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3 NFL dark horse teams to make the playoffs

Every year in the National Football League there’s a few teams that double their wins or surprising make the playoffs that no one really expected to make it as far as they do or did, last year we had the Cincinnati Bengals for example, unless you were a delusional Bengals fan you thought the bengals could be a at best 8-8 or .500 team, no one expected Cinninati to make the playoffs let alone the Super Bowl. This list will have certain criteria of why I think they will be a “dark horse” team to make a huge leap whether that’s making the playoffs or doubling their wins. Obviously there are teams that everyone expects to make big jumps like the Dolphins, the Broncos but im saying the teams that will fly under the radar.

  1. Detroit Lions

Now the Lions don’t have many big names on either side of the ball, they do have many players who are underlooked and can be a huge piece of a really good team. It’s been reported that running back D’andre Swift has put in work in the weight room and looks huge, the Lions have a new offensive Coordinator who has Jared Goff running more of a Kyle Shannan style offense through running the ball and giving it to your playmakers.

  1. Minnesota Vikings

Many voices in the media have the Vikings doubling their wins and being a top 3 seed in the NFC, with the Green Bay Packers losing many big names players through free agency the Vikings should be the favorites to win the NFC North and easily be a double digit win team, and not to mention new head coach Kevin O’ Connell who will give the Vikings a more unpredictable offense and new voice.

  1. Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars are going to make a huge leap this season under new head coach Doug Pederson who won a Super Bowl a couple years ago, with all the toxic voices out of Jacksonville second year quarterback Trevor Lawerance can completely focus on developing his game and taking it to the next level. The Jags have spent lots of money on free agents this offseason acquiring a star guard on the O-Line, overpaying for Cristian Kirk and drafting Travon Walker with the number one overall pick who’s projected to be a star edge rusher.

Titans Trade A.J Brown to the Eagles

The Tennessee Titans traded A.J Brown to the philadelphia Eagles in return for the No. 18 overall pick and a third round pick {No.101} in the 2022 NFL draft, per NFL Network’s Tom Peliserro. Titans GM Jon Robinson did not “forsee” trading the star wideout but a week later he was then shipped out a week later. 

    In Brown’s three seasons with the Titans he accumulated 185 catches for 2,995 reviewing yards with 24 touchdowns as being seen as one of the top playmakers in the league Brown was looking for a big payday entering the final year of his rookie contract, apparently the Titans want to pay that heavy price Brown was looking for. 

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rappaport the Eagles and Brown agreed to a four year $100 million dollar contract with $57 million guaranteed. Making Brown one of the highest paid receivers in the league, matching his production. 

“We got to a spot where it was going to be hard to get a deal done [with Brown],” Robinson explained on Thursday night, via the team website’s Jim Wyatt. In a since-deleted tweet, Brown said goodbye to Titans fans and noted that the trade wasn’t his fault. “Tennessee I love you and you will forever be in my heart and I can say this now,” Brown wrote. “THIS WAS NOT MY FAULT. But I wish you all the best. Love”

    With Brown now a part of the Eagles, Philadelphia fans have something to be excited for this upcoming season. Eagles GM Howie Roseman has made some big moves this offseason with trading for A.J Brown, drafting future star interior D lineman Jordan Davis, and trading down for future compensation with the Saints, this Eagles team could make a big jump next season. 

Sources: Eagles receive A.J. Brown in trade; Titans select Arkansas WR Treylon Burks with No. 18 pick in 2022 NFL Draft

Ravens Trade Marquise Brown to the Cardinals

Marquise Brown, otherwise known as Hollywood Brown will now be a Arizona Cardinal. The Baltimore Ravens are sending Brown to the Arizona Cardinals and a third round pick {NO. 100} for the 23 overall pick in this year’s draft. Brown was a 2019 first round pick by Baltimore a couple years ago but never could reach his full potential under Baltimore’s offense, in his three seasons as a Raven Brown accumulated 195 caught passes, 2,361 revising yards and 21 touchdowns. 

Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said trading Brown was a “complicated topic” and that the 24-year-old requested to be traded at season’s end, per Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com. Said DeCosta: “It’s something I have anguished over for a long time.” The Ravens essentially had no choice but to trade Brown after he requested the trade and Brown got his wish 

Baltimore Ravens Quarterback Lamar Jackson tweeted shortly after the trade news broke “wtf” and safe to say Lamar Jackson is not happy about the news. Ravens GM DeCosta did report that Lamar was in the loop before trade eventually went through. 

    Marquise Brown will now be headed to the desert to join an already stacked wide receiver room in DeAndre Hopkins, A.J Green and Rondale Moore. 

Sources used:Ravens trade WR Marquise Brown to Cardinals for first-round draft pick (nfl.com)

NFL Mock Draft

Today is officially the day for the 2022 NFL Draft. I made a mock draft of who I think is going to land with each team. This List will not include trades as in this list is with the current draft picks for each team.

  1. Jacksonville Jaguars- Aiden Hutchinson
  2. Detroit Lions- Kayvon Thibodeaux
  3. Houston Texans- Jordan Davis
  4. New York Jets- Sauce Gardner
  5. New York Giants- Evan Neal
  6. Carolina Panthers- Travon Walker
  7. New York Giants- Derek Stingley Jr.
  8. Atlanta Falcons- Kyle Hamilton
  9. Seattle Seahawks- Malik Willis
  10. New York Jets- Trent Mcduffie
  11. Washington Commanders- Drake London
  12. Minnesota Vikings- Jermaine Johnson ll
  13. Houston Texans- Ickey Ekwonu
  14. Baltimore Ravens- Kenyon Young
  15. Philadelphia Eagles- Chris Olave
  16. New Orleans Saints- Kenny Pickett
  17. Los Angeles Chargers- Tyler Linderbuam
  18. Philadelphia Eagles- George Karlaftis
  19. New Orleans Saints- Treylon Burks
  20. Pittsburgh Steelers- Kaiir Elam
  21. New England Patriots- Charles Cross
  22. Green Bay Packers- Jameson Williams
  23. Arizona Cardinals- Garrett Wilson
  24. Dallas Cowboys- Bernhard Rainmann
  25. Buffalo Bills- Trevor Penning
  26. Tennessee Titans- Nakobe Dean
  27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- David Ojabo
  28. Green Bay Packers- Boye Mafe
  29. Kansas City Chiefs- Kyler Gordon
  30. Kansas City Chiefs- Devonte Wyatt
  31. Cincinnati Bengals- Andrew Booth
  32. Detroit Lions- Travis Davis

Deebo Samuel Top 3 trade Destinations

The Multi Purpose Wideout has officially requested a trade from the San Francisco 49ers yesterday afternoon and will now be on the trade market as of today. After Christain Kruk blew away the wide receiver market for new deals some of the top wideouts have been cashing in like DaVante Adams, Tyreek Hill, and we’ll see what happens with A.J Brown and Terry McLaurin as they are looking to get new deals as Deebo Samuel is.        

    As free agency has gone along there’s been small rumblings as to what’s happening between the 49ers and Deebo for the future and well here we are, Deebo has officially requested a trade, now where will he land? This list will feature in my opinion the top 3 landing spots Deebo should want to go to if i was in his shoes. 

  1. Indianapolis Colts

        The Colts would be my #1 destination if i was Deebo for a couple reasons, 1. They’re not going to trade for you if you can’t agree on a contract extension so you’ll get your money 2. The Colts are a top 5 run organization in this league so there will be minimum drama or dysfunction 3. Indianapolis has a bright GM so you’ll always have pro bowl level players around you and 4. Last but not least he’s the key piece the Colts have been missing for a couple years, he’s a high impact player and can be used in multiple ways plus Deebo and Jonathan Taylor in the same backfield would cause headaches for opponents.

  1. Green Bay Packers

        The Green Bay Packers would be a great landing spot for Deebo for the fact that your playing with a four time MVP and a team whos been the #1 seed the last four years in a row. There is definitely some pros and cons going to Green Bay like some pros would be guaranteed playoffs every year, bright head coach and GM, reigning 2x MVP quarterback and be in the same backfield as Aaron Jones , cons though no owner, drama between the QB and organization every year, one of the coldest places to play, hard to get free agents, and probably couldn’t pay you top of the market. 

  1.  Baltimore Ravens

Just Imagine the Ravens backfield with Lamar Jackson, Deebo Samuel, and J.K Dobbins, it would give opponents fits just having to play against that, Baltimore has been missing that #1 receiver for a long time and Deebo without a doubt fill that role perfectly and fit in seamlessly in that offense. Baltimore has yet to take that leap to true title contenders the last couple years despite Lamar Jackson playing at an elite level but adding Deebo to this roster would really boost Baltimore’s chances and give them a better chance winning this now much harder division.

Denzel Ward and Browns Agree to contract extension

Denzel Ward and the Cleveland Browns have agreed to a massive five year contract extension worth $100.5 million with $71.25 million fully guaranteed. NFL Network insider Ian Rappaport reported Monday. This contract makes Ward the highest paid defensive back in NFL history just surpassing Rams DB Jalen Ramsey who signed a similar deal 2 years ago. 

The two time pro bowler has been considered by pro football focus to be a top 5 corner in the league in highest coverage marks and one of the lowest completion percentages since he entered the league back in 2018. Ward’s main issue has been health considering he hasn’t yet played more than 13 games in a season, but on the brightside Ward does have another great player to fill in for his role at #1 CB in Greg Newsome ll when Denzel is out. With Ward being the #4 overall draft pick in 2018 by the Cleveland Browns it looks like he’ll be staying in Cleveland for the long haul unlike the other first round draft pick in 2018 by the Browns in Baker Mayfield who isn’t expected to stay with the team after this offseason.

NFL news this week

With the work week winding down we’ll be looking at some of the biggest stories this week. 

    Derek Carr Signs Extension With Raiders

    With this being the craziest offseason in NFL history the Las Vegas Raiders just sent a message out to the league about Derek Carr. With the two sides agreeing to a massive extension Derek Carr will now be a top 5 paid QB in the league signing a 3 year $121.5 million dollar extension that runs through the 2025 season, Carr will now be making an average of $40.5 million a year. 

Some might disagree with Carr being the fifth highest paid QB but the numbers say otherwise finishing with a top eight completion percentage {64.8}, passing yards per game {282.6} and passing yards per attempt {7.7}, Carr also finished the season with a total of 4,804 passing yards which is a new franchise record. 

Sammy Watkins Signs With The Packers

  With having a quite free agency Sammy Watkins will now be a cheesehead, signing a one year $4 million dollar deal with the Green Bay Packers on Thursday afternoon. The Former Baltimore Ravens wideout will now be a deep threat for the reigning back to back MVP. Watkins was once seen as a number one receiver but hasn’t lived up to the hype in his early career but he’s been a good number two option for the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens. With Green Bay’s wide receiver room being bare, hopefully this won’t be the last move the Packers make this offseason. 

A.J Green Returning to Cardinals On A One Year Deal 

The 33 year old veteran wide receiver will be returning to the Arizona Cardinals on a one year deal, the team announced. With A.J being part of a stacked receiver room last year in Arizona he still had a great year considering the terms he was under, with just nine starts Green racked up 54 catches for 848 yards and three touchdowns, which was his most productive season since 2017. 

After losing key pieces in free agency like Chandler Jones, Chase Edmonds and Kristian Kurk at least A.J Green will be returning to the team. 

Stephon Gilmore Signs with the Indianapolis Colts

    The Former defensive player of the year is headed to the Colts on a team friendly deal, two years worth around $23 million {11.5 million per year}. The Colts have landed yet another big fish this offseason, and have loaded up on this already stacked defense with DeForest Buckner, Darius Leonard, Bobby Okereke, Kenny Moore and many other big impact players. 

Gilmore visited the Colts on wednesday and well i guess you could say it went well. With Gilmore having his DPOY in New England the Patriots and Gilmore were still far apart on contract talks especially with Gilmore coming off a significant quad injury back in 2020, Gilmore was then shipped out to the Carolina Panthers in 2021 for a sixth round pick.

Kyler Murray not expected to play until new contract

Arizona Cardinals star quarterback Kyler Murray is said to not hit the field until he gets a new contract, after a offseason of drama so far Murray has scrubbed all his social medias of Cardinals pictures and Kyler’s agent reported to the team that the star QB won’t be playing until he gets a new contract. The Cardinals have yet to make Murray a contract offer. 

    The 24 year old QB is set to make 5.5 million for the 2022-2023 season and will be on the final year of his contract, after being a MVP leader up until injuries last season that’s been the story of Murray’s career so far, he cant stay healthy for a full season and that’s starting to become a problem, Murray missed 3 games last season but when returning to the field for his first playoff game Kyler refused to play his usual playstyle of being one of the most elusive quarterbacks in the league. 

The Cardinals aren’t looking to trade the former #1 overall pick so this could get messy this offseason.

DK Metcalf best trade destinations

Seattle Seahawks star wideout DK Metcalf has been rumored to be on the trade block ever since Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner departed. With Metcalf being on the last year of his rookie contract and Seattle being in a clear rebuild DK could be on the move, teams around the league speculate DK could be on the move for the right price. Here are my top 5 trade destinations according to fit and the teams need for a wide receiver.

  1. Green Bay Packers

With DeVante Adams traded at the start of free agency and Marquez Valdes-Scantling leaving to join the Chiefs the Packers have a big hole to fill at receiver, With Metcalf being in the lineup he would be the perfect player for Aaron Rodgers. 

  1. New York Jets

    With trade rumors already going around the Jets reportedly offered the #10 overall pick for Metcalf and the Seahawks turned it down, it is reported that it would take at least two first round picks to acquire DK. It would be a pretty good fit considering being similar age to 2nd year quarterback Zach Wilson and the other receivers on the team. 

  1. Indianapolis Colts

    The Colts would be much higher on the list if they had a stable QB situation, with Indianapolis having its sixth starting QB in the last six seasons DK will be a great fit with Matt Ryan but would be a greater fit if Ryan was a few years younger. 

  1. Baltimore Ravens

    The Ravens have been a great, stable organization since entering the league, with Baltimore missing that true number 1 receiver DK could totally be that and the Ravens would have elite Skill positions with J.K Dobbins, Mark Andrews, and Hollywood Brown. The only downside to this is Lamar Jackson hasn’t developed much of his passing game since entering the league in 2018.  

  1. Philadelphia Eagles

Same as the Ravens, Jalen Hurts hasn’t developed much of a deep ball and can be inaccurate at times that’s why the Eagles are much down on the list, the Eagles have had one of the worst receiving cores in the league for last couple years but that would change dramatically with Metcalf in the lineup. With Devonte Smith and DK Metcalf on the other side, that could end up being a top 5 receiving duo in the league one day.

Brandin Cooks, Texans agree to two year extension

Texans star wideout Brandin Cooks was once reportedly on the trading block but is now staying put in Houston, with both sides agreeing to a two year extension worth just under $20 million a year, NFL Network insider Ian Rappaport reported late Thursday night. Cooks will now be under contract with the Texans through the 2024 season

After being drafted by the New Orleans Saints in 2014 with the 20th overall pick Cooks could never find a place to truly call home, since being drafted in 2014 Cooks has played for the New Orleans Saints, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams and now the Houston Texans.The 28 year old wideout will look to be the franchise guy for the foreseeable future with the star starved Texans.

After having a career year, last season he tallied 90 receptions for 1,037 yards and six touchdowns in his second year with the Texans Cooks is looking to build on that. Cooks has now had his sixth 1,000 yard year in his eight years of playing, and has had 1,000 yards for each team he’s played for.