Tag: offense

REPORT: Steve Sarkisian, Alabama agree to 3-year deal

Alabama and Steve Sarkisian agree to three-year deal that will pay $2.5 million per year.

ESPN’s college football reporter Alex Scarborough reported earlier today that the University of Alabama and offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian agreed on a new three-year contract worth $2.5 million annually.

This deal was reached back in February, but is just now being made public. Sarkisian’s old contract was only paying out $1.65 million, almost a million-dollar raise.

This is not Sarkisian’s first time with the Crimson Tide. In 2016 he served as an offensive analyst and interim offensive coordinator. He then went on to the NFL to be the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons. When that came to an end, Sarkisian found his way back to Tuscaloosa in 2019 and has now re-worked his deal.

According to NCAA.com, Sarkisian led the 2019 Alabama offense to being ranked No. 6 overall. They ranked No. 3 in FBS for yards per play (7.89), No. 4 for touchdowns (76) and No. 9 for total yards (6,640).

Roll Tide Wire will keep you updated on all things Alabama football as any and all news and information become available.

Packers among handful of teams with offensive continuity entering 2020

The Packers will bring back their playcaller, offensive coordinator, quarterback and both top receivers in 2020, providing valuable continuity.

With no in-person offseason workout program and training camps expected to be drastically altered due to the coronavirus pandemic, continuity – particularly on offense – could be a significant factor early on during the 2020 NFL season.

The Green Bay Packers are one of a handful of teams with this potentially valuable continuity on offense.

Adam Levitan of Establish the Run scoured through the 32 teams and found only eight teams going into 2020 with the same head coach, offensive coordinator, starting quarterback and top two wide receivers from last season. The Packers joined the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, Seattle Seahawks, Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers among the eight teams with all five important offensive positions returning this season.

The Packers have coach and playcaller Matt LaFleur, offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, quarterback Aaron Rodgers and receivers Davante Adams and Allen Lazard.

The Packers also return quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator Luke Getsy, their two top running backs (Aaron Jones, Jamaal Williams) and four of their five starting offensive linemen, further highlighting the carryover from last year’s offense.

The only newcomers likely to play a notable role for the Packers on offense are veteran receiver Devin Funchess and veteran right tackle Rick Wagner, who will replace Geronimo Allison and Bryan Bulaga, respectively. The team also drafted running back A.J. Dillon and tight end Josiah Deguara, but it’s possible neither will be more than a rotational player. LaFleur also hired a new receivers coach, but it was an internal promotion.

For the most, the Packers offense is just expanding on the foundation built last year.

All this might mean nothing, but it could mean something during a unique offseason fraught with challenges. While the Packers lost out on valuable in-person time during the offseason workout program, the team has the same scheme, playcaller and almost all of the offensive personnel from last year, so the transition from the end of 2019 to the start of 2020 should be, in theory, a little more smooth in Green Bay.

The Packers sure wouldn’t mind if that offensive continuity turned into something tangible when the team travels to Minnesota to play the Vikings in the opener.

One big scoring benchmark the Dolphins must clear to compete

One big scoring benchmark the Dolphins must clear to compete

Scoring is on the rise in the NFL. The rule changes of the league have allowed for more widespread offensive output — a trend that will likely continue, too — everyone likes points! But the trends of the NFL are leaving some teams behind the curve, the Miami Dolphins included. While scoring is on the rise for the league as a whole, you can’t necessarily include the Miami Dolphins as a reason why.

The last time the Miami Dolphins scored 400 points in a season was back in 1986 — that season the Dolphins tallied 430 points while allowing 405 and stumbling to an 8-8 record after a stretch of five consecutive division titles and two Super Bowl appearances from 1981 to 1985. Miami’s offense those days was prolific — and the offenses we’ve seen since could largely be described as anything but.

Miami came close to scoring 400 points back in Don Shula’s final season in 1995 — logging 398 points on the year.

But if you look at the scoring trends of recent championship teams, 400 points is a pretty common theme. The 2015 Denver Broncos are the last Super Bowl champion who failed to score at least 400 points on the year — a stretch of four consecutive years in which the pace of points has exceeded a threshold the Miami Dolphins haven’t surpassed in 33 years. Eight of the NFL’s 12 playoff teams in 2019 logged over 400 points on the season. And of the four that didn’t, Houston (378), Philadelphia (385) and Green Bay (376) were at least close. Only the Buffalo Bills (314) were a far cry from the mark.

This isn’t to say the Dolphins must score 400 points or they’re doomed to never win another championship — as the 2015 Broncos succeeded in winning a title and the Packers and Giants of the early 2010s were also able to secure a Lombardi Trophy while scoring in the high 300s. But the Dolphins scored 306 points last year, 319 the year before that and 281 the year prior to that. This team hasn’t been close. As a matter of fact, the Dolphins have had more seasons with less than 300 points scored (3) than they have seasons with more than 350 scored (2) in the past decade.

Miami is on the right track — in large part because they’ve stopped chasing the dream of being an offense like the one Rodgers has led in Green Bay and the one Manning led in Denver. Instead, they’ve adopted their own blueprint. That, at the very least, should get this team to the point where it shouldn’t feel inconceivable that the team could log 400 points over a 16 game stretch.

And after 33 years of surpassing that common mark among recent championship teams, getting into the ballpark feels like a nice start for the Dolphins.

Pete Carroll: Russell Wilson will be the best he’s ever been in 2020

Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll joined 710 ESPN Seattle to discuss quarterback Russell Wilson and what he will be like in 2020.

Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll joined 710 ESPN Seattle’s John Clayton on Friday to discuss quarterback Russell Wilson; specifically, enhancing his role in the team’s offense going forward.

Carroll praised Wilson as he usually does, stating that he is the best he has been throughout his entire career going into 2020. He also stressed the importance of having a balanced team and explained how Wilson factors into that equation.

“Russell is at the best of his game that he’s ever been and his command, his control and understanding of everything we can put forth on him allows him to be, I think, at the best he’s ever been,” Carroll said. “… And we want him to have more opportunities to be the factor of the game and control the game. But John, in just football in general, that doesn’t mean that you throw the football all the time to do that. We need to be a really good, functioning team that’s hard to beat because we’re so good at the things we do. That means that you have to have balance in your game.”

Carroll acknowledged the clamor from fans to “let Russ cook,” but assured them that Wilson will be at the top of his game if there is a season in 2020.

“We’re not going to take anything away from Russell’s ability to produce – we want to maximize his opportunities,” Carroll said. “So whatever this ‘Russell cook’ thing is about, I don’t know what it’s about, but he is at his best, he is in the most command he’s ever been, and he and (offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer) and the offensive staff have worked this offseason to a point where we’re ready to unveil it, the best version of us. And that means the best version of Russ.”

Wilson will need to be at his best for Seattle to even have a chance at making it to Super Bowl LV. 12s will hope that they will indeed see the best version of him.

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WATCH: Brian Baldinger breaks down Broncos’ improvements on offense

Brian Baldinger takes a quick look at some of the Broncos’ weapons on offense.

https://embed.sendtonews.com/oembed/?SC=7Js6duDCpB-851534-7498&format=json&offsetx=0&offsety=0&floatwidth=400&floatposition=bottom-right&float=on

In the above video, NFL Network’s Brian Baldinger breaks down the Broncos’ offensive outlook going into the 2020 season.

“I think all these pieces can come together — we’ll see how quickly it can in a quarantined NFL right now — but there’s a lot of pieces in place for this Broncos offense to take a step up this season.”

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Seahawks land at No. 11 in Touchdown Wire’s summer NFL power rankings

The Seattle Seahawks have landed at No. 11 in Touchdown Wire’s summer NFL power rankings.

The start of the 2020 NFL season might be in question, but the power rankings must go on! Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire has now put together his summer NFL power rankings, based on teams’ overall quality and potential to excel.

The Seahawks have landed at No. 11 on his list.

“2019 was supposed to be a rebuilding season for the Seahawks, but Pete Carroll’s squad still managed to go 11-5, making the playoffs for the seventh time in the last eight years,” Farrar writes. “As usual, the internal battle was between Russell Wilson, who carried the offense on his shoulders when he was allowed to, and Pete Carroll, who wants a balanced offense above all, no matter who his quarterback is. Wilson has expressed concerns regarding the limitations of that offense, and he’s got a point.”

“Still, the key for Seattle to advance beyond the divisional round, which they haven’t done since their last Super Bowl season of 2014, is to rejuvenate a defense that featured one of the league’s weakest pass rushes and a secondary in transition,” Farrar continues. “The likelihood of re-signing Jadeveon Clowney is not optimal, so it may be through coverage that Carroll’s defense gets more sacks. Acquiring former Washington cornerback Quinton Dunbar, perhaps the most underrated player at his position in the NFL, for a fifth-round pick in March should help . . . if Dunbar’s legal issues don’t get in the way.”

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Will quarterback Russell Wilson be the Seahawks’ 2020 MVP?

Will quarterback Russell Wilson be the Seattle Seahawks 2020 MVP or will this be the year he finally earns the top spot around the league?

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson continues to have something to prove and he seems poised to make his case this season.

Around the NFL writer, Dan Hanzus, recently took a look at all 32 teams around the league in an effort to predict each club’s Most Valuable Player for 2020.

Russell Wilson was his easy choice for Seattle.

“OK, Wilson is already demonstrably great – he’s a Super Bowl-winning quarterback on a collision course with Canton,” Hanzus writes. “But it feels almost immoral that Schottenheimer’s run-obsessed offense created a reality where Russell Wilson threw the same number of passes as Mitch Trubisky last season. (They tied for 12th amongst QBs with 516 attempts … and Wilson played one more game!) Go back to 2018, and Wilson finished 20th in passing attempts. Egads.”

“In Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, Wilson has star-quality weapons to light it up on Sundays,” Hanzus continues. “He’ll put up stellar numbers worthy of league MVP consideration even if Seattle stays the course on offense. But just imagine if Pete Carroll ever let him chuck it around the yard at the rate of his fellow superstar passers.”

Wilson likely has loftier goals than just Seattle’s MVP . . . he’ll be playing for the top spot in the league in 2020.

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Touchdown Wire ranks Seahawks roster 10th-deepest in NFL

USA TODAY’s Touchdown Wire has ranked the Seattle Seahawks’ roster the 10th-deepest in the NFL heading into the 2020 season.

Mark Schofield of USA TODAY’s Touchdown Wire took a look at all 32 teams around the league to determine who had the deepest rosters heading into the 2020 season. The Seattle Seahawks landed at No. 10 on his list.

Here’s his analysis of the decision and a look at Seattle’s roster as it currently stands.

“This selection might stir some emotions,” Schofield starts. “The Seattle Seahawks seem to have reached with their first two picks in the draft. They still have questions about the offensive line. Are they going to bring Jadeveon Clowney back or not? What about their secondary?

But despite those questions, this is still a talented and deep roster on paper. Defensively, if Clowney does not return they added Bruce Irvin via free agency, and Darrell Taylor, one of their two “reaches” in the draft, shows promise as an EDGE rusher.”

“At the linebacker spot, the Seahawks still have Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright,” Schofield continues. “No team relied on three linebackers more than Seattle in 2019, meaning that that third player is going to likely play a critical role. Returning players such as Shaquem Griffin, Cody Barton and BenBurr-Kirven are options, but Jordyn Brooks, the player Seattle drafted in the first round, might have the inside track. This is a position of strength for the Seahawks.

In the secondary, Seattle traded for cornerback Quinton Dunbar, who faces four counts of armed robbery stemming from an incident this offseason.

On the offensive side of the football, D.K. Metcalf was one of the steals of the 2019 draft, and he and Tyler Lockett give Russell Wilson some enticing options in the passing game. Tight end is another deep position group, as the team added veteran Greg Olsen to a group that includes Will Dissly, Luke Willson and Jacob Hollister. For good measure, the team added Colby Parkinson and the intriguing Stephen Sullivan in the draft. Seattle has multiple options at running back as well, between Chris Carson, Carlos Hyde, Rashaad Penny and fourth-round pick DeeJay Dallas.

The most intriguing position battle to watch for this writer? The backup spot behind Wilson. Geno Smith and Anthony Gordon are set to fight for that spot, and of course there is a big name free agent lurking, in Colin Kaepernick. Head coach Pete Carroll has said the team is happy with their current options, but Kaepernick would be a fit in Seattle’s offense.”

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Vols’ projected 2020 offensive depth chart 6.0

Vols’ projected 2020 offensive depth chart 6.0.

KNOXVILLE — Jeremy Pruitt enters his third season as head coach at Tennessee.

Tennessee ended the 2019 campaign with a six-game winning streak that included victories over South Carolina, UAB, Kentucky, Missouri, Vanderbilt and Indiana.

The Vols held two practices in 2020 before spring football was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Tennessee players returned to campus for voluntary workouts on June 8.

On June 17, the NCAA DI Council approved a football summer and preseason model.

Assuming a school’s first scheduled football contest is on Saturday, Sept. 5, schools may conduct up to eight hours of weight training, conditioning and film review per week (with not more than two hours of film review per week) from July 13-23.

Then, from July 24 through Aug. 6, schools may conduct up to 20 hours of countable athletically related activities per week (not more than four hours per day) as follows:

  • Up to eight hours per week for weight training and conditioning.
  • Up to six hours per week for walk-throughs, which may include the use of a football.
  • Up to six hours per week for meetings, which may include film review, team meetings, position meetings, one-on-one meetings, etc.

During this 14-day period, student-athletes are required to get at least two days off.

The model does not make any adjustments to the legislated 29-day preseason practice period.

The Vols are scheduled to kickoff the 2020 season against Charlotte on Sept. 5 at Neyland Stadium.

Vols Wire looks at depth chart projections ahead of the season opener. Projections are based on current player personnel on roster for Tennessee’s offense.

NEXT: Tennessee’s 2020 offensive depth chart projection 6.0

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6

Denver Broncos depth chart: Offense, defense and special teams predictions

Here are depth chart predictions for the Broncos’ offense, defense and special teams.

Over the last few weeks, we have published QB, RB, TE, WR, OL, DL, LB, CB, S and special teams depth chart predictions for the Denver Broncos. Today, we’re recapping those projections.

The quarterback room is pretty easy to predict. Drew Lock will be the starter and Jeff Driskel is the backup. Here’s our running back prediction:

Melvin Gordon Phillip Lindsay Royce Freeman

And here’s a look at the projected tight ends:

Noah Fant Nick Vannett Albert Okwuegbunam Andrew Beck

There will be a fierce battle wide receiver this offseason. Here’s our projection:

Courtland Sutton KJ Hamler Jerry Jeudy
Tim Patrick Diontae Spencer DaeSean Hamilton

And here’s a projected starting offensive line:

Garett Bolles Dalton Risner Lloyd Cushenberry Graham Glasgow Ja’Wuan James

And here’s the projected starting defensive line:

Shelby Harris Mike Purcell Jurrell Casey

Followed by our predicted starting linebackers:

Von Miller Alexander Johnson Todd Davis Bradley Chubb

And here’s the projected secondary lineup:

A.J. Bouye Justin Simmons Kareem Jackson Bryce Callahan

To wrap it up, here are the projected special teams specialists:

Kicker Punter Long Snapper Returner
Brandon McManus Sam Martin Jacob Bobenmoyer Diontae Spencer

Do you agree with our depth chart predictions? Let us know in the comments below and on Twitter: @TheBroncosWire. 

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