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Poll: Which AFC Team Had Best Offseason?

June 11th, 2022 at 10:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

Due to a flurry of additions, the 2022 AFC presents a crowded competition for playoff and Super Bowl LVII access. Some of the top-tier teams addressed key weaknesses, and several middle-class squads took big swings in respective aims to improve their chances this season.

The fallout paints a picture in which barely any AFCers can be truly counted out for playoff contention. Future Hall of Famers, potential Canton inductees, and Pro Bowlers moving from the NFC — along with various intra-AFC changes — have made for one of the most captivating offseasons in modern NFL annals. While the offseason is not yet complete, most of the acquisition dominoes ahead of training camp have fallen. Which team did the best work?

With Russell Wilson joining the Broncos, the AFC West’s Wilson-Patrick Mahomes–Derek Carr–Justin Herbert quartet appears of the great quarterback armadas any division has fielded in the five-plus-decade divisional era. The Broncos gave up two first-round selections in a five-pick deal but were able to hang onto their young receivers. Denver, which moved to a younger coaching staff headed by first-time HC Nathaniel Hackett and two rookie coordinators, also added defenders Randy Gregory and D.J. Jones. Going from the Teddy Bridgewater–Drew Lock combo to Wilson represents one of the top gains any team made this offseason, but Denver’s divisional competition will not make improvement easy.

Entering the final year in which Herbert must be tied to his rookie contract, the Chargers addressed several needs. They added defensive help in free agency, via J.C. Jackson and Sebastian Joseph-Day, and traded second- and sixth-round picks for Khalil Mack. The team also extended Mike Williams at $20MM per year — days before the wide receiver market dramatically shifted — and drafted right guard Zion Johnson in Round 1.

The Raiders were partially responsible for the wideout market’s explosion, trading first- and second-round picks for Davante Adams and extending him at $28MM per year. That came shortly after the team’s Chandler Jones addition. Las Vegas’ Josh McDaniels–Dave Ziegler regime has greenlit extensions for Reggie McKenzie– and Jon Gruden-era holdovers — from Carr to Maxx Crosby to Hunter Renfrow. Will a Darren Waller deal follow?

Of last season’s conference kingpins, the Chiefs and Titans endured the biggest losses. Hill and Tyrann Mathieu‘s exits will test the six-time reigning AFC West champs, while last year’s No. 1 seed balked at a monster A.J. Brown extension by trading him to the Eagles for a package headlined by a 2022 first-rounder. Both teams did address some needs early in the draft, but the Bengals and Bills look to have definitively improved their rosters.

Cincinnati augmented its bottom-tier offensive line by signing La’el Collins, Alex Cappa and Ted Karras. The defending AFC champions retained almost their entire defense, though Jessie Bates is not especially happy on the franchise tag. Buffalo reloaded as well, adding Von Miller to a defensive line that has lacked a top-end pass rusher for a while. The team swapped out ex-UDFA Levi Wallace for first-round cornerback Kaiir Elam, and James Cook is the Bills’ highest running back draftee since C.J. Spiller 12 years ago. How significant will the Brian Daboll-for-Ken Dorsey OC swap be?

Although Cincy’s AFC North competition made improvements, some caveats come with them. The Ravens filled their center and right tackle spots, with first-rounder Tyler Linderbaum and veteran Morgan Moses, and are now flush with safeties following the arrivals of Marcus Williams and Kyle Hamilton. But Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson situation has reached a strange stage, with the top three Ravens power brokers indicating the former MVP has not shown extension interest. Cleveland landed Amari Cooper for Day 3 draft capital and, on paper, rivaled Denver’s QB upgrade. Historic draft compensation and a shocking $230MM guarantee was required for the Browns to pull it off. But their Deshaun Watson trade has generated considerable drama — to the point the ex-Texans Pro Bowler cannot be considered a lock to play in 2022.

Oddsmakers do not expect the Jaguars’ moves to translate to 2022 contention, but the team did hire a former Super Bowl-winning coach in Doug Pederson and spend wildly for lineup upgrades — from Christian Kirk to Brandon Scherff to Foye Oluokun — and used two first-round picks (Travon Walker, Devin Lloyd) to further upgrade its defense. Going from Urban Meyer to Pederson should offer stability to a franchise that has lacked it, never more so than in 2021.

The Jets chased big-name receivers for weeks but came away with Garrett Wilson in a highly praised three-first-rounder draft. New York’s last-ranked defense now has new pieces in first-rounders Sauce Gardner and Jermaine Johnson, along with DBs Jordan Whitehead and D.J. Reed. Miami made a stunning coaching change by firing Brian Flores, which produced a tidal wave of controversy, but the now-Mike McDaniel-led team also paid up for splashy additions in Hill and Terron Armstead while retaining steady edge rusher Emmanuel Ogbah.

Are there other teams that warrant mention here? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts on the new-look AFC in the comments section.

Which AFC team had the best offseason?
Denver Broncos 12.92% (421 votes)
Las Vegas Raiders 11.91% (388 votes)
Miami Dolphins 11.33% (369 votes)
Los Angeles Chargers 10.01% (326 votes)
Cincinnati Bengals 9.36% (305 votes)
New York Jets 8.04% (262 votes)
Buffalo Bills 6.48% (211 votes)
Pittsburgh Steelers 5.68% (185 votes)
Baltimore Ravens 5.06% (165 votes)
Kansas City Chiefs 5.00% (163 votes)
Cleveland Browns 4.21% (137 votes)
Indianapolis Colts 3.65% (119 votes)
Houston Texans 2.46% (80 votes)
New England Patriots 2.12% (69 votes)
Jacksonville Jaguars 1.07% (35 votes)
Tennessee Titans 0.71% (23 votes)
Total Votes: 3,258

Tyreek Hill Addresses Effort To Stay With Chiefs; Davante Adams Contract Changed Talks

June 11th, 2022 at 4:19pm CST by Sam Robinson

Davante Adams‘ desire to reunite with Derek Carr not only changed the Packers’ wide receiver situation; it directly impacted another Super Bowl contender’s aerial corps. Tyreek Hill went from negotiating a Chiefs extension in early March to being dealt to the Dolphins for five picks three weeks later.

The $30MM-per-year contract Miami authorized came after Kansas City balked at a deal similar to Adams’. Hill’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said on the receiver’s first episode of his It Needed To Be Said podcast the Hill-Chiefs talks changed after Adams inked his $28MM-AAV Raiders deal. Shortly after the Adams extension, Rosenhaus “put pressure on the Chiefs” to hammer out an Adams-style accord, with the agent calling his client a superior player to the two-time Packer All-Pro.

“If they didn’t want to do that type of deal, then we would get them a blockbuster trade,” Rosenhaus said, via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “I flat out told them that I felt like I could talk to teams around the league and bring a bunch of — bring great compensation. And I think the Chiefs initially wanted to challenge us and see what we could get from other teams contractually and what we could also get compensation-wise.”

Hill said he told Andy Reid he was not asking the Chiefs to top Adams’ Raiders contract, indicating that a pact in the $25MM- or $26MM-per-year range would be sufficient. Even after the Chiefs gave Rosenhaus permission to talk trades, which led to Jets and Dolphins offers, the high-powered agent asked his client if he wanted to stay in Kansas City. Although Hill said he did, Rosenhaus indicated during the podcast the Chiefs were “millions of dollars” short of the new asking price.

The Chiefs sent Hill to the Dolphins for five picks — including Miami’s first- and second-rounders this year — and the historically dominant deep threat signed a four-year, $120MM extension. That contract is backloaded, and A.J. Brown‘s $56MM fully guaranteed figure soon surpassed Hill’s $52MM. But only Aaron Donald and a handful of quarterbacks top Hill’s $30MM AAV.

“I tried my best,” Hill said of his effort to stay in Kansas City. “I talked to the big man, Andy Reid. I talked to the quarterback. I’m like, ‘Look, can we make something happen? Can we make something happen? Can the guaranteed money make sense to me? Can it make sense to my family, please?”

The ugly off-field baggage Hill carried into the league and the 2019 child-abuse allegation — which did not lead to a suspension — that threatened his place with the Chiefs allowed for an $18MM-per-year extension on a team-friendly structure ahead of the ’19 season. Hill outplayed the contract by playing an essential role on back-to-back Super Bowl-qualifying teams and producing 1,200-yard receiving seasons in 2020 and ’21. The 28-year-old speed merchant will now attempt to stay in top form away from Reid and Patrick Mahomes, while the Chiefs will attempt to replace their star wideout with a group effort involving JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Skyy Moore.

Chiefs Sign WR Skyy Moore, Complete Draft Class

June 10th, 2022 at 8:53pm CST by Adam La Rose

More teams continue to finalize their 2022 draft class’ rookie contracts. The Chiefs are the latest to do so; the team reached an agreement with Skyy Moore, as the receiver confirmed on Instagram.

Moore enjoyed a productive three-year career at Western Michigan. He totaled 51 catches and 802 yards in his first season there, though he only played in five games during the pandemic-shortened season the following year. While he averaged over 15 yards per catch in each of his first two seasons, he only found the endzone six times across that span.

The 5-foot-10, 195-pounder took another step forward last year. Suiting up for 12 contests, he totaled 95 receptions, which placed him second in the Mid-American Conference and ninth in the country. He also ranked second in the MAC with 1,292 yards, and more than doubled his touchdown total with 10 — leading the conference in that category.

That placed him in the conversation to be drafted amongst the second tier of wideouts in this year’s class. Not surprisingly, the Chiefs selected him in the second round, as the team continued to rebuild its receiving corps. After the departures of Tyreek Hill, Demarcus Robinson and Byron Pringle, a number of new faces have been brought in. The most notable additions include JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and perhaps the most intriguing UDFA of the 2022 class, Justyn Ross.

Moore’s size and run-after-catch skillset could lead to usage similar to the way Hill was deployed. His speed should be well-utilized in Andy Reid‘s offense, and give the Chiefs a long-term option in the passing game, compared to the short-term deals signed in free agency to round out the position’s depth chart.

With Moore under contract, here is the full breakdown of Kansas City’s draft class:

Round 1: No. 21 (from Patriots) Trent McDuffie, CB (Washington) (signed)
Round 1: No. 30 George Karlaftis, DE (Purdue) (signed)
Round 2: No. 54 (from Patriots) Skyy Moore, WR (Western Michigan) (signed)
Round 2: No. 62 Bryan Cook, S (Cincinnati) (signed)
Round 3: No. 103 Leo Chenal, LB (Wisconsin) (signed)
Round 4: No. 135 Joshua Williams, CB (Fayetteville State) (signed)
Round 5: No. 145 (from Seahawks) Darian Kinnard, OG (Kentucky) (signed)
Round 7: No. 243 (from Raiders through Patriots) Jaylen Watson, CB (Washington State) (signed)
Round 7: No. 251 Isaih Pacheco, RB (Rutgers) (signed)
Round 7: No. 259 Nazeeh Johnson, S (Marshall) (signed)

Latest On Chiefs’ Orlando Brown Jr.

June 10th, 2022 at 9:56am CST by Adam La Rose

The Chiefs’ offseason has seen the departures of key players like Tyreek Hill and Tyrann Mathieu, but the money saved as a result has long been thought to be earmarked for a long-term extension with left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. After the latest development in the negotiating process, the 26-year-old provided some encouraging remarks with respect to a deal getting done soon. 

Brown said that he is “very confident” an extension will be finalized before the July 15 deadline, via Grant Gordon of NFL.com. “Especially simply based off the things that have come into effect within our division, the type of defensive ends that have been brought in, the type of players and all of that type of stuff” he added. “It’s not the year to go into the season with a backup left tackle. So, I’m very confident that the Kansas City Chiefs will get that done.”

The Chiefs traded for Brown last offseason as part of their efforts to rebuild their offensive line. The move gave them a replacement for Eric Fisher, and let Brown fulfil his goal of manning the blindside (as opposed to the right tackle spot, where he spent most of his time in Baltimore). With only one year remaining on his rookie contract, it was widely assumed a long-term deal would be coming at some point.

The Oklahoma product did nothing on the field to lessen the chances of an extension coming his way. He started all 16 games he appeared in, earning Pro Bowl honors for the third consecutive season. As was expected after the campaign, Kansas City placed the franchise tag on him, which will pay him $16.7MM in the absence of a new pact being signed.

Negotiations have been ongoing, but it was reported last month that the former third-rounder is seeking a deal which will place him atop the list league-wide in terms of compensation amongst left tackles. At a minimum, he is expected to join Trent Williams, David Bakhtiari and Laremy Tunsil as the only offensive linemen earning over $20MM per season.

Last week, another hurdle was cleared when Brown hired an agent. Interestingly, he become the first player to sign on with the Delta Sports Group, deliberately seeking a representative without pre-existing relationships with NFL executives. With that taken care of, both sides will be seeking traction in negotiations, as just over one month remains to finalize a deal. If Brown’s sentiments are reciprocated, though, he should have a new contract in hand by the time the 2022 season begins.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 6/9/22

June 9th, 2022 at 7:13pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s draft pick signings in the NFL:

Baltimore Ravens

Kansas City Chiefs

  • CB Joshua Williams (fourth round, Fayetteville State)

New England Patriots

Tampa Buccaneers

Latest On Laurent Duvernay-Tardif

June 9th, 2022 at 10:10am CST by Adam La Rose

Free agent guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif is once again temporarily putting his NFL career on hold to focus on his other profession. The Canadian offensive lineman is set to enroll in a residency program at a hospital near Montreal this summer and will wait until the onset of the 2022 campaign to decide on his NFL future. 

“I’m going to prioritize medicine… and we’ll see in September if there’s a fit,” the 31-year-old said, via ESPN.com. “After eight years in the NFL, and I don’t want to sound pretentious by saying this, but I think I’ve earned the right to do what’s best for me and not just for football and kind of bet on myself a little bit.”

In 2020, Duvernay-Tardif became the first player in the league to opt out of the season, choosing to devote his time to a local long-term care facility. The decision came after the Chiefs’ second consecutive Super Bowl appearance, and tolled his contract to the point where it expired at the conclusion of the 2021 season.

Upon his return, the former sixth-rounder found that his right guard spot was occupied by Trey Smith, one part of Kansas City’s efforts to completely rebuild its offensive front. Sidelined by a broken bone in his hand, he never played again for the Chiefs. Instead, he waived his no-trade clause and was dealt to the Jets in November. He started seven of eight games in New York.

Now a free agent for the first time, given the expiration of the five-year extension he signed in 2017, Duvernay-Tardif (who received his medical doctorate one year later) faces the possibility of being on the move again, should he return to the NFL. The Jets added Laken Tomlinson in free agency, who is in line to pair with 2021 first-rounder Alijah Vera-Tucker at the guard spots. Despite the uncertainty regarding his future, he is making it clear this latest decision is not a retirement.

“I’m really comfortable with the risk, and I’m pretty confident there’s going to be an offer on the table in September if I want it,” he said. “And if I want it I’ll take it. If medicine is going well and I feel like I’ve got to be out there in front of 80,000 people to play the sport I love, well, I’ll go, but I think I want it to be more on my terms.”

Minor NFL Transactions: 6/8/22

June 8th, 2022 at 9:02pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Detroit Lions

Miami Dolphins

Free Agents

Dieter spent his five NFL seasons with the Chiefs. He didn’t make much of an impact from a statistical standpoint; in 10 regular season games, the receiver hauled in a pair of catches for 32 yards (plus another catch in the postseason). However, he became a popular player on the practice field, including his friendship with quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

Texans’ Romeo Crennel Retires

June 6th, 2022 at 10:43am CST by Sam Robinson

Romeo Crennel has been in coaching since 1970 and has been an NFL staffer since 1981. The former Browns and Chiefs head coach announced his retirement from coaching Monday.

The Texans have employed the longtime defensive staffer for the past eight years and change, and while Crennel had left his defensive coordinator post by 2021, he was still with the organization. The decorated staffer is stepping down from a day-to-day role, however.

“Football has been my entire life and it’s been a dream come true to coach for 50 years,” Crennel said. “I’ll miss everything about coaching and teaching, but the thing I’ll miss the most is being around the guys every day. … I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to spend more time with my grandchildren while staying around the game of football.”

Crennel, who will turn 75 this month, has five Super Bowl rings on his resume as an assistant, collecting them with the Giants and Patriots. He began his NFL career as a special teams coordinator on Ray Perkins‘ Giants staff in 1981, staying on in New York throughout Bill Parcells‘ tenure and through Ray Handley‘s two-year stint — before rejoining Parcells with the Patriots in 1993. Crennel later followed Parcells to the Jets, working as a position coach under Parcells and Bill Belichick.

Although Crennel spent five-plus seasons as a head coach, he is probably best known for leading the Patriots’ defenses in the early 2000s. Crennel rejoined Belichick, his longtime Giants coworker, in 2001 and served as his right-hand man on defense. Tom Brady later became the Patriots’ centerpiece, but Belichick and Crennel’s defenses led the way in the early 2000s, lifting the Pats to three Super Bowl titles in four seasons. New England finished first and second in scoring defense during its 2003 and ’04 championship seasons, respectively, when the team went 34-4.

The Browns had employed Crennel as their defensive coordinator in 2000 and brought him back as their HC on the heels of Super Bowl XXXIX in 2005. While this did not reverse the struggling team’s fortunes, Crennel led Cleveland to the playoff doorstep in 2007 — a 10-6 season. He resurfaced as a head coach with the Chiefs, taking over as Todd Haley‘s late-season replacement in 2011. The Chiefs handed the Packers their only regular-season loss that year, leading to Crennel’s promotion. But their 2012 slate was a low point for the franchise, with a 2-14 season leading to Crennel being a one-and-done as Kansas City’s full-time HC.

Bill O’Brien brought in Crennel as his DC in 2014, and after ex-Crennel charge Mike Vrabel served in that role in 2017, Houston again turned to the veteran following Vrabel’s Tennessee exit. Two of J.J. Watt‘s three Defensive Player of the Year campaigns came under Crennel, who helped the team secure playoff access with the likes of Brian Hoyer and Brock Osweiler under center. Upon being moved to interim head coach in 2020, at age 73, Crennel became the oldest person to be a head coach in an NFL game, breaking George Halas‘ record in doing so.

NFL Staff Notes: Eagles, Warren, Bears, Chiefs

June 4th, 2022 at 8:40pm CST by Ely Allen

This weekend, the Eagles announced several title changes and new hires in their personnel and operations departments. Philadelphia lost six staffers this offseason.

Some of the Eagles’ corresponding moves we haven’t yet covered are as follows. Former-senior director of football transactions Bryce Johnston was promoted to vice president of football transactions and strategic planning. Former-assistant of analytics James Gilman was promoted to director of football analytics. Former-senior pro scout Jeff Scott was promoted to director of football operations. Former-football analytics coordinator Jon Liu was promoted to assistant director of football analytics. Former assistant strength and conditioning coach Patrick McDowell moved departments to become the player development assistant/scout. Pro scout Ameena Soliman was promoted to director of personnel operations/pro scout. Former-college scout (Northeast area) Matt Holland was promoted to senior college/pro scout.

The following are new hires announced by the Eagles that we haven’t covered. In operations, Zach Drapkin was hired as a quantitative analyst. In scouting, Jarrod Kilburn was hired as a college/pro scout.

Here are a few other staff notes from around the NFL, starting with the freshly-named Commanders:

  • According to Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post, legendary tight end and current-senior pro scout Don Warren will retire this week. Warren won three Super Bowls during his 14 seasons as a player in Washington. 13 years after his retirement from playing, Warren returned to Washington as a scout. After five years in that role, Warren joined the Panthers as a scout, where he stayed for ten years. Warren returned to Washington for the final two years of his career in 2020.
  • The Bears have hired the Chiefs’ senior data scientist, Krithi Chandrakasan, away from Kansas City to assume the role of director of football analytics in Chicago. To fill Chandrakasan’s now-vacant role, the Chiefs hired Marc Richards in the role of football research analyst, all according to ESPN’s Seth Walder. Walder adds that Richards was a part of the winning team in the 2021 Big Data Bowl. The Big Data Bowl is an annual analytics competition for college students and professionals in the league. The contest challenges participants to spur innovations in the ever-evolving world of NFL advanced analytics.

Chiefs LT Orlando Brown Jr. Hires Agent

June 2nd, 2022 at 3:54pm CST by Sam Robinson

Orlando Brown Jr.‘s career has gone through significant changes over the past year and change, resulting in the former third-round pick’s value skyrocketing. The veteran tackle took a step toward maximizing that value Thursday.

The Chiefs left tackle hired an agent, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Brown will go with Michael Portner of the Delta Sports Group. Although several players have made the decision to go without agents in recent years, most still do. This represents a key step for Brown, who is engaged in a pivotal negotiation with the Chiefs. The parties have begun the talks, and Brown’s new agent will run point from here.

Brown going with Portner is an interesting decision, with Garafolo adding the 26-year-old O-lineman sought an agent without relationships with NFL GMs (Twitter link). Brown is DSG’s first NFL client. That will certainly add intrigue to his Chiefs extension discussions.

Kansas City used its franchise tag on Brown in March, cuffing the fifth-year blocker with a $16.7MM salary. The team has until July 15 to sign Brown to a long-term extension. Absent a deal by then, Brown will play the 2022 season on his franchise tender — one he has not yet signed.

Formerly the Ravens’ right tackle starter, Brown replaced an injured Ronnie Stanley on the left side to close out the 2020 season. From there, Brown no longer wanted to play right tackle. This led to the Chiefs sending the Ravens a quality trade package for the contract-year lineman. Kansas City tabled extension talks with Brown until 2022, and he is now aiming to be the NFL’s highest-paid offensive lineman.

Three left tackles — Trent Williams, David Bakhtiari and Laremy Tunsil — earn $20MM per year. They are the NFL’s only $20MM-AAV O-linemen. Brown becoming the fourth seems likely. The Chiefs giving up a first-round pick in last year’s trade points to an extension coming to pass, and the team only has one other blocker (Joe Thuney) signed to a notable veteran contract. That clears a space for Brown, but his aspirations may complicate these negotiations.

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