Cutting McCown About More Than Making Room For Top Pick

When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cut quarterback Josh McCown this week, many made the knee jerk assumption that the team was opening up space for either Marcus Mariota or, as speculation has continued to grow, Jameis Winston. However, that could have been done at any time, and the move to jettison McCown was about a lot more than the Bucs having the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.

First, the Buccaneers did McCown a favor. Cutting ties with McCown now gives the quarterback a head start on a free agent class headlined by guys like Mark Sanchez, Ryan Mallett and T.J. Yates. It’s slim pickings for a team looking to upgrade the quarterback position this season, and that’s going to mean there’s going to be an opportunity for McCown to land on his feet. His agent has stated that several teams have already reached out to the quarterback.

Of course, while the Bucs might draft a quarterback first overall, this move could be as much about bringing in another veteran quarterback to mentor the top pick. T.J. Yates is a guy who could draw attention from Tampa Bay after spending last season with the Atlanta Falcons and new Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter. If the Bucs wanted to bring in a guy like Yates who can teach the new face of the franchise Koetter’s offense, there’s still a possibility of getting some return in a trade for Mike Glennon. Tampa Bay couldn’t say the same about McCown, so it made the decision quite easy.

Aside from the Buccaneers’ ability to possibly get some value for Glennon, cutting McCown (who had no guaranteed money in his deal) saved the Buccaneers $5.25 million against next year’s cap. The move made sense, for a whole lot of reasons.

 Fitzgerald, Cardinals Trying to Rework Deal

NFL reporter Ian Rappaport reported Thursday that the Arizona Cardinals have begun discussing a renegotiated deal for veteran receiver Larry Fitzgerald, whose deal is for $16 million in 2015. The Cardinals could save almost $10 million if they cut Fitzgerald, but both sides would love to see the receiver finish his career in Arizona.

Fitzgerald should remain in Arizona. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Cardinals fan or not, seeing Fitzgerald finish his career with the team that made him the third overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft is what you should want. Yes, selfishly we all want Fitzgerald on our team. However, seeing Fitzgerald finish his illustrious career in Arizona is best for football.

There are few players in the history of the Cardinals organization that you identify the team with more than Fitzgerald, and the last thing any of us want is seeing Fitzgerald look in a Cowboy uniform the way Emmitt Smith once looked in Cardinals gear.

Fitzgerald has caught every single one of his 909 receptions with Arizona, compiled every one of his over 12,000 career yards with Arizona and grabbed all of his 89 touchdowns with Arizona. His very last catch should happen in that same uniform.

McCarthy Hands Over Play Calling Duties

Just when you thought recently fired Green Bay Packers special teams coach Shawn Slocum would be the only scapegoat for Green Bay falling apart against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game, we learn that isn’t the case.

Mike McCarthy and the Packers announced that McCarthy will hand over play calling duties to Tom Clements, who has been promoted from offensive coordinator to associate head coach.

Whether or not this is a signal that McCarthy could be on the hot seat if the Packers don’t get to or even win a Super Bowl remains to be seen, but while they’ll never say it out loud, this is certainly a signal that the organization realized McCarthy’s failure at the end of the NFC Championship game.

Whether or not McCarthy is thrilled with the move, he certainly sounds like he believes it’s the right direction for his club.

“This is the time to do it,” said McCarthy. “I think our staff’s ready. I think it’s an opportunity for guys to grow. And it’s an opportunity for them to make an impact. I feel we’ll be better offensively from that.”

For Clements, this isn’t his first go at calling plays in the NFL. The Packers’ offensive coordinator also filled that role for two seasons with the Buffalo Bills, but he has to be excited about the opportunity to call plays for such a high-powered offense.