The Patriots already gave out one record extension to a tight end this offseason, signing Rob Gronkowski to what might have been the first record extension to ever look incredibly team friendly. However, don’t expect them to do the same with their other stud tight end, Aaron Hernandez. According to the Boston Herald, the Patriots will not be talking extension with Aaron Hernandez this offseason.

Like Gronkowski was, Hernandez is under team control through the 2013 season, but the Patriots aren’t in any hurry to get him under contract. He’s the least valuable of their two tight ends and now that Gronkowski is extended, they’ll have the franchise tag free for Aaron Hernandez in the 2014 offseason if it gets to that point. Hernandez is owed just over a million over the next 2 seasons.

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Chris Johnson had his worst season as a pro last year, rushing for 1047 yards and 4 touchdowns on 262 carries. This down season was likely fueled by his holdout before the season, during which he reportedly got out of shape. However, he was better in the 2nd half of the season, carrying the ball 141 times for 681 yards and 3 touchdowns, good for 282 carries for 1362 yards and 6 touchdowns over 16 games.

Everyone around him is saying he’ll have a bounce back season and I would agree. As I just said, he got better as last season went on and he’s been working out incredibly hard this offseason to get back into shape. He normally skips all the voluntary offseason workouts to work out at home in Orlando, but he attended all of them this offseason. The Titans also improved their interior blocking this offseason, which also helps. He probably won’t be CJ2K again, but the 1364 yards and 11 touchdowns he had on 316 carries in 2010 are definitely in reach.

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Mike Jenkins has made it known that he’s disgruntled after losing his starting job as the Cowboys have brought in both Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne this offseason. He has requested a trade and has not gotten one yet. However, he still will report to the Cowboys’ mandatory minicamp next week. This could be strictly a monetary decision as the Cowboys could fine him for missing these, but Jenkins probably wouldn’t want to miss practice either way.

It doesn’t look like the Cowboys will be trading him and any missed practice time could drop him further on the depth chart. He’s still in the running to be the nickel cornerback, 3^rd on the depth chart. The Cowboys have gotten offers for Jenkins from 4 different teams, including the Colts and Lions, and have turned them all down while maintaining a public stance that Jenkins, a 2009 Pro Bowler, will not be moved.

There is still some speculation that the Cowboys could trade Jenkins later in the offseason, once they know Morris Claiborne hasn’t suffered any setbacks in his recovery from wrist surgery. That, of course, is contingent on all of their cornerbacks staying healthy. At the same time, the Cowboys could keep all 4 of their cornerbacks, Brandon Carr, Morris Claiborne, Orlando Scandrick, and Jenkins, and try to get them on the field often to try to mask their lack of talent at safety.

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Daniel Thomas was a 2^nd round pick of the Miami Dolphins in 2011, but struggled as a rookie, rushing for just 581 yards on 165 carries (3.5 YPC), catching  only 12 passes for 72 yards, and only scoring once. Today, Thomas blamed injuries for his struggles as a rookie. If that’s true and he’s healthy in 2012, he could have a breakout year.

He’s a very talented player and Reggie Bush is hardly a proven durable lead back. Thomas could see a good amount of carries this year and do a lot with them. At the same time, he could struggle and the Dolphins did bring Lamar Miller in through the draft (4^th round) to push him. Ideally though, they’d like Miller to be a successor for Bush in 2013 as a compliment to Thomasn and beyond as Bush is a free agent next offseason.

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Justin Blackmon had a very high profile DUI earlier this month and now another NFL player and has been arrested for the same thing. David Diehl, an offensive lineman for the New York Giants, was arrested Sunday night for driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.18. Diehl was the Giants’ left tackle when they won the Super Bowl in 2008 and was a starter for the Giants when they won against last season, but he played very poorly.

In 20 games en route to the Super Bowl, Diehl allowed 13 sacks, 61 quarterback pressures, and committed 6 penalties, while splitting time at tackle and guard. He was one of the worst offensive linemen in the league last year and his future was already up in the air with the Giants. Diehl, 32 in September, has been moved to right tackle this offseason and could lose a starting job to James Brewer, a 4^th round pick in 2011. This arrest certainly won’t help his cause.

He may have to serve as a 6^th offensive lineman next season, though he’d be a versatile one at that. Kevin Boothe has the inside track to start at Diehl’s old spot at left guard, while William Beatty will remain at left tackle, where he hopes to finally be able to stay healthy. David Baas and Chris Snee will round out the starting lineup at center and right guard respectively.

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The Patriots essentially have 5 wide receivers competing for 2 or maybe 3 spots behind Wes Welker, Brandon Lloyd, Jabar Gaffney. Those 5 receivers are Deion Branch, Donte Stallworth, Julian Edelman, Matt Slater, and Jeremy Ebert. Both Edelman and Slater have returned kicks in the NFL in the last couples seasons and Ebert, their 7^th round pick rookie, was a return man in college. Even Deion Branch, who hasn’t returned a punt since 2004, had been getting some reps as a punt returner in OTAs as the Patriots try to cover all of their bases when evaluating the 5 receivers.

Donte Stallworth is now being given some reps returning kicks in OTAs, even though he hasn’t done that in a game since the 2003 season. It’s unclear if Stallworth will show anything that will help him stay on the roster, but it’s a good sign that he’s been given reps there. The Patriots didn’t give Chad Ochocinco and Anthony Gonzalez reps there and then cut them outright. The fact that the Patriots are giving Stallworth the chance to show them everything he can possibly do is a sign that he won’t have the same fate. Even if he doesn’t end up making the roster, it looks like he’ll be in this until the final cuts.

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The Titans might have the most interesting offseason quarterback competition this offseason, if only because they might be the most talented team in the league with an unresolved quarterback situation. Matt Hasselbeck led them to a 9-7 record last year, but he turns 37 in September and Jake Locker was their 8^th overall pick last season and played well in limited action behind Hasselbeck last season.

So far, all of the signs have pointed to Hasselbeck starting for the Titans, even though the coaching staff is still insisting that there is no favorite yet. Adam Schefter believes Hasselbeck will continue to start until he struggles, which was the case last season, and GM Ruston Webster says that the competition will come down to more than just stats. Hasselbeck’s experience and intangibles would definitely count as that.

Speculation that Hasselbeck would start was further fueled today when Mike Munchak said that the Titans’ early schedule will affect the quarterback battle. The Titans face the Patriots, Chargers, Lions, Texans, Vikings, and Steelers in their first 6, a tough early season schedule. They might not want to throw their young quarterback out there to that when they still have a capable veteran starter.

The Titans still have not decided on a quarterback and there are still saying that it’s 50/50 between the two, but Hasselbeck does appear to have the inside track early. This isn’t to say Locker can’t win the job if he really impresses in Training Camp and the Preseason, but it looks like Hasselbeck’s job to lose. The Titans feel they can compete this year, after last year’s solid 9-7 season, and they probably won’t want to go through the ups and downs of a young quarterback when they can go with a reliable veteran.

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With Rashard Mendenhall’s status up in the air for 2012 with a torn ACL, Isaac Redman, who used to be Mendenhall’s backup, says he’s “certain” he’ll carry the load for the Steelers this season. That would appear to be the case, at least early on. Mendenhall will likely start the year on the PUP and the Steelers don’t have another running back to challenge Redman. They drafted Chris Rainey in the 5^th round, but he’ll have more of a Dexter McCluster role than anything.

If Redman, who has a career 4.5 YPC, impresses, he could get at least an even split of the carries even if Mendenhall is healthy. He was already stealing a good chunk of Mendenhall’s carries last year even when Mendenhall was healthy and Redman was unproven. He got 110 carries to Mendenhall’s 228. All signs point towards Mendenhall having a breakout season in 2012. He’s a popular fantasy sleeper, but might still be underrated.

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Rashean Mathis has been a starting cornerback of the Jacksonville Jaguars for years, but because he’s age 32 in August and tore his ACL last season, the Jaguars signed Aaron Ross this offseason, someone with starting experience from the New York Giants. The Jaguars official website confirmed today what many expected, that Mathis will have to earn his starting job back from Ross now that he’s been cleared to practice.

Mathis has really struggled in coverage over the last 2 years, and while Ross hasn’t been much better, he is much younger and not coming off a major injury so he’s probably the favorite. The Jaguars signed Ross for 9.75 million over 3 years this offseason and only resigned Mathis for 2 million over 1, another sign that Ross is the favorite.

The loser will likely line up in the slot and William Middleton, who played significant snaps last season because of injury, will be the #4 cornerback. If injuries strike again, he’ll play significant snaps again. Of their top 4 cornerbacks, only Ross is signed after this season so the Jaguars will have a lot of decisions to make at the position next offseason.

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