Early NFL offseason chatter

[Mike2.0]

It’s going to be interesting in the NFC. Three teams have an offensive guru - Packers (Matt LaFleur), Vikings (Kevin O’Connell) and now the Bears (Ben Johnson). The only team without one is the Lions, as Dan Campbell has never run an offense. Campbell is a hell of a motivator, but will need to nail the selector for his next OC.

Regarding Johnson going to the Bears, I think the job makes sense. They’ve got a talented roster, that with some smart additions and the right coaching staff, could easily flip their win-loss record. Ok, you need to believe in Caleb Williams, but is buying into him any different than fixing Trevor Lawrence or the Raiders finding a QB and overcoming years of dysfunction?

I don’t think it is. To an extent I did feel the Jaguars and Lawrence have a slight edge, but in someways Lawrence is starting to look more like Jameis Winston than the generational quarterback he was hyped to be. So maybe backing Caleb Williams is a better option…

[Mr. Scot]

Meanwhile, in Jacksonville...

Khan seems like he's trying to get himself into the David Tepper tier of dumb owners. 

It's a good day for Seth Rollins though...

 

[Mr. Scot]

Seeing some assistant chatter now...

Johnson apparently wants former Saints head coach Dennis Allen as his DC along with recent special teams coach Darren Rizzi (those are good choices)

The Colts are landing former Bengals DC Lou Anarumo to run their defense. And the Titans are plucking special teams coordinator John Fassel away from the Cowboys to run their unit. Cowboys reportedly hoped to keep Fassel but he wasn't under contract after McCarthy was let go.

[Mr. Scot]

Also, this comment from Joe Person...

Gee, I wonder why

[PNW_PantherMan]

24 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

Meanwhile, in Jacksonville...

Khan seems like he's trying to get himself into the David Tepper tier of dumb owners. 

It's a good day for Seth Rollins though...

 

This is why Jacksonville made no sense.  It’s a suicide mission.

[PNW_PantherMan]

Doug Pederson is a good coach.  Shad Khan is just a lousy owner and Trevor Lawrence is a lousy QB on a bad contract.

[kungfoodude]

1 hour ago, Mr. Scot said:

From what I've read, Brady was a big part of it. Other selling points were that they were prepared to give him who he wanted as a GM (Jags might have been willing to do that but it wasn't certain) plus he could have started with his own guy rather than a QB picked by someone else and of course word was the Raiders were prepared to offer an insane amount of cash. 

I can't blame him for not wanting to work with Mark Davis, of course. Though to be fair, have the Bears of the last few years been n much better?

There's an article on ESPN about the McCaskeys that says they've been pretty heavily influenced by former Bear and current agent Trace Armstrong in several of their past decisions. I haven't had time to read it yet, but it does sound interesting.

But that is what I always said. Brady isn't remotely a draw.

[kungfoodude]

1 hour ago, Mr. Scot said:

Potential franchise QB is also potential massive bust.

I'd add some Bear fans might argue you the "idiot owner" part.

I mean, potential bust versus literally zero QB? Lol

[Mr. Scot]

34 minutes ago, kungfoodude said:

But that is what I always said. Brady isn't remotely a draw.

From what I've read, Johnson was impressed by him. Just not enough...

33 minutes ago, kungfoodude said:

I mean, potential bust versus literally zero QB? Lol

Can also be framed as the chance to pick his own rather than trying to fix someone else's.

Also seeing Chicago threw a boatload of cash at him.

[Mr. Scot]

On the topic of wild rumors, I saw someone predicting the Cowboys would end up hiring our old buddy Ron Rivera.

No lie, I'd love to see it

[Mr. Scot]

Re: Johnson's salary...

Also re: Brady and the Vegas pursuit...

 

Edited 1 hour ago by Mr. Scot

[kungfoodude]

12 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

From what I've read, Johnson was impressed by him. Just not enough...

Can also be framed as the chance to pick his own rather than trying to fix someone else's.

Also seeing Chicago threw a boatload of cash at him.

I never read anything saying he was "impressed." IMO, you basically read all the "Raiders sources" and took them at face value.

[Mr. Scot]

1 minute ago, kungfoodude said:

I never read anything saying he was "impressed." IMO, you basically read all the "Raiders sources" and took them at face value.

See above.

Others like Fowler and Breer have talked up the Brady factor too.

Bottom Line though, it wasn't enough. Per a couple of sources, it was the quarterback factor that helped sway his decision.

Mind you, some say it was the cash, but I'd guess the Raiders offered a lot too (if they got that far).

[kungfoodude]

1 minute ago, Mr. Scot said:

See above.

Others like Fowler and Breer have talked up the Brady factor too.

Bottom Line though, it wasn't enough. Per a couple of sources, it was the quarterback factor that helped sway his decision.

Mind you, some say it was the cash, but I'd guess the Raiders offered a lot too (if they got that far).

You are saying what I am saying, BTW. Those were all Raider sources and nothing close to Johnson. That was always my argument about that fake narrative.