Dreams End Tonight

This might be the final preseason game tonight for the Pats and other teams around the NFL, but it's very important for players fighting for a roster spot.

Each team will release 37 to get down to the 53 man roster by 4pm Saturday. Some will keep their career alive by getting on the practice squad. The rest will become "street" players. They will hang on to their dream, but the call might never come for their services.

For many players tonight, this is the last game of their career. They will get released and not get signed by another team. They will never play again.

Jacoby's Night

Pats QB Jacoby Brissette will start for the Pats tomorrow night in the final preseason game against the Giants. The goal for both teams is to not lose more players to season-ending injuries.

Is this the final game for Jacoby? Will Coach Belichick carry three quarterbacks on the 53 man roster? He values every roster spot.

They might need to keep three quarterbacks when you consider that Brady is 40. I think he makes the roster if he has a huge game.

Raising The Dollar Bar

In this day of NFL contracts, it's hard to figure how much money Lions QB Matthew Stafford will ultimately collect on his massive $135 million contract. He will have an average annual salary of $27 million.

This is great news to all players in the league. It will drive up the value of the franchise tag. Everyone wants to make more money. This will help.

Another Torn ACL

DE Derek Rivers was expected to contribute to the Pats this year. The 3rd round pick from Youngstown State was having a good camp until he suffered a torn ACL during a joint practice with the Houston Texans.

Players are being injured at an alarming rate around the league. Rivers was hurt during a kickoff drill. Every day, we are hearing of players being placed on IR and there is still one preseason game left.

When teams make their final cuts, more players will be ruled out for the season due to injury.

Opportunity From Julian

Players fighting for a roster spot are really only concerned about themselves and rightfully so. They can talk the team's rhetoric, but they are not guaranteed a future with them.

Injuries to starters provide opportunities for others. We are seeing that with Julian Edelman. Someone needs to take his place. Who will it be?

He probably saved the careers of two players who were about to be cut. It happens on every team.

Meaningless Games In 2017

The injury to Julian Edelman is one more example of the dangers of preseason games. They are a necessary evil for all teams. They are the best way to evaluate players and get the team ready for the season.

Once again, we will hear talk about having fewer of them. The owners would like to give up two, but extend the regular season to 18 games. Rosters would need to be expanded and rules changed for injured players.

The Giants had a scare with Odell Beckham for a knee injury he sustained. It happens to every team.

In the end, money will guide any changes.

What Happened To Edelman

It's never going to be good when a player limps off the field with a knee injury and then gets carted to the locker room.

Such was the fate of Julian Edleman tonight after catching three passes for 52 yards in the team's first offensive series against the Lions.

We can only speculate what happened.

It's About His Play

QB Colin Kaepernick continues to be controversial while he remains unemployed. Some fans have demonstrated outside of NFL headquarters in New York City and called for some team to give him an opportunity. They cite his statistics compared to other quarterbacks.

Several players, as well as team officials, have said that Kaepernick didn't play well enough to get another chance. They brushed off his protesting during the national anthem.

They make a good point. With the shortage of good quarterbacks in the NFL, Kaepernick would have a job if a team believed in him. He faces a question of his skills and ability. The same happened to Tim Tebow.

Don't Predict The Roster

So many members of the local media are trying to predict the final 53 man roster and the 10 on the practice squad for the Pats.

Draft picks and undrafted ones will make the roster and have an impact on the season.

The initial 53 and 10 is only a starting point. Players will be cut or go on IR. A trade might even be made.

Odell's Insurance

Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr is boring fans with his talk of wanting to be the highest paid player in the NFL. He wants a new contract before the start of the season. The Giants would be fools to empty the vault for him.

Beckham had a big scare the other night when he took a low hit to his ankle. The worst was feared at first. Being out for the season could cost him a ton of money.

He has contemplated taking out a $100 million insurance policy if he doesn't get a new contract. It might not be a bad idea.

Roger's Payday

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell got a five year contract extension that will keep him around until 2024. Last year, he made $32 million in compensation. It's not a bad deal for a guy who is making tons of money for the owners.

He makes a lot of decisions that don't make people happy. He is great at taking the heat for the owners.They have no desire to get rid of him.

His real challenge will come in 2021 when CBA expires.

Watch For 2021

The NFL CBA doesn't expire until 2021, but one of the top officials of the NFLPA said that there is a great likelihood of a player strike or lockout by owners.

The agreement signed in 2011 after a 132 day lockout was to guarantee satisfaction on both sides, but players want to discuss some issues if given the opportunity.

It doesn't look like the owners want to talk any time soon. They are making too much money and don't want to give the players a bigger slice of the revenue.

One Back Will Not Be Back

Some players fight for roster spots their entire career. Their place on the team is never secure. RB Brandon Bolden is trying to extend his career into a sixth year.

The competition is tough between the six backs. The team will most likely only keep five. Newly signed free agents Mike Gillislee and Rex Burkhead look to be safe. James White is a lock. it comes down to Bolden, Dion Lewis and D.J. Foster for the final two spots.

One of them will not be on the opening day roster.

The Rush To Cut

Coach Belichick made a great point to the media today. Teams have until 4pm on Saturday, Sept 2nd to get down to their 53 man roster. They can carry 90 players until then.

BB mentioned preparing for the Thursday night's opening game against the Chiefs on the 7th. There isn't much time between the cuts and getting a roster together for the first game. Other teams have until the following Sunday to make roster decisions.

It sounds like he might trim players before it's necessary. It allows the coaching staff to game-plan better. The players who are cut have a better chance of hooking up with a team.

The roster will keep changing throughout the season.

The Big Shadow

We always hear stories of athletes who need to decide between two sports. Like Tom Brady, they drafted by the NFL and MLB.

Tyler Griffey, son of Hall of Fame baseball player Ken Griffey decided to pursue football in spite of being drafted by the Seattle Mariners as a center fielder in the 24th round of the 2016 baseball draft.

His name was never called on NFL draft day. He was able to sign with the Colts, but got injured and released. He has a chance now with the Dolphins.

His career at Arizona showed impressive numbers, but he needs to separate himself from other receivers.

Does he get these opportunities because of his name and lineage?

He's living his dream right now.

Odell's Price Tag

New York Giants owner John Mara has publicly gushed about Odell Beckham Jr and how he is such a wonderful player.

Those words might come back to haunt him as Beckham has gone on record saying that he wants to be the highest paid player in the NFL.

That might be quite a reach because quarterbacks are the highest paid players by a large amount.

I think the Giants will have a final price when they negotiate with Beckham before he becomes a free agent. There is only much you can pay him without upsetting the salary structure for the entire team.

Not Standing For It

The regular season has not even started and now we are dealing with another player who sat during the National Anthem.

RB Marshawn Lynch of the Raiders made his decision the other night during the game against the Cardinals.

Will he become as controversial as Colin Kaepernick? Lynch was lured out of retirement by the Raiders. He has a spot on their roster. Kaepernick is still trying to find a job that might never be there.

2017 Roster Decisions

I think it's a great idea that teams can keep their 90 man roster until the cut down day to the final 53 and practice squad.

Some really tough decisions will need to be made. Will the Pats carry three quarterbacks? Will Jacoby Brissette become expendable? He will occupy a very important roster spot if they keep him.

Whatever the roster is after the 53 cut, is never the final roster. It changes day to day, week to week throughout the season.

Bad Game For Jones

Pats CB Cyrus Jones didn't do anything to help his chances of making the team's roster after last night's 31-24 loss to the Jaguars.

He was badly beaten on TD passes of 97 and 42 yards. He ended up doing nothing on a 79 yard TD run on his side of the filed. His return game was nonexistent.

Jones was drafted because of his return skills. Last year was a disaster for him with five fumbled kicks.

Most teams are reluctant to release a second round pick, but Jones is definitely on the bubble.

Cash For Rob

Recently retired Rob Ninkovich went through the off-season conditioning process and the team's OTA's before deciding to retire at the start of training camp.

He said it was a process that evolved until he finally made his decision. In the end, he earned his $100,000 bonus from the Pats for participating in the off-season workouts.

It's nice to get paid while deciding your future.

The Luck of Jones

Bengals CB Adam Jones is proof that talent can overcome an arrest record. It also helps if you get signed by a team that is willing to take a chance with a convicted felon.

Jones was selected by the Titans as the overall 6th pick in the 2005 draft. His troubles soon followed with arrests and suspensions. A trade to Dallas in 2008 didn't make things any better. He sat out the 2009 season after being rejected by the CFL.

Marvin Lewis and the Bengals saved his career. He has played with them since the 2010 season. He was All-Pro in 2014 and a Pro Bowl selection in 2015.

He is a player with immense talent, but time is catching up to him at 33. There is always a team out there willing to overlook seven prior arrests when it comes to a talented defensive back.

Rally For Nothing

Spike Lee announced that he will hold a rally on behalf of QB Colin Kaepernick on August 23rd in front of NFL headquarters in New York City. This will gather a lot of media attention, but will it guarantee Kaepernick a roster spot?

Teams are staying way from him because of his political views. Nobody can admit to it, but I believe it to be the case.

The rally will bring more attention to the issue, but I don't expect Kaepernick to end up with a job.

Lonie Paxton

Some players are famous for one moment in their career. LS Lonie Paxton had his performing snow angels during the infamous Divisional Playoff win over the Raiders in 2001. It was the last game played in Foxborough Stadium.

The game was full of drama with Tom Brady's "tuck rule" call and Adam Vinatieri's improbable field goals.

Paxton played for the Pats from 2000-2008 and won three Super Bowls with them. He later signed a 5 year/$5.3 million deal with the Denver Broncos. He played three seasons for them.

In the end, Paxton played 184 games during his 12 NFL seasons. The other day, he signed a one day contract so that he could retire as a member of the Pats.

It was a smart move by him as he is more than glad to talk about snow angels and his time in New England.

Pay For Jay

QB Jay Cutler had a very mediocre NFL career but kept getting contracts from teams. He finally retired and ended up with a network broadcasting job. Many wondered how he ended up with that.

Things continue to fall his way as the Miami Dolphins signed him to a one year/$10 million contract because of the injury to Ryan Tannehill.

No matter what happens to the Dolphins this season, Cutler will bank $10 million and have a broadcast job waiting for him.

Waiting For Injuries

NFL training camps are very competitive. There are players on the outside who are waiting for their chance. Many times, it only happens after someone gets injured. When a player goes on IR, it gives others an opportunity.

We are seeing that with the Miami Dolphins and QB Ryan Tannehill who went down with another knee injury. There is speculation that he will need surgery and could be lost for the season.

There are some quarterbacks waiting to get a call from their agent about an opportunity in Miami. Every team loses at least one player to IR during camp. It opens the door for others.

QB's Jim & Tom

During Tom Brady's press conference today, he was asked if he had a concussion last season. He refused to answer and said his medical information was private. He was 100% right in saying that.

Meanwhile, former NFL great and Pats QB Jim Plunkett revealed that his life is a mess at age 69 after playing 15 years in the league.

He outlined the long list of physical issues he must deal with on a daily basis. He also mentioned that he had at least ten concussions from playing football.

When he played quarterback for the Pats back in the early 1970's, he took a tremendous physical beating. Brady has taken his share of hits.

Nobody really knows how Brady will be at 69.

Brady At 40

Tom Brady turned 40 today. Very few NFL players ever see that age while still on a roster. Only a handful of quarterbacks have made it that far.

He still performs at a Pro Bowl level. His record speaks for itself. He wants to play until he is 45 and might end up doing that. Nobody can predict the future.

I don't think his career will end on his own terms. He is not about to walk away. His only injury was in 2008 when he tore his ACL in the opening drive of the season.

Who knows how this season will go?

Selfish Fighting

Coach Belichick did the right thing yesterday when he ejected Stephon Gillmore and Julian Edelman for fighting. It was especially bad because the practice was opened to the public.

Tempers flare in the heat, but there is no need to do that. Players end up getting hurt and impacting the team. Those two players were being selfish.

Hoyer In San Francisco

QB Brian Hoyer continues his career for his ninth season, in spite of being an undrafted free agent out of Michigan State in 2009.

After three seasons as a backup to Tom Brady, he had stops in Pittsburgh, Arizona, Cleveland, Houston, Chicago and now in San Francisco. He connected with current rookie coach Kyle Shanahan during their days in Cleveland. He has the inside track to be the starter.

He was doing well in Chicago last season until he broke his left arm and ended up on IR.

Hoyer is a study in perseverance between being undrafted and playing for seven teams.