Franchise Quarterback

Courtesy of The Athletic Written by Sam DeCoste If I were to tell you at the beginning of last season that DeAndre Hopkins would be a Cardinal, Stefon Diggs would be a Bill, Todd Gurley would be a Falcon, Philip Rivers would be a Colts, Teddy Bridgewater would be a Panther, and Tom Brady would be a Buccaneer, you would have laughed at me. But this is the alternate Madden-esque reality which the NFL will be in 2020, with a number of brand value names playing in different uniforms. Even the great Tom Brady has parted ways with the Patriots, and DeAndre Hopkins was shipped out of Houston for a roll of toilet paper. This offseason could mark one of the most historic periods of transition for the NFL and define the trajectories of more teams than ever before.  Now that the first wave of free agency has died down, we have a chance to breathe and break down the biggest transactions of the first week of NFL free agency and determine who are the winners and losers of the ...

Well, this is going to take some getting used to. Tom Brady has left the New England Patriots, and will be taking his Hall of Fame services down south. Brady is signing a multi-year deal with the  Tampa Buy Buccaneers. The Buccaneers officially announced the signing of Brady on Friday morning. Brady's contract with the Patriots ran up following the 2019 season, and neither party entered true negotiations to renew his deal. Brady announced his decision to part ways with the New England Patriots on social media.  In his 20 years in New England, the former sixth round pick won 17 division titles, 9 AFC Championships, and 6 Super Bowls, among a laundry list of accolades. But for a perennial champion and the widely heralded G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Time), Brady's tenure ended on a sour note in his final season. The Patriots lost four of their last eight regular season games in 2019, and they fell to the Titans in the Wild Card Round, their worst finish to a season ...

Written by Ben Slavin The first 48 hours of the legal tampering period are always crazy. Record-setting deals are handed out at multiple positions. Guys we consider role players or average get eight figure salaries from teams eager to improve. Then there’s the mind-blowing trades where stars go for way less than their perceived market value. All this makes for a whole lot of excitement for NFL fans and a whole lot of dents in owners’ wallets. Now that we’re a few days into free agency and things have cooled down, it’s time to sit back and reflect on who did the best and worst. As you’ll see by the disproportionate numbers in each category, free agency moves often look great when they happen and horrible years later. Every trade that’s been made since the Super Bowl is factored in since none were official until the start of the league year on March 13. Winners Oakland Raiders The perception of Jon Gruden and the Raiders took about as big of a positive turn as you could hope for. Eve...

Written by Sam DeCoste Remember the date. March 12th, 2019 - the day which forever changed the roads of two NFL franchises, for the better of one, and worse for the other. On Tuesday night, the Browns and Giants destroyed the Internet when news broke that the Giants agreed to trade Odell Beckham, Jr. away to the Cleveland Browns.  The Giants will receive the Browns' first round draft pick at #17 overall as well as a third round pick in this year's draft, along with safety Jabrill Peppers.  This blockbuster trade had the entire country turning their heads. Many including myself thought the trade was a joke when we learned about it. But it is very much real. The Browns, who are being pegged as preseason favorites to win the AFC North, are certainly generating plenty of buzz and momentum going into 2019, especially now with Odell Beckham. The Giants, meanwhile, have dark days ahead. What Can the Browns Do For You? To put how monumental this move is into perspective,...

Written by Sam DeCoste After months of drama and speculation, Antonio Brown finally got his wish. He will be leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers, and soon donning the famous Raider black and silver. On Sunday morning, the Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to a deal with the Oakland Raiders to ship Antonio Brown to the Raiders in exchange for a pair of mid round draft picks.  Brown also agreed to terms on a restructured contract with the Raiders, which will pay him over $54 million in the next three years, including $30 million in guaranteed money. Brown's previous contract with Pittsburgh had no guaranteed money remaining in his final three years. After what turned out to be a turbulent finish to the 2018 season, which culminated in the Steelers missing the playoffs, Antonio Brown made it clear he wanted out of Pittsburgh. Disputes between Brown and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and head coach Mike Tomlin spiraled late into last season, which led Brown to requesting a trade. The m...

Episode 10 starring Sam, Ben, Kevin, Amael, Chris, and Marc The podcast is back after a month off, and ready for the offseason! In this new episode, we recap the Super Bowl, touch on the biggest news stories in the NFL from the past month, talk about last year's rookie quarterbacks and project their sophomore seasons, and predict where Antonio Brown will go in a game-show segment called "Where's Business Boomin?" Enjoy the podcast! You can access the podcast here .

Written by Ben Slavin Traditional football sites do their predictions after big events like the draft or free agency, but we here at Franchise Quarterback aren’t traditional. We’re awesome. So enjoy these predictions that have the same likelihood of being right as the Browns having found their franchise quarterback.  AFC   AFC East Buffalo Bills - 5-11 The Bills overperformed dramatically last year, and no matter how much Bills fans may hate Tyrod Taylor, they can’t deny he’s better than Josh Allen or AJ McCarron. Miami Dolphins - 3-13 Adam Gase seems so concerned with establishing a culture that he’s forgotten what wins games in the NFL — talent. New England Patriots - 12-4 Everyone in the Patriots organization seems to hate each other, but does anyone actually think that will stop the Pats? New York Jets - 5-11 The Jets are building a nice team, but it’s too early to see the results pay off. Be patient, Jets fans, a few years from now, this team could be a c...

Written by Ben Slavin The Eagles' Philadelphia-burning Super Bowl win was the product of savvy free agency moves and aggressive trades. This league is full of copycats and no one has been able to replicate the New England dynasty, so the next best thing is trying to follow the Philly plan. The lack of a quality free agents available and the widespread cash to spend mean that everyone is getting overpaid and trading for veterans is becoming a necessity. That all led to one of the most chaotic free agency periods in a while. Winners Los Angeles Rams No team tried harder to replicate the big moves made by the Eagles last year than the Rams. They had to make a tough decision in letting Trumaine Johnson go, but traded for Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib -- two players whose combined 2018 salaries are far lower than Johnson’s alone. Instead of franchising Johnson for the third straight year, they elected to keep versatile Lamarcus Joyner via the tag. Not settling with those m...