Category: NFL News

Quarterbacks are important. There’s no disputing that. It’s why NFL teams are so quick to reset the position’s market when locking up even relatively unproven signal-callers for the long haul.

Oftentimes, however, a quarterback is only as effective as his supporting cast. There are a select number of transcendent talents, to be sure: Put Patrick Mahomes on any franchise, and his track record of NFL stardom suggests he’d elevate any lineup. Still, the easiest way to project a quarterback’s success is by looking at what’s around him, both on the field and on the sidelines.

Here, we’re ranking the 10 best quarterback situations entering the 2024 season, accounting for 1) skill weapons, 2) offensive linemen, 3) coaches and 4) defensive support, in roughly that order. Just because a quarterback has an enviable situation, of course, doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed a Super Bowl run; an elite setup has the ability to simply make a lesser passer competitive.

All that said, here are the teams doing the most to support their quarterback going into the season:

Wild cards

Atlanta Falcons

There’s a lot of upside, to be sure, with Robinson likely to take a bigger role as the do-it-all dual threat. The coaches are intriguing. Is there enough out wide to truly aid Cousins and meet his big-money expectations?

Buffalo Bills

For all the questions thrown the Bills’ way after their complete overhaul of Allen’s receiving corps, this isn’t as barren an infrastructure as you might think: Cook is an explosive dual threat out of the backfield, and Kincaid has the upside to be a Pro Bowl pass catcher at tight end. Still, in today’s NFL, it’s tough to outgun the best of the best when you’re lacking a bona fide No. 1 on the outside.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Etienne might be an All-Pro in a bigger market, while Kirk, Davis and Engram all serve functionally as No. 2-level outlets. The question is, how much can the line and…

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The Vikings now have both of their first-round picks under contract.

After it was reported on Friday that quarterback J.J. McCarthy had agreed to terms with Minnesota, the club announced on Sunday that McCarthy and linebacker Dallas Turner have each signed their rookie deals.

The Vikings traded up to select McCarthy at No. 10 overall and then traded back into the first round to select Turner at No. 17.

Turner, 21, was the SEC co-defensive player of the year in 2023 for his performance in his last year at Alabama. He finished the season tied for the conference lead with 10 sacks and a team-high 14.5 tackles for loss.

McCarthy and Turner put pen to paper after reporting for training camp this weekend.

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Davante Adams didn’t rule out a reunion with Aaron Rodgers when asked recently about rumors of his trade availability. It turns out Rodgers isn’t the only big-name quarterback Adams would be interested in playing with, however, with the Las Vegas Raiders star telling Shannon Sharpe’s “Club Shay Shay” podcast he’d like to lure Tom Brady out of retirement.

“Hell yes,” Adams laughed, when asked about the longtime New England Patriots signal-caller. “You gonna talk about how old he is. I don’t care. I don’t care. … I think I’d be the first person to play with Tom and Aaron [Rodgers]. So that’d be pretty cool. He’s gotta still be able to throw it better than half these dudes in the league.”

Adams added that he’d welcome Brady, who turns 47 in August, even if he were “58.”

It just so happens that Brady already has a direct connection to Adams’ team, as the seven-time Super Bowl champion has been vying for a minority ownership stake in the Raiders since last offseason. Brady himself also hinted at another comeback earlier this year, specifically mentioning the Raiders as a possibility. Since then, however, he’s put more public focus on his upcoming broadcasting job with Fox Sports.

For now, all parties involved in the big-name gossip appear to be entrenched: Brady in retirement, Rodgers with the New York Jets, and Adams with the Raiders, with the latter also telling Sharpe he’s “locked in” with Las Vegas. Just don’t consider Adams uninterested if the opportunity arises to spice things up under center.

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Sometimes, reality shows can be a little too real.

The Giants are experiencing that this month, with Hard Knocks showing the world way too much about the inner workings of an NFL team during the crucial stages of the offseason. The Lions might be getting a little taste of it as well.

During the first episode of Receiver on Netflix, receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown reveals that he suffered an oblique injury in Week 3 against the Falcons. The next game came only four days later, against the Packers.

“We have a Thursday game after Atlanta,” St. Brown explains. “So, I can barely — I mean, I’m running but the pain is like, on a 10 it’s like at an eight. Eight or nine. And so I’m like, ‘It’s too late for me not to play. The game plan’s in.’ Painkillers is something I really don’t like to take unless — unless it’s the Packers.”

St. Brown did indeed play. But he didn’t appear on any of the three injury reports preceding the game.

He caught five passes for 56 yards against the Packers, including a touchdown that resulted in beer being poured on his helmet.

The question now becomes whether the league will drench the Lions with some belated scrutiny, given that St. Brown clearly was injured (he missed the next game because of it) and the Lions failed to disclose it prior to Week 4.

The issue easily could have been avoided in the editing of the episode. They didn’t need to include the fact that the injury originally happened in Week 3.

But they did. Now, the league has to deal with it. Or not. Either way, the situation proves yet again that the injury reports are far from effective and inside information is rampant.

In this case, anyone who knew about the injury could have bet on St. Brown to hit the under on his receiving yards prop of 72.5 yards.

So, again, the NFL can either be proactive and shore up these problems. Or it can wait for the shit to hit the fan, before acting surprised to find smelly brown flecks of fecal matter all over the place.

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The Buffalo Bills underwent as much change this offseason as almost any team in the NFL. Ahead of free agency, they parted ways with numerous long-time defensive stalwarts. Soon after, they traded star wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans. 

They obviously made several additions to replace the departed players — including Keon Coleman and Curtis Samuel at receiver, Cole Bishop at safety and DeWayne Carter at defensive tackle — but it is nevertheless generally considered a transition year for the team as it looks to clear its books and prepare for the next phase of the Josh Allen era. 

As a result, the Bills aren’t quite thought of as the 1B to the Chiefs’ 1A in the AFC as they have been over the last few years. Buffalo’s over-under of 10.5 wins is third highest in the NFL, but the Bills only have the league’s seventh-best Super Bowl odds, and the fourth best among AFC teams. (Behind Kansas City, as well as the Ravens and Bengals.)

But all of that is just fine with the man tasked with protecting Allen’s blind side, left tackle Dion Dawkins. 

“There is a lot of guys that are not there. But this is the NFL,” Dawkins said during an appearance on NFL Network. “Guys come, guys go, guys have to be ready. I think regardless of who is in those spots, we know that they’re gonna give it their all. You know like, 14 [Diggs], 21 [Jordan Poyer], 23 [Micah Hyde] … all those numbers might not have those same faces, but we’re shooting for the stars.

“Everybody is counting us out, which I’m cool with. We can fly underneath that radar and hit everybody with uppercuts. I’m perfectly fine with it, but I’m gonna support those guys from a distance. It’s definitely different, and I’m still adjusting to it. I’m trying to answer it, but I’m just adjusting to it every day, because it is different, man. It really is.”

It’s hard to say that you’re truly flying under the radar when…

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49ers reveal traditional, throwback jersey schedule for 2024 season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

As Deion Sanders’ old saying goes, “If you look good, you feel good. If you feel good, you play good.”

The 49ers know they’ll be looking great this season. The team announced its uniform schedule for the 2024 NFL season Thursday, revealing three games when San Francisco will be wearing its throwback uniforms.

The 49ers’ classic home uniforms will make an appearance twice at Levi’s Stadium against a pair of top NFC foes: the Dallas Cowboys in Week 8 and the Detroit Lions in Week 17. Last season, San Francisco went 1-1 in those jerseys, beating the New York Giants but falling to the Baltimore Ravens.

In Week 6, the team’s all-white throwbacks will return — in a familiar place. After a Thanksgiving Day 31-13 win on the road over the Seattle Seahawks in 2023, the 49ers are running it back in the following season at Lumen Field.

For the rest of its schedule, San Francisco is sticking to its red jerseys at home and white on the road — but with one notable exception.

The 49ers appeared to make a subtle statement last season by wearing their red home look on the road at SoFi Stadium in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Rams. That game ended in a 30-23 win for San Francisco.

In 2024, the 49ers will again visit its division rival at SoFi — also known as “Levi’s South” due to the large presence of road fans attending that yearly matchup — while wearing those same red uniforms normally worn at home.

San Francisco clearly expects the 49ers Faithful to show up again for that Week 3 matchup, as the team continues to establish its home away from home down in Inglewood.

Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast

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Quarterbacks and rookies already reported to Kansas City Chiefs training camp on Wednesday, which allowed three-time Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes to test out his connection with rookie running back Louis Rees-Zammit, a European rugby star who ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash at the NFL’s International Player Pathway pro day.

Rees-Zammit, who starred at winger for the British and Irish Lions before transitioning to American football, and he caught a swing pass out of the backfield early in camp on Wednesday. 

The European import could also end up helping Kansas City in the return game on special teams following the NFL implementing a new kickoff format geared to create more returns. 

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Caleb Williams remains unsigned as lawyers haggle over final language of his contract: Report originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

The city of Chicago rejoiced in the finalization of Caleb Williams’ signed, four-year, rookie contract, cementing him as the franchise’s signal caller and ushering in a new era.

Until Wednesday morning, when Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reported Williams remains unsigned.

“My understanding is the contract isn’t signed,” Florio told 670 The Score. “They expect it to be. They’re haggling over language. And what I think they’re getting into is a situation where the lawyer who’s handling this isn’t as versed in the nuances of the contract as an experienced and competent agent would be. I think there are some snags they’re trying to work out.

“One thing I’m told is there was an effort made to get the Bears to agree not to use the franchise tag on Caleb Williams after he would finish the fifth year of his contract, assuming they would pick up the option. But that did not go anywhere.”

According to Florio, Williams’ team went to the Bears, requesting them to hold off usage of the franchise tag after the fifth year of his contract, assuming the Bears would pick up his option. The Bears declined, per Florio.

That clause would’ve been a historic measure, considering no rookie has ever got that clause put into their first NFL contract; even though nothing in the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) prevents rookies from achieving the measure. Veteran quarterbacks, such as Dak Prescott, have earned the clause, in part, to allow the market to dictate their value during free agency periods.

If Williams was able to get that clause printed into his contract, he would set a new precedent for future first-round quarterbacks.

Multiple outlets, including NBC Sports Chicago, reported Williams signed his four-year contract worth $39 million with a $25 million signing bonus on Tuesday. Florio represents the lone report of Williams remaining unsigned. But,…

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