XFL Commissioner On Manziel, Kaepernick
The XFL is still weeks away from its relaunch, but Vince McMahon’s second try at professional football has already come under fire for its refusal to allow players to leave for the NFL. In an interview with Thomas Bassinger of the Tampa Bay Times, commissioner Oliver Luck made it clear that the policy won’t change anytime soon. 
“If there’s one thing we learned from watching the Alliance it was that quarterback play is critical,” Luck said. “In the game of football today — whether it’s pro, college or even high school arguably — your quarterback play is determinative. So we made an effort to sign guys, some of whom played in the AAF but the vast majority didn’t.”
The league’s policy already prevented Josh Johnson from joining the Lions back in November. Critics felt that the XFL should have allowed the veteran to go to Detroit, but Luck & Co. held him to his commitment with the Los Angeles Wildcats.
“We said, ‘No, we’re keeping him. He ours. He signed a contract. He’s committed to us,’” Luck said. “Once a player signs a contract — once he passes his physical and signs a contract — then he’s under contract with us. We won’t release that player to the NFL until after our season. We need certainty. We can’t just have guys peeling off.”
Luck also disclosed that the Steelers inquired on Landry Jones and Phillip Walker after Ben Roethlisberger‘s injury. The XFL, of course, turned down both requests.
While the XFL protects its own signal callers, they won’t go chasing the two biggest names on the open market. Luck sounded less than enthusiastic about the possibility of Johnny Manziel and Colin Kaepernick joining the fledgling league.
“Johnny has his own history, and we have coaches from the CFL who have seen him close up,” Luck said when asked about Johnny Football. “He was in the draft pool. Coaches and scouts looked at him and didn’t think he was going to help their team. I think the guys we have on our teams are the best 560 that aren’t playing in the National Football League.”
As for Kaepernick, Luck characterized his “salary demands” as being “way out of [the XFL’s] ballpark.” As a result, he was “never really a viable option,” for the league.
Steelers Sticking With Duck Hodges
- The Steelers announced they are sticking with Devlin Hodges against the Jets, despite his four-interception performance. Hodges has posted a 38.4 QBR figure, which betters Mason Rudolph‘s league-worst 31.9 mark. The Steelers have not thrown for 200 yards in their past five games.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/16/19
Here are today’s minor moves:
Detroit Lions
- Claimed: OL Caleb Benenoch
Miami Dolphins
- Waived/inured: CB Ken Crawley
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Promoted: WR Amara Darboh
- Waived: WR Tevin Jones
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed off Cowboys‘ practice squad: WR Cyril Grayson
Latest On Texans’, Panthers’ GM Search
We heard several weeks ago from Ian Rapoport of NFL.com that the Texans, who tried but failed to hire Patriots exec Nick Caserio as their GM this spring, were planning to operate without a GM in 2020. But Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports hears differently.
La Canfora says the Texans remain interested in Caserio, who is still a desirable GM candidate. Indeed, La Canfora reported back in October that Houston was expected to hire Caserio in 2020, after his contract with New England is up, which is one of the reasons why Rapoport’s report from earlier this month was a bit of a surprise.
But if the Texans do hope to hire Caserio this offseason, they could face some competition from multiple clubs, including the Panthers. Per La Canfora, Panthers owner David Tepper wants to speak with several coaches and executives with ties to New England, and he was among those who reached out to former Patriots executive Jack Easterby last year.
Coincidentally, Easterby ultimately became Houston’s executive vice president of team development, but La Canfora says Tepper could pursue him and/or Caserio in 2020. Of course, the Panthers currently employ Marty Hurney as GM, and Hurney is a part of the team’s head coach search following Ron Rivera‘s recent firing. But Tepper wants to add multiple people to his front office, and Hurney’s role could change as a result.
One way or another, Caserio will almost certainly not return to New England, and he could have a number of options available to him. Indeed, Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network says that the team’s extension talks with Caserio have gone nowhere, and the Patriots are bracing for a number of defections from their front office (video link).
In related news, Tepper has officially sold his minority interest in the Steelers, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Steelers Will Try To Keep Javon Hargrave
- Should the 11-2 Ravens win their next two games, they can lock up home-field advantage for the first time in franchise history. If that happens, do not expect Lamar Jackson to play in Week 17. If they can beat the Jets and Browns, the Ravens are expected to start Robert Griffin III in Week 17 against the Steelers, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes (Twitter link). This would certainly stand to aid the Steelers’ playoff hopes. RG3 has not started a game since 2016.
- Speaking of the Steelers, they may not be able to afford Bud Dupree in free agency. Pittsburgh is unlikely to agree to terms on a long-term deal that would keep the improving outside linebacker off the market, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes. The Steelers could tag Dupree for nearly $16MM but do not have much cap space to make that work. (Though, they managed to work around similar constraints in tagging Le’Veon Bell twice.) The 2015 first-round pick has recorded a career-high (by far) 9.5 sacks this season.
- The Steelers will attempt to keep nose tackle Javon Hargrave off the market, Dulac adds. Though, the fourth-year defensive lineman is expected to hit the market. Pittsburgh is projected to possess barely $5MM in cap space in 2020. The franchise’s propensity for restructuring deals notwithstanding, the team will face a difficult task extending Hargrave and Dupree before free agency opens.
2020 NFL Draft Order As Of Week 15
With 14 full weeks of the NFL season in the books, the 2020 draft order is beginning to take shape. Here’s the rundown of where things would stand if the 2019 season ended today:
1. Bengals: 1-12
2. Giants: 2-11
3. Redskins: 3-10
4. Dolphins: 3-10
5. Lions: 3-9-1
6. Cardinals: 3-9-1
7. Jaguars: 4-9
8. Falcons: 4-9
9. Jets: 5-8
10. Chargers: 5-8
11. Broncos 5-8
12. Panthers 5-8
13. Eagles 6-7
14. Raiders 6-7
15. Colts 6-7
16. Buccaneers 6-7
17. Browns 6-7
18. Raiders (via Bears) 6-7
19. Titans 8-5
20. Jaguars (via Rams) 8-5
21. Cowboys 6-7
22. Dolphins (via Steelers) 8-5
23. Dolphins (via Texans) 8-5
24. Vikings 9-4
25. Bills 9-4
26. Chiefs 9-4
27. Packers 10-3
28. Seahawks 10-3
29. Patriots 10-3
30. Saints 10-3
31. Ravens 11-2
32. 49ers 11-2
Panthers Notes: Newton, HC Candidates, Bradberry
Panthers QB Cam Newton will undergo foot surgery, and as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com writes, Newton is expected to be fully ready and able by March. Rapoport says Carolina has not ruled out retaining Newton — not that the team would publicly say anything different — but the expectation remains that the Panthers will look to trade the former No. 1 overall pick,
The QB market may be unusually robust in 2020, and Newton may be the most desirable piece. The Panthers will not give Newton away, but if they “get a large deal to make it worth their while,” they will pull the trigger.
Now for more out of Charlotte:
- Of course, what the Panthers do with Newton may depend on who they hire as their permanent head coach. Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reiterates his view that the Panthers will seek an offensive-minded or QB-driven coach, and what that person thinks of Newton, Kyle Allen, and Will Grier could impact the club’s offseason plans in a big way.
- In the same piece linked above, Rapoport suggests that owner David Tepper will of course be on the lookout for a top-flight coordinator and someone who is unafraid to embrace analytics, but he suggests that Tepper’s top priority will be a strong manager of people. RapSheet names ex-Packers coach Mike McCarthy, 49ers DC Robert Saleh, and Ravens OC Greg Roman as just a few of the possibilities.
- Even if the Panthers retain GM Marty Hurney — which is not a guarantee — Adam Schefter of ESPN.com says Tepper, the former minority owner of the Steelers, could look to bring familiar faces from Pittsburgh to Carolina. Tepper plans to name an assistant general manager to focus on pro personnel evaluation and a vice president of football operations, and sources say he could be eyeing Steelers GM Kevin Colbert — whose contract is up at the end of the season — and/or vice president of football and business administration Omar Khan.
- The Panthers have 28 players eligible for free agency this offseason, and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic examines the decisions that the team will have to make with respect to a few of those players. The club just signed LB Shaq Thompson to a four-year extension, and Rodrigue’s source says the Panthers have made CB James Bradberry their next top priority.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/3/19
We’ll keep track of today’s minor NFL moves here:
Arizona Cardinals
- Waived: LB Pete Robertson
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: DT Justin Zimmer
- Released: DE Chris Smith
Denver Broncos
- Claimed: C Patrick Morris (from Steelers)
Detroit Lions
- Promoted: LB Jason Cabinda
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted: CB Parry Nickerson
- Released: CB Breon Borders
Kansas City Chiefs
- Waived: WR Gehrig Dieter
Los Angeles Rams
- Promote TE Kendall Blanton
- Placed on IR: WR JoJo Natson
Miami Dolphins
- Claimed: WR Trevor Davis (from Raiders), RB Zach Zenner (from Cardinals)
- Placed on IR: RB Kalen Ballage
Philadelphia Eagles
- Promoted: G Sua Opeta
- Released: WR Mack Hollins
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: K Chase McLaughlin
Steelers High On Hodges Internally
- The Steelers benched Mason Rudolph and are rolling with Devlin Hodges at quarterback, and they picked up a crucial win over the Browns on Sunday. Mike Tomlin’s decision to go with Hodges was “was well received throughout the organization,” La Canfora writes in a separate piece. JLC also adds that some people in the building were surprised Tomlin didn’t initially stick with Hodges after he won a game over the Chargers while Rudolph was sidelined with a concussion. He notes that the staff loves Hodges’ scrambling ability, and that he’s been compared to Gardner Minshew by some in the organization. Pittsburgh is apparently pretty high on Hodges and barring injury, it doesn’t sound like we’ll see Rudolph again any time soon.
Steelers Bench QB Mason Rudolph
It’s now official, per an announcement from head coach Mike Tomlin. The Steelers will start quarterback Devlin Hodges this week against the Browns, sending Mason Rudolph to the bench. 
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Rudolph completed just 8 of 16 passes for 65 yards and a red zone interception before being yanked against the Bengals. After Hodges entered in the third quarter, he finished out 5-of-11 for 118 yards and a touchdown in a comeback win.
Tomlin was non-committal when asked about a potential shakeup after Sunday’s game, but this was the expected move. Hodges is not a world-beater, nor does he profile as the heir apparent to Ben Roethlisberger, but he might be the team’s better option as they push for the playoffs.
At 6-5, the Steelers have a 27% chance of making the playoffs, according to FiveThirtyEight. In the next three weeks, they’ll see the Browns, Cardinals, and Bills.