- Baker Mayfield: I put my foot in my mouth (NFL.com) - Baker Mayfield isn’t going to change who he is, but he did learn a good lesson from his second season. Sometimes, it’s best if he keeps his chip on his shoulder to himself.
- Joe Woods loved Akron’s Antoine Winfield, could be key for Denzel Ward (ohio.com) - Browns defensive-coordinator-in-waiting Joe Woods, who will be working with a major talent from Akron area, says Garfield’s Antoine Winfield was the best DB he has coached.
- Brett Favre ‘absolutely knew’ Kevin Stefanski had head coach potential in ’09 (cleveland.com) - Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre spent the last two seasons of his NFL career with Kevin Stefanski as his assistant quarterbacks coach with the Vikings in 2009-10, and knew then that the young coach was destined for big things.
- Bill Callahan named offensive line coach (clevelandbrowns.com) - There’s a purpose behind the location of Bill Callahan’s office in Berea. The Browns’ new offensive line coach shares a wall with Kevin Stefanski, who is embarking on his first season as a head coach.
NFL:
- Joe Burrow wants to play for a team focused on winning (ESPN) - Former LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, in the mix to be drafted No. 1 overall by the Cincinnati Bengals, said going to a franchise that’s committed to winning is as important as having the distinction of being the top pick.
- Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick says he’s playing in 2020 (Sun Sentinel) - Ryan Fitzpatrick said Friday he wants to continue playing in 2020, and hopes the Miami Dolphins still want another season of the FItzMagic show. The 37-year-old quarterback had hinted at playing his 16th NFL season before Miami’s season finale, but said he needed permission from his wife and children, who live in Tampa during the season.
- Have you seen this trophy? (New York Times) - We tried tracking down the holy grail of American sports memorabilia — the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Cup, given to the first pro football champions — which has been missing since 1920.
- Lessons to be learned from the 2019 NFL offseason (PFF) - Now that the 2019 season is nearly over, we can look back at the moves that were made last offseason and see what worked and what didn’t. As is always the case, some teams were improved and some mistakes were made, but that doesn’t mean those mistakes have to be repeated this offseason. These five lessons can keep teams from doing just that.