2016 October - Pro Football Rumors

Month: October 2016

Ben Roethlisberger Has Torn Meniscus

October 16th, 2016 at 9:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Ben Roethlisberger suffered a torn left meniscus in the Steelers’ Week 6 loss to the Dolphins and will undergo surgery Monday, Ron Cook of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports (on Twitter).

Cook reports (Twitter link) Landry Jones will start next week, as Roethlisberger now must deal with a significant knee injury for the second straight season. He returned to action in Miami after missing most of the second quarter. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com confirmed Cook’s report and tweets the veteran quarterback will miss the Steelers’ Week 7 tilt against the Patriots, but the passer’s timetable is uncertain beyond that.

Roethlisberger missed four games last season due to an MCL sprain. The 34-year-old future Hall of Famer played two straight 16-game seasons in 2013-14 but missed at least one in each of Pittsburgh’s previous four campaigns. He battled knee and shoulder injuries last season, limiting the Steelers.

Pittsburgh finished 1-1 in Jones’ two starts last season. The former Oklahoma signal-caller completed 58 percent of his passes, threw for 513 yards, three touchdowns and four interceptions. He’s the next in line now after the Steelers opted not to bring back Michael Vick. They also released Bruce Gradkowski, who suffered a torn hamstring during preseason play, earlier this month.

Now in his 13th season, Roethlisberger had guided the Steelers to four wins and thrown for 1,685 yards this season. His 16 touchdown passes lead the league.

Browns’ Jordan Poyer Suffers Lacerated Kidney

October 16th, 2016 at 9:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

A full-time starter for the first time in his career, Jordan Poyer may not return to the Browns’ lineup for a while after suffering a lacerated kidney against the Titans.

The 25-year-old safety was transported to a Nashville, Tenn.-area hospital before halftime, Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal reports, and he will remain there overnight for observation. The Browns announced Poyer as being in stable condition. Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports the team believes this is a serious laceration and expects Poyer to miss the rest of the season.

A collision with Titans fullback Antonio Andrews on special teams caused the injury and induced the Browns to evaluate the fourth-year free safety for a concussion. The team has yet to announce whether Poyer sustained one, however, according to Ulrich. Rookie UDFA Tracy Howard filled in for Poyer after he left the game.

Multiple high-profile wide receivers — Keenan Allen and Miles Austin — suffered kidney lacerations in the past two seasons, Austin in 2014 and Allen last season. Neither played again that year. Allen missed eight Chargers games, and Austin was sidelined for four Browns contests.

Poyer has 37 tackles this season to match his career high set last season.

NFC Notes: Cowboys, Rhodes, Rams, Panthers

October 16th, 2016 at 9:23pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jerry Jones did not say whether the Cowboys will turn back to Tony Romo or stick with the surging Dak Prescott after the team’s Week 7 bye, but the owner identified this as a good problem to have.

“There’s nothing I’d rather do than go into [the] last half of the season with a ready-to-go Tony Romo and a winning Dak Prescott,” Jones said, via Ed Werder of ESPN.com (Twitter links). “I dream of being able to make that decision. We are not there yet by the way. We are not there.”

Reports have oscillated between the Cowboys having confidence the 36-year-old Romo will resume his post and how Prescott’s rise has inspired his teammates enough to possibly anoint the rookie as the full-time starter. Prescott connected on 18 of his 27 throws in Dallas’ win over Green Bay today, throwing for three touchdown passes. He’s completing 69 percent of his passes this season for the Cowboys, who are 5-1 for the second time in three seasons after failing to win five of their first six in the previous six slates.

Here’s more from around the league as its Sunday-night AFC South tilt commences.

A long-term contract extension for cornerback Xavier Rhodes should be atop Vikings general manager Rick Spielman‘s to-do list, opines Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune. Rhodes’ overall performance ranks a below-average 63rd among Pro Football Focus’ 114 qualifying corners, but as Krammer notes, the 26-year-old has held his own against stiff competition since last season. In matchups against Rhodes, star receivers Julio Jones, Odell Beckham, DeAndre Hopkins and Alshon Jeffery have combined to catch 13 passes — not even half of their 30 targets — for 145 yards and two touchdowns. The Vikings exercised Rhodes’ fifth-year option for 2017 last May, so the 2013 first-round pick will remain with the club for at least another season after this one.
The Rams‘ Week 8 bye following their London trip represented a reasonable window to make the change from Case Keenum to Jared Goff, but the stopgap veteran’s performance in Sunday’s loss to the Lions could delay that timetable, Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times writes. In completing 27-of-32 passes for 321 yards and three touchdown passes, Keenum broke Jim Everett’s franchise record by hitting on 19 straight passes today.
The Panthers‘ decision to rescind Josh Norman‘s $13.952MM franchise tender continues to induce young talents to take their lumps, with Drew Brees setting the career 400-plus-yard passing games record against Carolina today. As Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer notes, Dave Gettleman has also yet to say why Bene Benwikere — a 14-game starter for the Panthers over the past three years and their longest-tenured corner coming into the season — was the scapegoat for Matt Ryan‘s 500-plus-yard day. Carolina, which started third- and fifth-round rookies Daryl Worley and Zack Sanchez against the Saints, has upwards of $17MM in cap space. The Panthers hope second-rounder James Bradberry will be back after the team’s Week 8 bye, per Person.
A resolution on the Cam Newton concussion investigation stemming from Week 1 is expected to arrive by Monday, Florio reports. The NFL wants a joint press release between the league and the NFLPA, but the union is resisting, according to Florio. The verdict is expected to reveal no violation of the concussion protocol occurred, but this outcome is also likely to produce more changes on how it comes to be known whether or not a player needs to be evaluated.

Connor Byrne contributed to this report.

Terrell Suggs Suffers Torn Biceps

October 16th, 2016 at 8:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

Terrell Suggs will have a similar decision to make after sustaining a second biceps tear in four years. The Ravens’ 14th-year pass-rusher suffered a torn left biceps during his team’s loss to the Giants today, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.

Now 34, Suggs will need to decide whether to play through this malady or undergo surgery. When he sustained a right biceps tear in 2012, the former first-round pick opted to keep playing. He played in all four of Baltimore’s playoff games after sustaining the tear in December of that year and helped the Ravens claim their second Super Bowl championship.

The cornerstone Ravens linebacker wants to keep playing, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

The six-time Pro Bowler and one-time first-team All-Pro is coming off a 2015 season in which he played one game due to tearing his Achilles’ tendon in Week 1. He didn’t return until this preseason but has started all six games for the Ravens in 2016. Suggs also suffered an Achilles tear in 2012 before returning for that season’s second half.

Suggs has enjoyed a standout season from a pass-rushing perspective despite the myriad injuries in his rear-view mirror. He picked up his fifth sack of the season today and made five solo tackles (two for loss) in the Ravens’ 27-23 loss. The five sacks tie Suggs for sixth in the league. Each of the other eight players who have registered at least five sacks this season are at least three years younger than Suggs. Should he reach 10 sacks this season, it would mark the seventh time he will have hit double digits in a season.

Tension Emerges Between O’Brien, Osweiler

October 16th, 2016 at 6:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

As the Texans prepared for tonight’s Week 6 game against the Colts, their head coach and new quarterback engaged in a heated discussion about the offense. Bill O’Brien and Brock Osweiler argued after a quarterbacks meeting this week, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reports.

During the meeting, the first-year Texans quarterback objected to some of O’Brien’s play-calling decisions in their Week 5 loss to the Vikings, La Canfora notes, and the two did not exactly do much to suppress their loud exchange after the routine review of the Week 5 loss. O’Brien took over the Texans’ play-calling responsibilities earlier in the season.

Sources informed the CBS reporter ownership and upper management began the push for the Osweiler contract (four years, $72MM). However, we heard over the summer O’Brien had the fifth-year quarterback “atop his free agent list” after Houston’s 2015 season ended in January, so some potential buyer’s remorse may be surfacing.

Texans officials downplayed this incident as the type that goes on during a season, per La Canfora. But considering O’Brien benched Brian Hoyer in Week 1 of last season before eventually going back to him when Ryan Mallett sputtered, this could be something to observe. Osweiler’s job security probably isn’t going to be in jeopardy like Hoyer’s considering the kind of investment the franchise made in him, and the fact that Tom Savage and Brandon Weeden are behind him.

Osweiler has thrown six touchdown passes compared to seven interceptions and carries a 70.6 quarterback rating, which ranked 31st in the league coming into Sunday’s games. The Texans beefed up their offensive spending this offseason as well, devoting nearly all of their resources to fortifying that side of the ball. Houston signed Lamar Miller and Jeff Allen before drafting Will Fuller and Braxton Miller. Houston’s offense has produced just 75 points in five games, and Osweiler completed 19-of-42 passes against the Vikings.

This report comes a few months after John Elway‘s comments about the former Broncos second-round pick being miffed upon being benched for Peyton Manning during Week 17 of last season.

Latest On Raiders’ Vegas Venture

October 16th, 2016 at 5:57pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Raiders’ complex year shows no signs of stabilizing anytime soon. Possibilities of their short- and long-term plans remain wide-ranging, with several scenarios in play.

Mark Davis is expected to be in Las Vegas on Monday as Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval signs a bill green-lighting $750MM in public money for a $1.9 billion domed stadium for the Raiders in Sin City. However, Davis said he still plans to have the Raiders play at the Oakland Coliseum in 2017 and ’18.

“We want to bring a Super Bowl championship back to the Bay Area,” Davis said, via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com.

The team has one-year options at its current home stadium and, per Gutierrez, is expected to exercise them for the ensuing two seasons regardless of the NFL voting to approve a Vegas move. That arrangement would seemingly be quite awkward, should the Raiders receive Vegas approval and still play in Oakland. We heard previously the Raiders could consider UNLV’s Sam Boyd Stadium as a possible stopgap venue. But Davis would apparently still plan on keeping the Raiders in the Bay Area as construction of the Las Vegas stadium commences, a potentially toxic environment notwithstanding.

However, even after Nevada’s expected clearance of financial hurdles, Davis’ battle with the NFL and his fellow owners isn’t close to its conclusion. NFL ownership sources continue to maintain Davis might not have enough support to reach the 24-vote plateau required for a relocation, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reports.

Noting how much the NFL played a role in the Rams being the lone team permitted to relocate to Los Angeles, sources informed La Canfora the larger Bay Area market remains the preference of many owners over Las Vegas. Additionally, La Canfora hears a belief exists among a contingent of NFL ownership the Raiders would be better off without Davis, who would be forced to mount a legal battle if he cannot generate 24 votes.

The NFL and Oakland civic leaders remain engaged in talks, and per La Canfora, Davis has shown “little to no interest” in participating. However, the discussions between the league and Oakland are ongoing without him. An ownership source also suggested to the CBS scribe the league could form a trust with Oakland as it did with Cleveland in the 1990s after the original Browns moved to Baltimore, because while Oakland’s stadium talks have produced next to nothing publicly, the league still believes it’s a superior to southern Nevada as an NFL city.

“I’m not saying something like that will come together,” an NFL source told La Canfora of an NFL-Oakland agreement. “But that’s the preference. It’s hard to ignore $750MM of public money, but they are looking long term.”

5 Key Stories: 10/9/16 – 10/16/16

October 16th, 2016 at 5:00pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The 49ers turn to Kaepernick. San Francisco agreed to a restructured contract with quarterback Colin Kaepernick, wiping out the remaining four years of the deal and therefore ridding itself of Kaepernick’s injury guarantees. With that fear out of the way, the Niners opted to start Kaepernick over the embattled Blaine Gabbert, though the results on Sunday weren’t much different. Kaepernick completed less than half his passes as the Niners lost big to the Bills. Kaepernick, meanwhile, is reportedly likely to opt out of his deal following the 2016 campaign.

The Ravens make a change. The last time Baltimore made a midseason offensive coordinator change, the club went on to win the Super Bowl. Will that chain of events repeat itself in 2016? It’s too early to say, but the Ravens are obviously hoping that’s the case after they fired play-caller Marc Trestman and replaced him with quarterbacks coach Marty Mornhinweg. Following Baltimore’s Week 5 loss to the Redskins, quarterback Joe Flacco described the offense as “embarrassing” and said that the struggles so far this year have been “frustrating.” The Ravens’ struggles continued today, as the team lost 27-23 to the Giants.

Raiders inch closer to Vegas. The Nevada Assembly approved a funding bill for the Raiders’ proposed stadium in Las Vegas, meaning that the club has taken a major step towards relocating to Sin City. The state of Nevada will now contribute $750MM to the project, which is estimated to cost about $1.9 billion. The NFL, meanwhile, is reportedly pushing for a CBA extension in order to secure funding for stadiums in Vegas and San Diego. UNLV’s stadium could prove to be a stopgap option for the Raiders while a new arena is built.

Greg Hardy moving to MMA. With no options remaining in the NFL, free agent edge rusher Greg Hardy is transitioning to MMA. Hardy, once a top defensive player in the NFL, was suspended for the bulk of the 2014 season and part of the 2015 season for a domestic violence incident. The Cowboys gave Hardy a second chance, but he was reportedly a thorn in the side of coaches. This offseason, teams were unwilling to take on all of the headaches that would come with signing Hardy and it now sounds like he is moving on from football altogether.

Eagles lose a key offensive lineman. The NFL upheld Philadelphia right tackle Lane Johnson‘s 10-game suspension for PEDs, dealing a massive blow to the Eagles’ front five. Johnson’s ban initially came down over the summer, but he had been fighting the decision. Now, the fight is over and Johnson will be out of action until Philly’s Week 16 game against the Giants. Johnson tested positive for PEDs in August but he claimed that he unknowingly took a tainted amino acid. $25MM in guarantees has now been voided in Johnson’s contract thanks to the ban.

Colin Kaepernick Likely To Opt Out After 2016

October 16th, 2016 at 3:54pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Under the terms of his restructured contract, 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has the option of opting out following the 2016 campaign. And as sources tell Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, Kaepernick “fully plans to exercise” that right and hit the free agent market next spring.

Kaepernick’s new deal wiped out the remaining four years of his contract, and San Francisco is allow barred from using the franchise tag on its quarterback in 2017. The revised contract put to bed any concerns the club may have had about Kaepernick’s injury guarantees kicking in, and perhaps allowed the 49ers to feel comfortable starting Kaepernick over Blaine Gabbert. In today’s loss to the Bills, Kaepernick 13 of 29 passes for 187 yards and one touchdown, and added 66 yards on the ground.

Despite Kaepernick’s struggles, he’d be one of the more attractive free agent options on next year’s market, as the 2017 quarterback class is wholly uninspiring. Aside from Kirk Cousins, other available signal-callers while include Geno Smith, EJ Manuel, Brian Hoyer, Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Mike Glennon. Of course, veterans such as Jay Cutler or Tony Romo could also hit the market if released in the coming months.

Patriots Notes: Lewis, Jackson, Bennett, Butler

October 16th, 2016 at 3:05pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Patriots have made team-friendly extension offers to a number of their pending free agents — including Martellus Bennett, Malcolm Butler, Jamie Collins, Dont’a Hightower, and Logan Ryan — but so far, no player has been interested in putting pen to paper, according to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe. Given that the salary cap continues to rise, each of these impending free agents figures to cash in the open market, and therefore have little incentive to agree to any offer New England puts on the table.

Here’s more on the Patriots, who are now 5-1 after beating the Bengals today:

After opening the year on the physically unable to perform list, running back Dion Lewis is eligible to begin practicing this week. There’s a chance that happens, but it also wouldn’t be surprising for the Patriots to hold Lewis out of game action until after the club’s November bye, writes Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Lewis has made “positive progress” as he recovers from ACL surgery, per Reiss, but New England will exude caution nonetheless.
Offensive lineman Tre’ Jackson also started the season on the PUP list, but he’s closer to returning than is Lewis, reports Reiss. Mason is expected to practice this week, and should be able to play again as soon very soon. In fact, New England’s release of guard Jonathan Cooper may have precipitated by Mason’s health.
The Patriots recently gave $52,700 raises to four practice squad players — running back Bishop Sankey, defensive end Geneo Grissom, guard Chris Barker, and defensive tackle Anthony Johnson. For what it’s worth, Grissom and Johnson were then promoted to active roster on Saturday.

Jon Bon Jovi Interested In Titans Ownership

October 16th, 2016 at 2:17pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Signer Jon Bon Jovi is watching the Titans ownership situation and continues to express interest in purchasing an NFL club, sources tell Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com.

A group involving Bon Jovi reportedly bid more than $1 billion for the Bills back in 2014, but that clan was ultimately outbid by Terry Pegula for the rights to own the Buffalo franchise. However, that experience has “not dampened [Bon Jovi’s] enthusiasm” for purchasing an NFL club, and while he would have competition for the Titans if the organization hit the market, Bon Jovi would certainly be “in the mix,” per La Canfora.

The Titans are still non-complaint with the league’s single owner mandate, and while they’ve already faced NFL discipline, more fines could be forthcoming. Amy Adams Strunk maintains that she will not sell the club, but the team still has “significant hurdles” to overcome to comply with the league’s structure requirements.

Former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning, per La Canfora, also has interest in someday owning a part of the Titans franchise.

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