Reviewing 3 Of This NFL Offseason’s Biggest Overreactions

The 2022 NFL offseason has seen the league flip upside down in the craziest offseason yet, with star players such as Russell Wilson, Matt Ryan, Tyreek Hill, and Davante Adams finding new teams! This has deservedly created a lot of buzz and headlines, yet just like every season, we overreact to a few storylines. Here are three of the biggest overreactions of this NFL offseason.

Tannehill’s Job Isn’t to Mentor 3rd Round Pick Malik Willis

Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill unintentionally garnered negative attention for himself when he said to the media, “I don’t think it’s my job to mentor him (Willis).” Majority opinion paints Tannehill as selfish or a bad teammate, but those reactions hold two flaws–they take his quote out of context and don’t acknowledge that Tannehill has a point. To start, this quote was taken the wrong way as Tannehill also said it would be great if Willis learned from him and that he has “no problems with Malik.” Hardly sounds like a crisis. Even so, Tannehill is not wrong as his job is to play quarterback, not mentor Willis.

Tannehill is also likely under the microscope after coming off a divisional playoff game where his three interceptions proved costly in the Titans loss to the Bengals. Though he deserves criticism for that performance, Tannehill still helped lead the Titans to the number one seed in the AFC despite injuries to star skill players Derrick Henry and A.J. Brown. So before we condemn Tannehill as the next villain, let’s remember he contributes a lot to the Titans success and plans to be a good teammate to Willis.

Deebo Samuel Stays With the 49ers

When news hit of 49ers star hybrid wide receiver/running back Deebo Samuel’s trade request, fear struck across the 49er’s Faithful. Hope appeared dim for fans wishing the two parties would make peace as Samuel unfollowed the 49ers on Instagram in early April, and many suspected him of being traded away soon. Samuel reportedly felt unhappy with his usage, especially as a running back which resulted in him getting more hits, often decreasing the length of a player’s career.

Yet Samuel was not traded. Since he has shown up to the 49ers mandatory minicamp and subsequently, the trade rumors have died down. 49ers general manager John Lynch was also quoted saying “I’d be a fool to trade him,” and that Samuel will remain on the 49ers this upcoming season. We can now see we pressed the panic button too soon on Samuel leaving, and he will stay on the 49ers for the 2022 season.

Lamar Jackson Skips OTAs

Each year, a few major players make headlines for skipping their team’s voluntary OTAs. This year, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson falls into the category of one of those players who chose to opt-out. Jackson has drawn criticism for instead doing his own workouts rather than the team ones. However, worrying that Jackson’s absence will hurt the Ravens season is overreading the situation. Even his team supports his decision.

Ravens president Sashi Brown responded to Jackson’s absence by saying “voluntary is voluntary,” while tight end Mark Andrews commented that he knows Jackson works hard and is motivated for a super bowl championship. Jackson is not the only star to miss OTAs with both quarterbacks Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers taking a pass on their teams’ program as well. They, however, have super bowl championships, which likely protects them from the criticism Jackson garners. Jackson has since attended mandatory minicamp, which should further quiet the noise and overreaction surrounding him missing OTAs.