# NFL - OFFSEASON of Mist and mellow fruitfulness **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [February 7, 2020, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586 "2020-02-07T15:10:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2020, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/21 "2020-02-15T19:37:27Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > Just a little rant here, so feel free to ignore this post and move on: > > I am sick and tired of how some people in the media cover and debate the NFL and the players in the NFL. Some examples to illustrate what I mean: > > [The headline says it all: Mock Drafts predicting Raiders may select offensive and defensive playmakers](https://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/raiders/mock-drafts-predicting-raiders-may-select-offensive-defensive-playmakers-1956081/). > > Just how useless and stupid does an analyst have to be to conclude that the Raiders may select an offensive and a defensive player? They do so, every fucking draft. Are they concerned the Raiders may draft a mascot or maybe a spoon from Alabama’s team cafeteria? Jesus wept. > > Which leads me to point the second: Mock Drafts are as useless and stupid as concluding the Raiders might draft an offensive and defensive player. So many people wasting so much time guessing what will occur, as if that has any relevance or insight whatsoever. You want to tell me your opinion of the game tape, great. You want to tell me you think the Packers are going to draft Laviska Shenault in the first round? Fuck you! That’s utterly useless and based on nothing but deciding a team need and guessing who might be there at that need. It’s so dumb. > > I also hate commentators reliance on stupid ways of judging players and outright homerism rather than, I don’t know, using analytics and watching/referencing game tape. [This piece emphasizes the problem](https://buffalonews.com/2020/02/13/buffalo-bills-josh-allen-baker-mayfield-pff-pro-football-focus-football-outsiders-billsmafia-analytics-nfl-draft-2020/). I’ll be honest, I am completely unfamiliar with the writer, so it may be totally tongue in cheek and it’s actually mocking the stuff I hate. If so, he does an excellent job highlighting just how stupid it is. Here’s an example: > > \*"“It’s not that I hate him as a person. I have no idea what he’s like as a person,” said Aaron Schatz, the head of Football Outsiders and an NFL analyst for ESPN, when asked to defend his criticisms of Allen. “He certainly seems like a hard worker. There’s never been any stories that he’s not. I just don’t think he’s ever going to have the accuracy to be a quality starting NFL quarterback.” > Son of a biscuit. > > The man just won 10 games and reached the playoffs in his first full season as a starter. He led game-winning drives in the fourth quarter of five of them. > > Sure, he makes mistakes. But he’s only 23. He has plenty of time to improve, and he must improve. Even he admits that. But he was a high first-round draft pick for a reason."\* > > To counter a statistical analysis of his accuracy, the writer points out that Josh Allen (and apparently just Josh Allen, not the Bills) won 10 games. It is so fucking stupid it makes my teeth ache. Wins are an atrocious way to judge QB play, right down there with whether the QB has a bitching mustache or how many “r’s” they have in their name. And the cherry on top of the idiot cake was the “he was drafted in the first round” being a more accurate measure of worth compared to actual play in the NFL. They’re the kind of people who spend $1,000 on a glass of wine and declare that it has to be good because they spent $1,000 on it. Oof. > > Finally, this one, about the Packers (It may be paywalled, so I’ll just use the headline): “Could Rashan Gary thrive at inside linebacker?” Dude is one year into his career, showed some abilities, (clearly not enough to earn a first round draft pick), and fans are asking about him moving positions. If Gary were a QB, fans would be wetting themselves to make excuses for his sub-optimal play (See: Josh Allen, Mitchell Trubisky, Marcus Mariota), but since he’s not, they’re all set to make a rash judgment and move his position. The reactionary bullshit is so effin annoying. > > TLDR: Don’t be a homer. Analytics = Good. Wins judging QB = bad. Reactionary bullshit is bullshit. > > Now back to your regularly scheduled NFL Offseason thread. I cringe at the amount of mock draft crap. I miss the days where ESPN would show obscure sports rather than endless hours of mock draft stuff in the mornings and afternoons. Now, get off my lawn! ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2020, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/22 "2020-02-15T20:11:20Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > I cringe at the amount of mock draft crap. I miss the days where ESPN would show obscure sports rather than endless hours of mock draft stuff in the mornings and afternoons. Now, get off my lawn! I want pro lawn darts and jai alai dammit. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2020, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/23 "2020-02-18T23:48:06Z")
I’d like to see all the old QBs just retire. Kind of sick of all of them, but especially Brady. (Brees, Rivers, Big Ben, even Rodgers maybe after a farewell season.) > [@racepug](#): > > A while back someone on this board mentioned that _Sunday_ night, not Monday night, currently features the premier game of the week in the N.F.L. Apparently others agree: [Will 'Monday Night Football' see flex scheduling? - Yahoo Sports](https://sports.yahoo.com/report-nfl-looking-into-flex-scheduling-for-monday-night-football-215510781.html) I love the idea of flexing MNF, but yeah, that would suck for ticket holders to get flexed from 1pm Sunday to 8:20pm Monday night (11:20pm West coast!) with only two weeks notice. People have jobs. From that article: > [@](#): > > ESPN is reportedly sweetening the pot for its ask by offering to take “Monday Night Football” off of cable and back on the ABC airwaves if it gets flex scheduling in return. If I’m reading this right, the pot was sweetened by offering to air the ESPN broadcast on ABC instead of ESPN. (ESPN commentators calling the game, etc…) My guess is they’d simulcast it on both channels, but maybe not. Either way, I also love the idea of putting MNF back on free tv. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2020, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/24 "2020-02-19T00:51:15Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > I want pro lawn darts and jai alai dammit. Aussie rules football was kinda cool. Does kickboxing still exist or has that been taken over by MMA? ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/25 "2020-02-21T02:51:52Z")
Here’s the NFL’s opening bargaining agreement. > **[NFL's proposal for players includes 17-game season, pay increases, limited...](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/20/nfl-proposed-cba-includes-17-games-raises-limited-thc-testing.html)** > > NFL owners approved a new collective bargaining agreement proposal with increases to pay and limited THC testing, according to terms released on the league's website. 17 game season-No! No one plays in the pre season anyway these days, especially that 4th game. Marijuana testing, just get rid of it. Just Say No was from the 1980s. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/26 "2020-02-21T04:07:04Z")
Are NFL players barred from playing in the XFL? Obviously I don’t expect to see Patrick Mahomes throwing passes for the DC Defenders. But suppose I was a third tier player on an NFL roster, somebody who sits on the bench a lot and makes around $500,000 a year. I’m never going to be a star in the NFL. But if I’m good enough to play in the NFL, even at this level, I’m a really outstanding football player. Certainly good enough to be a starter in the XFL and maybe even a franchise player. So a XFL team might be willing to pay me $100,000 a year to play with them during the NFL’s off season. In addition to the extra money, I might be tempted by the possibility of being a big fish in a small pond rather than a small fish in a big pond. However, I’m not going to give up my NFL career for the XFL. I want to play in both leagues. Would the NFL allow this? There have been players who played in the NFL and Major-League Baseball so the NFL must not have a “one team only” rule. But do they bar players from playing professional football with another league, even if the schedules don’t overlap? And if my dreams of a dual NFL/XFL career are shattered, how about a CFL/XFL combination? ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/27 "2020-02-21T06:31:12Z")
I imagine it’s part of that same standard clause you hear about that says you won’t go skydiving or ride a motorcycle or whatever. ie: Risky behavior can void your contract. ---
**Author:** ![racepug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@racepug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racepug)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/28 "2020-02-21T06:37:12Z")
[https://sports.yahoo.com/two-big-names-off-market-111917668.html](https://sports.yahoo.com/two-big-names-off-market-111917668.html) I think the Raiders are fools to offer an aging QB that kind of money and I think that T.B. would be a fool to take that offer. As with others I hope that J.J. gives Dak everything he asks for down in Arlington - I think doing so would go over like a lead balloon. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/29 "2020-02-21T15:46:49Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Are NFL players barred from playing in the XFL? > > Obviously I don’t expect to see Patrick Mahomes throwing passes for the DC Defenders. But suppose I was a third tier player on an NFL roster, somebody who sits on the bench a lot and makes around $500,000 a year. I’m never going to be a star in the NFL. > > But if I’m good enough to play in the NFL, even at this level, I’m a really outstanding football player. Certainly good enough to be a starter in the XFL and maybe even a franchise player. So a XFL team might be willing to pay me $100,000 a year to play with them during the NFL’s off season. In addition to the extra money, I might be tempted by the possibility of being a big fish in a small pond rather than a small fish in a big pond. > > However, I’m not going to give up my NFL career for the XFL. I want to play in both leagues. Would the NFL allow this? There have been players who played in the NFL and Major-League Baseball so the NFL must not have a “one team only” rule. But do they bar players from playing professional football with another league, even if the schedules don’t overlap? > > And if my dreams of a dual NFL/XFL career are shattered, how about a CFL/XFL combination? I remember when the AAFL folded, players had to get released from their contracts before an NFL team could sign them. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/30 "2020-02-21T23:25:37Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > Here’s the NFL’s opening bargaining agreement. > [https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/20/nfl-proposed-cba-includes-17-games-raises-limited-thc-testing.html](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/20/nfl-proposed-cba-includes-17-games-raises-limited-thc-testing.html) > > 17 game season-No! No one plays in the pre season anyway these days, especially that 4th game. > > Marijuana testing, just get rid of it. Just Say No was from the 1980s. I find it kind of strange that the NFL is so obsessed with the 17 and 18 week schedules. I don’t have a super serious negative reaction to it like it seems a lot of people do, but it seems like they should start with something much more obtainable and just add back a second bye week. Adding back a second bye week does a few good things. 1. It extends the TV schedule by 1 extra week which adds most of the revenue. 2. It gives players extra time to recover mid-season and hopefully reduces injuries and maybe increases the quality of play a tiny bit. 3. It acclimates the fans and the players to a longer season, thereby making the addition of another game week for each team less jarring if they do that for the next CBA. Sure, you’re not getting the benefit of an additional game’s worth of ticket sales and local radio coverage this way, but that’s not the biggest ticket item. I suspect that the bye week TV numbers are still pretty strong in markets with a bye team today. Not sure what I’m missing. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2020, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/31 "2020-02-21T23:51:04Z")
[quote=“Hamlet, post:19, topic:847586”] They do so, every fucking draft. Are they concerned the Raiders may draft a mascot or maybe a spoon from Alabama’s team cafeteria? Jesus wept. [/quote[ That’s a really specific example. :dubious: > [@](#): > > Which leads me to point the second: Mock Drafts are as useless and stupid as concluding the Raiders might draft an offensive and defensive player. So many people wasting so much time guessing what will occur, as if that has any relevance or insight whatsoever. You want to tell me your opinion of the game tape, great. You want to tell me you think the Packers are going to draft Laviska Shenault in the first round? Fuck you! That’s utterly useless and based on nothing but deciding a team need and guessing who might be there at that need. It’s so dumb. I agree with all the criticism of Mock Drafts. They are dumb and objectively they aren’t really useful at predicting anything about the draft. BUT, I don’t think that’s the point and I’m pretty okay with it. Here’s why. Think of a Mock Draft like one of those thousand stupid Listicles that pop up on blogs every other hour. On paper they are dumb. You can’t really objectively rank most of this stuff and the premise is inherently flawed…but, they can still be fun to read and share. Their goal isn’t actually to rank things in any authoritative way, their goal is to spur conversation and to create a format that really easy for people to scan and consume with a minimum of effort. Mock Drafts are exactly that. Most scouting services and analysts have a “Big Board” and draft profiles that break down each player, review the game tape, and often provide some pretty insightful analysis. They are great and I love them. But they have a few inherent problems. 1. They don’t change very often. Maybe you learn something new about a guy and he moves up or down a spot or two, but that’s not really that interesting to most people. 2. They don’t really relate to any specific NFL team. If you’re a casual fan (or even an avid fan that doesn’t monitor CFB that closely) you probably aren’t pro-actively scouring the internet for new insight into prospects. You’re really just looking out for press releases and trending stories about your favorite team. 3. They don’t have a narrative structure. You can’t really tell a story about a single prospect except to talk about his past. You can sort of tell a story about how each positional player ranks against their peers, but that’s basically a listicle. You can’t really talk about the kid’s potential impact without knowing where he’ll play. 4. There’s not much personality or name recognition there. Those casual fans probably only know the names of one or two prospects. That’s it. Now the Mock Draft framework fixes all those problems. For example. 1. You can shake up the snow globe every single day if you want and by swapping just a couple selections you end up with a totally different article. Lots of content to be created. Lots of opportunities to trigger water cooler discussions. 2. They inherently @mention every single NFL team. All the content aggregators and social media feeds and local beat reporters can pick up your article and push it to their readers/viewers. Fans affinity is to their team, this gives them something to get emotionally invested in. 3. They allow the writer to tell a story. You’re not just talking about the measurables of a 21 year old kid. You’re talking about the internal politics and business of 32 football teams. You’re @mentioning dozens of famous veteran players who will be challenged or replaced. You’re talking about how the target teams might change and how their 2020 season might play out. The mock draft pick is just the spark that starts the discussion. 4. You can talk about team owners, GMs, coaches, veteran players and agents. It’s not just about the kid. It’s about how that kid might change all the relationships inside the team, might displace some players, might make or break a coach or GM’s career. It oozes with personal drama. That’s maybe not a great defense of the objective merits of a Mock Draft, but it’s a compelling reason why they are really interesting to read for a lot of people and why they make sense to keep writing them. Mock Drafts are like pop music…sometimes that’s just the right kind of distraction for the moment. I still enjoy them. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2020, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/32 "2020-02-24T06:00:04Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > I imagine it’s part of that same standard clause you hear about that says you won’t go skydiving or ride a motorcycle or whatever. ie: Risky behavior can void your contract. NFL players are barred from risky behavior like playing professional football? ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2020, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/33 "2020-02-24T06:24:55Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > I find it kind of strange that the NFL is so obsessed with the 17 and 18 week schedules. I don’t have a super serious negative reaction to it like it seems a lot of people do, but it seems like they should start with something much more obtainable and just add back a second bye week. > > Adding back a second bye week does a few good things. > > 1. It extends the TV schedule by 1 extra week which adds most of the revenue. > 2. It gives players extra time to recover mid-season and hopefully reduces injuries and maybe increases the quality of play a tiny bit. > 3. It acclimates the fans and the players to a longer season, thereby making the addition of another game week for each team less jarring if they do that for the next CBA. > > Sure, you’re not getting the benefit of an additional game’s worth of ticket sales and local radio coverage this way, but that’s not the biggest ticket item. I suspect that the bye week TV numbers are still pretty strong in markets with a bye team today. > > Not sure what I’m missing. I think the NFL has the schedule perfect now. Season starts right after Labor day and wraps up right around the 1st of the year, then the playoffs start after the buzzkill of the end of the holiday season and back to work. But, hey, you’ve got NFL playoffs. An extra week means that early January is now the dreaded last game of the season where starters often sit out for the playoff bound teams and hopeless teams are rolling out a 4th string QB. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2020, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/34 "2020-02-24T06:27:52Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > NFL players are barred from risky behavior like playing professional football? Although it’s a baseball analogy, Sparky Lyle wrote in The Bronx Zoo that his contract prohibited all risky behavior and he could basically play baseball, play tiddlywinks, and have sex with his wife and that’s it. ---
**Author:** ![LoneRhino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lonerhino/32/1311_2.png) [@LoneRhino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LoneRhino)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/36 "2020-02-29T15:38:46Z")
There are a few reasons why the Raiders might sign Tom Brady. 1- Jon Gruden has a huge man-crush on him. Chris Simms talks about how when he played for Gruden in Tampa he showed a clip of Brady walking off the field, gushing about how he just looked like the perfect QB. 2- Imagine how much money they would make selling Brady jerseys. You would start seeing them everywhere almost instantly. 3- Most importantly, Derek Carr is a good, but not great QB. Signing Brady for 2 years would give you a good shot at the playoffs while transitioning to another QB. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2020, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/37 "2020-02-29T22:05:32Z")
> [@bernadette1977](#): > > … > I’ve read that the Rayyyy-daaaahhhhs are looking at bringing Tom Brady back to California but I really don’t think that would be a good move on their part. No, it wouldn’t be a good move to bring Brady to California because the Raiders play in Nevada. ---
**Author:** ![racepug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@racepug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racepug)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2020, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/38 "2020-03-06T20:40:16Z")
_Yahoo_!'s look at where “key” free agents might (should) end up before next season: [Top-20 logical NFL Free Agency fits](https://sports.yahoo.com/top-20-logical-nfl-free-agency-fits-180714752.html) ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2020, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/39 "2020-03-07T00:30:27Z")
> [@jaycat](#): > > If only the Skins could draft a new owner… With the second pick of the 2020 NFL draft, the Washington Redskins draft Jerry Jones :). ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/40 "2020-03-16T12:47:15Z")
So the Titans jump into the “Let’s overpay our QB” pool. They signed Ryan Tannehill to a 4 year, $118 million dollar contract with $62 million guaranteed and roughly $29.5 million a year average. That puts him somewhere between 5th and 10th highest paid QB’s. Considering they got him and a 6th round pick for a 4th and 7th round draft pick, that’s a heckuva payday. Does anyone here believe Tannehill is an elite QB? Does anyone here think he’s a special player who deserves to be in the top 10? I certainly don’t. But he has the thing that makes QB’s in the NFL better than most others. Experience. The guy has started 98 NFL games, knows how to play, and can run the Titans play action pass system well. He doesn’t need to have a cannon arm, or pinpoint accuracy, or necessarily be consistently great. He’s got experience. And a very good offensive line, a very, very good running game, and had one very good season. The Titans, if their defense plays very well, can win the Super Bowl with him. But not because of him. And any team in the NFL could have had him for cheap. I think Tannehill, who had the best year of his career last year, will regress back to the kind of player he was for the prior 4 seasons and his 2019 will be considered an outlier year that helped him make bank (I’m looking at you Joe Flacco and Eli Manning). But kudos for him for getting the money. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586/41 "2020-03-16T16:57:33Z")
Also big news: By a vote of 1,019 to 959, the players’ union voted to approve the CBA. That’s a really close vote, especially considering that about 500 players didn’t vote. The new CBA will go until 2030. Some changes: 1. Possible 17 game season starting 2021 (with a increasing player percentage of revenues if adopted). 2. Increase in player percentage of revenues from 47% in 2020 to 48 in 2021 and possibly 18.5% (if 17 game seasons is used). 3. Increase in league minimum salaries. 4. Increase in performance based pay. 5. Roster increase from 53 to 55. 6. Fewer padded practices, dropping from 28 to 16 and from 3 hours to 2.5. 7. Reduced penalties for positive THC tests. Higher % count. Seems like the players did OK, and the owners got another game. Hopefully win/win. I think the decrease in padded practice will result in some very ugly football early in the season, but such is life. At least the NFL has another 10 years of an agreement. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-offseason-of-mist-and-mellow-fruitfulness/847586.md?page=3)