Hello friends, and welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

I hope you have your fireworks ready, because it’s starting to feel like America’s 250th birthday is going to be a blast. I will set off fireworks all weekend, starting on Friday night when Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce officially walk down the aisle. I have been forced to read about that wedding for the past two months, so I might as well celebrate the thing by lighting off fireworks. I will also be setting off fireworks on Saturday because it’s July 4. After that, I’ll take a break on Sunday, but I will definitely be saving some fireworks for Monday so I can use them to celebrate if the United States Men’s National Team can beat Belgium in the Round of 16. If they lose, I will stop eating Belgian waffles for at least a year. 

And you know what, I might even light off some fireworks today to celebrate John Adams, who actually thought that July 2 would be our Independence Day, since this is the day the Second Continental Congress voted to formally declare our freedom. He was wrong. 

Alright, I’m going to stop babbling because we have a jam-packed newsletter to get to today.  

As always, here’s your reminder to tell your friends to sign up for the newsletter. Let’s get to the rundown. 

1. QB tiers: Sam Darnold is now a borderline star; only five quarterbacks make the top tier

As you may or may not have noticed, we’re in the dead part of the NFL offseason, but we’re doing our best to spice things up. Last week, we released Pete Prisco’s full ranking of the NFL’s top 100 players, and today, we’re unveiling our annual QB tier list, which was put together by Bryan DeArdo. 

This list is simple: We take all the starting quarterbacks in the NFL and put them into one of six tiers. If you’re in the first tier, that’s a good thing. If you’re in the sixth tier, that’s not so good. 

With that in mind, we’re going to take a look at one player from each of Bryan’s six tiers: 

• Tier 1 (Transcendent talents): Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes and the Chiefs suffered a 2025 setback, including Mahomes’ season-ending early due to injury. And while he and the Chiefs surely hope for a bounce-back 2026, Mahomes’ legacy as one of the league’s all-time greats is already secure as a three-time Super Bowl champion and two-time league MVP. 
• Tier 2 (Borderline stars): Sam Darnold. After a tumultuous start, the former No. 2 overall pick resurrected his career. Darnold delivered a Pro Bowl 2024 season with the Vikings, and he reached the mountaintop with Seattle in 2025. 
• Tier 3 (Promising prospects): Cam Ward. Ward’s most impressive stat last year was playing — and starting — in each of the Titans’ games despite getting sacked a league-high 55 times. Ward’s toughness is without question, and any questions about his talent will ultimately be answered if the Titans provide him with enough support.
• Tier 4 (Volatile veterans): Baker Mayfield. Mayfield followed up his impressive 2024 campaign with an underwhelming 2025 season that wasn’t helped by all of the Buccaneers’ injuries. The 2026 season will be a crucial one for Mayfield, who is slated to enter free agency next offseason.
• Tier 5 (Prized project): Fernando Mendoza. The reigning Heisman Trophy winner is in a pretty good situation. He’s going to play under Klint Kubiak, who came to Las Vegas after winning a Super Bowl as Seattle’s offensive coordinator. He’ll get a chance to learn from not only Kirk Cousins but also from Raiders minority owner Tom Brady. 
• Tier 6 (Holdovers and placeholders): Geno Smith. After a nightmarish 2025 season, Smith still managed to land another starting opportunity in the Big Apple, where his NFL career started. It’s safe to say, though, that Smith’s starting days will be in the rearview mirror if this season mirrors what happened in Las Vegas. 

If you want to see what tier your favorite quarterback falls in, be sure to check out DeArdo’s full story here. 

2. Ranking the top WR duos: Cowboys and Bengals at the top of the list, but who’s next? 

Now that we have the top QB tiers out of the way, it’s time to move on to something that’s just as big: We’re going to rank the top receiving duos in the NFL. Jared Dubin ranked the top eight duos, and to no one’s surprise, he had the Bengals (Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins), Cowboys (George Pickens and Ceedee Lamb) and Rams (Davante Adams and Puka Nacua) at the top of his list. 

Those were probably the three easiest teams to rank, but after that, things get slightly more difficult. Let’s check out the duos that ranked fourth through sixth on Dubin’s list. 

4. Lions: Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. St. Brown is arguably the best in the NFL at playing from the slot. Since he entered the league, he has 52 more receptions (293) when lined up inside than the next-closest player, with the second-most yards (3,046) and second-most touchdowns (23). Williams got off to a slow start to his career thanks to an injury and then a gambling suspension, but he’s become one of the best big-play threats in the NFL over his last two years, averaging in excess of 17 yards per catch in each season and totaling more than 1,000 yards each time despite combining for only 193 targets in those two seasons.

5. Vikings: Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. Jefferson is coming off what qualifies as a down season for him, with “only” 84 catches for 1,048 yards and two scores. Addison missed time again and caught 42 passes for 610 yards and three touchdowns. They were both hamstrung by the quarterback play of J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer, though, and we know they have considerably more upside than what they showed last season.

6. Broncos: Jaylen Waddle and Courtland Sutton. This is a new duo, but it could be very exciting. Waddle remains a big-play threat both on deep passes and in terms of creating yardage with the ball in his hands due to his speed. Sutton works best as an isolated X receiver on the outside. The duo gives Bo Nix a pair of wideouts who challenge defenses in markedly different ways. 

You’re definitely going to want to check out Dubin’s full list of the top receiving duos, and you can do that here. 

3. Eight players who could be traded before the start of the season

Between Myles Garrett and A.J. Brown, we’ve already seen some massive NFL trades go down this season, and the crazy part is that we could see a few more before the start of the season. There are still plenty of players out there who could get dealt over the next few months and just to give you an idea of how many trade candidates there are, Carter Bahns made a list of eight different players who could find themselves on a new team before September. 

Let’s take a look at four of the players on his list of possible trade candidates: 

• Maxx Crosby (Raiders). It has been almost four months since the trade that would have sent Crosby to the Ravens fell through, and it still remains arguably the biggest surprise of the offseason. The relationship between Crosby and the Raiders reportedly deteriorated late last season because of the team’s handling of his knee injury, and one wonders just how much Las Vegas was able to rebuild their chemistry in the months since it attempted to move him. If he still commands anything close to two first-round picks in return, the Raiders seem likely to jump at the opportunity to load up on more draft capital in the early stages of their rebuild.
• Alvin Kamara (Saints). The Saints made a number of moves that suggest they are preparing to move on from the NFL single-game touchdown record holder, most significantly in March when they both restructured his deal and signed Travis Etienne Jr. in the span of three days. Kamara is now the lesser-paid of the two, and, factoring in his diminishing workload and perennial inability to stay healthy, all signs point to Etienne as the featured back if both make the Week 1 roster.
• Kayshon Boutte (Patriots). With A.J. Brown arriving via trade and Romeo Doubs signing in free agency, the reigning AFC champions not only filled the spot vacated by Stefon Diggs but also potentially upgraded their receiving corps by an order of magnitude. Seeing the writing on the wall, Boutte reportedly wants out.
• Anthony Richardson (Colts). While the Colts might be content with holding onto the athletic weapon in a No. 2 role, they are clearly open to moving him, and they would be better served to get something in return than to simply watch him walk in free agency next spring.

This is only half of Bahns’ list of trade candidates, and if you want to see the full thing, we’ve got that here.  

4. Free agency matchmaker: Looking at possible landing spots for remaining free agents

There are still some big names left in free agency, so we decided to ask the world’s foremost expert in free agency matchmaking, Bryan DeArdo, to come up with some landing spots for those players. 

• Tyreek Hill to the Chiefs. While they don’t necessarily need another receiver, the Chiefs could nonetheless add Hill to a receiving corps that is currently headlined by Travis Kelce, Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy. Hill, after all, won a Super Bowl in Kansas City and has a rapport with Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. 
• Deebo Samuel to the Rams. Injuries have hindered Samuel throughout his career, which is why his next team should use him sparingly to increase his chances of staying healthy for the season. In that vein, the Rams make a lot of sense given what they already have at receiver. In Los Angeles, Samuel could complement Davante Adams and Puka Nacua while giving league MVP Matthew Stafford yet another weapon.
• Jadeveon Clowney to the Packers. Clowney would be a good fit on any of the NFC North’s four teams. The Packers, however, might make the most sense given what they already have on defense and the fact that Micah Parsons’s knee injury will likely sideline him at the start of the season.

DeArdo came up with a landing spot for 17 different players, and if you want to see all the matches that he made, you’ll have to check out his full story here. 

5. Ravens TE Mark Andrews talks to CBS Sports: Three nuggets from the conversation

It’s been a busy offseason for Mark Andrews. Not only does he have a new head coach in Jesse Minter, but he also has to learn a new offense after Minter brought in offensive coordinator Declan Doyle. 

CBS Sports NFL writer Zach Pereles recently got to talk to Andrews, and we’re going to take a look at a few of the topics that came up. 

• Lamar Jackson could be even scarier in this offense. “This is a different offense than we’ve been a part of since we got into the league — it’s totally different than anything we’ve done,” Andrews said of Doyle’s playbook. “I think [Jackson’s] going to make it his own, adapt to it and be the best that there is. That’s the type of person that he is and that’s the type of guys and coaches that we have. … I think that’s a scary sight when you see Lamar Jackson adding new things to his repertoire.”
• Andrews’ reaction to having the youngest offensive coordinator in the NFL. Doyle is only 30 years old, which means he’s the same age as Andrews, and that’s something new for the Ravens tight end. “Sometimes I got to pinch myself to be like, ‘This guy’s like the same age as you,'” Andrews said. “Just the way that he carries himself and the way that he teaches and communicates and really just is a student of the game, he loves it. … This is what he’s meant to do.”
• Andrews is a fan of his new coach. Andrews is already getting along well with Minter, who was hired to replace John Harbaugh. “He has just like calm, cool, swagger, confidence that I think is going to be infectious to everybody within the organization,” Andrews said. “So he’s just been awesome. Team meetings, everything, any time you can pick his brain, just love the way he carries himself, and that’s without saying the way he brings on the defensive side of the ball. You could just tell that those guys are fired up.”

If you want to read everything Andrews had to say, you can check out his full interview here. 

6. Extra points: Texans guard makes bold Super Bowl prediction

It’s been a busy few days in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything, I put together a quick roundup for you.

• Ed Ingram says the Texans are going to the Super Bowl. Ed Ingram is heading into his second season in Houston, and apparently, he really likes what he sees in the 2026 Texans. As a matter of fact, he’s so confident in this year’s team that he thinks they’re going to end their season in Los Angeles on February 14. “Mark my words, we’re going to that Super Bowl,” Ingram told Click2Houston.com. The Texans have one of the best defenses in the NFL, but the offense wasn’t quite playing at a Super Bowl level last year. If the offensive line plays better and CJ Stroud steps up his game, then the Texans could certainly make it to Super Bowl LXI, and Ingram clearly thinks that both of those things are going to happen. 
• Three teams are apparently interested in Terrion Arnold. The former Lions cornerback faces multiple felony charges in Florida, but that hasn’t kept teams from contacting him about possibly playing in 2026. The Lions released Arnold on Wednesday, and since then, he’s been contacted by at least three teams, according to his lawyer (via AL.com). Before he can sign with anyone, Arnold will hit waivers, so a team can claim him, though that seems unlikely. If a team claims him, they’ll owe him money under his rookie contract, and it seems unlikely they’d want to pay that since they don’t even know if he’ll be on the field this year. 
• Former Titans scout found guilty of murder. Blaise Taylor, a former scout for the Titans, was found guilty of murdering his girlfriend and her unborn child. Taylor allegedly poisoned her drink back in February 2023, and she died less than a month later. If you want the full details on this case, we’ve got that here. 
• Calais Campbell’s brother charged with murder in death of their mom. Ciarre Campbell, the brother of Ravens defensive tackle Calais Campbell, has been charged with murder after allegedly killing his 71-year-old mom. Lt. Christopher Butler of the Atlanta police department said that there may have been some mental health issues involved with Ciarre, who is 41 years old. You can read more about this unfortunate incident here. 
• Massive Australian quits rugby to pursue NFL career. Jordan Mailata might have started a trend. The Eagles’ offensive lineman made his way from Australia to the United States to play in the NFL, and now, Ben Te Kura is going to try to do the same thing. Te Kura was released from his Brisbane Broncos rugby contract this week, and now the massive 6-foot-9, 268-pounder is heading to America to start training in hopes of earning an NFL roster spot in 2027. One reason Te Kura might actually be able to land a roster spot is that each NFL team is given one roster exemption for a qualifying international player, so adding Te Kura wouldn’t impact a team’s 53-man roster. 
• Chris Johnson wants to bring back the Ice Bucket Challenge. The Ice Bucket Challenge was created way back in 2014 to raise money for ALS awareness, and it raised more than $100 million. After revealing his ALS diagnosis, Johnson is bringing the challenge back, and he’s already called out three former NFL players to help him: Marshawn Lynch, LenDale White and Adam “Pacman” Jones (White and Jones were teammates with Johnson with the Titans).