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2024 NFL Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year: My top five candidates in each race
Defensive Rookie of the Year
Rank 1 – Quinyon Mitchell – Philadelphia Eagles · CB
Odds: +220 | Drafted: Round 1, No. 22 overall
We live in a world where QB disruptors get the edge when it comes to glory, so in the end, this award will probably go to the pass rusher I’ve ranked below Mitchell. But what’s the point of all this if we never go out on a limb? Mitchell has been an absolute stud this season, and he’s been a true lock-down force since the Eagles’ Week 5 bye. In each of his past six games, Michell hasn’t allowed more than 25 receiving yards as the nearest defender, per Next Gen Stats:
- Week 6 vs. CLE: 5 targets, 1 catch, 10 yards
- Week 7 at NYG: 4 targets, 2 catches, 15 yards
- Week 8 at CIN: 3 targets, 3 catches, 25 yards
- Week 9 vs. JAX: 3 targets, 2 catches, 23 yards
- Week 10 at DAL: 4 targets, 2 catches, 14 yards
- Week 11 vs. WAS: 1 target, 0 catches, 0 yards
Corner is a fickle position, as illustrated by the struggles this season of the last CB to win the DROY award, Sauce Gardner (2022). But Mitchell has impressed with traits that suggest his success is sustainable, smothering receivers with physical play and showing the athleticism to run stride-for-stride with his man. And it’s not like he’s slowed some bums, either; over the above six-game span, Mitchell faced the likes of Ja’Marr Chase, Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, Mike Evans, Drake London and Terry McLaurin.
Mitchell currently doesn’t have a pick to his name, but if he can nab a couple of INTs down the stretch, he’ll make some gains in this race. Maybe a few big plays in prime time — while the Eagles soar into the postseason — will prompt enough attention for the corner that he’s able to steal the award.
Bleeding Green Nation
Eagles-Rams Final Injury Report: DeVonta Smith out, Bryce Huff to injured reserve
The Eagles ruled one player OUT: DeVonta Smith.
Smith did not practice this week due to the hamstring injury he’s been dealing with. Missing him obviously isn’t ideal because he’s a really good player. Then again, the Eagles were able to beat the Rams last year without him being a major factor (five targets, one catch, six yards). Smith’s absence leaves the Eagles with the following healthy receivers on the active roster: A.J. Brown, Jahan Dotson, Johnny Wilson, and Ainias Smith. It’s possible they’ll also have Britain Covey (more on him below). It’ll be interesting to see who ends up being the second-most targeted receiver. One would think it’ll be Dotson but Jalen Hurts hasn’t exactly loved throwing his way. It’s also possible the Eagles really just lean into passing to Brown and running two tight end sets to get both Dallas Goedert and Grant Calcaterra involved.
The Eagles placed Bryce Huff on injured reserve.
Huff underwent wrist surgery on Thursday. He’s automatically going to miss the Eagles’ next four games. Huff is eligible to return for Philly’s Week 16 road game against the Washington Commanders at the earliest. In the meantime, the Eagles are left with just four edge rushers on the active roster: Josh Sweat, Nolan Smith, Brandon Graham, and Jalyx Hunt. The rookie Hunt seems poised to see more snaps during Huff’s absence. The Eagles also have edge rushers Tarron Jackson and newly signed Ochaun Mathis on the practice squad.
The Eagles ruled one player QUESTIONABLE: Britain Covey.
The Eagles opened Covey’s 21-day practice window to return from injured reserve earlier this week. He was a full participant in practice each day. The team must activate him to the roster before 4:00 PM Eastern on Saturday for him to be eligible to play on Sunday night. Assuming he plays, Covey figures to return punts instead of Cooper DeJean. He could also have a role on offense with DeVonta out.
Big Blue View
5 ‘things I think’ after the New York Giants release Daniel Jones
That prepared statement
Why is Jones getting bashed by some (I see you and I disagree with you, Chris Canty!) for reading briefly from a prepared statement on Thursday?
The guy put six years of his career into the Giants. He willingly put his body on the line. He took the blame week after week without throwing anyone else under the bus when he clearly wasn’t the only one at fault.
The prepared statement was hokey, but not inappropriate. That was Jones making sure he said what he wanted to say and thanked the people he wanted to thank for his time in New York. This wasn’t him making things about him.
This was Jones saying goodbye. With the class he has always shown.
Rip him for not being a good enough quarterback if you must. Not for this.
Doing Jones a solid
I have read comments from some who were surprised that the Giants would release Jones now, a move that potentially allows Jones to find a new job — perhaps as a No. 2 quarterback with a playoff team — before the season ends.
That’s another thing I fail to understand. The organization has always had great respect for Jones as a person, for how hard he worked and the way he represented himself and the franchise. Co-owner John Mara has always been in Jones’ corner.
Why wouldn’t the Giants let him go now if that is what the quarterback wants? Financially, the 2025 cap hit was going to be $22.21 million regardless of whether they did it now or after the season ended.
Why would they embarrass him by holding him hostage for the next seven weeks?
Big Blue View
Malik Nabers (groin) not practicing for New York Giants
Nabers has long-running issues with groin injury
Wide receiver Malik Nabers did not practice on Friday for the New York Giants. Nabers is reportedly dealing with a groin injury.
Nabers also was on the injury report earlier in the year with a groin issue, but was able to play through it. Nabers said at the time that he has dealt with groin issues for several seasons.
The No. 6 overall pick is the Giants’ leading receiver with 61 catches and 607 receiving yards despite missing two games with a concussion.
Linebacker Micah McFadden is also dealing with a heel injury.
Both Nabers and McFadden are officially listed as questionable.
ESPN
NFL Week 12 picks, schedule, odds, injuries, fantasy tips
Buccaneers (4-6) at Giants (2-8)
Buccaneers storyline to watch: Bucs center Graham Barton couldn’t have put it any better: “The playoffs for us really start now.” Coming off their bye week at 4-6, having lost four straight, the Bucs are in a similar predicament as they were last season. They were able to win five out of their final six games. Barring any setbacks, wide receiver Mike Evans and cornerback Jamel Dean should return, and that should give them a boost, while the statuses of Tristan Wirfs (MCL sprain) and Zyon McCollum (hamstring) are up in the air. — Jenna Laine
Giants storyline to watch: Tommy DeVito is the Giants’ new starting quarterback in place of Daniel Jones. DeVito will be trying to rediscover the magic from last season, when he won three straight games as an undrafted free agent. He threw eight touchdown passes to just three interceptions as a rookie. But DeVito also finished with a total QBR of 26.9 as a starter, which was the worst of any qualifying quarterback from Weeks 10 to 16. He’ll have his work cut out for him after not having any reps with the first-team offense this summer and season. — Jordan Raanan
Stat to know: The Buccaneers are one of three teams in the Super Bowl era to average at least 27.9 points and be under .500. The other two teams (2016 Saints and 2016 Chargers) didn’t make the playoffs.
Injuries: Buccaneers | Giants
Fantasy X factor: Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. He could be key for the Giants with DeVito now under center. Since taking over as the lead back in Week 5, Tracy has scored 14-plus fantasy points in four of his past six games. Facing a Buccaneers defense that allows the fifth-most fantasy points to running backs, Tracy is set up for another strong performance. Expect New York to lean on him heavily. See Week 12 rankings. — Moody
Betting nugget: DeVito is 3-3 outright in his career despite being at least a 4.5-point underdog in each game. Read more.
Eagles (8-2) at Rams (5-5)
Eagles storyline to watch: The Rams are coming off only their second game of the season without a turnover. After having an NFL-low two takeaways from Weeks 1 to 7, the Eagles lead the NFL with 11 takeaways since Week 8. According to ESPN Research, Philadelphia leads the NFL with 43 points off turnovers since Week 8. — Tim McManus
Rams storyline to watch: The Eagles have leaned heavily on running back Saquon Barkley, who leads the NFL with 1,347 scrimmage yards. Players are expecting defenses to focus more on Philly’s ground game down the stretch, which would put more of the onus on quarterback Jalen Hurts and the passing game. A key matchup will be receiver A.J. Brown versus a Rams pass defense that has yielded 18 touchdown passes this season. Brown’s 88.3 receiving yards per game ranks fourth behind only Nico Collins (103.5), Ja’Marr Chase (96.0) and Justin Jefferson (91.2). — Sarah Barshop
Stat to know: The Eagles have had 150 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in five straight games. That’s the longest such streak since the 1988 Bengals (also five straight).
Fantasy X factor: Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith. Smith has been quiet lately, with only 10.3 fantasy points over the past two weeks. But don’t give up on him yet. This matchup against the Rams looks promising, and remember, Smith has hit 15-plus fantasy points in six of nine games this season. He’s poised for a bounce-back performance, and this could be the week. See Week 12 rankings. — Moody
Betting nugget: Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is 8-13 ATS as a prime-time underdog (2-4 ATS with Rams). Read more.
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Sportico
Highest-Paid Coaches 2024: Reid, Payton, Kerr on Top
The exits and a slew of new contracts meant a 50% turnover at the top of Sportico’s annual study of the highest-paid coaches in American sports and a new No. 1 in Andy Reid, replacing Belichick. In April, the Kansas City Chiefs rewarded Big Red with a five-year, $100 million contract following back-to-back Super Bowl titles and three in five years. Reid is the only NFL coach to win 100 games with two franchises, and he is on his way to a 20th playoff appearance in 26 seasons coaching the Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
Tomlin and Harbaugh both received big raises this year. Tomlin earned an estimated $12.5 million under his prior Steelers pact, but Pittsburgh extended the longtime coach for three years through the 2027 season. Tomlin is a win away from his 18th straight non-losing season since he took the Steelers job in 2007.
Harbaugh ranked 31st last year under his Michigan contract worth $8.34 million annually before incentives. After his first national championship, the Los Angeles Chargers lured the 60-year-old back to the NFL sideline with a five-year, $80 million deal. Harbaugh has won 70% of his games in four-plus years as an NFL head coach, which is better than any other NFL coach over the past 40 years. His AAV tops his brother John ($12 million), who is due a raise next year ahead of his current contract’s expiration with the Ravens following the 2025 season. Tomlin and John Harbaugh (2008) are the league’s longest-tenured coaches with one team after Belichick’s departure from New England.
ESPN
Debunking 2024 NFL myths: Chiefs, 49ers, Lamar Jackson, more
The myth: The running game is back.
When scoring was down early in the season and there was a lot of focus on two-high safety looks, there was a notion the ground game was a better option and more important than it had been in recent seasons.
Why it’s a myth: The numbers simply don’t support that premise. While teams are running at a slightly higher clip overall — 40.1% of the time, which is the highest since 2010 but only 0.3% higher than it was in 2022 — the difference in efficiency between the passing game and rushing game is actually higher in favor of passing than either of the past two seasons.
As detailed as football is, a simple and central inefficiency persists — the average dropback yields 0.07 expected points added (EPA) per play more than the average designed carry. That’s a lot. And it jumps to 0.11 on first down. Another way to think about it is every 10th time an offensive playcaller opts for a first-down run, he is shaving a point off his team’s scoring margin. — Walder
The myth: Quarterback Jayden Daniels is the Offensive Rookie of the Year.
With a 67.7 QBR that ranks fifth among all quarterbacks and the Commanders sitting at 7-4, Daniels is the prohibitive favorite for the OROY award. He currently has minus-600 odds at ESPN BET.
Why it’s a myth: Daniels is having an amazing season, but he wouldn’t get my vote right now. Dissecting this myth requires bringing diving into my worldview of “Of The Year” awards, which is that they measure performance relative to a player’s position. This contrasts the MVP award, where quarterbacks logically are almost always the deserving recipient. We shouldn’t conflate “Offensive Rookie of the Year” with “Most Valuable Rookie.”
For as good of a season as Daniels is having, Raiders tight end Brock Bowers is having a better one. While Daniels’ QBR ranks fifth-best among all rookie quarterback seasons since 2006, Bowers ranks first among all rookie tight end seasons since 2007 with a ridiculous 2.4 yards per route run. And he’s doing it with Gardner Minshew (along with Aidan O’Connell and a little Desmond Ridder) throwing him the ball. It should be Bowers’ award to lose. — Walder
The myth: Quarterback Tommy DeVito played pretty well last season, so the Giants can recapture some of his 2023 magic.
The Giants made the surprise move to skip over Drew Lock and start DeVito in Week 12 after benching Daniel Jones. New York went 3-3 in DeVito’s starts last season, when he captured the attention of a region.
Why it’s a myth: Sure, DeVito had his moments, but we can do better than quarterback wins when evaluating a player. DeVito’s numbers were not inspiring; he recorded a paltry 24 QBR, had a minus-4% completion percentage over expectation, per NFL Next Gen Stats, and a completely outrageous 16% sack rate (the average sack rate last season was 7%). I don’t see much to engender confidence except with regard to the Giants’ first-overall pick chances, which FPI increased to a league-high 19.2% after the team switched to DeVito. — Walder
Endeavor board chairman Egon Durban has a deal in place to buy 7.5 percent of the Raiders. The transaction will require WME Sports to divest itself of a football agency with clients including Joe Burrow, Justin Jefferson, and Nick Bosa. https://t.co/QTm8Zq6NE9
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) November 21, 2024
Discussion topics
Sounds like talks are happing regarding using the old logo.
Sen. talks about how the old logo has been discussed with the NFL and Commanders use of the old logo and having proceeds help the tribe whose likeness is shown with the old logo. #RaiseHail
— Commander Sean (@DMVCommanders) November 21, 2024
ESPN
Daniel Jones released: His future, potential NFL team fits
Since Jones entered the league, he is 32nd among 42 quarterbacks in both success rate and first down/touchdown rate, and he is 30th in EPA per dropback. Perhaps most concerning, he never really got better in New York. His 0.11 EPA per dropback in his rookie season was exceeded only once — his 2022 season. He leaves New York as largely the same guy he entered it — a big-bodied passer without big throws in his bag and some escapability but not enough to eliminate bad sacks from his game.
Jones will be 28 years old next season, still young enough that you can expect his mobility to remain a big part of his game for the next few seasons. He’ll be as old with his next team as Baker Mayfield was when he joined the Buccaneers, and I can’t help but wonder if Jones’ career will follow the same arc. Mayfield bounced from the Panthers to the Rams before he ended up the bridge starter for the Bucs, but when he finally landed in Tampa Bay, he had multiple quality pass catchers, a great offensive line and an ascendant playcaller in Dave Canales. He took the lessons learned from a rocky first tenure in Cleveland and became a totally fine starter worthy of a midtier quarterback contract.
There are a few spots that make sense for Jones in the long-term. The Jets will likely have a quarterback opening next season, as will the Steelers and maybe even the Browns. But none of those teams is in a position to sign a QB now and give him snaps this year. So if Jones wants to sign somewhere that can give him reps in 2024, he’ll have to target a different sort of team — namely, one that’s pretty bad.
I’m not sure that it behooves Jones to sign with a team and look for snaps this season. He’ll be hugely behind the curve of the offense, likely throwing to bad receivers and playing behind a bad O-line, and the locker room might be checked out altogether. But if he wants it, here’s my list of 2024 teams that make sense for Jones to join once he clears waivers Monday.
Carolina Panthers
Canales is credited with authoring the recovery of Mayfield — whose career Jones is now attempting to model — so it seems only appropriate that Carolina gets a mention here. If the Panthers are wholly out on Bryce Young as a future starter (a fair assessment), then they might need a veteran quarterback to tie them over until their next rookie draft pick.
Tennessee Titans
The Titans are in a similar spot to the Panthers. There’s a little more hope for Will Levis, but Tennessee should and will be investigating all quarterback options this offseason. If the Titans want to bring Jones in as a potential veteran bridge, they can sign him now and potentially give him a start or two down the stretch once they’re mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders clearly do not view Gardner Minshew as a long-term option, or even an acceptable short-term placeholder. They’ve benched him three times on the season and are still playing him only because they have no better options (Aidan O’Connell is on injured reserve). If Jones’ goal is to cash in quickly on a desperate team, I can easily see the Raiders giving Jones a contract now and extending him on a veteran deal similar to the one they just gave Minshew.
Jacksonville Jaguars
It looks increasingly unlikely that Trevor Lawrence (shoulder) will play again for the Jaguars this season, as their year is basically over and coaching staff changes are on the horizon. Mac Jones has done little to establish himself as a quality QB2 in Jacksonville, so the Jags would be wise to give Daniel Jones his reps. It could help Doug Pederson audition for new jobs just as it would help Daniel Jones audition for his own.