- \n
- Eagles gassed<\/li>\n
- Belichick\u2019s future<\/li>\n
- Dart\u2019s morning after<\/li>\n
- A $100,000 fine?!?<\/li>\n
- Daniel Jones\u2019 most famous fan<\/li>\n
- Cincy\u2019s funk<\/li>\n
- Flacco\u2019s focus<\/li>\n
- Trade deadline chatter<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Philly, Philly, silly, silly<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t recall a meeting.\u201d That was A.J. Brown<\/a> after the Eagles\u2019 second straight loss.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t worry, A.J. \u2014 I think it\u2019s fair to say we all hate meetings. But you don\u2019t have to pretend one never happened \u2026 or was he actually telling the truth?<\/p>\n
Despite reports of a players-only sitdown after the loss to Denver \u2014 supposedly including Saquon Barkley, Jalen Hurts and Brown \u2014 multiple sources in Philadelphia tell me A.J. was, in fact, right.<\/p>\n
There was never a formal meeting. It was less player summit, more \u201chey, let\u2019s talk for a second\u201d \u2014 the kind of quick, honest check-in that happens in locker rooms every week. Call it a conversation, not a confrontation.<\/p>\n
Brown tweeted on Friday<\/a> that it was a discussion in the parking lot by their cars. And honestly? They probably needed it.<\/p>\n
Said one league executive: \u201cThe Eagles have looked drained, emotionally and physically. The defense we saw Thursday night was on the field for (70-plus) plays in the heat just four days ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
The temps haven\u2019t helped; it was 88 degrees at kickoff Week 2 in Kansas City, 88 at kickoff Week 4 in Tampa (and in the 90s before that game ended) and 80 at kickoff Week 5 at home.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not an excuse. However, it\u2019s possible Philly\u2019s not broken; the Eagles are just out of sync and worn out.<\/p>\n
The Eagles will continue to insist they have no plans to trade Brown, their star receiver. But every week that passes with problems piling up makes decision-makers around the league wonder. One league source told me: \u201cBrown doesn\u2019t look frustrated or mad \u2014 he looks indifferent. And that\u2019s not a good place to be.\u201d A GM in the AFC said, \u201cI think Howie (Roseman) moves him. It would have to be for the right player or pick, but (a trade) wouldn\u2019t surprise me. Howie likes deals, especially if a player\u2019s value overrides how Brown is being used.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most teams anticipate the asking price to be steep. Expect more calls as we near November.<\/p>\n
UNC\u2019s Belichick and Lombardi plan to remain<\/p>\n
Amid a tidal wave of recent reports on the dysfunction at UNC involving head coach Bill Belichick and GM Michael Lombardi \u2014 including a report in The Athletic<\/a> on the chaos and lack of familiarity with college football that critics say is hurting the program \u2014 sources in both the college game and the league say the duo has no plans to leave Chapel Hill. People inside the football operation believe the criticism is intended to hurt the program.<\/p>\n
Belichick, who was on the road Friday<\/a> recruiting in Olney, Md., has told those close to him that he loves coaching at the college level. More than that, he believes they\u2019re building something meaningful at UNC, a program with staying power. Lombardi is fully on the same page.<\/p>\n
However, Belichick\u2019s NFL past continues to hover around this situation, from questions about his legacy to regular flare-ups involving the Patriots to suspicions within UNC\u2019s program that some of the negative headlines have origins in New England. The Patriots have taken the high road, steering clear of the public sniping.<\/p>\n
Belichick and Lombardi remain committed to Chapel Hill for the foreseeable future. And if the school feels otherwise, it would be costly: UNC would owe around $30 million if it wanted to buy out Belichick, Lombardi and their coaching staff.<\/p>\n
Jersey Boys<\/p>\n
Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart didn\u2019t sleep much, if at all, after beating the Eagles in prime time<\/a>. By Friday morning, while most of us were shuffling kids off to school or heading to work, the Giants rookie was already on the phone with his coaches during his drive to the facility, preparing for the Denver Broncos.<\/p>\n
It had been almost 20 years since the Giants last defeated the Eagles in prime time, and now Big Blue is living, and occasionally dying, with its rookies, Dart and running back sensation Cam Skattebo.<\/p>\n
Since Dart took over as the Giants\u2019 starter, they\u2019ve beaten Jim Harbaugh\u2019s Chargers and Nick Sirianni\u2019s defending champs. Somehow, this team that was supposed to be a bit of a disaster suddenly looks \u2026 kind of dangerous.<\/p>\n
And look, I feel like I need to say this because it hit me standing on the field during warmups at MetLife Stadium: Both of those young guys look less like NFL players and more like the kind of dudes you\u2019d bump into at Bar Anticipation on Memorial Day weekend. (Those who know, know.)<\/p>\n
I\u2019m a Jersey girl; that\u2019s a big compliment.<\/p>\n
![\"Giants](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2240202146-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n Rookie sensations Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo keyed New York\u2019s prime-time win over the Eagles. (Al Bello \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Speaking of summer, several people with the Giants told me New York knew since then that Dart was \u201cthe guy.\u201d They just didn\u2019t want to rush it.<\/p>\n
Before the draft, they did their homework on all the quarterbacks, but every meeting with Ole Miss\u2019s Dart ended the same way: with coach Brian Daboll and front-office members walking out saying, \u201cHe checks every box.\u201d<\/p>\n
Believe it or not, the Giants also leaned on some unlikely help. Ole Miss assistant quarterbacks coach Joe Judge, the former Giants head coach, helped the team learn everything it needed to know about Dart.<\/p>\n
The Giants also knew they weren\u2019t alone. The Saints, Steelers and Browns had all shown interest. New York tried to play it cool, but the Giants also knew Daboll\u2019s personality \u2014 fiery, competitive, intense and sometimes a little unhinged \u2014 was a perfect match for Dart\u2019s energy.<\/p>\n
Around the league now, I keep hearing the same line: \u201cDaboll finally has his guy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not just a quarterback who can run his offense, but a quarterback who reflects him.<\/p>\n
One AFC head coach texted me, \u201c(Daboll) thinks Dart has some Josh Allen in him. That\u2019s what this love is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a looseness to the Giants\u2019 offense again, a confidence that\u2019s been missing. Dart\u2019s not perfect, but you can see why the building believes in him. Maybe it\u2019s something in the water, but there\u2019s a little Jersey in this Giants team again.<\/p>\n
Dart might still look more like a guy holding court on the patio at the Parker House than one commanding an NFL huddle, but that\u2019s the fun in this. He\u2019s not supposed to be saving jobs. The Giants weren\u2019t supposed to be this fun. And yet here they are, believing \u2014 and maybe, just maybe, building something real.<\/p>\n
Fumble. Meltdown. Fine.<\/p>\n
Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill fined head coach Jonathan Gannon $100,000<\/a> for a sideline confrontation with Emari Demercado, after the running back dropped the ball before crossing the goal line in a loss to the Titans.<\/p>\n
Footage surfaced. Gannon apologized. But the NFL was buzzing, and people I spoke with largely disapproved of Arizona\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a meltdown. He\u2019s a first-time head coach, felt helpless. I don\u2019t think they needed to fine him. You deal with that internally,\u201d one NFC head coach said.<\/p>\n
A rival executive was blunt: \u201cThe owner cut his balls off in front of his entire team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not everyone concurred. \u201cYou can\u2019t push a player like that. That\u2019s garbage,\u201d one AFC assistant said.<\/p>\n
One player in the same division agreed over text, \u201cNah, you can\u2019t do that. That can change a locker room.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gannon is 14-25 in just over two seasons. Arizona\u2019s three losses this season? By a combined five points, all walk-off field goals. And incidents like Sunday\u2019s Titans debacle make the optics worse.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re going to fine him $100,000 because you feel that strongly, then just fire him,\u201d one owner told me.<\/p>\n
At the end of the day, this isn\u2019t just about a fumble. It\u2019s about leadership under pressure and control in the moment.<\/p>\n
Daniel Jones \u2018has it\u2019<\/p>\n
Sitting on his couch<\/a> in his new home just outside Philadelphia, right before he had his best season and won a Super Bowl, Saquon Barkley was raving about Daniel Jones. He was passionately trying to convince me that Jones is better than most starting quarterbacks in football.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou aren\u2019t believing me, and I\u2019m not just saying this because he\u2019s one of my best friends,\u201d Barkley said. \u201cDaniel is a really, really good quarterback. You give him an offensive line, and I\u2019m telling you, he\u2019s a top quarterback. I\u2019ve seen him in practice. He has it.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Quarterback](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2239834433-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n Daniel Jones has the Colts 4-1 and thinking about a division title. (Justin Casterline \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t believe him at the time. I had just watched years of mediocre and sometimes bad Giants football, and while Jones had flashes of brilliance in New York, it never fully clicked. However, reporters and fans don\u2019t always know the whole story. Barkley saw something that both Kevin O\u2019Connell in Minnesota and Shane Steichen in Indianapolis saw, too.<\/p>\n
In Minnesota, the coaching staff loved that Jones had been through the toughest part of the business: being a quarterback in New York. They loved his work ethic, humility and intelligence, and as one coach there put it, \u201chis best trait is he\u2019s coachable, coachable, coachable!\u201d As someone in Indianapolis explained, \u201cHe\u2019s playing with confidence that needed to come out. He\u2019s no longer afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sorry I doubted you, Saquon \u2026 and you too, Daniel.<\/p>\n
Can\u2019t change their stripes<\/p>\n
Maybe Lou Anarumo wasn\u2019t the problem in Cincinnati, after all.<\/p>\n
Jones and the Colts\u2019 offense have grabbed headlines for being ultra-efficient, but their defense has become one of the league\u2019s most underrated units under Anarumo, their first-year coordinator. Despite injuries, including to corner Kenny Moore II, Indianapolis is firing on all cylinders and the defense is a big reason the Colts are eyeing their first AFC South title since 2014.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just think we play on our toes. I think we dictate. We want to be aggressive,\u201d LB Zaire Franklin told me on my podcast, Scoop City<\/a>. \u201cAnd honestly, it\u2019s the style of defense that I really haven\u2019t played in most of my career.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in Cincinnati, changing defensive play callers hasn\u2019t led to much change. Under new coordinator Al Golden, the Bengals have actually regressed across the board.<\/p>\n
Bengals defensive averages<\/p>\n
YearYds\/GPass Yds\/GRush Yds\/GPoints\/GTO\/G<\/tr>\n \n \n 2024<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 348.3 (25th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 223.5 (21st)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 124.8 (19th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 25.5 (26th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 1.5 (t-7th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n \n 2025<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 391.2 (30th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 259.0 (29th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 132.2 (25th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 31.2 (30th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n
\n 1.2 (t-11th)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Here\u2019s a source close to the Chiefs: \u201cLook what we did in Kansas City since we lost to the Bengals in the AFC Championship in 2021. We changed the defense over three different times. The Bengals never did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sam Hubbard, Germaine Pratt, Mike Hilton \u2014 they\u2019re gone now. But last year, Cincy\u2019s defense looked its collective age. Compare that to Kansas City, which has kept key pieces like Chris Jones and Nick Bolton while adding premium draft talent like Trent McDuffie and George Karlaftis.<\/p>\n
Stagnation caught up with Cincinnati, and it cost Anarumo his job. But the numbers don\u2019t lie, and the Bengals are still trying to patch their leaks.<\/p>\n
Now, they\u2019re turning to Joe Flacco to try to save a season that\u2019s already way off script. Meanwhile, Indianapolis is quietly proving the lesson every GM and coach knows but few admit: Sometimes the problem isn\u2019t the coordinator, it\u2019s the roster.<\/p>\n
Joe Cool, Part II<\/p>\n
The Browns knew the calls would come on Flacco once they made the switch to rookie Dillon Gabriel. What they didn\u2019t expect was for one of those calls to come from inside the AFC North.<\/p>\n
The only person more surprised? Flacco himself. Some around the league believe the Browns moving on signaled that they\u2019ve given up on the season.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday night, the Bengals reached out to discuss a potential trade for the veteran quarterback, and within hours, it was done<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Now, Flacco\u2019s starting against the Packers after just a few days in stripes. Flacco started for Cleveland in a 13-10 win over Green Bay back in Week 3. No quarterback in the Super Bowl era has ever beaten the same opponent while starting for two different teams in the same season.<\/p>\n
I was told Flacco has been cramming the playbook<\/a> in the few days he\u2019s had, but what\u2019s always made Flacco good is his ability to simply pull the trigger. He was asked once about chemistry with new teammates, and he didn\u2019t flinch.<\/p>\n
\u201cListen, some of that stuff\u2019s overrated,\u201d Flacco said in 2023<\/a>. \u201cWhen you have good football players, they know how to get open and you know how to throw them the ball. It\u2019s just as simple as that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those receivers in Cincinnati will love hearing that.<\/p>\n
The Looming Trade Deadline<\/p>\n
Nov. 4 is fast approaching and trades are already flying. Chargers GM Joe Hortiz is leaning on his old Ravens connections, adding a pass rusher<\/a>. The Jaguars are shuffling corners<\/a>. And Cleveland? The Browns are still dealing, even with a division rival.<\/p>\n
Teams are mostly in the information-gathering phase right now \u2014 not just evaluating potential targets, but taking a hard look at themselves, too. Injuries, slumps, and locker room temperature checks will dictate whether a front office buys or sells.<\/p>\n
San Francisco is canvassing the pass rusher market to fill the void left by Nick Bosa\u2019s injury. I expect them to call Cincinnati about Trey Hendrickson.<\/p>\n
Eighteen trades went down last season \u2014 another sign of how the NFL has evolved. Midseason moves used to be rare. Now, they\u2019re expected. It\u2019ll be tough to top late August\u2019s blockbuster that sent Micah Parsons to Green Bay, but this is the last window for teams to make that one final upgrade.<\/p>\n
As a few quarterbacks could tell you, sometimes a change of scenery leads to a fairy-tale ending.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Once upon a draft night, they were the chosen ones. Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones, Baker Mayfield, Mac Jones.…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":294973,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[7140,8997,1544,9002,533,4716,1232,1105,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-294972","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-arizona-cardinals","9":"tag-cincinnati-bengals","10":"tag-cleveland-browns","11":"tag-indianapolis-colts","12":"tag-new-england-patriots","13":"tag-new-york-giants","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-philadelphia-eagles","16":"tag-sports","17":"tag-united-states","18":"tag-unitedstates","19":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115356241323341104","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294972"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294972\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}