NFL Rumors: Odds These Hot NFL Rumors Will Come True

Yes, the 2011-2012 NFL football season is officially over.

Which means that the rumor mill has been kicked into high gear.

Even though mock drafts had already been created and speculations over players’ contracts had already begun, the end of Super Bowl XLVI seemed to give all rumors the green light to run a little wild.

Heck, Eli Manning hadn’t even boarded his plane for Disney World, when speculations over big brother Peyton’s status in Indy began to viciously swirl.

And, while some rumors are more fact than fiction, other rumors are, well, just downright ridiculous.

Here’s a look at the odds that a few of the hottest NFL rumors might actually come true.

The Rumor: Peyton Manning Is Going to the New York Jets

The Odds: Not So Hot

The New York Jets have morphed into the new Most Dysfunctional Team in the NFL.

And, even before they were anonymously bashing their QB to the New York Daily News, they weren’t necessarily viewed as the team with the happiest locker room.

Whether or not the Jets choose to let Mark Sanchez go, there’s no way Peyton Manning is going to want to play in New York. It would be a babysitting job.

And, the job wouldn't just be about Manning helping to lift New York's 21st-ranked offense out of the gutter; the press would expect him to answer for every unsportsmanlike comment his teammates made.

Manning isn’t going to want to go to a team with such an attitude problem and low morale.

And, remember that business last season when Rex Ryan benched Sanchez during practice, just to make a statement? Manning wouldn’t stand for that.

Oh, and playing in Eli’s backyard? Not an ideal situation.

The Rumor: The New England Patriots Will Keep Key Players from Super Bowl Roster

The Odds: Favorable

Despite the drab performance of New England's offense in Super Bowl XLVI, it’s unlikely that coach Bill Belichick is going to rip up his entire roster.

As ESPNBoston.com’s Mike Reiss pointed out, running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis hasn’t fumbled the football once in his entire professional football career, and he has scored enough touchdowns each season to give Belichick reason to hold on to him.

Wide receiver Wes Welker’s contract has become a top priority now that the Pats have entered the offseason.

Although Welker is looking at free agency, it’s likely that he’ll get slapped with a franchise tag, worth $9.4 million for next season. Owner Robert Kraft even offered an endorsement, saying that he wants Welker to stay a Patriot.

The one highly-paid player who actually needs to be concerned is Chad Ochocinco, who was so unproductive that spectators might have forgotten that he was on the Patriots in the first place.

The Rumor: Newly-Retired Ricky Williams Will Permanently Hang Up His Cleats

The Odds: Likely

Some may argue that Ricky Williams won’t stay retired, since he unretired back in 2005.

But, we have to keep in mind that Williams’ reason for retirement back then was to get out of a suspension over violating the NFL’s drug-abuse policy.

And, it’s not as if he would be retiring prematurely: Williams posted 10,009 rushing yards, 342 catches for 2606 passing yards and 74 touchdowns over his 11-year career.

Williams has made it well-known that he has big life plans for himself after his football career ends.

After having maintained an open spirituality for the duration of his career, this could be the time for Williams to happily put the tug-of-war between his athletic and religious selves to rest.

The Rumor: Roger Goodell Plans to Add to New NFL Teams, Both in Los Angeles

The Odds: I'll Believe It When I See It

Commissioner Roger Goodell’s comment to Bob Costas on Costas Live that he wasn’t looking to “move any of our teams” out to Los Angeles doesn’t necessarily mean that a current standing team couldn’t still be relocated to Southern California.

And, just because Goodell followed up that statement with, “We probably don’t want to go to 33,” he didn’t say that he would definitely put two teams in the same city.

LA has been without a pro football team since the Raiders returned to Oakland in 1995. And, sure, a handful of teams—the St. Louis Rams and Minnesota Vikings, just to name two—have been mentioned over the years as possible candidates to make the trek out to Los Angeles.

But, this is just one of many options for having an NFL team in Los Angeles, and it certainly isn’t a final option.

Until Goodell puts a timetable in place, it is safe to assume that LA will still be without even one NFL team in 2012.