The biggest controversies of the 2018-19 NFL season

The Colts thought they had their next head coach when McDaniels had his second interview during the Super Bowl bye week. But after the Patriots returned to the team facility the following Monday, things started to change. New England made a pitch on Tuesday in an effort to keep McDaniels around, and apparently it was a good one. He got more access to the inner workings of the organization, including roster building and financial considerations, as well as a significant raise. The Colts thought they had their man on Tuesday morning after general manager Chris Ballard talked with McDaniels, and the team even sent out a tweet stating as much, including the details of an introductory press conference. By Tuesday evening McDaniels had changed his mind, and he decided to stay in New England, much to Indy's chagrin.

The Texans owner, who passed away in November, drew plenty of ire when it was revealed he said, "We can't have the inmates running the prison," during meetings with the rest of the league's owners. He later apologized but then recanted that apology in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, claiming that the phrase was really aimed at league executives whom he felt were exerting undue control over key anthem-related decisions. McNair's initial comments caused multiple players, including DeAndre Hopkins, to miss practice that same week.

Patricia took the Lions job on Feb. 5 after a successful stint as Patriots defensive coordinator. But the good feelings surrounding the hire dissipated in May when the Detroit News reported that Patricia was indicted by a grand jury for aggravated sexual assault in 1996 but was never tried or convicted. Patricia vehemently maintained his innocence, and the Lions stood by him in a joint statement released by the owner, general manager and team president. Many were perplexed as to how the incident went apparently undiscovered by the team during the hiring process. 

Ramsey, in an August interview with GQ, sounded off on a variety of topics, but his comments about quarterbacks around the league drew the most attention. Ramsey ripped the majority of signal-callers in the league, reserving positive comments for Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady and a handful of others, including, curiously, Tyrod Taylor. Ramsey perhaps most notably ripped Josh Allen, calling him "trash" and expressing excitement that the Jaguars were scheduled to play the Bills in the regular season. The interview drew plenty of reaction, with many supporting and appreciating Ramsey's candor and others ripping him. As for Allen? He had the last laugh as the Bills beat the Jags 24-21, and he threw and ran for a touchdown. Jacksonville finished 5-11.

Brady and his trainer/business partner/friend, Alex Guerrero, have a relationship that goes back a decade. At various points in time, Guerrero, whose training and recovery methods are often at odds with New England's training staff, has run afoul of Bill Belichick. Following a public dustup that saw Guerrero lose his spot on the team plane, he was back in the news this season after Julian Edelman was suspended for four games for a positive PED test in June. Edelman had been working with Guerrero while rehabbing from a torn ACL, and it didn't take long for the trainer and his association with Brady and other Pats players to come back to the forefront. Things eventually died down, but the story was the latest in a string of high-profile, less-than-flattering headlines involving Brady and his trainer.

Richardson brought the Panthers into the NFL in 1995 and was their sole owner until he announced his intention to sell in late 2017, after a Sports Illustrated report detailed a pattern of workplace harassment and settlements paid to former employees. There were stories of repeated sexual harassment by Richardson as well as a story that detailed his use of a racial slur toward a team scout. The negative attention created by the report was enough to compel Richardson to sell, and on May 22, 2018, hedge fund billionaire David Tepper purchased the team for $2.2 billion.

Ten years, $100 million will make anyone feel powerful, and Jon Gruden flexed his muscle not long after returning to the Raiders. He traded Khalil Mack, far and away the team's best player, to the Bears, getting first-round picks in 2019 and 2020 as well as a sixth-round pick in 2019 and a third-round pick in 2020 in the deal. The move was controversial, with some suggesting that it was a clear sign that the Raiders were tanking before the season even started and others lauding Gruden for acquiring so much draft capital for a player who didn't seem to want to be in Oakland anymore. As for the outcome of the trade? Oakland's end of it is incomplete, but Mack was an instant sensation in Chicago, posting 12.5 sacks, and the Bears defense led the league in points allowed and turnovers forced on their way to a 12-4 season.

Allen, taken by the Bills with the seventh-overall pick in the 2018 draft, found himself at the center of a firestorm after racist tweets from 2012 and 2013 were discovered and retweeted after he was selected. The tweets were later deleted, but by then the damage was done, and Allen had to answer for them. Public opinion was mixed, as some said the quarterback should not be dealt with too harshly for things sent out while he was a teenager and others arguing that he deserved far more scrutiny than he received because of the nature of what he wrote. Allen sat with fellow Buffalo first-rounder Tremaine Edmunds for an introductory press conference, and the topic came up then too. 

Bell threatened to sit out the entire 2018 season, or just flat out retire, if the Steelers used the franchise tag on him again, and he made the threat early: back in January. Most assumed he would show up by Week 1, but he didn't. Then many assumed he would come back after the Steelers' bye week in early November before the point of no return, but he didn't. He sat out the entire season. James Conner and Jaylen Samuels both produced in relief of Bell, but Conner got hurt and also cost the Steelers a win in their opener with a crucial fumble. The Steelers finished 9-6-1 and out of the playoffs, and even though Bell is still technically under the team's control, it is likely that he has played his last down in black and gold.

Foster was jettisoned by the Niners mere hours after his domestic violence arrest at the team hotel on Nov. 24. He wasn't unemployed for long, however, as the Washington Redskins, to the surprise of many league observers and the apparent dismay of other teams, placed a waiver claim on Foster. Washington was the only team to do so, and the fact that it picked up Foster despite his legal issues being far from resolved was seen as an offensive, tone-deaf move. Washington's explanation for things was even worse, with general manager Doug Williams making a poorly received statement and the team's initial press release seeming to direct any anger about the signing toward Foster's former Alabama teammates currently on Washington's roster.

Thomas, a Texas native, UT-Austin standout and self-proclaimed lifelong Cowboys fan, attempted to enter the Dallas locker room after Seattle beat the Cowboys at the end of 2017. He then told head coach Jason Garrett, "If y'all have the chance, come get me." Thomas clarified that he would welcome an extension with the Seahawks, but if that didn't come to pass, he would want to play for the Cowboys. He never got that extension in Seattle and started sitting out practices to preserve his body, but he ended up breaking his leg against the Cardinals in Week 4. As he was being carted off, he gave the middle finger to the Seahawks sideline in what was almost certainly his last act in a Seattle uniform.

Hunt was a major catalyst for the Chiefs' explosive offense, but when TMZ obtained video of an altercation from February that showed Hunt shoving and kicking a woman in a Cleveland hotel room, the team was quick to release him on Nov. 30, saying his version of what happened was contradicted by video. Hunt was placed on the Commissioner Exempt List. No one claimed him on waivers, but there is plenty of intrigue still swirling around his situation, particularly with regard to whether or not another team picks him up. No charges were filed by Cleveland police, but with the video being public knowledge, there are questions about whether a team would be willing to bring him on board.

Reid, who knelt alongside Colin Kaepernick during the national anthem and filed a collusion lawsuit against the NFL in May, went unsigned throughout the entire offseason, until the Panthers picked him up in late September after a rash of secondary injuries. Reid's play itself was solid, if unspectacular, but he voiced concerns that the league was targeting him in other ways despite. Reid was fined for hits multiple times, though only one of them was upheld, and he was subject to random drug tests seven times in 11 weeks. Experts trying to determine the likelihood that the tests were legitimately "random" in nature concluded that the percentage chance of that being the case was extremely low. 

Jackson was fired after a 2-5-1 start to the season, on the heels of an unimaginable 1-31 start to his Cleveland tenure. Apparently, there was no love lost between the deposed coach and No. 1 overall pick, Baker Mayfield. Jackson, of course, joined Marvin Lewis' Bengals staff after his firing, and the Browns beat Cincy twice en route to a 5-3 finish to their season under interim head coach Gregg Williams. Mayfield gave Jackson a cold shoulder after their first meeting, then called him "fake" on social media. He then stared down Jackson after hitting on a game-clinching pass in the teams' second meeting but claimed ignorance after the game. It would seem that Mayfield felt Jackson erred by keeping him on the bench behind Tyrod Taylor to start the season.

Oakland's divorce with the Raiders was always going to be ugly, what with the rabid nature of Raiders fans and the strange nature of owner Mark Davis, but things descended to a whole new low when the city of Oakland filed a federal lawsuit against the team in December, seeking damages to cover, among other things, lost revenue and debt on renovations to the Oakland Coliseum. The suit did not seek to prevent the team from leaving for Las Vegas but was just the latest nasty exchange between city and franchise. The Raiders, it should be noted, still don't have a home for 2019.

When the Patriots traded with Cleveland to acquire Gordon, universally acknowledged as one of the league's most talented receivers, public opinion was split. Many felt that the Pats, who had a reputation for rehabbing talented but troubled players like Randy Moss, would strike gold again with Gordon. For a while things went well, but on Dec. 20, Gordon was suspended indefinitely by the NFL for violating the terms of his reinstatement under the league's substance abuse policy. The suspension was handed down not long after Gordon announced that he was stepping away from football to focus on his mental health. It was also revealed afterward that the Patriots had employed a "security team" to try to keep tabs on Gordon during his time with the franchise.

Fournette, thought to be a franchise player for the Jaguars, and Yeldon, a free agent after the season, sat next to each other on the bench during the team's season-ending loss to the Texans. Fournette was injured and not playing, but Yeldon was dressed and never entered the game. Both men were ripped for being aloof during the game, a loss that served as the disappointing final act of a 5-11 season. There were consequences as Coughlin, the Jags' executive vice president for football operations, denounced Fournette and Yeldon's behavior as "disrespectful." Jaguars running backs coach Tyrone Wheatley got the worst of it, though, as he was fired by the team barely 24 hours after the season ended.

Mayock, best known as a draft analyst for the NFL Network, has never worked for an NFL front office, but that didn't stop the Raiders from hiring him, with some league observers snickering or rolling their eyes at the move. Though it was met with puzzlement, the move might make more sense when one considers that the Raiders intend to have Jon Gruden wield unilateral power in terms of player acquisition. Mayock is a scout more than anything else and will likely fill that role for Oakland, despite the general manager title. Still, hiring a guy with no previous experience to one of the most prestigious jobs in the NFL was an eyebrow-raising development, to say the least. 

This story still hasn't reached its conclusion, but this much is known: Brown was benched for the Steelers' must-win final game against Cincinnati because he essentially went AWOL after a reported verbal altercation with Ben Roethlisberger and Mike Tomlin during a Wednesday walk-through. The mercurial wide receiver reportedly requested a trade, then went on Instagram with former Steeler James Harrison and blasted ESPN's Ryan Clark after Clark was critical of Brown earlier in the week. Oh, and the Steelers' original excuse for Brown's absence was a knee injury that many speculated was fabricated or at least dramatically overstated. It was a fitting end to a tumultuous year in the 'Burgh.

Hue Jackson, Todd Bowles, Steve Wilks, Marvin Lewis and Vance Joseph were all fired either during or immediately after the season, leaving Mike Tomlin, Anthony Lynn and Ron Rivera as the league's only minority head coaches. Despite a recent strengthening of the Rooney Rule, the wave of firings sparked plenty of discussion about the extent of the NFL's diversity issue as it pertains to head coaches. Some argued that the fired coaches all underperformed and deserved their fate, while others felt that the dismissals highlighted a major disparity in a sport where about 70 percent of the players are African-American. Wilks, in particular, was seen as having gotten a raw deal, as he had one season on the job in Arizona, but embattled general manager Steve Keim was retained. It remains to be seen how many, if any, of the league's coaching vacancies are filled by minority candidates.