First Call: Potential AFC destinations for Myles Garrett; reinvestigating the idea of Cooper Kupp to the Steelers

Tuesday’s “First Call” reinvestigates the idea of Cooper Kupp coming to Pittsburgh. We have some possible trade destinations for Myles Garrett. A veteran Steeler has high praise for a rookie offensive lineman.

And NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell really likes flag football. Perhaps … toooooo much?

Out of sight, out of mind

When Myles Garrett made his trade request Monday, the NFL media immediately went into speculation mode as to where the NFL Defensive Player of the Year may go.

Keep in mind that just last week, Cleveland general manager Andrew Berry said that he envisions Garrett being in Cleveland his whole career.

But that’s not stopping anyone from wondering where Garrett may end up if his trade request is eventually honored.

NFL.com quickly put up a list of nine potential destinations. Predictably, seven of the cities were across conference lines in the NFC: Detroit, Washington, Chicago, Green Bay, Arizona, Atlanta and Philadelphia.

Can you imagine Garrett being added to that Philly defensive front? Yeesh!

The only two places listed in the AFC that writer Eric Edholm suggested might be worthy of conversation were the Los Angeles Chargers and New England Patriots.

New England makes sense. They are completely rebuilding, could use a defensive cornerstone for some star power and wouldn’t be an immediate conference threat for the next few years.

As for the Chargers (who made the playoffs this year at 11-6), Edholm says, “Joey Bosa had an injury-plagued season and could be a cut candidate this offseason. Khalil Mack still played at a high level but is headed for free agency and will turn 34 this month. Trading for Garrett would allow the Bolts to move on from both players if desired, giving coordinator Jesse Minter another weapon up front and making the defense younger in that area too. Even if we assume Mack isn’t back in this scenario, an edge combo of Garrett and Tuli Tuipulotu would work pretty well in the rough-and-tumble AFC West.”

That makes a lot of sense actually. It just depends on how much Jim Harbaugh and company would be willing to part with in terms of compensation.

What’s up with Kupp?

While Garrett’s trade request got most of the NFL’s media attention Monday, there was another news item that may interest Steelers fans.

Wide receiver Cooper Kupp revealed on social media that the Los Angeles Rams are seeking to trade him and will be working with him to find a suitable destination to continue his career.

I was informed that the team will be seeking a trade immediately and will be working with me and my family to find the right place to continue competing for championships. I don't agree with the decision and always believed it was going to begin and end in LA.

Still, if there’s… pic.twitter.com/XWmbGVscGy

— Cooper Kupp (@CooperKupp) February 4, 2025

There was some belief that Kupp may be traded during the regular season. The Steelers reportedly inquired about his availability in advance of the trade deadline. They ended up getting Mike Williams instead, and Kupp remained with the Rams.

Kupp has been injury-plagued since his 2021 All-Pro campaign. He has had multiple ankle and hamstring injuries, playing only nine games in 2022 and just 12 games each of the past two years.

Those injuries and the ascent of Puka Nacua have resulted in a significant dip in Kupp’s production. The 31-year-old averaged 1,360.6 yards per season between 2019-21. Over the past three seasons, he has averaged just 753 yards. Kupp totaled 29 touchdowns between ‘19-‘21. From ‘22-‘24, he only totaled 17.

Via OverTheCap.com, Kupp would be owed $20 million total in salary and roster bonuses in 2025. But just $5 million is guaranteed. In 2026, he is slated to earn $19.85 million with nothing guaranteed.

If the Rams are truly motivated to move Kupp, the Steelers should circle back and see what that might cost. If the Steelers trade George Pickens, as I hope they do, Kupp, Calvin Austin, a Day 1 or Day 2 draft pick and a Roman Wilson would at least be a decent start to a rebuilt wide receivers room for 2025.

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What Seumalo sees

Steelers guard Isaac Seumalo just took part in his first Pro Bowl weekend after nine seasons in the NFL.

Now, he is predicting similar trips for one of his offensive line teammates in the future.

Seumalo tells Theresa Varley of Steelers.com that rookie center Zach Frazier is likely to have a number of those honors during his time in pro football.

“Zach balled out,” Seumalo said of Frazier’s first season. “I am sure he has a lot of Pro Bowl trips in his career. He played really well.”

Seumalo is one of the few established veterans along the Steelers’ offensive front. Fellow guard James Daniels was lost early in the season with an Achilles injury. So that meant Seumalo was the elder statesman playing along a line that also featured Frazier, fellow rookie Mason McCormick, and second-year tackle Broderick Jones.

“It’s definitely different than the spot I was in in Philly,” said Seumalo, who signed with the Steelers in 2023 after seven years with the Philadelphia Eagles. “It’s cool helping young guys, seeing them get better as the season goes. See them learn and grow. The best way to learn something is to teach it, so it’s helping me too.”

Next year’s line will likely be younger if (as expected) Dan Moore Jr. leaves via free agency and Troy Fautanu gets woven into the starting lineup.

Save what’s left of the flag for me

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says the NFL is considering starting a professional flag football league for men, women or both.

That news came from his Super Bowl week press conference Monday.

Via ProFootballTalk.com, “The NFL has been pushing flag football as a way of spreading the game around the world and to women and girls. The Pro Bowl has been replaced by a flag football game, and the NFL was instrumental in getting flag football approved as an Olympic sport for both men and women in 2028. Several NFL players have said they’d like to play for Team USA in 2028, but Goodell also noted that several NFL players from outside the United States are hoping to compete in the Olympics.”

Goodell’s fascination with flag football has been evident for a while now. It’s probably the only reason why Pro Bowl weekend still exists.

Some people think I’m nuts when I say this, but I think Goodell wants to see flag football expand so much because he wants us to get used to seeing it on television so it becomes normalized when (in a decade or so) he tries to put flags on quarterbacks or makes that player a modified tackle position — like two-hand touch in the pocket, or grasp-and-control (i.e., no tackle to the ground).

You may think that is too conspiratorial or far-fetched. But, as I’ve said many times over the years, I’m convinced it’s going to happen before many of us reading this right now are dead. The NFL will try to put flags on quarterbacks — at least.

The NFL values the position so much. The teams value them so much that I bet Goodell is willing to go to ridiculous levels to protect them.

Let’s be honest, the officials are already going to illogical extremes to punish quarterback contact. At least if the QBs have flags, the debates over roughing the passer will go away.

And that’s what I mean by normalizing and/or rationalizing the thinking. The NFL actually wants us to get so frustrated about adjudicating hits on QBs, and get so used to watching flag football, that we will actually welcome the move to flags on QBs when it happens.

The NFL mangled the concussion lawsuit so badly that Goodell and the league’s lawyers/owners are so crazed over player safety I think that prospect is much closer to reality than many of you do, I’m sure.

Goodell is duplicitous enough in his role as commissioner that I absolutely think he is capable of operating in this manner. He’ll publicly embrace and expand flag football as a “grow the game initiative” when, in reality, the true benefit is a brainwashing effect to make us forget the foundation of physicality on which the game was built in the first place.

He has diluted that to a ridiculous degree already, what’s stopping him from taking it that much further?