Your questions came in. My answers are going out …
From Teddy Bugniazet (@AloysiusIV): Matthew Stafford to the Giants?
Teddy, I actually really like the New York Giants as a landing spot for Stafford—they might be second to the Pittsburgh Steelers for me as an ideal fit.
In New York, I think the Los Angeles Rams QB would be joining a team that’s much closer than people think. They’ve got a franchise left tackle (Andrew Thomas) and budding No. 1 receiver (Malik Nabers) on offense, and a defense that’s well-built around three cornerstones (Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence, Kayvon Thibodeaux) along the front. They also have some financial wiggle room to land Stafford, then use Stafford to lure more veterans.
Add to that the fact that you’ve got some folks there that’ll be fighting for their jobs in the fall, and are under a fair amount of pressure to find a quarterback after the Daniel Jones contract didn’t work out, and I could see the Giants acting with some urgency.
From Steeler_Dave (@Steeler_Dave): Better chance of Fields or Wilson or an outside FA QB being the Steelers starter?
Dave, I’d say an outside QB, then Justin Fields, then Russell Wilson.
Prior to Super Bowl week, and knowing things weren’t perfect between Wilson and the team, I thought Wilson loomed as a tread-water type of option for the Steelers, if other efforts failed in 2025. But seeing the pro-Wilson narrative on ’25 pushed through? I don’t think that’s going over great inside that building. Meanwhile, the team would love to keep working with Fields. I just don’t think they’ll hand him the starting job.
So the idea of Aaron Rodgers or Stafford could appeal to the Steelers. If that doesn’t work, I think Pittsburgh looks at Fields with someone there to compete with him.
From You Gotta Love Sports (@CurbF79070): Carter and Hunter are off the board at 4, so do you go o-line or d-line with the pick?
Sports, I think the New England Patriots just have to get good players on the roster, so if there’s a guy they see on the level of Abdul Carter or Travis Hunter—be it Jalon Walker, Mason Graham or whoever else—and above the draft class’s blue-chip “cliff,” then you take him and figure out the rest later. But if your view of the class is Carter and Hunter, then a cluster of players, I’m plucking the best offensive tackle out of that cluster.
LSU’s Will Campbell, Texas’s Kelvin Banks, Oregon’s Josh Conerly Jr. and Ohio State’s (injured) Josh Simmons would be the candidates. The issue with that group is, of course, they’re all flawed. But so is everyone past Hunter and Carter. And while that screams for a team to trade down, it’s not like teams picking later in the top 10 won’t see the same thing, and wouldn’t be more likely to want to move down rather than move up.
It’s a weird spot to be in, and it’s why the Patriots need to hope that at least one of Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders get hot and go in the top 3, or someone really wants whichever one of them falls to No. 4.
From Menshab (@rollertumbl): Why are Sanders and Ward falling down draft boards?
Precursor: I hate the concept any prospect is rising and/or falling down draft boards. It’s ridiculous. Things aren’t that volatile, and the reason why, in the months leading up to the draft, you see guys “rise” or “fall” is because the media, and I’ll include myself in this, get caught up on where teams have been since the end of the football season. There are exceptions, of course, but not a ton of them.
O.K., so in this case, I never heard anyone from a team say that either Ward or Sanders was in the class of the first three quarterbacks (Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye) selected last year. And I might go so far as to say the next three from 2024 (Michael Penix Jr., J.J. McCarthy, Bo Nix) were better prospects, too.
Now, I’m open to being surprised with coaches’ and scouts’ opinions in the coming months—it’s always fun to have top-shelf quarterback prospects involved. But in this case, to me, Ward and Sanders being seen on the level of Williams, Daniels or Maye would constitute “rising” rather than “falling.”
From big yikes industry lobbyist (@Swags_McGee_96): Most likely resolution for the Myles Garrett situation?
Big Yikes, I just don’t know. Both sides are dug in. I don’t think money solves it. I believe Garrett is being forthright in saying he wants to go compete for a championship. So finding a fix at quarterback would probably be the first step toward the Cleveland Browns finding a way to hold on to him. But finding a fix that’ll put the Browns in a place to compete at the top of the AFC won’t be easy, especially since they’re still weighed down by the enormity of the Deshaun Watson contract (two years left!).
I’d say the most likely ending to this story is the Browns and Garrett find some compromise, maybe with an agreement to aggressively build for this year and trade him in 2026 if things don’t work out. But that’s just a guess.
From Casual Sports Takes (@CSLSportsTakes): Odds Darnold is back with the purple?
Casual, my guess right now is the Minnesota Vikings don’t franchise tag Sam Darnold, and instead let the quarterback go to the market, asking that he give them a shot to match any offer he gets. To that end, Minnesota actually could transition tag Darnold, which would come with a less-expensive tender, and the chance to match (though without compensation coming back if the team declines to match).
I know the Vikings really like J.J. McCarthy, and so long as he’s able to regain his weight and strength in the coming weeks, I think they’d be comfortable going with him as the starter.
From Joshy J (@JoshyWaitForItJ): This finally the right combo at One Jets Drive?
Joshy, I like Aaron Glenn for this reason—he understands the dynamics of that job, since he was a player there, and wanted it anyway. I think, rightly, the New York Jets prioritized that in searching for their next coach. Too often, over the past decade, people who’ve worked there have lamented everything that goes into being there, from ownership to the media to the idea that the place is a circus. They needed someone to embrace the challenge of it.
I also think we saw in Detroit his ability to manage through a rebuild (his side of the ball was built slower from an investment standpoint than the offense), keep guys engaged, and then handle disaster (the injuries this year), while developing talent and winning at a high level. All that stuff, as I see it, should translate into being a head coach.
As for Darren Mougey, I can just say he’s incredibly well-respected, worked through different regimes in Denver and, over the past couple years, worked with GM George Paton to get the team out of the fallout from the disastrous Russell Wilson trade. So while projecting a guy into the GM seat can be tougher than projecting who’ll be a good head coach, Mougey does have a good level of experience and solid makeup for the job.
From Henry Matthews (@henrymHuss26H): How do you think the NFL schedule makers will view possible Eagles opponents for their Week 1 game?
Henry, my guess is that the Dallas Cowboys will be off the table—they’re too big a ratings driver, and don’t need that platform to deliver a big number. So I’d bet the league would want to save that game for sweeps or something. It’s also rare that it’s a division game (it’s happened three times in the 23 previous iterations of the Thursday night opener), which would take the Giants and Washington Commanders off the table … though the NFL might like the idea of putting Jayden Daniels on a big stage to open the season.
That leaves the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders and Rams. The idea of a Detroit–Philly matchup is super enticing, as the NFC title game we didn’t get to see. There’ll be a lot of intrigue with the Lions, too, given all the turnover on their coaching staff. So let’s go with that one, with the Rams being another potential candidate.
From Phil Martello (@Martello16): What steps do the Bills need to take to get over their Chiefs hurdle?
Phil, I think it’s two things. One, I think you try your best to find a No. 1 receiver. Two, you improve your speed on defense.
To that end, I wouldn’t rule out the idea of the Buffalo Bills pursuing Tee Higgins. Now, I’d bet there would be limits on how far they’d go, but adding a real No. 1, assuming you project Higgins to be that away from Ja’Marr Chase, would allow for you to slot guys such as Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, James Cook and Dalton Kincaid into roles that would make the group, as a whole, a real problem. And if you do that, I think then the Bills can drill down in the draft on getting faster on defense.
From We finally have a coach (@JagsImperialist): Do the jags go Mason Graham/Will Johnson or does Coen form his Bucs Duo with BTJ and TMAC?
Coach, I think Graham or Johnson would make some sense—the Jacksonville Jaguars definitely have needs in both those areas. Either would help to shore up a really horrific pass defense, and give new DC Anthony Campanile a little more to work with.
Is there a scenario where you’d pass on that to take Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillian? I’d say only if you looked at McMillan and saw a very real game-changer to put opposite Brian Thomas Jr., and alongside Christian Kirk. Because, as I see it, and as I think Tony Boselli, Liam Coen and the new GM will see it, the roster is still in a spot where it needs to be built from the inside out.
From Joe Barczak (@jtbcubs): How likely is it that Ian Cunningham gets the Jax GM job? Been reading he’s a favorite and he shares same agent as Liam Coen, but is he likely to wait until next year counting on the Bears to have better season in Year 2 with Caleb under Ben Johnson’s tutelage with a better OL?
Joe, I do think he has real interest in the job, and would be a good hire.
Definitely a top name in Jacksonville.
From Curtis Allen (@curtis93969): Hearing anything on the extension negotiations between the Seahawks and Geno Smith? They’ve made strong statements in the press lately about moving forward with him at QB.
Curtis, I know Smith’s looking for a little bit of a commitment from the team as he gets closer to the final year of the three-year deal he did two offseasons ago. And the Seattle Seahawks do like him, and have sympathy for the situation he was in last year, when they didn’t establish much of a run game, had little in the play-action game, and dropped Smith back a million times—the firing of OC Ryan Grubb is evidence of that.
The question, then, is what the number is for Smith on an extension, and whether he’s good with playing out his contract year if he doesn’t get it. We’ll see.
From Ramblin’ Fan (@RamblinFan): How quickly do the Rams trade WR Cooper Kupp? And with the team considering his wishes, what is a realistic return if a trade is accomplished?
I think they agree to a trade before the beginning of the league year in mid-March.
As for the return, I’d say it’s probably a Day 3 pick. Remember, the contract will weigh down any negotiation. He’s due a $7.5 million roster bonus on St. Patrick’s Day (hence the urgency to move him before then), with $5 million of it fully guaranteed, and another $12.5 million in nonguaranteed base salary. He’s not going to make all $20 million next year. So the Rams’ willingness to pay some of (or even all of) the roster bonus, and Kupp’s willingness to take less in base salary, will be needed to make a deal happen.
From Jessie (@tram2022): Who you got in the SB next season?
To quote a great man … I dunno, Detroit and Buffalo.
From the old dude (@dhenise52): AB, Roseman had a huge year as GM …….but Huff was nonexistent in 2024. Given his contract structure/cap hit, do you still think he will be back in Philly next year?
Old dude, Bryce Huff is due $16.75 million fully guaranteed next year, so my guess is he’s back on the roster, and the Eagles try to make it work again. That said, yes, this was a shaky signing by Philly, with the team’s depth at the position, from Josh Sweat to Jalyx Hunt to Brandon Graham and Nolan Smith Jr., there to cover up the miss (that’s a common theme on Philly’s roster, by the way, where you see mistakes hidden by slews of home-run acquisitions).
From Austin Elmore (@autyelmore): Are Joe Burrow’s radio row comments as much about how the organizational philosophy of roster building, cap ignorance, and contract structure needs to change, as they are about him wanting his guys back?
Austin, I think it’s simpler. I think Burrow wants to make sure that the Cincinnati Bengals are spending to surround him with a team capable of competing for championships.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Matthew Stafford Could Be This Offseason’s Biggest QB Domino.
