NFL

Commanders might change their team name again, plus ranking the 10 most clutch QBs in NFL today

by
SaC Bot
July 21, 2023

Welcome to the Friday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

When people think of all the great things that have been accomplished on yesterday’s date in history (July 20), the moon landing has always been at the top of the list, but now, I think we can put Daniel Snyder’s ouster from the NFL at the top. OK, maybe it shouldn’t go above the moon landing, but yesterday was an eventful day for the NFL with Snyder officially being voted out.

“One small vote for NFL owners, one giant leap for Commanders fans.” — Commanders fans.

If the reactions on Twitter were any indication, I have a feeling that NFL fans in Washington D.C. will be celebrating Snyder’s exit all weekend. On his way out the door, the NFL hit Snyder with a monstrous $60 million fine, which we’ll be covering today. We’ll also be taking a look at the 10 most clutch quarterbacks in the NFL.

As always, here’s your daily reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here. Let’s get to the rundown.

1. Today’s show: Breaking down the Ravens’ offseason and predicting how they’ll do in 2023

It’s time for another episode of our “All 32” series, and for today’s show, we’ll be talking about the Baltimore Ravens.

To talk about how things are going in Baltimore, we brought on the man, the myth, the legend: Jason La Canfora. JLC hosts a daily radio show in Baltimore and he knows more about the Ravens than almost anyone.

Here are two topics that hosts Katie Mox and Will Brinson covered with La Canfora:

How much pressure is on Odell Beckham this year? Although Beckham landed a big contract from the Ravens, JLC doesn’t think there will be much pressure on OBJ this year and that’s because he likely won’t be the focal point of the offense, “They don’t need him to be generational, they don’t need him to get 180 targets or anything like that,” La Canfora said. “They have Mark Andrews, they’re still going to run the ball, they have some other young receivers. He just has to be a nice starting wide receiver, a complementary piece. He doesn’t have to be a true No. 1.” La Canfora also noted that there’s no pressure on OBJ, because if the offense struggles, he won’t be blamed. “If the offense doesn’t work, it’s all going to fall on Lamar Jackson and Eric DeCosta, the GM,” JLC said.
Can the Ravens win the AFC North? Even though Lamar Jackson missed five games due to injury last season, the Ravens were still good enough to make the playoffs. With a healthy Jackson under center, JLC thinks it will once again be the Bengals and Ravens going toe-to-toe for the division title. “I do think Cincinnati and Baltimore are the two best teams, on paper, in this division,” La Canfora said. “I lean Cincinnati. I pick the Bengals to win and the Ravens to finish second.”

JLC spent more than 20 minutes talking about the Ravens, and if you want to hear everything he had to say, you can listen to today’s show here. You can also watch today’s show on YouTube by clicking here.

2. Commanders roundup: Name change could be coming, Snyder hit with $60M fine

The NFL owners were so eager to get rid of Daniel Snyder that they voted unanimously to approve the sale of the Commanders on Thursday. We went over the details of the sale yesterday, so today, we’re going to focus on the new stuff like the fact that the Commanders could be changing their name again in the near future and the fact that Snyder got hit with a monstrous fine.

Here’s what we know about a possible name change:

Magic Johnson says the team could eventually get a new name. The former Lakers star is now a co-owner of the Commanders, and during a Friday interview on “Today,” Johnson was asked about whether the team might eventually change its name. “Everything’s on the table, especially after this year,” Johnson said. “We’ll see where we are with the name, but I can’t say that right now.”
Why change the name again? According to Don Van Natta Jr. of ESPN, a big reason why the Commanders might be open to a name change is because they want to cut as many ties as they can to the Snyder era. If the Commanders do change their name, it would be the team’s fourth name since 2019. The name change definitely won’t be happening this year, but as Magic said, everything will be on the table after that.

As for Snyder, his final day as an NFL owner won’t be one that he fondly remembers. Yes, he will be pocketing $6.05 billion thanks to the sale of the Commanders, but the NFL also hit him with a parting gift by handing him the largest fine in league history: $60 million.

The fine was the main punishment from the NFL following the league’s 17-month investigation into the Commanders. The investigation was conducted by Mary Jo White, and her findings were released on Thursday, just minutes after the NFL announced the sale of the team.

Here are a few of the main things that Snyder was accused of:

Snyder was accused of sexual harassment. One of the key points of the investigation surrounded Tiffani Johnston and her accusation of sexual harassment against Snyder, who allegedly put his hand on her leg at a dinner and then tried to force her into his limo. After speaking with Johnston and multiple other people, White found the allegation to be credible.
Commanders withheld money from the NFL. All NFL teams are supposed to split ticket revenue, but the Commanders decided to take some off the top. According to White’s report, the Investigation “specifically identified approximately $11 million in revenues (including those in the Jason Friedman allegations) that the Club appears to have improperly shielded from sharing, to the extent required by NFL policies.” Friedman is the one who first made these allegations in front of congress.
Commanders may have skimmed off other money that was owed to the NFL. From the report: “The Investigation also identified additional ticket, parking, license, and other revenues that were transferred from an account that held shareable football-related revenues into non-shareable accounts. The total amount of additional improperly shielded revenues that might have occurred through these transfers could not be determined on the basis of the evidence available to the Investigators.” Basically, the NFL has no idea how much money the Commanders withheld, which is one reason why the fine is likely so big. Also, investigators aren’t sure if the Commanders did this at Snyder’s behest, but they do think he was aware of what was going on.
Snyder didn’t cooperate in the investigation. Since Snyder and the Commanders were both uncooperative, that made it difficult for White to ascertain “the total amount of improperly shielded NFL revenues; and the extent of Mr. Snyder’s knowledge and participation in the Club’s improper revenue shielding practices.”

You can read our full story about the fine here. Snyder bought the team for $800 million in 1999 and then flipped it yesterday for $6.05 billion, so the $60 million fine won’t hurt his bottom line, but he will be doing the walk of shame out the door.

And with that, I can all but guarantee that this will be the last time you read Snyder’s name in this newsletter. Bye, Dan.

3. Ranking the 10 most clutch quarterbacks in the NFL today

Last month, we ranked the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL, so you might be wondering why we’re ranking them again, but I assure you, that’s not what’s happening here. Today, we have a new ranking from CBSSports.com’s Doug Clawson and this QB ranking only takes into account one thing: clutchness.

So how do you determine whether someone is clutch? Well, it’s Doug’s story, so we let him handle the criteria. In this case, he looked at two specific stats:

QB conversion rate on game-tying or go-ahead drives in the fourth quarter and overtime
Expected points added (EPA) per play in these situations (looks at value added on all plays between rushes, passes, sacks and fumbles)

Based on that criteria, here’s a look at the five most clutch quarterbacks in the NFL:

1. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
2. Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins
3. Kirk Cousins, Vikings
4. Lamar Jackson, Ravens
5. Josh Allen, Bills

Not surprisingly, Patrick Mahomes is at No. 1 on this list, proving that no matter what formula you use to rank quarterbacks, he’s apparently always going to be at the top.

If you’re wondering how Tua ended up in the second spot, here’s the explanation: “He’s converted on 11-of-20 potential game-tying or go-ahead drives in late, close games in his career, the second-best rate in the league behind Patrick Mahomes.”

If you want to see the rest of the top 10, which includes some surprising names (like JARED GOFF) and not so surprising names (like Joe Burrow), then be sure to click here.

4. Rodgers had lots to say in first training camp press conference

The Jets have only had one training camp practice so far, and after the first session, it seems that Aaron Rodgers is already having more fun than he had in Green Bay during the entire 2022 season. Rodgers met with the media on Thursday, and during his press conference he definitely had some interesting things to say.

Rodgers sounds like he’s going to play more than one season in New York. No one knows if Rodgers will play beyond 2023, but he did seem to hint that he’ll be with the Jets for multiple years. “When you have so many great players on rookie deals, it’s pretty exciting, knowing you can do something,” Rodgers said. “You got a good window, it’s not just a one-year thing where you can be competitive, which is fun.” In a separate interview on Friday, Rodgers all but said he’ll likely be playing at least two seasons in New York. “The Jets gave up a lot for me so to play just one year would be a disservice.”
Garrett Wilson is a Davante Adams clone. When Rodgers was in Green Bay, he had a unique connection with Adams, and it seems he might soon have that same connection with Wilson. According to Rodgers, the two players actually have a lot in common. “I love Davante and I saw him this summer. He is in a category all by himself still,” Rodgers said, via the Jets website. “But, that 17 [Adams] reminds me of the other 17 [Wilson] as far as his ability to get in and out of breaks and his quick twitch at the line of scrimmage.” You should probably take note of that for your next Fantasy draft.
Jets are running an offense that was created by three people. Apparently, the Jets offense is made up of concepts that Rodgers, Matt LaFleur and Nathaniel Hackett came up with in 2020. “Well listen, I’m not going to say it’s ‘my’ offense,” Rodgers said, via PFT. “It’s one I’ve had success in, for sure. But back in 2020, it was a conglomeration of what Matt [LaFleur] wanted to run, what ‘Hack’ had run in the past, and what I had run in the past. So, we just fit together. And this is kind of an offshoot of that with maybe a little more West Coast flavor to it. “But this is really Hackett’s offense that I’ve been able to collaborate with him on. And I love it, but there is a lot of teaching for sure.”
Rodgers seems to be having fun. “I love being around the young energy, that excitement. There’s a great feel to this team of guys who are young and super talented,” Rodgers said. “Every day, I’ve been waking up since I’ve been here, it’s just been exciting to come down the driveway and to come to the facility because everything is new and exciting.”

The 39-year-old sounds totally reinvigorated and although I wasn’t planning on picking the Jets to win the AFC East, I might have to change my mind because I’m not sure I can bet against a totally reinvigorated Rodgers.

5. Three questions that every NFC East team must answer before the start of the season

Between now and July 26, all 32 teams will be reporting for training camp, and due to that fact, we’re going to start taking a look at three questions that each team in the NFL needs to answer by the end of training camp.

We’re going to do this by division and we’re going to start our run around the league today with the NFC East:

Cowboys: Who will replace Dalton Schultz? “Losing Schultz in free agency was a blow for the Cowboys. Jake Ferguson will get the first shot at the job, yet rookie second-round pick Luke Schoonmaker could seize the opportunity.”
Eagles: Who will step up to play right guard? “The right guard battle is between second-year lineman Cam Jurgens and rookie Tyler Steen. The Eagles want Jurgens to win the job before he takes over at center, yet Steen is worthy of a starting spot.”
Giants: Will the Giants resolve their situation with Saquon Barkley? “The Giants can make the playoffs with Barkley around for all 17 games. If Barkley decides to hold out past Week 1, New York may finish last in the NFC East. That’s the significance of Barkley being on this roster.”
Commanders: How much will Eric Bieniemy’s arrival help the offense? “Bieniemy had success in Kansas City, but he also had Patrick Mahomes at quarterback and Andy Reid’s offensive philosophy. He’ll look to replicate the same philosophy in Washington, with significantly different personnel. … While Bieniemy has offensive playmakers and an improved offensive line, the success of the offense comes down to San Howell’s development.”

Remember, we have three questions for EACH team and if you want to check out all 12 questions, be sure to click here.

6. Extra points: Titans star agrees to take pay cut

It’s been a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you.

Kevin Byard agrees to restructured contract. The Titans safety has agreed to take a pay cut of nearly $3 million this season from $13.6 million down to $11 million. However, that cut does come with a catch: The two-time Pro Bowler will get the chance to earn most of that back through incentives. For more on Byard’s reworked deal, be sure to go here.
Jaguars assistant coach comes out. Kevin Maxen, the assistant strength and conditioning coach, has publicly come out as gay. This is notable because it makes him the first male coach in any of the major U.S men’s pro sports to come out. You can read more about Maxen here.
Vikings rookie busted for reckless driving. At 3 a.m. in St. Paul on Thursday, Jordan Addison got busted for going 140 mph while driving his Lamborghini Urus in an area where the post speed limit was just 55 mph. I think we can all agree that there’s no way you’re going to talk your way out of that kind of ticket.
Jets and Titans throwbacks uniforms leak out. These two teams will both be unveiling new throwbacks this year and you can get a sneak peek now. If you want to see the Oilers throwback that Tennessee will be wearing, you can check them out here (The Titans will be officially releasing the throwbacks on Sunday). As for the Jets, their leak isn’t as clear, but you can get a brief look of their throwback here (Their throwback will be released on July 24).
Lions surprisingly release kicker. Just four months after re-signing Michael Badgley, the Lions have decided to cut ties with him. With the Money Badger out, the means Riley Patterson and John Parker Romo will battle it out for the kicking job.