I was thinking about trying something new with pancake mix all morning while writing this set of Bullets.
• Credit the Rams social media department for knowing how to turn iconic Hollywood snippets into reusable content:
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) February 26, 2022
• According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Rams Head Coach Sean McVay is not pursuing TV gigs at this time. Moreover, Schefter adds McVay is all-in on helping his team repeat as Super Bowl champs. The rich stay rich.
• There had been chatter about McVay possibly calling it a coaching career after the Super Bowl. And with that sliver of a crack in the door, Amazon was reportedly willing to give him up to $100 million on a five-year deal to headline their “Thursday Night Football” broadcast package. But just as was the case with Troy Aikman, McVay spurns Amazon (which now turns to Option C). Does anyone want to work with Al Michaels? Or is Michaels even going to cross the goal line and get that deal done? Will ESPN finally catch its white whale and get Michaels back on its “Monday Night Football” broadcasts? This is already a fascinating free agency period. And we haven’t even gotten into player movement.
• Some high-profile re-structures, via ESPN’s Field Yates:
Source: the Saints’ cap moves are underway, as they’ve converted $14.565M of Michael Thomas’ compensation for 2022 and $18,206,608 of OT Ryan Ramczyk’s compensation for 2022 into signing bonuses, creating $26.217M in cap space.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) February 26, 2022
Another one: the Packers have converted $11.58M of LT David Bakhtiari's 2022 compensation into a signing bonus, creating significant cap space for this season, per source.
A busy week for the Packers' cap continues.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) February 26, 2022
• Sorry if you were dreaming about trading for Michael Thomas, who was seemingly grumpy the last few years in New Orleans. Thomas would’ve made for an interesting change-of-scenery target as a reliable pass-catcher for Justin Fields. But Thoms sticks around with the Saints for another year.
• As for the Packers, they’ve still got some work to do to get where they want to be:
2022 Green Bay Packers Salary Cap – 2/26/22
🟨Current Top 51 Cap ($29,681,308)
➕ERFAs
➕Lazard RFA
🟧Top 51 Cap at Deadline ($34,342,308)
➕Draft Picks
🟥Top 51 Cap After Draft ($36,897,473)
➕Practice Squad
➕53-Man Roster
➕In-Season Fund
🟦Effective Total Cap ($47,050,273) pic.twitter.com/blHiVbTubg— Ken Ingalls – Packers Cap 💰 (@KenIngalls) February 26, 2022
• At the time of this posting, there is still time to vote in this poll. Your vote counts:
Let’s say David Montgomery wants $9-10 million AAV on his next deal.
If you’re the #Bears, are you extending him at that price?
— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) February 25, 2022
• I imagine there will be a ton of hard “no” answers. Part of me understands why. It’s hip to say you’re not down with paying running backs. But isn’t the irony here that there is a chunk of hard “no” answers coming from the same people who didn’t like the rigidity and hard-line stances in decision-making from recently fired Bears coaches and general managers. Irony is cruel in that way. But also, kinda funny.
• Don’t pay running backs isn’t how we should be approaching this situation, as I feel as if there is a deal to be done that strikes a balance between rewarding a player by paying him fairly, while also drawing up a contract that doesn’t handcuff the team’s long-term cap. After all, there is a reason “deal” and “compromise” are synonyms.
• At minimum, I’d like to reel back on discussing players as if they were nameless, faceless assets who can sent to and fro willy nilly. It’s just off-putting.
• I wonder if the extension chatter is a byproduct of Montgomery being a mix of someone who is a solid football player with strong intangibles. In addition to essentially being the Bears’ offensive identity, Montgomery has been a vocal leader. He is also known for working at their craft in the offseason. And he has beaten projected return/recovery times when returning from injuries the last two years. We shouldn’t overlook a player’s drive and will to get back in the action with their teammates. And we shouldn’t take for granted leadership and continuity. Montgomery being a player who helps build a solid bridge to the next great wouldn’t surprise me. Teams need those guys, whether we realize it or not.
• Extending Chicago’s RB1 isn’t on Bleacher Report’s Bears to-do list, but two of the top three things are rooted in fixing the offense. Revamping the receivers room sits atop the list, as it seems to every few years around here. The last time the Bears receivers room felt settled going into the offseason was 2019 when the Bears had Allen Robinson II, Taylor Gabriel, and Anthony Miller entrenched in starting roles. But since then, we saw Miller’s star fade and injuries keep Gabriel out of action. And soon, Robinson will likely join those two as former Bears. Who needs the bitterness of black coffee when you can not-so-subtly remind yourself how poorly Ryan Pace did in building an offense for Justin Fields’ rookie year.
• This is pretty cool:
"Seeing everything we've talked about come to life and see it physically, it was a happy moment."
Christian Jones' passion project is coming to life with the upcoming release of his comic series Queen Amani Renas: Protector of Nubia.
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) February 25, 2022
• For your listening pleasure:
🚨Episode 97🚨@PFN365's very own @TonyPauline joins the show to breakdown:
🐻The 2022 #NFLDraft class
🐻What to expect at the #NFL Scouting Combine
🐻Draft targets for the #Bears
🐻The Aaron Rodgers situation
🐻And more!Link: https://t.co/TQZN5mFmRk
— Picks for Poles (@PicksForPoles) February 25, 2022
• Baseball is beautiful because it is an untimed game. However, some of these pitchers could really do us a solid by picking up the pace. So … maybe a pitch clock would be helpful:
MLB Reportedly Seeking to Accelerate Certain Rules Changes, Including the Pitch Clock – https://t.co/o7e1qyL4gG pic.twitter.com/Qkz7zESZZ0
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) February 26, 2022
• Love it when a new guy comes on board and makes an immediate impact:
Tristan Thompson’s Debut Was Everything the Bulls Were Missinghttps://t.co/ONNgeEnYF6 pic.twitter.com/zxfM2hgC8X
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) February 25, 2022
• As a parting gift, Mario (who put out his last set of BN Bullets on Friday) has left me with the inspiration to do a similar post with the Bears. I’d bet on that being an absolute treat:
Grading Your Best Chicago Blackhawks Trade Proposalshttps://t.co/Gnc6hZZRzi
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) February 25, 2022