Denver is a huge metro-area; over 3 million people and growing (I've seen Denver go from a small cow town in the 1960s to a booming metropolis). I think the UFL would do good here. We had spring football here before back with the Denver Gold of the USFL in the mid-1980s. The team played at the old Bronco Mile High stadium where they averaged a league-leading 40,000 per game! (I went to a few games to see a teammate of mine from HS football that made the roster). Right now this city is Bronco crazy followed by the Nuggets & Aves. The Rockies baseball team has low interest, poor attendance & nobody really cares. Lol. That would leave interest in a UFL franchise with the Denver sports fans. There's no question I would go to the games.
On the Raiders, I'm optimistic more than a 5-12 season. IMO, they could have a winning season & make some noise in the conference. You have Bowers - IMO, the best pass catching TE in the league. And what if Kubes can get Jeanty going? He's a workhouse back capable of 100 + yds per game (and he can catch the ball as well). Those are two big offensive weapons for Mendoza.
I wonder what kind of offensive scheme Kubes is going to run with Mendoza? Under Cignetti, Mendoza played in pro-spread heavy shotgun orientated offense that emphasized pocket passing (very little RPO stuff). Charlie Whitmer was his QB coach/co-offensive cord. Whitmer specializes in passing in the pocket from shotgun formation (he was just hired by TB as a their QB coach to work with Mayfield). Take a look at some of the film of Mendoza. Man...he was a throwing monster from the pocket (at 6'5" he's got the height). But he's also very mobile & can run. Look at this impressive run (shades of Josh Allen!)
Get Mendoza a decent offensive line & let him fly with what he does best.
Jalen Hurts blamed for Eagles’ problems as drama explodes
The Eagles find themselves in a much different spot this offseason compared to last, with as much uncertainty surrounding the organization this year compared to any other season in the Hurts era.
nypost.com
I thought this was an April fools joke or something. Lol. FFS, picking on Hurts like he's some kind of a chump.? The guy has taken the team to two SBs winning one as SB MVP. Excluding his rookie year where he only started 4 games, he's led the team to the playoffs every year with 3 division titles. He has a 57-25 regular season record & 6-4 postseason record. He was MVP runnerup in 2021 & is currently ranked as a Tier 2.
What else do they want? So, they had a bad year last season being one & done in the playoffs. Big deal...KC didn't even make the playoffs. There's no question Hurts was off on his run game & throws outside the pocket. That's because they tried turning him into an under center pocket passer (they cut his designed runs by half!). Hurts is not a pocket passer. Hurts is not an under center QB. He's a dual-threat shotgun-centric RPO QB that can beat you with his arm or legs outside the pocket.
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I would gladly have Hurts as my QB on almost any team. Tier 2 or whatever tier, he's very good, and wins big games.
I think one can look at the offense Kubiak ran in Seattle and see where he's going. A lot of running, and a lot of quick reads, get rid of the ball passes. Mendoza is pretty mobile though, so as things progress I can see him creating plays with a moving or shifting pocket where Mendoza is allowed to find his space, or take off and run. He needs a good 10lbs of muscle to really run some in the NFL, but he's not little.
Charles Woodson also wore 24. I owned a Stabler jersey at some point, I just can't find it. Too many moves. A Gannon 12 jersey would be cool too.
Look again at the schedule. Too many good teams to play. 8-9 is really optimistic, unless you think some of those teams will fade? It does happen, every year. Who thought KC would finish where they did? Or Baltimore?
I think one can look at the offense Kubiak ran in Seattle and see where he's going. A lot of running, and a lot of quick reads, get rid of the ball passes. Mendoza is pretty mobile though, so as things progress I can see him creating plays with a moving or shifting pocket where Mendoza is allowed to find his space, or take off and run. He needs a good 10lbs of muscle to really run some in the NFL, but he's not little.
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The have:
- Daniel Jones - We've already seen him play quite well, so he really doesn't belong in this conversation IMO.
- Kyler Murray - This will be his last chance. He has to beat out JJ, and should have 5+ games to show he's got it if he gets anointed the starter. They have a solid OL, and solid receivers. Now is his chance.
- Mac Jones - I all but wrote him off (as did many others) but he absolutely looks like he could start for several teams in the league. I also think he has matured as a person. I'm surprised a team didn't trade for him, yet (Steelers?).
- Tua Tugaviola - First, I think he's done. He's not the same player he was a couple years ago. I just don't see him having a very good year in Atlanta, then another 2, 3, 5 years in the league improving, the way Sam did.
- Malik Willis - People have said for 2 years this guy could be a starter. The article says he's a long shot. But I don't think so. Solid arm. Highly mobile QB, and aggressive player who has done well when given an opportunity. Going to a poor team, where every direction is up. Even if the lose games.
One name everyone has forgotten, even though his numbers were actually better than Cam Ward, is Will Levis. I wonder if he will make this list next year?
Two names who once had incredible promise in college, but now seem headed to practice squad level maybe are Hendon Hooker and Spencer Rattler.
Yeah I thought it was a bit silly having Daniel Jones on the list I wouldn't have Lance or Wilson on the list either. Think Darnold was always better than those two. Have my doubts about Tua and one more concussion will probably cut his career short anyway. Hopefully he can avoid that. I think Mac Jones landed at the right team for some QB rehab. Shanahan got more out of Jimmy G than many expected but Lance was the one who proved too hard for him to sort out it seems. Those two first round picks wasted on Lance might have cost them a SB if they had used them better, who knows ? Wonder if Murray rues not going with Baseball instead. He was going to be drafted and many thought he had a future in a sport that would have been better suited to his physique. Richardson just can't overcome the injury bug it seems. Plenty of physical gifts but if he barely plays, it's not going to matter. I still think players like Lane could have used a full season in the UFL instead of bench warming and putting the breaks on their development. But money talks of course. Mac Jones played 8 games so he had plenty of time to work on his game plus all of the practice snaps for those games as well.
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Are we sure the Eagles story isn’t April Fools’? I saw it on the NFL Menes page first and it was more April Foolsy.
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There have been pundits who have said players like Lance, Zach Wilson need to go to the UFL. A player like that would likely get badly needed snaps. However, there are multiple risks with this. UFL players make some $70k a year. The UFL lacks the world class facilities, access to coaches, trainers, staff, tech, that the NFL has.
But there's also a playing problem. If one of those guys goes to the UFL, and they don't play well, they are done, period. No more practice squad NFL gigs (at $200k and up). Paxton Lynch is the best example. Bad in the NFL, bad in the XFL. Now playing in the Arena league, and selling insurance in the off-season.
But there's also a playing problem. If one of those guys goes to the UFL, and they don't play well, they are done, period. No more practice squad NFL gigs (at $200k and up). Paxton Lynch is the best example. Bad in the NFL, bad in the XFL. Now playing in the Arena league, and selling insurance in the off-season.
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Raiders sign Kirk Cousins.
There is almost constant talk about them needing a vet and not wanting to force Mendoza to start week 1. Let's see how long that lasts. I can easily see the Raiders insisting on this, and doing it, until reality hits.
Reality?
The reality of starting the season 1-5 with Cousins, having him play slightly worse than the last time we saw him (on a worse team). Then media, experts, fans, talking about he doesn't have it, he's old. Fans start to boo at home games, even start chanting "Mendoza". More media, "why won't the Raiders see what the kid has?" Raider games (when the team is bad) are often "second home" games for away teams. So picture 2, 3, home games were few Raider fans show up, as they don't want to see Cousins. As much as Mark Davis has said he's not really running the football side of things, there's only so much of this he would put up with before he makes phone calls to Brady, Spytek, Kubiak. And soon Mendoza sees the field - to enormous cheers from fans. Fans who will accept him struggling, because he's a rookie, but be happy to see him play.
There is almost constant talk about them needing a vet and not wanting to force Mendoza to start week 1. Let's see how long that lasts. I can easily see the Raiders insisting on this, and doing it, until reality hits.
Reality?
The reality of starting the season 1-5 with Cousins, having him play slightly worse than the last time we saw him (on a worse team). Then media, experts, fans, talking about he doesn't have it, he's old. Fans start to boo at home games, even start chanting "Mendoza". More media, "why won't the Raiders see what the kid has?" Raider games (when the team is bad) are often "second home" games for away teams. So picture 2, 3, home games were few Raider fans show up, as they don't want to see Cousins. As much as Mark Davis has said he's not really running the football side of things, there's only so much of this he would put up with before he makes phone calls to Brady, Spytek, Kubiak. And soon Mendoza sees the field - to enormous cheers from fans. Fans who will accept him struggling, because he's a rookie, but be happy to see him play.
The scarnio you're describing with Cousins is exactly what happened with Wilson last year. Remember Daboll wanted Dart to "sit a full season" under the "veteran" Wilson. That lasted all of the 3 games. Lol. On the third game - a Sunday nighter against KC at home - Wilson is performing terrible. 2 picks, no TDs, fumbles, no offense, fizzled out Red Zone drives resulting in only FGs (on one play Wilson had a wide open receiver in the end zone but the pass hit the crossbar. Lol). Fans start booing so badly that Collingsworth started laughing. Then came the roaring chants "We want Dart!...We want Dart!" & a change was made for week #4 (who would have thought. Lol).
Pundits point to the situation where Mahomes sat a full season under Alex Smith (Mahomes actually started the last game of the season after the Chiefs locked up the division title). But the Chiefs were winning & Smith played one of his best seasons in his career. OTOH, if the Chiefs were losing & Smith was playing bad, I have no doubt that Reid would have made a change. So, the pressure will be on Cousins to not only play well but win.
One thing is for certain with this move is that Kubiak has no confidence in O'Connell as a backup (spare him the embarrassment of being QB3 & just trade him to a team where he can compete for the backup spot). Also, I think this move indicates that Rodgers is coming back since Pittsburgh had Cousins as their 1st choice if Rodgers wasn't coming back & Cousins' 1st choice to sign with Pittsburgh as their starter.
Pundits point to the situation where Mahomes sat a full season under Alex Smith (Mahomes actually started the last game of the season after the Chiefs locked up the division title). But the Chiefs were winning & Smith played one of his best seasons in his career. OTOH, if the Chiefs were losing & Smith was playing bad, I have no doubt that Reid would have made a change. So, the pressure will be on Cousins to not only play well but win.
One thing is for certain with this move is that Kubiak has no confidence in O'Connell as a backup (spare him the embarrassment of being QB3 & just trade him to a team where he can compete for the backup spot). Also, I think this move indicates that Rodgers is coming back since Pittsburgh had Cousins as their 1st choice if Rodgers wasn't coming back & Cousins' 1st choice to sign with Pittsburgh as their starter.
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Good analysis.
Great point on Murray. This definitely has to be his last chance. First he's got to beat out McCarthy (probably not hard to do though. Lol), then he's got to stay healthy (he's got to play more than 5 games. Lol), and he's got to become more effective & dynamic again outside the pocket. There's no way O'Connell can have him throw effectively from the pocket. He's only 5'10" & he'll get killed in there by the land of the Giants - 6'6" 275 lb edge rushers with 40" verticals. Lol). He was a sensational dual-threat in college where his game is predicated on outside the pocket play making. If he can't get back to that style, he's as no chance, IMO.
Danny Dimes - will he be ready by week #1?
Tua - too many concussions?
Mac Jones - I would like to see Rex Ryan get back into coaching & bring him in as his starter. Lol
Willis - a beefed up LJ. A solid dual-threat with elite arm strength & excellent running skills - but can he win & lead the Finns to the promised land?
Levis - looks finished, IMO. Another Drew Lock here (identical size, arm strength, athleticism, 2nd rd picks, injuries, accuracy issues, arrogance, etc). Also, major surgery on his throwing shoulder. I know he compares himself to Favre but I think a future as a backup is in the making.
Agree 100% on Hooker & Rattler.
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He was a 9th OA pick by the A's & they haven't closed the door if he wants to give baseball a shot. I believe Tebow gave MLB a shot after he hung up his cleats.
The Athletics won’t close door on Kyler Murray. But is MLB really an option for free-agent QB?
General manager David Forst said his team is "always open to him exploring a return to baseball with the A’s."
www.nytimes.com
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You absolutely nailed it. And I agree Aiden O'Connell has to be trade bait by draft day. I can see him in New England. Josh McDaniels drafted him, and the Pats only have Maye, and DeVito. There's really no reason for the Raiders to keep him at this point. He's making $3m, and is a UFA after this season. Get something for him now. Even a draft pick. If they need a 3rd string QB they can pull someone off the slag heap after cuts, or a practice squad.
I'll post this for like the 5th time, if the Raiders (Pete Carroll, really) had been smart, they would have held onto Cam Miller, and he'd be perfect right now in this scenario.
That would be hilarious. "Pea shooter Jones? You talking about Pea shooter Jones??" 🤣
Money is the pure reason Murray went to the NFL. Even if he shined in baseball he would not have made the near $200m he has now. It's very likely he would still be mostly under team control, made maybe $15-25m, and would need to have a near MVP season in 2026 or 2027 to hit that jackpot contract MLB hands out to a select few players. All highly unlikely. Yes, he would have made several million dollars. Not bad, but still not at NFL level.
The reason to go to MLB would be to save his body.
Something is weird here: On Mendoza's wikipedia page he's listed at 225 lbs but yet on his official combine weight he's listed at 236 (Josh Allen's weight). Did Mendoza lose weight after the combine?
Fernando Mendoza - Wikipedia
Also, on his NFL prospect ranking profile, he's listed at 236 (taken from the combine weigh in). Also, check out his score: 6.73 = "Year 1 Starter"
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You trust Wikipedia? 
You'd be surprised (maybe not) at how many Raider fans think it's great the team signed Cousins, and think it will be a great idea for Mendoza to sit all year and "learn from him."
You'd be surprised (maybe not) at how many Raider fans think it's great the team signed Cousins, and think it will be a great idea for Mendoza to sit all year and "learn from him."
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View: https://x.com/AdamSchefter/status/2040170010627227717
One has to wonder which receiver will have another issue first, Rice or Puka.
One has to wonder which receiver will have another issue first, Rice or Puka.
Add 20 lbs to him and he doesn't need to leap! He looks pretty strong, at least amongst college guys.
You trust Wikipedia?
You'd be surprised (maybe not) at how many Raider fans think it's great the team signed Cousins, and think it will be a great idea for Mendoza to sit all year and "learn from him."
Lumberg Disagree GIF - Lumberg Disagree Office Space - Discover & Share GIFs
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tenor.com
I don't necessarily trust Wikipedia but on his Wiki page he has a copy of his pre-draft Combine measurements. He's listed at 6'4 3/4" & 236 lbs. That would put him up there with Allen & Herbert as one of the bigger QBs in the league.You trust Wikipedia?
You'd be surprised (maybe not) at how many Raider fans think it's great the team signed Cousins, and think it will be a great idea for Mendoza to sit all year and "learn from him."
One of the ESPN talking head QB gurus (I can't think of his name) said Mendoza should probably sit. He said it's going to take "months" for him to learn how to effectively operate from under center. It was pointed that out of the 1000 passing attempts by Mendoza throughout his college career, only 5 were from under center (that's not unusual because most FBS programs run a predominately shotgun-centric spread RPO scheme).
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2026 fantasy football rankings: Profiling the top 35 QBs
Mike Clay delivers bite-sized but detailed breakdowns of his top 35 quarterbacks for 2026.
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And it's better to have him sit an entire season and not get any actual snaps on the field because...?
I still think what is going to happen is the Raiders will start out 0-4, or 1-6 with Cousins. He's washed or close to washed, this should be obvious. They aren't winning with him, I don't care if he and Kubian are old buddies from their time on the Vikings (Pete Carroll brought over a slew of washed up Seahawks too. How well did that work out?).
By that point in time Raider home games will be "home" games for the away team. What Raider fans do show up (already not very many in Vegas) will be boing, chanting for Mendoza. Some experts will wonder why Kubiak can't design an offense around Mendoza's strengths? Why is he so stuck in his ways? Where is the supposed Kubian innovation? This is as bad as Pete Carroll, some will say. Fans, media, will be calling for Kubiak's head. It will be interesting to see what happens then.
The pundit who said Mendoza shouid sit is ESPN's Dan Orvlosky (not one of your favorite talking heads, I bet? Lol). Again he's pointing out that since 2021, over half of Kubiak's snaps as an offensive coordinator have come under center (highest in the league) while Mendoza's entire offensive scheme in 3 seasons of college was 99.9% shotgun (he also seems to be alluding that the Raiders would have a better chance of winning because of Cousins' familiarity with Kube's offense vs Mendoza having to learn the offense cold):
View: https://youtu.be/2HKLTg9wZOU?si=n4UbwNRtCbYvhr3I
With all this under center vs shotgun formation issue at the pro level, this made me wonder what the heck is going on here. The statistics seem to show there's a slightly higher completion pct rate with passes thrown from under center vs shotgun formation (1.6%). However, a better rushing attack - including QB designed runs - is seen from shotgun formation vs under center. The trend is coordinators are utilizing under center formations for more of their passing plays (personally I don't know why if it's only a negligible improvement in comp pct rate).
Here's a interesting article that goes into great detail on this issue (warning - it's a long & arduous read):
sportspassion.substack.com
With all this under center vs shotgun formation issue at the pro level, this made me wonder what the heck is going on here. The statistics seem to show there's a slightly higher completion pct rate with passes thrown from under center vs shotgun formation (1.6%). However, a better rushing attack - including QB designed runs - is seen from shotgun formation vs under center. The trend is coordinators are utilizing under center formations for more of their passing plays (personally I don't know why if it's only a negligible improvement in comp pct rate).
Here's a interesting article that goes into great detail on this issue (warning - it's a long & arduous read):
Under Center Vs. Shotgun In Modern NFL Offence
A comprehensive discussion on the pros and cons of the shotgun formation, in both the pass and rush game.
sportspassion.substack.com
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NIx is ahead of schedule on his ankle surgery rehab & will be ready for OTAs:
broncoswire.usatoday.com
Broncos provide positive updates on Bo Nix’s ankle recovery
Broncos owner Greg Penner and GM George Paton said QB Bo Nix is \
broncoswire.usatoday.com
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Didn't read all the link, but that was a good post.The pundit who said Mendoza shouid sit is ESPN's Dan Orvlosky (not one of your favorite talking heads, I bet? Lol). Again he's pointing out that since 2021, over half of Kubiak's snaps as an offensive coordinator have come under center (highest in the league) while Mendoza's entire offensive scheme in 3 seasons of college was 99.9% shotgun (he also seems to be alluding that the Raiders would have a better chance of winning because of Cousins' familiarity with Kube's offense vs Mendoza having to learn the offense cold):
View: https://youtu.be/2HKLTg9wZOU?si=n4UbwNRtCbYvhr3I
With all this under center vs shotgun formation issue at the pro level, this made me wonder what the heck is going on here. The statistics seem to show there's a slightly higher completion pct rate with passes thrown from under center vs shotgun formation (1.6%). However, a better rushing attack - including QB designed runs - is seen from shotgun formation vs under center. The trend is coordinators are utilizing under center formations for more of their passing plays (personally I don't know why if it's only a negligible improvement in comp pct rate).
Here's a interesting article that goes into great detail on this issue (warning - it's a long & arduous read):
Under Center Vs. Shotgun In Modern NFL Offence
A comprehensive discussion on the pros and cons of the shotgun formation, in both the pass and rush game.
Maybe it will take years for Mendoza to learn how to take a snap under center. It sounds like an extremely difficult thing to learn
. Mendoza actually ran a wing-t offense in high school, where the vast majority of his snaps were under center. Maybe it was a miracle he managed to learn how to catch the ball when in shotgun in college and the center hiked it to him.With such a concern, Orlovsky had me all but convinced Mendoza would be the first rookie QB in NFL history to go from 99% shotgun to taking snaps under center. A little research:
- Jared Goff: Ran a spread system at Cal. Took the Rams to the SB playing both under center and shotgun. Done even better under center in Detroit
- Josh Allen: Mostly played shotgun (couldn't find a %) to a Buffalo Bills offense that uses him under center, often to leverage his size for play-action.
- Jalen Hurts: You assumed he played college under center? Tush push and all? Nope. Adapted from a shotgun-heavy collegiate career to arguably the most diverse offense in the NFL mostly under center.
- Dak Prescott: Another pread system guy in college almost always in shotgun, to a pro-style offense in Dallas.
- Ryan Tannehill: Another spread guy in college, who went to taking significant snaps under center for Tennessee.
- Bo Nix: I know what you're thinking. That can't be right? Well, Nix played a very heavy shotgun set at Oregon (and Auburn). He immediately took to taking snaps under center during the Senior Bowl, and of course for Denver.
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