TK from Grafton, WI

Is the idea of a team going "all in" a myth?

The act itself or the perceived odds of the payoff?

Howie from Mayer, MN

Myles Garrett is requesting a trade. Is this the type of FA signing BG would be interested in? Age, performance, etc.?

I'll never say never, but I don't think Packers fans should hold their breath. Surrendering the draft haul AND the cap space to acquire someone like Garrett would be highly out of character for the Packers and Gutekunst. It's one thing to sign a top free agent like Xavier McKinney or Josh Jacobs for big money, but those guys didn't cost the Packers high draft picks, too. It's the double whammy on the cost that makes a Garrett acquisition so unlikely, and not the way the Packers normally expend their resources. Plus, it sounds like trading Garrett right now isn't even feasible for the Browns anyway because it would absolutely cripple their cap.

Steve from Scranton, PA

So DPOY Myles Garrett is requesting a trade to a "contender"? While I'm certain you're getting inundated with proposed trades to GB and comparisons to the Reggie White deal, I've got a completely different take. This just reinforces how fortunate we are to be Packers fans. Imagine being a lifelong Cleveland fan, whose future HOF DE at the peak of his career wants out of town because his team is not competitive? Ouch…that would hurt more than a little bit!

Indubitably.

Paul from West Allis, WV

Good morning. I can understand acquiring some players through free agency and then addressing others in the draft. But depending on the perception of the strengths/depth of positions in the draft could it have an influence on the positions you look to address in free agency first?

Sure. The two player acquisition processes are not mutually exclusive.

Tony from Davenport, IA

Good morning! I hope the two of you enjoyed your weekend off, you deserved it. I'm planning on attending an away game next season so I can finally get the chance to meet the two of you. Which away games, other than the divisional ones, are you most looking forward to?

The former Heinz Field in Pittsburgh is a great place to watch a football game, so I'm looking forward to covering another game there, unless the Ireland rumors swirling around that matchup prove to be true …

Shane from Philadelphia, PA

In response to other teams using the TE sneak, Penn State used that play with Tyler Warren before the Packers used it. I have wondered if MLF saw that and implemented it. I would love to know that answer but imagine it will be sometime before you talk to him again.

ATMR (WCBW), the first NFL team I could find trying it was the Chiefs, who did a TE sneak with Blake Bell in 2021. The Chiefs also did it with Noah Gray a couple years ago, and this past season the Bengals tried one with Tanner Hudson and the Jets with Tyler Conklin.

Bill from Clive, IA

I noted (during a VERY quiet football weekend) that Abiegail from Santa Clarita, CA, wrote the first question that Mark Murphy answered in MT5. Although I wondered from the tone of it if she was prompted by Spoff to put the question (of making safety penalties reviewable) to Mark. I found his response interesting. Mike, how would you interpret his reply of "calls involving no judgment on the part of the league office" as being acceptable ones for review?

That sounds like a reasonable standard, and I think that standard applies to most safety calls – facemasks, contact to the head or neck area, leading with the helmet, launching, forcible blow to the head (for RTP) … all those elements that are part of safety calls are rather clear-cut when reviewed.

Al from Green Bay, WI

As always, I enjoyed the "Murphy Takes 5" segment. Not surprisingly, there is lots of focus on officiating, and what plays are reviewable. My question: Can you describe a potential play or situation in the upcoming Super Bowl that would force an offseason change of what is reviewable?

It sounds like facemask and RTP are already going to be discussed in the offseason, but any questionable calls/non-calls in the Super Bowl in those areas would certainly heighten the urgency.

Allen from Fairhope, AL

II: Does the players' union have a stance on making all player safety calls reviewable and adding a dedicated "ref in the sky"? It would seem they'd want to prolong the careers of current players, and perhaps allowing all to retire more comfortably with fewer injuries from uncalled helmet hits, facemasks, etc.

I haven't heard the union chime in but it wouldn't have much, if any, influence anyway. It's up to the competition committee to put forth a proposal for the owners to vote on.

Joe from Marshalltown, IA

Are you surprised teams don't go after Chiefs assistants? I know Steve Spagnuolo has been part of some interview processes during this hiring cycle, but you'd think a currently successful franchise like the Chiefs would be looked at more.

Spagnuolo's one stint as a head coach was an abject disaster, as he went 10-38 with the Rams from 2009-11 (1-15, 7-9, 2-14), so that certainly gives teams pause. Eric Bieniemy got tired of waiting for his chance, left for the college game last year, and now is back in the NFL with the Bears. I don't know why Bieniemy kept getting passed over, but when he left he was replaced as KC's offensive coordinator by Matt Nagy, who was the Bears head coach for four years (2018-21). After winning the NFC North the first year, his tenure went downhill (8-8, 8-8, 6-11 last three seasons). In short, some of the circumstances surrounding Reid's top assistants haven't been typical.

Tom from Raleigh, NC

I know the Packers' coaches do their own evaluations of their players (of course) but has a reporter ever asked if they try to see why sources such as PFF are often so different than (seemingly) the internal evaluation? Any clue what the Packers are looking at differently systematically? This discrepancy appears to be especially vivid for Josh Myers. Thanks for these II in the long, cold summer months before it all starts up again.

The PFF evaluators do their best, and they're good at what they do, but they can't be certain what each individual player's assignment is on every play. In the case of a center like Myers, PFF has no way of knowing whether he correctly or incorrectly declared or adjusted a protection call for his entire unit before the snap, which is part of his job in addition to his individual blocking assignment. Those are evaluations only coaches can do accurately based on the play call, the defensive look, and how the play unfolded.

Josh from Arvada, CO

In relation to the Pro Football HOF balloting...how does the whole thing work for the "seniors" on the ballot? I grew up watching Sterling Sharpe as many GB fans have, and I don't know there is a player more deserving of joining his brother to be enshrined in Canton. Even with the injuries, the numbers he put up during the time he played ball are staggering.

As Wes explained, a maximum three of the five senior/coach/contributor finalists can get in. Sharpe, Maxie Baughn and Jim Tryer are the senior finalists, Holmgren is the coach, and Ralph Hay is the contributor on the ballot. But there's also no guarantee three get in, because inductees must get 80% of the vote from the full selection committee, and the committee members are casting their votes for (at most) three of the five at the same time. If none of the five gets 80%, they will induct the one who receives the most votes. It's a whole different procedure for these non-traditional nominees that's never been used before, so nobody really knows how it's going to go.

Dennis from Rhinelander, WI

A follow up to Dustin from KC in the Monday Inbox. Do you have any knowledge as to what happens to all of the fine money the players and teams pay to the NFL each year?

It goes to a select group of NFL charities, I believe.

Luke from Holcombe, WI

So the league is considering the use of an electronic system to determine if the spot of the football is a first down. AFTER an official spots the ball manually. Hi NFL, I'm Earth. Have we met?

We didn't hear much about it, but last preseason the league experimented with this particular system, which would only eliminate the need to bring the chains out to measure. The original spotting of the ball would still be done by officials on the field. I'm trying to be optimistic here and just say "baby steps," right?

Josh from Newhall, CA

I'm so disappointed about losing Campanile. That wasn't even on my radar. There's been a lot of discussion about the D-line as it relates to the vast improvement in rush defense. But the LB group is part of that too, and we'll never know how much of that improvement was attributable to the coach of that group. Hopefully the players can build on the things they picked up from him.

Agreed. The last time Campanile spoke with the media, this comment about run defense stuck with me: "I firmly believe that there's a progression each play. Your eyes, your feet, your hands, and then there's got to be a violent finish. That's how every football play should start and end."

Tyler from Cross Plains, WI

Hey guys, to follow up on Roger from Eagle River's NASCAR reference, I used to watch NASCAR constantly growing up, and at one point it was the fastest growing sport. Then they started changing rules/format to appeal to casuals, much like the NFL, and I no longer watch. Catering to causals to boost viewership can anger diehards who have been here all along, but does the NFL care...if the money is still flowing in, absolutely not. I just hope the NFL doesn't go down the same past as NASCAR.

I understand the desire to think in those terms, but I don't see any such comparisons are valid or worthwhile. There's no sports league that's ever been able to claim that 24 of the 25 most-watched television programs in any given year are football games, like the NFL can. The league's popularity and viewership are unparalleled, with no historical reference point. I'm not saying certain decisions won't have a negative impact somewhere along the way, but to have a negative impact the NFL is actually going to feel, it would have to be more substantial than anything we can honestly fathom at this point. Which is why I keep trying to sound alarm bells about the league's now-cozy relationship with the gambling industry.

Brock from West Lafayette, IN

Good morning! Talking about baseball during the playoffs got me wondering: Would you change anything about the MLB playoffs and if so, what would you change?

Go back to the three division winners plus one wild card in each league. Then start the playoffs with the best-of-five division series. No playoff series in baseball should be shorter than a best-of-five after teams have played 162 games to earn their spot. Baseball ruined the playoffs with, first, the one-game wild card, and then the best-of-three wild card series. That's not what postseason baseball should be about. If you want expanded playoffs with these shorter series, then just play 120 games and get on with the postseason. That'll never happen, and last I checked Rob Manfred doesn't care what I think, but thanks for indulging.

James from Appleton, WI

It's the "I know that you know that I know ..." Super Bowl. The Chiefs will bring up an extra defender to stop Saquon Barkley so the Eagles will throw deep to A.J. Brown so the Chiefs will not give Jalen Hurts time to throw so Hurts will dump off to Barkley so the Chiefs will have Barkley covered so Hurts will run through the gap vacated to cover Barkley so the refs will throw a flag for holding.

And my best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw … Lane Johnson hanging out on Bourbon St. last night? Happy Tuesday.