NFL Thread

[Carey]

I guess the Browns are trying to have more quarterbacks on the roster this year alone than the combined total from 1999-2017

[Black Knight]

1 hour ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Cleveland already took Dillon Gabriel. There will now be a battle for the backup position behind Flacco. 

It won't be much of a battle between Gabriel and Sanders. Gabriel is a clearly inferior QB whose ceiling is journeyman backup, while Sanders was acknowledged to be at least a second-round talent. I don't think the Browns would have bothered drafting Gabriel if they could have been assured of drafting Sanders on Day 3. Unless somebody gets seriously injured in preseason, Gabriel will be cut or put on the practice squad and the Browns will ride with Flacco, Pickett and Sanders. My guess is the plan is for Flacco to start, Pickett to be the backup QB if Flacco gets injured, but in blowouts Sanders will get the playing time so that he can start acclimating to the NFL. It's actually a reasonable plan, but everything the Haslams touch goes rotten, so...

[bluegirl147]

Steelers took Will Howard.  I don't know if this means we aren't signing Rodgers but I'm happy to have Howard in the QB room.  That is two Buckeyes they drafted.

[Black Knight]

Rooney was still optimistic yesterday that Rodgers would come to Pittsburgh. And the Steelers wanted to have 4 QBs before preseason started (and had 2 up until now), so drafting a QB was expected. Rooney did say yesterday also that any QB drafted would not be expected to contribute this season.

[Crashcourse]

So, Sanders will be sliding up and down the bench. 

[Marley]

The Steelers are embarassing waiting for stupid Rodgers.

I bet Sanders will push to be a starter.

[roamyn]

48 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

Steelers took Will Howard.  I don't know if this means we aren't signing Rodgers but I'm happy to have Howard in the QB room.  That is two Buckeyes they drafted.

Dammit!  I wanted Will, not Shadeur.  However the mess that Sanders might be, fits in with the mess that the Browns are.

With the comments Haslsm made recently, I believe Watson is done.  He'll get paid, but he'll never play another down for Cleveland, and I don't think he even wants to play anymore.  He wasn't happy with Haslam's comments and he's never seemed happy when he does play.  He's always glum and pouty.

Considering we needed five QBs in 2022-23, it's never s bad idea to have four QBs in the room.  And Flacco will be a good mentor.  But I do think Pickett's is trade bait.

 

Edited April 26 by roamyn

[bluegirl147]

Watson is proof money can't buy happiness. I honestly think he is unhappy that people know he is a ***********.

[roamyn]

I didn't realize that the Browns QB coach used to play with Deion in SF.  And Deion apparently really likes Musgrave.  

[baldryanr]

So, what are the odds he was forced to make this pick by the owner? 

[Perfect Xero]

14 hours ago, Black Knight said:

It won't be much of a battle between Gabriel and Sanders. Gabriel is a clearly inferior QB whose ceiling is journeyman backup, while Sanders was acknowledged to be at least a second-round talent. I don't think the Browns would have bothered drafting Gabriel if they could have been assured of drafting Sanders on Day 3. Unless somebody gets seriously injured in preseason, Gabriel will be cut or put on the practice squad and the Browns will ride with Flacco, Pickett and Sanders. My guess is the plan is for Flacco to start, Pickett to be the backup QB if Flacco gets injured, but in blowouts Sanders will get the playing time so that he can start acclimating to the NFL. It's actually a reasonable plan, but everything the Haslams touch goes rotten, so...

So they ... spent a 3rd round pick on a guy who they will end up cutting instead of drafting the guy they really wanted who fell to the 7th round instead of just drafting that guy in the 3rd round?

[merylinkid]

Shilo went and signed an agent.   His remark "I've been using my dad but you see how that went."  An agent probably could have helped Shedeur realize that he can't coast on his talent like his dad.   An agent could also have talked to teams and really seen what was going on.   

Shilo, who did not get non-stop coverage like his brother was signed by the Bucs as a UDFA.

There was another guy out of the green room on Saturday.  He'd been sitting there since Thursday night.   We didn't hear about his slide non-stop.   Wonder why?

[mojoween]

Reseeding the playoffs is going to be part of the May vote and if that gets passed … well it won’t change anything in my life and I’ll still watch this stupid game but I’ll be really really really mad about it.

[Black Knight]

9 hours ago, Perfect Xero said:

So they ... spent a 3rd round pick on a guy who they will end up cutting instead of drafting the guy they really wanted who fell to the 7th round instead of just drafting that guy in the 3rd round?

Sanders had to be taught a lesson, dontcha know, by being allowed by everyone to slide to Day 3. 🙄 But then the Browns traded up from the 166th pick to the 144th pick in the 5th round to make sure they got him. They didn't have to pay too much, just a sixth-round pick in addition to swapping the 5th round picks. But clearly they felt there was at least one team who would've taken him before, and they probably were not wrong because Sanders graded out with his floor being the second round. To pick up such a player in the 5th round is A+ value for the slot and I'm sure other teams would have gone for it.

I'm pretty happy with the Raiders draft, which isn't something I've been able to say most years.

[kathyk2]

The son of the Falcons assistant coach admitted he prank called Shedeur Sanders. Maybe only the head coach should have draftees numbers?

[Salacious Kitty]

8 minutes ago, kathyk2 said:

The son of the Falcons assistant coach admitted he prank called Shedeur Sanders. Maybe only the head coach should have draftees numbers?

That's cold. I wonder what team he said he was representing? 

[merylinkid]

Why would the kid have the number?  The Assistant Coach should know better.

Also -- very much not funny.   Although Shedeur handled it very well.

Apparently another player was also prank called.   

[Marley]

Such a stupid rude prank.

[mojoween]

Apparently the phone number was on an iPad the assistant coach had, and while it was unattended in the coaches home, his kid went on it and took Shedeur’s number.  Which is a shitty thing for the kid to do, and he didn’t deserve Sheuder taking his apology call, but that iPad didn’t have a password on it to open it?

Edited April 27 by mojoween

[Calvada]

Barryn Sorrell was a cool story.  He was in Green Bay for the entire draft (he and his family thought it would be a fun experience), but he wasn't in the green room on Thursday night.  He didn't think he would get picked in the first round.  He watched at a hotel.  He was hoping to be a day 2 pick, so was in the green room that day.  He said he debated whether to leave Green Bay but decided to be there for day 3.  Since he and his family were the only people in the green room, Goodell came in and spoke with him.  And then he was drafted by the Packers, so the NFL did a nice thing for him, had the commissioner announce the pick, and had him come out so he could hear the crowd reaction.  When the Packers called him to tell him they were picking him, they had no idea he was in Green Bay.  They didn't know until they saw him with Goodell on the stage.

When I heard about the son of the Falcons' assistant coach, I assumed he was 14 or 15, the age when a lot of kids would think this was a hilarious thing to do.  But he is 21, old enough to think he'd know better.  I wonder if the coach stepped away just for a moment or two.  A lot of people set their devices with a delay of a few minutes before the screen goes black when the device is idle.  

[Crashcourse]

54 minutes ago, merylinkid said:

Apparently another player was also prank called.   

By the same person?

[baldryanr]

55 minutes ago, merylinkid said:

Why would the kid have the number?  The Assistant Coach should know better.

If a parent thinks they can't leave their devices around their 21 year old kids because they might steal a phone number then they have utterly failed as a parent long before the actual incident.

[Marley]

21? That is embarassing. I thought it was like a 12 year old kid.

[Fukui San]

The Atlanta assistant coach was DC Jeff Ulbrich, who was the beleaguered interim Jets HC last season.

[merylinkid]

I was in law school which means 22 and above -- and people were still doing stuff like that.   If someone left their laptop unattended it was considered fair game to post something stupid on social media pretending to be that person.   

I was appalled when I heard that.   I asked why would you do that?   I was told it was "funny."   I said "it's not yours, don't touch it."   Apparently that was a difficult concept for some people.   

Same thing here, just because the number was out didn't mean it was "funny" to call the players and tell them they were about to be drafted.

[bluegirl147]

I've seen a couple stories framing Sanders fall in the draft as race issue.  They seem to be ignoring two other African American QBs were taken before him.

[twoods]

Or prior black quarterbacks that were drafted very high and currently playing well in the NFL. I thought this narrative would be gone by now.

That douchebag man-child who prank called got rightfully called out by everyone. You potentially put your father’s job in jeopardy because you were trying to be funny and show off in front of your friends. Grow the hell up.

Edited April 28 by twoods

[roamyn]

1 hour ago, twoods said:

That douchebag man-child who prank called got rightfully called out by everyone. You potentially put your father’s job in jeopardy because you were trying to be funny and show off in front of your friends. Grow the hell up.

Apparently Tyler Warren was pranked as well.  Wonder if it was the same groups of baby-adults who pranked Shadeur?

The Falcons have said they're not punishing Jeff.  However, Chris Simms brought up a good point...why are teams/NFL passing out these phone numbers to someone other than HC, owner, and GM.

[Carey]

If anyone's "punishing" the guy, it's probably the league.  Nothing more than a fine if they can find anything that warrants discipline

[Black Knight]

On 4/28/2025 at 6:30 AM, bluegirl147 said:

I've seen a couple stories framing Sanders fall in the draft as race issue.  They seem to be ignoring two other African American QBs were taken before him.

That's not the relevant comparison, though, Eli Manning is. As I pointed out before, Eli Manning didn't fall to Day 3 despite he and his dad point-blank saying he wouldn't play for the Chargers if they drafted him, which is really worse in an objective way than Sanders playing the fool in some interviews and openly rooting for some teams over others, because what Manning did would break the draft if it became commonplace. That's a lot more entitled and spoiled-brat than Sanders's crap. But Manning still got drafted #1 and then traded to a team he would deign to play for.

[baldryanr]

4 hours ago, Black Knight said:

But Manning still got drafted #1 and then traded to a team he would deign to play for.

Eli (and Elway before him) were viewed as generational prospects, so they were able to get away with crap like that. 

[Carey]

Also helped that Peyton was the best player in football during Eli's final year.  The latter won roughly two thirds of his games before going pro, IN the Southeastern Conference.  That is more than roughly 50 percent as a program in the Pacific Whatever or the so-called Big 12

[mojoween]

If that coaches kid is the one responsible for *all* of the prank calls (Kyle McCord?  Really?) … straight to jail.

[Carey]

Eh...no to jail time.  If there's certain rules & criteria that warrant prison time, then so be it.  I just don't see jail as a solution here in lieu of the proper form of action that would deter someone from allowing this to occur again.

It's simple: no need to allow for that assistant coach or any assistant coach to have access to personal info.  That's more important than a prank call.  Someone that has no affiliation to the team or the league could use info for worse things...as well as information that might help another team in the NFL

[baldryanr]

The Falcons were fined 250k and DC Ulbrich 100k

That being said, the fine wasn't for the prank, it was for being sloppy with confidential information.  And sending the kid to jail is a huge overreaction.  He hurt some feelings but unless one of the prank recipients had jumped off a building no one was actually harmed.

What should happen is the kid being forced to help pay back at least some of that fine (and not some trivial amount like a couple thousand), but that depends on how Ulbrich and his wife approach parenting.

 

Edited April 30 by baldryanr

[Carey]

That's the thing.  At least for me.  The prank wasn't funny, but I didn't think it was pure evil either.  As mentioned, nobody died.  The victim here was okay with it; he moved on.  Whether one is 14 or 21, I don't care.  It was unfunny because the prank calling thing has been done a lot throughout the history of the world.  I think I've seen it all.  It's great amongst friends, but I think it would have been no issue if the kid and Sanders knew each other.

That being said, the bigger focus is one's protection of personal info.  If the assistant coach is careless with his info, then the next thing is someone can obtain it for their own agenda.  Not a great thing if a rival or any other team can access one's playbook due to an assistant's lack of protecting the PC.

Unless the kid was warned by his parents, he probably shouldn't have to worry about any discipline.  Now, if he's expecting an allowance, I guess you could dock him there, but not much you can do at that age, I don't believe.  Furthermore, the DC is more at fault if not a major suspect in the mess, but as mentioned by others, no sense in disclosing information unless it's necessary.  Sanders phone number was unnecessary, period.

[Fukui San]

League grounds Jax Ulbrich with no dessert or XBox for a month.  

[mojoween]

Just for the record, sending the dumb kid to jail was a joke.  Internet jail, however, is not out of the question.

Or he should be forced to be an unpaid gofer for the Browns.

[Crashcourse]

Oh, to be a fly on the wall to hear the verbal ass whuppin that kid got.

[Calvada]

$100K fine for the coach?  I guess that's his son's birthday and Christmas gifts for the rest of his life 🤣  And this just might come up in future job interviews as potential employers do a cursory background check.  In other words, Google him.  

I suppose the league provides contact information on all prospects to every team.  It's probably something the entire coaching and scouting staffs have.  If the GM or head coach calls a draftee to tell them they are being picked, the OC or DC might want to follow up with a call.  As well, they need contact info as they try to do UDFA deals at the close of the draft.  And administrative staff need the info to connect the draftee with the PR staff and the team travel people to arrange those details when they come for rookie camp.  With just how much information the teams have, it's not surprising the NFL brought the hammer down on the Falcons and the coach, given the potential for bad things to happen.  

[Carey]

At least it wasn't $283,000 for the team AND $328,000 for the DC

[roamyn]

11 hours ago, mojoween said:

Just for the record, sending the dumb kid to jail was a joke.  Internet jail, however, is not out of the question.

Internet jail is a real thing.  When he goes to apply for jobs in the future, you don't think a prospective employer is going to think twice when considering character?

Regarding Ulbrich having an offensive players number, it was explained by Louis Riddick thst because Shaduer had no agent to minimize who got the phone number, the league automatically sends it out to every team.  It's on the team who gets the number inside their ranks.  Hence the Falcon's fine, as there was no reason for them to give the number to a DC.  

[Fukui San]

6 hours ago, roamyn said:

Internet jail is a real thing.  When he goes to apply for jobs in the future, you don't think a prospective employer is going to think twice when considering character?

 

Who's to say that Jax Ulbrich won't one day have a coaching position in the league whilst your team's favorite linebacker or cornerback with a 7 year career never does? The football coaching nepotism piece.

[merylinkid]

A $100K for an assistant coach is chump change.  This was a slap on the wrist.

21 hours ago, Carey said:

It's great amongst friends, but I think it would have been no issue if the kid and Sanders knew each other.

You can't prank call anymore.   Everyone's got caller ID.   So did the kid use a Falcon's phone number?   Because if I saw a strange number pop up with nothing identifying the caller - I don't pick up.   

[Fukui San]

I think on draft day when you are suspecting you're in range for being drafted you'll pick up numbers that you don't readily recognize.

[baldryanr]

1 hour ago, merylinkid said:

A $100K for an assistant coach is chump change.  This was a slap on the wrist.

So is 250k for an NFL team, but that's the point.  Spreading the phone number around was careless and the prank call stupid, but we're talking a first offense where no one was really harmed.  If it happens again (or someone is hurt) then they can ramp up the punishment instead of starting at some high level (kiss some draft picks goodbye!) that would turn the Falcons and/or Ulbrich into the victims in all of this.

[Calvada]

9 hours ago, merylinkid said:

A $100K for an assistant coach is chump change.  This was a slap on the wrist.

I saw one report that said his salary is $1.6 million.  So a $100K fine is just over 6% of his salary.  I wouldn't be very happy about losing 6% of my salary.  It's not as if he'll be in line at the food bank, but it's enough to notice, especially if it's take all at once.  

For the Falcons organization, I agree their fine is chump change. 

 

[Carey]

Still think the fines are reasonable.  As mentioned, it's sending a message that action will be taken for the mishap.  While future situations still will not wreck Mr. Blank in terms of a cash fine, you want to go into an important draft with all of your picks (that weren't traded away).  Still, a million dollar fine, which wasn't happening, isn't a super big deal.  It'll be like a young adult having $10,000 after all the bills were paid, and having to forfeit $10 for whatever reason.

But yeah, and six figure fine for an assistant isn't at the level of losing money "you didn't know existed"

[mojoween]

Abdul Carter needs to stop.  Once was cute, twice makes him look like an ass.

[Carey]

To be honest, I think "once" was one too many.