Some fans are still questioning why the New England Patriots made Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Joe Milton III a sixth-round draft pick last month shortly after the club took North Carolina Tar Heels signal-caller Drake Maye via the third overall choice of the player-selection process.
Patriots beat writer Chris Mason of MassLive addressed the subject for a mailbag published on Friday.
“New England’s quarterback room wasn’t the world’s most harmonious place over the past two seasons, so I think [head coach Jerod Mayo] is looking for a fresh start,” Mason explained. “They’ve already traded Mac Jones and cut Nathan Rourke, and I’d be surprised to see Bailey Zappe on the 53-man roster when Week 1 rolls around. With Maye, [veteran Jacoby Brissett] and Milton, the depth chart will be well-populated with new blood.”
Patriots de facto general manager Eliot Wolf recently said that Milton had “too much talent in him to pass that up.” That’s all well and good but it ignores the fact that Milton may not take a meaningful snap with the Patriots anytime soon.
Mayo plans to let Maye compete with Brissett for the starting job this summer even though some believe the rookie should develop as a backup through at least a portion of the upcoming season.
If Mayo and Co. decide in September that Maye isn’t ready to face live defenses, Zappe could be needed as a “break-glass-in-case-of-emergency” option if Brissett goes down with some sort of setback.
Not long after the Patriots drafted Milton, he somewhat defiantly dismissed the idea that he could change positions during springtime workouts and/or training camp. Mason thinks Milton could have second thoughts about such a stance between now and Week 1.
“Milton clocked a 4.62-second 40-yard dash, he can broad jump over 10 feet, and has [a] wingspan that measures 80 inches,” Mason wrote. “Though he may be reluctant to move off quarterback to start, perhaps he’ll change his mind if it’s a way to get onto the field.”
Many think Maye should sit behind Brissett this fall because the Patriots have noticeable weaknesses on their offensive line and at receiver.
While there’s often nothing wrong with a team using a late-round draft pick on somebody who could one day become merely a backup quarterback, April 2024 may not have been the right time for New England to go down such a road.
Several Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Have Announced Their Retirement
The off-season isn’t just for player movement and the draft. There’s also losses in the cheerleading teams and dance groups. The Dalllas Cowboys Cheerleaders will have a different collection of women performing in 2024. Thirteen cheerleaders are moving on or retiring. The 13 cheerleaders who will be leaving the squad are as follows: Kally Bethea Jessica Bowman Elizabeth DiGiovanni McKenzie Sherman Hughston Victoria Kalina Yevgeniya Kolpakova Darian Lassiter Jensen Lynn Ashlinn Maze Dawn McGinnis Rebecca Troyak Kelcey Wetterberg Claire Wolford The Cowboys are looking for new Cheerleaders for their 2024 squad with tryouts in May. The team’s website states: “Whether they’re cheering on the sidelines at AT T Stadium, performing on USO stages worldwide, or appearing on televisions in homes across the country, the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders are an institution that is truly unmatched.” The Cowboy’s cheerleaders have been a staple of Dallas sports – well, really, American sports and beyond – for six decades.
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The International Ice Hockey Federation has levied sanctions against Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Ivan Fedotov, KHL club CSKA Moskva and the Russian Ice Hockey Federation for disregarding Fedotov’s 2022 entry-level contract, per Jonathan Bailey of Philadelphia Hockey Now. Fedotov signed the deal in May 2022, attempting to join the Flyers ahead of the 2022-23 season. But he was detained by Russian authorities when trying to leave the country and forced to serve one calendar year of military service. The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz reported that this service came on an aircraft carrier in the Murmansk region, far from the front lines. He went on to sign a two-year KHL contract with CSKA this season, warranting the sanctions. The official punishments, per an IIHF statement, are as follows: Fedotov is suspended from playing in any IIHF competitions, including the Olympic Games, for the next three years. Fedotov will receive a six-month suspension from playing at the club level should he leave the Flyers to play for an international club. CSKA will be banned from making international transfers for two years, beginning on August 11, 2024 and ending on August 10, 2026. The Russian Ice Hockey Federation has been assessed a fine of one million Swiss Francs. In search of any silver lining, Fedotov can at least be happy with his closing performance in Russia. He recorded 21 wins and a .914 save percentage across 44 games, adding a .916 in five postseason appearances. CSKA terminated his deal following the end of the season, allowing him to move to Philadelphia one year early. Fedotov made that move just before the end of the Flyers season, slotting into the first three NHL games of his career and saving 43 of the 53 shots he faced. Fedotov stamped his spot in Russian hockey during the 2021-22 season, leading CSKA to the Gagarin Cup and Team Russia to a Silver Medal at the 2022 Winter Olympics. He posted dazzling stats throughout, setting a .919 save percentage in 26 KHL games and a .943 in six Olympic appearances. While a future Russian Olympics roster would likely turn towards NHL stars Andrei Vasilevskiy or Igor Shesterkin, Fedotov would undoubtedly be on the shortlist of final options.
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The Pittsburgh Steelers have completely rebuilt their quarterback room this offseason, signing veteran free agents Russell Wilson and Kyle Allen and trading for Justin Fields. It’s a quarterback room that seems to be set heading into the 2024 season, but the latest player to join the group believes the Steelers view him as part of their future plans. Undrafted rookie quarterback John Rhys Plumlee revealed on Saturday that he had several suitors following the 2024 NFL Draft but chose Pittsburgh due to the team’s belief in him. “I had a lot of teams calling, but I felt like Pittsburgh was the right spot and I felt like they believed in me,” Plumlee said. Plumlee will have to beat out Allen in training camp to be the No. 3 quarterback if he hopes to make the Steelers’ 53-man roster — a task that won’t be easy since Allen has proved to be a capable backup now on his fifth team in the league. Still, Plumlee brings upside to the position. Over the past two years, he’s thrown for 4,857 yards and 29 touchdowns while also rushing for 1,367 yards and 16 touchdowns at UCF. Luckily for Plumlee, those decisions are far from being made, and he is looking forward to learning from Allen, Wilson and Fields in the near future. “I haven’t got to talk to them yet, but looking forward to meeting those guys and learning from them and getting to work with them,” Plumlee added. Joining a quarterback room with the caliber of Pittsburgh’s players could be daunting for a rookie, but Plumlee is pumped to team up with players he has looked up to for many years. “I’m super excited,” Plumlee finished. “Those are some guys that I’ve looked up to coming up, playing football. So super excited about the opportunity.”
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Analyzing a proposed Maple Leafs and Flames trade for Mitch Marner
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In a recent post on untouchables for the Toronto Maple Leafs, I cited a proposed trade that suggested Toronto deal Mitch Marner to Calgary. Ryan Dixon of Sportsnet proposed the deal and wrote that the Calgary Flames would get Marner, center Fraser Minten, winger Nick Robertson and defenseman Timothy Liljegren. In exchange, the Maple Leafs would get goaltender Jacob Markstrom and defenseman Rasmus Andersson. The Flames would retain 25 percent of Markstrom’s remaining salary in the deal. By most standards, this would be considered a monster trade in the realm of a blockbuster. That said, is it reasonable? Why Toronto and Calgary Both Consider This Move Dixon explained that Markstrom and Andersson are under contract for two more seasons. The cost certainty would be a big plus for the Maple Leafs, filling two areas of need at an affordable price. He notes the Flames would be adding a goalie who had great underlying numbers and a right-shot defenseman who plays big minutes. The total cost for both players under the terms of Dixon’s proposed deal would be $9.05 million, already $1.85 million less than Marner is being paid. He also argued that the emergence of 2023 first-rounder Easton Cowan and the growth of Matthew Knies would allow the Leafs to move Robertson and Minten without much concern. Dixon also contends that Calgary’s recent trades suggest it is not inclined toward a complete rebuild. Marner, with three years left in his twenties, offers the franchise an immediate star who can score. Giving up Andersson hurts, but Liljegren helps solidify the bottom pair and he’s still young, which is something GM Craig Conroy likes. Robertson and Minten are both solid prospects. This trade package reflects Calgary’s aim to bolster its roster for the present and future with players who can make an impact immediately. The Realities Of This Trade Happening While Dixon makes some valid points, the reality is a few things have to happen for a trade like this to get anywhere close. First, Marner has to waive his no-trade, no-move clause to go to Calgary. When you consider where they are in terms of being a contender, that seems unlikely. The tax implications of signing long-term in Calgary are better than in Toronto, but there are other teams in a better position in the standings and as lower-tax destinations Marner would likely consider first. Dallas, Florida, Tampa Bay and Nashville all rank among the best places to play from an income tax standpoint. This is not to say any are interested, only that these might be teams Marner looks at before he contemplates the Flames. Meanwhile, Markstrom would have to also agree to waive his no-trade clause to join the Maple Leafs. He was willing to do so for New Jersey, but it’s not clear if he’d be open to another team, especially one where the spotlight is so prevalent. In Toronto, he’d be seen as a major piece of the puzzle and a down season could be disastrous. Calgary Might Think Twice About Marner As wild as it might sound for the Flames not to be interested in someone as talented as Marner, like in Toronto, Calgary is a hockey city. The team gets a lot of attention and if Marner is going to move, it’s logical to assume he’d prefer potentially flying under the radar for a while, especially if a new long-term contract puts additional pressure on him to perform in the playoffs. He won’t get to do that with the Flames. It would be on him to get them into the playoffs. He wouldn’t have Auston Matthews and/or William Nylander to ease some of that burden. This assumes the Flames and GM Craig Conroy are open to meeting his contract demands. The team is already dealing with the consequences of paying Jonathan Huberdeau a huge deal. Does Calgary want two forwards with some consistency issues eating up more than $20 million on its salary cap? What Conroy doesn’t need are two immediately non-tradeable deals on his books while he’s trying to retool the roster into long-term contenders.
