NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Lions sign Devin Funchess



Devin Funchess is back in the state of Michigan.

Funchess grew up in the state and played tight end and wide receiver for the Wolverines en route to becoming a Panthers second-round pick in 2015. He played wide receiver in the NFL, but his return to his old stomping grounds will come at his first position.


The Lions announced that they have signed Funchess as a tight end.

Funchess last played a game with the Colts during the first week of the 2019 season, but broke his collarbone and missed the rest of the year. He signed with the Packers in 2020, but opted out due to COVID and got cut last summer. He spent some time on the 49ers practice squad last year as well.

Funchess has 164 catches for 2,265 yards and 21 touchdowns in 62 career games. He also has nine postseason catches for 152 yards and a touchdown.

PFT

 

Minkah Fitzpatrick now the highest paid safety in the league
18.4 million a season
36 guaranteed

 

49ers elite defensive line could wind up as NFL’s best



The 49ers have built their very good defense from front to back. Heavy investment in the defensive line was key in their Super Bowl run in 2019, and their trip to the NFC championship game a season ago. Now going into 2022 their D-line ranks among the NFL’s elite once again according to Pro Football Focus.

San Francisco lands at No. 6 in PFF’s defensive line rankings, putting them in the ‘Elite’ tier. They’re behind the Buccaneers, Steelers, Packers, Commanders and Rams. Nick Bosa is certainly the star for the 49ers, but it’s their depth that earned them their place in the top tier. Via PFF:

The 49ers have one of the deeper edge rotations in the league with Samson Ebukam, Drake Jackson, Charles Omenihu, Kerry Hyder and Kemoko Turay all competing for snaps on the edge. Nick Bosa will not be in that competition coming off a 2021 season where he ranked seventh at the position in PFF grade, as he’s one of the best all-around edge defenders in the NFL.

Arik Armstead is expected to move back to a primarily interior role, where he’s been better as a pass rusher than run defender over the last four seasons.

With Javon Kinlaw yet to establish himself as an above-average starter on the interior, defensive tackle stands out as the one potential weak point of this unit.

Depth on the edge was key for San Francisco in 2019 when their relentless pass rush wreaked havoc for four quarters against tired offensive lines. That depth took a hit with Dee Ford’s injury, but it improved last year as the season went on and some rotation players settled in.

This year could see a slew of edge defenders step up. Ebukam came on strong to close last year and could be in for a breakout season in 2022. Rookie DE Jackson has all the tools to be a star and is already impressing his teammates. Hyder is back with the team after leading the club in sacks in 2020. Omenihu is one of the players who was more effective later in the year following a mid-season trade, and Turay is a potential breakout candidate after a handful of undrwhelming years with the Colts.

On the inside Armstead played the best football of his career down the stretch last season. If he carries that over and Kinlaw can be healthy for a full year, San Francisco could quickly garner attention as the NFL’s No. 1 defensive line.

NINERS WIRE

 

Mike Vrabel says first-round receiver Treylon Burks has been “unavailable” at minicamp



The Titans traded away wide receiver A.J. Brown with the expectation that first-round rookie receiver Treylon Burks could step in for him immediately. The early returns aren’t looking great.

Burks had to sit out at Organized Team Activities as he dealt with problems related to asthma, and he has missed practices in minicamp as well.


Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said Burks is “unavailable” without giving any specific explanation of what the issue is.

A first-round draft pick is a long-term investment, and it’s way too early to draw any conclusions about what kind of investment Burks will prove to be. But it has to be a disappointment that Burks isn’t able to participate during the offseason, given what high hopes the Titans have for him.

PFT

 

The NFL is allowing teams to wear alternate helmets this season, and the Saints have just unveiled the look they’ll be wearing.

The Saints’ alternate helmets will be black and feature the fleur-de-lis logo in gold, a reversal of the team’s usual helmet color scheme. The Saints said they will wear the helmets for at least one game, and possibly multiple games, but they have not said which games.

 

The Browns alternate...

 

I expected better from you, @Willie .

 

@Lyman

Didnt realize it was that sensitive... done in jest. I'll be more careful in the future. My apologies.

 

Andy Reid: I like the mixture of what we’ve got going at receiver



After trading receiver Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins, the Chiefs are taking a different approach to their receivers in 2022.

The team signed Marquez Valdes-Scantling and JuJu Smith-Schuster in free agency and selected Skyy Moore in the second round of the draft. Mecole Hardman also remains on the roster and is poised to have a bigger role in the team’s offense this year.


At the conclusion of the team’s minicamp on Thursday, head coach Andy Reid said he really liked the way Valdes-Scantling and Smith-Schuster worked during the offseason program.

“They’ve got a nice connection with Pat [Mahomes] up to this point,” Reid said during his press conference. “I’ll be curious to see how [that continues] when it’s live bullets and all that stuff. So we’ll see how that rolls. But I wouldn’t expect anything much different than what I’ve been seeing. And the other guys, too, that have worked in there — Mecole has upped his game here and done a nice job. And our young kid, Skyy, mixed there has been good. So I like the mixture of what we’ve got going.”

Reid added that Moore has big, strong hands and “catches everything.”

“He looks strong. You see that, the way he’s built physically. But I’d say that transfers,” Reid said. “And he’s a good route runner. Smart kid. Seemed to pick it up well.”

There is a lot of time before the Chiefs begin the season against the Cardinals on Sept. 11 and the offense could significantly evolve by then. But at this point, Kansas City appears optimistic that the receiving corps should be able to compete well in 2022.

PFT

 

Well, that didn't last long... In late May, the Falcons signed RB Jeremy McNichols, who had played for head coach Arthur Smith when both were with the Titans.

Three weeks later, McNichols has been released. The Falcons released him along with former practice squad WR Austin Trammell to make room for a pair of linemen who were invited to try out at minicamp.

Jonotthan Harrison is now in the mix at center. He's attempting to return to form after an Achilles' injury. Defensive lineman Jalen Dalton was originally a UDFA for the Bears. Atlanta has been loading up on recent Bears players, as former Chicago GM Ryan Pace is now part of Atlanta's front office. Dalton hasn't seen actioin in the regular season mainly due to repeated biceps injuries. He was with the Saints earlier this offseason but was released in a post-draft roster move.

 

You don't need to apologize for anything. Lyman's just being a big b*tch. The Browns have been bad for most of his life, and clearly are in the midst of a potential historic screwup. I'm sure it doesn't feel good, as a Browns fan, but if you're going to be on a sports message board, you can expect people to joke about it. Getting all bent out of shape and scolding people for it is entirely unnecessary.

It's especially silly coming from a guy that's more than happy to take shots at other posters / teams when he feels like it. Maybe he's just having a rough day, and he's welcome to it, but that's not on you. It was a Charlie Brown helmet, for gosh sakes.

 

My favorite thing about Ryan Pace is that he's not my problem anymore.

 

Dennis Allen calls Taysom Hill a “multiple-position player”



Former Saints coach Sean Payton saw potential in Taysom Hill as a dual-threat option as a full-time quarterback. Hill spent the 2021 offseason training at the position but lost the starting job to Jameis Winston.

Winston’s season-ending knee injury allowed Hill to start a career-high five games at quarterback last season. Hill also started four other games at either wide receiver or tight end.


New Saints coach Dennis Allen said in March that Hill’s focus would be at tight end with Winston as their starting quarterback and Andy Dalton as the primary backup.

But the do-it-all Swiss Army knife still is going to get snaps at quarterback and other positions, Allen said Thursday.

“I look at Taysom Hill as a weapon in a lot of different areas,” Allen said, via video from Jack Culotta Jr. of Boot Krewe Media. “We talk all the time about position-less players on defense. I don’t know that ‘position-less’ is the right word for Taysom. He’s a multiple-position player. I look at him as a weapon in the passing game. I look at him as a weapon playing at the quarterback position. I look at him with the ball in his hands. I look at him on special teams in a lot of different areas. And so there’s a ton of places where Taysom Hill can help this football team win, and we want to utilize him in all those different roles.”

Hill has played quarterback, receiver, tight end, running back and on special teams.

In 2018, Hill played only 64 of his 661 total snaps, including special teams, at quarterback, per Pro Football Focus. A year later, Hill played only 41 of 528 total snaps at quarterback. It sounds as if that’s the direction Hill’s career is returning.

In his time as a quarterback, Hill has completed 64.2 percent of his passes for 2,025 yards with eight touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Former Saints quarterback Drew Brees has said Hill should get “10 to 15 snaps at quarterback a game at a minimum, just with the threat he is.”

PFT

 

Mike McCarthy fined, Cowboys docked an OTA day in 2023 for physical practices



For the second consecutive offseason, the NFL Management Council has disciplined the Cowboys for violating the Collective Bargaining Agreement’s rules governing offseason work.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said the team was penalized for physical OTA practices.


Todd Archer of ESPN reports the Cowboys will lose an organized team activity day for 2023 and coach Mike McCarthy will pay a $100,000 fine.

The Cowboys were one of three teams found in violation last year, with the team paying a $100,000 fine and McCarthy a $50,000 fine. They also lost an OTA day for this offseason as a result.

McCarthy later said the Cowboys were trying to do things right way.

“I think there were seven to nine plays that we looked at as a group, and frankly, the majority of them involved younger players, so to me it’s a learning experience,” McCarthy said last summer. “I think like anything in life, if you’re punished for trying to do too much the right way as opposed to not doing enough the right way, I think that’s a healthy experience to learn from.”

PFT

 

How Jaquan Brisker has impressed Bears during first NFL offseason

LAKE FOREST – When Matt Eberflus, Ryan Poles, and the Bears’ staff turned on Jaquan Brisker’s tape, they saw an old-school safety who exemplified the M&M philosophy they want to shape their version of the Bears.

Through six weeks of his first NFL offseason, Brisker has been everything they hoped for and more.

“He’s been really good, really good,” Eberflus said Thursday at Halas Hall after the Bear wrapped up mandatory minicamp. “In fact, I was just talking to [defensive coordinator] Alan Williams about him on the field, and we're just so thrilled with his talent, you know, with his mental makeup and just the person he is and where he is in his development so far up until this point.

“He's picking up the defense,” Eberflus said later. “He's picking up the defense, he's communicating with others. He's right on pace there, so we're excited for him.”

Brisker has been running with the first team all offseason. The Penn State product isn’t surprised by how quickly the Bears are throwing things at him. He had no doubt his time in Happy Valley prepared him to contribute on an NFL field immediately.

“I feel like I grew in the playbook,” Brisker said Thursday when asked where he has made the most significant improvement since being drafted. “I got better and more comfortable and know what I'm doing, know what my teammates are doing. You know, and just playing fast.”

The Bears believe Brisker, a hard-hitting safety, is the perfect complement to veteran safety Eddie Jackson, who is at his best when he can be a free-roaming playmaker in the backend.

Together, it’s easy to see Brisker and Jackson being a ferocious safety duo that serves as the backbone for Eberflus’ turnover-focused defense.

“Just having that connection, you know, on and off the field,” Brisker responded when asked why he and Jackson could be successful. “Just knowing we're going to be teammates and things like that and just trusting each other, and when you have trust in each other, we're able to play fast.”

The Bears had one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL last season. However, with the addition of Brisker and fellow second-round pick Kyler Gordon, Eberflus and Poles have seemingly taken a weakness and turned it into a strength with two shrewd selections.

Both rookies have shown a knack for creating turnovers this offseason. But it’s Brisker, who had unanimous support in the Bears’ draft room, who has Halas Hall buzzing with his versatility, intensity, and high football IQ.

“We kind of have some similarities,” Jackson said of Brisker. “He tells me he likes to be in the box. Just having that right there, he wants to be in there and I can be in the back and be free. We can switch it at any time, but just having some similarities is going to be fun.”

In the long run, a successful first OTA and minicamp period doesn’t mean much for Brisker or the Bears.

But the rookie safety has made the most of the first-team reps in the offseason and is on the fast track to being exactly what the Bears envisioned – a tone-setting safety who can free up Jackson to rediscover his All-Pro form.

If that comes to fruition, Eberflus will have the first piece to what may very well be the next great Bears defense.

YAHOO

 

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson already raving about Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum



The Baltimore Ravens earned immediate praise after selecting Iowa Hawkeyes center Tyler Linderbaum with the No. 25 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft.

NFL.com’s Chad Reuter and Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski both gave the Ravens’ pick a grade of “A+.” Sports Illustrated’s Kevin Hanson and FOX Sports’ Rob Rang each awarded the Linderbaum pick a grade of “A,” while The Athletic’s Sheil Kapadia assessed the selection as an “A-.”

Ultimately, though, the most important piece of the puzzle is how the Ravens view the addition of Linderbaum. The early returns on that front have been incredibly positive.

ESPN’s Jamison Hensley touched in May on how Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and the organization feels about the type of impact Linderbaum will have on star quarterback Lamar Jackson’s ability to make plays.

“When [Jackson] can extend the play, it’s just electric; that’s kind of his brilliance, and that’s when the field opens up for him in a lot of different ways. Lamar is going to appreciate [Linderbaum’s] ability to sustain a block and extend the play,” Harbaugh said then.

Now, following the Ravens’ second minicamp practice, Jackson is sounding off on what’s impressed him about Linderbaum already.

“The chemistry is great, chemistry’s great. And I throw an interception yesterday, Daelin (Hayes) was taking it back to the house, to the other way. I was kind of paused, talking to (Duvernay) during the play, and my center Tyler (Linderbaum) was getting after it, like he was running him down, so I’d just say he’s fast. He’s fast as heck for a center. Man, I ain’t ever seen a center run like that. He’s a football player,” Jackson said.

Hearing about Linderbaum’s deceptive speed and his motor on a play like that won’t shock Iowa fans. They saw firsthand the past three seasons why Linderbaum ended up as a unanimous consensus All-American and the program’s first Rimington Trophy winner.

Linderbaum understands the task at hand now in Baltimore.

“My job is to protect him [Jackson]; I’m excited to get that opportunity. Every snap, every down, I’m going to have to bring it, because obviously it’s a tough league. Every guy across from me is going to be tough. But just the mentality I’m going to bring, just that gritty toughness, physical, I’m going to bring it just to protect him and keep him safe,” Linderbaum said in May.

It’s exciting to see this next chapter in Linderbaum’s football career unfolding. If it’s anything like his time in Iowa City, Ravens fans will understand quickly why Linderbaum is beloved by fans of the black and gold.

YAHOO

 

Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said that running back Ezekiel Elliott has had a "tremendous offseason." Quarterback Dak Prescott said he expects Elliott to have his best season in 2022. "I think the biggest thing with Zeke is he's completely healthy now and he's had a tremendous offseason," McCarthy said. The three-time Pro Bowler had a career-low 237 carries for 1,002 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns, while adding 47 receptions for 287 yards and two more TDs through the air in 17 regular season games. The 26-year-old had his workload managed in the second half of the season while dealing with nagging injuries, and backup Tony Pollard looked more explosive a lot of the time. Elliott has reached 1,000 yards rushing in four of his six NFL seasons, but even if he's healthy, Pollard figures to continue cutting into his workload, making him an RB2 now instead of a clear RB1.--Keith Hernandez - RotoBaller

 

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Gabriel Davis continued to be a consistent target for quarterback Josh Allen at mandatory minicamp practice on Tuesday, and he is stepping back into a starting role as the No. 2 wideout after spending most of last year backing up veteran Emmanuel Sanders. Davis has caught 35 passes each of the last two years, and he had 201 receiving yards in the AFC Championship loss to the Chiefs. The 23-year-old isn't expected to have a challenger for the role in training camp, and it's been obvious all spring that Allen has faith in Davis. "The dude just works," Allen said of Davis. "He just works hard. He's a great dude. Selfless." Davis will be a great WR3 target with plenty of upside in 2022 fantasy drafts.--Keith Hernandez - RotoBaller

 

So far the signings related to Ryan Pace have just been a bunch of one-year rent-a-players, but with Atlanta's cap situation (most dead money in league history) those cheap guys with at least a bit of experience are exactly what we need to get us through this year.

Phil Emery isn't Chicago's problem anymore either. He's one that I'm VERY happy to have back in Atlanta. He was outstanding as our Director of College Scouting from 2004-2008 and made an obvious difference in our drafts when he returned in 2016.

 

Washington just got hit with penalties for too much contact in minicamp/OTAs.

The fine for Ron Rivera? $100,000, exactly the same amount Rivera fined Del Rio.