Ndamukong Suh, who hasn’t played in an NFL game since Super Bowl LVII two and a half years ago, today made it official that his NFL career is over. While not a surprise, the timing of the announcement had personal significance to Suh because today is the first anniversary of the death of his father.
“It’s the day I said goodbye to my father, the man who raised me, shaped me, challenged me, and believed in me before I believed in myself,” Suh wrote on social media. “He wasn’t just a dad. He was my idol, my coach, and my anchor. He taught me what it meant to be disciplined, focused, and relentless in everything I do. Every snap I took in football carried his fingerprint. Every time I lined up across from someone, I could hear his voice pushing me, reminding me that I wasn’t just representing myself. I was representing him, my family, my name. Before he passed, he gave me one final piece of advice, ‘It’s time to let football go. You’ve done everything you set out to do. Now it’s time for the next chapter.’”
One of the most dominant defensive tackles in college football history at Nebraska, Suh entered the NFL with the Lions as the second overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft. He made an immediate impact and was the league’s defensive rookie of the year and a first-team All-Pro as a rookie. After earning two more first-team All-Pros in Detroit, he left for Miami, signing a contract that made him the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history at the time. After three years with the Dolphins he had stints with the Rams and Buccaneers before closing his career with the Eagles.
Suh played in Super Bowls for each of his last three teams, a rare accomplishment in NFL history. The short list of players who have played in Super Bowls for three different franchises includes Rod Woodson (Steelers, Ravens, Raiders), Bill Romanowski (49ers, Broncos, Raiders), Preston Pearson (Colts, Steelers, Cowboys), Harry Swayne (Chargers, Broncos, Ravens) and Joe Jurevicius (Giants, Buccaneers, Seahawks).
Suh was widely regarded as one of the most feared and physically aggressive players in the NFL, a reputation that was well-earned — and a reputation that did not make him well-liked by either opponents or the league office. He was frequently fined and twice suspended for cheap shots, although one of those suspensions, which would have forced him to miss a playoff game for stepping on Aaron Rodgers’ arm, was overturned on appeal. Suh will be remembered as a great player who pushed the envelope and stood out as an old-school defender in an era when the league increasingly emphasized player safety.
49ers wide receiver Demarcus Robinson pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor DUI charge stemming from his arrest last November, the Orange County Register reports.
A judge sentenced Robinson to 36 months of probation and imposed a $390 fine on Tuesday. Robinson also has penalty assessment and is required to complete a series of programs, including a three-month alcohol program and a hospital and morgue program. He cannot to drive any vehicle with any measurable amount of alcohol, according to the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office.
“Mr. Robinson has taken this process extremely seriously by already completing most of the terms of his probation,” Robinson’s attorney, Jacqueline Sparagna, told TMZ. “We expect that his probation will terminate early at the 18-month mark, after which his case will be expunged.”
Robinson had two other charges — driving with a 0.08 percent blood alcohol content or higher and driving without a valid license — dismissed, according to Sparagna.
Robinson, who spent the past two seasons with the Rams, was arrested Nov. 25 when police pulled him over for allegedly driving his car at a speed in excess of 100 mph. He refused a field sobriety test.
Robinson, 30, signed a two-year deal with the 49ers in March. San Francisco signed Robinson knowing that he faced a three-game suspension for violation of the league’s policy on substances of abuse.
Now that the legal case is resolved, the NFL can proceed with its punishment of Robinson.
Rams running back Kyren Williams wants a new contract, and he’s shown it not by holding out, but by doing extra work this offseason.
According to the Rams’ website, Williams and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, have had an ongoing dialogue with the Rams’ front office about a potential extension, and during that time Williams has participated in all voluntary workouts and impressed coaches with his hard work and leadership.
Rams running backs coach Ron Gould said Williams showed up in “exceptional shape,” Gould told theRams.com.
“The first thing that stood out to us was his explosiveness . . . that was really, really evident in the work that he’s put in, so really, really pleased with that,” Gould said.
Williams sits atop the Rams’ running back depth chart, and he is setting the tone for the running back room.
“You talk about leadership, that’s what that’s all about,” Gould said, “So he’s done a great job of uniting the guys, bringing everybody together, and making sure that we all stay on the same page.”
Williams is heading into the fourth and final year of his rookie contract and is due to make $5.3 million this season.
Thursday’s #PFTPM including a simple question: “What are your thoughts on a potential Bills-Rams Super Bowl?”
My thoughts are it could happen, because both teams are firmly in the Super Bowl window.
In any given year, not many teams truly are. And while teams not apparently in the window can, in theory, win their way in, the salary-cap system has matured to the point where some teams have cracked the code — and some teams can’t crack their way out of a paper bag.
It also helps to have drafted and developed a franchise quarterback.
In most years, roughly 10 teams are in the window, roughly 10 teams aren’t, and the remaining 12 could break either way. This year, the AFC’s true short-list contenders are the Chiefs, Bills, Ravens, Bengals, and Texans. The Broncos and Chargers could force their way into the conversation.
In the NFC, it’s the Eagles, Lions, Rams, 49ers, and Commanders. Maybe the Buccaneers. Maybe the Vikings.
Again, things can and will change. That’s why they play the games, as someone once said. All the time.
For those who like a little variety, it would be nice for someone other than the Chiefs to get a turn in the Super Bowl. And for someone other than the Eagles, 49ers, or Rams to emerge from the NFC.
Since 2017, it’s been the Eagles three times, the 49ers twice, the Rams twice, and the Bucs once. For the AFC, it’s been only the Patriots, Chiefs, and Bengals.
That’s it. Over eight seasons, seven total franchises have taken the 16 total Super Bowl berths.
Free agency, the salary cap, and a draft process that rewards failure should be enough to mix things up. But the reality is that good teams stay good, and bad teams stay bad.
We’ve recently taken a look at the coaches on the hot seat for 2025. This week, a reader asked the same question as it relates to quarterbacks.
Plenty of them are feeling the heat, or should be, this season. Let’s take a look at each spot, based on the loose arrangement of the conferences and divisions that has been tattooed onto my brain.
Justin Fields, Jets: His contract has $10 million in guarantees that spill into 2026. That’s not enough to guarantee him two years as the starter. He needs to do enough in 2025 to earn 2026 — and beyond.
Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins: His contract guarantees his pay through 2026. If the Dolphins fall flat and change coaches, the next coach likely will want a fresh start at quarterback. While the cap charges will complicate a split before 2027, every high-end quarterback contract eventually leads to a big cap charge when the relationship ends. The next coach (and the next G.M., if owner Stephen Ross cleans house) may want to rip the Band-Aid off in one motion.
Aaron Rodgers, Steelers: He says he’s pretty sure this is his last year. If he doesn’t play well enough for the Steelers in 2025 and if he wants to keep playing in 2026, the Steelers may give him the same cold shoulder that Russell Wilson got after 2024.
All Browns quarterbacks: With Jacksonville’s first-round pick in their back pocket, the Browns could be in position to get a future franchise quarterback in next year’s draft. That raises the stakes for every quarterback currently on the Cleveland roster. Because there’s a chance none of them will be the starter in 2026.
Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson, Colts: It already feels like Jones will be the Week 1 starter. He’ll then have a chance to lock the revolving door the Colts have had since Andrew Luck retired. If he doesn’t, the Colts will be looking elsewhere in 2026. As to Richardson, his best play is to play better than he ever has, if and when he gets the chance.
Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars: Every new coach wants his own quarterback, except when the coach inherits a true franchise quarterback. But Tony Dungy landing with Peyton Manning doesn’t happen very often. And it’s not clear whether Lawrence is a short-list franchise quarterback. He was on track to be one as of 2022. The past two years haven’t been good enough, long-term contract notwithstanding. What do coach Liam Coen and G.M. James Gladstone want? If Lawrence doesn’t play better in 2025 than he did in 2024, Lawrence and everyone else may find out in 2026.
Geno Smith, Raiders: He’s being mentioned simply to say he’s not on the hot seat. He has $18.5 million in guarantees for 2026, and his close ties to Pete Carroll will keep Smith around for at least two years. (Unless, of course, a certain minority owner decides otherwise.)
Dak Prescott, Cowboys: He’s probably not on the hot seat, because his $60 million per year contract would wreak havoc on the salary cap if the Cowboys were to cut or trade him (yes, he has a no-trade clause, but he can waive it) in 2026. The complication for the Cowboys is that his $45 million salary for 2027 becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2026 league year. They’re basically stuck — all because they waited too long to give him his second contract, and then waited too long to give him his third contract.
Russell Wilson, Giants: If he’s the Week 1 starter (if Jaxson Dart lives up to his first-round draft stock, Wilson shouldn’t be), the clock will be ticking. Immediately. In 2004, the Giants benched Kurt Warner after nine games for Eli Manning, even though the Giants were 5-4 at the time. When Dart is ready, Dart will play. Even if Wilson makes it through 2025 without getting benched, he’ll have to do plenty to keep Dart on the sideline for 2026.
Jordan Love, Packers: He’s not on the hot seat per se, but he needs to play better in 2025 than he did in 2024. If not, he will be on the hot seat in 2026. The wild card in Green Bay is new CEO Ed Policy, who operates as the de facto owner of the team.
J.J. McCarthy, Vikings: He’s getting his shot to play, after a knee injury wiped out his rookie season. Anything other than an outright disaster will ensure his status for 2026. At worst, he’d have to compete with a more established veteran next year.
Tyler Shough, Saints: He’ll need to do enough in 2025 to earn the chance to do well enough in 2026 to get the Saints to not pursue the grandson of Archie Manning in 2027. (And, yes, I think Arch Manning will spend two years as a college starter before entering the draft.)
Bryce Young, Panthers: In year three, he needs to continue the growth he showed late in the 2024 season, in order to secure a fourth season, the fifth-year option, and ideally (for him) a second contract.
Kyler Murray, Cardinals: His contract gives him two more years of financial security. But this is the team that drafted Murray a year after using the 10th overall pick on Josh Rosen (not Lamar Jackson). So who knows what the Cardinals will do if Murray doesn’t propel the team into contention this year?
Sam Darnold, Seahawks: He has a one-year deal, as a practical matter. And the Seahawks seem to really like rookie Jalen Milroe. Darnold will need to play very well to secure his status for 2026.
Matthew Stafford, Rams: It’s not the “hot seat” as much as it’s a mutual understanding that player and team are taking things one year at a time. After the season, both sides will have to recommit. Whether the Rams will want to do that depends on how Stafford plays in 2025, and on their other options for staffing the position in 2026.
That’s a lot of names. But it’s no surprise. There aren’t many true, unquestioned, year-after-year franchise quarterbacks. And the teams that don’t have one are always hoping to find one.
It has created more quarterback movement in recent years than ever before. Plenty of the names listed above will be on the move in 2026.
