MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Andrew Luck has started throwing, says second surgery “not an option” right now



Andrew Luck sounds more hopeful even than Frank Reich does about his return.

The Colts quarterback said he has started throwing, though he remains in the phase of building strength.

“I’m in the middle of sort of a little bit of throwing, strengthening and preparing my shoulder for the throw load of being an NFL quarterback,” Luck said in a pre-recorded interview with Sports Illustrated’s Peter King, via Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star.

Luck missed all of last season but sounds encouraged by his rehab.

“I feel awesome. I really do,” Luck said. “I’m in a great place.”

Two weeks ago, General Manager Chris Ballard said Luck does not need a second surgery, and Luck confirmed Tuesday.

“That is not an option for me right now,” Luck said. “That ship has sailed in my mind as far as I’m concerned, which is a relief. I’m not going to lie.” (PFT)

 

John DeFilippo: Vikings in middle of QB process right now

The Vikings have a new offensive coordinator in John DeFilippo and the chances are good that he’ll be working with a new quarterback after spending last season on the Eagles coaching staff.

The big question is whether that quarterback will also be new to the Vikings. Case Keenum and Sam Bradford are definitely free agents and Teddy Bridgewater is set to join them unless there’s an announcement that his contract tolled in 2017, which leaves a lot of possible routes for the team to take heading into the 2018 season.

When DeFilippo was hired, he said he’d have as much say in the decision as the Vikings wanted him to have. He’s voicing those opinions now that the Vikings have started to figure out which way they want to go.

“Right now we’re going to get it fixed, I know that,” DeFilippo said, via Sid Hartman of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “It’s just a matter of choosing the right person to fit our culture and what we’re trying to do offensively. There’s no doubt that [General Manager] Rick Spielman, coach [Mike] Zimmer and myself will put our heads together and make the best decision that we think is the best for the Minnesota Vikings. That is the approach we’re going to take, and we’re in the middle of that process right now.”

DeFilippo didn’t hint at where things stand in that process as he talked about “being flexible” to whoever the Vikings wind up putting under center. He said Keenum “brings a lot to the table” and called Bradford, who he worked with in Philly, “the purest passer I have ever coached” while noting the long injury history that makes it tough for a team to put too many eggs in that basket.

 

Report: Saints to discuss new Drew Brees contract at Combine



The New Orleans Saints and representatives for quarterback Drew Brees intend to discuss parameters on a new contract at next week’s NFL Combine in Indianapolis, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

Brees has made it clear he has no intention of leaving the Saints despite his contract being set to void with the start of free agency in March. Nevertheless, there is still some housekeeping work to do in getting a new contract squared away for Brees moving forward.

Brees has spent 12 seasons in New Orleans after his first five years with the San Diego Chargers. Despite being 39 years old, Brees hasn’t showed many signs of slowing down. He’s thrown for at 4,300 yards in each of his 12 years with the Saints. He completed a career-high 72 percent of his passes last season and eclipsed a 100.0 passer rating for the seventh time in his career.

There’s significant incentive for the Saints to get a deal done before the contract voids as well. They’d be stuck with a cap charge of $18 million for next season if a new deal isn’t in place before the start of free agency. (PFT)

 

Teddy Bridgewater’s status remains murky, unresolved



No one has been reporting anything about the free-agency status of Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Primarily because there’s nothing to report. Primarily because no one is saying anything about it.

Here’s the issue: The Collective Bargaining Agreement plainly states that, when a player in the final year of his contract is physically unable to perform as of the sixth game of the season, the contract tolls for a year. This language applies to Bridgewater, who tore an ACL in August 2016, missed all of that season on injured reserve, and then missed the first six games of 2017 while on the PUP list.

If tolling applies, Bridgewater will be under contract for 2018, at the same $1.3 million salary he received in 2017.

In the days prior to the Super Bowl, Vikings G.M. Rick Spielman characterized the issue as a league matter, and for good reason. The Vikings don’t want to be perceived, by their fans or their players, as sticking it to Bridgewater, who remains universally beloved in and out of the locker room.

When asked recently a general question about the procedures and protocols that would be utilized to toll the contract and then to challenge it (which is what Bridgewater would do), NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said this: “Will let you know when we have something.”

From the union’s perspective, there’s also no real clarity, primarily because there’s no clear procedure for dealing with a situation that rarely arises. It’s possible that the NFL/Vikings could sit on the issue until the end of the league year, announce that the contract has tolled, and force Bridgewater to launch the process of fighting the issue as the market for his services otherwise opens.

Absent an effort by the NFL Players Association or Bridgewater to force the issue (which hasn’t started yet), the cloud will linger over Bridgewater’s looming free agency until the team or the league make a move.

The current thinking is that the team and the league likely won’t do it. Apart from a threshold argument that past precedent makes tolling applicable only if the player misses the entire season (despite what the CBA says), Bridgewater and the NFLPA probably would attempt to show that Bridgewater was healthy enough to be cleared to play as of Week One, making his placement on the PUP list at the opening of the season improper.

If that sounds familiar, it should. Last week, an arbitrator found that the Bengals improperly placed quarterback A.J. McCarron on the non-football injury list as of Week One of the 2014 season, clearing his path to unrestricted free agency. The league, which rarely loses legal matters, may not have the appetite to risk losing another one so quickly, especially if there’s any doubt regarding the manner in which an arbitrator would view the documents and testimony of the doctor who decided not to clear Bridgewater, allowing them to essentially stash him while carrying only Sam Bradford and Case Keenum on the 53-man roster to start the season.

Currently, Bradford and Keenum are due to become unrestricted free agents. Whether Bridgewater joins them may be determined not by any specific action, but by inaction that lingers for the next 18 days. (PFT)

 

Kirk Cousins may be too rich for the Cardinals’ blood



The Cardinals need a new quarterback after the retirement of Carson Palmer. But Kirk Cousins will probably not be that quarterback.

The money Cousins will command is likely too much for the Cardinals, according to Mike Jurecki of Arizona Sports 98.7.

Arizona has about $24 million in cap space, which is far less than the Browns, Jets and Vikings, and a little less than the Broncos. Those are the teams that have been most linked with Cousins, and one of those teams is likely to make Cousins an offer much bigger than the Cardinals would make.

The two quarterbacks who played after Palmer got hurt last year, Drew Stanton and Blaine Gabbert, are both set to become free agents on March 14. That means the Cardinals, who own the 15th pick in the draft, will hope they can get a good rookie quarterback, as well as a veteran who’s less expensive than Cousins.

 

Rumblings growing louder that Vikings will be “players” for Kirk Cousins



The rumblings of Minnesota’s interest in Kirk Cousins are growing louder.

Several reports have surfaced saying the Vikings will enter into the bidding for Cousins. The Broncos and Jets also are expected to go after the quarterback.

NFL.com senior analyst Gil Brandt predicted Cousins would land in Minnesota, tweeting, “If I were a betting man, I’d say that’s where he lands. Certainly interest on both sides.”

Mike Garafolo of NFL Media said the “Vikings are going to be players for Kirk Cousins,” and his co-worker, Ian Rapoport, added the “Vikings are going to be in very heavy on Cousins.”

Charles Robinson of Yahoo offered his take after arriving in Indianapolis, tweeting, “Vikings and Cousins is a legit thing. But it’s all going to come down to money. Same with Broncos. Jets may be the only team willing to blow it out.”

The Vikings, it was reported earlier in the day, have decided not to use the franchise tag on Case Keenum. But they have plenty of options, even if Cousins gets out of their price range.

 

Packers working on deal for Aaron Rodgers that likely surpasses Garoppolo’s

Jimmy Garoppolo‘s perch at the top of the pay scale isn’t going to last long. The Packers are making “progress” on a new deal with Aaron Rodgers that surely will make the Green Bay quarterback the highest paid in the league.

Packers president Mark Murphy told ESPN on Tuesday that General Manager Brian Gutekunst and executive vice president/director of football operations Russ Ball are involved in talks with Rodgers’ agent.

“We’ve had discussions with his representative,” Murphy said, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN. “I have a lot of confidence in Brian and Russ and Aaron as well. We want to create a win-win.”

Rodgers became the highest-paid player in in the NFL when he signed a five-year, $110 million extension in 2013, but he has outplayed that deal. Rodgers now ranks sixth, with Garoppolo recently having signed the league’s richest deal, getting a five-year, $137.5 million contract with the 49ers.

Rodgers, 34, threw 13 touchdowns and three interceptions and had the Packers off to a 4-1 start when he broke his collarbone in a loss to the Vikings on October 15. The two-time league MVP, who returned to start a December 17 loss to the Panthers, becomes the favorite for comeback player of the year in 2018.

 

Cutting Tyrod Taylor not in Bills’ plans at this point



The Bills owe quarterback Tyrod Taylor a $6 million roster bonus if he’s on the roster on the third day of the new league year and a report last week indicated that they aren’t planning to cut him to avoid that payout.

Coach Sean McDermott did nothing to dispute that report when he met with reporters in Indianapolis on Wednesday. McDermott said, via Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News, that it is “way too early to take anything off the table” in regard to what they’ll do at quarterback, but left a pretty big caveat on the table.

“Other than cutting [Taylor] at this point, which is not in our plans,” Taylor said.

The Bills could still trade Taylor after paying the $6 million bonus — $1 million of which is guaranteed even if Taylor is cut loose — and they could also hold onto him if they draft a quarterback to go with Nathan Peterman on the depth chart. The latter would mean an $18 million cap hit, but they may yet prove to be the best option available to the Bills for the 2018 season.

 

Bears will cut QB Mike Glennon after just one season

The Mike Glennon era lasted nary a year in Chicago.

Bears general manager Ryan Pace announced Wednesday that the team will release the backup quarterback at the start of the league year on March 14.

After letting go of Jay Cutler last offseason, Chicago signed Glennon to a three-year deal worth $45 million. That was before the Bears then traded up one spot in the draft to select their quarterback of the future, Mitchell Trubisky.

Glennon started the first four games of the season, completing 66.4 percent of his passes for 833 yards and compiling a 4:7 TD-turnover ratio. Chicago went 1-3 through the first quarter, and Glennon was benched for the rookie, never to see the field again in a Bears uniform.

This move is not shocking in the slightest, as Trubisky flashed potential in his 12 starts. Plus, Glennon's contract had a "2018 out" built into it. Glennon will walk from the Bears with only $18.5 million, which was guaranteed at signing. The release also frees up over $11 million in cap space this season and $14 million next year.

In other Bears news, Pace added that the team will also release defensive lineman Willie Young, saving $4.5 million. Add these two cuts to the releases last week of Pernell McPhee and Quinten Demps, and the Bears will have cleared over $25 million in cap space by the time the new league year begins. (NFL.com)

 

A Johnny Football Comeback? Its possible.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...ny-manziel-nfl-comeback-qb-talking-to-coaches

 

Mike Zimmer admits team’s top three quarterbacks all come with “$64,000 question”



The Vikings’ top three quarterbacks all are scheduled to become free agents March 14. Minnesota chose not to franchise Case Keenum and now risks losing all three.

“I would like to keep all three of them,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. “These kids have busted their rear ends for me however number of years — some of them four; some of them two; some of them one. They know how we do things now. I think that’s important for the culture of this franchise, the culture of this organization. Again, it’s going to come down to financial things, financial for them, and maybe some of them don’t get to free agency. We’ve still got some time. I know there’s a lot of rumors, a lot of different things going on out there. But don’t believe everything you hear unless it’s from me.”

Keenum, Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater all have questions.

Bradford played only two games last season because of knee injury Zimmer characterized as “degenerative.” Bridgewater spent 14 months rehabbing from a dislocated left knee, missing the 2016 season and playing only nine snaps last season. Keenum was a journeyman quarterback, playing for three teams in his first five seasons, before going 11-3 with the Vikings in 2017.

“It’s really the $64,000 question with all three of these guys, right?” Zimmer said. “Can Sam stay healthy? Is Teddy what he was? Is Case the guy he was last year or was he two years ago? That’s really the $64,000 question with us. Now, with Sam, I love Sam. I love all three of them. They’re all great people. Sam was skiing in Jackson Hole last week. He’s a tremendous athlete. I think he’ll stay healthy, but who knows. I have a crystal ball, but I didn’t bring it with him, and it didn’t tell me whether he’s going to stay healthy or not.”

Several reports have linked the Vikings to Kirk Cousins, who will enter free agency looking for a new home. (PFT)

 

Why $64k?

 

It was an old radio/tv game show in the US. One of the first to be on tv. Why is the number 64? Who the fuck knows?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_$64,000_Question

 

Probably because that's a number you reach if you start at a base number ($1000) and keep doubling.

 

Kirk Cousins list down to four teams

Since he’s been willing to be patient so far, Kirk Cousins is going to take his time through his free agency process.

But he has apparently pared the list of teams he’ll consider.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the final four teams expected to be in the running for his services are the Broncos, Cardinals, Jets, and Vikings.

Each have their own pluses and minuses. The Broncos and Vikings can offer immediate competitiveness thanks to good defenses. The Cardinals offer the opportunity to play with a future Hall of Famer in Larry Fitzgerald and warm weather. The Jets have the major market appeal, along with the most cap space of the group and, well, desperation.

Absent from that list despite their obvious need at the position is Cleveland, despite the best lobbying efforts of left tackle Joe Thomas.

Schefter also reports that the teams involved are considering short-term deals, perhaps as short as three years, with big guarantees. Considering Cousins has played the last two years on the tag for Washington, he has a flexibility not every free agent enjoys.

And the dynamics of the pursuit of Cousins will have impacts far beyond his own future, as quarterbacks such as Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, and Matt Ryan are working on new deals, and the fallback plans such as Case Keenum and others hinge to some degree on the choice Cousins make and the numbers involved. (PFT)

 

Report: Jets fear Kirk Cousins is heading to the Vikings

Then there were four. Eventually there will be one. And one of the four thinks the one will be the Vikings.

Ralph Vacchiano of SNY reports that the Jets are taking the Minnesota threat seriously “after some informal, preliminary talks with his camp this week.”

Yes, informal, preliminary talks technically are prohibited. But they happen, every year involving every team. Any team that isn’t doing it has put itself at a competitive disadvantage. So if the Jets have had informal, preliminary talks with the Cousins camp, the Vikings have, too, and the planets are starting to align as to the quarterback’s future.

The Jets, per Vacchiano, have heard enough to move on to “Plans B and C and, if possibly D” at quarterback. Although the Jets believe, per Vacchiano, that they can offer more money and a better structure to Cousins, the Jets fear that Cousins would take less to go to Minnesota for a better chance to win.

In a Super Bowl week visit to PFT Live, Cousins spoke about the balance between taking less to win and getting full and fair franchise quarterback compensation.

The Vikings continue to be the ultimate wild card in the coming quarterback chase. With three of their own unrestricted free agents on the roster and multiple other options elsewhere (Cousins, A.J. McCarron, and theoretically Drew Brees), the Vikings have plenty of choices. The problem is that they eventually choose one, at the exclusion of all others.

Vikings G.M. Rick Spielman recently joined PFT Live to discuss the situation. Watch the interview and search for clues. For example, when Spielman says they plan to make a decision by March 14, does that mean they’re leaning toward re-signing one of their own? Or would they do a Brock Osweiler-style sight-unseen deal with someone they don’t know?

Spielman regards the situation as more blessing than curse, but there could be plenty of cursing if they pick the wrong guy — and if the guys they don’t pick end up thriving elsewhere.

 

Kirk Cousins deal has a no-trade, no-transition tag clause...

The general money to be paid by the Vikings to quarterback Kirk Cousins has been known for two days: Three years, $84 million, fully guaranteed.

The actual contract has some other key terms. Per a source with knowledge of the deal, Cousins’ contract has a no-trade clause. The deal also includes a term that keeps the Vikings from using the transition tag in 2021.

The deal includes a $3 million signing bonus, annual workout bonuses of $500,000, and fully guaranteed base salaries of $22.5 million in 2018, $27.5 million in 2019, and $29.5 million in 2020.

The cash flow is $26 million through one year, $54 million through two years, and $84 million through three years. The cap numbers are $24 million, $29 million, and $31 million.

The $31 million cap number means that use of the franchise tag in 2021 would cost $44.64 million, given that Cousins would be entitled to a 44-percent increase over his 2020 cap number, if the franchise tag is applied. Which explains why the deal doesn’t prevent the franchise tag.

(The transition tag would have entailed a 20-percent raise over the 2020 cap number, which equates to $37.2 million on a one-year deal for a right of first refusal.)

The deal also includes up to $2 million in annual incentives, which could push the deal to being worth $90 million over three years. Which suggests that the Jets were offering a straight $90 million over three, and that Cousins simply wanted a chance to match that amount in Minnesota.

 

Hue Jackson: Tyrod Taylor is the Browns’ starter, there won’t be a competition...

The Browns say there will not be a competition for the starting quarterback job in Cleveland this year.

Browns head coach Hue Jackson said today that Tyrod Taylor is the starting quarterback for the 2018 season.

“He’s going to be the starting quarterback,” Jackson said of Taylor. “There is no competition.”

That’s easy to say now, but it may be harder to believe six weeks from now, when the Browns may choose a quarterback with the first or fourth overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft. If the Browns do take a quarterback in the first round, and if that quarterback looks good in training camp and the preseason while Taylor struggles, the Browns may have a competition even if they don’t plan on having one today.

So file this one away: The Browns say Taylor is their starting quarterback for the 2018 season right now. They may say something different six months from now.

 

Mike Zimmer: Not Super Bowl or bust with Kirk Cousins

The expectations in Minnesota are sky high after the Vikings signed quarterback Kirk Cousins, who is roundly believed to be the missing piece to a Super Bowl-worthy roster. Coach Mike Zimmer's job is to temper those expectations.

"I don't look at this as Super Bowl or bust," the coach said of the Cousins signing Tuesday at the coaches' breakfast during the Annual League Meeting, via NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.

The Vikings ended their season in a blowout loss to eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game following a 13-3 regular season.

While Minnesota believes Cousins is a long-term upgrade over Case Keenum, Zimmer understands his team as a whole must continue to improve in order to reclaim the NFC North and make a drive toward a Lombardi Trophy.

"I think it is completely fresh and Kirk is our guy," Zimmer said of his outlook after adding Cousins. "Hopefully we can continue to do some things we did last year. We played pretty good on defense most of the time. We have a good football team, we have a great organization, great owners, and if we can just continue to keep getting better, keep trying to get a little bit better every day, maybe we can finally get over that one last game that we didn't get done with last year. Everybody gets to start at 0-0 and we're the same way. I wish we could start out at 13-3 and have a bye the first round, but it doesn't happen. You have injuries, you have a lot of different things that go on throughout the season and we're going to have to manage it like everybody else."

Every team deals with unexpected speed bumps along the way of a long season. The goal of signing a player of Cousins' caliber was to help smooth out any of those rough patches the Vikings will face.

With teams like the L.A. Rams building a super squad, the Eagles restocking, and Aaron Rodgers returning healthy, the NFC will not be a cakewalk for anyone. Zimmer knows he must manage the outsized expectations before they get out of hand. (NFL.com)

 

Totally fine IF they actually commit to that and don't switch to a rookie that isn't ready at the first sign of major trouble. Allen for instance will need time.