10 takeaways, and trade buzz, from NFL league meetings

NEW YORK — If you think you are seeing more flags this NFL season, you are. NFL owners have taken notice, too. And according to sources, they expressed some general annoyance at what they have seen so far this season.

The amount of flags and consistency of calls was a topic at this week’s NFL league meetings, but sources tell CBS Sports that doesn’t mean refs will keep the flags in their pockets moving forward.

Through Week 7, the NFL has seen 1,752 fouls in games. That represents an 8.6 percent increase from the same time last year and a 13 percent increase since 2022. Flags through Week 7 have increased each year since 2022.

There are two big culprits here: the dynamic kickoff and illegal contact. With kickoff returns at a healthy 79.3 percent this season, that has introduced hundreds more plays into the game, which in turn can create penalties. For example, there are six times as many offensive holding calls on kickoffs this year compared to 2023 when the kickoff was essentially dead.

And whether it’s been a point of emphasis this season or teams are just committing more fouls, illegal contact has seen a spike in 2025. There have been 79 illegal contact penalties so far this year compared to just 23 through Week 7 of 2024.

“So you want the membership and all the committees to start thinking about, what is the tolerance level for each foul?,” NFL EVP Troy Vincent said this week. “Because there’s a foul on every play. And if you don’t call it, it’s gonna show up on Misery Mondays.”

When controlling for the fouls added from the increase in kickoffs, the live-ball fouls in this year’s NFL aren’t out of whack with recent seasons. But the dead-ball fouls have increased, and that really began last year with an emphasis on illegal formation.

Team owners may not want the small stuff called. The league’s stance, it appears, is that they will continue to flag it until the players get it right. That’s what happened when officials flagged illegal man downfield so much that offensive linemen started getting the picture. And that may continue with illegal formation.

People have complained about officials since officials were created, so that won’t stop any time soon. Unless, of course, everything becomes automated …

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NFL commissioner Roger Goodell offered a bit of an Easter egg Wednesday when he said the league is investigating how artificial intelligence can aid in its officiating.

“I think [replay assist] will continue to evolve, and we’re looking at how AI can be a factor in that,” Goodell said. “How can we use AI to help in officiating as well as many other areas.”

I checked in with a source on this, because I knew it would draw aggregated headlines immediately. Let’s just say I don’t think HAL 9000 will be calling offensive pass interference any time soon.

AI has become a bit of a catch-all for anything related to computer learning. As I understand it, the NFL will look at using current and future technology to help it officiate objective aspects of the game.

Where did a player step out of bounds? On a punt, when did the ball cross outside the field of play for purposes of spotting it for the offense? Did the ball break the plane of the goal line?

The NFL has already been using its technology to replace the chain crew for line-to-gain calls. It’s reasonable to believe the league will continue to use its tech for future officiating purposes.

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The NFL announced Wednesday the Pro Bowl Games will now be moved to Super Bowl week, with the big event being held the Tuesday before Super Bowl. A few thoughts on that: I can’t blame the league for not being able to figure out its all-star game when baseball and basketball haven’t been able to either. Hockey seems to have something with the Four Nations, and the NBA has taken that concept for its All-Star Game, but obviously that won’t work for the NFL. Long and short of it is, the NFL must try something.

While the level of competitive nature has been its biggest issue, the league has also struggled with getting the star players there. Because so many star players go to Super Bowl week anyway for sponsor deals and parties, the NFL should be able to attract more of the names. 

The league vacating the Sunday between conference championships and the Super Bowl was a bit of a surprise for me. The NFL is Sunday. Giving up even just one Sunday seemed impossible until Wednesday. The league isn’t locking itself into the Tuesday Pro Bowls beyond this year, and it could change ahead of Super Bowl LXI in L.A.

All that said, and speaking of the NBA, I wonder if the basketball folks are keeping a close watch on all this. We know the NFL wants to go to 18 games (more on that below), and the ripple effect of that means that the Super Bowl will be played the day before Presidents Day, which is a federal holiday and would relieve millions of Americans from showing up to the office on fumes the morning after the biggest sporting even of the year. That is also the same weekend as NBA All Star, and they don’t want to go toe-to-toe with the NFL. If the NFL permanently vacates that weekend before the Super Bowl, perhaps the NBA bumps its All Star weekend up one week and take advantage of the free space.

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One other benefit to having the Pro Bowl during the same week and at the same site as the Super Bowl? The league saves money.

The Pro Bowl-to-Super Bowl trip is a rite of passage for many who work in the league. But if many of those staffers would be working on both, why not attempt to consolidate and save money on expenses? That’s not the largest driving factor in the Pro Bowl decision, but it’s not not a factor.

I know it seems crazy that a league that hauled in more than $13 billion in national revenue last year is concerned about expenses for its All Star event. But cuts have been taking place across The Shield recently despite the record revenues.

The league offered voluntary buyouts last year before chipping away at its media properties. In March, some team executives were surprised they had fewer rooms than usual when the annual meetings took place at The Breakers. And a month later, the league revealed its December meetings — typically held at a Dallas area hotel — would be virtual.

The NFL cannot cry poor. But if these cost-cutting measures mean good people get to stay in their jobs, so be it.

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The Los Angeles Rams will kick off their season in Australia next year, according to multiple sources. But no one outside of a select few within the league seem to know when, exactly, that game will be.

The Rams will play the league’s inaugural game in Melbourne in 2026, and I’m told it will take place in Week 1. Their opponent is yet to be determined.

There’s a 16-hour time difference between L.A. and Melbourne, and the flight is also about 16 hours. That represents the largest time difference and longest flight of any international game so far. The Rams playing in Week 1 means they can at least get to Australia early, and then both teams would probably hope for a Monday night game in Week 2.

But when in Week 1 is the biggest question. Due to broadcast regulations, the NFL cannot play a game in the United States on Friday of Week 1 in 2026. But it could play the game on a Friday in a different country and have it air on Thursday in America. With travel time, the earlier in the week the game can be played seems to be better for the teams. That is one potential option, which would complicate the standalone kickoff game that includes the Super Bowl champ at home.

Which brings up a whole new point… what if the Rams win Super Bowl LX this year and get to begin their title defense Down Under?

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Aaron Rodgers heads into Week 8 hoping to become the fifth quarterback in NFL history to beat all 32 teams when his Steelers face his old Packers. It is a shame, though, he must play such a historic game in those Pittsburgh throwbacks that should have been saved for a lesser Sunday afternoon tilt.

He’ll be 42-years-old later this year and just last week he threw a ball 70 yards in the air, which is better than most guys half his age. Since the season got going, sources around the league have insisted with me that if this keeps up, it won’t be Rodgers’s last season.

I think the quarterback, his teammates and the entire organization know enough to know they should just enjoy the present. I don’t think they’re looking past his one-year, $13.65 million contract. But I also don’t believe the Steelers will rule out Rodgers coming back in 2026 if this keeps up.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure this is it,” Rodgers said over the summer. “That’s why we just did a one-year deal.”

That never meant Rodgers was locked into retirement after the season, even if signs pointed to this being his last season. The Steelers have Mason Rudolph backing up Rodgers, though they know he’s not their future. The team also likes Will Howard after drafting him in the sixth round this year, but they won’t just hand over the team to him even if Rodgers retires.

Clearly the Steelers had a good idea they’d land Rodgers this past offseason. They would need more certain clarity earlier in the calendar in 2026. Free agency begins in mid-March, and the Steelers currently own four picks in the top three rounds of April’s draft that they’ll be hosting.

I learned my lesson last year not to get too far ahead of estimating what a Steelers starting quarterback could fetch the following year. And this note makes no representation it knows what Rodgers will decide. But there are good vibes right now and, if it keeps up, I believe the Steelers will be open to it.

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I’m not looking forward to another offseason of breathlessly reporting whether the Tush Push will or won’t stay. I know plenty in NFL circles — and at the league office — who are even more fatigued by the conversation.

Nothing is going to happen with the play in-season. The league will continue to monitor it, and the officials will continue to try to eye every possible infraction on the play.

Here’s what I do know: conversations will probably pick back up around the combine when the competition committee meets. The committee could always propose a rule change. If they don’t, a team could do it just as we saw the Packers last year. In fact, there’s nothing preventing the Packers from proposing the same rule change. Or any other team doing it, for that matter. If the team owners want to vote on it again, they can.

The play being hard to officiate would certainly be a talking point, as it has been all season long and — somewhat surprisingly — after it was not in the offseason. And proponents of the play can no longer claim a zero percent injury rate after Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson suffered a stinger on the play in Week 3 and missed the remainder of the contest.

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The NFL is continuing to work on its head coach and GM accelerator program, and it remains on track to re-debut at the May league meetings.

We first reported in the spring the league would postpone the semi-annual diversity program as it looked to reimagine something that had become stale. League execs weren’t ready to say just yet what it will look like, but I can say confidently there are good and smart people working hard at a program they care deeply about.

Coach and GM candidates will gather in May for the multi-day program. I would anticipate a smaller group than what we’ve seen in years past. In an effort to not offend anyone, the league would usually take a person from each team. I don’t foresee 64 attendees in May. If the league wants to improve diversity at the highest ranks of coaching and front office, they will whittle it down to what they perceive to be the best of the best.

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In case you can’t tell by now, this week’s meetings were bereft of real controversy or drama. That’s a bad sign for the NFL Players Association.

As the union dealt with the fallout of losing its executive director this summer, I wrote that the tumult meant the league must effectively postpone any negotiations on an 18th regular season game. Former union leader Lloyd Howell essentially handed the league the extra game in an interview with the Washington Post less than a year into the job before spending the next year attempting to walk it back. But with an interim in the chair now until an offseason vote, Goodell said that he “can’t see anything of significance happening” on the league’s side any time soon.

In the next breath, though, Goodell said the league spent the last two days continuing to talk about its plans for the next labor agreement. He made mention back in May of the league’s wishes to tinker with player costs and how the salary cap is configured. That should scare a players union that has a vacuum of leadership heading into the back half of its CBA.

The NFL will eventually get its 18th game, and the players will get something in return for it. By that time, the league will have been planning for that for years, while the union will have only installed its leader one/two/three years earlier.

I cannot see an 18th regular season game coming before 2028 at the absolute earliest.

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League-issued punishment for Brian Daboll and the New York Giants should be landing at any point within the next week or two, sources tell me.

For entering the blue medical tent and yelling at doctors during a concussion evaluation for Jaxson Dart two weeks ago, the Giants head coach faces a fine that will likely be at least $100,000. The NFL could also fine the Giants organization. In an extreme case, the league could also dock the Giants a draft pick, though I don’t get the sense that would take place.

The league is wrapping up its investigation of the matter. Many have wondered what is taking so long given that there’s video evidence available of the interaction that lasted a matter of seconds. But the investigation needs to be thorough, and that includes interviewing all parties involved when they are available during a live NFL season.

And because there’s no competitive (dis)advantage to handing out such a punishment in-season, the league can ensure the findings are air-tight before announcing the decision.

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It has been more than two weeks since the last trade in the NFL when the Browns and Jaguars did business to swap cornerbacks. Opinions have varied on how much action we would see ahead of the trade deadline, but perhaps it’s no surprise in this copycat league that everyone is waiting for someone else to make a move.

I put together some trade intel Monday, but I want to add a few things to it I’ve learned in the days since.

Perhaps the biggest contender for a receiver is not the Steelers but instead the Broncos. Courtland Sutton is 30-years-old and just signed a four-year extension with an out after next season. Denver has all of its picks through the fifth round and added a fourth from the Saints in the preseason.

The Broncos are 5-2 with a top-ranked defense and a quarterback on his rookie deal for at least another season. Folks around the league are watching the Broncos to see how aggressive they may be.

-One team that likely won’t be competing with the Broncos or Steelers for a wideout is Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers lost Mike Evans for most of the remaining season on Monday night, and he’s in the final year of his contract too. But the Bucs are getting Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan back from injury this season. Bucs GM Jason Licht isn’t usually a big swinger at the trade deadline, and he and his group have had excellent drafts in recent years.

-An interesting team to watch is Buffalo. The Bills have been up and down the last few weeks, but GM Brandon Beane has made deals in each of the past two offseasons. He sent out for Rasul Douglas in 2023 and got Amari Cooper last fall. Some believe he could go after a receiver again.

-The Panthers haven’t been above .500 this late in the season since before the pandemic. I can’t rule out Carolina making a move before the deadline, but even in this new era of good feelings it seems unlikely right now.

-The 6-1 Indianapolis Colts are atop the AFC and will take defensive help for the right price. Sources say the Colts have been looking for edge rush and secondary help.