By Brandon Simmons
Pay that Man Lamar Jackson
The Baltimore Ravens have absolutely no choice but to pay quarterback Lamar Jackson. Both sides are currently in a contract battle, in which the latter gave his team a deadline to get a deal done last Friday. Well, that deadline was not met, and Jackson is now playing on his rookie option. With that said, there is no other option, you have to pay this man. Jackson has been balling out for this team since he arrived in 2018 at the end of the first round. Since then, he’s led the Ravens to the postseason in 3 of his first four seasons, securing the division title in each playoff trip. Is his asking price steep? Of course, it’s going to be; he’s one of the top QB’s in the league, who’s entering his prime and it’s going to cost you. The alternative that the Ravens have is that they can let Jackson go and they rely on acquiring a backup that isn’t as good or a veteran who might be past their prime. The second alternative to that is that they wait it out to find their next franchise QB in the draft – but guess what – you’ll have to eventually pay them too.
Lock Jackson down right now because you’re in a division where the QB competition is deep. Cincinnati Bengals have Joe Burrow, the Cleveland Browns have Deshaun Watson and the Pittsburgh Steelers have Mitchell Trubisky – along with Kenny Pickett eventually. In other words, Jackson gives you the best chance to win right now, and that is worth the investment to stay atop this division.
How Will the Cowboys Survive Without Dak?
The Dallas Cowboys are facing a quarterback dilemma at least for the next week. They will be without quarterback Dak Prescott after he injured his hand in the team’s Sunday night loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The news broke right after the game and already sent their fanbase – in addition to the rest of the NFL world – about who would be under center for the next 3-4 weeks instead of the initial 6-8 weeks that was reported.
Right now, it’s only 2 obvious options on the board. The first choice is stay with quarterback Cooper Rush, who has been a backup going back to the days of former Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett. He’s familiar with the system and could run the offense with ease. That is something that could be challenging should the Cowboys trade for a QB such as San Francisco 49ers QB Jimmy Garropolo. Trading for Jimmy G would be Dallas’ next option and could be just as beneficial as going with Rush. You’re bringing in an experienced quarterback with postseason success, including a trip to the Super Bowl and a pair of conference title games.
In the end – or middle rather – the Cowboys should stick with rush at the top of the year. If the expectation is only 3-4 games, there’s no need in searching high and low for someone to come in and learn the offense to take things over. Even with a trade, negotiations could take a while as well. Rush is already there and can jump in running the offense without any heavy coaching on where to go. The truth of the matter is that the Cowboys got beat down by the same Buccaneers team they were trading blows with at the top of last year. This team was getting beat well into the 4th quarter before Dak even got hurt. It’s time that they reload. Now Rush did nab a couple of wins last year when Prescott got hurt but that was only a short window. He’s being asked to hold it down for at least a month and that schedule is not going to be an easy road for them, especially with this roster. Hopefully they get some of their pieces back and help Rush have a successful stint to remain competitive, but the way it’s looking, it’s best just to play the hand their dealt until Dak’s hand gets healed.
Broncos Deserve All the Slander
There’s no excuse for the Denver Broncos to lose the way they did on Monday night. Denver opened their season with a road loss to the Seattle Seahawks, which was not only the debut for Broncos QB Russell Wilson, but also is first time playing against his former team, after being traded in the offseason. However, it would soon be an experience he would rather forget. Late in the 4th quarter, down 17-16, Wilson drove the Broncos to midfield, with 20 seconds left on a 4th and 5. Denver head coach Nathaniel Hackett calls timeout and opts to kick a 64 yard field goal. Broncos kicker Brett McManus misses the attempt which obviously and Denver misses out on a chance to get a win for their new signal caller’s former team.
Whatever slander that has been sent the Broncos’ way is all deserved. At that part of the game, and part of the field, you have to put the ball in Wilson’s hand. Not just because the team gave him a boatload of money, but because he is the reason you gave him over $240 million to begin with. He is your best chance at winning games, especially in that moment. Before that attempt, McManus was 1/8 on kicks 60 yards or longer. That doesn’t sound like a winning choice at all. Sure, 4th and 5 is pushing it but at least it would be smarter trying to win it with Wilson as opposed to someone who can not get it done at that distance.
Shout outs/Shut outs
Shout out to Indianapolis Colts Quarterback Matt Ryan for almost redeeming himself of his biggest blunder. In his Colts debut, the team was down 20-3 to the Houston Texans in the 4th quarter until a sack by Colts defensive end Deforest Buckner caused a fumble and recovery by Indy. Tht momentum led to a rally that forced the Colts to tie with the Texans but ultimately resulting knotted up at the end of overtime. The comeback was significant, as it was the same stadium that Ryan – former QB of the Atlanta Falcons – was on the wrong end of the 28-3 blown lead, at the hands of the New England Patriots, led by their QB at the time, Tom Brady. If Ryan wins this game, it’s definitely a huge comeback story of all sorts.
Shut out to both the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans for resulting in a tie. While the onus of this should fall on the Texans for blowing a 20-3 lead, both teams blew their chances to win the game in overtime. The Colts missed the game winning field goal while the Texans committed too many pre snap penalties to back them farther away from field goal range. Disappointing effort in the end from both squads.
Shout out to Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith leading the Seahawks to their season opening win against the Denver Broncos and Seattle’s former franchise signal caller, Russell Wilson. While Smith had a pretty decent game, it was his postgame quote that was the real highlight:
Shut out to both Russell Wilson and Baker Mayfield for losing to their former teams. Wilson lost to the Seahawks making his Broncos debut, while Mayfield lost to the Cleveland Browns making his debut for the Carolina Panthers.
Now that the first week of the season is out the way, it’s time to get ready for Week 2. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers head to New Orleans for an NFC South duel with the Saints. Both teams pulled off impressive wins to start the regular season, especially New Orleans sealing the victory with a late field goal. Monday night will feature a double-header, with the night cap being between the Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles. Both teams got wins in Week 1 and look to get some scoring in with different philosophies. The Vikings were balanced, but attacked the air with wide receiver Justin Jefferson and his 184 yards. The Eagles also presented a balanced attack with wide receiver A.J. Brown putting up 155 yards but the ground game totaling 216 yards. These two teams will certainly put on a show. But until then…I’ll holla.