2015 Pre- Free Agent Cuts

    This is one of the craziest beginnings to an offseason since before I can remember...

    Players in the NFL are being cut left and right as the "business side" of the NFL let's loose. Teams need money for their 2015 salary cap, and they're looking to save every penny they can to reload their talent for 2015. Let's take a look at some of the biggest cuts in the league and potential destinations for the players.

February 19th- TE/FB James Casey, Formerly of Philadelphia

    James Casey was selected to be reported on for one major reason- he is so underrated. Newly turned-30, Casey is an outstanding blocker as well as a proven pass support who has spent the past 2 seasons in Philadelphia, 4 seasons before that in Houston. While he hasn't seen the field all that much in the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia traded their durable FB Stanley Havili to Indianapolis shortly before the 2013 season because Casey was on the roster. He's caught 72 passes and 6 TD's in his 6 season's in the league, and brings great strength to any roster he's on with his run blocking and versatility. He lines up and plays well at both TE and FB. If given the chance, Casey will step up and play very well in any starting TE spot.

    Look for Casey to be sought out after by the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Cincinnati Bengals. The Jaguars need some valuable run support and versatile player like Casey so that either Denard Robinson or whoever plays RB for Jacksonville next season can have a little more of a chance breaking loose. The Bengals run game last year was really good... But it could be really great. There were several missed chances that the Bengals could have had that were cut down because they were one blocker short. Casey will move upfield more often, and take down defenders to gain 2 or 3 extra yards with his strength and power.

February 25th- WR/RS Jacoby Jones, formerly of Baltimore

    The Ravens surprisingly cut All-Pro Jacoby Jones on Wednesday, the teams 2014 return specialist who handled all return duties. Jones has spent the last 3 seasons in Baltimore, taking 5 returns to the house and scoring 8 TD's during his tenture with the Ravens. Last season, he averaged 30.7 yards per kick return, taking 32 out of the end zone, including an NFL leading 108 yard TD return on one, tying his personal best and the club record. He missed 4 games in those 3 years, all in 2013.

    Potential landing spots for Jacoby Jones could be East Rutherford. The Giants have missed that explosive part of the return game for years, and would hold high value to any player with Jacoby's return skills. Add him as a number 3 or 4 receiver, and the Giants have a pretty solid offense. Keep an eye also on the Cleveland Browns, who would need him as both a receiver and as a return specialist.

February 25th- RB Reggie Bush, formerly of Detroit

    The 2005 stripped Hiesman trophy winner, Bush spent a dismal year fighting with injuries in 2014, and finishing with 297 yards rushing through just 11 games. Bush had spent the last 2 years in Detroit, missing 7 games over the course of the tenture and starting 23. Bush scored 9 TD's in Detroit, averaging 12 attempts for 52 yards per game during that span. Bush has had better years, and 2014 certainly wasn't his best, but he still has a little football left in him and can certainly still make plays after an offseason to recover.

    The destinations... The Steelers are looking for a Running Back who can mentor their young Le'Veon Bell and replace him temporarily when he's hurt. Bush may just be the perfect key, with limited playing time, he can stay healthy and help a young back who obviously needs the help.

February 27th- DT Darnell Dockett, formerly of Arizona

    Dockett is a beast inside. He's a strong and athletic playmaker who not only provides a reliable pass rush, but a strong run defense. Drafted by the Cardinals in the 3rd round of 2013, Dockett missed a total of 2 games in his first 10 seasons of the NFL. However, last season in a preseason practice, Dockett tore his ACL and was lost for the season. Cardinal players wanted him to return to the squad, but after a failed physical, Arizona let him go on Friday. Docket has 40.5 career sacks and 14 Fumble Recoveries, alongside his 349 career tackles and 2 defensive TD's.

    Dockett has a good chance of landing himself in a defense heavy team, or in a place where he's well needed. New England would love to add Dockett to the defensive line, continuing the tradition of taking key Arizona defenders (that started with Adrian Wilson) and implementing them on their team. With Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich and replace aging Ty Warren at DT. New England is a great fit for Dockett. A couple other good landing spots would be Washington or San Diego, who would pay him heavily to add him to their defensive lines. Dockett will be heavily pursued and wooed by NFL teams, it'll be up to him on where to go.

February 27th- WR Harry Douglas, formerly of Atlanta

    Cutting Douglas was outright stupid by the Falcons. Douglas stepped up in 2013 when both Julio Jones and Roddy White were down with injuries, and at at 31 when the season starts, he still has some good football left. Douglas has collected 258 passes and 9 TD's in Atlanta since being a 3rd round draft pick in 2008. He was the team's #3 receiver, and a valuable asset who will be missed from the Atlanta receiving corps in 2015.

    Douglas will most likely look to a team like the Carolina Panthers, who are still in need of decent Wide Receivers after flushing their entire group out during the 2014 offseason. Kelvin Benjamin was great, and should be in 2015, but Jerrico Cotchery isn't the long term solution to the #2 WR. Enter Douglas, who will take away coverage and focus on Benjamin, and add an extra slot threat to Cam Newton and comp.

February 27th- WR Brian Hartline, formerly of Miami

    Another stupid salary cut. Hartline has been a key asset of the Miami Dolphin passing game since he was drafted in 2009. He's caught 298 passes with 4243 yards and 13 TD's, and has 2 1000 yard seasons on his belt. After the 2013 season, Hartline was signed to a 5 year extension. I think that the Dolphins feel he's underplayed his value after a down year in 2014, but he was targeted half as many times as he had been in 2013. Speed's not his big thing, but quickness is. He's been compared to the likes of Rod Gardner and Todd Pinkston, so he's a versatile threat.

    Potential destinations for Hartline are Cleveland, who are desperately looking for good Wide Receivers to come in and help whoever is playing QB. He'll be good in Cleveland as long as the run game kicks in and the Browns have a hot rookie taking coverage away. New England is looking into him, as well as the Buffalo Bills, who has a tendency to gash Rex Ryan defenses. No wonder the coach want's him on his team.

So far, these have been the main surprises in the 2015 offseason in my opinion. Coming up next- Biggest Free Agents hitting the market, and where they may end up!

Brace yourselves, Brown's Fan's... You Have a New Quarterback!

    It has just hit the press...

    Shortly after the Browns release their new logo, the Browns have found what they believe to be a quality QB that can help support their struggling team. They have just released today that they have signed the 35 year old Josh McCown to a 3 year deal.

    Brown's fans first reaction- He can't be our long term solution, can he?
   

    No, he can't. I think even the Browns front office will know that. NFL Media's Albert Breer reported that head coach Mike Pettine called Brian Hoyer to inform him of the signing. Everyone's talking about GM Ray Farmer has moved on from Brian Hoyer, and how McCown is the new starter in Cleveland. Peeeeoooooppppplllleeee... We haven't started free agency yet. We haven't started spring training yet. We haven't even had the draft. 

     I think the Browns want to use McCown as the Colts have used Matt Hasselback. Brian Hoyer was a fresh face in the Browns organization last season, trust me. Even with all the problems he struggled with, he was their best QB since Derek Anderson's 2007 season. Johnny Manziel is still with the team. Why not bring in an experienced mentor, like McCown, to help the Browns Quarterbacks out?

    Just 5 years ago, the NFL was different. Quarterbacks weren't drafted out of the 1st or 2nd round to become the season starter. Back even just 10 years ago, Quarterbacks waited their turn on the bench as the more experienced guy played the majority of the first games. Look at Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Philip Rivers. Those guys weren't drafted to start immediately. 

    Am I suggesting that the Browns start over by drafting a new Quarterback? Nope. I'm saying that the NFL used to appreciate veteran experience on a roster. Now, they really don't nearly as much. Matt Hasselback and the Colts are pretty much the lone example right now of a team that has a seasoned vet signed back to the team every year just to mentor the new guy. And look at how Andrew Luck is doing.

    So, Browns fans, before you go digging into the closet to wear those brown jerseys and brown paper bags, think about it for a minute. Think of how much better Brian Hoyer will be if he has a veteran mentor him. McCown, who led the league in ESPN's QBR in 2013. The Browns still want to save the Johnny Football project. Don't freak out just yet. 

Browns unveil New Logos, Sneak at the jerseys coming April 15th!

    This morning, the Cleveland Browns released their new logo's for the 2015 season and beyond. Many sources have said the Browns needed to update their look, and they are now. Here's a look at the Browns new logos from clevelandbrowns.com.

    The Browns have held to their vow never to change the Helmet Logo, however, the only real change is the brighter orange and the brown facemask.

    The Secondary Logo went through a modernizing change.

    The Browns famed "Dawg Pound" is used, and the bulldog is given a more cartoon look, with a determined snarl.

    The Wordmark changed too...

    As the Browns website put it, "The contemporary redesigned wordmark is simplistic and utilizes a stronger, bolder font." Nice making it all brown instead of Orange with the brown border.

Now for the logo comparison.

    After a little digging, I found what a Nike employee confirmed to be an "accurate concept" of the uniforms coming out on the 14th of April. Check this out.

    Insider reports are saying that the Browns will have 3 different jersey and pant options, and that they will wear up to 6 combinations a year. I have to imagine that the other jersey would be similar to the brown one, maybe the colors reversed, and the 3rd pant would be white with brown and/or orange stripes.

    What do you think, Browns fans?

Rising and Falling Stock in the NFL: Part 1- 2014 Team Risers

     The 2014 season featured the unpredicted rise of 5 teams where the teams over performed their expected season result. In my opinion, those 5 teams would be:

1. The Buffalo Bills

2. The Cleveland Browns

3. The Houston Texans

4. The Dallas Cowboys

5. The Detroit Lions

     Why were these teams chosen as the 2014 Risers is because they all had one thing in common- they were terrible in 2013, and they rose a good amount to where they may just be on the mend, or are already fixed, for 2015. They were the most improves teams of 2014, and here is why.

THE HOUSTON TEXANS

     The Texans defense allowed a total of 307 points, or, 19 points per game. After a miserable 2013 season, the Texans spiced things up by going 9-7, just missing the playoffs but showing solid defense, and a promising offense.

    The Texans rise in 2014 can only be attributed to Bill O'Brien, who showed incredible promise as a coach in the NFL. He got the very most out of all his QB's, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Case Keenum, and Ryan Mallett, who each started 2 or more games. Arian Foster and DeAndre Hopkins each combined for over 1200 yards of total offense, Foster finishing at 1573 over 13 games, and Hopkins at 1210. Don't forget JJ Watt, registering 20.5 sacks, his second 20 sack season, earning him the AP DPOY award, and the Bert Bell.

  The Weaknesses are pretty simple. One, while JJ Watt was getting 20 sacks, and scoring his 5 TD's (3 receiving, 1 fumble return, and 1 INT return), his teammates were struggling. After Watt's 20.5 sacks, the Texans managed a total of 17.5 sacks.

   Second, the Texans had no elite QB. Yes, Fitzpatrick had one of the best, if not the best, season in his career, but it wasn't enough a lot of times to utilize the talent he had in the receiving areas. Then, Fitzpatrick missed 4 games, leaving Case Keenum and Ryan Mallett to play QB. Luckily, they put together a 3-1 record, but the play became sub-par, and the Running Backs took the load.

     Thirdly, the Defense was structured around Jadevion Clowney playing. He missed 12 games of the season with injuries, and it effected the lineup. It moved in Whitney Mercilus, the only man who could replace him, and he didn't generate the pressure that Clowney did against linemen.

    In summary, the Texans survived mainly on their incredible run game and the pass rush from JJ Watt. Just missing the Playoffs is a milestone, a step up towards bigger days.

BUFFALO BILLS

    The Buffalo Bills surprised a lot of people by placing 2nd in the AFC East, and well overplayed their expected result.

    The Bills success is much owed to the efforts of Doug Marone and Kyle Orton, who revived the offense upon the benching of EJ Manuel, and to 5 players who caught over 40 passes for 400 yards or more (Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, Fred Jackson, Scott Chandler & Chris Hogan).

    Basically, Sammy Watkins brought to Buffalo an incredible explosiveness, averaging 15.1 yards on 65 catches. Robert Woods improved from his rookie campaign, catching 65 balls as well, but with 24 less targets then Watkins. The Buffalo Bills improved their passing game,

    It's scary to think that Buffalo was missing their best defensive player all season, Kiko Alonso. Rookie Linebacker Preston Brown filled well for him, but didn't nearly have the athletic ability and sheer talent that Alonso has. Either way, Buffalo collected 54 sacks, and collected 30 turnovers, 19 of them being INT's.

    The reasons why Buffalo fell... One, Kiko Alonso wasn't on the field. With a 3rd round pick holding the spot down, they struggled terribly against the run, and covering the middle of the field, especially in the Red Zone.

    Secondly, the Bills didn't have an elite QB. Having an average QB in Orton was a blessing, and he was boosted by the athleticism in the receiving corps.

    Thirdly, the schedule was very tough last season. New England played Buffalo twice, Buffalo handing them one of their losses week 17, but Denver, early season San Diego, Detroit and Green Bay were all opponents too. Buffalo couldn't keep up with the schedule, but made the most out of every game.

    Lastly, Buffalo's Running Backs struggled with injuries all season. CJ Spiller especially. Spiller has always been explosive when healthy, but that hasn't been much.

    Buffalo has a lot of upside going into 2015, now it's up to Rex Ryan to take over the team and run it well.

DALLAS COWBOYS

     Dallas exploded onto the scene in 2014, sweeping the NFC East, and beating Detroit out of the playoffs with a fabulous offensive line and running talent in DeMarco Murray. Oh, Dez Bryant too. And Tony Romo playing in his prime.

    Dallas finished 12-4, with Murray leading the league with his 1845 yards rushing, plus 13 TD's, Dez Bryant catching 1320 yards worth of balls, and a near perfect field goal kicker in Dan Bailey.

    Dallas' defense was revived too. Despite seeming to lack in talent, this squad held opponents to just 352 points, or 22 points per game. The team lacked it's pass rushing potential, but they still tore opponents up with an effective secondary.

    The Cowboys have spent 3 of their last 4 1st round picks on offensive linemen, and built a line that has become near unstoppable. Zach Martin played like he was a seasoned NFL veteran, despite playing a new position on the line, and the team steamrolled for 2354 yards rushing.

     However, the Cowboys had their weaknesses. The Linebackers did struggle a good bit without Sean Lee. Bruce Carter did show a fantastic upside, despite only playing in 13 games, he picked off 5 passes, a team high.

     Tony Romo fell victim to a whole lot of injuries. His back was messed up in the 20-17 loss to Washington, and he missed a full game as a result of that. And even with Dez Bryant on the team, they struggled having a consistent #2 WR.

    However, the Cowboys, with or without free agent RB DeMarco Murray, are on the verge of another terrific season.

CLEVELAND BROWNS

    The Cleveland Browns won the most games in a season since 2007, and finished as one of the most promising young teams going into 2015, even without Josh Gordon.

    Credit has to go to Head Coach Mike Pettine, and Brian Hoyer, who lead the team on 4 game winning drives through the season, including an incredible comeback against the Titans, a 21 point deficit, the biggest comeback in Browns history. Hoyer very nearly had a 5th week 1 against the Steelers, but Pittsburgh pulled off the win with a last second field goal.

    The defense was extremely strong until Joe Haden went out with an injury, holding opponents to 21 points per game. The pass rush finally kicked in, and several defensive players played better then expected.

    However, the Browns had so many downs. Johnny Manziel was a wasted pick. He spent most of the season getting in trouble with the team, paying them crazy fines, and partying out with his friends. The running game didn't get going all season long, though the 2 rookie backs showed a lot of promise, and the receivers need an upgrade. The offense will be worked on heavily throughout the offseason.

    The kickers weren't all that good either. Cundiff got cut 14 games into the season, forcing the team to sign Garrett Hartley, former Saints kicker.

    The Browns have a lot of work still to go, but 2014 was a rebuilding season, and the Browns may have a shot at finally returning to their glory days from the early NFL, and the 1980's.

DETROIT LIONS

    Head Coach Jim Caldwell revived the struggling Lions program in to a respectful NFC North competitor again, even with a Megatron struggling with injuries.

    The Lions destroyed NFL secondaries with the combination of Golden Tate and Calvin Johnson, who both brought in 1000 yards receiving each and combined for 12 TD's and 1 fumble. Joique Bell kept the running game somewhat stable, running for 860 yards and 7 TD's, but the most important aspect of the team was the passing threat.

    The defense stepped things up too. Collecting 42 sacks, and 20 INT's, the Lions defense featured 4 players with 5 sacks or more. 2013 2nd Round Pick Darius Slay is turning into a beast at corner, deflecting 18 passes and picking 2 off.

    However, the Lions kickers struggled all season long. Rookie Nate Freese wasn't the answer, missing his 4th field goal attempt in 3 weeks, and the Lions cut him for former Eagles kicker Alex Henery. Henery wasn't much better, missing 4 in 2 weeks, getting himself cut for former Bronco kicker Matt Prater. Prater would finish the season, but it wouldn't be his best one.

    Joique Bell was really the only run threat, and he averaged 3.9 yards a carry all season long. When Reggie Bush was healthy, he was starting over Bell just about every time. 2nd year veteran and former Notre Dame player Theo Riddick collected 2 starts, but Caldwell and crew knew they didn't have a stable back.

    The Lions were already a solid team. Now, with the correct coaching, they were able to make the Playoff cut. The sky is the limit for the Lions in 2015, who can only better their chances in the upcoming season.

Up next, Falling Stock in 2014...

Is this the new look of the Browns?

    The Browns are scheduled to release the new look of their franchise on Tuesday, but that hasn't stopped images from being leaked.

    Here's the new look.

What do you think, Browns fans?

NFL Combine

The NFL Scouting Combine starts in 3 days. The Total 32 Report will be watching and analyzing the prospects as live as possible. Follow the reactions on twitter from @Total32Report.

Keep your eyes here on the Total 32 Report.

Rising and Falling Stock in the NFL

This is going to be a 5 part mini-series, discussing the NFL teams with rising and falling stock predictions, with a lot of game film study to go along with it.

The 5 parts in this series will be the following:
1. 2014 Team Risers- Why they rose last season.
2. 2014 Team Droppers- Why teams fell last season.
3. 2014 Team Winners- Why the Patriots and Seahawks went to the Super Bowl
4. 2015 Team Risers- Why certain teams will rise in 2015.
5. 2015 Team Droppers- Why certain teams will fall in 2015.

The release dates:
1. Friday, February 20th
2. Saturday, February 28th
3. Friday, March 13th
4. Saturday, March 21st
5. Sunday, March 29th

Keep your eyes posted here on the Total Football Report Network.

Picking up where we left off for the 2015 NFL Draft

Sorry about the delay in posts, now that life has calmed back down, it's back to reporting the NFL and college football on the Total Football Report Network.

After a shocking Super Bowl XLIX, the 2015 NFL draft is approaching!


We're beginning our coverage of the 2015 NFL draft with the announcement of a weekly series of articles that will be released on the draft stock of certain highlighted players. Check the college football websites for the latest regards to the conferences recruiting and the biggest prospects of the draft!

Prospects to watch right now. Jameis Winston, will his playing talent bring teams to overlook the personal issues that have surrounded his life the past year? Marcus Mariota, is he the answer for the Buccaneers or the Titans? Or any other team?

Keep your eyes right here on the Total 32 Report.