NFL Insider Mike Garafolo Talks Eagles, 49ers, Giants & More

Mike Garafolo showed up to the Rich Eisen Show studio one day late, after Rich had spent yesterday's program teasing his no-show in real time. The makeup hour was worth the wait. Garafolo broke down four NFL situations that still have major decisions to come.

The first was AJ Brown. The Aaron Rodgers saga ended a few days ago. Brown's situation in Philadelphia is now the league's most prominent loose end.

"It plays out with him on another team," Garafolo told Rich. "I would say likely the Patriots."

He did not rule out a different landing spot. The Rams, in fact, got further down a trade conversation than the Patriots did in March. There was one late night where it looked like it might happen by morning, and then it died.

"There's too many moving parts here," Garafolo said. "I wouldn't be surprised if the Rams re-emerge."

The case for the Rams sits on top of an unrelated situation. Puka Nacua's offseason has not been clean. Garafolo did not get specific, but he flagged it as a real factor. If Los Angeles cannot fully rely on Nacua, the front office may need to widen the receiver investment again. Garafolo noted Howie Roseman could potentially help facilitate the trade by eating money on the Eagles' side to drive up the draft-pick return.

Whatever the destination, the price has not adjusted. The top offer in March topped out around a second-round pick, well below the Quinnen Williams-style first-and-second package Roseman was holding out for. In Garafolo's read, the price does not necessarily come down with a re-engagement. The deadline pressure just moves to training camp instead of the draft.

The Eagles half of the conversation took a turn from the trade to the offense. Philadelphia is running a fundamentally different scheme this year. Jalen Hurts, the Super Bowl MVP from 16 months ago, is being asked to operate inside it.

Garafolo's view on that transition was nuanced.

"It could wind up being a positive early in the season," he said. Defenses will see unscouted concepts. They will have to game-plan from scratch for several weeks. The deeper question is what happens once the film is out and defenses adjust.

He pointed back to the end of last season. By the playoffs, Hurts was struggling to communicate in real time. ESPN's reporting on the now-infamous Super Bowl sideline huddle suggested Hurts had pushed hard for the play he was comfortable with. The offensive coordinator search that followed did not include Hurts sitting in on interviews. The front office picked the system they wanted. Hurts now has to live in it.

Brandon Aiyuk's situation in San Francisco was the third stop. Garafolo's advice for Aiyuk was simple and pointed.

"If I could advise Brandon Aiyuk, I would tell him to show up for work," Garafolo said. "I would have told him to show up for work a couple of weeks ago."

The structural piece is that Aiyuk did not show up at the facility during last year's rehab when the team strongly suggested he should. The 49ers pulled the guarantees on his contract. Now San Francisco is in control of the timeline, not Aiyuk. Garafolo also flagged that even Aiyuk's own representation, Ryan Williams, had been part of the group warning him about exactly this outcome. Williams did not drop him, despite reports to the contrary.

Garafolo posed an open question Aiyuk himself has not answered.

"I don't know if he wants to play," he said. "I can't answer that question. Does he want to play NFL football? Does he want to play in Washington?"

That bled into the Giants section, which Garafolo described as a "buddy comedy" between new head coach John Harbaugh and GM Joe Schoen. The two have been making appearances together, posing for photos, behaving like co-conspirators rather than the head-coach-versus-GM tension everyone braced for.

The relationship started right. Schoen was on the plane that flew to pick Harbaugh up the day of his East Rutherford visit. He recused himself from his own contract negotiation when John Mara's health issue created an unusual gap in the front office. He gave up power. He kept the roster build aimed at what Harbaugh would want.

"I expect these two to be together for the long haul," Garafolo said. "Or at least for the foreseeable future."

The closer was the quarterback conversation, with OTAs starting. Garafolo's reads were quick. Kyler Murray will be the Minnesota starter. He could not find a world in which he was not. Atlanta depends on Michael Penix Jr.'s health. Cleveland will be Deshaun Watson. The Raiders are interesting. Kliff Kingsbury has said publicly that he prefers letting a young quarterback watch and learn. But Garafolo flagged Fernando Mendoza as the rookie most likely to force the conversation through preseason play alone.

"He's got the ability to bring some juice," Garafolo said. He drew the Eli Manning parallel for leadership style. You don't have to be the rah-rah type to lead.

"You play good football, they will follow."