The NFL's Most Pressing Questions Prior To Regular-Season Kickoff And OutKick's Answers
The first regular-season Sunday of the NFL season is only minutes away and, yes, lots of excitement is in the air.
Lots of questions, too.
The questions that will matter most in 2023 with an answer (you may not like) from OutKick Senior NFL Writer Armando Salguero:
It's Kind Of Simple With Jordan Love
Question: Is Jordan Love going to be good?
OutKick answer: He's going to be good. There will be some learning curve because he needs more experience. But everything the Packers have seen up to now -- which includes last season, this offseason and training camp -- suggests they have a good QB on their hands.
Question: Can the Jets, Dolphins, and Bills figure out their biggest problems -- their problematic offensive lines -- so they can make an expected push to the AFC East title?
OutKick answer: Too many moving parts to solve. Sorry.
The Jets have to hope both their tackles, one coming off an injury at age 38 and one with a terrible durability history, both stay healthy.
The Dolphins have to hope injury-plagued Terron Armstead, who is missing Sunday's game at the Chargers, can stay healthy at left tackle while Austin Jackson, who has been injured too often and not really very good when healthy, avoids both problems.
And the Bills must hope their right side, with right guard O'Cyrus Torrence and tackle Spencer Brown, is going to be a something more than a project. Good luck with that.
Torrence is a rookie. And Brown, in his third season, was unremarkable in 14 starts last season.
Will New OCs Help Vet QBs
Question: How will new offensive coordinators with the Chargers, Buccaneers, Cowboys, Ravens, Titans, Patriots, and Broncos affect the veteran quarterbacks on those teams?
Some of those veteran quarterbacks, by the way, represent a who's who of the position: Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, and Russell Wilson.
OutKick Answer: The Kellen Moore arrival in Los Angeles is going to help Justin Herbert but it'll be interesting to see how the coordinator's desire to stretch the field fits with Herbert's well-known risk aversion.
Russell Wilson has lost weight. He's strengthened his legs. And Sean Payton knows how to handle veteran QBs.
If those two can get along and agree, it should be better this season in Denver. If not ...
And Jackson is about to have a big season -- at least as long as he and Odell Beckham Jr. stay healthy. That's the issue in Baltimore -- durability of players with histories of being fragile.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - AUGUST 26: Aaron Rodgers #8 of the New York Jets warms up prior to the game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on August 26, 2023 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
Rodgers, Cousins Embark On Interesting Year
Question: What is Kirk Cousins going to do in perhaps his final year with the Vikings?
He is unsigned and the club has not committed to re-signing him in the offseason which is curious because the Vikings have neither multiple first-round picks to make a move on drafting a top QB or tons of cap space to sign one in free agency.
OutKick Answer: It would shock if Cousins is back next season. But it should not shock if he delivers a season worthy of a sizeable contract as a free agent next offseason. In fact, that's the prediction here.
Question: Is Aaron Rodgers going to raise the Jets to a championship caliber team?
OutKick Answer: He didn't do it in Green Bay beyond 2010-11 so if he does it in New York it would suggest the Packers wasted him for more than a decade after they won one Super Bowl with him. Rodgers will be an major upgrade at QB in New York.
The Jets have the feel of a playoff team right now.
But championship? Those are the expectations that seem too lofty to me.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - AUGUST 18: Quarterback Bryce Young #9 of the Carolina Panthers in action against the New York Giants a pre-season football game at MetLife Stadium on August 18, 2023 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NFL Rookie Quarterbacks Off And Running
Question: Do the Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts have good quarterbacks on their hands with Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud and Anthony Richardson?
OutKick Answer: The metrics on past drafts suggest two of these three will fail. Nothing personal, but that's just how past drafts have dealt with first-round quarterbacks.
Young has the best chance to look solid as a rookie. He has a good offensive line in front of him. He has great coaching behind him.
Stroud suffers from not having a great team around him and his coaches are new. Head coach DeMeco Ryans is a first-year head coach. Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik is a first-year offensive coordinator.
It should help the Texans will be running the football well. Or well enough. But Stroud is going to need more help around him eventually.
As to Anthony Richardson ... that's a more intriguing issue. Let's look at that:
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - AUGUST 24: Anthony Richardson #5 of the Indianapolis Colts scrambles against the Philadelphia Eagles during the preseason game at Lincoln Financial Field on August 24, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Colts defeated the Eagles 27-13. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Anthony Richards Lowest Floor Highest Ceiling
Multiple NFL people are expecting Richardson to offer the most dramatic rises and falls of any of the three first-round rookie QBs.
"You're talking about a kid that can run a 4.4 and has one of the strongest arms in the league," one AFC personnel man said. "So he's going to show you things in moments that are rare. But he's so raw. There's going to be a lot of plays that will make you cringe."
Richardson today becomes the seventh different opening-day quarterback for the Colts. That streak dates back to Scott Tolzein in 2017.
But this is where the streak stops. At least that's what the Colts expect.
Richardson, the 21-year-old, is the future. And for a team not expected to do a lot in the present, that will have to suffice.
This season isn't about Jonathan Taylor. Isn't about being a solid team that hovers around .500. Isn't about welcoming coach Shane Steichen to his first NFL head coaching job.
It's about Richardson growing so that next year the Colts roll out a quarterback that possesses top-tier ability and can also play the position like a top-tier quarterback.
Final Question: What about Running back Jonathan Taylor?
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - DECEMBER 18: Jonathan Taylor #28 of the Indianapolis Colts rushes for a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the New England Patriots at Lucas Oil Stadium on December 18, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Speaking Of The Colts And Jonathan Taylor
OutKick Answer: Jonathan Taylor's relationship with the Colts was so broken that Colts general manager Chris Ballard said the team had much work to do to resolve it.
Forget that.
The situation has not been fixed -- at least not to the degree Taylor wants it, per source. The feeling is this is personal rather than just business. Taylor was not merely upset about his situation as he sought a contract extension, he felt disrespected.
That hasn't really changed, per a source.
And so the Colts won't have him until their Oct. 8 game at earliest. But that's not the date that matters.
As OutKick reported weeks ago, the Colts gave Taylor a deadline of Tuesday, August 29 at 4 p.m. to find a team willing to trade for him. That deadline served the team in making roster decisions. It’s not a real trade deadline.
The NFL trade deadline is Oct. 31.
And the Colts expect to "at least listen" to any team interested in a trade, regardless of what they've said. So if a team in dire need of an outstanding, 24-year-old running back decides to chase Taylor, that is going to be on the table.
“I’m not going to get into trading, I’m not going to get into hypotheticals,” Ballard said when the artificial deadline passed. “Right now Jonathan Taylor is a Colt."
One thing: The Colts remain steadfast they will not give Taylor away.
They want a first-round pick for him. That is their unofficial, official stance.