Column: Mum’s the word on big NFL topics of the day
NFL teams made a lot of noise in the immediate aftermath of the Week 17 finales, with San Francisco and San Diego firing their coaches, and Denver confirming that its coach was stepping down.
That made for a quiet “Black Monday,” the day struggling teams typically reserve for making changes at the top. But in some cases, the silence was deafening, and what wasn’t explained provided fodder for conversation.
A sampling of what was said Monday, and what was left unsaid:
“Never say never.” — Denver’s John Elway, on whether the Broncos might add a veteran quarterback. There will continue to be speculation about Elway rolling the dice on another seasoned star, the way he did so successfully with Peyton Manning. Much of that chatter surrounds Tony Romo, made expendable in Dallas by the emergence of rookie Dak Prescott. Elway, speaking at Gary Kubiak’s farewell news conference, said the Broncos are focused on their two young quarterbacks, Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch, but “we are always looking at everything.”
“We’re not going to answer questions every week based on someone else’s Twitter scoop.” — New Orleans Coach Sean Payton, on talk he might be leaving the Saints, possibly for the Rams. This has been an annual off-season exercise for Payton, with speculation percolating a year ago that he might wind up in San Francisco or Indianapolis. Payton said it’s “silly” for him to address the topic every time it comes up. When asked whether he’ll be with the Saints next season, he simply responded: “Next question.”
“Bob Kraft.” — Woody Johnson, owner of the New York Jets, inexplicably tweeted then deleted the name of the New England Patriots owner, triggering all sorts of guessing as to why. Some fans thought it might involve a trade, or a possible sale of the franchise, while others wrote it off as an honest mistake by a technologically confused billionaire.
“I did not ask.” — Buffalo General Manager Doug Whaley, on not knowing for sure why the Bills fired Rex Ryan as coach. Whaley said he learned Ryan had been fired only after he and the coach had their weekly conference call with team owners Terry and Kim Pegula. That revelation called into question to what extent Whaley is kept in the loop. “I was told by my boss that I will no longer be working with Rex,” Whaley told reporters. “My role is not to figure out why, my role is to take that information and go forward and put this organization in the best possible light to win football games.”
“There’s a lot of different factors.” — Houston Coach Bill O’Brien hinted that Brock Osweiler could regain the starting quarterback job from Tom Savage for Saturday’s first-round game against Oakland. Savage is in the concussion protocol. O’Brien said health will be a factor, of course, but also who’s able to take the reps during practice this week. He also praised the job Osweiler did in relief against Tennessee on Sunday, throwing for 253 yards and a touchdown. The Raiders, too, are waiting to decide which quarterback to start, Matt McGloin — nursing a shoulder injury — or Connor Cook.
Like just about everything else Monday, nobody could say.
Follow Sam Farmer on Twitter: @LATimesfarmer
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
