Welcome to Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season. In our weekly NFL News and Rumors column, we’ll take you behind the scenes on developments around the league when it comes to player personnel, contracts, and other important developments.
Week 1 NFL News and Rumors
Carolina Panthers
2019 first-round OLB Brian Burns, who earned Pro Bowl selections the past two seasons, is not close on a contract extension with the team, a source with knowledge of the situation told Pro Football Network.
While it’s not known exactly how much money Burns is asking for on an average per year basis (APY), it’s widely expected in NFL personnel circles that 49ers star pass rusher Nick Bosa could command as much as $30 million per season or more once his extension is completed.
No edge rusher currently will earn over $28.2 million on a yearly basis. Steelers OLB T.J. Watt signed a four-year, $112.6 million extension about two years ago (Sep. 10, 2021).
Where would Burns fit in on a salary basis?
“If Bosa gets $30 (million), Burns should reasonably be asking for $25-$27 (million) a season. He’s not in (Browns DE) Myles Garrett’s league, but that deal was done a long time ago,” a veteran NFL player agent who has represented several pass rushers in the past recently told Pro Football Network.
Garrett, arguably the NFL’s best pass rusher, signed a five-year, $125 million ($25 million per season) deal over three years ago (July 16, 2020).
Burns, known in personnel circles as one of the NFL’s best speed rushers, is thought to be a perfect fit for the Panthers’ defensive conversion this season to a 3-4 front.
Shaq Thompson says everybody understands what Brian Burns is worth, including Panthers’ front office. pic.twitter.com/9WdvdiDMK7
— Joe Person (@josephperson) September 4, 2023
Detroit Lions
When the team selected former Alabama RB Jahmyr Gibbs with the first of their two first-round picks, it came to a fairly big surprise to some in personnel sources from other teams since the Lions already signed veteran RB David Montgomery in free agency.
Montgomery, who signed a three-year, $18 million deal with $8.75 million fully guaranteed, will be the starter, so why draft Gibbs?
A source with knowledge of the situation said the Lions don’t look at Gibbs as just a running back, rather they view him as a multipurpose offensive player.
MORE: Best Running Backs in the NFL 2023
Several teams Pro Football Network talked to leading up to this year’s NFL Draft had a first-round grade on Gibbs, but the question with some teams was whether he could be an every down back. The Lions clearly aren’t concerned about that since they have a clear plan in mind — and that’s to take advantage of his obvious skill set.
Gibbs, who caught 104 passes during his three college seasons (two with Georgia Tech and one with Alabama), offers something that Montgomery doesn’t — that’s raw speed (4.36 40-yard dash during the NFL Combine).
Jahmyr Gibbs: Run. Catch. Block. Repeat… at a high level. #OnePride pic.twitter.com/ozdIzABSfg
— Woodward Sports Network (@woodwardsports) August 31, 2023
Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who enters his second full season calling the plays, was asked about the test this week’s opponent (Kansas City Chiefs) will present Gibbs and Montgomery, who are playing together for the first time.
“I think we’ve seen within our own setting — I think we’ve seen a lot of them and we know what we’re going to expect out of both those guys. I think they are very — yes, they are complementary backs. What (Montgomery) does well, Gibbs might not do as well and vice versa, but I think they both are very versatile, so we might use Gibbs in some ways that people don’t quite think we might or Montgomery the same way.
“I’m really excited to see what they can do out on the field here this week, but we’re going to use them all over the place.”
In addition to Gibbs, the team has big plans in mind for another rookie.
Second-round pick S Brian Branch was quickly installed as the team’s nickel defender early in training camp and because of that, veteran DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson is slated to just play safety this season.
Gardner-Johnson, who signed a one-year, $6.5 million deal back in March, played safety last season with the Philadelphia Eagles for the first time since his college days (2016-2018 Florida).
Gardner-Johnson was known in personnel circles as one of the best nickel defenders in the NFL prior his trade from the New Orleans Saints to the Eagles right before the start of last season.
A source with knowledge of the situation said that Branch has been so impressive that despite his lack of speed, Branch showed he could easily transition to outside cornerback if need be.
Branch dropped out of the first round mainly due to a slow 40-yard dash time (4.58) during this year’s NFL Combine, but looked very smooth during training camp practices in coverage, which gives the team the belief he could play on the outside if called upon to do so.
Also in the defensive backfield, the team surprisingly decided to activate veteran CB Emmanuel Moseley off the active/PUP list last week.
Around the middle of August, a source with knowledge of the situation said it seemed inevitable that Moseley, who was coming back from a torn ACL suffered with the San Francisco 49ers last season during their Week 5 game against the host Carolina Panthers, would remain on PUP to start the season, which would put him out at least four games. He had not practiced since last October with the 49ers.
However, Moseley, who signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the Lions, made strong progress over the last few weeks, which gave the team the belief that he was ready to start practicing. Players on the reserve/PUP list are prohibited from practicing.
Moseley practiced for the first time with the team last Friday and took in limited work on Monday.
Pittsburgh Steelers
While very few players released last week around the NFL came to a surprise after teams pared their active rosters to 53 players, there was one move that actually shocked some personnel sources.
And that one was when the Houston Texans decided to part ways with veteran CB Desmond King.
“That one seemed to come out of left field, at least to us,” an NFL scouting source said this past weekend. “He was one of the highest graded nickels we saw (on tape last season).”
Desmond King II on joining the #Steelers: "It's like a dream come true." pic.twitter.com/CYcYgppwtH
— Steelers Live (@SteelersLive) September 4, 2023
King, now in his seventh season in the NFL, originally signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Texans in March of 2021 and because he played so well, the team re-signed him for two years and $7 million ($3.5 million fully guaranteed) the following March.
Yet, despite playing well last season and having the ability to play inside or outside at cornerback, the Texans decided to cut the veteran defensive back.
The Steelers already have two players who are capable of handling the team’s nickel role (Elijah Riley and Chandon Sullivan), so it’s possible that the team plays King on the outside where the team lacks enough depth.
A source with knowledge of the situation said that seventh-round rookie CB Cory Trice, who wound up suffering a torn ACL during a training camp practice in early August, was doing exceptionally well and was a leading candidate to be one of the team’s top backup outside players at the position.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Heading into this year’s NFL Combine during the first week of March, former Syracuse RB Sean Tucker was given fourth and fifth-round grades from teams Pro Football Network spoke with about the rookie runner.
However, due to a heart condition discovered during a physical taken that week in Indianapolis, Tucker wound up not being drafted and there were questions as to whether or not he would be cleared to play this season.
One college scouting source from an AFC team, who turned in a fourth-round grade, said Tucker “has outstanding straight line speed, but runs a little upright and probably fits in as No. 2 at our level.”
Players given fourth-round grades by teams are generally seen as high-end backups or low-end starters, according to the scouting source.
The good news is Tucker would wind up eventually being cleared medically to practice by the Buccaneers medical staff and he signed a three-year deal worth $2.7 million with $155,000 fully guaranteed. And $150,000 of his $750,000 salary this season is fully guaranteed.
The guaranteed amount, which is strong for an undrafted free agent, clearly shows the confidence that the Buccaneers front office has in Tucker to add something to the running back room.
Word around the team is that Tucker, from the very start of training camp, steadily improved and he easily won a roster spot.
And someone who had watched him closely in training camp has seen Tucker’s talent on display.
“Juice. Youth. This is a young man’s game. You get that young, hungry rookie back,” new offensive coordinator Dave Canales said late last month after being asked during a media session about what Tucker brings to the team’s offense.
“We’ve had a ton of them in Seattle and he’s the next one up,” Canales added. “Rachaad [White] is obviously young, too. He’s lively and it feels like he’s making more than what’s there on checkdowns, on runs. I’m excited about what he’s going to bring to us.”
On Monday, Canales, who is calling plays for the first time in his coaching career, was asked about if he prefers using multiple backs and who he considers to be No. 2 on the depth chart.
“It’s by committee. I think [RBs coach] Skip [Peete] has done this everywhere he has been going way back to the Oakland Raiders. He had Tyrone Wheatley and he had a bunch of other guys. And then, of course more recently in Dallas, he had Zeke (Ezekiel Elliott) and Tony Pollard, so I know he is going to use guys. I don’t feel like we’re in as unique of a
situation as Dallas where you have two really top-tier backs.”
While White is the clear starter, Canales knows the other players on the depth chart bring something to the table.
“I think we have a really fantastic back (White) and I think we have a bunch of good backs, so I think they can kind of platoon that. I think there’s more to learn about just how we use Rachaad on third down, and [are] there other guys who can have a role, [who] can do some of the same things?
“Chase [Edmonds], I know, can do some of the pass game stuff where I feel like Sneak (fourth-year RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn) and Sean have a lot of value on first and second down as runners, but so does Chase. There is still a lot of stuff that I’m really not sure about to get the full complement of who [our] backfield is in a game-type of situation.
“You’d love to see to have the freshest back in — I do know that.”
Tucker was listed by the team as No. 2 on the depth chart for this week’s game against the host Minnesota Vikings, but those are unofficial.
Tennessee Titans
Rookie Titans QB Will Levis, who missed the team’s final two preseason games, has been dealing with a quadriceps injury.
However, the second-round pick is said to be doing well of late and could wind up handling the No. 2 job at the position as early as this week’s game against the host New Orleans Saints over second-year QB Malik Willis.
During his media session on Monday, head coach Mike Vrabel was asked what he wanted to see from the backup quarterbacks before making a decision on who will handle the backup role to starter Ryan Tannehill.
“I think a lot of it is based on the game plan, about how we feel like who would step in there and help us,” Vrabel said. “Will has been out a little bit, but excited to get him back this week and continue with Malik’s maturity, and we’ll kind of see where it goes at the end of the week.”
Tannehill is in the final year of his four-year, $118 million extension that he signed with the Titans in March of 2020 and Levis is widely looked upon as his potential successor.
