Cover image: http://bit.ly/2MCJ3N6

ESPN The Magazine’s NFL Preview issue, on newsstands Friday, takes a look at the upcoming NFL season with profiles on some of the league’s biggest names including Odell Beckham Jr., Todd Gurley and Jalen Ramsey, and breaks down the 12 teams with the best chances to win the Super Bowl this season. Senior writer Seth Wickersham’s cover story goes inside New York Giants star Odell Beckham’s plan to recapture the magic that made him the NFL’s most eye-catching talent.

Former NFL star Domonique Foxworth’s essay, “Fourth Down and Life to Go,” takes readers inside the complicated minds of modern football players – including how they love and hate the game, must play fearlessly but also wrestle with the sport’s heavy price tag, and have to toe the line between having opinions and sharing them.

Also in The Mag’s NFL Preview issue: Senior writer Mina Kimes profiles Jalen Ramsey, the Jaguars’ emerging lockdown, loudmouth star who is even more interesting than his exquisite trash-talk; Sam Alipour hangs out with Rams running back Todd Gurley at his “happy place,” Six Flags’ Hurricane Harbor; and Super Bowl LII showed that Philly isn’t afraid to take risks…so when will the rest of the NFL realize being gutsy is also being smart?

Also in this issue:

The Small, Good Thing: To commemorate the anniversary of 9/11, Tom Junod reflects on how sports offers hope and resilience in the wake of tragedy.

 The Power of Disciplined Aggression: How do you solve the puzzle of rising strikeouts? For Mookie Betts and the Red Sox, it’s all about jumping on the good stuff early. By Peter Keating

Equal Fights Movement: The optics of intergender wrestling can be shocking. But those who participate say pitting women against men in the ring is a step toward equality. By Hallie Grossman  

Gator Aid, Stat!: 26-year-old pro Talor Gooch had never heard of the PGA’s “dangerous situation” rule until he met three grumpy alligators en route to golf’s craziest par of the year at April’s Zurich Classic in New Orleans. By Anna Katherine Clemmons

Tough Call: After reports that Bill Belichick might leave the Patriots after this season, The Mag took the liberty of drafting up what a page from his notebook would look like listing the pros and cons of such a move. It is presented here in its entirety. By Katy Yeiser

At the Speed of Bryce: What’s it like to spend a day in the shoes of Stanford’s Bryce Love, the fastest running back in college football? Well, first you have to get him to slow down. By Molly Knight

ZOOM: Behind the scenes with 2017 Heisman trophy winner Baker Mayfield and 1992 winner Gino Torretta at Nissan’s Heisman House shoot.  By Dana Lee 

Stadium Food Deconstructed: The Mag’s favorite at the 2018 U.S. Open—salad? Salad! By Dan Hajducky

Hitting the Books: Inside Detroit’s Downtown Boxing Gym, where lessons learned in the ring aren’t as important as those taught just feet away in the library. By Michael Rothstein

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