NFL Rumors: Tony Pollard, Cowboys mutually motivated on new contract
The Dallas Cowboys have already made Tony Pollard their running back of the future. Now they just have to pay him like one.
Pollard signed his franchise tag earlier this offseason and is entering his fifth year in the NFL. The former fourth-rounder will serve as the Cowboys' RB1 for the first time in 2023 after Dallas released Ezekiel Elliott to save cap space.
Coming off a broken leg injury in January, Pollard's primary focus this offseason will be getting healthy, but his future long-term contract with the Cowboys no doubt looms in the back of his mind.
ESPN's Jeremy Fowler noted there was mutual interest in getting an extension done, one that could get inked as soon as this year.
Fowler said on SportsCenter:
"If the Cowboys want to step up and try to do a long-term deal he's certainly open to that. Nothing moving on that yet but there's a lot of time before that July 17 deadline. Certainly, both sides are expected to reconvene and talk about a potential long-term deal."
The main impetus for extending Pollard is to give the Cowboys more leeway in cap space and potentially sign more players before the 2023 season.
Bleacher Report recently hypothesized that Pollard could receive a three-year contract worth $27-30 million with $15 million guaranteed. Such a deal could give Pollard his $10.1 million salary, as guaranteed by the franchise tag, plus it would let the Cowboys distribute the running back's cap hit over the next several years.
There's little to no chance the Cowboys would consider giving Pollard a deal like Elliott's six-year extension from back in 2019 — hopefully, Jerry Jones has learned his lesson. But signing the 26-year-old threat to a short-term deal could work in the franchise's favor this season if they're seriously about competing for a Super Bowl and want to patch up a few holes on the roster.
NFL Rumors: Jordan Love commits hilarious self-own with Father's Day message to Bears fans
On Father's Day, Jordan Love sat at his computer and thought, "WWAD?" (What Would Aaron Do?)
Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers doesn't use social media all that often, but if he did, he might send a snarky tweet at the Chicago Bears. Because he owns them, obviously.
So Love tried that, and… it totally backfired.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback posted a now-deleted tweet in which he wished a Happy Father's Day to Bears fans. Love's intention was clear enough: he was the Bears' father. The Darth Vader to Chicago's Luke.
Bears fans just laughed in his face since they interpreted it as Jordan Love being their son. It was just a poorly worded tweet trying to make something out of nothing, and Love probably regrets hitting the blue button.
Bears – 1. Love – 0.
In his Packers tenure, Rodgers terrorized the Bears for over a decade: the veteran quarterback is 23-5 all-time against Chicago with 63 touchdowns against 10 interceptions. Rodgers has every right to spike that ball at Soldier Field and yell expletives at the Bears fanbase given how much he's dominated that sad little NFC North team.
The divisional matchups between the Packers and Bears could morph into a fairer rivalry in 2023 in Rodgers' absence, however. Love has yet to play Chicago in his brief NFL career, and he'll need go toe to toe against rising youngster Justin Fields and have figured out how to lead Green Bay's offense by then.
There are a lot of ways things could go south in Love's first game against the Bears. Maybe save the trash-talking for after you've earned it.
NFL Rumors: Patriots are 'hopeful' about landing DeAndre Hopkins
The race to sign DeAndre Hopkins has seemingly narrowed down to three contenders: the Titans, Browns, and the New England Patriots.
Hopkins visited Tennessee this past week and had a productive meeting with Mike Vrabel's side. His ties to Deshaun Watson make him a tantalizing option for the Browns, even if Cleveland hasn't publicly reached out to him.
As for New England, Bill Belichick and the Patriots have been rumored to go after Hopkins from the start of the offseason, and they're "hopeful" they can get a deal done soon.
On Sunday, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said on SportsCenter:
"I'm told there is significant mutual respect between Hopkins, the player, and the Hall of Fame coach in Belichick. So, they're hopeful, certainly. He knows the interest is high and Hopkins gave the impression he's certainly intrigued, interested in playing with New England."
If it's an all-time great coach Hopkins is looking for, he can't do much better than Belichick.
Hopkins' injury history and age make him a liability for any team he signs with, though right now it feels like the ball is in his court. As a free agent, he has his pick of the crop — playing under Belichick is a no-brainer, but playing under Mac Jones? That one requires a little more deliberation.