Fear The Chorizo

With their schedule I thought the Jets would be fortunate to win 9-11 games with a healthy Rodgers and their really good defense. Without him they're not finishing over 0.500 despite Buffalo laying an egg and gifting them a win in Week 1. I can easily see them being 1-7 or 2-6 by the time mid-November rolls around.

I think they have to stick with Wilson for now, and if he craters the team over the next few weeks then you try bringing in a veteran street FA (Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, perhaps?), or trade for a backup from somewhere else at the deadline that might have some longterm upside for the organization...Trey Lance?

Agreed...but he'd have basically a full calendar year, and he would probably know by the end of this season if playing next September could happen or not. It's not like he blew it out in mid-november If he played any other position than qb, I'd say he's absolutely done. But an Achilles on his non-plant leg? I could see him returning next fall (or at least giving rehab a go long enough to determine if it's realistic or not)

Saleh all but confirmed a ruptured Achilles in his postgame presser...so that probably puts the snap tracker stuff to bed, because Rodgers' season is done before it really even started. 2nd round pick in next year's draft it is then, right? Given his age, I'd imagine the start of 2024 season would actually be an optimistic timeline for Rodgers to be back on the field - and even if that happens I'd imagine his mobility will be dramatically diminished.

By the look of it, the Bills ain't all that either this season...Allen played awful against a good but not that kinda good Jets D, but holy cow that is a painful loss for Buffalo. Allen made some terrible throws into coverage to keep the game close in the 2nd half, then Wilson made a great catch in the end zone. I think all 4 of Allen's turnovers (3INTs and 1 fumbled snap) had nothing to do with the defense forcing them. Guessing results of further testing (which has probably already been done and the Jets know it internally), is going to be a sucker punch for Jets fans tomorrow morning after hearing the initial word that xrays were negative (for a broken ankle). Watching the replay, there's no ankle roll associated with a sprain/dislocation, but it definitely looks like a tendon (Achilles or other) gave way on that left leg. Saw a post from Bakhtiari blaming the NFL for another player injured on artificial turf...I get that it's his best buddy, but that type of injury happens on all kinds of playing surfaces with a near 40 yr old getting that kind of weight applied to a leg he's trying to push away from a defender at just the wrong time.

Sounds like x-rays were negative, but him walking around the locker room in a boot to me indicates one of those high ankle varieties or a significant low ankle ligament-stretcher/dislocation that's got him out a month+.

In looking at the first 11 weeks of their schedule, if Rodgers is out for any length of time it's going to be a very, very high 2nd round pick. With a healthy Rodgers playing well, I thought the Jets were around a 0.500 football team this season based on their tough schedule - without him (especially early), heads are going to roll in Jets-land. Either way, it's refreshing watching the drama unfold for a team in green and white instead of green and gold

That's fantastic, lol

I think the only way this nfl opening weekend would be sweeter for me is if the Bills demolish the Jets tomorrow night and the NY media jump into a September tizzy for firing their whole front office.

So much of it is the Bears having the wrong people trying to develop Fields, and them having a garbage OL...but yeah, I've never thought of Fields as a franchise-altering quarterback.

I've long thought Fields isn't accurate enough to play quarterback at a high NFL level against defenses who play coverage, and he likely will never have a receiver room more talented than who he was throwing to at OSU against ovrrmatched collegiate secondaries. Nothing Fields has done in the NFL has made me change my opinion of that.

Compared two the two prior week 1 performances, I'd say there's something to be said for having your starters play some in the preseason together... I know it's the Bears and there was a reason why they had rights to the top overall pick, but what a fantastic way to start the season. And in case people didn't remember, Walker is an absolute freak athlete!

would love to see a 3 up, 3 down 1st inning from Freddy to get the offense back up and try to put this game out of reach right away.

Besides Suzuki and Swanson, who are pricey free agent additions last offseason, the other "floor" guys were internal draft picks or international signings from a long time ago (Alzolay, 2013 int'l signing, Steele 2014 draft pick, Happ 2015 draft, Morel 2015 int'l signing, Hoerner 2018 draft),., That's not really leveraging spending power - maybe retaining Happ through his early 30s at market rate contract values is, but I'm not going to lose sleep about a rival paying $20M a year for a corner OF to OPS mid-upper 700s . For perspective, Corbin Burnes was drafted in 2016 and he's 1 year shy of free agency. Steele (same age as Burnes) was drafted 2 seasons earlier than him and hasn't yet entered arbitration. The Cubs can throw money at more problems than the Brewers ever will be able to - but to me they're a team caught in between rebuilding/contending and will continue to be for awhile.

Record: 11-6 Will we make the playoffs? yes - NFC North Champs. Offensive MVP: Love Offensive Most Improved Player: Watson/Love Offensive Rookie of the Year: Reed. Most Receiving Yards: Watson Most Rushing Yards: Jones. Most TDs total (rushing or receiving): Watson Love's QB line: Rating, Yards, TDs, INTs: 95, 3750, 28, 15 Defensive MVP: Clark Defensive Most Improved Player: Walker. Defensive Rookie of the Year: Valentine Most Sacks: Smith. Most INTs: Douglas Carlson's FG%: 75% Others: The Packers' D finally emerges as the strength of this roster and gives Love cushion to get his feet wet as a starter. Watson has a monster 2nd season, and Green Bay becomes a top 5 rushing offense in the NFL for the first time in forever. My rosy record prediction is based on optimistic health of O line and key defensive players throughout the season, the Packers having a 3rd place schedule for a change, and the other teams in their division not being ready to make a strong case as being much more talented or ready to win consistently. This is a solid roster, if Love shows he can be a viable starting NFL quarterback they are going to win a bunch of games early.

Disagree...there is never a good thing about the Cubs!

A contender for what? A marginal shot at winning the 2nd weakest division in baseball? The Cubs are having a decent season and have an improved farm system (really nowhere for that to go but up based on where it was a couple years ago), but for a large market team playing in a small market division I don't see them being in a great spot for consistent success longterm. They somehow have a payroll pushing $200M dollars with a roster loaded up with those spare parts/young nobody-types. Happ is going to go from an $11M salary this year to $20M, will the Cubs exercise the $14M option for Hendricks next year? Bellinger is a pending FA assuming he doesn't agree to that mutual 2024 option and I think the Cubs may throw way more $$ than they should to keep him around. Taillon is in year one of a 4 year contract that looks brutal based on his near 6 ERA this season. Their best starter, Steele, isn't even in arbitration yet and he's 28 and about to log a ton more innings than he ever has in his career...his agent is going to be demanding some sort of longterm contract extension, or at minimum his payroll hit will be climbing rapidly each of the next 4 seasons. Of course, the Cubs can afford payroll bumps more than the Brewers - but they are still a team that should be in rebuild/retool mode looking for better longterm options at a bunch of spots on their roster.

Over the last month the top nine position players have 70+ PA each. After that it is Caratini (32), Wiemer (32), Tellez (24), Anderson (16), Miller (3). I get Caratini's ABs are limited as Burnes' personal catcher and with Contreras playing so well, and Rowdy just got back - so those guys aren't included in what I'm about to say... Maybe the top 9 position players have so many more PAs than Wiemer, Anderson, and Miller because those 3 shouldn't be on the MLB roster, and that's been the case now for quite some time? The Brewers are rolling with 14 pitchers, one of them being completely underserving of a roster spot, along with 14 position players - three of which really don't see much of any playing time that leads to getting steady at bats. The current rules force the Brewers to "only" carry 14 pitchers on the active 28 man roster, otherwise their current 40 man limitations would probably have them carrying 15 or even 16. Because of that, the Brewers have an expanded September roster that winds up leading to bad late game decisions because it handcuffed with a useless reliever and 3 position players who aren't hitting that are still on the MLB roster because the 40 man construction is a mess. Why Wiemer hasn't been sent down at any point since the end of the trade deadline is kind of bonkers - he plays really good defense but Taylor and Frelick are fine defensive OFs, too - and they've been hitting. Canha has come on offensively so he takes some corner OF playing time too. There are better options to improve the MLB active roster internally that would require some 40 man roster shuffling the Brewers seem deadset on avoiding. And that's not including adding prospects to the 40 man for the 1st time in their careers and starting their service clocks. It is what it is and my frustration won't change that. Looks like Julio, Small and JBB all pitched at Nashville tonight so maybe Eric gets the call back up. Only other pitcher on the 40 man is Junk. Why not Toro, or DFA Winker and add Donaldson or Hiura to the 40 man - why does it need to be Lauer, who isn't pitching well in AAA to replace a different bad pitcher when they have an off day after tomorrow's game? They'll need all the pitching they can get down the stretch, but they could DFA Anderson, Miller, and/or others to bolster the pen once Ashby or Houser are ready to return.

Yes there is - they just chose not to give Hiura an opportunity to do so because they torched through his options like a kid in a candy store the last few years. I liked the Santana trade because of concerns with Rowdy at the time and was ok with acquiring Canha despite strongly feeling like the Brewers could have gotten the same offensive production from Hiura. I didn't feel like either move should have prevented the Brewers from getting Hiura back up to the Majors in early August. but I digress... The main issue I have is the Brewers' insistence for their expanded 28 man roster having to include 14 pitchers when they don't have 14 arms worthy of pitching in the majors currently on the 40 man due to IL/rehabs (Teheran, Ashby, Houser, Lauer, etc) or a reluctance to add worthy prospects to the 40 man for the first time (Gasser) while keeping Winker on the 40 man in quasi rehab stint/IL purgatory, where this zero chance of him contributing anything positive to the MLB club. By taking that approach the Brewers wind up with a trashfire at the end of their pen for a handful of important early September games that does them more harm than good - maybe not directly in the W/L column but unnecessary use of key relievers at a time when extra rest for them is crucial. That active roster spot would be much better served during this stretch that had enough off days to rest arms for a 15th position player that would provide more value to the MLB club than a mop up guy who can't be counted on to mop up. Have to think Ashby might be in line for a callup if he's healthy after another rehab appearance or two to solidify the pen during this upcoming stretch of games - at least to provide a guy you know can get outs in lower leverage situations while he rounds into form. This doesn't even factor in Donaldson, who really hasn't done much in a few games at AAA while Monasterio has been hitting better.

Hopefully Clayton Andrews is eager to help the Sounds' playoff push, and hopefully he's back with the team down in AAA before their current game even ends. No good reason whatsoever for him to stay up

One of those series where taking 2 of 3 is more than fine for the standings but might still feel disappointing...huge pitching advantages all 3 games.

Honestly I'd rather the Cubs win today to keep the Reds at arms length...better for the brewers for neither of those two teams to get white hot so they both can't make up ground as the calendar churns through september

no freebies Devin - too much HR pop in this lineup

Saw that - but he did his job and most of that was probably blowing off steam instead of going after his teammate for blowing that play...just giving Miller a little reminder that he got the best of him.

I guess that's the optimal outcome with a team who values defensive versatility out of the DH position on the roster... Good takes from Wiemer that AB