NFL OTAs: Top 10 storylines, including Ty Simpson's Rams career starting and new looks for Cowboys and 49ers

The NFL’s organized team activities program over the next couple months is crucial for teams, even if it is officially voluntary.

Teams come together to install schemes and get some work on the field. Rookies and new additions are starting that process from scratch. New head coaches and coordinators don’t have that long to implement things before training camp starts.

Here are the top 10 stories around the NFL that we’ll be following through the OTAs.

Jesse Minter takes over in Baltimore

All 10 new head coaches have a lot of work to do over May and June, establishing a culture and implementing schemes. Not many lead a potential Super Bowl contender. Joe Brady of the Bills is in that category, but his move up from Buffalo’s offensive coordinator makes the transition a little less overwhelming.

Minter is the one coaching hire that starts absolutely new and for a Ravens franchise that should still be a title contender. Minter will be implementing his defense on one side of the ball, and he and new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle will be building an offense for Lamar Jackson. Jackson, who hasn’t always shown up for the voluntary OTAs the past few years, was present to start the offseason program this year, which is a positive sign for Baltimore. There’s a lot of change with the Ravens this year.

The Rams invited an uncomfortable dynamic to the roster when they drafted Simpson 13th overall. Every team who has an established veteran at quarterback but drafts a future successor in the first round deals with the same questions.

Matthew Stafford’s role as a mentor will be a big topic of conversation in OTAs. Simpson’s development will be as well, as Sean McVay juggles handling an MVP quarterback and Super Bowl contender with trying to teach a rookie. The Rams can manage the situation, but it has the potential to be a distraction at times.

While it seems unlikely the Chiefs would push Mahomes back for OTAs after he tore his ACL last December, coach Andy Reid didn’t rule it out either.

“We’ve got to see on that,” Reid said. “He is in a good position to be able to do some things.”

Reid also mentioned that if Mahomes participates in OTAs, he can’t start training camp on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list. If Mahomes starts camp on PUP that would free up a roster spot. If Mahomes isn’t available at OTAs, there will be plenty of eyes on Justin Fields, who would start the season at QB if Mahomes isn’t ready.

Who wins Browns QB derby?

There aren’t many quarterback battles around the NFL, but the Browns have one with some big names. Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel will battle for the starting role. Watson and Sanders had a small edge was the offseason program began.

If Watson wins the job after Browns owner Jimmy Haslam practically threw in the towel on him by calling it a “big swing and a miss,” it would be a big story. If Sanders wins the job it would be a big story because everything Sanders does creates attention. It’s not the prettiest competition, but there’s intrigue to see how it plays out through OTAs and who leads the race going into training camp.

What will Steelers do as a backup plan at QB?

It still seems like the eventual solution for the Steelers at quarterback will be Aaron Rodgers signing and doing so on his own timeline. But until the Steelers have that official answer, they need to think ahead. Pittsburgh should be evaluating all three of the other quarterbacks on the roster.

There’s veteran Mason Rudolph, who has experience as a starter. Then there’s 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard, who the Steelers were talking up this offseason, and this year’s third-round pick Drew Allar. Rudolph probably has the highest floor for a team coming off a division title, but the Steelers used the 76th pick of the draft on Allar for a reason. Even if Rodgers does sign, figuring out the rest of the quarterback depth chart over the summer will be important.

Fernando Mendoza starts the journey

Usually, everyone knows a No. 1 overall pick will start at quarterback by Week 1, even if the team plays games over the summer by not officially announcing it. But it’s just a matter of time, typically. This year, it’s a different story.

The Raiders drafted Mendoza first overall but they also paid Kirk Cousins $20 million for this season. That says the team is serious about Cousins beginning the season as starter. How long will Cousins be able to hold the job? That might depend on how quickly Mendoza impresses the team with his ability to pick up the offense. That starts in OTAs.

Patriots want controversy to subside

It’s hard to say the Mike Vrabel situation, after photos were published of him at a resort with NFL reporter Dianna Russini, hasn’t been a distraction. Vrabel missed the third day of the draft for counseling, and has had multiple media conferences to discuss the controversy.

Vrabel and the Patriots would probably like the story to go away, but will that happen? It will be a topic of discussion for a while, especially if there’s any sign over the summer that it’s affecting Vrabel’s ability to coach his team.

It seems like a foregone conclusion that Brown will be traded from the Eagles to the Patriots after June 1. That would help get the Vrabel headlines off the front page. If the Brown trade doesn’t happen, that would be a massive story too.

When Brown arrives he won’t have much time to get up to speed in the offense and develop chemistry with Drake Maye. The June OTAs and the team’s mandatory minicamp will take on a little more importance.

A new-look Cowboys defense

The Cowboys needed a complete defensive overhaul, and did so on the coaching and personnel side. Christian Parker is the new defensive coordinator, coming over from the Eagles, and there are six projected new starters as well as a first full offseason of Quinnen Williams on the roster. One of those new starters is safety Caleb Downs, the 11th pick of the draft, and his rapid development is one of the keys to Dallas’ defense this season. Parker is a first-time coordinator and implementing his scheme will be a big story of the offseason. He insists it won’t be the same as the defense that Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio runs.

“It’s our defense. I don’t want this to be called the Eagles defense or Vic’s defense. This is gonna be ours,” Parker told the Cowboys site. “We’ve been really intentional about going about that process … so it’s been real fun.”

The 49ers’ evolving offense

The 49ers began last season ready to rely on George Kittle, Jauan Jennings and eventually Brandon Aiyuk in their passing game. This season, Kittle is coming off a torn Achilles, Jennings is an unsigned free agent who is very unlikely to be back and while Aiyuk is technically still on the roster, he won’t be for much longer.

Those targets will be going to Mike Evans, on a team other than the Buccaneers for the first time in his career, fellow veteran addition Christian Kirk, second-round pick De’Zhaun Stribling, and Ricky Pearsall, a holdover who needs to stay healthy. There’s also third-round pick Kaelon Black, who can perhaps take some of the massive workload off Christian McCaffrey. The 49ers always have a good offense but there’s a lot of new faces to get acclimated over OTAs.

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