Buccaneers' Don Gardner: Off PUP list

Jason Kelce has been flirting with the idea of retiring from the NFL for the past few years. The 35-year-old is playing in his 12th season in the league and is now on the doorstep of possibly winning the second Super Bowl of his career. While riding off into the sunset after another Eagles title sounds like the ideal storybook ending, that narrative doesn't appear like it'll be much of a factor for Kelce whenever he does decide to step away.

Just when you thought that things between Derek Carr and the Raiders couldn't get any more awkward, they got more awkward on Thursday. Carr was forced to represent the Raiders at the Pro Bowl, except you couldn't actually tell that he was representing the Raiders because he didn't wear any Raiders gear.

Don't mess with Rocky Balboa. That's the message Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is sending to fans ahead of Super Bowl LVII against the Philadelphia Eagles. When the Eagles are in the playoffs, it has become somewhat of a tradition for the opponents' colors to mysteriously appear on the iconic Rocky statue. More often than not, the act of vandalism doesn't work out for those opponents.

Following Saturday's Senior Bowl, we're now through the All-Star Game portion of the pre-draft process. And after a brief respite for Super Bowl LVII, the NFL combine and pro day workouts will be here before you know it. We give a little nod to a few Senior Bowl standouts in this mock draft, players who had good practice weeks and while not slam-dunk first-rounders, they have certainly given teams something to think about in the coming weeks.

During the NFC Championship, the San Francisco 49ers ran out of quarterbacks and had their backs against the wall during their most important game of the year. After a season filled with quarterback injuries, head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch expressed their support for the emergency quarterback rule to change.

Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon has an arrest warrant issued for him, per WCPO 9 News. Mixon is being charged with aggravated menacing after allegedly pointing a firearm at a woman on Jan. 21 -- the day before the Bengals defeated the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round of the playoffs.

The Philadelphia Eagles are preparing for their Super Bowl LVII matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, while simultaneously completing some offseason tasks. On Friday, they reportedly locked down one of their own for the future, agreeing in principle to an extension with run game coordinator/offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland, per ESPN.

The 2022 Seattle Seahawks were like finding a crumpled $20 in your jeans pocket after taking them out of the washing machine -- a pleasant surprise. After trading Russell Wilson, once their longtime face-of-the-franchise quarterback, to the Denver Broncos in exchange for three players (QB Drew Lock, TE Noah Fant and DL Shelby Harris) along with five draft picks (two firsts, two seconds and one fifth), it appeared as if the team was punting on the 2022 season. However, with Wilson's former backup, Geno Smith, outplaying Seattle's only Super Bowl champion quarterback in Year 1 of the divorce, Seattle snuck into the seventh and final NFC playoff spot at 9-8, becoming one of only two teams this season to reach the playoffs and have multiple first-round picks, joining the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles.

Smith has reportedly had positive contract negotiations with the Seahawks thus far, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports. Smith would likely be one of the top signal callers if he were to hit the open market this offseason, but it appears as if the Seahawks would like to avoid that possibility, as talks regarding an extension are seemingly moving in a positive direction. The 32-year-old quarterback put up career-best numbers across the board in his first season as a starter with Seattle, but given this was Smith's first year as a starter since 2014, any extension would likely be of the shorter variety as the team attempts to safeguard itself from any sort of regression.

Plummer joined the Reds on a minor-league deal Friday. Plummer made his big-league debut last season with the Mets but didn't make much of an impression. He struck out 12 times while grabbing just four hits in 31 plate appearances, though two of those hits were home runs. He'll be fighting for a bench outfield spot in camp.

The first bracket of February brings a change on the top line. Kansas had rejoined the party after dispatching Kansas State 90-78 at home on Tuesday. That gave the Jayhawks nine Quadrant 1 wins, the most of any team. Only overall No. 1 seed Purdue has as many and no other team has more than seven.

If it's possible to lose the coin toss on purpose, the Kansas City Chiefs might want to think about doing that this year, because a coin toss curse has officially hit the Super Bowl. Since the start of the 2014 season, every team that has WON the coin toss in...

Misiewicz was designated for assignment by the Royals on Friday. The club needed to free up a spot on the 40-man roster for the re-signing of Zack Greinke. Misiewicz pitched pretty well for Kansas City down the stretch last season after being acquired via trade from the Mariners, posting a 4.11 ERA and 19:4 K:BB over 15.1 innings. It's the second time since July that the left-hander has been designated for assignment.

Maddox (toe) has a walking boot on his left foot and isn't practicing Friday, Zach Berman of The Athletic reports. Maddox played 19 snaps in the NFC Championship Game after missing more than a month with a toe injury. If he isn't available for the Super Bowl against Kansas City, the Eagles likely will turn back to Josiah Scott as their slot corner in nickel packages. Maddox still has a week to return to practice before the big game.

Hall will enter spring training as a starting pitcher, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports. All but one of Hall's 11 appearances late last season came in relief, but he'll head into spring training as one of 12 competitors for five spots in Baltimore's rotation. The dynamic lefty might ultimately wind up in the bullpen over the long haul if he can't improve his control and command, but there's no reason to pull the plug on him as a starter yet. O's general manager Mike Elias wasn't ready to say Friday whether Hall might move to the bullpen if he doesn't win a rotation spot, or if he'd head to Triple-A Norfolk.

Bellinger totaled 30 catches on 35 targets for 268 yards and two receiving touchdowns during the regular season in his rookie campaign. He added one rush for a two-yard touchdown. Bellinger saw his snap count rise steadily from Week 1 to Week 6 before suffering an eye injury against Jacksonville...

Aaron Rodgers has yet to decide whether he'll return for a 19th NFL season, but when he does, we know at least one team that might like to have him, and another that likely won't be in the running. Days after ESPN reported the Packers would prefer to move on from the star quarterback in 2023, Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner tweeted (then deleted) at Rodgers, hinting that he may be interested in him taking his talents to East Rutherford.

The Texans have had a rough go of it since their last playoff appearance, as Houston has gone 11-36 since the end of the 2019 season, and it's time to get serious about rebuilding. There's a clear need at quarterback and the Texans hold the No. 2 overall pick. That...

About a week after parting ways with Kellen Moore, the Dallas Cowboys have a new offensive coordinator. The team announced on Saturday afternoon that it has named Brian Schottenheimer to the position. The Cowboys had one of the NFL's most efficient and explosive offenses in the league during Moore's tenure,...

Bertans (calf) is out for Saturday's game versus the Warriors. Bertans will miss at least one game after exiting Thursday's contest against the Pelicans early with a left calf strain. His next chance to suit up is Monday's matchup with Utah, but it's currently unclear if the sharpshooting big man will be able to join the Mavericks at any point during their upcoming five-game road trip.