The NFL today informed the Falcons they’ll forfeit the first three days of OTAs in 2017 for violating NFL-NFLPA work rules for excessive contact in practice. Atlanta is the second team to receive punishment for that infraction following sanctions against the Seahawks. The Falcons aren’t happy about the punishment, but they did not face the heavy fines and draft penalties that the Seahawks did as repeat offenders.
“We take player safety very seriously and work hard to ensure that we are in compliance with league rules,” the Falcons wrote in a statement Thursday.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- The Redskins tried to fortify their roster through free agency but, so far, those additions haven’t panned out, John Keim of ESPN.com writes. Last year, signings like cornerback Chris Culliver, defensive end Stephen Paea, nose tackle Terrance Knighton, and Junior Galette all flopped for various reasons. This year, spring signing Kendall Reyes was dropped just four games into the year and safety David Bruton was placed on IR after a poor start to the season.
- Cardinals coach Bruce Arians says that he has his “fingers crossed” when it comes to the recoveries of running back Chris Johnson and safety Tyvon Branch because it’s possible that one of them could be healthy enough to return this year (Twitter link via Alex Marvez of the Sporting News). Both players were placed on IR this week with groin injuries. Teams can only bring one player back from IR each season, so it’s effectively a race between the two to see who can get healthier first.
- Veteran guard/tackle Garrett Reynolds worked out for the Lions on Tuesday, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets.
- The Cowboys are auditioning kickers as Dan Bailey deals with a sore back.
- The Vikings, meanwhile, have no plans to try out kickers at this time, despite Blair Walsh’s issues.