AFC West

The Kansas City Chiefs will have to continue their chase for a third straight Super Bowl title without the hero from last year's Big Game.

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told reporters that wide receiver Mecole Hardman, who caught the game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl LVIII, will remain on injured reserve due to his knee injury and is officially out for the year.

Hardman hasn't played since going down with the injury on Nov. 29 in a win over the Las Vegas Raiders. He finished the year with just 12 catches for 90 yards while also adding 62 rushing yards and a touchdown on five carries. He also returned 20 punts for 203 yards and five kickoffs for 132 yards.

A six-year veteran, Hardman spent the first four years of his career in Kansas City before signing with the New York Jets prior to the 2023 campaign. However, he never found his footing in the Big Apple, recording just one catch in five games before the Jets traded him back to the Chiefs.

The trade would turn into a huge blessing for Hardman, as he captured his third career Super Bowl ring with Kansas City and reached legendary status for his walk-off touchdown catch that gave the Chiefs a 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers.

MAHOMES TO MECOLE HARDMAN FOR THE LOMBARDI 😱🤯

(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/lPVwGBasQj

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 12, 2024

The Chiefs are one win away from their third consecutive trip to the Super Bowl and will face the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship on Sunday. Rookie receiver Nikko Remigio has been deployed as the team's primary returner in Hardman's absence and is likely to remain in the role.

While Hardman will be disappointed to be on the sidelines for the remainder of the year, he will be rooting hard for Kansas City to pull off the first three-peat in modern NFL history.

Looking for a fresh start, the Las Vegas Raiders have landed on John Spytek to be their next general manager.

The team made the move official on Friday after ESPN's Adam Schefter reported earlier in the week that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers assistant general manager was finalizing an agreement with the franchise

John Spytek has been named General Manager of the Las Vegas Raiders.

📰 https://t.co/HfnAEPSeHX pic.twitter.com/7ZXiJXZz1T

— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) January 25, 2025

John Spytek and Tom Brady both played at Michigan in 1999, then were together in Tampa when Brady led the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl title. Now they join forces again in Las Vegas. https://t.co/s8uKsj0KiW

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 22, 2025

This marks the second straight offseason the Raiders went through a search for a new head coach and general manager. Last year, they opted to retain Antonio Pierce as head coach after he had a successful stint in an interim role.

The Raiders surprised many by going with former Los Angeles Chargers general manager Tom Telesco, who was fired by L.A. late in the 2023 season after a 63-21 loss to Vegas, to be their GM in 2024.

Neither decision wound up working out, as the Raiders finished last in the AFC West with a 4-13 record. Both Telesco and Pierce were fired by the team shortly after the end of the regular season.

The Athletic's Tashan Reed noted the Raiders initially planned to keep Telesco, but the opportunity "to start with a clean slate" by having a new coach and GM on the same timeline proved to be appealing.

Even though the Telesco era was brief and largely unsuccessful, he did nail his only first-round pick by selecting Brock Bowers with the No. 13 selection in the 2024 draft. The 22-year-old became the fourth tight end in NFL history to earn All-Pro first-team honors as a rookie.

There aren't many foundational pieces currently on the roster in Vegas, but Bowers is certainly one. Maxx Crosby could be another one, but he hasn't sounded thrilled about the constant coach and front-office turnover.

It could also be more beneficial for Spytek to trade a player of immense value like Crosby, who could bring back multiple first-round picks, to accelerate the timeline of this latest rebuild.

Regardless of everything else the Raiders do, they have to figure out an answer at quarterback. They're already in a difficult position playing in the same division as the Kansas City Chiefs with Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid; Los Angeles Chargers with Justin Herbert and Jim Harbaugh; and Denver Broncos with Bo Nix and Sean Payton.

The Raiders have had seven different quarterbacks start a game since the 2022 season, including five over the past two years after releasing Derek Carr in February 2023.

Spytek has a difficult task ahead of him to get the Raiders back on track, but hopefully he will be given some time to at least see their plan through for an organization that has lacked stability for a long time.

The Raiders are getting someone with a wealth of NFL knowledge and experience to run their front office.

Spytek has been working in the league for 21 seasons since he was hired as an operations intern by the Detroit Lions in 2004. He's had jobs with five different organizations ranging from an intern to pro scout to director of college scouting.

The most recent job for Spytek was as assistant general manager for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the past two seasons. He was in the Bucs front office when Tom Brady joined the team in 2020.

Fixing the Raiders is a monumental task, but Spytek has a strong track record of team building from his eight seasons with the Bucs.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said the controversial penalty calls made in his favor during Saturday's divisional-round win over the Houston Texans are not an indication of special treatment from referees.

When asked Wednesday if he feels he received extra protection from officials, Mahomes answered: "I don't feel that way."

"I just try to play football at the end of the day," Mahomes continued, per NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe. "The referees are doing their best to call the game as fair and as proper as they can."

The Texans were flagged eight times for 82 yards, while the Chiefs were penalized four times for 29 yards, in the 23-14 win that sent Kansas City to a seventh straight AFC Championship Game.

Mahomes discussed the calls Tuesday on The Drive on 96.5 The Fan (h/t Pete Grathoff of the Kansas City Star.)

"I've kind of learned that no matter what happens during the game, that something's going to come out about it if you win and you continue to win, so I don't really pay attention to it," Mahomes said, per Grathoff.

Mahomes continued:

"I mean, obviously I've been on both sides of it as far as how I felt the calls were made, but at the end of the day, man, those guys are doing their best to make the best calls and keep it to where the players are making the plays in the game. And that's what decides the outcome.

And obviously there was a call here or there that people didn't agree with, but at the same time, I think there was a lot of other plays that really decided the outcome of that football game."

Those penalties included a roughing-the-passer call on Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. after he hit Mahomes in the first quarter, extending a Chiefs drive that ended in a field goal.

Will Anderson was called for roughing the passer on Patrick Mahomes on this play.#HOUvsKC | ESPN, ABC, ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/bTn7Z5XoLZ

— ESPN (@espn) January 18, 2025

Texans linebacker Henry To'oTo'o and defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi then collided with a sliding Mahomes in the third quarter, earning an unnecessary roughness penalty that extended a Chiefs touchdown drive.

Henry To’oTo’o was called for a penalty after this hit on Patrick Mahomes. #HOUvsKC | ESPN, ABC, ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/w4E4cSI3FF

— ESPN (@espn) January 18, 2025

Referee Clay Martin told KPRC2's Aaron Wilson after the game that the first call was due to "forcible contact to the facemask area," while the second was because Mahomes was "considered defenseless" when sliding.

"The onus is on the player," Martin said about hitting a sliding player.

To'oTo'o said after the game that he disagreed with the decision to penalize the Texans defense for hitting Mahomes as he slid.

"As soon as the quarterback leaves the pocket, he's a runner. And he gets treated as a runner, in my opinion," To'oTo'o said, per Fox Sports' Will Kunkel. "So, runners slide, and get hit, and stuff like that doesn't happen."

When asked about specific calls, Mahomes said he "probably did too much" when he appeared to exaggerate falling after getting pushed by a Texans defender.

"The ref saw it and didn't throw a flag, and I understood it immediately, and know that I probably shouldn't have done that," Mahomes said, per Grathoff.

He then added that he doesn't plan to change the way he plays.

"I was just trying to get out of the way of getting smoked by the defensive lineman running in," Mahomes said. "So I'll try to keep doing that and not take those hits, because that's the smart way to stay in the football game."

Mahomes and the Chiefs are set to face Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in Sunday's AFC Championship Game. Clete Blakeman will be serving as the head official with a trip Super Bowl LIX on the line.

Khalil Mack didn't need a lot of time after the Los Angeles Chargers' season ended to make a decision about his playing future.

Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Mack intends to play in 2025 and will become an unrestricted free agent in March.

After the Chargers' loss to the Houston Texans in the AFC Wild Card round on Jan. 11, Mack admitted he wasn't sure if he was going to keep playing:

"Man, it's a lot of different thoughts in my head right now. I can't really speak on a definitive decision in terms of what I'm going to do because I don't know if I'm going to play football moving forward, so there's some things I got to talk through with my wife, spend some time with my kids and try not to make a rash decision after a loss."

This was a different tone than Mack had coming into the 2024 season. He told reporters in July when asked if he was thinking about retirement that they just needed to "turn on the film" because he was "rolling."

A lot of things change in six months, especially after the grind of a regular season and devastation of losing in the playoffs, but Mack is still capable of being an impact player.

Mack was the best edge player on the Chargers this season by PFF grade. He finished with 15 quarterback hits, six sacks and six tackles for loss in 16 starts.

Khalil Mack posting a 90.4 PFF Grade in Year 11 is incredible. He has finished with a Grade above 90.0 seven times. One of the best to ever do it. pic.twitter.com/Sj4ewTuiU9

— Ryan DePaul (@RyanDePaul) January 8, 2025

One area in which Mack continues to excel is against the run. He had the best run defense grade among all edge players this season by PFF metrics (91.6).

This offseason will mark the first time in Mack's career that he will be a true free agent. He restructured his contract for the 2024 season to remain with the Chargers.

Mack, who will turn 34 on Feb. 22, has been incredibly durable since joining the Chargers in March 2022. He has only missed one game in the past three seasons and recorded a career-high 17 sacks in 2023.

The Los Angeles Chargers are potentially just a move or two away from being contenders, and one NFL coach had a suggestion for the team this offseason.

Per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, an NFL coordinator said the Chargers should trade for Seattle Seahawks star receiver DK Metcalf.

"The Seahawks can still get good value for him, and he could pair with Ladd McConkey for a good inside-out tandem," the coordinator said. "[Justin] Herbert to Metcalf would be scary. I think [Los Angeles] will be looking to help the quarterback in a big way."

As the coordinator noted, the Chargers already have an elite receiver in Ladd McConkey, who Los Angeles picked 34th overall in the 2024 draft. As a rookie, McConkey collected 1,149 receiving yards and seven touchdowns to lead the team.

His best game of the season came in the Chargers' wild-card loss to the Houston Texans when he notched 197 yards and a touchdown on nine receptions.

JUSTIN HERBERT TO LADD MCCONKEY ON 3RD & 26 FOR THE 86-YARD TD 😱

(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/G4EvU8VErO

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 12, 2025

Metcalf had a solid year with the Seahawks, picking up 992 receiving yards and five touchdowns in 15 games.

With McConkey as the Chargers' No. 1 option and Metfcalf playing the WR2 role, Los Angeles could finally give Justin Herbert the star power he needs to lead the team to playoff success.

Don't be surprised if the Las Vegas Raiders target Sam Darnold in free agency this offseason.

"At Pick 6, [the Raiders] are out of range for a quarterback unless they move up, which wouldn't be smart based on the amount of holes they have," a high-ranking personnel man from an NFL team told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. "They need every pick. They have flexibility within the cap to get it done."

There are a lot of variables to sort out here, of course.

The first is the Minnesota Vikings and whether they want to bring Darnold back. The issue there is that the free agency market could price them out. Alongside the Raiders, teams like the New York Giants or Pittsburgh Steelers could have eyes for Darnold, and with J.J. McCarthy waiting in the wings, the Vikings may not be inclined to splash major cash to win the Darnold sweepstakes.

As Fowler noted, "Most execs polled believe Darnold belongs in the Geno Smith/Baker Mayfield class of contracts, somewhere in the range of three years and $100 million."

The Vikings could instead use that money to build a loaded roster around McCarthy's rookie contract, similar to the approach the San Francisco 49ers took with Brock Purdy.

Another factor to consider is whether the next head coach in Las Vegas sees Darnold as the right fit for his system. The 27-year-old had a career year in 2024, throwing for 4,319 yards, 35 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while leading the Vikings to the playoffs, but head coach Kevin O'Connell is something of a quarterback whisperer and Darnold's tenures with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers weren't pretty.

But even so, Darnold is still a better option than paying a massive price to trade up for a top-two pick to select Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders at the 2025 NFL draft, and the quarterback class behind those two is pretty weak. The options at quarterback in free agency aren't much better (unless Russell Wilson or Justin Fields are your particular cup of tea).

The Raiders have a superstar-in-the-making at tight end in Brock Bowers and a solid wideout in Jakobi Meyers, so Darnold wouldn't be without weapons.

They also have $95.6 million in estimated cap space, second in the NFL, which is the sort of money that would allow them to sign Darnold and add veteran help around him. It's not a bad plan for Las Vegas, giving them a major upgrade at the position in the short term and the flexibility to seek out a long-term solution down the line.

Marlon Humphrey is a hater, and he isn't afraid to admit it.

The Baltimore Ravens cornerback took to social media Tuesday and urged the Buffalo Bills or whatever team represents the NFC in the Super Bowl to stand in the way of Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs from winning a third straight championship.

"We can't let them keep getting away with this," he said.

I have no reason of saying this other than being a hater. The Bills or whatever NFC team gotta beat the Chiefs. We can’t let them keep getting away with this

— marlonhumphrey.eth (@marlon_humphrey) January 21, 2025

There are likely plenty of NFL fans who agree with Humphrey.

After all, the same team consistently winning all the time can grow tiresome for supporters of other franchises. Throw in the discourse about officiating in Chiefs games and the omnipresence of megastars like Mahomes and Travis Kelce, and it's a safe bet there aren't a lot of neutral fans pulling for history.

And it would be history, as the Chiefs are two wins away from becoming the first NFL team to win three straight Lombardi Trophies.

Yet part of the frustration from Humphrey and others may stem from the reality they have looked anything but dominant during their run to the AFC Championship Game this season. They finished the regular season a middling 15th in points per game and 17th in yards per game, and Mahomes didn't even make the Pro Bowl roster.

It was more of the same in the AFC Divisional Round when the Houston Texans finished with 336 total yards to Kansas City's 212 yet still lost 23-14.

MAHOMES. KELCE. TD. 💯

LIKE CLOCKWORK.

(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/QxPRIPRM3O

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 18, 2025

There is something to be said about making the most important plays in the most important moments, and the Chiefs have done just that during their pursuit of a third straight crown. Kelce also looked rejuvenated with seven catches for 117 yards and a touchdown as a matchup nightmare for Houston.

Next up is a showdown with Josh Allen and a Bills team that was eliminated by Mahomes and Co. in the AFC Championship Game during the 2020 season and Divisional Round in the 2021 and 2023 seasons.

Humphrey is hoping for a different result this time around, even if Buffalo eliminated his Ravens.

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby's future with the team appears to be uncertain.

During an appearance on Good Morning Football on Friday, Crosby said that "a lot of things need to be discussed" about his future and the lack of guaranteed money remaining on his contract.

"I'm currently under contract, but I have no guaranteed money left," Crosby said on Friday, via Tashan Reed of The Athletic. "There are a lot of things that need to be discussed. ... Regardless, I'm in a great place, and we're going to have those discussions real soon."

Crosby has been with the Raiders since 2019 and is a four-time Pro Bowler with 59.5 career sacks. He had 45 tackles, 20 quarterback hits and 7.5 sacks in 12 games in 2024. Despite his solid production, Las Vegas went 5-12 and their postseason drought extended to three seasons.

Crosby is under contract through 2026 but the guaranteed money portion of his contract is over. The Raiders will have a new head coach and general manager in the building in 2025 and the direction of the franchise may not include Crosby, as he would provide more value to a contending team that a rebuilding one.

Raiders owner Mark Davis has expressed his desire to keep Crosby but the 27-year-old could have solid value on the trade market and some draft capital could help accelerate the Raiders rebuild.

Former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is reportedly considered the Las Vegas Raiders' "top option," after Ben Johnson landed Chicago's heads coaching job, according to league sources cited by The Athletic's Vic Tafur and Tashan Reed.

In addition, Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn is also considered a "strong candidate." However, league sources believe he is more likely to end up with the New Orleans Saints, a team he both played for and previously coached, per Tafur and Reed.

The Raiders were a top contender to land Johnson after their interview went "really well," but NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that the Raiders were never the front runner and Chicago was the "early favorite in the process."

Carroll also interviewed for the Bears' head coaching job before the position ultimately went to Johnson, according to Reed.

Minority owner Tom Brady and Raiders owner Mark Davis were reportedly ready to offer Johnson a lucrative contract and input on the general manager decision, per The Athletic's Tafur and Reed. However, questions about the quarterback situation remain.

The 4-13 Raiders struggled at quarterback throughout the season, with Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew II falling short of being ideal franchise options. The lack of consistency around the Raider's quarterback is one of the main reasons that Johnson signed with the Bears, instead opting for former No. 1 pick Caleb Williams, per The Athletic's Dianna Russini.

For now, the Raiders are all in on pursuing Pete Carroll, an 18-year NFL coach who is 73 years old.

Carroll, who spent 14 years with the Seahawks, appeared in back-to-back Super Bowls, winning one in 2013. He left Seattle in 2023 with a franchise-record 147 wins.