He has yet to throw a pass in a game setting for the New York Giants, but new quarterback Russell Wilson, a 10-time Pro Bowler, is already singing the praises of head coach Brian Daboll’s offensive knowledge and understanding.

He expressed his thoughts on Daboll and other topics while speaking with reporters on Wednesday.

“Daboll’s got a beautiful mind, how he sees the game, he’s coached tremendous football players, he’s won Super Bowls, he’s been around winning — national championships, all that stuff,” Wilson said. “… I think that the best part is in terms of the knowledge and what we get to share back and forth is pretty cool.

“… Just over the years, all my experience, his experience, how we see the game the same way.”

Wilson also sang the praises of assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, who will continue calling plays for the Giants in 2025.

“Obviously Kaf’s played the game, played the position, he sees it like the quarterback does and he’s got a great viewpoint of the game,” said Wilson. “We get to spend a lot of time together in the quarterback room and I think Kaf is a really brilliant mind, too.

“I think the ability to share ideas, the collaboration, is what’s really special here.”

Kafka, with the Giants’ coaching staff since 2022, also highlighted the importance of communication with his new pivot.

“Yeah, just opening up (those) lines of communication, having dialogue on plays that he likes, things that I like, things that are within the offense already, maybe there’s some crossover, maybe there’s some new thoughts,” said the former journeyman QB. “It’s just about opening those lines of communication.”

After two down years with the Denver Broncos in 2022 and 2023, Wilson started 11 regular-season games for the playoff-bound Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024, posting a 6-5 record while passing for 2,482 yards (225.6 per game), 16 touchdowns and five interceptions. He added another two scores on the ground.

Now the 2013 Super Bowl champion is adapting to another new team in New York and transitioning well.

“It’s going great,” said Wilson. “I think guys are working their butts off, man. We’re battling every day, going against a really good defense every day, too, so it’s even better.

“You always want practice to be harder than the games, that mentality of that. … I think we’re getting better every day.”

Wilson has also expressed his eagerness to play alongside talented second-year receiver Malik Nabers.

“I mean, that was (the) first thing I told you guys when I watched him on film. … It was just his explosiveness,” said Wilson of the 2024 sixth overall pick out of LSU. “Once he catches the football, there’s only so many people in the world that can do it like he can and I think he’s one of the best in the world to do it.

“He’s going into a second year of it all and it’s all fresh and all new, but he’s definitely experienced in terms of how he sees the game, his mentality attacking the football in the air. … It’s going to be a special thing. I’m excited to play with him, obviously.”

At age 36, Wilson added that he’s already enjoying playing for his fourth NFL team.

“I love this locker room, the guys, just the fellowship that we have together all the way from the lunchroom to the film room after practice,” Wilson said. “…It’s been great, man. I am truly grateful to be a New York Giant.”

–Field Level Media

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice did not participate in practice at training camp on Wednesday.

Rice is dealing with a groin injury, according to the team.

The third-year wideout was spotted working on the sidelines with trainers and receiver Hollywood Brown (ankle).

Rice, 25, sat out the majority of the 2024 season after suffering a torn ligament (LCL) in his right knee that required season-ending surgery. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes had thrown an interception and dove into Rice’s leg as they were attempting to make a tackle.

Over the first three weeks, Rice was among the top receivers in the league with two touchdowns and 288 receiving yards (an average of 96 per game).

In 20 career games, the 2023 second-round pick out of SMU has recorded 1,226 receiving yards, 103 receptions and nine touchdowns over his first two seasons with the Chiefs.

Rice is still awaiting news of a potential NFL suspension after he caused a multi-car crash in Dallas in March 2024. He pleaded guilty in July to two third-degree felony charges of collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury. Rice was sentenced to five years of probation (deferred), 30 days in jail, and required to pay approximately $115,000 in medical expenses for the victims.

He also agreed separately to a $1.086 million settlement in a civil case.

“I’ve completely changed,” Rice said at training camp. “You have to learn from things like that.”

–Field Level Media

Free agent safety Tracy Walker III has been suspended for the first 12 games of the NFL season, according to multiple reports on Wednesday.

The NFL transaction wire was cited as the source of the suspension, but the NFL didn’t reveal why Walker was disciplined.

If Walker joins a team, he wouldn’t be eligible to play until Week 13 at the earliest.

Walker, 30, spent six seasons with the Detroit Lions (2018-23) before being released. He joined the San Francisco 49ers in August 2024 but didn’t see any action before being released in late September.

Walker, a third-round pick in 2018 out of Louisiana, has 398 tackles, four sacks and three interceptions in 79 games (43 starts).

–Field Level Media

Miami Dolphins backup offensive lineman Andrew Meyer will be sidelined for “weeks,” coach Mike McDaniel said Wednesday.

The nature of Meyer’s injury was not disclosed.

Meyer is listed as the backup center on the depth chart the team released Wednesday.

“He’s had a great camp, really stepped his game, and I’m very impressed with his play,” McDaniel told reporters. “He will be out weeks, but he’s built a strong foundation as one of the top performers if you want to talk about growth of game. One of the top guys from year one to year two that has made tremendous strides.”

The Dolphins signed Meyer as an undrafted free agent in 2024 after a standout college career at UTEP. He didn’t see any action for Miami last season.

The Dolphins also are currently without starting right tackle Austin Jackson (lower leg) and backup guard Liam Eichenberg (knee).

–Field Level Media

Aaron Rodgers rarely participates in preseason games, but the first-year Pittsburgh quarterback is willing to step up if Steelers coach Mike Tomlin asks.

Pittsburgh opens its preseason schedule at the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday, and Rodgers said he expects to have “an interesting conversation” with Tomlin regarding his reps in the matchup.

“I don’t think it’s in the plan for me to play this week,” Rodgers said, “but whatever Mike wants to do, I’m fully on board.”

The NFL’s oldest active player, Rodgers, 41, appeared in an exhibition game for the New York Jets two years ago. But you would have to go back to 2018 to find his previous performance in a game that did not count.

Pittsburgh has four quarterbacks on its depth chart, with Mason Rudolph backing up Rodgers, who ranks fifth and seventh in career passing touchdowns and yards, respectively, and signed a one-year deal in June.

Rookie Will Howard is listed as the third-string QB, although the national champion from Ohio State will not be available on Saturday with a hand injury after smacking it against a helmet in Tuesday’s practice. Skylar Thompson is QB4 on the depth chart.

While Rodgers said he’s “totally on board” with playing preseason reps if Tomlin requests him to, he told 93.7 The Fan that “preseason football is not necessarily real football, because defenses don’t really do a lot.”

For his part, Tomlin was non-committal about Rodgers’ participation in the exhibition opener.

“I can’t see past Wednesday at this juncture,” Tomlin told reporters. “At this stage of development, Saturday is a long way away. Seriously, we’re just trying to have good days.”

–Field Level Media

New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel may be 15 years removed from his playing days, but that didn’t stop the former linebacker from getting involved in a scrum on Wednesday.

During a joint practice with the Washington Commanders in Foxborough, Mass., the first-year Patriots coach jumped into a pile of players and came away with a bloodied cheek.

The scrum occurred after New England rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson went to block a blitzing Commander, which quickly escalated into multiple players piling up on the field.

Vrabel, who turns 50 on Aug. 14, later needed a bag of ice on his right cheek, but his actions drew praise from Patriots players.

“That’s what we’re trying to build and it starts with the head coach — intensity, bringing it every day, taking no crap when we’re out there on the field,” New England quarterback Drake Maye said. “The mentality, I like it. That’s what you want.”

Maye added that the Patriots will review the film of Vrabel getting involved in the squabble, which was quickly de-escalated. Washington and New England are set to open their preseason schedules against each other on Friday.

–Field Level Media

ESPN will remain the home of the NFL draft through 2030, multiple media outlets reported on Wednesday.

ESPN’s draft rights had expired after the 2025 event in Green Bay.

The extension came in the wake of this week’s news that ESPN is selling a 10 percent equity stake to the NFL.

The NFL confirmed a “multi-year extension” on Wednesday but did not provide a specific end date.

The year 2030 is significant as it will mark the 50th edition of the draft on ESPN, which launched in 1979 and began broadcasting the event the following year.

Starting with the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, Disney+ and Hulu will also begin streaming draft coverage.

–Field Level Media

NFL players no longer need to raise a stink about the use of smelling salts.

After the league issued a memo Tuesday announcing that clubs could no longer provide ammonia to players, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle and others decried the ruling.

The NFL clarified the policy on Wednesday, telling the NFL Players Association that players could still use smelling salts that they supply themselves, ESPN reported.

Per the report, the union reported to its membership, “We were not notified of this club policy change before the (Tuesday) memo was sent out. To clarify, this policy does not prohibit player use of these substances, but rather it restricts clubs from providing or supplying them in any form. The NFL has confirmed this to us.”

Kittle had interrupted an NFL Network interview at training camp on Tuesday to “air a grievance” about the policy.

“Our team had a memo today that smelling salts and ammonia packets were made illegal in the NFL, and I’ve been distraught all day,” said Kittle, who added that he uses the substances on “every drive.”

The NFL wrote in its memo to teams, per ESPN, “In 2024, the FDA issued a warning to companies that produce commercially available ammonia inhalants (AIs), as well as to consumers about the purchase and use of AIs, regarding the lack of evidence supporting the safety or efficacy of AIs marketed for improving mental alertness or boosting energy. The FDA noted potential negative effects from AI use. AIs also have the potential to mask certain neurological signs and symptoms, including some potential signs of concussion.”

Kittle, 31, is far from the only NFL player who regularly uses smelling salts, and athletes in other sports use it as well, including ice hockey.

The six-time Pro Bowler said he has always used them for a boost of energy, joking that the change made him consider hanging up his cleats.

“I considered retirement,” Kittle said. “We have got to figure out a middle ground here, guys. Somebody help me out. Somebody come up with a good idea. That’s all I had to get out there. Get that off my chest.”

–Field Level Media