Tag: Brandon Marshall

Former Jets WR Brandon Marshall regrets not kneeling

Former Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall regrets not kneeling during the national anthem in 2016.

Former Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall is “ashamed” that he did not do more to take a stand against social and racial injustices in the United States during his career.

Marshall, who played for New York from 2015-16, elected to not join Colin Kaepernick in taking a knee during the national anthem to bring attention to injustices toward black people and minorities in 2016. While appearing on I Am Athlete, Marshall expressed his regret for not kneeling and why he ultimately decided not to.

“The first thing that came to my mind, and I’m just being honest, was: ‘I got a mom that don’t work. I got a sister with four kids that don’t work and I’ve been taking care of for 10 years. If I take this knee, what will happen?’ And I remember feeling so broken and so hurt that that was the first thing that hit my mind. ‘Do I kneel for the entire community, or do I stand for my mom, my brother my sister?’ And looking back on it, I am ashamed that I didn’t take that knee. But I am so excited now about with the video that just came out with the NFL players, because now I feel like they don’t have to make that decision. They don’t have to think about that anymore. If they want to take a knee, you think Nike’s going to drop them?”

Marshall did not remain completely silent on the issue, as he discussed it with team leaders such as Ryan Fitzpatrick, Nick Mangold, Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie in an effort to keep Gang Green’s locker room united. However, Marshall never kneeled during the anthem.

Marshall’s comments come in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derrick Chauvin, who has been charged with second-degree murder.

Floyd’s killing has prompted protests across the United States calling for an end to police brutality against black people and minorities. It has also brought the kneeling protests started by Kaepernick back to the forefront of conversation in the NFL with the 2020 season approaching.

4 former Giants named to PFF’s All-Decade Top 101

Four former members of the New York Giants, including one draft pick, have been named to Pro Football Focus’ All-Decade Top 101.

On Thursday, Pro Football Focus released their top 101 players of the past decade. Three former New members of the York Giants made the list, but it may not be in the order you would think.

Damon “Snacks” Harrison came in at No. 56 overall and you could argue that he was the best of the big-name free agents that were acquired in the 2016 free agency spending spree:

56. DI DAMON HARRISON SR.

In a different era of the game, Damon Harrison would go down as one of the greatest players to ever play. In today’s NFL, he will be remembered as the best run defender of his era, at a time where the run game became progressively less important year by year. Harrison earned a PFF run-defense grade above 90.0 for five of his six first seasons as a starter, and he topped 40 run stops four consecutive seasons, a mark only a couple of other players have ever managed from the defensive line. Harrison was an immovable force against the run and changed the way teams attacked on the ground, but never managed more than 22 total pressures over a season, despite rushing the passer at least 300 times for three straight years.

Snacks was with the New York Jets for four years before coming over to the crosstown rival Giants during the 2016 offseason. Snacks spent the last season and a half with the Detroit Lions after he was reluctantly traded from the Giants to the Lions during the 2018 season.

Just five spots later came wide receiver Brandon Marshall, who many have either forgotten was a member of the Giants or hope to forget that he was. Regardless, Marshall was an elite receiver for the better part of the last decade which helped land him at number 61 on the list:

61. WR BRANDON MARSHALL

One of the most physically gifted receivers of his generation, Brandon Marshall’s best years came over the past decade. The player dubbed “baby T.O.” — in reference to Terrell Owens — shared many of the same characteristics. Like T.O., drops were always his biggest issue, and he accrued 84 of them over the nine years he played in the last decade. But he also broke 81 tackles and was one of the most physically imposing receivers in the league. Even late in his career, he was able to go toe-to-toe with physically dominant cornerbacks like Richard Sherman and catch almost 100 yards’ worth of passes and score a touchdown.

Marshall’s time with the Giants was extremely short-lived and was a major bust of a free agent signing.

Recently, Marshall said in an interview that the Giants are not a well-run organization. However, it should be noted that most former members of the organization do not share that thought.

The only player who made the list that the Giants drafted was wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who checked in at No. 91.

Beckham spent the first five years of his career with the Giants before being shipped off to the Cleveland Browns last offseason. From a talent perspective, he could be considered the best receiver to made the list.

Beckham’s time with the Giants, let alone his time in the league, has been controversial to say the least. Even the trade that sent him to the Browns was considered highly controversial, and there are still Giants fans who express disappointment over his departure.

91. WR ODELL BECKHAM JR.

There are few more-talented receivers in NFL history than OBJ. The start of his career showed the kind of impact he could have, but injuries have begun to derail that impact, whether it was missing time in New York or battling through pain only to look like a shadow of himself in his first season with the Cleveland Browns. He has broken 20 or more tackles in a season twice in his career while notching double-digit totals in every healthy season. OBJ is one of the most dynamic receivers in the league after the catch, and you only have to watch his pregame warm-up routine to see his natural catching ability. The receiving talent pool in the NFL has never been deeper, but even so, OBJ has the potential to be as good as any.

One thing there is no debating is Beckham’s talent. Beckham gave Giants fans some of the most exciting plays in recent memory and he certainly belongs on the list regardless of how you feel about him.

Finally, there was a bit of an outlier.

Although he only spent three months with the Giants and did not see the field in either the preseason or regular season, New York did sign edge rusher Cameron Wake as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2005. He checked in at No. 41 overall.

41. EDGE CAMERON WAKE

Cameron Wake’s NFL beginnings seem hard to believe, given what he became — one of the top pure pass-rushers of his generation. Only Von Miller has a higher PFF pass-rush grade than Wake among edge rushers over the past decade, and only Miller surpassed the 600 total pressures that Wake amassed to go with his incredibly impressive 16.5% pressure rate. Wake was one of the most devastating speed-rushers the league has ever seen, and because his NFL career took some time to get going, the decade captured pretty much the entirety of his elite-level play.

The Giants’ current roster is full of youngsters with a bunch of potential. Hopefully, 10 years from now when PFF comes out with this list for 2020 decade we are talking about more current and former Giants — possibly even Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley.

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3 current Saints players added to PFF’s All-Decade Top 101

New Orleans Saints players like Emmanuel Sanders, Terron Armstead, and Cameron Jordan made the All-Decade Top 101 from Pro Football Focus.

The team at Pro Football Focus has continued to update its All-Decade Top 101, ranking the best players in the NFL over the last ten years. And it shouldn’t surprise anyone that several New Orleans Saints have already made an appearance.

It’s quite a comprehensive piece — one-time Saints wideout Dez Bryant also cracked the list, at No. 75; embittered ex-Saints practice participant Brandon Marshall was also ranked at No. 61 — but so far, just three current Saints players have been recognized.

PFF is updating its list each day this week, with the final wave dropping on Thursday. So stay tuned to see whether big names like Drew Brees, Michael Thomas, or Alvin Kamara get listed.

One of the Saints rated highly by PFF hasn’t even played a down in New Orleans yet, which should get fans even more excited about his arrival. Let’s get started:

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Kam Chancellor, Duane Brown on PFF’s Top-101 players of the decade

Chancellor and Brown were joined by former Seattle Seahawks Brandon Marshall and Michael Bennett on PFF’s top-101 players of the decade.

Pro Football Focus has now released half of their top-101 players of the last decade, and six Seattle Seahawks have already found themselves represented.

Numbers 75-101 were released on Monday, with Doug Baldwin and Greg Olsen coming in at 77 and 81, respectively. Now, 50-74 have been released and four more Seahawks – Kam Chancellor, Duane Brown, Brandon Marshall and Michael Bennett – have been named to the list.

At No. 55, Chancellor is the first member of Seattle’s famed Legion of Boom to make the list, although Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas are certainly going to be on it as well. His career was cut short by injuries, but Bam Bam brought the boom as a hard-hitting strong safety, and was a four-time Pro Bowler.

The Seahawks pulled off a midseason trade in 2017 to acquire Brown from the Texans, and although he did most of his work in Houston he has been an excellent addition to Seattle’s offensive line as a veteran team leader and a stout run blocker at the left tackle spot, certainly helping to earn him his spot on this list at No. 58 overall.

Marshall spent a half season with the Seahawks in 2018 before getting released, but his leadership during training camp did not go unnoticed. A stellar career with the Bears and Broncos prior to that is what nets him a spot on this list at No. 61 overall.

Bennett comes in at No. 74 after a stellar career in Tampa Bay and Seattle and then a few scattered years with Dallas, Philadelphia and New England. Now a free agent, Bennett recorded 6.5 sacks last year and still has enough juice to help a team in need of some pass rush even in his age 35 season.

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Brandon Marshall: Giants are not a well-run organization

Brandon Marshall does not believe the New York Giants are a well-run organization, but feels the New York Jets are.

When the New York Giants signed Brandon Marshall (two years, $12M) during the 2017 offseason, many expected big things from a receiving core that included he, Odell Beckham Jr. and Sterling Shepard.

However, Marshall’s time with the Giants was short-lived and was seen as a major bust of a signing.

The former Giant and six-time Pro Bowler was a guest on FS1’s The Herd on Thursday and was asked if he thought the Giants were a well-run organization. He didn’t hesitate to say “no.”

“Oh you putting me on the spot right now.  I did not. I think they’re great people, I think they’re a great organization, but I don’t think they’re disruptive enough,” Marshall said. “There are a few organizations like the Chicago Bears, the New York Giants, even the Pittsburgh Steelers, where it’s all about history.

“They don’t want to change certain things, they want a certain guy, and I think that puts them in a box when the game is changing every year; when the culture of the kid is changing every year. When the culture of the coach is changing every year. So I think, yes, they have great leadership — great people — but they’re so rich in tradition and they want to preserve that so much that it handicaps them from actually competing today.”

Marshall wasn’t with the team for very long, playing just five games with the Giants before suffering a season-ending injury. He was released following the 2017 season.

Ironically, Marshall also told Cowherd that the New York Jets are “actually a well-run organization” while also calling that fact a “shocker.” Marshall’s tenure with the Jets was a much longer stay than his time with Big Blue.

It should also be noted that most players who spend a part of their career with the Giants organization usually have nothing but good things to say about the franchise. The Giants are often known as one of the classier franchises in the league.

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Saints hater Brandon Marshall buries the hatchet with Sean Payton

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton confronted Brandon Marshall on the Draft-A-Thon charity stream, addressing his ESPN rant on the team.

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New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton made an appearance on the Draft-A-Thon broadcast, a separate video feed covering this year’s NFL draft dedicated to raising donations for coronavirus relief efforts.

However, his time on the show brought Payton into contact with Brandon Marshall; the one-time Saints wide receiver who ripped the team during an ESPN bit earlier this month.

“Alright, so I made some headlines recently,” Marshall said, referencing his heated comments about the imminent collapse of the Saints as a Super Bowl contender.

“I love you,” Payton interjected, grinning. “I love you.”

Taken aback, Marshall responded, “I love you too. Then you went on Twitter, and you called me out.”

Payton brushed off the incident as, “playing by Covid-19 rules,” in which jokes and hot takes are allowed in these strange times. But once things settle down, he’s expecting everyone to let up a little. See it for yourself:

Marshall’s main point in his ESPN rant was that the Saints wouldn’t be able to compete with Tom Brady, now that he’s landed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That’s a challenge Payton is embracing.

“In all seriousness,” Payton said, “There’s only about ten or eleven relevant teams. You’re on a point where, not only Tom but also (Rob) Gronkowski, you know just the standard’s going to change. They’re really, really special players.”

One idea Payton had for addressing the looming matchup was to put it under the brightest spotlight. He asked NBC Sports sideline reporter Michele Tafoya to take his suggestion to the higher-ups at the network, and put both of the Saints’ games with the Buccaneers on “Sunday Night Football” in 2020. Wouldn’t that be something?

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Sean Payton, Saints players respond to Brandon Marshall’s ESPN tirade

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton and players like Cameron Jordan reacted to Brandon Marshall’s fiery ranting on ESPN’s First Take show.

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Former NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall made an appearance on ESPN’s “First Take” morning show on Thursday, and he apparently brought an ax to grind. Marshall took aim at the New Orleans Saints in a lengthy rant, insisting that the team’s Super Bowl window slammed shut after the 2019 season.

Marshall followed that up by saying that the Saints aren’t built for success with players like Drew Brees, Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara, and a defense loaded with Pro Bowlers. He also called out Saints coach Sean Payton, swearing that the NFL has figured out the league’s third-rated scoring offense.

Some of those players responded to Marshall’s chatter on social media, as did Payton himself. Payton replied to a video of Marshall’s claims with his own image of a “Zoltar” fortune teller machine, evidently laughing off the criticism:

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Ex-Saints wide receiver Brandon Marshall: ‘Their window is closed’

Pro Bowl WR Brandon Marshall only spent a month with the New Orleans back in 2018, and lit up his old team on ESPN’s First Take morning show

Brandon Marshall’s month-long stint with the New Orleans Saints a couple of years ago must have left a sour impression. Unable to outwork the likes of Keith Kirkwood and Tommylee Lewis in practice, he spent most of November 2018 wearing sweatpants on game days before the team cut him early in December. He never played another down in the NFL.

So now Marshall is trying to reinvent himself as a commentator, going on ESPN’s “First Take” to rain fire and brimstone down on the last team that gave him a shot.

“New Orleans, Sean Payton? Sean Payton continues to hurt his team,” Marshall said in a segment discussing Tom Brady’s chances of leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a division title.

He continued, “How do you have Drew Brees, Mike T, Alvin Kamara, Mark Ingram a couple years ago, you have a defense that goes from crap the first half of the season to one of the most elite defenses we’ve ever seen, and you lose in the playoffs?

“Two years, back to back? New Orleans is done.”

When the show’s hosts tried to steer Marshall back on track into focusing on regular season results, and the looming race for an NFC South crown between Brady and Brees, Marshall dug his heels in even further.

“Their window is closed, their window is closed,” Marshall insisted. “Their window is closed, I’m sorry. Did you see what happened to their defense last year? Do you see that everyone in the league has the book on New Orleans’ offense now? Did you see that? It’s over, it’s a wrap.”

The Saints offense ranked third-best in the NFL last year, averaging more than 28 points scored per game with Brees missing five weeks. They’ve also added three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders in free agency, which Marshall scoffed at.

“Emmanuel Sanders is fifty years old,” Marshall retorted, “Emmanuel Sanders is two months away from standing right next to me.” Sanders, 33, is three years Marshall’s junior.

Maybe Marshall is bored in retirement. He could be trying to kick off a media career based off of hot takes and shallow analysis. Another possibility is that he may have felt that he didn’t get a fair shot to earn playing time back in 2018, which doesn’t pass the smell test considering how short-handed the Saints were at receiver in the wake of Dez Bryant’s career-ending injury.

Whatever the case, nothing Marshall said on ESPN Thursday morning holds up when you look at the numbers. Maybe he should do his research before going on air next time.

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Looking back at the Jay Cutler trade 11 years ago today

Let’s take a look at the trade that went down in 2009, and the career that QB Jay Cutler had as a Chicago Bear.

Eleven years ago today, the Chicago Bears traded for quarterback Jay Cutler. Let’s look back at the trade that went down in 2009, and the career that Cutler had with the Bears.

In early 2009, the Bears traded Kyle Orton, a pair of first-round picks and a third-round pick to the Denver Broncos for their hopeful franchise quarterback in Cutler.

By comparison, during Orton’s three seasons with the Bears, he had a record of 21-12, while Cutler had a record of 17-20 in his first three seasons in Denver.

Orton was a proven winner here in Chicago, and Cutler had a bit of an attitude and seemed like he didn’t get along with the coaches in Denver, so maybe the trade was a little questionable at the time.

In his first season in 2009, Cutler threw for 3,666 yards, 27 touchdowns and 26 interceptions, while starting all 16 games. Ouch. It wasn’t the first year in Chicago many hoped for Cutler. The Bears went 7-9 and ended up missing the playoffs, and the Broncos ended up going 8-8 and also missing the playoffs. So you could call it a draw for both teams in the first year of the trade.

In 2010, it seemed like Cutler was a completely different quarterback, as he led the Bears to an 11-5 record, and they ended up winning the NFC North. In 15 games, Cutler threw for 3,274 yards, 23 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. That was a 10 interception drop-off that he had in 2009, which was a huge improvement.

Then in 2011, Cutler suffered an injury that cut short what was playing out to be a magical season when he broke his thumb against the Chargers. In 10 games, he threw for 13 touchdowns and 7 interceptions with a 7-3 record. Instead of a return trip to the playoffs, Chicago finished with an 8-8 record and were left wondering what could’ve been if Cutler had stayed healthy.

The Bears traded for Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall in 2012. Marshall and Cutler played together in Denver from 2006-2008, and they were reunited in Chicago.

Cutler ended up missing the ninth game in 2012 after getting hit hard during the Houston Texans game. The Bears ended up finishing 10-6 and still found a way to miss the playoffs. The 2012 season ended up being the last year for Lovie Smith as Bears head coach after nine years with the team, which included a Super Bowl appearance in 2006.

General manager Phil Emery quickly found a replacement for Smith, hiring offensive guru Marc Trestman in 2013. Trestman was a part of Steve Young and the 49ers’ success in the ’90s and he has won championships in the Canadian football league.

Cutler once again struggled with injury in 2013, where he only played in 11 games. He threw for 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while leading the Bears to a 5-6 record. Entering Week 17, the Bears and Packers matched up for the last game of the regular season, the Packers were 7-7-1 and the Bears had a record of 8-7. The Packers delivered a brutal 33-28 defeat, and the Bears missed the playoffs with an 8-8 record in Trestman’s first year as head coach.

In 2014, Cutler went 5-10 as the starter, he threw for 3,812 yards, 28 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. The Bears missed the playoffs with a 5-11 record. After only two seasons, Trestman would end up getting fired.

In 2015, changes were needed for this Bears’ team. They would find a new general manager in Ryan Pace, a new head coach in John Fox and Marshall and Martellus Bennet would leave the team.

In Cutler’s final two years with the Bears in 2015 and 2016, he started 20 games, throwing for 4,718 yards, 25 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. The Bears ended up missing the playoffs in Cutler’s last two years, with records of 6-10 in 2015 and 3-13 in 2016.

During the 2017 offseason, the Bears held the third overall pick in the NFL Draft, and Bears’ fans know how that turned out as Pace would trade up from the third overall pick to the second overall pick to draft Mitchell Trubisky. Still a questionable move to this day on why Pace traded so many future picks just to move up one spot.

Even before drafting Trubisky, Cutler’s career as a Bear came to an end. He spent eight seasons in Chicago, leading them to a 51-51 record as starter, throwing for 154 touchdowns and 109 interceptions. But during those eight years, the Bears only made the playoffs once.

Seeing Cutler play with guys like Matt Forte, Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery, Devin Hester, and Johhny Knox, to name a few, was exciting.

Cutler was by far one of my favorite Bears. When the Bears traded for Cutler, how did you feel? Did you like the trade? What was your favorite moment?

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Former Jets assistant Karl Dorrell named University of Colorado head coach

Karl Dorrell, who coached the Jets wide receivers from 2015-18 was officially announced as the next head coach of Colorado on Sunday.

The University of Colorado officially hire former Jets assistant coach Karl Dorrell as its next head coach on Sunday.

Dorrell will get a five-year, $18 million deal, which is pending approval from Colorado’s Board of Regents, according to a statement released by the school. He will succeed Mel Tucker, who left Colorado  to replace Mark Dantonio at Michigan State. Dantonio resigned a day before National Signing Day.

Dorrell has ties to the Jets, as he coached the team’s wide receivers from 2015-18 as a member of Todd Bowles’ staff. In 2015, Dorrell oversaw a wide receiver room that included the elite duo of Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker. Marshall and Decker both had 1,000-yard seasons, combining for 26 touchdowns and 189 catches.

Dorrell is a former University of Colorado assistant, too. He was the program’s wide receivers coach in 1992 and 1993 and returned to be the offensive coordinator from 1995-98. Now, Dorrell is making his third and presumably final stop in Boulder.

He returns to the Pac-12 after being the head coach at UCLA from 2003-07. There, Dorrell compiled a 35-27 record in five seasons. His teams went to four bowl games.

As a coach, Dorrell has also made college stops at UCF, Northern Arizona, Arizona State, Washington and Vanderbilt. In his most recent college coaching gig as Vanderbilt’s offensive coordinator, Dorrell was fired after just one season, which lead him back to the NFL.

Most recently, Dorrell was the Dolphins assistant head coach and wide receivers coach. He was hired by Brian Flores after the Jets elected to part ways with Bowles and his entire staff.