Training camp is upon us once again. Here’s a look at the 10 most important figures heading into the 2022 NFL season pads are thudding. The sprinklers are sprinkling. Training camp is here. And with that, we look at the 10 most important figures for the 2022 NFL season, in no particular order
Training camp is upon us once again. Here’s a look at the 10 most important figures heading into the 2022 NFL season
It’s Lance Time in San Francisco. Everybody loves the idea of a young quarterback watching and learning the game from the sideline, taking his time, cultivating his craft away from the spotlight and pressure. But, at some point, it’s go time.
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The Niners are embracing the uncertainty. Lance was drafted to solve a specific schematic riddle that Jimmy Garoppolo could not. Garoppolo was part of a team that came within a drive of the Super Bowl and returned to an NFC championship game. But his flaws were consistently exposed. Lance might not be as consistent as Garoppolo, but he raises the team’s ceiling.
No team in the league has as wide a range of outcomes as the Niners in 2022. Sat here at the start of August, you could convince yourself that they will win it all, thanks to the blend of Kyle Shanahan’s re-worked offense, a stacked defensive line, a re-shaped secondary and Lance. It’s just as conceivable that they win six games: That Lance isn’t ready; that the defensive line regresses to the mean. The most decisive factor between the two: the new starting quarterback.
1) Trey Lance, quarterback, San Francisco 49ers
It’s Lance Time in San Francisco. Everybody loves the idea of a young quarterback watching and learning the game from the sideline, taking his time, cultivating his craft away from the spotlight and pressure. But, at some point, it’s go time.
Bomani Jones to Mina Kimes: ranking the NFL’s best analysts
The Niners are embracing the uncertainty. Lance was drafted to solve a specific schematic riddle that Jimmy Garoppolo could not. Garoppolo was part of a team that came within a drive of the Super Bowl and returned to an NFC championship game. But his flaws were consistently exposed. Lance might not be as consistent as Garoppolo, but he raises the team’s ceiling.
No team in the league has as wide a range of outcomes as the Niners in 2022. Sat here at the start of August, you could convince yourself that they will win it all, thanks to the blend of Kyle Shanahan’s re-worked offense, a stacked defensive line, a re-shaped secondary and Lance. It’s just as conceivable that they win six games: That Lance isn’t ready; that the defensive line regresses to the mean. The most decisive factor between the two: the new starting quarterback.
Two crucial things weigh over Goodell heading into the season. He will serve as the appealer-in-Chief for Deshaun Watson’s impending appeal. Nestled in the fine print of the latest CBA is the ability for the commissioner, or his designee, to appeal any decision from the league’s newly-appointed disciplinary officer, who handed down a six-game suspension on Monday.
Then there’s the small matter of Daniel Snyder and the Washington Commanders. Snyder, the league’s most cartoonishly villainous owner, continues to drag the Washington franchise and the league into a swamp of his own making. Snyder finally answered questions under oath last Thursday to the House oversight committee. The congressional committee continues to probe the Washington franchise and accusations that Snyder presided over a toxic workplace culture.
Other owners are reported to be fed up with Snyder’s act, enough perhaps to force him out of the league. Snyder is notoriously litigious, which has worked as a shield for him and the franchise throughout his sleaze-riddled run. But as the accusations mount – including that he presented a set of phony books to his league partners – Goodell could be forced into taking action to try to remove the owner.
championship game cost the Chiefs a shot at a second title last season. Now there’s a new look in Kansas City: Tyreek Hill and Tyrann Mathieu, stalwarts of the team’s recent success, are out. Hill was a once-in-a-lifetime field tilter that made life easier for his quarterback and the pass-catchers beside him. He imbued the whole offense with a sense that there was no deficit that was insurmountable.
Mahomes will have to strike up an instant connection with his new supporting cast to lead another postseason push. He has lived a blessed life early in his career – the ideal coach, franchise and supporting cast. The Chiefs’ roster remains one of the most talented in the league, but it’s now over Mahomes to raise the level of those around him.