The contracts are a reminder that teams en players have different priorities than normal. In a time of such economic uncertainty, with the salary cap likely to decrease next offseason, players may be more inclined to take long-term security instead of trying to squeeze every last dollar out of their teams, which often includes a date with the franchise tag. Kittle is one of the most valuable non-quarterbacks in football, even if his hard-earned contract does not fully reflect that. Clark, who received a larger signing bonus and a higher average salary, is almost as unique in his position.
There’s no other real NFL approach with the pass-rush skill that Clark has. Like Kittle, he has improved every season and just released a dominant 2019 campaign. In Za’Darius Smith and Clark, the Packers have two of the biggest game-wreckers at their respective positions playing side by side for the foreseeable future. They figure to dominate the right side of the Green Bay offensive line in camp.
11) Billy Turner vs. Rick Wagner is a battle that should strike Packers fans. I’ve assumed Wagner was the favorite to take the right approach for Bryan Bulaga after Green Bay guaranteed him $ 3.5 million this 3.5 seasons, but the early days of camp indicate that it’s a battle with Turner . However, this looks like a big step down from Bulaga’s 2019 game.
12) Alex Smith’s remarkable comeback is not the only quarterback story in Washington. What Smith has won is worth the Comeback Player of the Year award, despite what happens here. Every natural fear about Smith on the field melts away as you look what it means to him and his family.
Smith’s time away from football makes any projection a matter of advice, but coach Ron Rivera says he will compete to play like everyone else. Rivera’s comments about whether Dwayne Haskins would start at quarterback in the preseason opener – if they had a preseason opener – emphasize how open the position remains.
“It would have been Dwayne,” Rivera told the Kevin Sheehan Show last week, via NBC Sports Washington. “He’s in a competition, next week would have been Kyle [Allen], and we would go from there. We do not give anything to anyone. Everything will be earned, and that’s one of the things we talked about. He knows I’m feeling it, and he’s practicing. He is very competitive in practice, and he has done an excellent job. And again, these would mean that you have to spend for these processes. “
Haskins remains the favorite to start in Week 1, but that comment gives me Trevor Siemian-in-2016 vibes. There’s a non-zero chance Allen starts the opener and a reasonable chance he finally starts, possibly with Smith in the Josh McCown backup / extra coaching role.
13) Melvin Ingram’s absence from the field is worth the oversight. Like anyone watching the first episode of Hard knuckles white, Ingram is at Chargers training camp. He himself rapped his own theme music. However, he did not participate in the practice for what coach Anthony Lynn calls “business enterprise.”
It is possible that Ingram could be the first “in-house holdout” of this new collective bargaining agreement. With the new rules requiring teams to find players when they skip work, one strategy for players looking to get paid could be to show up for camp and be in all meetings while they enjoy it field remain. (And while behind-the-scenes negotiations are taking place.) This is speculation. As NFL Network’s Steve Wyche notes, the reason for Ingram’s absence remains a mystery. But he’s in a contract year, and that statement would make a lot of sense. It also represents a better compromise for the old system, when holdouts were more substantive, and could be the beginning of a future trend.
Update: It has since been reported that Ingram is in fact not happy with his contract.
