NFL News, Rumors and Musings

[Extra Point]

One of the players I'm interested in is Justin Zimmer, a DT who came out during last year's draft. He was signed as an UDFA with Buffalo and ended up on the Saints' practice squad.

Zimmer tested out to be very athletic. He was extemely productive at Division II. I checked out the Saints depth chart on the CBS site and they list him as competing for a third string spot.

A white linebacker, Nate Stupar is also listed at third string. He should be competing for a starting role but he's serving a racial apprenticeship that may never end.

 

[Heretic]

TJ Watt "stole the show" at Steelers OTA. Looks to make "immediate impact" on defense.

 

[Westside]

Apparently Dennis Pitta severely reinjured his hip in a non-contact, diving for a catch. It's speculated to be career ending.

Damn. I hope he recovers. He went to high school about 3 miles from me(Moorepark HS). He played WR and Corner back in HS. He made All Everything lists when graduated HS.

 

[La France Blanche]

I remember Stupar making some good plays last season. Once some of the afro-fat gets trimmed from the roster, he should move higher on the depth chart.

 

[Don Wassall]

Tank Carder has a chance to start at MLB for the Browns this year:

The moment the Browns traded linebacker DeMario Davis to the Jets for safety Calvin Pryor, I had the same question as many Browns fans: Who plays middle linebacker? Right now, the answer is probably Tank Carder. But put an asterisk next to that.

http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/index.ssf/2017/06/cleveland_browns_have_terry_ta_122.html

 

[Don Wassall]

Kwiatkoski will be a tackling machine as soon as his racial apprenticeship is over. And he should be very popular in Chicago with its large Polish population.

Nick Kwiatkoski pegged as Bears' best-kept secret

by Matt Eurich

The Chicago Bears surprised some by drafting Nick Kwiatkoski in the fourth round in 2016 after adding veteran inside linebacker Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan in free agency last offseason.

Luckily for the Bears, the selection of Kwiatkoski paid off in his rookie season. He appeared in 14 games with seven starts and ended the year with 44 tackles, one sack, two pass deflections and one forced fumble.

Heading into his second NFL season, Kwiatkoski has been pegged Chicago's Best Kept Secret, according to Bleacher Report's Gary Davenport.

"As the season progressed, Nick Kwiatkoski went from a little-known fourth-round rookie to a fan favorite who compensated for a lack of elite athleticism by playing like his hair was on fire," Davenport wrote.

Kwiatkoski is a former safety, so saying he lacks athleticism is not exactly the best way to describe the former West Virginia standout. The young linebacker made the most of his opportunities and showed off impressive sideline-to-sideline awareness and proved to be a reliable tackler against the run.

"It's fixing to be a long year by the shores of Lake Michigan, but a hard-nosed young linebacker from a franchise with a long history of them could provide a welcome distraction," Davenport wrote.

While the praise for Kwiatkoski is warranted after a solid rookie season, Davenport went a bit strong with his assessment. At this point there is no guarantee Kwiatkoski even sees the field as a starter in 2017. There is a chance he will line up alongside Freeman because Trevathan is recovering from a knee injury.

http://chi.247sports.com/Bolt/Nick-Kwiatkoski-pegged-as-Bears-best-kept-secret-52912445

 

[Quiet Speed]

http://www.wwl.com/articles/saints-add-receiver-drop-guard

The Saints made a couple of moves Monday, according to the NFL transaction wire.

New Orleans signed wide receiver Dan Arnold. The big-bodied pass-catcher stands 6'5" and weighs in at 222 pounds. He played his college ball at Wisconsin-Platteville, racking up over 1,000 yards in 2016. Arnold hails from Fargo, South Dakota.

To make room for Arnold, the team waived backup guard Drew Iddings.

 

[celticdb15]

http://www.wwl.com/articles/saints-add-receiver-drop-guard

The Saints made a couple of moves Monday, according to the NFL transaction wire.

New Orleans signed wide receiver Dan Arnold. The big-bodied pass-catcher stands 6'5" and weighs in at 222 pounds. He played his college ball at Wisconsin-Platteville, racking up over 1,000 yards in 2016. Arnold hails from Fargo, South Dakota.

To make room for Arnold, the team waived backup guard Drew Iddings.

Sweet!

 

[Leonardfan]

Drew Morgan performing well in OTAs. Weenieworld does its best to knock him down. Didn't Anquan Boldin run a 4.71 yet no one made a big deal about his 40 time? Saying he played faster than he was. Oh wait he is black so that is ok. Again Morgan was a very good and productive WR in the supposed best conference in the country. The constant contradictions of the sports media continue to go unchecked and are based strictly on melanin or lack there of in determining which angle these sports cucks will take with their "analysis". Anyways I am hopeful Morgan makes an impact.

UDFA WR Drew Morgan has been standing out in Dolphins OTAs.

It's always best to be highly skeptical of unknowns lighting things up in pad-less practices, but Morgan has apparently been vacuuming up everything thrown his way, and doing damage after the catch. An Arkansas product, Morgan was invited to the Combine, but tested poorly, running a dad-like 4.74 in the 40-yard dash. It was the slowest time amongst receivers. Morgan did shine in the 60-yard shuttle. Morgan is a slot prospect who will have to lean on the typical cliches of shiftiness and toughness to crack the 53-man roster.

 

[Don Wassall]

We'll see what kind of market there is for Decker, one of the top 10 or 15 receivers in the league the past half dozen years. The Jets have been dumping lots of veterans, so it's not surprising that Decker is also one of them.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports the Jets have informed Eric Decker he will be traded or released by the end of the week. The Jets see the tanking 2016 Browns' 1-15 and hope to raise it to 0-16. This is a scorched-earth rebuild, one where as many parts as possible are being stripped away in hopes of getting younger, cheaper and better draft picks. Typically, when a player's release becomes preordained, they become impossible to trade, but there's a chance a Decker market develops. Now 30, Decker is one of the league's premier touchdown scorers when healthy. He's due $14.75 million over the next two seasons.

 

[McCaffrey Dude]

This is actually good for Decker and Chad Hansen. The Jets have a glut of young wide receivers. Hansen should get more playing time with Decker gone and hopefully Decker finds a team that is weak at the position. Then the Jets also have that speedy phenom that assaulted a cop or security guard in Florida a few months ago. It will probably be dismissed as usual.

 

[Leonardfan]

Hopefully Decker lands on his feet. San Diego would be a nice destination as their WR corp is laughable and their overdrafted future 1st round bust is already injured.

 

[celticdb15]

Could be a blessing in disguise for Decker. NYJ are going nowhere fast, I second I'd like to see him wind up with a contender!

 

[La France Blanche]

I'd say it's good news. Decker deserves better than the team that's known for the buttfumble and begging Fireman Ed to come back and failing.

I loved that play. Latino quarterback runs into black lineman, fumbles, ball is scooped up by White defensive back and run in for a touchdown.

 

[Don Wassall]

It really ticks me off the way Weenieworld and the rest of the (((media))) still insist on calling Decker a "complementary," i.e. number two receiver. Prior to getting injured last season, Decker gained 1,064, 1,288, 962, and 1,027 yards in addition to his prowess in the red zone. The Ravens current depth chart lists Mike Wallace and Breshad Perriman as the starters. They would be the complements to Decker if Baltimore signs him, not the other way around.

ESPN Ravens reporter Jamison Hensley believes Eric Decker may be higher on the Ravens' wish list than free agent Jeremy Maclin. Maclin is scheduled to visit the Ravens if/when he leaves his trip to the Bills. Hensley wonders if it even matters now, since Decker fits the profile better of what the Ravens truly need, which is a true complementary receiver who scores touchdowns in the red zone. Decker is just that at 6'3/214, and only Dez Bryant, Brandon Marshall, Antonio Brown, and Demaryius Thomas have scored more touchdowns since 2012, and that's with Decker missing 13 games last season.

 

[FootballDad]

Speaking of Maclin, his old team the Chefs could certainly use Decker. Their receiver corps are laughable.

 

[celticdb15]

Speaking of Maclin, his old team the Chefs could certainly use Decker. Their receiver corps are laughable.

True and they have been for years now!

 

[Leonardfan]

I saw that the Jets asked Steve Smith if he would come out of retirement. So they wanted to bring an old, undersized WR in and get rid of Decker who is 9 years younger, a better athlete, bigger and stronger - makes total sense.

 

[McCaffrey Dude]

I saw that the Jets asked Steve Smith if he would come out of retirement. So they wanted to bring an old, undersized WR in and get rid of Decker who is 9 years younger, a better athlete, bigger and stronger - makes total sense.

As much as I always agree with posters like you Leonardfan I have to disagree that Decker is a better athlete than Smith. I don't know if Smith has lost speed though he is not as big or as strong or as young as his counterpart, but he was cat quick in his heyday and is or at least was a much better deep threat as Decker despite having good size is more of a mid-range receiver. Albeit Smith was one of the bigger punks in a league chock full of them. Maybe the Jets are looking for his immature " swag " to rub off on the Jets mostly very young receiving core.

 

[Don Wassall]

I dislike Woody Paige but what he writes here is just common sense. It would be strange indeed if the Broncos don't want to see what the multi-talented quarterback they took in the first round last year can do as a starter.

Woody Paige: Paxton Lynch will be starter this year, like other top picks

Paxton Lynch must start. Period.

Start with this:

Of the 44 college quarterbacks drafted in the top 36 from 2003-2016, 39 became full-time starters in their first or second seasons.

Four who didn't were Philip Rivers, who sat behind Drew Brees two seasons in San Diego before Brees was traded; Rex Grossman, who started only seven times in his first three years with the Bears; J.P. Losman, who didn't start until his third season in Buffalo after breaking his leg as a rookie; and Aaron Rodgers, who didn't start until his fourth season because he played behind a guy named Brett Favre.

Could Lynch be No. 5?

Not happening.

I've seen Trevor Siemian again this week, and he is no Favre.

He's a nice NFL backup. Emphasis on nice.

Of the 18 current probable 2017 starting quarterbacks who were selected in first round, only two didn't become starters in their first season - Rodgers and Rivers.

Forgive the mention, but even Tim Tebow became the starter for the last 11 games of his second, and last, season with the Broncos. Jay Cutler started the final five games of his rookie year and all 16 his next season.

Lest we forget, John Elway was the starter in his first professional game, and so was Peyton Manning.

Three quarterbacks were chosen in the first round in 2016. Carson Wentz started every game after the Eagles traded Sam Bradford, who had been the 16-game starter with the Rams in 2010 when he was drafted No. 1 overall. Jared Goff was picked first last year by the same Rams, and became the starter for the final seven games.

full article: http://gazette.com/woody-paige-paxt...his-year-like-other-top-picks/article/1604629

 

[Don Wassall]

As much as I always agree with posters like you Leonardfan I have to disagree that Decker is a better athlete than Smith. I don't know if Smith has lost speed though he is not as big or as strong or as young as his counterpart, but he was cat quick in his heyday and is or at least was a much better deep threat as Decker despite having good size is more of a mid-range receiver. Albeit Smith was one of the bigger punks in a league chock full of them. Maybe the Jets are looking for his immature " swag " to rub off on the Jets mostly very young receiving core.

That's the relevant point; his heyday was a long time ago. Smith played longer than 99% of receivers and is now retired. I have no doubt he'll make the Hall of Fame. But Decker is still in his prime and right now is a much more desirable receiver than Smith. Whether Decker technically is the better athlete doesn't matter, but imo he is. With Joe Flacco throwing him the ball he should be able to easily go over 1,000 yards and score at least 10 touchdowns. The last time Smith scored more than 7 TDs in a season was in 2007; and in three of the last four seasons he had under 800 receiving yards.

 

[Freethinker]

The Ravens with Decker, Woodhead and Campanaro would be a treat to watch on offense. Loosing Pitta to another hip injury was a tough break but hopefully high draft pick Maxx Williams can develop into the next great White TE.

Decker could certainly do a lot worse than Baltimore...

 

[McCaffrey Dude]

It is funny but there was a time not to long ago all the great NFL tight ends were black " so said the MSM ". In the last 5 or 6 years we have players like Gronk, Olsen, Kelce ( punk ) and so many more. I wonder why the demographic changed so much? It seems like we should have more white linebackers in the NFL but all the athletic big white guys seem to be on offense. I think there is a lot to think about this post. Just saying.

 

[Don Wassall]

The Ravens with Decker, Woodhead and Campanaro would be a treat to watch on offense. Loosing Pitta to another hip injury was a tough break but hopefully high draft pick Maxx Williams can develop into the next great White TE.

Decker could certainly do a lot worse than Baltimore...

I was thinking about that earlier today. Baltimore would almost be New England south if that happens. But Jeremy Maclin is visiting Baltimore and they are one of the teams prominently mentioned (along with Buffalo) who are interested in him. The Ravens signing Maclin would be a double-bad as it would not only make it unlikely they sign Decker, but Maclin would play mainly inside, the starting position Campanaro currently has the clear lead for. So let's hope the Bills or anyone other than Baltimore signs Maclin.

 

[Don Wassall]

Would be great to see Nelson Spruce join Cooper Kupp on the Rams roster. Being injured all of last season didn't help his cause.

Can Nelson Spruce make an impact for Los Angeles Rams in 2017?

by Dan Parzych

Now that he’s fully healthy, wide receiver Nelson Spruce hopes to make an impact for the Los Angeles Rams in the passing game this upcoming season.

Last August, it only took one preseason game for Los Angeles Rams fans to fall in love with Nelson Spruce after the previously undrafted rookie caught six passes for 51 yards with a touchdown in the preseason opener against the Dallas Cowboys. Unfortunately in that same game, Spruce would end up suffering a knee sprain that would prevent him from playing for the entire 2016 season.

Against all odds (or due having a very weak receiving corps) at the times, the Rams felt confident enough to still reward Spruce with one of the roster spots with the hope he would eventually return to full strength and shine like he did against the Cowboys during the regular season. But even though that never happened, Spruce is fully recovered, and has been practicing with his teammates during organized team activities over the last two weeks with the intention of making an impact this time around.

As Rams Insider Myles Simmons recently discussed after the seventh day of OTAs for the team, Spruce seems to have the potential to be a key part of the passing game for Los Angeles, but that’s easier said than done. Believe it or not, the organization has done a solid job by improving the receiving corps between the additions of key players like Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp, which means Spruce will have to standout even more over the next few months.

Then again, the pressure of fighting for a roster spot is nothing new for Spruce since this was the same exact situation he found himself in last year when he joined the squad as an undrafted rookie. Of course, the only difference this time around is the Rams and their fans are well aware of who he is along with what he could potentially bring to the table on offense. And since they weren’t able to actually see Spruce in action last year when it mattered the most during the regular season, don’t be surprised if Los Angeles takes another shot by rewarding him with another roster spot for the second year in a row.

https://ramblinfan.com/2017/06/07/can-nelson-spruce-make-impact-los-angeles-rams-2017/