The quarterback position is the one that almost always draws the most buzz – and the most NFL betting interest – in the NFL offseason. This year has been no different as several big names have moved around. Carson Wentz returns to the NFC East, where he will lead the Washington Commander offense after melting down in the last weeks of 2021 with the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts have snagged Matt Ryan out of rebuild misery in Atlanta, hoping that his cannon arm has another Super Bowl run in it. Deshaun Watson, still dogged by 22 civil suits involving sexual harassment and assault allegations, got a huge deal from the Cleveland Browns after a Houston grand jury declined to indict him on criminal charges. Where does that leave Baker Mayfield? We don’t know – but we do have some other news from the NFL that you should follow.
The Rumor Mill
Quarterback Malik Willis has brought the focus of the entire NFL to the campus of Liberty University. Each year, the school has a pro day, but generally eight to 10 scouts show up. This time around, 70 people are expected, representing coaches, scouts and front office folks. The team will have 19 players instead of the usual one or two. The Carolina Panthers hold the #6 pick and will be looking for a quarterback; they are sending their head coach, GM, offensive coordinator and others, who will come after watching quarterback Kenny Pickett at Pitt on Monday. If Willis ends up going in the first round – and given the lack of quarterback depth in the draft, it is likely that he will – he would be the second Flame ever to go in the first round, and the first since tight end Eric Green went to Pittsburgh with the 21st overall pick in 1990. Since then, only three Liberty players have ever been drafted, none before the fourth round.
The Dallas Cowboys shipped Amari Cooper to Cleveland to dump salary, and given Cooper’s regression in 2021, that might turn out to be the right decision, especially after Buffalo released Cole Beasley, who might be ready to return to the place where he played college football and started his pro career. The Cowboys also lost Randy Gregory to Denver after sliding in some fine print that would have made it easier for Dallas to get out of the guaranteed cash in the deal if Gregory got fined by the NFL for any offense. They did re-ink safety Jayron Kearse on a two-year deal worth $10 million. Kearse started 15 games for Dallas last year and led the team with 101 tackles, one of the bright spots in the Cowboys’ reborn defense. The Cowboys also signed punter Bryan Anger to a three-year deal worth $9 million.
Buffalo signed deals with veteran tailback Duke Johnson and wide receiver Jamison Crowder. Both of the contracts are one-year deals, and they came after the team let Beasley go and lost tailback J.D. McKissic to Washington last week. The Commanders were offering a similar deal after hearing McKissic had decided to join the Bills, and they came back to match it. Matt Breida had left Buffalo in free agency to join the Giants, and Johnson should fill Breida’s role, getting limited duty. Crowder has led the Jets in receptions the last three years in a row, but injuries have limited him the last two seasons, with soft-tissue injuries putting him on the shelf for nine games over that span. He will move into Beasley’s slot role; out of that position, he caught 132 passes between 2019 and 2012, eighth most in the league.
Finally, Jameis Winston will return to New Orleans on a two-year deal. He had gotten off to a great start last season, with a 14:3 TD:INT ratio through seven games, but then he went down with a torn ACL and was gone for the season. Showing that ball security was a welcome sign for Winston, who has high expectations with a Saints team that beat Tampa Bay twice during the regular season.
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