2023 NFL offseason thread

Yes, and hopefully one sans dick picks and spiritual spelunking.

 

Jets, Commanders, and Falcons might be the only teams with nothing to lose by going for it with him. Alienate your current QB if it doesn't work out? Who GAF? Get gud, kiddo. So why not go after him?

- They didn't want to go through the exercise only to have Baltimore match
- They didn't want to make the offer that Baltimore wouldn't match
- They don't believe in his health
- They don't believe in his skill

The second point is the only reason I would understand, as a Watsonesque contract definitely breaks the certainlynotcollusion ownership code and could potentially make for an epic disaster, even by Jets standards.

 

Definitely an actual QB. They were 7-4 and then lost their last six. Four of those losses were one-score games. In the last five they scored a total of 44 points and had 10 turnovers. They didn't score a touchdown in the last three games. Gotta think even an aging, half-interested Aaron Rodgers could've turned at least a few of those into wins. Two more wins would've gotten them past Miami and into the playoffs.

And if you're looking at it like that, where they're maybe a top-end QB away, then renting Rodgers for two years might make sense over giving Lamar Jackson a long-term deal. The Jets can believe (delude themselves, if you prefer) into thinking they're not that far away and in win now mode. It's not hard to think Rodgers at least gets them to the playoffs if everything else is equal.

 

THIS is what I'm saying!

 

You could probably throw the Colts in there as well, as the owner is crazy enough to pay that price. Also, i think at this point, maybe LJ had enough of Baltimore? I mean he gets along with the coach, but what about the GM and owner?

 

I think this move probably makes them a playoff team, but probably not a true Super Bowl contender. That's probably worth the price they paid, since if they don't do the deal, well, they probably need to draft a QB and suck for another year or two anyway.

Of course, Tom Brady being good into his 40s is kind of the ultimate outlier, so there's a non-zero chance that Rodgers is now actually awful, or, that he gets even more brittle than he has been in recent years. If that's the case though, then the Jets get to keep what'll probably be a great draft pick. (I wasn't aware NFL teams could put protection status on draft picks - Rodgers has to play 65% of snaps for the 2024 picks to convey - but that was smart of the Jets to get in there.)

 

I agree with that, with the caveat that a good defense and a very good quarterback can take you far in the playoffs. The Jets seem like they could make the playoffs and win a wild card game, then probably lose to Buffalo/KC/Cincinnati in the divisional round. But if Rodgers gets hot at the right time, you never know.
For a team like the Jets, that definitely seems like a much better option than rolling the dice on another QB in the draft and hoping he pans out or takes you to a couple of 7-10 or 8-9 seasons while he finds his feet.

 

Just read an AP listicle where they mention all of the Hall of Famers who finished their careers by playing a year or two with the Jets. It's a pretty deep list — Favre, Art Monk, Alan Faneca, Jason Taylor, LaDainian Tomlinson, Ed Reed, Ronnie Lott, Steve Atwater and Ty Law. Guessing in a few years we could add Frank Gore to that list.

And that's just the Hall of Famers. You can probably come up with a decent list of Hall of Very Good type players whose careers have gone there to die, like Matt Forte, Le'Veon Bell, Terrell Buckley, Joe Flacco, Demariyus Thomas, Wilber Marshall and Chris Johnson.

 

Faneca was very good for the Jets. His time there is part of what makes him a HOFer.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/04/26/nfl-draft-training/

Interesting article in the WaPo about an exercise scientist who has concluded that the determining factor on how much muscle a player can effectively hang on his frame is determined by the size and weight of his skeletal mass. The theory is that once past that ideal point, while a player can continue to add muscle mass, size and weight, the increased muscle actually detracts from performance and statistically leads to higher rates of injury, decreased speed, etc.

There are several NFL teams who have begun to use this to determine which players in the draft can effectively add more muscle mass, as well as looking to see if WR's might actually be better off carrying less weight, etc.

 

Agreed. He was still an elite player for the Jets. He was a second-team all-pro his first season with the Jets. He also didn't finish his career there. He played for the Cardinals his final season.

 

Rodgers' presser started a few minutes ago. He said he loves Nathaniel Hackett like a brother. Jordan Rodgers: "That's not what you think it means."