Happy hump day, everyone. This week NFL teams are in decision mode as the mandatory 53-man roster cutdown deadline approaches. That day will come on August 30th, which means that this week you're going to see a lot of cuts as teams solidify their lineups ahead of the 2026 season.

Some of these decisions may wind up being surprising. Remember that one team's cut player, can be another team's starter. Today we'll take a look at what's going on in the NFL and how it may influence the season to come.

Christian Gonzalez of the Patriots has expressed some frustration this week. No surprise there. Gonzalez is engaged in what has proven to be a frustrating round of contract extension negotiations. Specifically, he's been disappointed regarding the public nature of the talks.

At face value, that sounds like a bit of a petty complaint from someone getting paid millions of dollars a year. On the other hand, do you want your contract negotiations aired out over national news? Probably not.

Then again, the kind of money that Christian Gonzalez is waiting on may lose him sympathy quickly. His agent, Reggie Johnson, recently secured a $132 million extension for the Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devin Witherspoon. If Gonzalez is hoping for a similar deal, it'll likely come at the expense of public sympathy concerning his complaints. He can probably live with that.

We've also got some injury updates. Calvin Austin III of the Giants has suffered a torn ACL and will miss the entire 2026 season.

Ja'Marr Chase of the Bengals, meanwhile, has made some headlines after experiencing a knee injury during practice.

The narrative right now is that he simply hyperextended it during practice. Finally, we've got Tyler Warren of the Indianapolis Colts nursing a groin injury but still expecting to play in Week 1 against the Ravens.

Sunday Ticket rights have shifted as streaming giant DAZN has agreed to acquire EverPass Media. For those that don't know, this effectively means that they've taken over the commercial distribution rights of NFL Sunday Ticket for bars, hotels, and restaurants.

Interesting? No, not really, but it will be relevant to the millions of fans who buy Sunday Night Football tickets this season.

We also referenced an emerging study on CTE that was in circulation earlier this week. For those who didn't see it, a study indicated that one quarter of former NFL players who passed away between 2016 and 2021 had CTE.

The study has produced a renewed interest in ensuring adequate safety measures are taken across the league.

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