The Packers were breaking in a new starting quarterback at this time last year and getting Jordan Love ready to play with a young cast of receivers meant they had to do things at a certain pace.
Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich said this week that “you didn’t really know what direction you could go yet because you didn’t really know” what the players were capable of doing. The Packers finished last season strong, advanced to the playoffs and won a Wild Card game, so it’s not a great surprise that Stenavich sees a “night and day” difference from where they were in 2023.
“We can go out there right now and just run plays and it’s not like we’re installing everything for the first time,” Stenavich said, via the team’s website. “We can start experimenting faster and taking the next steps with the offense. You’re always looking to take the next step. You have to keep evolving, so it’s just a matter of what’s our best next step, or next two things that we want to do . . . where you can see, all right, is this the direction we want to go?”
Love is going to be central to any direction the Packers go in 2024 and beyond, which should make him the focal point of the experimentation that the team will be doing as they head into the 2024 season.
The Chiefs signed receiver Jaaron Hayek after his tryout at their rookie minicamp.
He replaces receiver Reggie Brown on the roster. Brown signed with the team as an undrafted free agent last week.
Hayek, who played collegiately at Villanova, gives the Chiefs 91 players on their roster, including an international player who is exempt from the 90-player roster limit.
Hayek played five seasons at Villanova, appearing in 48 games. In his career, he totaled 170 receptions for 2,744 yards and 29 touchdowns. Hayek earned first-team All-CAA honors in 2022 despite missing the final three games of the season with an injury.
The Lions announced a pair of signings on Tuesday afternoon.
In addition to their previously reported deal to bring safety C.J. Moore back to Detroit, the team also shared word of their agreement with defensive lineman Kyle Peko.
Peko spent last season with the Titans and started 10 of the 13 games he played for the team. He had 22 tackles and a pass defensed in those appearances.
Peko also played for the Titans in 2021 and he’s had stints with the Broncos, Bills, Colts, and Raiders since entering the NFL in 2016.
D.J. Reader and Alim McNeil are at the top of the depth chart at defensive tackle in Detroit, so Peko will look for a role behind them as they move toward the regular season.
Taulia Tagovailoa will continue his tryout tour of the NFC West this weekend.
Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports that Taulia, the younger brother of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, will participate in the Cardinals’ rookie minicamp this weekend on a tryout basis.
This past weekend, Taulia participated in the Seahawks’ rookie minicamp on a tryout basis. He was not offered a spot on the 90-man offseason roster.
Taulia played college football at Alabama and then Maryland. He petitioned the NCAA for a sixth season of eligibility earlier this year. The request was denied.
It’s clearly an uphill climb for Taulia. He’s absolutely motivated to make something happen for his pro football career.
The Giants have added a fourth player to their quarterback room.
Nathan Rourke, who was waived by the Patriots yesterday, was claimed by the Giants today, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
With the Giants, Rourke will be fourth on the depth chart behind Daniel Jones, Drew Lock and Tommy DeVito. Rourke will be a camp arm who is a long shot to make the regular-season roster.
Rourke spent time with the Jaguars and Patriots last season but has never played in a regular-season NFL game. A native of Canada, Rourke played in the CFL for the BC Lions in 2021 and 2022.
Raheem Mostert welcomed a new running back to Miami last year when the Dolphins drafter De’Von Achane and he responded to it by running for 1,012 yards and scoring 21 total touchdowns.
Achane also had a strong season, so Mostert was likely prepared for a possible change in his role in 2024. That picture got a little more complicated last month when the Dolphins drafted Jaylen Wright in the fourth round.
On Tuesday, Mostert said his first response to “draft drama” was “whatever it is, it is” before adding that he’s now taking the view that “the more the merrier” because of what it could mean for the team’s offense.
“Being able to have another guy coming in the mix and bring his attributes and his contributions into the offense — and the speed is definitely going to be very beneficial on our part,” Mostert said, via Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post. “Because now we can line up and we could use three backs, you know, out there at one point with a receiver and maybe a tight end as well. So, there’s a lot of different things that you can do.”
The Dolphins also added Odell Beckham Jr. to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle at receiver, so there will be no shortage of options for the Dolphins to consider when they have the ball this fall. The next few months should provide a clearer picture of how they’ll stack up.
The Titans waived defensive lineman Shakel Brown on Tuesday, the team announced.
Brown spent all of last season on injured reserve after being injured in the team’s preseason game against the Bears.
He signed with the Titans as an undrafted free agent last May.
Brown had been taking part in the team’s offseason program, but the Titans re-signed defensive lineman Marlon Davidson on Monday.
Brown appeared in 29 games with five starts over three seasons at Troy (2020-22). He totaled 58 career tackles, eight tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, one pass defensed, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries.
The NFL is moving closer to grabbing cash from private equity funds.
According to Bloomberg.com, the quarterly meetings held later this month could result in the passage of a rule allowing owners to sell up to 30 percent of the team to approved investment collectives. The most any one fund could own in any one team would potentially be 10 percent.
It’s possible that one fund could hold equity in multiple teams.
The percentages could change as the NFL’s special committee for considering the issue continues its work.
The issue wasn’t finalized at the league meetings in March. Speaking at the conclusion of that event, Commissioner Roger Goodell pegged May or October as more realistic targets. Owners meet four times per year — March, May, October, and December.
The potential shift comes at a time when franchise values are skyrocketing, to the point where it’s hard to find individuals who can satisfy the league’s ownership rules. If/when the rules allow private equity investments, existing owners could peel off a slice of the equity to sell to private funds. New owners could recruit equity funds to become part of the initial team of investors.
Over time, it will make the purchase of 100 percent of a team far less common, since the private equity funds will often remain in place after the transfer of control. Those funds eventually could end up with plenty of sway regarding who is and isn’t considered for membership in Club Oligarch.
The Bengals have had two of their best players request trades during this offseason in receiver Tee Higgins and defensive end Trey Hendrickson.
While Higgins has been franchise tagged, Hendrickson is still under contract with Cincinnati.
Quarterback Joe Burrow was asked about both players during his Wednesday press conference.
“Those guys have their business they need to take care of. I support them in every way,” Burrow said, via Geoff Hobson of the team’s website. “Both those guys have earned everything that has come to them and more. I’ll support them all the way through it. Whatever they feel like is best for their career. That’s for them and their agents and their families to decide.
“But we are here to win football games. I really hope both those guys are here next year because we are a better football team with both of them. They are both great locker room guys, too. They are going to do what they’ve got to do, but when the time comes for them to come back, if that time comes, we are going to welcome them back and hit our stride.”
Higgins has said that he’s expecting to be with the Bengals this season, despite his trade request — though he has not yet signed his franchise tender. Hendrickson has non-guaranteed salaries of $14.8 million and $15.8 million for the next two years.
One of the many things that went wrong for the Patriots in 2023 was the loss of cornerback Christian Gonzalez in the early weeks of the regular season.
Gonzalez was the team’s first-round pick and he showed promise before tearing the labrum in his shoulder in Week Four. The injury forced Gonzalez to miss the rest of the year and he said on Tuesday that he is “just focusing on still rehabbing, strengthening the shoulder and just trying to get better” at this point in the offseason.
It’s not clear how much Gonzalez is going to do once the offseason program moves into the organized team activity stage, but he said he’s ready to leave the injury behind and move forward with his second season.
“That’s in the past,” Gonzalez said, via Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald. “I’m ready for right now, and happy to be back in the building and around the guys.”
The Patriots will likely be leaning heavily on their defense in the early part of the season whether Jacoby Brissett or rookie Drake Maye wins the quarterback job, so a full return to health for Gonzalez will be a welcome development in New England.