Yeeeeeehaw. Football is here. The offseason didn’t feel quite as long as normal, with the 2026 FIFA World Cup filling my schedule with outstanding sporting experiences. But, man, I’m excited for the NFL season to get underway. And even if we’re still a long way away from the regular season, there might not be any better time of year than training camp. If you’ve never attended a practice, I’d strongly recommend dropping into your favorite team’s camp. It’s a whole different side to the sport. Speaking of which — I want to dig into that a little bit, especially because every camp will be underway by the end of the week. But first, give me the chance to welcome you back. If you’re returning, I appreciate you for checking back in. If you’re new, thanks for coming to the party. This is my weekly column that runs every Monday. Yup, this is Sound Smart, where I try to spin forward, dive deeper, think outside the box and read between the lines. Training camp is the beginning. It’s the time of year when players begin to earn — or begin to lose — their jobs. It’s the time of year when coaches earn — or don’t earn — their salaries. It’s the time of year when champions decide that this is their year. This is really their year. There are times when training camp is just another football practice, a distant relative of what you’d see at your local high school. But most practices are not like that, because no one has lost a game yet. Everyone’s job is on the line. And there’s a sense of optimism — both for the downtrodden franchises and the ones that will actually compete for a title. Training camp is the beginning — a beginning full of hope for every team. The season is about building game plans and devising specific paths to victory. But training camp is about building out the playbook, building out the fundamentals and developing identity. And coincidentally, Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay took folks behind the scenes — albeit unintentionally — of what training camp will be like for the Super Bowl favorites. Ahead of camp, there were two examples of McVay’s coaching style that went viral on social media. Both informed what it will be like for Rams players when they begin training camp on Monday. The first was an interview with the “Bussin’ With The Boys” podcast when McVay spoke about the type of players he wants on his 90-man camp roster. He said there are “non-negotiables” when he searches for players. Obviously, they have to have NFL-level talent. But beyond that, McVay looks for guys who have a history of overcoming adversity. “If [adversity] shapes you and callouses you the right way, growth demands that discomfort,” McVay said. He added: “I think that more than anything, especially because of some of the things I’ve gone through where I look back and say, ‘Man, I did not like the kind of leader or the caliber of person I was.’ I was fragile. I wasn’t resilient. … The game honors toughness, but I think life and the game honor toughness, both mentally and physically. How many different ways can we measure that mental resilience? What have they been through, and how did that shape who they’ve become in the midst of the journey?” So there’s a shared identity from one Rams player to the next. And that helps them bring that identity to the field and to the meeting room. You can see the work they put together on the field. That’s the beauty of training camp: It allows fans and media to watch the team practice openly. What we seldom see is what the teams look like in meetings — and certainly not when the coach is actively teaching his players about a play. So that brings us to the next piece of social media that circulated, which was a video of McVay running through a simple but impressive run play. He broke it down to the fine details to help people understand why the play succeeded. The video appears to be a public event from the 2024 offseason, with McVay breaking down a 28-yard touchdown run by Kyren Williams in L.A.’s 26-25 win over the New York Giants in 2023. He called it “one of my favorite plays of the year.” “When you see players do little stuff like this, man, it just makes you feel appreciated. It makes them feel appreciated, which they deserve. And I appreciate a lot of the little things right here,” he said. “[Receiver Cooper] Kupp usually comes back [to the left of the formation] on this play, but he’s going to check the slot pressure before he does that. … He’s able to recognize that they’re blitzing off the slot, so he’s able to secure this off the edge. Now, awesome job by a wideout to be able to do that.” McVay then went on to break down the footwork of right tackle Rob Havenstein and then the downfield blocking by guard Kevin Dotson and center Coleman Shelton. “That gets the play started. But then what does it look like to see receivers compete without the football?” McVay asks. He went on to note receivers Tutu Atwell and Puka Nacua charging downfield into the second level to get their hands on defenders. “That is a great run [by Williams], but that is some great s— by the players to understand the intent of the play,” McVay said. So if you wonder what players mean when they talk about the “fine details,” well, that’s probably only just the beginning. Entering camp, there are a handful of starting NFL quarterbacks who, frankly, will not have their jobs in 2027. You probably know who I’m thinking of. Las Vegas Raiders import Kirk Cousins serves as a clear example, just filling the gap until No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza is ready to take the reins. That’s its own kind of pressure, but it’s not exactly a hot seat. Then there are guys who face pressure to perform, but it would be a long shot to think they’re going anywhere. Think: Lamar Jackson and Jayden Daniels. Then there’s the group of starters whose status is yet to be determined for 2027. These seven QBs are effectively playing their way into a long-term job — or out of it. The Panthers announced they were picking up Young’s fifth-year option, but that’s not exactly a commitment that he’ll be their QB next year. There has been an enormous amount of conversation about next year’s crop of QB draft prospects, and so it’s easy to imagine the Panthers looking to upgrade if Young can’t continue to ascend. This isn’t to say he won’t ascend. Third-year coach Dave Canales has been patient and dedicated — two rare traits in the QB development process. Young has trended upward in a linear-enough fashion in his first three NFL seasons. But if his 2026 season doesn’t look better than last year, he might be searching for a new team next year. I hesitate to put Stroud on this list, because it would be hard for the Texans to pass on him in many of the ways that it was hard for the Miami Dolphins to pass on Tua Tagovailoa in 2024, when the timing demanded that he get a huge deal. There’s a 90 percent chance that Stroud gets re-upped. But given what we saw in the postseason, particularly against the New England Patriots, Stroud is not a lock to stay in Houston. He has not built off his rookie season. There are ways, in fact, where he’s gotten worse. And there’s a non-zero chance that things fall apart for Stroud and the Texans. It’s a contract year, and the Buccaneers are making Mayfield play for an extension. He’s a fierce competitor — one who probably takes it personally that the team hasn’t committed to him yet. As consistent and steady as he is, Mayfield still needs weapons to be a high-level operator from the pocket. And he just lost Mike Evans, the best wide receiver in franchise history, in free agency. It will be fascinating to see what the Bucs can do with their weapons, because I don’t know how much gas nine-year veteran Chris Godwin has left. Nor do I think Emeka Egbuka is the surefire WR1 that he looked to become at the beginning of his rookie season. I highly doubt that either of these quarterbacks will be Cleveland’s QB1 in 2027. I honestly doubt that new head coach Todd Monken will have his job in 2027. But if the Browns do the unthinkable and make the playoffs, then maybe Cleveland’s QB — whoever it is — could make the case to stick around. It’s a matter of when (not if) he wins the QB1 job in his supposed competition with J.J. McCarthy. But then the hard part begins. Coach Kevin O’Connell has earned the reputation as a QB whisperer. But now that comes with an asterisk, after a failed experiment developing McCarthy. O’Connell, however, retains his reputation for taking mid-tier veteran QBs and turning them into game-changers (Sam Darnold, Kirk Cousins). It could be magic if O’Connell can do it with Murray. But the McCarthy experiment proved that it’s not a foregone conclusion. Let the record state that I’m one of Hurts’ biggest supporters. But even I can recognize his shortcomings as a quarterback, namely that he has been less willing recently to run the ball and throw over the middle. That’ll need to change in 2026. And while the departure of WR1 A.J. Brown hurts, the arrival of USC All-American Makai Lemon should help Hurts attack the middle of the field. If Hurts gets back to efficient running, then the Eagles’ offense should hum. But it wasn’t exactly a success story last year. And with all that talent this year, we might see big changes if the offense flops for a second year in a row. Let’s lump three teams into the same bucket as they prepare for the 2026 NFL season: the Chicago Bears, New England Patriots and Denver Broncos. Here’s why. All three teams made the playoffs last year. All three had a knack for pulling out wins in close games. All three had second-year quarterbacks (and former first-round draft choices) who took enormous leaps forward. All three of those quarterbacks had unstable success — meaning that it remains to be seen whether they can sustain that success. And finally, all three teams benefited from a weak schedule. They won’t have that same luxury in 2026. In the case of the Patriots, they’re hoping to fight off regression by improving their passing attack, bringing in receivers A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs and left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker. The Broncos snagged receiver Jaylen Waddle in a trade, and I have no doubt they’ll plug and play the speedster to perfection into Sean Payton’s offense. The Bears, meanwhile, seem to trust youngsters like tight end Colston Loveland and receiver Luther Burden III to take bigger roles — while investing in their defensive identity under DC Dennis Allen. That meant signing safety Coby Bryant and linebacker Devin Bush while drafting safety Dillon Thieneman and cornerback Malik Muhammad. I think all three teams will make the playoffs again — despite history indicating that they’re due for some bad bounces (and some tough losses). In all three instances, I like the coach, I like the quarterback and I like the thought process that went into bolstering the roster. Lost It: Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort The plan is murky in Arizona. The Cardinals don’t have a starting quarterback. The current QB1, veteran backup Jacoby Brissett, is still negotiating a deal for 2026, and it’s not like he’s a long-term solution. Nor, in my opinion, is Carson Beck, whom the team drafted in Round 3 this year. I don’t mind that the Cardinals threw a dart in this year’s QB class, but Beck was among my least favorite quarterbacks in this class. The QB Arizona is paying a boatload of money, Kyler Murray, was released and is likely to spend the 2026 season starting for the Vikings. And then the Cardinals drafted Jeremiyah Love with the third-overall pick. I don’t fall in the camp of “running backs don’t matter.” But I do think that the Cardinals had way too many other problems for a running back to make the impact they hope he’ll make in the next four years. Running backs matter when you’re a playoff team. The Cardinals aren’t. And without a plan at QB, they won’t be for a few years. I’m just not sure what the Cardinals are trying to be other than … really bad. That’s tolerable for one year. But that’s what they were last year. And this year, they only look worse. Earned It: Eagles GM Howie Roseman The Eagles watched receiver A.J. Brown become less effective every season, with his counting stats and averages largely trending downward since his first year with the team in 2022. And to make matters worse, Brown was outspoken about his dissatisfaction with “the passing game,” which felt like either a shot at Jalen Hurts or head coach Nick Sirianni or offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo — or all three. That’s why I think there was a collective sigh of relief in Philly when the Eagles traded Brown to New England. The return was fine, a 2028 first-round pick that is, admittedly, a long time away. But it’s a first-round pick nonetheless. That move was admirable by Roseman — cutting ties with a superstar when the cutting was good. But I also loved the way Roseman handled the draft, moving up to steal USC receiver Makai Lemon, a guy who should help Hurts attack the middle of the field, a place where the QB was hesitant last year. Lemon isn’t a one-for-one replacement for Brown, but the rookie should eventually fill a much-needed role — and one that should help the shifting offensive identity around Hurts and running back Saquon Barkley. Oh yeah, and remember when Roseman traded for Jaelen Phillips a few days before the trade deadline last year? Well, Phillips made the most among all edge rushers in free agency because of how well he played in Philly. And Roseman let the guy walk, in part because he traded for Vikings All-Pro edge Jonathan Greenard. It’s fascinating how resourceful Roseman can be. He buys and sells on players at values that Wall Street traders would envy.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
Nic Vansteenberghe isn’t hiding away from updating fans on his love life.
