patriots.

 

Baker Mayfield 'out to prove' he's better than last year showed

Baker Mayfield didn't see improvement in his second season in Cleveland. In fact, on some levels, the quarterback regressed from a promising rookie season.

Entering a pivotal Year 3, Mayfield knows he must make big strides in 2020.

"Out to prove [I'm] much better than what I've shown in the two years prior,'' Mayfield said Wednesday, via the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Last year, Mayfield threw 22 TDs and 21 INTs while completing just 59.4 percent of 534 pass attempts for 3,827 yards. The Browns QB never got in sync with Odell Beckham Jr. and made far too many head-scratching decisions. There were more 'what the heck was he thinking' plays from Mayfield last year than explosive connections.

After setting the rookie TD record in 2018 with 27, Mayfield ranked 31st among 32 qualified QBs in completion percentage, 31st in INTs, 31st in passer rating (78.8) and dead last in TD-INT ratio in 2019. Mayfield has thrown 35 interceptions since 2018 (second-most in NFL) -- only Jameis Winston (44) has thrown more in that span.

In 2019, perhaps the offseason hype got to Mayfield. In 2020, the quarterback isn't seeking to build a booklet of excuses in case things go awry, not even the fact that he's moving to his third offense in three seasons.

"It could be an excuse if you use it, but that's not what I'm doing here,'' he said. "Singular focus on this year and what we can do, and that's the ultimate goal so move forward."


The Browns kick off the 2020 campaign against the reigning AFC North champion Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. It's a tough test in a key season for Mayfield & Co.

"We know what we have to do. We've installed everything," he said. "We're putting together a good gameplan, and we'll have that ready to roll. Everybody just has to go out there and execute it. It's not about what's happened and the adversity. It's about how you can handle those things. That's just our motto."

Unlike last year, the Browns aren't entering the season as offseason darlings, even though many of the same pieces that brought about the hype a year ago remain in place. The difference is the skepticism Mayfield brought upon himself with his up-and-down play last year.

It's on the young QB to prove he can even out the rough spells and turn his potential into wins. If not, the millennium-long saga of Browns shuffling QBs might continue in 2021.

NFL.com

 

I thought this was important...



Cowboys QB Dak Prescott talks openly on mental health

In the aftermath of his brother's suicide and his mother's battle with cancer, Dallas Cowboys star quarterback Dak Prescott was candid about his own bout with anxiety and depression, while urging others to talk openly about an often difficult topic.

"I think that is important to be vulnerable, to be genuine and to be transparent," Prescott said in an interview earlier this year for "In Depth With Graham Bensinger" that was recently released. "That goes a long way when you are a leader and your voice is being heard by so many and you can inspire."

Mental health is an issue often cast aside or ignored by many who doubt its legitimacy or severity. Others realize it for the overwhelming and often suffocating illness it is.

Superstar quarterback or not, Prescott bravely announced himself as being among the latter with heartfelt and poignant words on Thursday.

Having previously taped the interview for "In Depth With Graham Bensinger," excerpts have been released and Prescott spoke candidly with reporters regarding them, along with his brother Jace committing suicide, his mother's battle with colon cancer and the toll it took upon him and that during the COVID-19 pandemic he's had his own struggles with depression.

"It creates new emotions -- emotions that I've never felt before but obviously dealt with," Prescott said about dealing with the novel coronavirus pandemic, per the team website. "And I obviously got the help that I needed and was very open about it. I think that's why I was fortunate enough to get over it, as not all of us are."

Being able to talk about his issues in the past was one of the prevailing reasons he believes he's in a better place mentally now.

It's also a reason he advocates for more people opening up.


"I think it's huge," Prescott said. "I think it's huge to talk. I think it's huge to get help. And it saves lives."

More than 48,000 people die from suicide each year in the United States, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

During his interview with Bensinger, he revealed that throughout the quarantine, he began experiencing anxiety and depression in the days before his brother's death. Furthermore, he did not know how to process them or work through them, with sleep rarely coming.

Eventually, simply talking about the problems he was dealing with proved to be the best remedy.

"If I wouldn't have talked about those things to the people I did, I wouldn't have realized my friends and a lot more people go through them -- and they are as common as they are," he said.

Nearly one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness -- 46.6 million during 2017 -- per the NIMH.

A leader on the field for the Cowboys, Prescott was open in a way many athletes are still wary of being. Perhaps his words can lead others off the field in an area of need overlooked for far too long.

For anyone interested in mental health issues or experiencing problems, visit the National Institute of Mental Health website. For those in need of immediate help, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

 

Brian Flores confirms Ryan Fitzpatrick remains the starter



When Dolphins head coach Brian Flores met with reporters after Sunday’s loss to the Patriots, he didn’t sound like he was planning a quarterback change.

He confirmed as much on Monday. Flores said that Ryan Fitzpatrick will remain the team’s starter when they face the Bills next Sunday.

Fitzpatrick was 20-of-30 for 191 yards and three interceptions in the 21-11 loss to New England. Flores said after the game that Fitzpatrick put some drives together, but there were “just too many turnovers at the end of the day.”

There’s no arguing that point, but it would have been quite surprising for the Dolphins to make a change one game into the season. They felt Fitzpatrick was the right choice over Tua Tagovailoa coming into the season despite the veteran’s shortcomings and reversing that call so quickly wouldn’t provide much faith in the people making the decisions.

 

No starting quarterbacks injured or benched in Week One for first time since 2011



The NFL got a piece of good news to start the 2020 season: All 32 starting quarterbacks made it out of Week One unscathed.

No quarterbacks suffered serious injuries in Week One, and no quarterbacks were benched, either. That means 2020 is poised to be the first season since 2011 when all 32 quarterbacks who started Week One also started Week Two.

For all the concerns that this highly unusual offseason would result in more injuries, if anything the opposite has been true at the league’s most important position: No quarterbacks were injured in the first game this year, and the last time that happened was during the 2011 season, when the offseason was cut short by a work stoppage.

Last year there were two starting quarterback changes in the first week of the season: Jaguars Week One starter Nick Foles was injured and replaced by Gardner Minshew, and Jets Week One quarterback Sam Darnold was sick and replaced by Trevor Siemian.

NBC

 

Bill Belichick: I don’t really see anybody better than Russell Wilson



Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has only coached against Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson three times, but he’s spent plenty of time watching him as he prepares for a fourth meeting on Sunday night.

During his Thursday press conference, Belichick made it clear that he likes what he’s seen from the NFC’s offensive player of the week from Week One. Wilson has plenty of other admirers, but Belichick thinks that the consensus opinion of the quarterback may still be selling him short.

“Honestly, I think he’s in a way maybe underrated by the media or the fans, I don’t know. I don’t really see anybody better than this player,” Belichick said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com.

Wilson has won both of his previous regular season matchups with the Patriots while completing 41-of-64 passes for 641 yards and six touchdowns. The third matchup came in Super Bowl XLIX and it ended with Wilson being picked off by Malcolm Butler on the final play of the game to seal a Patriots win.

All three games were close and a repeat would be a strong contender for the top game of Week Two.

NBC

 

Tom Brady “went to another level” in practice this week



Watch out, Panthers.

Miffed by a subpar performance against the Saints in Week One, and undoubtedly feeling challenged after being called out multiple times by his head coach in the aftermath of a two-interception showing, quarterback Tom Brady has doubled down.

James Palmer of NFL Network reports that Brady “went to another level” during practice in advance of the Week Two game against Carolina.

“He doesn’t want to lose at anything,” an unnamed player told Palmer. “Especially a football game. So we’ve seen him come out to practice just locked in and focused.”

Of course, this implies that Brady was not as locked in and focused as he needed to be before Week One, and that if he was able to take it to “another level” he wasn’t already practicing at the highest level possible. While that may not have been the intention, that’s the inescapable takeaway.

Regardless of whether and to what extent Brady was or wasn’t at the highest level or was or wasn’t locked in and focused before Week One, the Buccaneers need this one, badly. And based on Week One, the Panthers don’t look like pushovers.

NBC

 

Remember when he was considered the worst of the 1st round QBs? Pretty sure everyone said he’d be most likely to bust. Also Rosen was supposed to be the next Andrew Luck...

 

Not everyone. Some cited his lack of coaching at Wyoming and noted his Senior Bowl performance as what he could become if put in the right situation.

 

Broncos intend to sign Blake Bortles



It looks like quarterback Blake Bortles will be doing more than just visiting with the Broncos this week.

Word on Tuesday morning was that Bortles was scheduled to visit with the team, but it seems that’s just a formality before signing with the club. According to multiple reports, the Broncos intend to add Bortles to the active roster once he goes through COVID-19 testing over the next few days.

Assuming all goes well with the testing, Bortles would be able to join the team on Friday and that would leave him eligible to be in uniform against the Buccaneers this Sunday.

Jeff Driskel is set to start with Drew Lock out for multiple weeks with a shoulder injury. Brett Rypien is on the practice squad and is the only other quarterback currently on hand in Denver.

Bortles spent last season as a backup with the Rams. The 2014 first-round pick spent most of his first five seasons as the starter in Jacksonville.

NBC

 

Jon Gruden on Derek Carr: This guy’s a great quarterback



Raiders quarterback Derek Carr said before the season started that he is “tired of the talk” and just wants to “go out and play football and not care about the other stuff.”

With two weeks under his belt, that’s looking like the right approach to the season. Carr followed up a good performance against the Panthers in a Week One win by going 28-of-38 for 282 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-24 win over the Saints on Monday night.

Carr reiterated his disinterest in talk after the game, but head coach Jon Gruden was willing to spare a few words. Gruden noted that Carr has had to play with a variety of receivers behind a shifting offensive line the last couple of years and still put up big numbers in 2019 while praising his play so far this season.

“This guy’s a great quarterback,” Gruden said. “We’re surrounding him with better players. And once our defense I think starts playing to their potential, he can even be better. He does so much with the ball and without the ball and behind the scenes that I think Raiders fans should really be proud of him, and I know I am.”

The Raiders will try for a 3-0 start in New England next weekend and achieving that goal will lead to the kind of chatter about Carr that even the quarterback might not mind.

NBC

 

Josh Allen: I don’t think many teams can keep up with all of our receivers



Bills quarterback Josh Allen has always has a strong arm. Now he has a group of receivers who can beat cornerbacks downfield to catch Allen’s deep balls.

Allen’s receivers all made big plays in Sunday’s win over the Dolphins. Stefon Diggs averaged 19.1 yards a catch on eight catches. John Brown averaged 20.5 yards a catch on four catches. Cole Beasley averaged 14 yards a catch on five catches. Isaiah McKenzie averaged 23.5 yards a catch on two catches. Allen said he doesn’t know if there’s a secondary that can hold all his receivers in check.

“We believe and we trust our guys outside,” Allen said, via the Buffalo News. “I don’t think there’s many teams that can keep up with all of them. That was just what was happening and what was working early on, and we just kept going back to it and had some success.”

The Bills’ offense hasn’t looked this good in many years. It won’t be easy for any team to cover all those receivers downfield.

NBC

 

Josh has a point... very threatening and dangerous team when they click and their only going to get better, in my opinion.

 

I’m looking at the conferences and I Believe that the AFC is got the better top of the conference. With KC, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Buffalo. I wouldn’t be surprised if the NFCs top team wound up being Arizona.

 

AFC as it stands right now, may have the upper hand, but this damn game can change in a week/injury or two. There are some real good football teams in the AFC, tho.

Who's on top in the NFC? Seattle? ... I left out Green Bay (on purpose, probably )

 

I understand the Bills love to a degree but you all know that the Patriots are still here right? Like its out of the question that the team that has dominated this division for 20 years could possibly win it again. I'm a Brady guy and it sucks that he's gone but the early returns here are great and the one thing the Patriots have always done under Bill is improve as the season goes. Looks like 10+ wins again to me.

This is where people typically say thats its ludicrous that the Patriots ever feel slighted.

 

The patriots will most likely be a wildcard.

 

Matty, I have often said: “the Pats will rule the AFCE for as long as Brady is under center. And Brady may play until he’s 45”.

Well he’s no longer in NE, so that gives the Bills a shot. I personally believe that the team (Buffalo) is good enough to surpass the Pats. But Buffalo has been NE’s bitch for soooo long; I’ll believe it when the Bills beat them.

I agree that the Bills-love is worthy, but the Pats aren’t being dissed. I think they’ve been whacked HARD by Covid, they had issues on offense that were masked by Brady’s mastery, and now he’s a Buc. No disrespect; possibly a passing of the baton.

It’s remarkable how savvy the current Bills brass have been. They traded the pick used for Mahomes and all they have to show for it is Tre’ White and Josh Allen.

Some said that the they gave up a lot for Diggs. They’re quiet now. Also, the extra picks that went to MIN were acquired before last season for players they were going to cut (one from NE and one from Clev.). That’s getting something for NOTHING.

 

as quick a 180 as ive ever seen