Tag: 2021 NFL season

Falcons have favorable strength of schedule in 2021

After having one of the NFL’s toughest schedules in 2020, the Atlanta Falcons may finally catch a break in 2021.

After having one of the NFL’s toughest schedules in 2020, the Atlanta Falcons may finally catch a break in 2021.

Allison Koehler of Steelers Wire calculated the strength of schedule for each team next season and the Falcons’ opponents have the 25th-ranked winning percentage (.479). Atlanta plays four playoff teams — Tampa Bay (twice), New Orleans (twice), Buffalo and Washington — in Arthur Smith’s first year in charge.

Fellow NFC South rivals will also see favorable competition in 2021. The Buccaneers’ strength of schedule is ranked 31st in the league, while the Saints aren’t too far behind (27th). Lastly, the Carolina Panthers (21st) have the toughest schedule in the division.

The NFC South could look quite different in 2021. As the Saints move forward without Drew Brees, the Falcons and Panthers will look to challenge Tampa Bay for the divisional crown next season.

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NFL planning to expand regular season to 17 games in 2021

NFL planning to expand the regular season to 17 games in 2021

The NFL is the best thing going in sports today and the league plans on providing even more games according to Ian Rapoport.

Per Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, the league is planning to expand the regular season to 17 games in 2021 — a move that would generate new revenue and could help solve some of the expected salary cap woes for teams like the Eagles and Saints.

An announcement may not come for weeks, if not months, since the NFL must first negotiate at least one new media contract in order to make the move to 17 games in 2021, per the collective bargaining agreement. But as one team source apprised of discussions said: “We’re all anticipating it’s going to happen.”

Once a new media deal is announced, the preseason would be cut to two or three games, with each team continuing to get one bye-week as the NFL extends the regular season to 18 weeks and pushes back the Super Bowl into the second week of February.

With the added game, each team would play an extra interconference matchup — AFC vs. NFC — based on divisional standings from the preceding season and on a rotating divisional basis.

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B/R suggests trade involving Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph in 2021

Do you want the Minnesota Vikings to move on from tight end Kyle Rudolph in 2021?

When the Vikings were off to a 1-5 start, a fire sale of players did not seem to be out of the question.

Minnesota traded away defensive end Yannick Ngakoue before the deadline. It seemed like some other veterans on costly contracts might be next, considering where the team was at in the short term.

One of the names fans and analysts suggested was Kyle Rudolph. However, the longtime Vikings tight end of course stayed with the team for 2020 and remains and important player for them.

Bleacher Report suggested that should change. The outlet listed a possible trade involving Rudolph going to Washington as something Minnesota should do in 2021. Here’s what it said about the deal:

“A team like the Washington Football Team comes to mind as a suitor. Ron Rivera’s squad could use a reliable veteran at the position, especially considering the long-term move under center would be to play Dwayne Haskins Jr. or a rookie. Either way, Rudolph’s contract would be more than worth taking on if it helps develop a younger guy. 

Keep in mind, this could be a bigger move than projected given how awful the NFC East is this year, a trend that could easily extend into 2021. With Minnesota’s likely desire to get out of the contract given its projected lack of 2021 cap space ($5.2 million over), it might cost as little as a third-round pick.”

Report: Texans could name Romeo Crennel full-time coach in 2021

The Houston Texans could stay the course and simply promote Romeo Crennel to full-time coach in 2021.

The Houston Texans were the first team to fire their coach on Oct. 5, and it has given them a head start in identifying potential candidates to succeed Bill O’Brien on the sidelines.

One of those candidates may already be in the building.

According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Texans are evaluating interim coach Romeo Crennel for the job, which would make him the fourth full-time coach in franchise history.

While they are still more than a month away from conducting the search to fill their head-coach opening, sources say that one strong possibility is to turn to Romeo Crennel as their full-time coach. It’s currently being debated inside the organization.

Crennel — now the interim coach — is a well-respected, affable, long-time defensive coordinator who has been a head coach in the past. For the Texans, he could serve as a stop-gap coach, allowing the team to get to 2021 with some stability and pushing their true coaching search to the following offseason when COVID-19 restrictions would allow for a traditional in-person search.

No one knows what the country will be like in January, but flying around the country and interviewing several candidates may be challenging, even on private planes. It’s possible that coaching candidates will be interviewed on Zoom. That means a team could invest $30 million or $40 million in a head coach they’ve never met.

One concern in hiring Crennel as the full-time coach is it went horribly for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2012. After going 2-1 with the Chiefs at the end of 2011, including handing the 15-1 Green Bay Packers their only loss of the season, Kansas City gave Crennel the full-time job. He followed it up with a 2-14 record, although he had Matt Cassel and Brady Quinn as his starting quarterbacks, not Deshaun Watson.

What Crennel has infused into the team is a sense of fun, but that may not be enough in 2021.