Arrowheadlines: Chiefs made one of the worst moves of the offseason according to writer

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Ranking the 7 Worst Decisions of the 2023 NFL Offseason | Bleacher Report

5. Kansas City Chiefs Overpay OT Jawaan Taylor

Jawaan Taylor—who ranked 65th among all tackles graded by PFF last season and gave up five sacks with seven penalties—will be the second-highest-paid right tackle in the league next season.

According to Spotrac, Lane Johnson is the only right tackle who tops the $20 million annual average value that Taylor’s four-year, $80 million contract will pay him.

It’s a move that certainly doesn’t represent good value and is hard to make sense of.

Taylor certainly has some upside. He’s only 25 years old, has 35” arms to go with a 6’5”, 312-pound frame and enough athleticism to believe that he hasn’t hit his ceiling yet.

He’s going to have to find that ceiling in a hurry, though, to be worth the money the Chiefs are paying him.

This deal made a little more sense when it was initially believed that Taylor would be making the switch to left tackle. Although having two good tackles has become increasingly important, left tackles still usually command a little more money.

But that move has been nixed already. Nate Taylor of The Athletic reported that Andy Reid announced that fellow free-agent pickup Donovan Smith will play his natural position of left tackle while Taylor will move back over to the right.

Meanwhile, Orlando Brown Jr. signed a cheaper deal of four years and $64.1 million to go play for the Bengals, one of the Chiefs’ primary Super Bowl rivals right now.

It’s a move that doesn’t look great for Kansas City all the way around.

The most compelling game from each week of the 2023 NFL schedule | Yardbarker

Week 4: Chiefs at Jets

Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers are set to face off in what can be called the State Farm Bowl, and the game also happens to be an enticing Sunday Night Football special for NBC. Both fanbases expect big things in 2023.

The Mahomes family made an appearance the a KC Current game this weekend

2023 post-draft trade candidates: Dalvin Cook, Austin Ekeler lead options after Za’Darius Smith sent to Browns | CBS Sports

DeAndre Hopkins

ARI • WR • #10

One of the most obvious trade candidates of the offseason, Hopkins remains an elite technician when healthy, but he’s missed 15 games the last two years and is due almost $30M at age 31 this upcoming season. Kyler Murray needs weapons like anyone, but 2023 is a true transition year for Arizona as Jonathan Gannon remakes the culture. Marquise Brown is also in tow and eligible for an extension, and Hopkins, whose exit would save an instant $8.9M, still profiles as a borderline No. 1 for a contender.

Logical landing spots: Bills, Chiefs

Which NFL teams are under brightest spotlight? Most overhyped? 2023 schedule analysis | The Athletic

Worst prime-time matchups

Night games are supposed to be showdowns of the best of the best, but the schedule-makers appear to have some potential blunders on tap. Lions-Chiefs could wind up being rather lopsided in favor of Kansas City. Week 3, it’s the Steelers at the Raiders, which seems like a Sunday night snoozer. The next evening, the Eagles visit the Bucs. And in Week 8, it’s the Bucs at the Bills on Thursday night. Did the NFL forget that Tom Brady retired? Another seemingly undesirable prime-time pairing: Vikings at Broncos in Week 11.

Around the NFL

‘An amazing, amazing thing’: Bowles, 59, earns college degree | ESPN

Bowles missed the second day of Buccaneers rookie camp to attend the ceremony in Emmitsburg, Maryland, where he addressed the graduating class and earned a standing ovation from the students and faculty. Bowles earned a Bachelor of Science degree in youth and community development.

“This is an amazing, amazing thing for me to be in a class with you,” he told the students. “I’m more nervous now than I ever was speaking in a locker room at halftime.”

Dolphins signing former Patriots first-round draft pick Isaiah Wynn to a one-year deal, per report | CBS Sports

The Miami Dolphins needed to improve their offensive front this offseason, and to try and do so they are bringing in a former rival who has experience playing in a couple different positions. Per NFL Media, the Dolphins are signing former New England Patriots offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn to a one-year deal.

Wynn was selected by New England with the No. 23 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Georgia. He missed his entire rookie season due to a torn Achilles, but returned and started at left tackle in 2019. Over the last four years, Wynn has also played left guard and right tackle. While Wynn brings some versatility, injuries have been an issue. In addition to the torn Achilles, Wynn has also dealt with a foot injury and knee injury. He has never played a full season, appearing in a total of 43 games in five years.

XFL Championship Game 2023 score, takeaways: Huge ‘dog Renegades stun D.C. behind MVP Luis Perez, Bob Stoops | CBS Sports

Why the Renegades won

Luis Perez played his best game of the season in just his sixth start for the Renegades, completing 26 of 36 passes for 288 yards and three touchdowns — capping a postseason in which he finished with six touchdown passes in two games. The Renegades’ scores on their first five possessions of the game against the league’s top defense, as Perez threw two touchdown passes during the stretch to give Arlington a 26-12 lead over D.C.

Perez was able to beat Defenders defensive coordinator Gregg Williams’ blitzes throughout the night, which led to the Renegades surpassing 26 points for the first time this season.

DE Shane Ray, out of NFL since 2019, signs with Bills | ESPN

Ray was picked 23rd overall by the Denver Broncos in the 2015 draft out of Missouri and played four seasons for the Broncos. He played in 49 games, starting 15, with 14 career sacks, 94 tackles and 33 quarterback hits. He was on the Broncos team that won Super Bowl 50, forcing a fumble in the game. Beginning in 2017, Ray dealt with a left wrist injury and subsequent surgeries.

“Words can’t describe the emotions I’m feeling right now. So many tears, sleepless nights, depression, everything that comes with losing the game. So many days of having nothing but hope while fighting a uphill battle,” Ray wrote Saturday on his Instagram account.

In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride

Why Chamarri Conner’s rookie contract cost $200K against the salary cap

As Wilson explained, the total contract is worth almost $4.6 million — including a signing bonus of just a bit more than $751,000.

It’s a standard contract for an NFL rookie. In each of its four years, Conner will earn a base salary that is the league minimum for a player of his experience: $750,000 in 2023, $915,000 in 2024, $1,030,000 in 2025 and $1,145,000 in 2026.

So in each one of those seasons, Conner’s cap hit will consist of that base salary plus the pro-rated portion of his signing bonus ($751,368 divided by four): $187,842. That makes his 2023 cap hit $937,842.

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