The NFL never sleeps. It especially doesn’t sleep when the NFL Playoffs gets down to four teams, the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Green Bay Packers. While those teams prepare for championship battles on Sunday, other teams have made moves to ready themselves for next season. Check out the latest NFL news so you can continue making your bets against their NFL odds.
NFL Rumors & Betting News January 19th Edition
Jacksonville Jaguars hire Urban Meyer as head coach
On one hand, this doesn’t make sense. Meyer quit coaching Ohio State, his supposedly dream job, citing health reasons. He also quit Florida, where he was the only coach in the SEC who could hang with Alabama, after citing health reasons.
The NFL is a much more cortisol producing league than the SEC or Big Ten. The one thing Meyer does bring to the table is an uncanny ability to get the most possible from quarterbacks. The key for Jacksonville was to hire a coach who could convince Trevor Lawrence to play for the franchise.
Lawrence will be the number one pick. Meyer will calm Trevor with his very first phone call. In fact, we can pretty much assume that Urban has already had one or two conversations with Clemson coach Dabo Sweeney. If the goal with hiring Meyer is to get the most out of Lawrence, the move could be a Jaguars’ touchdown.
Jets go with Robert Saleh while Chargers roll with Brandon Staley
The New York Jets and Los Angeles Chargers went defense with their head coach hires.
Robert Saleh built a devastating, effective, Super Bowl defense while in San Francisco. The Jets get a no nonsense guy who will ensure his players give it their all even if they’re overmatched on the field. That’s the good news. The bad news? The Jets require a reworked offensive line, a decision on whether to stick with Sam Darnold, and players for Saleh’s defense to work.
The Chargers also grabbed a defensive-minded coach. Brandon Staley mustn’t even change addresses to coach the Bolts. Staley comes from the Los Angeles Rams where he developed one of the most fearsome defenses in football.
The Bolts aren’t far from contending. The offense is set with Justin Herbert under center. Derwin James is one of the best strong safeties in football. If Joey Bosa comes back one-hundred percent, Staley could find success right away. With Bosa at full strength, the defense could dominate.
Falcons land Arthur Smith
One of the hottest head coaching prospects was Arthur Smith. The Atlanta Falcons hired Smith to coach an offense that should be much better than it was.
Smith turned Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry into two of the best at their position. The Titans averaged close to 30 points this season, which is why so many teams wanted Smith as their HC. The question in Atlanta is whether Arthur Blank wants Smith to repair the offense with Matt Ryan and Julio Jones, or if he wants Smith to go after a quarterback in the draft.
Justin Fields, Zach Wilson, Trey Lance, and Mac Jones are all first round material. All four have the ability to excel in Smith’s system. The Falcons pick fourth, which means Zach Wilson, BYU’s signal-caller, could be there for the taking.
Heck, Wilson or Fields could be available depending on what the Jets do with the second pick. Before signing his contract, Smith no doubt discussed the quarterback options with Blank. So it will be interesting to see if Ryan and Jones are with the team come April.
Chiefs could be without Patrick Mahomes on Sunday
The best player in the NFL suffered a concussion. Patrick Mahomes may or may not play on Sunday. Mahomes got hit and had to leave the divisional win against the Cleveland Browns.
If Mahomes doesn’t go, Chad Henne will start in his place. Henne made the key play, a run, to get the first down that sealed the victory over Cleveland. Henne has enough experience to make the Chiefs favorites on Sunday.
Let’s not kid ourselves, though. Buffalo is on fire. The Bills have won 11-of-12. The defense kept the Ravens out of the end zone and will be fired up no matter who is under center for the Chiefs. Keep a lookout on Patrick’s status before making your AFC Championship bet.
Deshaun Watson is ready to get out of Houston
The Texans have fumbled their head coaching search already. That could explain why Deshaun Watson appears ready to demand a trade.
Houston didn’t ask for Watson’s input when they hired Nick Caserio as their general manager. The Texans have said that they want Deshaun’s input on hiring the next head coach. If that’s the case, they had better get a commitment from Eric Bienemy as soon as possible.
Beinemy runs the Kansas City Chiefs’ offense. He’s the best fit for Deshaun and the quarterback knows it. If Houston doesn’t hire Bienemy, expect Watson to ask for a trade to the Dolphins.
Miami will be hard-pressed to not accept a trade for Deshaun Watson. Although Tua Tagovailoa showed signs, the Dolphins want to win a Super Bowl. Watson is a Super Bowl caliber quarterback.
The Fins have the third pick, which is why they’ve become the favorites to land Deshaun if the QB wants out of Houston. By trading the third pick for Watson, the Texans could draft Deshaun’s replacement. Other teams that may be interested are the Carolina Panthers and the New York Jets.
No matter where Deshaun goes he figures to have success. He’s that good. No matter what Houston does, they may never find success. Some teams are destined to be losers.
The Texans may be one of those teams. How a franchise with the best defensive player in the league, J.J. Watt, the best wide receiver in the league, DeAndre Hopkins, and one of the top five quarterbacks in the NFL, Deshaun Watson, does nothing is beyond us.
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