NFL - NEWS & NOTES

The NFL has really needed a developmental league, particularly with the 2011 CBA cutting back on the number of preseason practices. If it lasts, the XFL might be a perfect substitute.[/QUOTE]
Now this is what the NFL needed was a developmental league this is what i thought the AAF would be at least the players are getting some playing time nice start hope it gets better oh luv the XFL football

 

Maybe I'm missing something but seems pretty strange that the executive committee worked with the league to create the deal but then voted against it? Was that the backlash it received once it went public?

 

I think one of the players' motivations is that it could cost a bunch of veterans jobs. Without a new CBA meaningful contract restructures / extensions can't happen and the only other option will be to start cutting players to free up cap space. A guy like Mark Barron could end up on the street when in reality I really think the Steelers were pretty happy with him the second half of the year.

 

I think it boils down to the NFLPA just deciding there is a chance they can get more... so they want the talks to continue some more, if I understand the cat n mouse game they are playing. It seemed like both sides were in a close agreement but once the season started and some time went by, the Players think they can actually get more than what was originally thought.

 

per, NBC

Appearing Sunday on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Alexander explained the disconnect between the Executive Committee negotiating the deal that currently is being considered by the league, while also voting 6-5 not to recommend the deal to union membership.

“A lot of guys were part of the initial conversations, especially in the offseason,” Alexander said. “Then once the season started, obviously you had to go to football. And I think through that time, the process as far as where we’re at I think some guys feel like we can get more, and I think that’s what it’s more about. It’s not like we were a part of the process, now we don’t like it. I think some guys have different opinions as far as what we can get and the leverage that we may still have or may not have. And so that’s in discussion as well. And so the owners said, ‘This is our best offer.’ And some guys may feel a certain type of away about that, and some guys may feel a different way. So I think that’s more of where you get the disconnect as far as it being a split. And that’s how diverse our group is, once again.”

That’s an important quote. Beyond confirming the reality that the current offer isn’t the league’s first offer but the result of months of negotiation (and eventual agreement) with the Executive Committee, Alexander has confirmed that some members of the Executive Committee are resisting the current deal simply because they think they can go back to the table and ask for more.

This will make the NFL’s position in response to the effort to undo and redo a deal that the league considers to be done so important. Will the league say, “Gentlemen, we already have negotiated this deal, the only question is whether your members will honor it”? Or will the league say, “OK, we’ll rip up this deal and redo the terms and give you another deal and then risk that you’ll come back again and ask to rip it up in order to get even more”?

Alexander’s comments suggest that the union is simply trying at this point to get a better deal, recognizing that there’s no cost in trying — but that there’s a huge potential cost in eventually trying to endure a work stoppage.

 

The Chiefs don’t want Chris Jones to get away and for good reason.

The defensive lineman is the fourth-rated player on PFT’s top-100 list of free agents, behind only quarterbacks.

The Chiefs will use the franchise tag on Jones, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports.

The team expects to get a long-term deal completed with Jones at some point.

Jones, 25, made 36 tackles, nine sacks and a forced fumble last season in earning his first Pro Bowl nod.

In his four-year career since the Chiefs made him a second-round choice, Jones has 136 tackles, 33 sacks and seven forced fumbles.

NBC

 

Hello, Hello. Hopefully I'm not as busy as I've been the last month going forward. I never thought I'd be this busy while NOT working.

 

Maybe it's just me but the combine looks like a meat market,Fred the sled is dead RIP laughing

 

Why did Broncos General Manager John Elway say running back Philip Lindsay would have to wait until after free agency before the team would consider renegotiating his contract? Perhaps because Elway thinks the team may upgrade at running back in free agency.

Mike Klis of 9 News in Denver reports that the Broncos have interest in some of the top free agent running backs. Klis names Derrick Henry, Kenyan Drake, Melvin Gordon, Carlos Hyde and Jordan Howard among the running backs the Broncos would consider.

NFL teams have recently found that the running back position just isn’t that valuable, and fewer of them are willing to spend a lot of money on running backs. But Elway, who won two Super Bowls as a player in large part by handing off to Hall of Fame running back Terrell Davis, may not see it that way.

The Broncos are in the top quarter of the NFL in salary cap space, with about $70 million available. That’s good news for veteran running backs hoping for a big payday.

NBC

 

Plenty of people were waiting to find out if Drew Brees was going to play in 2020, but at least one person had a heads up on the Saints quarterback’s decision before he went public with it last month.

During an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, wide receiver Michael Thomas said he heard from Brees about a week before he announced his return. Once he knew that was the case, Thomas’ mind turned to other questions related to making Brees’ season a successful one.

“I already knew he was coming back,” Thomas said. “I can keep a secret. That’s my guy. As long as I knew it was back to the drawing board. How can we get him where he deserves to be? How can I become a better player to be even more dynamic and a better weapon for him on the outside when he looks for me? How can I create more value to this team?”

After setting an NFL single-season record with 149 catches that went for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns, it’s hard to imagine what Thomas’ 2020 season would look like if he’s an even better weapon for the Saints. Opposing defense will likely be hoping that they don’t have to find out.

NBC

 

Chris Harris is guaranteed to be on the open market now.

 

Saw on twitter that ESPN wants Peyton Manning on MNF. And is even talking to NBC about buying Al Michaels contract to pair him with Manning.

With Mike Tirico sitting behind Michaels to take his place.....this is seriously a win/win for football fans.

 

...and please, no more guys named 'Booger'.

 

The waiting game has ended. Now comes the voting.

Per a league source, voting has indeed opened on the new labor deal. All dues-paying members of the NFL Players Association from the 2019 season will be eligible to vote. The voting with occur electronically, and the votes will be reviewed by an independent auditor.

The voting remains open until next Thursday, March 12, at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Asked what this means for the NFL’s franchise/transition tag deadline, which expires earlier that same day and which has opened under the rules of the existing CBA (i.e., each team can use one of each tag, not one or the other), the source said, “They’ll have to move it.”

The CBA will be ratified if more than 50 percent of all ballots cast favor the deal.

NBC

 

Eagles hire Marty Mornhinweg as senior offensive consultant

Marty Mornhinweg is back with the Eagles.

The team announced on Thursday that Mornhinweg is joining head coach Doug Pederson’s staff as a senior offensive consultant. Mornhinweg was on the Eagles staff from 2003-2012 and served as their offensive coordinator for the last seven of those seasons.

Pederson was also on Philadelphia’s staff from 2009-2012 and played for the Packers when Mornhinweg was the team’s quarterbacks coach in the mid-1990s.

“He gets what we’re doing. He gets my vision. He understands my philosophy,” Pederson said in a statement. “He understands what my goal is and what my vision is for this offense.”

The Eagles have not hired an offensive coordinator since firing Mike Groh after the end of the season. They have also hired former Broncos offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello and added pass game coordinator to quarterbacks coach Press Taylor’s title.

Mornhinweg’s last job was as the Ravens offensive coordinator from 2016 until he was replaced by Greg Roman after the 2018 season.

NBC

 

New York Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams was arrested at LaGuardia Airport in New York City and charged with criminal possession of a weapon, according to multiple reports.

Williams was arrested at the airport after trying to board a flight at approximately 9:15 p.m. ET. Williams was in possession of a gun that had an Alabama permit.

Williams was the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft last year by the Jets. The former University of Alabama standout was being processed by the Port Authority Police Department on Thursday night before the case gets referred to the Queens District Attorney’s Office.

Williams appeared in 13 games with nine starts for the Jets during his rookie season. He recorded 28 tackles with 2.5 sacks.

NBC

 

Amari Cooper‘s future is very much in doubt.

The Cowboys may or may not have a franchise tag and a transition tag to use with both Dak Prescott and Cooper scheduled to become free agents. They want to keep both players but face the prospect of Cooper hitting the market.

Cooper, though, repeated Thursday what he has said for the past year: He wants to stay with the Cowboys.

“I love being a Dallas Cowboy,” Cooper said Thursday night on 105.3 The Fan. “I think about it almost every day. Just the aura of being a Dallas Cowboy, you can’t beat it. I want to be a Dallas Cowboy for life.”

Cooper also said last season was the toughest he’s had in regards to injuries, but he’s fully healthy now and working out.

He spent much of 2019 on the injury report, with injuries to a foot, a quadriceps, an ankle and a knee. Cooper played in every game, making 79 catches for 1,189 yards and eight touchdowns.

NBC

 

Austin Ekeler agrees to four-year extension with Chargers



Running back Austin Ekeler won’t be leaving the Chargers this offseason and he won’t be back under the terms of a restricted free agent tender.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Ekeler has agreed to a four-year contract extension with the Chargers. The deal is worth $24.5 million deal and includes $15 million in guaranteed money.

Ekeler joined the team as an undrafted free agent in 2017 and moved into a key role on the team’s offense over the last two years. Ekeler ran 132 times for 557 yards and caught 92 passes for 993 yards while notching 11 overall touchdowns during the 2019 season.

Ekeler was No. 95 on our list of this year’s top free agents — Taysom Hill is the only other impending restricted free agent to make the top 100 –while teammate Melvin Gordon ranks as No. 41 on the same list. The fact that the Chargers never extended Gordon’s contract while he was holding out last year was one sign that a new deal in L.A. wasn’t in the cards and the Ekeler news probably doesn’t make it any likelier.

NBC

 

NFLPA electing new president on Tuesday

With the window wide open for voting on a new CBA, the NFL Players Association will be electing a new president.

Eric Winston’s term is ending, and he’s not eligible to run because he’s been out of the league the past two season. The vote on a new president happens on Tuesday, as part of the annual union meetings that open on Sunday.

To be eligible to run, a player must be nominated by a member of the board of player representatives. If no candidate has a majority of the 32 board of player representatives votes on the first ballot, the person receiving the lowest number of votes is eliminated from the next ballot. The process continues until someone has a majority of the board’s votes.

Only Russell Okung has declared his intention to run. He has made his opposition to the current CBA obvious and clear.

With the new CBA at the voting stage, the new president can’t undo that part of the process. But he could use his new platform to strongly urge all players to vote no, even if a no vote on the CBA is a no vote on the judgment of NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith, who negotiated the deal.

NBC