Bobref

Balance of power in the AFC may have shifted overnight. Chiefs lose their All-Pro left tackle Orlando Brown to free agency. He signs with their principal rival, the Bengals. Great move by the Bengals to keep Joe Burrow upright. Whatever “gap” there was between the Chiefs and Bengals just narrowed significantly.

So far, they get an A. But free agency is only the midterm. Final grades don’t come out until after the draft.

Several “NFL insiders” have used the term “fleeced” in describing what Poles did to Carolina in that trade. As I find myself explaining to my wife with some frequency, it doesn’t hurt just to look. 😂

It was legal then. They have changed the rule since. None taken.

Ryan Poles is schooling the rest of the League so far. Bears’ scorecard since Friday: 💰 LB Tremaine Edmunds (four years, $72M) 💰 G Nate Davis (three years, $30M) 💰 LB T.J. Edwards (three years, $19.5M) 💰 No. 9, No. 61, a 2024 first-round pick, a second-round selection in 2025 and WR D.J. Moore.

Some people might remember the Heritage Hills’ OT state title victory over Zionsville … which came on a double forward pass play involving Jay Cutler … who both threw a forward pass and caught a forward pass on the play… in that order.

And the Jimmy Garoppolo domino falls. https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/2023-nfl-free-agency-raiders-to-sign-jimmy-garoppolo-as-qb-exits-49ers-after-six-seasons/ Raiders to sign Jimmy Garoppolo as QB exits 49ers after six seasons Garoppolo has reunited with Josh McDaniels By Jeff Kerr The Las Vegas Raiders have found their starting quarterback. On Day 1 of the legal tampering period in the NFL, the club has reached an agreement with former San Francisco 49ers signal-caller Jimmy Garoppolo, according to CBS Sports NFL Insider Jonathan Jones. Specifically, ESPN reports that the Raiders are giving Garoppolo a three-year deal with $67.5 million and includes $34 million guaranteed. Garoppolo has a connection with Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels, who was his offensive coordinator with the New England Patriots when he first entered the NFL until he was dealt to the San Francisco 49ers in 2017. He started just two games during their shared tenure in Foxborough as Garoppolo primarily sat behind Tom Brady. However, when Brady was serving his four-game suspension in 2016, McDaniels was able to work with Garoppolo as his starter before he went down with a shoulder injury. In that brief showing with McDaniels, Garoppolo threw four touchdowns over the course of two games and completed 68.3% of his throws. More recently, Garoppolo went 7-3 in his 10 starts for the San Francisco 49ers this past season, completing 67.2% of his passes for 2,437 yards with 16 touchdowns to four interceptions for a 103.0 passer rating. The 49ers were 38-17 in Garoppolo's six seasons with the team, as Garoppolo compiled a 99.2 passer rating in his 45 starts. Health has been the biggest issues for Garoppolo throughout his career. When he's on the field, however, he does lead his team to victory more often than not. He is one of seven starting quarterbacks with a career win percentage of .700 or better since the merger (minimum 50 starts). When he played at least 15 games for San Francisco, they either advanced to the Super Bowl or the NFC Championship. Garoppolo now comes to a Raiders team where he'll be taking over from Derek Carr, who the club released earlier this offseason. The 31-year-old not only slots himself in with his former offensive coordinator, but is inserted into an offense with some dynamic pass-catching weapons like Davante Adams, Darren Waller, and Hunter Renfrow.

Bears agree to terms with T.J. Edwards on three-year deal, per report Edwards had 159 tackles for the Eagles last season The Chicago Bears landed one of the prized linebackers in free agency, agreeing to terms on a three-year deal with T.J. Edwards minutes after the legal tampering period started. Edwards, one of the many free agents on the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles, will receive $19.5 million over three years, per NFL Network. The Bears had an interest in Edwards from the start of the legal tampering period, hence the quick agreement. Former Eagles executive Ian Cunningham is an assistant general manager of the Bears and was part of the braintrust when Philadelphia signed Edwards as an unrestricted free agent back in 2019. Edwards also went to high school in Chicago, so he'll be returning to his hometown. Edwards ranked tied for sixth in the NFL with 159 tackles last season. He's also seventh in the league with 289 tackles over the last two seasons. Edwards had 159 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, seven passes defensed, five quarterback hits, two sacks, and one fumble recovery for the Eagles last season. He had the fewest yards per attempt allowed (4.4) in coverage last season (among 75 players with 70-plus targets).

That didn’t take long. https://247sports.com/Article/2023-NFL-Draft-Anthony-Richardson-usurps-Bryce-Young-CJ-Stroud-as-No-1-QB-in-latest-CBS-Sports-mock-205147850/

I think the Packers are just done with Rogers. With only one suitor out there, I don’t see them driving a hard bargain. The trades aren’t really comparable, since none of the assets in the Bears’ trade have a guaranteed $58 million price tag for next year.

Vikings release Adam Thielen. He might look good in a Bears uniform. Were the Bears represented at OBJ’s workout today?

I think after the Combine, Richardson is going to be the guy who starts climbing up people’s draft boards. But I don’t think he’s the kind of rookie you can trot out there Week One. He’s a project.

Sorry. That was @gonzoron.

Interesting. I was under the impression that Ivy League schools offer financial aid only in cases of need. Neither athletic nor merit scholarships available. Has that changed recently?

Unfortunately, it looks like I won’t be able to make fun of Rodgers in the Packers thread much longer. He never disappoints. You can’t make this stuff up. https://www.tmz.com/2023/03/09/aaron-rodgers-speaker-psychedelic-science-conference/ Life's A Trip ...HEAR ME TALK ABOUT PSYCHEDELICS!!! Aaron Rodgers has announced his next move ... but it ain't related to his football career -- the NFL superstar is set to speak at a huge psychedelic science conference!! The 39-year-old quarterback is one of several featured guests for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies' "Psychedelic Science 2023" event in June ... which is being dubbed "the largest psychedelic gathering in history." The conference -- which is expecting 10,000 attendees -- will include speeches, workshops and panel discussions about all things hallucinogens. Of course, Rodgers has been outspoken about his passion for the plant-based psychedelic, Ayahuasca ... which he credits with helping his mental health and MVP seasons in 2020 and 2021. Rodgers has also previously talked about his use of mushrooms ... which led to him trying out the brewed drink during his trip to South America. Rodgers isn't the only athlete slated to speak -- Olympic silver medalist Sasha Cohen is also listed as a special guest for the event in Denver. The conference is still a few months away ... and we'll most likely know of his NFL decision by then -- so, it'll almost certainly be an interesting speech.

My point is the day is soon coming when QBs who are athletic and used as weapons in the running game will be the norm in the NFL. Muda, weren’t you ogling the Richardson kid from FL just the other day? Will it result in shorter careers and/or less production due to injury unavailability? Remains to be seen.

Tee Higgins, Bengals WR, to the Bears for draft choices. Bengals won’t be able to afford Higgins after they pay Burrow and Chase. Bears will have lots of draft capital if they trade down from #1. I love this idea.

It’s the new NFL. With the prevalence of athletic QBs and the RPO game in the college ranks, the Brady-like, stand tall in the pocket, traditional dropback passing QB will become as uncommon as running QBs were in the NFL 15 years ago.

Most QBs in the League are injured at one time or another, so I don’t consider him more “brittle” than most. The games he missed at the end of the season were more about contract than injury. And as for “aging,” he just turned 26. He is now what Justin Fields will be in 3 years.

Here’s a 3 team trade proposal I saw online. Could this happen? Bears acquire Jackson, No. 22 overall pick in 2023 (via Ravens), 2024 second-round pick (via Colts), 2025 third-round pick (via Colts) Ravens acquire QB Justin Fields (via Bears), No. 4 overall pick in 2023 (via Colts), 2024 first-round pick (via Colts) Colts acquire No. 1 overall pick in 2023 (via Bears), 2024 fourth-round pick (via Ravens), 2025 fourth-round pick (via Ravens)

Saw this proposed 3 team trade involving the Bears. What do you think? Bears acquire Lamar Jackson, No. 22 overall pick in 2023 (via Ravens), 2024 second-round pick (via Colts), 2025 third-round pick (via Colts) Ravens acquire QB Justin Fields (via Bears), No. 4 overall pick in 2023 (via Colts), 2024 first-round pick (via Colts) Colts acquire No. 1 overall pick in 2023 (via Bears), 2024 fourth-round pick (via Ravens), 2025 fourth-round pick (via Ravens)

I can see him and the Ravens reaching impasse, and the Ravens saying “we’ll use the non-exclusive tag and see where the market values him, and we’ll match it.” That’s if they really, really think the Watson contract is an outlier. But there’s a lot of risk involved. If somebody throws Watson money at him, the Ravens either pay it or give up a franchise QB for 2 first round draft choices, about half of what they’d get for him in a straight up trade.

There haven’t been very many who have tried, so it’s a pretty small sample size. He’s a unicorn.

Very insightful observations — especially for a basketball official. 😂 Seriously, every survey ever done has sho that the top 2 reasons officials leave their avocation early are family and job. Unsportsmanlike behavior by coaches/players/fans ranks below those two.

So, the QB dominoes are starting to topple. The situation of Lamar Jackson fascinates me. A former MVP, entering his prime years. A unique weapon. The Ravens slap the non-exclusive franchise tag on him, so the rest of the League can tell both them and Lamar what the market says he’s worth. Reportedly, he wants more than DeShaun Watson’s “outlier” deal from the Browns. Yet, already, 5-6 teams who are supposedly looking for QBs have said they are not interested. That’s odd. Does anyone else smell a new collusion case by the NFLPA in the making?