The time between the NFL Draft and training camps beginning is considered to be a dead time around the league. But all 32 teams are already getting ready for the season.
Over the next couple months, teams will be holding their OTAs (organized team activities) and having minicamps. A majority of the big questions teams have will be answered in training camp or preseason, but what happens in May and June matters too.
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Here are 10 storylines to track during OTAs and minicamps:
Aaron Rodgers’ decision
Nope, you’re not getting away from this one. The way Rodgers portrayed the timetable for his decision was that there isn’t one. He has told any team involved that he wasn’t making a decision right away, as he deals with an off-field issue with someone in his inner circle, and there would be no hard feelings if teams move on without him. Well, there’s really not much choice for the Pittsburgh Steelers anymore, unless they break the Kirk Cousins glass and trade for the Falcons quarterback. We all assume Rodgers will be the Steelers’ quarterback, but until that decision is made we wait. It will loom over the Steelers’ offseason.
When will Micah Parsons get paid?
The Cowboys seem to enjoy waiting to pay their stars, even if it costs them more in the end. That seems to be what’s happening with Parsons, one of the NFL’s elite defensive players who will get paid as such. Parsons is attending Cowboys workouts, which seems like a good faith move by the player during negotiations. The question doesn’t really seem to be if or even how much Parsons will get paid, it’s when he’ll get it.
Browns QB competition, including Shedeur Sanders, starts
Presumably, Joe Flacco will start the season as the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback. This is the one team in which the No. 4 quarterback entering OTAs will be the story. Shedeur Sanders likely starts the offseason behind Flacco, Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel on the depth chart, but how that competition plays out will be fascinating. Will the Browns keep four quarterbacks? Can Sanders rise through the depth chart to be the primary backup? Every part of the competition will be dissected.
Former Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders gets a chance to establish an NFL career with the Cleveland Browns. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images for ONIT)
(Dustin Bradford via Getty Images)
New-look Jets with Justin Fields
Nobody expects the New York Jets to be very good in Aaron Glenn’s first season as coach, but the organizational reset is worth watching. At the top of that list is Justin Fields, the new quarterback who is getting another shot to establish himself as a starter. It’s going to look a lot different than the unsuccessful Aaron Rodgers era.
J.J. McCarthy starts his close-up
The Minnesota Vikings went 14-3 last season and then decided to make a big change. Sam Darnold left for the Seattle Seahawks, and 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy steps in. McCarthy is coming off a season-ending knee injury suffered in the preseason, and although he says he’s fully healthy, seeing it in action will be the test. Vikings OTAs start on May 27 and their mandatory minicamp is June 10-12. How McCarthy looks will be a huge story out of those workouts.
Brock Purdy’s massive extension
Purdy is about to get a heck of a raise. Purdy’s salary was $985,000 last season and his extension could be worth more than $50 million a year. The 49ers have given every indication that Purdy’s deal will get done this offseason, now it’s just a matter of figuring out the details and announcing it. That should happen at some point in this summer, and then his contract details will be the talk of the NFL for a while.
Colts’ QB competition
The Colts brought in Daniel Jones to compete with Anthony Richardson, the fourth pick of the 2023 NFL Draft who has not played well enough to be the Colts’ established starter going into year three. The Colts want Richardson to find consistency and win the job. The question, starting with OTAs, is if Richardson responds well to the competition.
Travis Hunter’s role takes shape
The way the Jaguars use Travis Hunter will be watched closely. The No. 2 overall pick of the NFL Draft will start primarily on offense but the Jaguars will use him at cornerback too. Jaguars coach Liam Coen says the team has a plan for all of this, and perhaps we’ll see a preview of how that will play out during OTAs.
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“From a scheduling standpoint, we have it all laid out, but we also have to have the ability to be agile and be fluid on specific days,” Coen said this offseason. “If we feel like he didn’t get enough work on one side of the ball the previous day, then we need to be able to move forward and get him those reps the next day.”
Michael Penix Jr. and Kirk Cousins have new roles
Penix is the Atlanta Falcons’ starter, the team made that clear. But Cousins is still on the roster, perhaps to be traded down the line or maybe not. It will make things a bit awkward in offseason workouts, considering last offseason Cousins was the starter with the $180 million contract and Penix was his rookie understudy. Cousins will likely handle the situation as a professional, but as long as he’s around it will be a huge story in Atlanta.
Marvin Harrison Jr., take 2
Harrison’s rookie season didn’t go as well as hoped for the Arizona Cardinals. He wasn’t bad but wasn’t an instant star either. The hype for his second season has started, with coach Jonathan Gannon saying “just wait until this guy plays this year.”
This guy played unbelievable ball for us, but if you talk to him, he’d be the first to tell you, like, ‘I need to get better at these couple things,’ and, man, he has went to work on them,” Gannon told Mad Dog Sports. “He has went to work on them. He looks awesome out there right now.”