June and the first half of July are scary months for teams. Team activities are generally done and players are free to do what they want. Coaches, scouts, front office personnel, and pretty much everyone in the NFL takes their vacations now. There are no high school or college players to scout. The rosters are largely filled out. Everything's pretty much set up for training camp and there's nothing left to do but wait for training camp.
Any news that comes out this month and early next month is typically bad news. Aqib Talib, the Bronco's starting cornerback, just got shot in the leg in Texas. Other players will get suspended for various issues. Some players will get in legal trouble. Some players will get injured doing something stupid. For the next six weeks or so, you almost don't want to hear any news about your team. Anything you hear is likely to be bad news.
There will be debate on which players will show up for training camp and who will hold out for more money. DeSean Jackson has sat out the OTA's for the Redskins, forfeiting a half million dollars in the process. I have a suspicion he may be a problem for the Redskins heading into camp.
The Eagles have to get the Fletcher Cox contract issue resolved. He's under contract this year and they can tag him next season if need be which would cost the Eagles about $20 million over the next two years. They could then work out a long term deal, but Fletcher wants a contract now and the Eagles have agreed that he deserves one. The Eagles would prefer he take a new contract that reflects that $20 million cost for the next two years, while Fletcher and his agent want substantially more. Rumor has it that a $100+ million dollar deal is likely with $60 million or more guaranteed. I expect this to get settled by the start of training camp.
The Cowboys are said to be poised for a bounceback season. They have to keep Romo healthy though and the odds of that are not great. The two hits he took last year that broke his collarbone weren't extreme hits. He's been limited in his weight work since that first injury back last September. He'll be entering training camp less physically prepared as a result. I'm not optimistic on Romo's chances of surviving far into the season. They never fixed their backup quarterback situation despite intending to fix it in the draft. Reportedly they were hoping to get Carson Wentz, only to have the Eagles jump over them. Then they wanted to get Paxton Lynch only to have the Broncos hop over them again. Ultimately they settled for Dak Prescott, but if he becomes their starter this year, they're likely in big trouble.
The only real down time of the entire NFL year comes in June/July. This is typically when players get themselves in trouble of some sort. The next big news coming from the NFL will be the start of training camps. That's when teams start to breathe a sigh of relief. The players are back under their watchful eyes and more or less under control. For the next six weeks every GM and coach will feel their heart stop whenever the phone rings wondering what trouble their player has gotten himself into.
Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
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