MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

QB Joe Burrow, Bengals agree to five-year, $275 million extension

Joe Burrow deemed himself ready to go for Week 1 earlier in the week, and he'll be heading into the season with a landmark new deal.

Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals have agreed to terms on a five-year, $275 million deal that will make Burrow the highest-paid player in NFL history on an annual basis at $55 million per year, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Monday just as the NFL's 2023 season was kicking off.

Burrow's extension, long expected to take place before the 2023 season began, marks the fourth time since April that a QB has leapfrogged the others as the NFL's newest best-paid man. The 26-year-old's deal builds on Justin Herbert's record-setting contract, which had topped Lamar Jackson's and Jalen Hurts' before that.

The contract removes the need for Burrow to play under the fifth-year option in 2024.

A fixture already among the elites at the position, his arrival as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft ushered in a period of success seldom seen in Cincinnati to this point.

Burrow has thrown for 11,774 yards, 82 touchdowns and 31 interceptions in three short seasons of play. He's led the Bengals to the AFC Championship Game in two consecutive years, doubling Cincy's previous number of conference championship appearances dating back to the club's formation in 1968.

His Super Bowl trip in 2021, although ill-fated, marked Cincinnati's first such appearance since 1988 and first journey out of the Wild Card Round since 1990.

Thus, the Bengals saw it fit to reward Burrow for his momentous efforts to this point of his young career, and in doing so reward themselves and their fans with the spoils that are sure to come with Burrow leading the charge for years to come.

With the matter of Burrow's future in stripes settled, the focus can now turn to the mission ahead.

Cincinnati is one of several heavyweights in the loaded AFC, but much like last year, when Burrow lost weeks of his preseason to an emergency appendectomy, the QB once again sat out almost all of training camp due to a calf strain.

Those 2022 Bengals dropped their first two contests before catching fire with a 12-2 conclusion to the regular season and eventual AFC Championship Game rematch against the Kansas City Chiefs that fell short of a Super Bowl return.

It's imperative that Burrow and Co. find no lapse in effort or execution as Week 1 kicks off what is sure to be a tight race for homefield advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.

The winning ways Burrow has brought mean the Bengals will be thinking of such things this early on in the season.

As they face rising contract prices that force them to bid farewell to some of their other stars, they'll likely still stick in the juggernaut conversation due to Burrow in the years ahead, too.

NFL.com

 

Desmond Ridder: No doubt about it, I’m ready to roll

When Desmond Ridder lines up behind center for the Falcons on Sunday, it won’t be his first NFL start.

But it will be the first time he takes the field in a season designed to prove that he’s Atlanta’s quarterback of the future.

The 2022 third-round pick out of Cincinnati has received plenty of praise from the Falcons brass and his teammates throughout the offseason and training camp. But Ridder’s performance is a major factor in whether Atlanta will become a contender this season.

“I’m ready to roll,” Ridder said in his press conference this week. “Ain’t no doubt about it. I’m ready to go out. I know every single one of the guys in that locker room have my back, and I’ve got theirs. Every time we put that ball down and go to play, it’s time to strap up and go.”

Ridder said there’s “a lot less anxiety” going into this start compared to his debut in Week 15 last season. But he still feels the inherent pressure of being an NFL starting quarterback.

“I feel that responsibility every single day because that is my job,” Ridder said. “That is my responsibility to make sure not only myself doing everything I can to push this team forward, but everyone else as a whole — as an offense, as a special teams, as a defense, as a team — that we’re all headed in the right direction.

“So, as the position of quarterback, I feel that pressure every single day of just going out there and making sure that everyone is where they need to be, and like we were talking about earlier, that we’re a smooth and flawless team.”

As for the offense in general, Ridder feels like the group has been “looking great.”

"[W]e’ve got a couple of new things in that we’ll go in there and we’ll work out,” Ridder said. “As far as my relationship with all of the receivers and tight ends, and anyone who could possibly get the ball, it’s great, and we’ll keep continuing to build throughout — not only this week and coming soon, but throughout the entire season. We always talk about we just want to continue to grow, one percent each day, come in here and get better at something, whatever that may be.”

The Falcons went 2-2 in Ridder’s four starts last season, with the quarterback completing 64 percent of his passes for 708 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions — though he did fumble three times with two lost. He finished with an 86.4 passer rating.

NBC

 

It’s all systems go for Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow this weekend.

Burrow missed almost all of training camp with a calf injury, but has been practicing for the last couple of weeks and said on Wednesday that he feels ready to go against the Browns on Sunday. On Friday, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor confirmed that Burrow will be in the starting lineup for the first game of the season.

The announcement comes a day after Burrow agreed to a contract extension with the Bengals that will make him the highest-paid player in league history.

Burrow earned that contract extension by leading the Bengals to division titles and the AFC Championship Game in each of the last two seasons. They advanced to the Super Bowl after the first of those title games and the hope in Cincinnati is that Sunday’s game is the first step toward a chance to win the game for the first time in franchise history.

NBC

 

Jared Goff closing in on NFL record for consecutive passes without an interception

Lions quarterback Jared Goff is closing in on the NFL record for most consecutive passes thrown without an interception.

Goff’s last interception came against the Packers in Week Nine of last season. He ended last season having thrown 324 passes since that interception against the Packers, and he threw 35 more passes without an interception in Thursday night’s win over the Chiefs. That gives him 359 consecutive passes without an interception, the third-most in NFL history.

The all-time record belongs to Aaron Rodgers, who threw 402 passes without an interception in 2018. The second-most consecutive passes without an interception is 399 by Tom Brady in 2022. Brady also threw 358 passes without an interception from 2010 to 2011, which was the third-most of all-time before Goff surpassed him on Thursday night.

Goff needs to throw 44 more passes without a pick to reach 403 straight passes without a pick and break Rodgers’ record. That could happen as soon as the Lions’ Week Two game against the Seahawks, and it would be a tremendous achievement for a quarterback who has been a big part of a big turnaround in Detroit.

NBC

 

Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe is back on the active roster.

Zappe was signed to the 53-player roster today, according to multiple reports. This is a signing and not just an elevation from the practice squad, which suggests the Patriots expect to keep Zappe on the active roster this season.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick made the surprise decision to waive Zappe on roster cutdown day, but when Zappe cleared waivers he signed back to New England’s practice squad. Now he’s back on the active roster and is expected to be the No. 2 quarterback behind Mac Jones tomorrow.

The Patriots are releasing new arrival Matt Corral from the active roster. Practice squad quarterback Malik Cunningham fills out the depth chart.

PFT

 

Here's a look at week 1 QB's, with 2 QB's to go...

 

Jets QB Aaron Rodgers feared to have suffered torn Achilles in overtime win over Bills

Aaron Rodgers' Jets debut against the Bills on Monday night lasted just four snaps before the worst happened.

The four-time Most Valuable Player is believed to have suffered a torn Achilles after getting twisted up awkwardly on a sack during New York's first drive, head coach Robert Saleh told reporters in his postgame news conference.

"It's not good," Saleh said of the injury's outlook.

A confirmed diagnosis of an Achilles tear, which the Jets expect when he undergoes an MRI on Tuesday, would mean Rodgers is out for the season.

Backup quarterback Zach Wilson, who had an 8-14 record in two seasons starting for Gang Green, entered the game in relief and helmed the Jets the rest of the way during a surprise 22-16 overtime victory.

Saleh, who told reporters his heart was "with Aaron right now and nowhere else," said Wilson will continue to be the starter moving forward if Rodgers' injury is indeed confirmed.

Rodgers dropped back to pass three times. His first and only official attempt was incomplete, his second dropback resulted in a first down due to defensive holding and the third produced the sack and aforementioned injury.

He found pressure in his face from the Bills' pass rush on all three of those plays.

The Jets entered the season with their highest hopes in decades thanks to the acquisition of Rodgers.

New York last reached the playoffs in 2010, and since then has cobbled together just one season above .500 while finishing last in the AFC East seven times.

One of those last-place finishes, the team's third in a row, occurred in 2022 amid a season sunk by a carousel of poor quarterback play from four different starters.

Rodgers was heralded as the savior.

Worries did arise during training camp and the preseason over the state of the offensive line's ability to protect the 39-year-old, though.

Regardless of the victory, those concerns have already reared their ugly head, dooming the Jets' best-laid plans for a season with Rodgers leading them to new heights.

NFL.com

 

MRI confirms Aaron Rodgers has complete tear of Achilles tendon

Aaron Rodgers’ first season with the Jets ended on the first possession.

An MRI this morning confirmed what was feared: Rodgers has a complete tear of his Achilles tendon. That is a season-ending injury.

That leaves Zach Wilson as the Jets’ starting quarterback, and currently the only healthy quarterback on their 53-player roster. They’ll surely bring someone else in, but it’s going to be hard to find a starting-caliber quarterback at this point in the season.

Wilson was competent for the Jets after Rodgers went down Monday night, but realistically it’s hard to believe they can be a playoff team with Wilson. With Rodgers, they had Super Bowl aspirations.

Rodgers will turn 40 in December, and questions will be raised about whether Monday night’s brief appearance was the last game of his NFL career. A torn Achilles tendon is a tough injury to come back from, and Rodgers may decide it’s time to retire.

That decision, however, is months away. Right now, the Jets have to regroup after losing the player they built their entire offseason around.
_________
_____________________

Absolute nightmare for the Jets... its kinda surreal.

Also shows what can happen when you throw all your apples into one cart, they even let him dictate whos coming over and other things. Green Bay East is in deep shit.

 

Oh, no. Say it ain't so. What a shame. I'm sure we're all very broken up about this.

 

I'm sure we're all very broken up about this.


Only if your a Bears Fan.

 

Absolute nightmare for the Jets... its kinda surreal.


I agree Will......I think it is 37 M/year.........OUCH

Good news for the Jets is they have an excellent Defense.

 

The Bills haven’t been the same since Hamlin died and was resuscitated on the field. Maybe they will figure it out and get back to normal. But I think the Dolphins are going to win the east.

 

Robert Saleh: Looking “through some things” at QB, but we have faith in Zach Wilson

Jets head coach Robert Saleh said on Monday night that Zach Wilson is “the guy” at quarterback with Aaron Rodgers set to miss the year with a torn Achilles and he reiterated that message at a press conference on Tuesday.

There have been many questions about what the Jets plan to do at the position now that Rodgers’ injury has been confirmed and Saleh said on Tuesday that the team is examining the options that might be available outside the organization. He followed that up by reinforcing his belief in Wilson as the new starter.

“We are gonna look through some things, but I do want to make it very clear that Zach’s our quarterback,” Saleh said. “We’ve got a lot of faith in Zach, we’re really excited about this opportunity. We’re rolling with Zach and excited for him.”

Wilson struggled as a starter for the Jets last season and the Jets talked a lot this offseason about how he could benefit from playing behind Rodgers, but there was no expectation that he’d be back in the lineup so quickly. Saleh said Wilson is “so much different” from a year ago when asked why he has faith in Wilson’s ability to handle the job and that will be put to the test in Dallas in Week Two.

PFT

 

Cant count them out after week 1 and the Jets defense is a good one. Bills will be just fine in my opinion.

If Tua stays healthy, the sky is the limit in Miami... Hill just might get that 2000.

 

Crazy stat of the day

The charges are 0-2 in their last two games despite having 7 take aways and no give aways. That's bad if you are +7 in the turnover battle you should be winning games.

(got this from cowherd but haven't verified so hope it's true)

 

Its true... I checked on Pro Football Reference. They forced 5 in the playoffs last game of last season and forced 2 week 1 this season without committing a TO themselves.

PS - dont listen to Cowherd, lol. JK

 

I don't it lol he popped up my tiktok

 

there in lies the heart of Miami. I love watching the guy play, but I cringe every time he gets hit. He could be a concussion away from retirement. I don’t care about a guy’s retirement, I care about the guys quality of life post football. He’s risking a lot more than a football injury at this point.

 

I care about the guys quality of life post football. He’s risking a lot more than a football injury at this point.


Well said Irish........\+/ (Beer)

 

Anthony Richardson vs. C.J. Stroud will be a rare pair of 21-year-old starting QBs

For just the second time in NFL history, a pair of 21-year-old starting quarterbacks will meet on Sunday.

Indianapolis quarterback Anthony Richardson is leading the Colts to Houston to take on C.J. Stroud and the Texans, and it will be just the second game in NFL history when neither of the starting quarterbacks have turned 22. Stroud will turn 22 on October 3. Richardson won’t turn 22 until May 22.

The only other game in NFL history when both starting quarterbacks were younger than 22 was the Week One Bucs-Titans game in 2015, when Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota were the starters.

Stroud was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and Richardson was the No. 4 pick. This will be the seventh time in NFL history that two rookie starting quarterbacks taken in the Top 5 picks will face off.

PFT