8 storylines to watch this offseason

The 2017 season has come to a close, but there remains plenty of incentive to stay tuned to the NFL throughout the spring and summer months.

How Nick Foles' situation plays out after he won Super Bowl MVP honors figures to dominate the offseason. Here are eight other juicy storylines to watch.

Odell Beckham's contract situation

The player wants to be the highest paid in the sport. The team knows it can't afford to lose him. Either way, Odell Beckham Jr. is getting a lot of money. The question is how much.

The superstar receiver's desired salary status isn't entirely unfounded, but such contracts are normally reserved for quarterbacks.

Beckham will be playing on a fifth-year option next season. New York Giants management appears intent on resolving the contract situation sooner rather than later. Will the one-handed-catch maven get the payout he seeks?

QBs losing their starting jobs

The Kansas City Chiefs got the ball rolling by trading Alex Smith to the Washington Redskins, and that's only the beginning of what should be a wild offseason for starting-caliber quarterbacks.

Despite their varying levels of success in 2017, Blake Bortles, Tyrod Taylor, and Case Keenum could lose their starting jobs entering 2018.

DeShone Kizer likely won't be the Browns' opening-day starter for a second year in a row, and Jay Cutler was brought to Miami for only one season.

Then there's the Broncos and Vikings. Both teams used three starting quarterbacks in 2017 and could go forward without any one of them.

The new league year begins March 14, when the Smith trade to Washington can be finalized and any deals made in the interim can come to fruition as well.

Panthers' search for a new owner

Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson gave up day-to-day control of the franchise and is preparing to sell after reports the team made multiple confidential payouts to former employees who said he'd sexually harassed them or used racist language.

It'll be the first NFL franchise sold since 2014, and an eclectic group of prospective owners have come to the fore. Among those who have expressed interest in a stake in the team are NBA superstars Steph Curry and Kevin Durant, music mogul Sean Combs, and outcast quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

The resulting group could be even more diverse than the Dolphins' minority owners, which include Gloria Estefan, Emilio Estefan, Marc Anthony, Serena and Venus Williams, and Fergie.

Kirk Cousins' new home

The Redskins' trade for Smith effectively ends the Kirk Cousins-D.C. drama - and thank goodness for that. It also opens the door to an intense bidding war for Cousins' services.

He rated as only the 19th-best quarterback in 2017 by Pro Football Focus, but an overwhelming number of teams are searching for a quarterback capable of throwing for more than 4,000 yards and 25-plus touchdowns while completing 65 percent of his passes.

As many as six teams were reportedly in the running to land Smith. Who might come out of the woodwork for a quarterback four years younger?

Browns' 1st and 4th overall picks

Last year, the Cleveland Browns selected a defensive end, safety, and tight end with their first-round draft picks. A year later, with a new and more experienced general manager at the helm, what will they do with the first and fourth overall picks in April's draft?

Many of the team's needs have carried over from last year, most glaringly at the quarterback position. The Browns will again have the pick of the litter, this time with a much more revered class of incoming pivots.

But a quarterback alone can't turn around a franchise that went 1-31 the last two seasons. There's work to be done, and the Browns need to speed up the rebuild by acing the draft.

1 more year, Larry

Carson Palmer is gone. So is Bruce Arians. No one would hold it against Larry Fitzgerald if he also chooses to retire rather than come back for a 15th season.

Fitz has accomplished more than most. He's a 10-time Pro Bowler, a former All-Pro, and a Walter Payton Man of the Year Award winner. He authored one of the best individual plays in Super Bowl history and one of the best performances in NFL playoff history. He owns most of the Arizona Cardinals' franchise receiving records. He's short only a Super Bowl ring.

If he opts to take one more crack at it in 2018, he'll do so with a new head coach (Steve Wilks) and quarterback. The odds are against the Cardinals, but Fitzgerald has never taken the easy route.

Le'Veon Bell vs. the franchise tag

How does Le'Veon Bell feel about being franchise-tagged for a second season? He'd consider sitting out 2018 rather than signing another one-year deal.

The superstar running back skipped training camp after receiving the Pittsburgh Steelers' tag in 2017, and he's threatening to take things a few steps further if that happens again.

The franchise tag period opens Feb. 20, and Bell is optimistic about how negotiations have gone so far. That still doesn't guarantee a quick resolution to a contract situation that will affect future deals for other star running backs.

The return of Luck

The last time we saw Andrew Luck on a football field was Jan. 1, 2017. The quarterback underwent shoulder surgery thereafter and not much has been seen of him since.

The Indianapolis Colts insisted he'd be ready for the beginning of the 2017 season - then traded for their longtime rival's third-string quarterback.

If there's one takeaway from last season, it's not to trust anything the Colts and owner Jim Irsay say about Luck's recovery. The player hasn't ruled out the possibility of a second surgery. At this point, when it comes to Luck's return, believe it when you see it.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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