NFL - NEWS & NOTES

I'm still trying to decide whether this is good or bad...

I love football and it adds another week to enjoy, but it also adds another possible week of injuries. Now that the Browns are actually playoff contenders, that extra week can be costly. Before, it didn't matter since they were going to be done at the end of the season anyway.

As far as the league, it adds a lot of money, for both the owners and in turn the players. I'm not sure what the players are complaining about. My only hope is that they reduce the pre-season games to 2 instead of 3. Any word on that decision yet?

 

I heard its locked at 3 pre-season games for this upcoming season.
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Im not sure either if this is a good thing, but for what its worth, we are going to see. Going to need some deep rosters and rotational players for sure.

 

A lot of records that have been set are probably going to fall also. There will be a lot of these (*) involved. Records like passing yards in a single seaon, rushing... stuff like that.

 

In 20 years it won't matter... Just like when they went from 14 games to 16 games.

 

Bills sign Marquel Lee



The Bills doubled down on linebackers Wednesday.

They announced the signing of Marquel Lee on Wednesday afternoon. That news came after they agreed to a deal with linebacker Tyrell Adams earlier in the day.

Lee comes to Buffalo after being out of the league last season. He was a 2017 fifth-round pick of the Raiders and spent three seasons with them before being waived with a failed physical designation last August.

Lee had 104 tackles, six tackles for loss, and three quarterback hits while appearing in 34 games for the Raiders. He started 19 of those contests and saw regular playing time on special teams.

NBC

 

Seahawks extend Tyler Lockett



The Seahawks are locking up Tyler Lockett for the prime of his career.

Lockett and the Seahawks have agreed to a four-year contract extension, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.

The deal is reportedly for $69.2 million over four years, with $37 million guaranteed, although those numbers need more context to give a complete view of what the contract means for the Seahawks. It’s highly likely that the deal reduces Lockett’s 2021 cap hit, as the Seahawks need to create cap space this season and Lockett had been slated to count $14.95 million against the salary cap this year.

The 28-year-old Lockett has been with the Seahawks since they selected him in the third round of the 2015 NFL draft. Last year he had a career-high 100 catches but a career-low 10.5 yards per catch. He totaled 1,054 yards and 10 touchdowns.

With Lockett now under contract well into his 30s and D.K. Metcalf having two years left on his rookie deal, the Seahawks have a good chance of keeping a good pair of receivers playing together for years to come.

NBC

 

Chris Reed to sign with Colts



The Colts have added another veteran to their offensive line.

Per NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero, Indianapolis is signing guard Chris Reed to a one-year veteran benefit deal.

Reed spent last season as Carolina’s left guard, starting 14 games for the club. The Panthers claimed him off waivers in December 2019 after the offensive lineman had spent most of the season with the Dolphins. He appeared in five games for Miami.

Reed began his career with the Jaguars as an undrafted free agent out of Minnesota State in 2015. He played 25 games for the club in three seasons with eight starts.

The Colts have now addressed their offensive line this offseason by adding Reed, Sam Tevi, and Julién Davenport.

NBC

 

Falcons will play home game in London



The Falcons will serve as the home team in an October game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, the team announced Thursday.

The NFL will announce the exact date of the game as well as the Falcons’ non-divisional opponent when it releases the 2021 schedule in May. The Lions, Patriots, Jets, Eagles and the Washington Football Team are the Falcons’ home games outside the division.

That means the Falcons will play two preseason homes games and seven regular-season games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2021. Falcons season ticket holders will receive a credit for the lost home game.

The NFL announced this week that beginning in 2022 every team will play a home game outside the United States at least once every eight years as part of the league’s International Series. Additional teams, such as the Jaguars, may volunteer to play more international games than required.

The Falcons’ previously played in London in 2014, facing the Lions.

Starting in 2005, the NFL has played four regular-season games in Mexico City, six in Toronto and 28 in London. The league canceled its international games in 2020 because of the pandemic.

NBC

 

Watson charges now up to 21 civil and now 1 criminal

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/...lawsuits-qb-also-hit-with-criminal-complaint/

If teams were not scared off before odds are they are now.

One of the defenses Watsons team is using is the testimony of 18 massage therapist who worked with watson and had no problems with him.

Of course the timeline is unknown but to me 39 massage therapist seems a bit high. If you had a good one that was doing legit massages only wouldnt you use the same one over and over? I dont know but its a messy sitiuation that is only going to get messier. Is there any teams still interested in Watson?

 

NFL to vote on expanding rule penalizing blocking below the waist



More flags on blocks below the waist may be thrown in 2021, if a new rule proposal passes.

The NFL owners will vote on a rule that would greatly expand the prohibition on blocking below the waist, making such blocks illegal by offensive and defensive players if contact occurs beyond five yards on either side of the line of scrimmage and more than two yards outside of either offensive tackle.

Former NFL referee Terry McAulay, who analyzes officiating for NBC Sports, says the new rule would be a significant change, noting that it would give the NFL more restrictions against blocking below the waist than the NCAA has.

All such illegal blocks would carry a 15-yard penalty.

This might result in more flags being thrown, but it also might result in fewer lower body injuries, as players often complain that when their opponents block them low, it risks serious knee injuries. When the Competition Committee proposes a rule for player safety, the NFL owners rarely vote it down, so this rule has a good chance of passing.

NBC

 

Lions signing Quinton Dunbar to one-year deal



The Lions are signing free agent cornerback Quinton Dunbar to a one-year deal, according to Dunbar’s representation, Elite Loyalty Sports.

Dunbar and Will Parks were visitors to the Lions on Monday, and Dunbar and new defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn hit it off, Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports.

Dunbar reunites with position coach Aubrey Pleasant, who was with Dunbar in Washington for two seasons.

Dunbar, 28, spent last season in Seattle after a trade from Washington. He played six games, starting all six, with a knee injury landing Dunbar on injured reserve.

He played for Washington for five seasons, appearing in 58 games with 25 starts.

In his career, Dunbar has totaled 180 tackles, 10 interceptions and 40 pass breakups.

NBC

 

I don't know why but he has such a name that to me screams Lions like he's been on the team his whole career.

 

Bills agree to terms with Forrest Lamp



The Bills have added more depth for their offensive line, agreeing to terms with guard Forrest Lamp on a one-year deal.

The Chargers selected Lamp in the second round back in 2017, but he missed his rookie season after tearing his ACL during training camp.

While Lamp was able to get through the 2018 season healthy, he suffered a broken leg in 2019 and missed much of the year.

But Lamp served as the Chargers’ starting left guard in 2020, appearing in all 16 games for the first time.

The Bills previously added Jamil Douglas and Bobby Hart to provide depth along their offensive line this offseason.

NBC

 

Bengals cut Giovani Bernard



Veteran running back Giovani Bernard will hit free agency.

The Bengals announced today that they have released Bernard.

The move was no surprise, as Cincinnati had been looking to trade Bernard but not finding any takers.

Cutting Bernard will save the Bengals more than $4 million against this year’s cap. The Bengals are in good cap shape, but given that starting running back Joe Mixon has a cap number of more than $8.1 million, keeping Bernard at a price tag of more than $4 million would have been too much to commit at running back.

With Mixon injured for most of the 2020 season, Bernard played all 16 games and started 10 of them last year, but he had a fairly disappointing season running the ball, gaining just 416 yards on 124 carries. However, he did add 47 catches for 355 yards, and a team looking for a running back who can provide a receiving threat may be interested.

NBC

 

The Buffalo Bill's just keep adding depth and improving there team, while the Vikings it's a mess like they don't know what hell there doing...got this Jeff Gladney Drama going on ( sigh )

 

I think this was more about diminishing skills than salary cap.. Aren't the Bengals about $20M under the cap?

 

I read an article yesterday that proclaimed the Bills as having the best FO in the NFL. Beane and McDermitt have hit on most of their moves. They have an identity and stick to it; it also helps to have a winning and fun environment. That makes the Bills a very appealing destination.

Oh, I like the Lamp signing.

 

I really don't know who in the NFC North got better. No one?

I mean the Lions at least are in rebuild mode so they have that excuse. Vikings have def not done any worse than the Bears & Packers imo, but it doesnt look like an overly strong division to me right now.

 

Can anyone think of a time when the Lions were not in "rebuild mode"? Where's George Plimpton?

 

They won a championship in the 50’s