Media Friday: Week of 4/7/14

  After yet another week in the 2014 NFL off-season has passed, and once again, new stories have developed in the league. Throughout the last week, three big stories have emerged in the National Football League, and is sure to impact not only the 2014 season, but the future of the league as well. With these three major topics to cover, it is time for yet another installment of Media Friday.

Eli Manning Has Surgery

  After a disappointing 2013 season for the New York Giants, the situation got even worse on Thursday, April 10th. After several months of dealing with a nagging ankle sprain injury, Eli Manning underwent successful arthroscopic surgery to relieve his joint pain. This ankle injury was caused by an ankle sprain in week 17 against the Washington Redskins, as shown in the picture below. After having surgery, Eli Manning is expected to be inactive for five or six weeks, which should be right on time for the Giant's off-season training program. This loss will surely have a negative impact on the New York Giants, but the impact should be minimized due to the limited activity over the next few months. Nevertheless, when a team's starting quarterback goes through surgery, it is definitely noteworthy.  

Alex Mack Signs With Jaguars, Browns Quickly Re-Sign

  Throughout the off-season so far, the Cleveland Browns have been one of the most active teams in the NFL, and after a week of little activity, the Browns will once again be making moves. On Friday, April 11th, pro-bowl center Alex Mack was officially signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars for a 5-year, $42 million contract. The part of this transaction that involves the Cleveland Browns is that Alex Mack was under a transition tag for the Browns. In simple terms, a transition tag is a one-year contract that allows a player to negotiate with other teams, but is still bound to the first team's contract. If the player is signed by a new team, the old team has five days to match the deal. If the deal is not matched by the first team, then the player moves to the new team. Luckily for Cleveland, the Browns did match Jacksonville's contract only a few hours after the contract was signed, and Mack will remain a Brown for the 2014 season. By retaining one of their best players, the Browns now have an even more talented roster heading into next season, and is a major underdog in 2014.

NFL Releases Preseason and 2015 Pro Bowl Schedule

  On April 9th, the NFL released both the 2014 preseason schedule and the new site of the 2015 Pro Bowl. On January 25th, 2015, the NFL's annual Pro Bowl will be played in University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona. Fun Fact: This is only the second time in over 35 years that the Pro Bowl will be hosted outside of Hawaii. Interestingly, Arizona will also be the host of Super Bowl IL (49), which is only one week after the Pro Bowl. This relocation isn't permanent, however, as the 2016 Pro Bowl will be back in Hawaii. Along with this announcement, the NFL also released the preseason schedule for the 2014 season, which can be seen here. Although the stakes aren't very high in the preseason, there are a few interesting games that will be played, including a rematch of the two previous Super Bowls. The preseason also dictates which rookies will "make the cut" and end up on an NFL roster. Along with the preseason schedule, the 2014 regular season schedule is also expected to be released within the next few weeks.