Bears
New Bears WR Ted Ginn Jr. said he’s still confident with his speed and believes he hasn’t lost a step.
“I can still run,” Ginn said, via Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune. “That’s my attribute. I can run, I can catch, I can jump. … Don’t let the age and the years fool you.”
Ginn said he can still stretch the field with his running ability and make plays underneath.
“I bring speed,” Ginn said. “I bring that element of stretching the field, so I know I’ll be helping in that role. And then (it’s) being able to catch things underneath and making my way within that role.”
As for his free-agent candidacy this offseason, Ginn said he had good conversations with Bears HC Matt Nagy prior to signing with Chicago.
“Me and Nagy had a couple of good conversations throughout this process that made me decide that it was a great fit for me and my family,” Ginn said. “Being at this age and having a want for you is a crazy, amazing feeling to have. … Why would you turn that down?”
- Brad Biggs reports that the Bears signed WR Ted Ginn Jr. to a one-year contract worth $1,187,500, which includes $750,000 guaranteed and a $137,500 signing bonus.
Lions
- Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press mentions that first-round CB Jeff Okudah has already reached out to players such as CB Darius Slay, CB Jalen Ramsey, CB Stephon Gilmore, and S Tyrann Mathieu in an attempt to seek advice on how best to transition to the NFL.
Packers
Former Packers QB Brett Favre said in an interview with ESPN Wisconson on Friday that it’s not going to be Aaron Rodgers‘ to mentor first-round pick Jordan Love.
“Aaron’s job is not to mentor Jordan Love. Aaron’s job is to win football games for the Green Bay Packers,” Favre said, via The Athletic. “That’s what he’s paid to do and that’s what he’s going to do.”
Favre famously made it clear that he was going to go out of his way to help Rodgers after the Packers drafted him back in 2005. However, that’s not to say Favre didn’t offer advice or answer quarterback Rodgers had.
“I think Aaron will do the same thing,” Favre said. “Again, this is 15 years that Aaron has played and played unbelievably well. And I don’t see any signs of him slowing down. There’s no reason for him to fear anything. At some point, someone’s going to replace you. You know that. I think our situations are so, so similar, but there is that one big difference – they drafted this kid just months after almost making it to the Super Bowl. So you would think they would go with an immediate need. That’s a big difference from my situation.”
While the Packers clearly view Love as their quarterback of the future, Favre doesn’t see Rodgers being replaced unless he gets hurt or wants to move on.
“He won’t be replaced unless he chooses to go elsewhere or he gets hurt. I mean, the guy is arguably the best player in the history of the game,” Favre said. “I think Aaron is motivated. I don’t see any decline in his play – at all. In fact, from an athletic standpoint, I think he moves around as well as he did 10, 15 years ago. But he’s going to be sharper mentally, and another year into this offense with Matt LaFleur, he’s only going to be better. But he can’t do it alone. That’s been proven.
“I don’t think there’s any added motivation because they drafted a quarterback. Again, there’s no threat there to replace him unless he chooses to be replaced. In my situation, there was no added motivation. I knew I was the starting quarterback and I knew if I did what I was expected to do and put in the extra work and the study and all the things that I did, that I would remain the starting quarterback.”
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