“It’s funny when you listen to talk radio — and I listen to it, just like everyone — and they say, ‘Well, we’ve got the fourth pick in this draft. Let’s go out and get an offensive tackle. And I’m going to tell you something, if there’s a guy there that you really, really want, who coincidentally happens to be an offensive tackle, and you say, ‘All right, that’s a good need, we’ll fit it,’ well, that’s fine.
“But me personally, I’m kind of an old-school guy, you know? I’ve heard the saying that if I’m taking a guy with the fourth pick in the draft, I’m taking a guy who can sack the quarterback or score touchdowns. I think I would take a guy that can do those things over an offensive lineman.
“Now, I’m not saying don’t take one. [But] there’s a lot of good football players out there.” - Dante Scarnecchia to the Boston Globe earlier this week.
Dante Scarnecchia spent 34 years as an assistant in New England before retiring in 2019 and earned five Super Bowl rings. He also worked alongside five different Patriot head coaches. You don’t manage that unless you are at or near the top of your profession. I value his opinion, but this one made me chuckle. Why? I think Scar would have had a different opinion had he personally had to rummage through the rubbish pile left over from the Bill Belichick era or Eliot Wolf's attempts at fixing it this past off-season.
The Pats ranked last in run block win rate and second to last in pass block win rate. The pressure rate hovered around 40% for the season, and their sack rate was 29th overall. Stink, stank...
The rest of the league showed you it wasn't about coaching. Scott Peters was snatched up by the Cincinnati Bengals in about three seconds flat (and he had other suitors as well). Mike Vrabel also saw the value in assistant line coach Robert Kugler, one of the holdovers from the previous regime.
But I bet if you sent their tackles to free agency — Vederian Lowe, Demontrey Jacobs, Caedan Wallace — no team would put those guys first, second, or third on their list. Sorry, not even if Scar was coaching them up.
Offensive tackle/line remains as weak as any position group on the football team (WR runs neck and neck). But herein lies the problem(s) for the Pats, which I've illustrated many times: there may not be a single top-level left tackle available in free agency - rarely does a good one get traded (Trent Williams, and that was because of exceptional circumstances) - or the draft. And for the latter, it's one of those "of all the years" situations...
This is likely causing sleepless nights for the new regime and Wolf/Matt Groh and will really test their talent evaluation skills, as well as the coaching of new OL coach Doug Marrone.
If Ravens' left tackle Ronnie Stanley doesn't come free, or wants to join a Super Bowl contender, or has unreasonable contractual demands (a possibility for the oft-injured soon-to-be 31-year-old), the Pats will be forced to look at the likes of Cam Robinson, Dan Moore, Jedrick Wills and Alaric Jackson (been told he wants to stay in LA). Better than what they have? Yeah, I'd say so. But good? Ehhhh (more on that later in my free agency preview)
As for the draft, if LSU's Will Campbell has the dreaded short arms at the scouting combine (less than 33 inches is a non-starter), you could be drafting a guard at 4th overall. No, a thousand times, no, even if he becomes a Pro Bowl-caliber player there.
When you sit at four, you need to draft a premium talent. Quarterback (they got one). Edge rusher (they don't). Hell, as much as I value wide receiver, it would take a special kind of guy - a Ja'Marr Chase type - to pull the trigger (not convinced Travis Hunter is that, but I've got more to study).
Talk about the potential for being between a rock and a hard place...
So what do the Pats do if that's how it plays? If Campbell isn't an LT, and Penn State edge Abdul Carter is off the board? That question will be easier to answer based on what happens in free agency. But as someone who expects Campbell's arms to be more T-Rex-like, and for the organization to draw a line in the sand with how much they're willing to pay Stanley, keep it simple, stupid. Draft the player you think will be a perennial Pro Bowler (except if that guy is a guard), and don't look back.
CHIEF CONCERNS
I picked the Eagles to win the Super Bowl. Like most of you, I did not foresee the game as lopsided, but that's how it played — an absolute butt-whupping. Now, Chiefs GM Brett Veach has to figure out how to address the team's flaws so that they can return to the Super Bowl next year and win it.
Like in 2021, Veach's main priority will be rebuilding the offensive line. KC has problems at both tackle spots and could lose guard Trey Smith in free agency (he's tracking to be a $20 million-a-year player). It's not as if Veach didn't try to patch those holes. He drafted Kingsley Suamataia in round two from BYU and later signed D.J. Humphries. Suamataia crashed and burned in year one, and Humphries immediately popped a hamstring. With Wanya Morris also incapable, the Chiefs had to move short-armed Joe Thuney to left tackle, and he was finally out-classed against Philadelphia.
Right tackle Jawaan Taylor has also been a disappointment, and while anything is possible, cutting him seems unlikely (a dead cap hit of anywhere from $27 to $34 million) for a team without significant space. Plus, when you look at the dearth of high-level offensive line talent available in free agency, it might be best to hang on to Taylor for one more year before cutting the cord.
It goes beyond stabilizing the 'O' line for Veach. It's also about getting more receiving playmakers for Mahomes. Yes, the Rashee Rice injury was a tough one. He was blossoming (at least on the field) into a potential high-level target. But Hollywood Brown's injury, DeAndre Hopkins being cashed, and Travis Kelce struggling to be a difference maker left Mahomes in scramble mode too often without apparent answers. The Kelce decline is especially difficult to cover up as he was almost always the go-to guy in the biggest spots.
Now, the 175-pound Xavier Worthy was the Chiefs' best weapon, showing the team's limitations. Worthy is still not strong enough to fight through consistent contact and press coverage. Perhaps he can add some weight and become that guy, but it's more likely that Andy Reid will have to scheme ways to get Worthy free releases. It's doable, but I suspect good defenses will eventually solve that problem long before February.
Veach described himself as "super aggressive" after the Chiefs won the AFC Championship. He might have to double up on that adjective to keep KC near or at the top of the football mountain.
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
It's not all cheesesteaks and Fish House Punch in Philadelphia either, although it's more fun to fill holes when you have the Lombardi Trophy in your possession.
The Eagles will need a new offensive coordinator now that Kellen Moore has taken over in New Orleans, and several key players are headed toward free agency. Still, their roster health is as good as any in the league.
On offense, aside from the potential departure of guard Mekhi Becton, they are locked and loaded both upfront and at all the skill positions.
Defensively, it seems unlikely that the team can retain all of the DT Milton Williams, DE Josh Sweat, and LB Zack Baun contingent, but considering how deep they are, and with the heater GM Howie Roseman is on, it might not matter too much.
Baun, a revelation as an off-the-ball linebacker in Vic Fangio's defense, will get a massive pay raise. That's not a position Roseman has overspent on, although he may have to ponder it because of the injury to fellow LB Nakobe Dean (likely to miss all of 2025). Williams, a former third-round pick, and Sweat, a second coming off a 2.5 sack performance in the Super Bowl, are in line to command around $20 million annually. Had Roseman struck earlier, he could have managed to ink one or two before this point, but he explained why he resisted the urge in the days leading up to the Super Bowl (I'm sure it also had something to do with getting players on team-friendly deals as well)
"Once you start doing that, it’s almost like, are you picking favorites?” he said. “And the other guys start saying, ‘What about me?’ And they start playing for themselves as opposed to the team.
“Now, we’ve seen that probably costs you money in the long run as you’re doing it. But when you have an opportunity to compete for a championship, it’s worth that sacrifice, I think.”
“I’ll do anything for a championship. So if that’s the trade-off and maybe we lose a player, I won’t like that, but I’ll take it.”
Philly has $25 million in cap space but can create more room by cutting aging cornerback Darius Slay and fellow DB James Bradberry (who missed the entire season). Plus, owner Jeffrey Lurie has never been shy about spending real cash and letting Roseman get incredibly creative with contracts, so while a big free-agent splash seems unlikely, it's doubtful the Eagles will sleepwalk through this period.
NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN
I don't know if Aaron Glenn will prove to be the right hire for the Jets, but he's already off to a great start.
The Jets sent a press release confirming all the reporting that suggested Aaron Rodgers' time in the Big Apple/Jersey was over and done with.
"It was important to have this discussion now to provide clarity and enable each of us the proper time to plan for our respective futures," they said. "We want to thank him for the leadership, passion, and dedication he brought to the organization and wish him success moving forward."
According to Dianna Russini, Glenn, the first-year head coach, and first-year GM Darren Moughey summoned Rodgers from his California home last week to lay down the ground rules for a possible return in 2025-26.
The new leadership reportedly told the self-centered signal caller that he could not miss mandatory off-season training dates (as he did last year with a trip to Egypt) and that his days of doing weekly paid guest spots on 'The Pat McAfee Show' were over. Per sources, Rodgers had been hopeful the two sides could find common ground and he would remain in New York. That did not come to fruition.
The Jets made the bold move to trade for the former Green Bay Packer QB two years ago, creating hope that he could elevate an offense that had been mired in the Zach Wilson era. Instead, Rodgers blew out his Achilles four plays into his first season, missing the entirety of a 7-10 campaign. He started all 17 games this past year. While his final numbers (3.897 yards, 28 TDs, 11 INTs) were more than respectable, Rodgers was wildly inconsistent, struggled to forge a relationship with Garrett Wilson, and ultimately was unable to elevate the team, finishing 5-12.
It is expected Rodgers will be designated as a post-June 1st release, allowing New York to spread out the dead cap hit over two seasons ($14 million for 2025, $35 million for 2026). That will also create $9.5 million in space for the upcoming year. The Jets have two other quarterbacks under contract: Tyrod Taylor and Jordan Travis.
DOUBTFUL ON D.K.
Teams thirsty for a number-one receiver can probably scratch D.K. Metcalf off their wish list. New Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak was hired in part because he has a plan to reintegrate Metcalf into an offense that last year too often utilized the wideout as a decoy.
Head coach Mike Macdonald said as much at Kubiak's introductory press conference, noting that his new OC had "the best vision" for centering the passing game around Metcalf.
Kubiak called the physical pass catcher a "main focal point" of what the offense will do, adding they "have a lot of cool plans for D.K.," which makes sense when considering the assistant's history. He has been responsible for designing attacks that featured Justin Jefferson and Chris Olave.
Metcalf is entering the final season of a three-year extension signed in 2023, yet he doesn't turn 28 until mid-December. When you look at his recent comps (Brandon Aiyuk, Devonta Smith, Terry McLaurin), he should be looking at upwards of $25 million per season going forward.
Metcalf finished last year with 66 catches for 992 yards and five scores. It was the first time since 2021 that he ended the season with less than a thousand yards receiving and the fewest TDs of his career.
It should also be noted that moving on from Metcalf doesn't do the Seahawks any favors against the salary cap. A pre-June 1st move would result in a dead cap hit of $21 million, more than double what they'd get in cap savings. Designating it post-June 1st is better ($13.85 mil dead cap/$18 mil in savings), but it feels like it would take a first-rounder, at the very least, to get Seattle to hold meetings about such a move.