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Senior Analyst Since 2004 New Jersey
NFL Preseason Week 1 - The vibe around Los Angeles Chargers training camp has been remarkably chill.
At least, that's the image projected by the Los Angeles Chargers social network team, the innovators of the anime theme song schedule release video. And since the Chargers press pool is rather small and national interest somewhat niche, the Chargers social team, like your sister-in-law posting margarita-at-the-beach photos through the divorce, gets to create its own reality.
For example, here's Justin Herbert swatting at a skeeter:
it's like we're actually camping pic.twitter.com/xERb22ypZJ
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 3, 2022
If Aaron Rodgers starts doing that, send him to the Coachella medical tent, pronto. And you would never see Daniel Jones doing that, because the Meadowlands greenhead flies swat back.
But hey, Herbert looks loose. As do Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack, who are vying for 2022's best on-screen beefy bromance this side of RRR:
big time rush pic.twitter.com/CyVZ65v6EI
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 1, 2022
Fellas, that's how Simba and Nala flirt in The Lion King on Broadway. This is NFL training camp. Can we steer back closer to traditional, regressive, semi-toxic manliness?
1v1s are heating up pic.twitter.com/g9FEVRwSxd
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 4, 2022
The Chargers social team can get a little too jokey at times. Sebastian Joseph-Day is not exactly a nationally known figure, and he probably hasn't done many podium interviews. So, maybe don't roast him if he's looking a little apprehensive when he steps behind the microphone?
this is how u look when u lose ur mom at the grocery store pic.twitter.com/ywcCIYomfy
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 3, 2022
You can scroll the Chargers Twitter feed and decide for yourself where it lands on the infotainment scale. The point here is that they definitely establish a tone. No one is talking about Derwin James' hold-in or manufacturing Hall of Famer yet? narratives for Herbert because everyone is dancing/joshing/swatting their way through the summer.
Not every NFL team has the luxury of creating its own training camp reality. Some teams, like the Dallas Cowboys, are permanently in the national media soap opera spotlight. Others (greetings from greater Philly!) have noisy, sometimes adversarial media bases. Genuinely terrible camp news can harshen the August buzz: if Herbert gets struck by a meteorite tomorrow, all the Twitter Goku memes in the world won't keep the party rolling. And then there are expectations: the mood around perennial contenders is naturally a little tight in August, when every hamstring pull is a potential flat tire for the Super Bowl bandwagon, while rebuilding teams get to kick back and clap like tee ball parents every time a rookie does something right.
The following Training Camp Vibe reports are built from Walkthrough's intense reading of each team's local newspapers/blogs/fansites, the timber of the social network chatter around each team, and the relationship between each team and its fans that has developed over the last 15 years or so. Also, actual news matters (a teensy bit), so these capsules will provide a few updates on what's really going on around the NFL.
Jokes, trolling, and real content too? What are we waiting for?
The Cardinals blinked out of national existence the moment the Kyler Murray homework scandal ended, but the Murray-Kliff Kingsbury relationship sounds as healthy and actualized as ever. For example, Kingsbury assigned Murray to call offensive plays through the headset last week. "I just wanted him to know this sh*t ain't easy," Kingsbury said. "Every now and then he starts shaking his head when I'm calling it in there and I'm like, 'Alright, well go ahead, big dog.'"
Murray could not practice due to COVID at the time but apparently was non-contagious enough to share a headset microphone with Kingsbury, the tactical genius imparting life lessons in this scenario.
"He did a good job," Kingsbury told reporters. "It's just I would not want to play for Kyler Murray if I was a quarterback and he was the coach." Yep, a $230-million contract is going to plaster over the issues in this relationship!
Also, running backs coach James Saxon was quietly placed on administrative leave due to felony domestic battery charges and wide receiver Marquise Brown got arrested for driving at 126 miles per hour. Quite the tight ship you are running, Kliff and Steve Keim. Tell us more about your quarterback's study habits. We're all ears.
If the Cardinals were the Cowboys, their Summer of Dysfunction would lead every talk show. As it stands, the Cardinals get so little attention that many fans will be genuinely surprised when Kingsbury comes down with COVID later this week.
Falcons observers who have not been traumatized into submission over the last five years want the world to know that this team's got more talent than you think, damnit, and that Arthur Smith is slow-roasting a winning culture that will really manifest once Marcus Mariota enjoys a Ryan Tannehill leap in Smith's system.
No rational Falcons observer is predicting playoffs, but most fans: a) don't think the team should be lumped among the Giants/Bears/Seahawks at the bottom of the NFC (narrator: yes they should) and b) haven't been remotely rational since February 5 of 2017.
Talking about the Ravens is like anticipating a Phase Four Marvel Movie: everyone is hoping Lamar Jackson and company return to their 2019 peak, but everyone is also bracing for another disappointing chapter of what has becoming a creaky, formulaic story.
Jackson has a new throwing coach (John Harbaugh's staff wants us to know they're thrilled about it!) but is still working on that pesky contract. A battalion of rookies, from Kyle Hamilton to Daniel Faalele to Isaiah Likely, is earning mostly positive (if boilerplate-scented) notice, despite some viral torching videos. And Harbaugh is keeping practices as light as possible to avoid another injury apocalypse. Will any of this matter when the Ravens are trailing by two scores in a must-win game and need Greg Roman to draw up a play that gets James Proche open deep? That's the question no one is eager to contemplate.
About 35,000 fans attended the Return of the Blue and Red scrimmage in Orchard Park on Friday night. It's noteworthy that the fans themselves, plus Josh Allen's unauthorized red helmet, were the stars of the scrimmage; fifth-round receiver Khalil Shakir's big plays merited just a short middle segment in Katherine Fitzgerald's Buffalo News report. (Packers media would have already launched a Shakir Pro Bowl campaign.) BillsMafia is savoring its role as the Greek Chorus for the NFL's Team to Beat (™), but fans are also fretting about Jordan Poyer's injury, Allen's knack for endangering himself in practice, and the team's tiny roster holes.
Walkthrough remembers this feeling from rooting for the 2000-2004 Eagles: We're great, this is great, and if the least little thing goes wrong Imma hide under the bed for a month.
Panthers fans and media are trying. They really are. Jaycee Horn and Christian McCaffrey's returns are mildly exciting. Robby Rob B. Robbie Anderson says or does something goofy now and then. Luke Kuechly put in an appearance last week! But the dreary business of tracking the Sam Darnold/Baker Mayfield "controversy" and reporting Matt Rhule's daily blather while pretending that he's anything more than a third-party candidate slogging through October with 0.6% of the popular vote has sapped the press pool's/fan base's energy.
The Panthers themselves are scheduled to quit about four days before their press pool does.
By most accounts, things were getting better for the Bears offense after a first week of camp straight out of The Replacements, though there was far too much of this:
There was some good but the bad from today was the 1 on 1’s and routes on air. On air you should catch every ball and 1 on 1’s you should be operating at around an 80% success rate. #BearsCamp pic.twitter.com/zwhTDTw7HB
By the weekend, however, newcomer N'Keal Harry suffered a leg injury, joining fellow receiver Byron Pringle (quad) on the injury list. Rookie Velus Jones has also been in and out of practice. The silver lining for the Bears is that their starting receivers are so woeful that there's little drop-off when they switch to undrafted rookies or fans who ran a little track in high school.
"You can do two things—tap out, stop, cry, complain, or you can step up," safety Eddie Jackson said after one grueling practice. That should tell you everything you need to know about the Bears vibe at this point. Also: that's five things, and four of them are bad.
Joe Burrow (appendix surgery) has been riding around practices on a golf cart, which has generally meant big days for the Bengals defense and not-much-to-see-here reporting on a team that should be generating a lot of hype.
The Bengals starting lineup is largely set, the newcomers are slowly folding in on the offensive line (La'el Collins has been day-to-day with a back issue, Alex Cappa is back from a core muscle injury, Ted Karras is earning rave reviews), and Zac Taylor is probably happy to let the Bills and the teams with splashy newcomers grab all the attention so the Bengals can go about their business in peace.
Every day appears to be Let Your Kids Hang Out with the Technically-Not-Quite-A-Sex-Offender Day in Berea. So you'll forgive Walkthrough for not diving too deeply into, say, Kareem Hunt's contract demands.
As often noted in Walkthrough, the Cowboys have a huge fan base and an equally large hater-base, and Jerry Jones personally comments on every camp development, making minor stories look like huge deals. When a WR4-type like James Washington gets hurt in Cowboys camp, Jerrah's reaction takes the story to the top of the stack and SEO-bots automatically churn out "Cowboys Must Sign OBJ Now" headlines.
So trying to take the temperature of the Cowboys fan base is like going to a rural Midwestern diner to determine what "real Americans" think of something: the Cowboys fan base is too broad and diverse to believe any one thing, and the opinions of some contrarian inveterate Redditor from Hackensack may not accurately reflect the feelings of the majority at large.
Furthermore, everyone from the biggest Cowboys skeptic to their loudest cheerleaders expects the same thing in 2022: eventful season, playoff loss, Sean Payton to jump out of a cake in mid-January.
But hey, the kicker competition is heating up!
Lions camp news boils down to "Did you see what Dan Campbell is wearing?" and/or "Did you hear what Coach Campbell said?" While other coaches are all-but eliminating tackling from practices, Campbell is sticking with full-contact, 2.5-hour sessions full of live tackling, because tuff tuff guys instill tuffness by doing tuff-guy stuff. Even player news morphs into Campbell news: we know Josh Reynolds is having a fine camp because Campbell calls him "the preying mantis, the Spider of Death … a freakin' serpent."
Having been born 'n' bred in Buddy Ryan's briar patch, then covered Rex Ryan up close at his peak, Walkthrough is aware that the Management-By-Soundbytes technique can be effective to a point. We also learned at an early age that the better the coach's standup material, the worse the team. That's why the occasional highlight of DJ Chark going yard is such an encouraging sign: this team needs a star who actually wears a helmet.
Oh, Broncos fans are excited about Russell Wilson, of course. But Tim Patrick's ACL tear tempered their enthusiasm a bit. And fans are still adjusting to the Russ 'n' Ciara power couple routine, which can be red meat for a certain segment of the talk radio population, as well as Wilson's hippie-drippy on-field "visualization" sessions. Also, the Broncos defense remains ahead of their offense by all accounts at a point in training camp when the offense should have caught up; fans that bought Wilson jerseys don't want to hear about Patrick Surtain's camp highlights. Acquiring Wilson may be a little like winning Powerball for some fans: getting everything you wish for doesn't always lead to happiness.
Packers Twitter exists to normalize Aaron Rodgers' behavior—oh c'mon, don't act like YOUR quarterback doesn't engage in a little semi-therapeutic toad licking now and then—and to modulate the mood of a fan base that can no longer find joy in playoff appearances or NFC North championships. So don't worry about Christian Watson's injury: Romeo Doubs is the second coming of Donald Driver! Don't worry that David Bakhtiari (who underwent a knee procedure last week) and Elgton Jenkins ("ahead of schedule" from a November ACL tear) are on the PUP list: Zach Tom (a fourth-round pick like Doubs) is ready to step up at both tackle positions. Even Jordan Love is playing well, and he's available, Seahawks fans!
Both the Packers offense AND the defense reportedly looked great at Family Night on Friday. How is that possible? Anything is possible with ayahuasca, sunshine! Now to stare at my fingers in the men's lavatory for 90 minutes.
The Davis Mills Kool-Aid has gone down smoothly in training camp, largely because pocket passers who like to work underneath always look great in shorts and shells. First-round cornerback Derek Stingley has brought the highlights. Brandin Cooks remains the best receiver no one really cares about. And of course Walkthrough is just a Dameon "Three Pitbulls" Pierce fan blog at this point.
No Texans fan seriously expects anything more than a back-of-the-pack wild-card run, but everyone seems thrilled that Deshaun Watson is no longer their problem.
Matt Ryan cusses at teammates! He pumps up the training camp crowd! He runs suicides! He throws on the move! The glory days of Philip Rivers in 2020 are back! Wild-card berth and 26-13 first-round loss to the Ravens, here we come!
As noted a little too frequently in past Walkthroughs, trading Carson Wentz is like getting over a bout of Lyme's Disease or having a parasite purged from your digestive tract. Colors are just more vibrant for Colts fans right now. Let them have this.
Sure, the Jaguars got hammered in the Hall of Fame Game. But: a) Travon Walker was impressive, assuaging any draft-bust terrors; b) the Jaguars reportedly performed much better in joint practices against the Raiders than they did in the game; and c) at least the Jaguars didn't look like they were trying too hard to impress anyone, unlike a certain silver-and-black team. Expectations are minimal and new faces are plentiful: two ingredients for a fun August, if not a productive autumn.
Chiefs fans and media appear to have created the ultimate combo platter by mixing we're perennial contenders with the NFL's best quarterback with we're a pesky rebuilding team with lots of new faces and modest expectations. Come for Patrick Mahomes' brilliance, stay to discuss George Karlaftis' potential. And if Marquez Valdes-Scantling drops a few passes, don't worry: there's always Josh Gordon. The Tyreek Hill trade may not have taken the pressure off the team, but it definitely took some steam out of the surrounding narrative. If the Chiefs win the Super Bowl, fans can swear they never lost faith. If they go 9-8, well, they were just lining things up for 2023.
The Raiders now play in a media and actual desert, and Josh McDaniels brought the Cone of Silence with him from Foxborough, so not much news emanates from training camp. Hunter Renfrow's Ubergate is the closest thing to a story to come out of Vegas, which of course is a welcome development after last year, but it's hard to find the Raiders' pulse right now.
The Hall of Fame game only confused matters: the Raiders looked great against the Jaguars' 2.5th string, but they played an awful lot of veterans and executed lots and lots of screens, which are known to produce big gains against defenses full of over-eager backups. (Also, the pass protection looked iffy.) At least Mark Davis doesn't eat boneless wings. Hopefully, the not-as-rich-as-he-pretends-to-be Davis will allow the lads to spring for UberXL from now on.
Sean McVay talking about Matthew Stafford's elbow sounds a lot like Sean McVay talking about Todd Gurley's knee four years ago. McVay tries too hard and spins too many buzzwords to reassure himself fans that Stafford's "bad tendonitis" is no biggie. There's also a Van Jefferson injury to worry about (though he may be back for the season opener).
On the flip side, there's plenty of encouraging news coming out of Rams camp: Allen Robinson is celebrating his escape from the Bears by being Allen Robinson again, Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald are healthy/wealthy/happy, and various dudes no one has heard of are pushing for roster spots 11 through 53. But that draft weekend "let's get hammered and roast the Patriots" energy is long gone.
The Dolphins have always had something of a rah-rah press corps, which in turn has misled many of their fans to decree that THIS IS THE YEAR many times in the last two decades, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Well, Tyreek Hill is as electrifying as expected, Tua Tagovailoa no longer looks like he's throwing a beach ball, and the typical fan doesn't give two hoots that the owner was playing footsie with Tom Brady or pressuring Brian Flores into a little light tanking. Maybe this really is "the year!" And even if it isn't, watching a truly great wide receiver fly around the field catching passes from a promising-again young quarterback makes for an enjoyable morning at training camp.
Other than a brief Dalvin Cook injury scare (he's fine), almost no news has seeped out of Vikings camp in the aftermath of general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's don't-quote-him-on-this "Kirk Cousins made me briefly consider arson" remarks. But the Vikings have come alive lately. Za'Darius Smith and Danielle Hunter are doing the Kid 'n Play dance (it's very on-brand for Vikings defenders to dance like it's 1990) and Kellen Mond—yes, Kellen Mond—is bringing the training camp highlights.
Not all the Vikings news is ,House Party worthy: Garrett Bradbury is reportedly in the process of losing the center job, which is a big problem for a veteran-heavy team built to win (??) now (???). But the Vikings are the Vikings are the Vikings, and they appear to be slightly rejuvenated by the new coaching staff and administration.
We are not amused by your rabble-rousing suggestions that the Patriots are in decline merely because Bonnie Prince Brady has defected and Lord William has passed on parcels of the empire to knavish layabout bastards. The sun shall never set upon The Patriots Way, and the aristocracy shall prevail by keeping calm and carrying on with a stiff upper lip. Tut tut tut. What's that you say? An uprising in the colonies? Surely it's nothing to worry about…
Rookie left tackle Trevor Penning's Junkyard Dog routine has been one of the most enduring images of NFL Training Camp 2022. Look past Penning's daily attempts to spark a brawl and there's a mix of very good news (Michael Thomas is actually practicing, Chris Olave looks great) and semi-good news (Jameis Winston still needs a brace on his left knee but is otherwise looking sharp, Alvin Kamara's court date was pushed back) mixed with some meh news (Kiko Alonso practiced for one day and retired, Taysom Hill is still a thing).
The Saints are going to become trendy once everyone feels certain that Thomas' return isn't a mirage; let the record show that Football Outsiders Almanac 2022 was projecting 9.4 wins even when the doubters (i.e., me) thought their offensive starters would start the season in court/on the IR/posting cryptically on Instagram and the organization itself would be in receivership.
Danny Jones is dropping dimes. Kenny Golladay looks dialed in. Saquon Barkley is reinvigorated. Andrew Thomas looks like Anthony Munoz. The first-round picks are progressing nicely. Basic managerial competence and a complete lack of short-term expectations can work wonders for a team's mood. And yeah, Walkthrough's pals in the press pool also sound a little relieved after all the gloom-and-doom of the Joe Judge/Dave Gettleman epoch.
Every Jets summer is the same. The coaching staff and front office is always touted as smarter and more professional than the previous coaching staff and front office. Young Jets quarterbacks are perpetually blocking out the distractions and preparing to take a big leap forward. There are always lots of exciting draft picks, youngsters expected to rise, and sturdy veteran acquisitions to provide leadership. Saddest of all, Jets fans never get their hopes up too far: most will happily settle for seven or eight wins and the hope that next year will be the playoff year.
Every year, everything goes completely to hell before Columbus Day. But Jets fans who learn not to get their hopes up in August probably ceased to be Jets fans rather quickly. And Jets lifers who have set their expectations to "best of the last-place teams" may have truly discovered the secret to enduring happiness.
The usual talk-radio provocateurs and alarmists are trying their best to drum up Jalen Hurts intrigue, but the Iggles fans on my Facebook feed and at the municipal swimming pool aren't taking the bait. Fans realize that the Eagles have set up a win-win scenario—enjoy success if Hurts succeeds, use multiple first-round picks to move on if he fails—and sound strangely content with another pesky playoff season in 2022, perhaps because they realize the team dodged a painful rebuilding period. It helps that the Phillies are on a tear.
Eagles fans are not known for their measured opinions, mind you, so don't be surprised if the mood swings quickly when, say, Gardner Minshew looks quasi-impressive in a preseason game.
Everyone's gaga over rookie wide receiver George Pickens. Diontae Johnson managed a "hold-in" without all of Western Pennsylvania turning against him, which is a rare feat for a wide receiver. But Steelers observers have no idea how to handle the fact that their quarterbacks stink. Ben Roethlisberger stunk in 2021 (and much of 2020), mind you, but Steelers fans were in denial until the end and certainly didn't worry about Big Ben in August. Now, no one knows where to set their expectations.
Expect fans/observers/tastemakers to choose their champion after next Saturday's preseason premiere against the Seahawks. The Mitch Trubisky [Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, the ghost of Neil O'Donnell] Gives the Steelers the Best Chance to Win Right Now headlines have already been written; now the events just need to happen.
Trey Lance is the team's only question mark. Lance has not exactly gone Full Mahomes in camp thus far. Therefore, 49ers fans are stuck taking good things for granted while worrying about the one thing that could go wrong. Eric Crocker of Locked on 49ers summed things up on Twitter:
Jimmie Ward with a pick 6 off Lance on a throw to the flat. I have no idea where Ward came from lol. No fans celebrated. I’m disappointed in the faithful lol they hate defensive plays during camp
Deep, cleansing breaths, 49ers fans: you reached one Super Bowl and one NFC Championship Game with a PEZ dispenser at quarterback. Lance doesn't have to be better than his defense. He just needs to be better than Jimmy Garoppolo.
Many Seahawks fans have no idea how bad things are going to get, and they have grown used to a decade of their team's media darling status. So the default reaction to our national snickering at Geno Smith vs. Drew Lock and Jamal Adams getting fitted with a Winter Soldier arm has been "we'll show those HATERS." Don't worry, 12th Man: you'll always have your memories, 2023 mock draft season comes soon enough, and no Patriots fan would dare judge you if you purchased a Broncos jersey.
Ryan Jensen is hurt. Mike Evans "tweaked" a hamstring. Leonard Fournette is not here for your body shaming. Rob Gronkowski doesn't sound eager to run through that door. Tom Brady is taking personal days in bunches, just to celebrate his 45th birthday and to make sure those unopened duffel bags make it back to Miami safely. But it's Tampa in August. The Bucs practice earlier than any other team (8:30 many mornings), fans in Florida and New England get to process any news by their coffee break, and then it's back to dreaming about boat parades by the Early Bird Special.
Bucs fans aren't as nervous as Bills or Rams fans because they know they are on borrowed time. Take the rest of August off, fellas. And maybe text Gronk again, just in case.
Things were looking grim for the Titans in minicamp, when first-round pick Treylon Burks was sidelined with asthma, and at the start of training camp, when A.J. Brown was chirping from Philly about being the only member of the Deebo Squad to get traded during the $ummer of Receiver Payday$. Burks is back now and looking like he's ready to contribute, and Robert Woods, still slightly limited by ACL rehab, is earning rave reviews for doing Robert Woods things (leadership, extra work, etc.) Ryan Tannehill looks sharp, someone named Racey McMath is emerging as a potential WR3, and Malik Willis is no longer getting lost in the hallway to the weight room. The Titans are gonna be just fine. Whether just fine is good enough is a matter of personal taste.
Welcome to Carson Wentz's fragile psyche, Commanders fans! You are no longer rooting for a football team but for a soon-to-be 30-year-old's long, arduous journey toward self-awareness. So far this summer, Wentz has taken one step forward…
If there was concern that Carson Wentz wouldn’t throw to running backs, that hasn’t really been the case so far in camp. He’s mixed in J.D. McKissic and Antonio Gibson repeatedly — including in this most recent 7 on 7 session.
Also real quick, Samuel participated in 7 on 7.
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) August 3, 2022
… and two all-too familiar steps back.
You don’t hear this too often: Montez Sweat was chasing a scrambling Carson Wentz from behind and was yelling “Get rid of it! Get rid of it!” Wentz ran out of bounds instead.
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) August 5, 2022
Walkthrough keeps waiting for a feature in The Washington Post or The Athletic along the lines of "Dialed-in Wentz Ready to Overcome Past Mistakes," and maybe one is scheduled for Labor Day weekend, but I am beginning to think that no one wants to write that feature and/or Wentz still doesn't believe he made any.
Also, bottom-of-the-roster guys keep retiring, giving the Commanders a shaky 2021 Giants vibe.
At least fans are starting to show up in Ashburn after some Spinal Tap Jazz Odyssey crowds in late July.
17 comments, Last at 10 Aug 2022, 10:25pm
by Pat // Aug 08, 2022 - 10:57am
Sigh, it's so hard watching one-off videos from training camp. When you're there (especially for multiple days) it's not terribly difficult to figure out what's being worked on (repetition is awesome) but in the one-off videos it's so hard to tell who's screwing up. The Bears film looks like it's mostly the receivers but hard to tell.
Also holy cow they're letting the DBs be handsy there.
by RickD // Aug 08, 2022 - 11:15am
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74KhDM9Z1Xk
by Aaron Brooks G… // Aug 08, 2022 - 11:18am
The hope is that Campbell is more Dick Vermeil than Buddy Ryan — more on the train to burnout than shouty fraud in too deep.
\ shouldn’t Denver be ahead of Detroit?
by BigRichie // Aug 08, 2022 - 12:57pm
In reply to The hope is that Campbell is… by Aaron Brooks G…
And Mike a former educator, too. Just sigh.
by BigRichie // Aug 08, 2022 - 12:58pm
In reply to What an indicator of American decline by BigRichie
Mike did teach math rather than grammar. Or wherever the alphabet comes in.
by johonny // Aug 08, 2022 - 12:00pm
By this part of the preseason usually Miami is down 2-3 top receivers and taking another look at Isaiah Ford. Maybe it's a new year or maybe their defense isn't what it was without Flores.
by Noahrk // Aug 08, 2022 - 1:01pm
In reply to Miami by johonny
That last bit is certainly worth keeping and eye on. The defense was world's apart in the first and second half of the season, and the improvement was scheme-based. Was that all Flores? Or does Josh Boyer have what it takes?
by Noahrk // Aug 08, 2022 - 12:59pm
The Dolphins bit is spot on. Every year is THE YEAR in Miami, but this could actually be the year and, anyway, everyone's rightfully excited because Tua's arm strength is back to what it used to be before the injury.
by James-London // Aug 08, 2022 - 1:52pm
In reply to The Dolphins bit is spot on… by Noahrk
Nope. I need to see it when it matters before I buy in. Tua, the O-line, defensive consistency, the "brignt new offensive mastermind", etc, etc. Get to 4-2 and beat the Bills, and we can talk
by Noahrk // Aug 08, 2022 - 3:02pm
In reply to Not doing it again by James-London
Heh. Don't forget one of the hardest schedules. I'm just happy to be legitimately excited about Tua again, to be honest. Playoffs? Playoffs??? Too early for me.
by Raiderfan // Aug 08, 2022 - 2:07pm
Generating some amusing commentary for all 32 teams must have a lot of work.
”Lance doesn't have to be better than his defense. He just needs to be better than Jimmy Garoppolo.”. Well, that will take some doing. What he can do is be healthier than Jimmy G., which should be very doable.
by ImNewAroundThe… // Aug 08, 2022 - 3:21pm
Always was such an overblown concern. Dude played literally right next to TN in Arkansas and when the season rolled around he was (more than) fine. Had MONTHS to adjust and no surprise he did.
by Slobis // Aug 08, 2022 - 9:47pm
Honest question, Mike. Are you as good at math as you are at writing? I mean, I know you actually taught math.
by big10freak // Aug 08, 2022 - 10:21pm
I am legit puzzled. Other than the Doubs hype which is coming from all the comments via beat writers watching practice I don’t recognize this Twitter activity.
Nobody but nobody at this point is counting on Bakhtiari. The growing consensus is that he is done barring some miracle. Tom is getting lots of chances because Jenkins is going to be out for some time. And if someone was really checking out Packers Twitter for silliness it would be the team talking about Jake Hanson as Lucas Patrick 2.0 as if that is something a team should he looking to duplicate. Or how the team is apparently at a loss on what to do about long snapper. What team cannot find a competent long snapper??
As for Rodgers, he’s a weirdo who excels at football. The latest report is just more along this vein
“Aaron Rodgers created a bit of a stir when he discussed previously having tried ayahuasca, a psychoactive tea containing the hallucinogenic drug DMT.”
by Aaron Brooks G… // Aug 09, 2022 - 9:07am
In reply to RE: Packers by big10freak
Apparently the Packers can’t.
by ImNewAroundThe… // Aug 09, 2022 - 9:33am
Last years 2nd rounder already on the block? Roquan wants out. Yikes. Idk what their plan is.
by Scott P. // Aug 10, 2022 - 10:25pm
Not sure whether Tanier was trying to give a back-handed compliment to the Patriots with his 'Late-Victorian' moniker. Arguably that was the peak of the British Empire, not a time of decline.
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