Bear Hands

About an hour and a half to Cleveland-Houston I'm thinking this game may be better than expected. Will unlock closer to game time.

Oh I'm definitely not going to build up any expectations. No use wasting extra energy...but at least this gives us reprieve to think we did something good before we suck again haha.

Roster wise, they're in a similar spot to us, cap space for both teams should be well over 60 mil when it comes time for FA. They just dumped their 2 best pass rushers. Payne & Curl are probably their best defensive assets. Terry is their best on offense. There's nothing special at TE, RB, DB, LB. Leno and Gates are average at best OL. Cosmi is still figuring it out. Forbes looked bad as a rookie. What I see favorable is ownership and positioning for a franchise QB. Bryce has a mixed perception around the league after 2023, so I don't think every coach we're hiring is necessarily bought in on him. WFT can grab Daniels, Maye or Caleb.

Yeah. Both seem promising. Not that I know they're specific roles but with Dodds - I've really liked the Colts last 2 draft classes. Was a BIG JuJu Brents and Downs fan. And the Raiders finally had a decent draft last year after enough separation from that strange Mayock/Gruden era.

Could be interesting. He'sone of the guys we've interviewed with a prominent scouting background.

That's Florio, he hates Tepper as much as Panthers fans so there's an inherent bias. Not necessarily wrong though haha

Bills/Steelers moved to Monday due to the snowstorm. Being in WI, it's been a wild week. Have over 2 feet here and it'll be a high of -1 on Monday.

I don't think that my assumptions are anything to be doom or gloom about. I'd honestly be pretty interested in those guys taking the reigns, especially Macdonald.

It seems like a reasonable bet to assume we’re landing Macdonald, Frank Smith, Callahan, or Canales. Just feels like that’s the realistic pool. I just don’t see Quinn or Monken happening. Johnson is a long shot. Harbaugh and BB aren’t coming here. Don’t think Vrabel will happen.

Some predictions: -Bills take care of business but it's closer than expected. 19-10 -Miami upsets KC in the bitter cold. Even with the injuries, Miami's defense holds and make KC one dimensional. Mahomes can't do enough, Tyreek dominates his former team. Achane makes a big difference against KC's defense. 20-16 -Browns over Houston. Stroud has a strong game but Flacco's Browns turn it up and their D makes some plays to help win it. 27-20 -Cowboys over GB. Just don't see GB's defense slowing Dallas. They may tease early but DAL wins 30-20ish -Lions beat the popular upset pick in the Rams. Jekyll & Hyde Goff has a great game. Gibbs & St. Brown dominate a high scoring affair. 38-33 -Eagles beat Tampa. They shut down the whispers about instability and rock the Bucs. This weekend's blowout. 30-9

Their defense is too good IMO and combine that with a Lamar, they're a tough battle. Gotta beat them in the trenches. The Browns could be a tough matchup for them (again) in the divisional. But if the Ravens make the AFCC, I don't think Buffalo/KC are beating them in Baltimore. If the Dolphins somehow pull it off today, that could be an interesting rematch. I'm not so sure it would be like the thumping they got last time around.

NFC has some good matchups. Rams could be feisty, but it's going to be hard for anyone to get through SF. AFC is weird but could be interesting if the Dolphins can somehow beat the champs. Want to see BUF-SF happen this year.

See, not the same person. Mind changed? lol

Thx for confirming. Must've had him mixed up.

Fairly certain we interviewed him last cycle.

Not just saying this to be a contrarian but I'm a Canales fan. But honestly, I welcome any of these guys. MacDonald & Canales seem the most impressive to me from what I've found. The only one that gives me pause is Monken. He wasn't good at South Miss (his only HC gig) and has hopped around a lot. No doubt, he had success at UGA and is able to use the Ravens personnel a lot better than Roman, but that's not a huge feat given what was in place at both of those spots. Watching his interviews, he just doesn't give much HC vibes. Just my 2 cents. Just too much moving around and not enough that points to the idea that "oh man, he came in and took that team from point A to point B"

Well we interviewed him last cycle and didn't move forward with him. May just not be a fit. The backgrounds on our candidates list seem pretty consistent in what they're looking for.

With Ewers and maybe McCarthy returning, I anticipate Ward and Pratt hype trains developing.

1 down 7 to go

I was going to jokingly list a bunch of things we need but it was too depressing…and would take too long

Come this fall, a kid born during the Jake-era kickoff 17-point Jags comeback will be of the legal limit and in college.

I would build a private spa in Scandinavia and hang out there for a while.

I imagine we're doing this while we interview to see (a) how he interviews for us a second time as HC and (b) if any of these HC candidates would want to include him in their plans. If no go for both, then we'll let him go and he'll likely find a good gig.

Brian Thomas, Worthy, Troy Franklin, & Mitchell are all legit.

I will say, I think Seattle, LAC, and LVR have different coaching types in mind compared to us so there's really 4 other teams vying for the same crop as us. NE also seems like they have a plan so I'm unsure if they're really pursuing the OC crop. Mayo or Vrabel seem like possible candidates. So it's the Titans, Falcons, & Commanders we're jostling with for our favorite guy. Unfortunately, the Falcons have a nice roster but the Commanders and Titans aren't necessarily THAT great of rosters/situations. Factor in our reported pool has more than 4 decent candidates - Ben J, MacDonald, Canales, Slowik, Frank Smith...I think we're still in a spot to get a rather exciting hire. Our roster though..yeah, that's what needs more than some work.