Tag: Oakland Raiders

5 thoughts on Patriots reportedly readying for Tom Brady to test free agency

Robert Kraft is reportedly comfortable with Tom Brady entering free agency.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is comfortable letting quarterback Tom Brady test free agency in 2020, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. So in all likelihood, that’s exactly what Brady will do. When the tampering period opens on March 16, the quarterback will begin discussions with teams, who are likely to present pitches (much like NBA teams have done for major free agent stars). The market for Brady, a six-time Super Bowl champion, will probably be robust.

The Patriots, meanwhile, will surely monitor Brady’s movements and prospects in hopes of retaining him. But Bill Belichick will likely also prepare New England’s roster for the quarterback’s potential departure. Here are five thoughts on how this process is shaping up, now that Brady’s foray into free agency feels imminent.

1. The chances of the Patriots retaining Tom Brady have fallen

Because Brady seems poised to test free agency, the Patriots will be short $7.5 million. Brady’s previous contract goes void when the new league year begins, which means his signing bonus (already paid in full) is no longer pro-rated against the cap. So instead of hitting the cap at $7.5 million in 2020 and the same in 2021, that money consolidates into 2020 as a $15 million cap hit. That’s fewer dollars for New England to lure Brady. And if Brady uses free agency to leverage for more money, that could be a problem for the Patriots, who have expiring contracts with safety Devin McCourty, guard Joe Thuney and linebackers Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins, among others.

Even if Brady doesn’t demand a big contract, Bill Belichick will have a harder time supplying the supporting cast, which is reportedly important to the quarterback.

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5 best moments from Broncos’ 2019 season

The Denver Broncos started poorly but finished strong in 2019 with some great moments along the way. Here are the best moments of the year.

The Denver Broncos won just seven games in 2019 and missed the playoffs for the fourth year in a row. If we wanted to be cynical, we would dwell on just those facts.

But for a team that started the year 0-4, the fact that the Broncos finished the season at 7-9 can be viewed as quite encouraging. Many of the team’s best moments happened toward the end of the season and helped build the momentum for a solid finish to the season.

A solid finish to a season usually breeds plenty of optimism for the year ahead.

These five moments helped breed that optimism. So here are the top five moments from the Broncos’ 2019 season, ranked in descending order.

5. Kareem Jackson lateral turned into touchdown

This was arguably the Broncos’ most exciting touchdown last season.

Facing the Houston Texans and already leading 7-0 on the road, the Broncos came up with a game-changing turnover.

The Texans had the ball 1st-and-10 from the Denver 37-yard line and were driving when Deshaun Watson completed a pass to Keke Coutee. But Alexander Johnson knocked the ball from Coutee’s arms and Jeremiah Attaochu picked it up. Attaochu then turned and handed the ball to Kareem Jackson, who had played for the Texans up to being signed by Denver in the offseason.

Jackson took the ball toward the sideline and raced to the end zone for a defensive score to put Denver up 14-0.

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Despite struggles, Jets’ attendance ranked surprisingly high in 2019

The New York Jets were second best in the NFL in average home attendance in 2019.

Despite an otherwise disappointing 7-9 season, fans still showed up to MetLife Stadium to watch the Jets in 2019.

According to NBC Sports, the Jets were second in the NFL in average home attendance this past season. They averaged 78,523 fans per game. The only team ahead of them was the Dallas Cowboys (90,929).

Following the Jets were the Packers (77,845), Broncos (75,937) and Giants (74,664).

Not to knock the Gang Green faithful, which has tolerated decades of mediocrity, but chances are the Jets had a lot of help from opposing fans. The Jets played three of the most popular teams in America at home last season: the Cowboys, Raiders and Steelers. With established rivalries and close proximity, it’s safe to assume Patriots and Giants showed up in droves as well.

While the Jets may be happy about their attendance this season, they should recognize a lot of the fans in the stadium were not their own. A good team would change that in 2020.

Report: Bears will not play Jaguars in London next season

The Bears played the Raiders in London last season. And Chicago has been excused from playing the Jaguars in London next season.

The Chicago Bears returned to London last season for the first time since 2011, where they lost to the then-Oakland Raiders 24-21 on Oct. 6. Would they be making a trip back across the Atlantic to face another AFC opponent in 2020? Not according to one NFL insider.

The Bears have an away game scheduled against the Jacksonville Jaguars next season, who announced on Tuesday they will play in back-to-back home games in London this fall. The Jaguars are the first NFL team to play two home games outside of the United States.

Because a quarter of their home schedule will now take place overseas, questions arose as to whether the Bears would be one of the two opponents.

But according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, their home game against the Bears is protected and will remain in Jacksonville.

The Bears could still play one of their games in London as two more games have yet to be decided. But since the NFL International Series began in 2007, only the Jaguars, Raiders, and Los Angeles Rams have played overseas in consecutive seasons.

The NFL schedule will be released in late April.

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Fan voting is in: And the greatest moment in NFL history is …

After a process that began last July, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the NFL, tons of fans weighed in to vote on the greatest moment in the league’s history. And the result was revealed Sunday during the Super Bowl LVI pregame show and was …

After a process that began last July, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the NFL, tons of fans weighed in to vote on the greatest moment in the league’s history.

And the result was revealed Sunday during the Super Bowl LVI pregame show and was reenacted Sunday with the two participants of the immortal play, Hall of Famers Franco Harris and Terry Bradshaw.

NFL.com has a great breakdown of the play and the vote and here’s why this play was considered so amazing.

 

Twitter believes Josh Jacobs deserved NFL’s OROY award

Heading into the NFL Honors for the 2019 season it seemed as if the Offensive Rookie of the Year award was between two worthy candidates: Josh Jacobs, former Alabama running back now leading the charge for the Raiders, and AJ Brown, the former Ole …

Heading into the NFL Honors for the 2019 season it seemed as if the Offensive Rookie of the Year award was between two worthy candidates: Josh Jacobs, former Alabama running back now leading the charge for the Raiders, and AJ Brown, the former Ole Miss wide receiver now a star on the Titans.

However, the award was given to former Heisman-winning quarterback out of Oklahoma, Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals.

Many NFL fans have taken to Twitter to voice their dissatisfaction with Murray being named the recipient, heres what they had to say:

NBC getting in on the action, calling it “a slight.”

I’d say this was the face of many NFL fans around the league.

We can’t figure this one out either, Vincent.

Stephen A. Smith’s reaction may very well be all of ours.

Maybe it’s time to bring back the replacement refs?

PFF bringing some stats to the conversation.

Bold prediction right here for the 2020 season.

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WATCH: Josh Jacobs’ inspirational Super Bowl commercial by Kia

Josh Jacobs to stars in Kia’ Super Bowl ad giving advice to his younger self. I’m not going to lie.. this gave me chills and made me cry at the same time. Many people know Jacobs’ story. He grew up homeless, at times even living with his four …

Josh Jacobs to stars in Kia’ Super Bowl ad giving advice to his younger self. I’m not going to lie.. this gave me chills and made me cry at the same time.

Many people know Jacobs’ story. He grew up homeless, at times even living with his four siblings in his father’s car. But he overcame those obstacles. He quickly became a household name while at Alabama as he impressed the world with his talents. He finished his career at Alabama with over 1400 rushing yards and 16 TDS as well as 571 receiving yards and 5 receiving TDs. Simply put, Jacobs played his heart out, and it showed. But it was more than that. It was his story that inspired so many. It was his passion, hard work ethic, and grit that helped him quickly rise and become a first round draft pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.

His rookie year was nothing short of impressive,  and it’s a big reason why he’s was named the Offensive Rookie of the Year. This season, he rushed for 1,150 yards and 7 TDs. But his stats don’t show all. He’s made huge plays consistently, and helped revamp a team who has been struggling for quite a while.

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Sporting News ranks Rich Gannon’s performance in Super Bowl 37 as third worst in Super Bowl history by QB

Sporting News ranks Rich Gannon’s performance in Super Bowl 37 as third worst in Super Bowl history by QB

Hey look, another listicle of Super Bowl stuff. This time it’s the Sporting News who is ranked what they deem to be the ten worst Super Bowl performances by a quarterback in history. They have 53 to choose from. Coming in at number three was Rich Gannon in Super bowl 37, behind only Craig Morton in Super Bowl 12 and Kerry Collins in Super Bowl 35.

Completions: 24 for 44, 272 yards, two touchdowns
Turnovers: Five interceptions (three returned for touchdowns)
Quarterback rating: 48.9

Gannon set two infamous Super Bowl records with five interceptions and three pick-sixes against the Bucs in Super Bowl 37. To be fair, Tampa Bay’s three defensive touchdowns all came after the game was well in hand in the second half, and Gannon’s two touchdowns brought the score to 34-21 in the fourth quarter. Still, his performance was a big reason why the Bucs won the game 48-21 and safety Dexter Jackson became only the third defensive back ever to win Super Bowl MVP.

Writer Zac Al-Khateeb uses the words “to be fair” but leaves out a couple important details. Neither of which fall on Gannon’s shoulders.

First and foremost, the Raiders were facing the man that designed their offense. There was only one coach who could beat that Raiders team and league MVP Rich Gannon and it was Jon Gruden, who was standing on the opposite sideline watching his former OC use his playbook. Some Raiders players also said Callahan got nervous and tried to change the offense days before the game, which only made things worse.

Secondly, there was the whole Barret Robbins debacle. As if the above situation wasn’t bad enough, Gannon would suddenly be without his All-Pro center for the game because he had gone down to Tijuana Mexico (the game was in San Diego) two days before and missed his medication, causing a bipolar episode. When he was tracked down and brought back to the team, he was told he would not be playing and likely was in no shape to play anyway. It’s hard to imagine a QB having a tougher set of circumstances with which to work.

Super Bowl week is a double-edged sword for fans. You get to think about Super Bowl trophies past, but also the most recent trip which is not such a fond memory.

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Derek Carr speaks out on the ‘Tom Brady to Raiders’ rumors

“It’s like, ‘C’mon, man, when’s it going to end?'”

Following a disappointing end to this Patriots season, and no contract in place, there have been more than a few rumblings this winter that Tom Brady may well be in a different jersey next season.

What that means is that this offseason there is going to be a lot of speculation. Just so, so much speculation.

The latest speculation came at UFC 246 when Tom Brady was seen having a conversation with Raiders owner Mark Davis. What did they talk about? No one has any idea! (Except the two of them, one would assume.) They may have discussed real estate and the weather, or the fight they were about to see.

But that didn’t stop the rumor machine from kicking into high gear and a lot of people wondering if Brady was headed to the Raiders.

That seems to have irked current Raiders QB, Derek Carr. In a conversation with ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez, Carr made clear he’s a bit tired of the speculation.

Via ESPN:

“I mean, there was a lot of quarterbacks at that fight. And there was a lot of football players at that fight that are free agents.

And it’s like, every time, with my job, it’s always a story. No matter what. And knowing some people that were around, I even know what the conversation was [between Davis and Brady], and it’s like, ‘C’mon, man, when’s it going to end?'”

I feel for Carr, and he wasn’t bad this year for the Raiders. He wasn’t great, but also, not bad!

But also, this comes with the turf. Carr is paid well, and if he has to endure some rumors every offseason, well, we all gotta deal with stuff, my man.

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Raiders RB Josh Jacobs led NFL in broken tackles in 2019

Raiders RB Josh Jacobs led NFL in broken tackles in 2019

Despite missing three games during his rookie season, it’s hard to make a case that Josh Jacobs wasn’t one of the league’s top running backs last season. In 13 starts, Jacobs averaged over 100 yards from scrimmage per game and he was arguably the Raiders’ best player.

One of Jacobs’ best attributes is his ability to shrug off contact. His motor runs hot all the time, which results in him gaining additional yardage that most back wouldn’t get. According to Pro Football Focus, no running back in the NFL broken more tackles than Jacobs during the 2019 season.

Jacobs has a violent running style, which could cause his prime to be shorter than most running backs. However, he has already shown that he can be a workhorse back that can carry an offense against top-flight defenses. Look for the Raiders to ride Jacobs even more in 2020 as they aim to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

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