Could Aaron Rodgers really sign with the Cardinals instead of Steelers?

It has felt like Aaron Rodgers has mostly been linked to the Pittsburgh Steelers as his NFL career could continue in 2026.

But is there another team in the running that has space in its quarterback room even after drafting a QB in Carson Beck? That would be the Arizona Cardinals.

Here's something from Steelers Wire on the buzz: "According to CBS Sports' John Breech, the Arizona Cardinals have emerged as a "possible landing spot" based on their uncertainty at quarterback, their offensive weapons, and his connection to new Cardinals offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett."

It seemed like Rodgers and Hackett's last connection in New York didn't go so well. And it would be weird if Rodgers wanted to join a team with Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew II and Carson Beck already there... but there is the fact that Brissett might want more money this offseason. Hmmmmmm.

Was Aaron Rodgers wearing Arizona Cardinals gear in a photo?

No. This appears to be very fake.

BlogIbrahim Ava Ergani's Vision for the Future of SportsThe world of sports is changing faster than ever. New talent bursts onto the scene, technology reshapes how fans watch, and the business side of the game expandOpen →

This picture is probably AI generated, but it’d be awesome to see Aaron Rodgers wearing a Cardinals uniform in the near future! pic.twitter.com/oa2Rmbb8pE

— Robert Freedman (@RobOfAZBirdGang) May 3, 2026

We'll see if there's fire where there's smoke. Stay tuned.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Aaron Rodgers Cardinals rumors: Could he sign there instead of Steelers?

That week sucked, man.

Even with a couple of wins for the Red Sox here and there, I think we can go ahead and generally chalk up the recent play we’ve seen one week into the post-Cora era as “uninspiring” as this dreadful start to the season slugs along. Another series L against Houston only reinforces how bored I am with this team. It’s a shitty feeling. I need the spark to be back within my baseball-related life.

Say what you want about the dismissal of the manager and members of his coaching staff (which, believe me, we have here at OTM) but all of the warts of the 2026 team were not gonna magically disappear with them. The lineup, by and large, is still not doing enough to succeed. Most of the starting pitching staff—something that was supposed to be a strong foundation of this team—is either hurt or hasn’t met the standard. We’re staring down a pair of games in Detroit this week against two of the best left-handed pitchers in the sport—a pair of guys who already shoved against us recently—along with a series at the end of the week against a good Rays team. It could get real spooky by the time I sit down to write the next MMBB. We got outfielders throwin’ their hands up at infielders, we got hit pieces comin’ in, our pets’ heads are fallin’ off—the vibes are just putrid right now, even if I did find a pair of positive things to talk about in this edition of the Brushback. Little victories, people.

And here’s the kicker: we’re now the main show in town. The C’s and B’s biting the dust means the stage is ours. The ire in Boston will be squared directly on the Sox. Sometimes I feel that talking points like that are a bit corny, but the bad vibes could be even worse if the boys don’t turn this around fast. The old adage is that you can really start panicking by Memorial Day, right? Well, the calendar just turned to May. I don’t want this 2026 campaign to get out of hand, though it just might.

It’s Monday Morning Brushback time, y’all.

Bell-oh, No

I feel like I’ve stuck my neck out for Brayan Bello over the last few years. Whether it’s here on OTM or on Pod On Lansdowne, in person or online, I’ve given him grace. Just a few weeks ago on this very site, I wrote in a Brushback article that I still believe there’s a good pitcher in there somewhere in spite of what was (and still is) a real rough start to 2026.

Since that shout out, things have only gotten worse for Bello. In seven innings over his last two starts, he’s surrendered 19 hits (and three walks, so not as bad I guess?) and 12 runs—all of ‘em earned. His ERA has now ballooned beyond 9 and his WHIP is a ghastly 2.26. He’s gotten some more swing-and-miss in his game, sure, but that isn’t resulting in K’s. I’ll concede that hasn’t been his game in the past, but the qualities he’s shown in the past have also been mid. He’s technically keeping the ball on the ground a lot, I suppose, but is that because everyone right now knows they can tee off of him? I suppose not every ball can be barreled up (although Bello’s body of work seems to be trying to disprove that notion considering his barrel rate sits in the 7th percentile as I’m writing this), right?

I’m baffled at how bad this has been for Bello. I can’t really tell you exactly what’s causing this, because so much of the stuff under the hood looks bad. My patience is wearing thin, if it’s not completely gone already. I’ll leave it to others to dive deep on his body language when he’s being taken off of the hill and whatnot, but the fact of the matter is that he’s only made it through five full innings in one of his six starts. Hell, he’s only made it into the fifth twice! It is, simply put, unacceptable stuff from number 66. If he doesn’t want to get all pissed off, I’d suggest he stop throwing absolute cookies that are practically tailor-made for clobbering en route to another outing where he fails to qualify for a winning decision.

Interim manager Chad Tracy said they might utilize an opening pitcher for Bello’s next start. Maybe that does something; it worked for Nick Pivetta a few years ago if you recall. Or maybe it does nothing at all and it’s just window dressing. Either way, I don’t think a trip down to Worcester is out of the question for him in the near future, especially when you remember that he’s still got minor league options remaining. The issue is that the amount of MLB-caliber arms available for Boston at this point in time is thin (although it sounds like Sonny Gray could return soon), so the team might feel like they need to have Bello out there to eat more innings.

(Note: Of course, now it looks like Ranger Suarez is hurt. I’m writing this just as we’re all finding out that he got pulled after just four innings. Yikes.)

While that might be true, I think the clock’s ticking here folks. Something’s gotta change or something’s gotta give. Not to repeat myself, but Bello’s pitching has been unacceptable for a team claiming to contend for something this season. Figure it out, man.

HEY MAYERRRRRRR!!!!!!!

I know the production at the plate fell off towards the end of his cup of coffee in 2025 and it was a slow start for him to begin 2026, but infielder Marcelo Mayer has impressed me with the lumber recently. His nine-game hit streak came to a close in Saturday’s loss, sure, but his OPS climbed over .100 over that stretch (.549 to .685; gotta start somewhere, right?) while he struck out just once in that same time frame.

The strikeouts—or lack thereof—for Mayer have certainly been the most positive development in my book. His swing was always beautiful and we’ve seen flashes of the type of hard contact he can make when he’s on, but he struck out about 30% of the time across his 136 plate appearances last year. Entering play on Sunday, he’s almost slashed that K-rate in half; he had only struck out 16.3% of the time, good for the 79th percentile in the league prior to Sunday’s action.

The reasoning behind that, simply put, is that he’s not chasing at junk. For a team that has so many noncompetitive ABs over the first month-and-change of the season, Mayer’s plate approach recently has been a breath of fresh air.

Now, of course, the point about limiting strikeouts is all well and good, but it isn’t everything. Mayer’s offensive production is still subpar at the end of the day. The OPS still starts with a 6 since he’s not excelling at either component of that formula. It remains to be seen if he can continue to deliver against left-handed pitchers, though Tracy has said he wants to give him more looks against those guys (thankfully).

But the building blocks to Marcelo’s continued offensive development are showing themselves now. It’s gonna be hard for a 23-year-old to make any sort of progress with the bat if the ingredients aren’t in place. If he’s staying competitive in the box and not bailing pitchers out by chasing at stuff out of the zone, that sets the table for everything else. His swing is beautiful, he controls the bat on a good plane, and his bat speed is very good. If he’s pairing good swing decisions with his physical tools, then I believe that positive regression is in the cards for Mayer.

Maybe that Car Shield heckler motivated him to be better.

Bennett’s Beginnings

A hearty congratulations to lefty Jake Bennett on making his MLB debut Friday night and logging his first victory! He threw five innings en route to the W, as he struck out a trio of ’Stros while surrendering just one earned run. It was a perfectly cromulent debut for the 25-year-old.

Three words on what you can perhaps expect from Mr. Bennett, courtesy of the wonderful Prospect Savant resource: extension, extension, extension. CBO Craig Breslow loves pitchers who are literally letting go of the ball closer to the plate than the average bear, and Bennett’s got that in spades as evidence by his 93rd percentile extension within the Arizona Fall League. He doesn’t throw insanely hard (easy for me to say that a fastball sitting at around 95 MPH isn’t that fast, I suppose) but the location and command he’s shown has been impressive; MLB Pipeline rated him a 60-grade command guy on the 20-80 scale. The 4SFB-change-sinker triumvirate looks to be his main offerings, as he threw those three offerings 74 out of 85 times on Friday.

Pipeline writes: “He has a high floor as a No. 4 starter and Boston believes it can help him add some more strength and velocity, which could make him more than that.” I’ll take that, especially right now given the pitching injuries. Crochet and Gray, like I said earlier, won’t be on the mend terribly long (although I have no idea what the deal with Suarez is right now, TBD), but those IL stints along with the performance of the guy who I just wrote about could open the door for some more Bennett appearances.

One thing to watch the next time Bennett’s out on the bump, perhaps, is the walks. He issued two free passes on Friday, but historically that’s not been an issue for him. He walked just 6% of batters in the AFL a few months back, and again: that control is damn good.

Bennett could be a quite useful pitcher to have, and his emergence could be coming at the right time for Boston. I’m interested to see him continue to develop.

Song of the Week: “Nothin’ But The Taillights” by Clint Black

A lil’ honky-tonk action for ya to begin the week.

Same time and same place next week, friends! Go Sox.

A place in next season’s Champions League is at stake for Roma as they face bottom-half Fiorentina in a must-win clash at Stadio Olimpico. Anything other than a win for the home side would likely spell disaster for their hopes of overtaking Juventus down the final stretch.

Roma’s hopes of securing their first top-four finish in Serie A since the 2017/18 season received a major boost yesterday. Already-relegated Hellas Verona held Luciano Spalletti’s side to a 1-1 draw in Turin, giving the Giallorossi the chance to blow a top-four race wide open.

Sitting four points adrift of Juventus, Roma cannot afford a slip-up here if they’re to close the gap, especially with a mouth-watering Derby della Capitale against Lazio waiting around the corner. Gian Piero Gasperini’s men should be in a good mood after beating Bologna 2-0 on the road last weekend to extend their unbeaten streak in Serie A to three games (W2, D1).

Fiorentina shared the spoils with Sassuolo in a dull 0-0 draw at home last time out. However, unbeaten in seven consecutive league outings (W3, D4), the visitors have already staved off relegation fears, as they boast a comfortable nine-point lead over 18th-placed Cremonese ahead of Monday night’s kick-off.

Therefore, a point in the capital would seal the deal for La Viola, who will be out to avenge a 2-1 defeat in October’s reverse fixture.

Match Preview

Roma

Gasperini’s first season in Rome has delivered mixed feelings, but securing a place in the Champions League for the first time in eight years would be a resounding success. Roma’s tally of 61 points at this stage of the season marks their best return since they last secured a top-four finish.

However, that may still not be enough to pip Juventus and Como to a coveted fourth place. Eager to hold up their end of the bargain, Roma can draw confidence from their stellar home run, as they’ve not lost a league clash at the Olimpico since November (W7, D3).

Furthermore, they’ve emerged victorious from 11 of their 13 home league matches against sides starting this round below them in the table (D1, L1), conceding just four goals. In addition to their impressive defensive exploits, Roma have often been quick out of the blocks.

Only new champions Inter (28) have opened the scoring in more Serie A games than the Giallorossi this season (21). Another fast start would bode well here, given that Roma won 18 of those matches (D2, L1).

Fiorentina

Despite enduring a disappointing season, Paolo Vanoli’s men seem to have found their footing recently, going unbeaten in ten of their last 11 Serie A outings (W5, D5). Although they cannot finish in the upper half of the table, Fiorentina will target a strong end to the campaign.

Upsetting the odds at the Olimpico is not beyond La Viola’s reach. They’ve avoided defeat in four of their last five away games across all competitions (W3, D1) despite keeping just one clean sheet in that sequence. Against this backdrop, Fiorentina’s recent visits to the capital have often gone wrong.

Vanoli’s charges have lost five of their seven away clashes against Roma since their last win here back in April 2018 (D2). In fact, they’ve picked up just three wins from 51 previous visits to the Olimpico (D16, L32), highlighting the magnitude of the task ahead.

However, after conceding just one first-half goal across their last seven league fixtures, Fiorentina will fancy their chances of frustrating Roma early on and turning this encounter into a tense affair.

Team News

Star midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini has recently joined long-term absentees Artem Dovbyk and Evan Ferguson in the treatment room. Roma will also be without diminutive winger Bryan Zaragoza due to a knee problem, while Neil El Aynaoui must serve a suspension. On the bright side, Manu Kone has returned from injury and is likely to make his first Serie A start since mid-March.

Meanwhile, Fiorentina talisman Moise Kean remains on the sidelines with a shin problem. His deputy, Roberto Piccoli, is also out with a muscular issue, with Albert Gudmundsson expected to lead the line in their absence. Niccolo Fortini and Tariq Lamptey are unavailable for selection, but Robin Gosens and Fabiano Parisi have both resumed full training.

Roma vs Fiorentina Potential Starting Lineups

Roma (3-4-2-1): Svilar; Mancini, Ndicka, Hermoso; Celik, Cristante, Kone, Wesley; Soule, Dybala; Malen.

Fiorentina (4-3-3): De Gea; Dodo, Pongracic, Ranieri, Gosens; Ndour, Fagioli, Mandragora; Harrison, Gudmundsson, Solomon.

Roma vs Fiorentina Prediction

Failure is not an option for Roma if they’re to close the gap on the top four. However, Fiorentina are no idle threat. With both teams enjoying strong runs of form, this feels like a finely balanced contest that could ultimately produce another of the spoils.

The 2026 NFL Draft has come and gone but the offseason rolls on.

The Buffalo Bills made 10 selections during the draft and have yet to sign those players. On top of that, free agency could pop back up again if the Bills are in the market to maybe more additions this offseason.

With all that work to go, how much salary cap space do the Bills have compared to the rest of the NFL?

According to OverTheCap, here is the salary cap space for all 32 NFL teams right now including the Bills:

32. Dolphins: $1.8M31. Panthers $1.9M30. Chiefs: $5.9M29. Bengals: $7.5M28. Cowboys: $8.2M27. Saints: $10.2M26. Bears: $10.8M25. Steelers: $11.1M24. Jaguars: $11.2M23. Bills: $11.922. Buccaneers: $12.8M21. Texans: $13M20. Vikings: $16.1M19. Giants: $17.8M18. Broncos: $18.8M17. Falcons: $19.1M16. Packers: $20.1M15. Browns: $21.1M14. Lions: $22.6M13. Raiders: $25.8M12. Rams: $25.9M11. Colts: $26.6M10. Ravens: $27.7M9. Eagles: $27.9M8. Seahawks: $32.8M7. Patriots: $35.7M6. Jets: $36M5. Cardinals: $40.1M4. 49ers: $45M3. Chargers: $45.8M2. Commanders: $49.5M1. Titans: $63.1M

This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: How much salary cap space do the Bills have following 2026 NFL Draft?