The page has officially been turned.

NFL Draft picks have gotten their VIP tours of their new team’s facilities, and are beginning their crash courses on their team’s playbook with rookie minicamps in full swing across the country.

We’re merely weeks away from mandatory minicamps and teams practicing 11-on-11, in the throes of preparation for the season ahead.

Inside this week’s mailbag, we take a deep dive at a philosophical change that could grip the entire league on the heels of Sean McVay and the Rams’ success, a passing glance at the crystal ball and what the league’s actions are telling us about the 2027 NFL Draft class, plus, the potential top destinations for one of the most controversial free agents about to come available in more than a decade.

All that and more, inside this week’s Football Friday Mailbag … Let’s get after it!

This is a fascinating question, especially at this stage of the offseason, now that we have gotten to see how teams have prioritized the tight end position and running back via free agency and the NFL Draft, with the benefit of their data from last season to project how things might look in the season ahead.

No team came close to running more offensive plays with three tight ends, one running back, and one wide receiver on the field in 2025 than the Rams did, at 30.48 % of their snaps.

“I love big personnel to create conflicts,” an NFL Offensive Coach tells Between The Hashmarks, on the condition of anonymity to speak freely. “You can limit your call menu because it forces teams to play base defense. If they can effectively throw it out of 13, especially by flexing guys into split positions, it causes a conflict to how you play them with your personnel.

“You can force them to go small in nickel personnel, but if they go small, it’s tougher to stop the run. If they stay big, it can be tough to stop the pass.”

Only five teams ran out of 13 personnel more than 8% of the time; the Steelers (14.17%), Cardinals (10.52%), Colts (9.82%), Bears (8.52%), and Saints (8.28%) last season.

In all likelihood, Arthur Smith FedExing his collection of big-bodied Steelers tight ends to Columbus as the Ohio State offensive coordinator could lead to Pittsburgh changing their philosophy in 2026, but several teams could certainly see an uptick.

Drafting Jeremiyah Love at No. 3 overall, despite a porous and vulnerable offensive line combined with signing tight end Teagen Quitoniano could lead to Arizona pushing far closer to 20% of snaps out of 13 personnel in 2026.

Loading up with Love, Quitoniano and Trey McBride, the Cardinals and new head coach Mike LaFleur seem to be primed to play bully ball against NFL defenses that have seemed to prioritize speed over size in recent years.

Similarly, the Bears saw incredible success with Cole Kmet playing a vital role in opening running lanes that powered D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai to average 4.9 yards per carry and Chicago's 153.8 rushing yards per game. Blocking tight end Sam Roush’s arrival in the third round seems to telegraph head coach Ben Johnson’s intent to lean even heavier on heavy personnel in 2026.

Meanwhile, Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker III was the Chiefs’ signature offensive addition during free agency, and as Patrick Mahomes works his way back from a torn ACL suffered in Week 15, it’s not difficult to telegraph Andy Reid and Kansas City upping their percentage of snaps out of 13 personnel from roughly 6.22% to nearly double-digit snaps, or more this upcoming season to ease the pressure on their three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback and take the teeth out of some of the pressure teams will throw at him.

Perhaps even more simply put, given the copycat nature of the NFL, and the influence McVay’s offense carries across the league, the combination of the Rams’ success and the posturing we’re already seeing teams adopt in terms of their roster construction could be signaling a return to bigger personnel as more of a bedrock for offenses than it has been in the recent past.