5 NFL Teams That Are Left with More Questions Than Answers This Offseason

As far as NFL players, coaches and executives are concerned, there is no offseason.

Between the end of the draft and the beginning of training camps is a period of about three months, which we currently find ourselves in the middle of.

Organized team activities (OTA) are finished, and teams have moved to (mandatory) mini-camps. While the preseason is still months away, it might not seem so distant for certain teams.

Free agency has slowed measurably and teams are just beginning to put the right people in place in order to win games in the Fall.

The biggest challenge now is, simply, numbers.

Most teams have around 90 players on their camp rosters. All teams must be down to 53 players by the time the season starts.

Having to cut 41 percent of your players between now and Labor Day weekend can be a gut-wrenching task for coaches and front office personnel.

While they worry about that, let us look at five teams that have major questions which need to be addressed as soon as possible.

New Orleans Saints

New Orleans is a mess.

By now, you probably know all about the word "bounty" and what it means to the Saints.

In case you don't, here's a quick recap:

• Four players, three coaches and a general manager were suspended by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell
• In addition, Goodell fined the Saints $500,000 and revoked two second-round draft picks

The Saints saw some of their best players sign elsewhere in free agency:

• Left guard Carl Nicks (Tampa Bay)
• Wide receiver Robert Meachem (San Diego)
• Cornerback Tracy Porter (Denver)
• Defensive lineman Aubrayo Franklin is still an unrestricted free agent

Players they did re-sign:

• Jonathan Casillas (back-up linebacker)
• John Kasay (42-year old kicker)
• Luke McCown (third-string quarterback, from Jacksonville)
• Courtney Roby (fourth wide receiver)

Most of all, the Saints' biggest problem is that Drew Brees is still without a long-term contract.

Brees received the franchise tag this offseason, which if he signs that tender (an average of the top five players' salary at his position), would yield him $15.76 million in 2012 salary.

He believes (and has played like) he's worth more.

Last year, Brees broke Dan Marino's 27-year old passing record for most yards in a single season (5,476). In so doing, he also set the all-time completion percentage record for a single season (71.2 percent).

His production (and leverage) has a firm foundation. Since 2005, Brees has missed one start. During those seven seasons, he's thrown for at least:

• 500 attempts
• 64 percent completion
• 3,500 yards
• 24 touchdowns

Most of Brees' success has come toward the back-end of his career.

In the last four years alone, Brees has averaged 616 attempts for 4,888 yards and 37 touchdowns, while completing 68.7 percent of his passes. Twice (2009, 2011), he threw for over 5,000 yards and had at least a 70 percent completion percentage.

His work off the field and in the New Orleans community is just as impressive.

Basically, if there is anyone on the Saints roster that should be given a blank check, it's Brees.

After all the terrible press and allegations the Saints have had to endure, Brees has remained the one who could help turn it around (again). Yet, Owner Tom Benson and the Saints don't feel the same way.

Unbelievable.

New York Jets

Where to begin?

Starting with the draft, the Jets' first two selections (Quinton Coples and Stephen Hill) are terrific athletes accompanied by major questions.

Coples (defensive end, No. 16 overall) has shown tendencies to lack consistency on the field.

Hill (wide receiver, No. 43 overall) played in a run-heavy offense at Georgia Tech, where he caught just 49 passes and nine touchdowns in three years. Hill averaged 23.8 yards per reception in that time, but prevailing wisdom suggests he'd be lucky to reach an average that was half that good (the NFL record for yards per reception average over a single season belongs to Jimmy Orr, with a mark of 27.6).

Next question: Will Darrelle Revis report to training camp on time? In his words: "I don't know."

Apparently Revis isn't in need of $63,000, because that's what he'd be fined if he missed the mandatory three-day mini-camp (according to ESPN NFL Business Analyst Andrew Brandt).

If the fact that your best player doesn't know if he's going to report to a mandatory camp is being overshadowed by the signing of a back-up quarterback, you know you have problems.

That brings us to the obvious question: How will Tim Tebow fit into the Jets' offense?

Although that's a valid question, it's one with no answer.

You can't (properly) label Tebow. Technically, he's a quarterback, but he's a better runner than he is a thrower. He's also a better leader than he is a runner. And that leadership is something the Jets are in huge need of.

Said Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan in an article on NYDailyNews.com:

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"We have a No. 1 quarterback. Mark is our No. 1 quarterback. Tim Tebow is our No. 2 quarterback, but he’s also going to do other things for this football team,” Ryan said. “He’s a football player. That’s what I keep wanting to put out there. Let’s not just look at him as a quarterback. I look at him as a football player."

"

Quarterback, fullback, personal protector on the punt team, etc. are all roles Tebow can and (likely) will play for the Jets this season.

It's been said that his best assets are his leadership and his will to win. As a starter (playoffs included), Tebow is 9-7. In games he's played that he hasn't started, he's 2-7. In other words, his winning record is barely a winning record.

The Jets went 8-8 last season, in a division in which the Patriots went to the Super Bowl and the Bills significantly upgraded their roster (DE Mario Williams via free agency, CB Stephon Gilmore via the NFL Draft).

How much is a No. 2 quarterback/running back/special teams player going to help their 25th ranked offense from a year ago?

If the answer is anything less than "significantly," the real question Jets fans should be asking is: Was signing Tebow worth it?

Jacksonville Jaguars

If you trade up two spots within the top 10 of the draft, the player you select better be a lock.

Justin Blackmon was the Jaguars selection at No. 5 overall, but he's been far from a lock so far.

Blackmon was arrested on an aggravated DUI charge on Sunday June 3. His blood alcohol level was 0.24 (three times the legal limit of 0.08). His court date is set for July 24, three days before Jaguars training camp begins.

Even if Blackmon deals with this well, he still needs to perform on the field against NFL defenses. With Blaine Gabbert as his quarterback, and on the worst team in the division, Blackmon won't have an easy time doing that.

Marcedes Lewis (6'6", 275 pounds), who caught 10 touchdowns in 2010, caught no touchdowns in 2011. Lewis' numbers also decreased in receptions (down 19) and in receiving yards (down 240) over the last year.

If it wasn't for perennial Pro Bowl running back Maurice Jones-Drew, the Jaguars could lose every game. Don't forget, this is the team that drafted a punter (Bryan Anger)...in the third round.

Their whole franchise (new owner, new head coach, uncertainty at quarterback, uncertainty about the team remaining in Jacksonville) seems to be a question mark.

Seattle Seahawks

Drafting Bruce Irvin with the 15th overall pick?

That's what the Seahawks did, taking the pass-rusher from West Virginia ahead of other stand-out defensive ends like Melvin Ingram (No. 18), Shea McClellin (No. 19), Chandler Jones (No. 21) and Whitney Mercilus (No. 26), to name a few. All those are widely thought of as better defensive end prospects than Irvin.

Mel Kiper said the Seahawks taking Irvin at No. 15 was "mind boggling." The NFL Network's Mike Mayock said, "...he's an explosive player, but there are red flags off the field. Pete Carroll has never been afraid of taking on a problem child.

Two smart analysts with tremendous resources at their disposal stating what many fans were thinking. Irvin is a talented, but limited player. The knock on him is that he struggles to stay on the field for three downs.

In other words, it's not shocking that the Seahawks selected Irvin, but where they selected him that had people raising their eyebrows.

You shouldn't use the 15th overall pick on a situational player, especially if you're Seattle. It would be one thing if a team like the Patriots or Packers made this move. But the Seahawks aren't in that good of a position to be taking risks like this.

The other major question is: Who will be the Seahawks starting quarterback?

Right now, Tarvaris Jackson is the most experienced quarterback on the roster, starting 14 games for Seattle last season. Matt Flynn is the other logical candidate, as he comes to Seattle after backing up Aaron Rodgers for four years in Green Bay.

Flynn signed a three-year, $19.5 million contract with Seattle this offseason. Jackson is currently in the last year of his two-year, $8 million deal.

Seattle has more years and more money invested in Flynn, but Jackson knows the playbook and the team better.

Adding more confusion to the mix, Seattle drafted quarterback Russell Wilson with the 12th pick in the third round. Wilson had a tremendous collegiate career:

• 60.9 career completion percentage
• 11,720 passing yards
• 109 touchdowns versus 30 interceptions
• 147.2 career quarterback rating
• 1,421 rushing yards and 23 rushing touchdowns

Who do you go with? Jackson is in the last year of his deal, and the Seahawks ought to market him if they want to get good value. Flynn signed a contract worth much more money than a backup should earn. Wilson has loads of tangible and intangible talent. He will need to sit for awhile, but for how long?

For a team that was just third place (7-9) last season in the NFL's worst division, not having a clear-cut starting quarterback is a big problem.

Cleveland Browns

The Cleveland Browns hit a home run when they traded up from No. 4 to No. 3 to draft Alabama running back Trent Richardson. He's the perfect fit for what they needed, and the perfect type of player for the division they play in.

Cleveland had more work to do in the first round, as they selected Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden with the 22nd overall pick. I think Mike Mayock got it right when he analyzed Weeden right after the Browns drafted him:

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"He can make all the throws. People are concerned about Weeden's age at 28 years old, but you draft him because you expect him to compete this year."

"

If the only issue with Weeden is his age, that just means he will have a good career over less years than a typical rookie quarterback would have.

If you're the Browns, you can't be choosers. According to Sports Illustrated's Tracking Blog, Cleveland's other two quarterbacks (Colt McCoy and Seneca Wallace) both want to start, even though it's been Weeden who's been taking the majority of the first-team reps.

McCoy was drafted in the third round (No. 85 overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft by Cleveland. Wallace has nine seasons under his belt (seven with Seattle and the last two with Cleveland).

Both have a career record of 6-15 as a starting quarterback.

Weeden may be a 28-year-old rookie quarterback, but right now it looks like he's Cleveland's best option.