Mike Sando

United States

27th season covering NFL. The Athletic + HOF selector, PFWA board, AP Awards Voter, QB Tiers, Pick Six column. Alum: ESPN, TNT, S-R, Football GM Podcast .

Articles

What's the Giants' QB plan? Thoughts on all NFC teams

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

It's time to check in with NFL executives for thoughts on the biggest and most interesting moves NFC teams made - or have not yet made - in free agency. The once-sleepy Chicago Bears might have won the offseason, drawing positive reviews. The Minnesota Vikings remain the most intriguing team as ownership tries to downplay uncertainty over the general manager's future.
Did the Bengals get it right? Thoughts on all AFC teams

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

The Aaron Rodgers saga remains unresolved, but with most of NFL free agency complete, the time is right to check in with team executives for thoughts on all that has (and has not) unfolded. We begin with AFC teams today, followed by NFC teams on Thursday. AFC North teams take center stage, with the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers still without clear starting quarterbacks, and the Cincinnati Bengals opening their wallets (but possibly missing an opportunity).
Could the Browns be tanking for Arch Manning? NFL execs debate

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

The Cleveland Browns' new deal for Myles Garrett reset the market for pass rushers while upping the price Cincinnati paid for Ja'Marr Chase after the Bengals promised to make their receiver the NFL's highest-paid non-quarterback. Giant as that move was, execs around the league remain most interested in what Cleveland has planned at quarterback. "It's such a weak quarterback draft and free-agency class at the position," one exec said.
Sam Darnold is the NFL's latest rags-to-riches QB. Can he sustain it? Who could be next?

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

Geno Smith, Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold revived their NFL careers against expectations, offering hope for teams seeking quarterback stability. Will Darnold hold his new trajectory? Can Justin Fields and Daniel Jones join Smith, Mayfield and Darnold as recent success stories after signing with new teams this offseason? What about Mac Jones, who suddenly finds himself where Darnold was not long ago, working with Kyle Shanahan as a San Francisco 49ers backup?
Shedeur Sanders' shifting stock, and a mystery third QB

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

After the scouting combine one year ago, NFL executives correctly predicted the first three choices in the 2024 draft: Caleb Williams to the Chicago Bears, Jayden Daniels to the Washington Commanders and Drake Maye to the New England Patriots. They got the fifth and ninth picks correct as well: Joe Alt to the Los Angeles Chargers and Rome Odunze to the Bears, respectively. The batting average could be lower in 2025, with the potential for some outright whiffs.
Inside the coaching youth revolution that reshaped the NFL

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando |Ryan Best
The Chiefs wouldn’t let Saquon Barkley beat them. The Eagles made sure it didn’t matter

2 months ago | myheraldreview.com | Mike Sando

The Chiefs weren’t going to let Saquon Barkley beat them. Jalen Hurts and a dominant defense were plenty. That, and other quick-hitters from Super Bowl LIX, including a poll on officiating. • Doing it right: When the Eagles win Super Bowls, they do it right — first against Belichick, Brady and New England, now against Reid, Mahomes and Kansas City, and both interrupting what might have otherwise been a three-peat.
The Hall of Fame's rule changes did not fix the problem. Here's how to do so

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

3. The Hall of Fame shrunk its class for 2025 without raising the bar for enshrinement. Here's how to fix the problem. The changes reduced the class size to four in 2025 after the Hall averaged 7.8 inductees per year from 2015-2024, not counting a 20-member Centennial class. Antonio Gates, Eric Allen and Jared Allen earned enshrinement as modern-era players. Sterling Sharpe earned enshrinement as a senior player (retired at least 25 years). The four-member class was the Hall's smallest since 2005.
The Chiefs wouldn't let Saquon Barkley beat them. The Eagles made sure it didn't matter

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

2. The Chiefs weren't going to let Saquon Barkley beat them. Jalen Hurts and a dominant defense were plenty. That, and other quick-hitters from Super Bowl LIX, including a poll on officiating. * Doing it right: When the Eagles win Super Bowls, they do it right - first against Belichick, Brady and New England, now against Reid, Mahomes and Kansas City, and both interrupting what might have otherwise been a three-peat.
Sando's Pick Six

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Mike Sando

NEW ORLEANS - The second Patrick Mahomes interception, right before halftime of a Super Bowl that was already slipping away, left no doubt about what the Kansas City Chiefs must do to stabilize a dynasty shaken by the Philadelphia Eagles in the Superdome. We'll get to that soon enough, but with Kansas City suffering a 40-22 defeat to spoil its shot at the first Super Bowl three-peat, the Pick Six column begins with a counterintuitive proclamation.