Pete Carroll says the Seattle Seahawks can be successful without Russell Wilson and revealed Geno Smith is winning the battle to be starting quarterback.

Wilson's departure to the Denver Broncos ahead of the 2022 season is a massive blow for the Seahawks, having led the team to a first Super Bowl triumph in 2013 and a return to the Super Bowl the following year.

Carroll will have to do it without Wilson in 2022, a big year for the team after the 2021 season saw the Seahawks miss out on a playoff spot for only the second time in 10 seasons.

With Seattle not making a move to land a high-profile replacement, having been linked to Baker Mayfield prior to his move to the Carolina Panthers, questions have been asked about how Carroll will fill the void.

The experienced coach is not concerned, though, referencing his years coaching in college football where he had to adjust his side every year following graduations.

"You went to the next guy. You always miss when the guys leave but you can see it (coming) so you start planning for it, you work and you can find success," he told a news conference.

"I'm taking it in stride, but I'm real determined to make it work.

"There's a lot of developing of the players and giving them the background they need and the substance they need to be able to play like they're capable."

The Seahawks have Smith and Drew Lock competing to be the first choice under center and although Carroll says the former is leading the way, he made it clear there is time for that to change.

"Geno is in the lead. He's ahead and he ain't looking back. He's going for it," he added.

"Drew is not going to take a back seat. Something is going to happen. You will not nail me on that [naming his starter]."

Aaron Rodgers has backed Allen Lazard to be the number one wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers in the forthcoming NFL season and fill the void left by Davante Adams' departure.

For the first time in his 18-year career, Rodgers heads into the season without a recognised starring man to target following Adams' move to the Las Vegas Raiders.

Lazard is the favourite to step up in the 2022 season, having hauled in 21 receptions for 290 yards and scored five touchdowns in the five matches at the end of the regular 2021 season.

Quarterback Rodgers thinks the 26-year-old can make a big impact.

"When you walk in the locker room for so many years and you see 87's locker, that's Jordy Nelson. You see Davante Adams. It gives you a different feel. You just kind of know that you got that guy," he said during a news conference.

"We have some opportunities for some guys to step into that role.

"I think Allen is ready to make a jump and be a number one wide receiver. [I'm] excited about the opportunity to work with him.

"He's capable of a lot.  Since his first day, he's turned heads. He's been working hard. He has a lot to prove to himself I like a hungry Allen Lazard."

The Packers' offense has undergone a major reshuffle ahead of the new season, losing Marquez Valdes-Scantling in free agency and bringing in Sammy Watkins, as well as drafting three wide receivers.

Rodgers is pleased with the options he has to throw to as the Packers look to make the playoffs for the fourth season in a row.

"Allen sets the standard. Randall [Cobb] sets the standard. The young guys have to pay attention," he added.

"There is a lot of talent in that room for sure, and a lot of motivation for some of the comments that's been sent that room's way. I like what we did on day one."

The Packers face the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs in pre-season, before kicking off the new campaign at the Minnesota Vikings on September 11.

Green Bay Packers All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari barely played last season, and there’s no telling when he’ll be healthy enough to take the field this coming season after he had another procedure on his left knee.

The latest procedure would be at least the third known surgery since Bakhtiari suffered a torn left ACL on New Year’s Eve 2020.

Bakhtiari has played just one game since the original injury, and that came in the regular-season finale at Detroit on January 9 before he was shut down for the playoffs. He was placed on the physically unable to perform list Wednesday as the Packers opened training camp.

Bakhtiari attended the Packers’ offseason program but did not practice, and instead worked off to the side with the rest of the players rehabbing injuries.

''It's a nightmare, my nightmare that I have to live,'' Bakhtiari said. ''I don't know how many days it's been, but I'm just excited to wake up (from the nightmare) one day.''

The Packers remain hopeful that Bakhtiari will be ready for the season opener at Minnesota on September 11.

''I think we're cautiously optimistic,'' general manager Brian Gutekunst said.

Clearly, the Packers are going to take a cautious approach with Bakhtiari, who was playing well enough to earn first-team All-Pro honours for a second time when he originally hurt the knee. His first surgery came after the 2020 season, before the second procedure to reduce swelling in the knee during the 2021 regular season.

''Everyone loves timelines,'' Bakhtiari said. ''When I'm ready, I'll be out there. What I can say is I do feel really good. I really like –  I feel normal.

"My knee feels normal and that's the biggest plus. Now it's just getting that normal feeling again when I play football, so that's what it is, the load, stress, strength, but we're not really in an ACL issue. That's actually been a long time ago that we put that chapter to bed.''

With Bakhtiari unavailable for either of Green Bay's past two playoff losses, the Packers allowed five sacks in each of those games.

Green Bay faces the possibility of opening this season without its two best offensive linemen. Elgton Jenkins is also attempting to come back from an ACL tear he suffered on November 21 against Minnesota.

The San Francisco 49ers released defensive end Dee Ford on Wednesday, ending the former Pro Bowler's three-year tenure with the team that was often marred by injuries.

Signed to a five-year, $85.5million contract by San Francisco in 2019, Ford appeared in just seven games over the last two seasons and 18 total regular-season contests in that three-year period.

The 49ers acquired Ford from the Kansas City Chiefs in March 2019 in exchange for a 2020 second-round pick. The 31-year-old recorded 13 sacks and made the Pro Bowl in his final season in Kansas City, then had 6.5 sacks in 11 games with San Francisco in 2019.

However, Ford missed all but one game in 2020 due to a chronic back injury that limited him to six games this past season.

The move will save the 49ers around $1.1 million in 2022 but will leave the team with over $11.6 million in dead cap space over the next two seasons.

A first-round pick of the Chiefs in 2014, Ford twice posted double-digit sack totals during his five-year run in Kansas City and has 40 sacks in 85 games over eight NFL seasons.

The Kansas City Chiefs and Travis Kelce have agreed to a contract restructure that will give the star tight end an additional $3 million in salary this season, according to NFL.com.

Kelce was slated to earn about $7.5 million in 2022, the first season of a four-year, $57 million extension he signed in August 2020 that contains $20.75 million in guarantees. Moving some of that money towards the front of the deal gives the Chiefs a little more salary cap flexibility in future years.

The 32-year-old Kelce was named to a seventh straight Pro Bowl in 2021 after recording 92 catches for 1,125 yards and nine touchdowns in 16 games.

Kelce’s six consecutive seasons with at least 80 receptions and 1,000 receiving yards is the longest streak by a tight end in NFL history and the longest active run of any player.

Only five players have produced those numbers in seven or more straight seasons. Jerry Rice, Marvin Harrison and Torry Holt each did so in eight consecutive seasons, while Tim Brown and Brandon Marshall had seven-year streaks.

Kelce has also been remarkably durable throughout his nine-year NFL career, having missed just three games over the past eight seasons.

Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones has put his expectations for 2022 firmly on the agenda, saying they need a viable playoff run for a successful season.

The Cowboys had a hugely disappointing first-round home playoff loss last season, going down 23-17 to the San Francisco 49ers after earning the third seed in the NFC.

Long-time Cowboys owner Jones, who turns 80 in October, said they were in better shape for a Super Bowl push this season compared to last, fuelling the expectations on Mike McCarthy's side.

"Well, I need to win it. I need to win it, but I'll be candid with you, there's degrees," Jones told reporters on Tuesday on the first day of the Cowboys' training camp.

"I want to be fair to everybody concerned. We need to be in the playoffs. We need to be viable in the playoffs for it to be a successful season."

He added with a touch of humour: "I told them I've got a birthday coming up here real quick and I don't have time to have a bad time. It ain't on my schedule."

Amari Cooper, La'el Collins and Randy Gregory have all departed the Cowboys in the off-season.

"(Last year) we had it teed up pretty good, and in my mind we made a hell of a run at it," Jones said.

"I think we're in better shape today to make a run at it than when we were sitting here this time last year.

"I thought last year we had a chance to make a heck of a run at it and had people in place that if we were healthy enough, we might get 'em. And I think we're in better shape."

Jones also threw his support behind McCarthy, who has been Dallas' head coach since 2020, finishing his first season with a 6-10 record and missing the playoffs.

"I want to be real clear: He wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't think he was the man to lead this team to a Super Bowl," Jones said.

Jones added: "I like this staff. And frankly, I like the makeup of the players one year later that were on this team last year and I like the new players that we've brought on."

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has made it abundantly clear that Trey Lance is their man and they are moving on from Jimmy Garoppolo.

Garoppolo, who underwent shoulder surgery in March, led the 49ers to the NFC Championship game, losing 20-17 to eventual Super Bowl LVI champions Los Angeles Rams.

The 30-year-old quarterback is widely expected to depart the 49ers in the off-season, with Shanahan effectively confirming the assumption that 2021 NFL Draft's third pick in Lance will take over.

"We have moved on to Trey," Shanahan told reporters ahead of the 49ers training camp. "This is Trey's team.

"That's nothing against Jimmy. We made that decision a year ago and we're going with that. We're not going to mess around with that anymore.

"Jimmy understands that fully. That's a business decision and that's what makes it not awkward. Jimmy knows we're going with Trey.

"Trey knows we're going with Trey and our team does, and everyone likes both of those guys."

Shanahan along with 49ers general manager John Lynch sat down for a meeting with Garoppolo on Tuesday morning to discuss his future.

Garoppolo has only just been cleared to practice having resumed throwing after his shoulder surgery, meaning opposition teams were reluctant to make trade plans for him until now.

"As soon as we can," Shanahan said about a Garoppolo move.

"Hopefully with everyone being on the same page, hopefully that will happen sooner than later. I think that would be good for him and for us."

Garoppolo threw 20 touchdowns - with his 1.33 per game was ranked 19th in the NFL among quarterbacks - with a 68.3 per cent completion rate for 3,810 yards across the 2021 season.

Meanwhile, Lynch was positive about the future of wide receiver Deebo Samuel, who had requested a trade in April.

"We've had really productive and substantive talks," Lynch said.

"I don't want to get everyone all excited that something is imminent because we're not there yet, but really hopeful that in the near future we'll be able to announce something that is exciting for everyone involved.

"Deebo is here today and we're excited about moving forward with him as part of this team."

Five-time All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones will catch passes from Tom Brady in 2022 after signing a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday.

The move gives Brady, who led the NFL in passing yards and touchdowns last season, another potentially dangerous target and may offset the loss of tight end Rob Gronkowski, who retired earlier this offseason.

A seven-time Pro Bowl selection, Jones will join a deep wide receiver room that already has Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Russell Gage.

Signing Jones is the latest in a string of win-now moves by the Buccaneers as they try to extend their window of championship contention with Brady, who turns 45 years old next month.

Jones, 33, has been limited by injuries over the last two seasons, having ended a 10-year stint with the Atlanta Falcons to join the Tennessee Titans last season.

In 10 games with the Titans, Jones caught a career-low 31 passes for 434 yards and was cut earlier this offseason.

Jones had been connected to the Indianapolis Colts, a move that would have reunited him with longtime quarterback Matt Ryan, but Colts general manager Chris Ballard dispelled those rumours earlier on Tuesday, the Indianapolis Star reported.

Jones is the NFL's active leader with 13,330 career receiving yards, making 879 catches and scoring 61 touchdowns in 145 games.

Among players who have played at least 100 games, Jones' 91.9 receiving yards per game are the most in NFL history.

The neck injury that cut short Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson's 2021 season has ultimately ended his career. 

Carson decided to retire on Tuesday after five NFL seasons, according to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. 

The 27-year-old had failed his physical and the Seahawks are officially releasing him with a failed physical designation, which under the collective bargaining agreement allows Carson to receive several million dollars in injury protection benefits. 

Carson had been hopeful of being healthy enough to play this year after being sidelined since Week 4 of the 2021 season with the serious neck injury. 

When healthy, Carson was one of the top running backs in the league, ranking fifth in rushing yards in 2018 with 1,151 yards and fifth again a year later with a career-high 1,230 yards. 

A seventh-round pick by the Seahawks in 2017, Carson finishes his career with 3,502 rushing yards with 24 rushing touchdowns. 

Upon Carson's retirement, Rashaad Penny and rookie Kenneth Walker III will handle the running back duties for a Seattle team that expects to rely heavily on the ground game with Geno Smith and Drew Lock competing for the starting quarterback job after Russell Wilson was traded to the Denver Broncos. 

Penny led the Seahawks with 749 rushing yards last season and his average of 6.29 yards per attempt was the highest in the NFL among all players with a minimum of 100 carries. 

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is undergoing surgery to have his appendix removed, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport said Tuesday.

Burrow is expected to miss practice time during training camp but make a full recovery before the defending AFC champion Bengals begin their season on September 11 against the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers.

The news comes one day after team owner Mike Brown said Cincinnati's "whole focus" is to get an extension in place with Burrow, who is eligible to negotiate a new deal after this season – his third in the NFL.

"Right now our obvious, most important issue will be our quarterback," Brown said on Monday. "It's not quite ready or ripe yet, but it's right down the track and we see the train coming."

Burrow went 2-7-1 as the starter in 2020 after the Bengals selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft. He tore his left ACL and MCL in Week 11 that season before returning last year and leading Cincinnati to their first playoff berth since 2015 and first Super Bowl appearance since 1988.

The Bengals led the Los Angeles Rams 20-13 in the third quarter of the Super Bowl before eventually losing 23-20. Burrow passed for 263 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions against the Rams.

"We couldn't be happier with Joe Burrow," Brown said. "He's everything you would wish for, especially for a quarterback in Cincinnati. And our whole focus is going on keeping him here."

The Chicago Bears have bolstered their offensive line, signing veteran tackle Riley Reiff to a one-year deal that will likely pay him $10million, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. 

The deal, which was reported on Tuesday, could be worth up to $12.5million. 

Considered one of the best free agents still on the market, Reiff started 12 games for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2021 before an ankle injury ended his season. 

Since being drafted 23rd overall by the Detroit Lions in 2012, the 33-year-old Reiff has appeared in 147 games with 139 starts. This will be his third NFC North team after spending his first five seasons with the Lions and the next four with the Minnesota Vikings, with whom he signed as a free agent prior to the 2017 season. 

Reiff is expected to win the starting left tackle job for a Bears team that struggled mightily to protect Justin Fields in his 2021 rookie season. 

The Chicago offensive line allowed a league-worst 58 sacks last season with Fields being sacked on 11.8 per cent of his dropbacks – the worst rate in the NFL among quarterbacks with at least 250 pass attempts. 

San Francisco 49ers players are scheduled to report to training camp on Tuesday, and coach Kyle Shanahan expects star wide receiver Deebo Samuel to attend despite his ongoing contract dispute. 

Shanahan is also certain Samuel will get a new deal soon. 

"What I do know is: I'm not worried about it not getting done," he told The Athletic. "I feel very confident that Deebo's going to be on our team this year, and he's going to be for many years after. I do believe he'll get a deal. I know that they're working on it right now."

Shanahan said general manager John Lynch and the 49ers front office have been working with Samuel's agent, Tory Dandy, on a new deal over the past few weeks. 

Samuel emerged as a dangerous playmaker lined up both as a receiver and in the backfield for San Francisco last season, earning All-Pro honours with 1,770 scrimmage yards and 14 total touchdowns. 

Due to make $3.986million in the final year of his rookie contract in 2022, the 26-year-old Samuel requested a trade after the 49ers failed to sign him to an extension earlier this offseason.

"I think every player in the league is underpaid," Shanahan said. "I think this league makes a lot of money, and these players go through a lot of stuff, so like you always look at it that way.

"But when you become a head coach or a general manager and stuff like that, you do get to see the other side, and your job is to put the best football team together possible, and so you work with these players and your goal is to get them paid, [but you] got to balance all that stuff together so you have a chance to win."

The 49ers reached the Super Bowl in Samuel's 2019 rookie season and nearly made it again last year before losing to the eventual champion Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game. 

This year's offense will have a different look, however, with Trey Lance taking over at quarterback for Jimmy Garoppolo. 

Despite Samuel's contract dispute, he still attended mandatory minicamp and is expected to be at training camp because of the collective bargaining agreement that deters players from holding out. 

"The days of holding out and stuff are a little bit different now because players, regardless of what the team decides later, always have to pay [the fines] back," Shanahan said. "Now, those fines can't get paid back." 

After helping the Los Angeles Rams win Super Bowl LVI in February, Aaron Donald reportedly considered walking away from football at the top of his game. 

He, obviously, ended up not retiring, with the Rams ultimately restructuring his contract to give him a record payday in early June. 

But from the time the Rams raised the Lombardi Trophy to the time Donald agreed to the massive raise, coach Sean McVay says his ongoing conversations with the future Hall of Famer were crucial in getting a deal done. 

"My dialogue with Aaron throughout the process I thought was key to be able to feel good about it but also understand what needed to get done to have him come back and lead the way for us," McVay said on Monday. 

Donald’s restructured deal guarantees him $95million over the next three years, making him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. 

The hefty price is justified, however, given he’s widely considered one of the best defensive players in NFL history. 

A Super Bowl championship was the last major accomplishment left to achieve for the 31-year-old Donald, who has three Defensive Player of the Year Awards and seven consecutive First Team All-Pro selections on his resume. 

So McVay understood why Donald wanted to take some time to evaluate his career after playing a vital role in the Rams’ Super Bowl victory over the Cincinnati Bengals with a pair of sacks against Joe Burrow. 

"When you reach (and win the Super Bowl), when he had been working so hard to try to get to that goal, there's an exhale," McVay said. "I think you want to be able to let the dust settle, figure out what's important. What can we do to accommodate that? If you still want to be able to play football."

Donald still has the passion to play and McVay credits their conversations as a big reason why one of the most feared defensive players ever will be suiting up for the Rams in their quest to repeat as Super Bowl champions. 

"(Donald and I) had great dialogue throughout the course of the offseason," McVay said. "I think like anything else, it's such a long process when you're able to play 21 games and if you include the pre-season, you're talking about 24 games last year. So many emotions."

After spending much of his offseason recovering from a right elbow injury, veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford resumed throwing as the Los Angeles Rams opened training camp on Sunday.  

"It feels good to get out there," Stafford said. "Definitely knocking some rust off and feeling it again. It's good to get out there and stress it a little bit and see how it reacts."

Stafford, who helped lead the Rams to a Super Bowl title last season, has rested his arm since February and received an anti-inflammatory injection in his elbow. 

Stafford and head coach Sean McVay have said that the 14th-year quarterback will have to ease back into a full workload after taking so much time off. 

"It's an interesting thing trying to have a little bit of governor on there, and at the same time, just trying to be as smart as I can," Stafford said. "It's a process. Just going to have to sit there and work through it, trust it. We'll figure it out as we go."

McVay told reporters that while Stafford is on a pitch count, it didn’t come into play in Sunday’s camp-opening session. 

"[Stafford] was a full participant today," McVay said. "Like him having as much experience as he does, we will continue to build him up.

"We're aware of what that pitch count is, but it didn't restrict him from being able to do anything today."

Acquired last offseason from the Detroit Lions, Stafford was a key reason why the Rams got over the hump to win their first Super Bowl since the 1999 season. 

Stafford tied a career high last season with 41 touchdown passes and registered a 102.9 passer rating, starting all 17 games. 

He added nine more touchdown passes during the Rams’ postseason run, including six to Super Bowl MVP Cooper Kupp. 

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have appeared to have found their replacement for the retired Rob Gronkowski, signing tight end Kyle Rudolph to a one-year contract on Monday.

The deal is reportedly worth $2million and Rudolph can earn an additional $1.5million in incentives.

Gronkowski retired for the second time in his career last month despite having the chance to play another season with Tom Brady, who announced his retirement on Feb. 1 before changing his mind March 13 and returning to Tampa Bay.

In Rudolph, the Buccaneers land a tight end who had 26 catches for 257 yards and one touchdown last season for the New York Giants.

That was Rudolph’s only year with New York after spending his first 10 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, who selected him with the 11th pick of the second round (43rd overall) in the 2011 NFL Draft.

Rudolph earned two Pro Bowl selections while playing for Minnesota, including being named the MVP of the game in 2012 after having five catches for 122 yards and a touchdown.

Rudolph has appeared in 156 regular-season games, hauling in 479 passes for 4,745 yards and 49 TDs.