The NFL season will live long in the memory with there being some exemplary play from the teams .Some teams stepped up to the plate , while others failed miserably . Not to be left out of the equation, certain high priced players who failed to show up and be productive for their respective teams. That certainly was the case with Dallas Cowboys’ running back Ezekiel Elliott .He and fellow teammate , Dak Prescott were equally atrocious . Cincinnati Bengals’ quarterback Joe Burrow now has a better postseason record than a veteran like Prescott . Burrow took the Bengals to within a whisker of winning last season’s Superbowl .
Dak Prescott (4) and Ezekiel Elliott.
Patrick Mahomes of Kansas City Chiefs
The belief is that Joe Burrow will improve this upcoming seasom season along with his teammates . The schedule for the 2022 NFL regular season has yet to be officially released , but there are likely to be several interesting games. It should be fulfilling season with vested parties entirely determined for a long postseason run, aiming to win the Superbowl.
Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are likely favorites from within the NFC Conference .
Tom Brady of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brady entering his 21st season will be looking to win his eighth Super Bowl. I firmly believe, that Tom Brady has a slim chance of winning , but given his age and the fact that the Buccaneers have done little to really bolster their roster , they may well not be seen as prederermined favorites.
Sorry, but I’m not convinced that Trey Lance can lead the San Francisco 49ers to winning the NFC West let alone to the Super Bowl. Lance is still a work in progress and several years away from being a very good , let alone an elite quarterback. He does not possess the skill set of Justin Herbert , Lamar Jackson , Joe Burrow , Patrick Mahomes , Josh Allen or even seasoned veterans such as Aaron Rodgers , Russell Wilsonor even Tom Brady.
Trey Lance of the San Francisco 49ers.
Much is expected of this young quarterback and the fact of the matter is , starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is now on the downside of a very good career. It could take at least three or four years before we see the best of Trey Lance.
I seriously doubt that the fans of the 49ers are willing to wait that long , while the front office will have to pay Trey Lance a great deal of money. All the optimism in the world cannot hide the fact GM Jon Lynch drafted the wrong quarterback during the 2021 NFL Draft .
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Ezekiel Elliott has been stealing money since he signed his contract with the Dallas Cowboys . Over the last two seasons Elliott has been averaging less than 80 yards per game . That’s menial productivity for one of the league’s highest paid running backs . Elliott’s deal is among top-ten in the NFL.
In week one of this upcoming season Ezekiel Elliott and the Dallas Cowboys will be facing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers In this contest Tom Brady of Buccaneers will be looking to keep a winning record in-tact against the Cowboys
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I think that by Week Five within the NFL , teams will have begun to hit their stride.
As an avid New England Patriots’ fan , I’ll be intrigued to see if Mac Jones can continue with his growth as an NFL quarterback . Jones and his teammates will be in action for Week Five when
New England faces off against the Detroit Lions .
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For all sense and purpose it’s beginning to look like
DeShaun Watson s likely to be severely punished by the NFL . The league hierarchy as headed up by Roger Goodedl have continued to conduct their own investigation into the allegations of sexual misconduct by the player.
Three separate grand jury proceedings have taken place, wherein with Watson being the primary suspect into the allegations of battery . In each of the grand jury hearings , the prosecution could not produce sufficient evidence to go ahead with a criminal trial. What now seems certain, several of the alleged female victims may well choose to proceed with a civil action against DeShaun Watson .
With that being said , I fully believe that the Commissioner’s office mislead the Cleveland Browns and their front office as the franchise sought to pursue a trade for the now former starting quarterback of the Houston Texans .
Browns’ owner Jimmy Haslam
must’ve been given some assurances by Roger Goodell that the league might not pursue any action against DeShaun Watson .
Having acquired Watson in a trade the Browns made a massive financial commitment , giving him the largest guaranteed deal to have been received by a quarterback , let alone any other player in NFL history .
Haslam and his front office , having committed that sum to DeShaun Wastson , they’ve since bolstered their roster with several other signings. This all bodes well for the Cleveland Browns and their coaching staff led by Kevin Stefanksi . What may well be intriguing , is the very thought that Cleveland might have to play this entire season without Watson , as he’s sidelined by an NFL mandated suspension , when he’s not been found guilty of committing a crime.
Roger Goodell has been non committal in offering a public statement concerning DeShaun Watson , but there does appear to be growing evidence that sum sort of penalty will be imposed on Watson. His legal counsel Rusty Hardin could seek to pursue legal action against the league hierarchy as well as Roger Goodell , if the league does seek suspend DeShaun Watson for prolonged period of time . Any imposed suspension I believe will not be anything less than 8 or possibly ten games. Usually, personal on field misconduct brings about 4 games as a maximum . I can’t help but feel , that Roger Goodell is seeking to make an example of Watson , just as he’s wrongfully done to Colin Kaepernick .
The first regular season game on the Browns’ schedule will pit them against the Carolina Panthers .
The AFC North remains a tough division and it will be interesting to see how the Cleveland Browns will fare against their divisional rival as well as the rest of the NFL .
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Now with the departure of DeShaun Watson and Russell Wilson , it’s the belief that both the Houston Texans and Seattle Seahawks will not >b> fare well during this upcoming season . The respective trades of both players and where they landed , is is likely to have a great deal as to how their former teams will fare over the course of this upcoming regular season .
Watson is now a member of the Cleveland Browns , while Wilson joined the Denver Broncos .
These two quarterbacks will both be in action during the preseason , but it’s during the regular season where the fans’ interest will be piqued.
NFL transactions
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If there are no takers for Baker Mayfield with the Cleveland Browns having acquired DeShaun Watson , what avenues are left for Mayfield and his agent ? Baker Mayfield has failed to live up to expectations . Having been drafted by the Browns during the 2018 NFL Draft , taken number one overall. Baker Mayfield was also Heisman Trophy winner , within his having played his collegiate football at Oklahoma. He won the award in 2017. Mayfield for the moment remains a part of the Browns’ roster , but sooner rather , than later his contract value will have to be dealt with by Head Coach Kevin Stefanki ,and the front office .
One of the more troubling issues likely to be faced by the Cleveland Browns, are the growing rumors that Commissioner Roger Goodell will impose a very serious suspension for DeShaun Watson , all of which comes from the sexual allegation claims made by 22 females, who state they were each sexually assaulted by Watson .
It’s believed that any imposed suspension will be challenged by Watson’s legal counsel , attorney Rusty Hardin . Goodell for his part has clearly misled Browns’ owner Jimmy Haslam , with the owner committing more than $230 million to DeShaun Watson in guaranteed money. An unprecedented sum for an NFL player.
I would like to think that the Cleveland Browns are capable of winning at least 10 games this season and quite possibly gain wildcard berth in the Postseason , but that was of course predicated upon DeShaun Watson being the starting quarterback .
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If DeShaun Watson isn’t in the Browns’ lineup for their regular season opener then the option would be the use of Baker Mayfield or third string or fourth backup quarterbacks Joshua Dobbs or Jacoby Brissett .
Cleveland’s regular season opener will
pit them against the Carolina Panthers .
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Let’s be real Las Vegas Raiders’ ;owner Mark Davis loves the glare of the spotlight . Granted , his glare has never shone as brightly as his late father Al Davis who simply built the franchise from scratch , ,relocated it from Los Angeles to Oakland and back , while , having both cities at his mercy .
Since the death of his father, Mark Davis has sought to bring a winning mentality to the franchise. He’s gone through a string of Head Coaches, all to no avail. Now the Raiders’ latest publicity stunt is to bring in ,Colin Kaepernick for workouts while having the coaching staff assess Kaepernick’s abilities. It’s been more than five years since the quarterback last played in the NFL as a member of the San Francisco 49ers. Kaepernick took the team to a Superbowl where they would eventually lose to the Baltimore Ravens ..
Currently Derek Carr holds the starting quarterback position on a very good though not dynamic roster . Carr for part has had limited success since being drafted , by the Raiders. If Colin Kaepernick does win a spot on this roster , is there a chance that. we’ll see a real quarterback competition ? Or is this purely being staged for show by Mark Davis and the ,front office .
The Las Vegas Raiders , will open their regular season with game against the Los Angeles Chargers . The AFC West should be a very good division to assess over the course of the season.
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