HEADLINES

Month: December 2017

NFC North Notes: Packers, Rodgers, Bears

December 9th, 2017 at 11:12am CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a look at the NFC North:

  • Packers coach Mike McCarthy says quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks good throwing a football just seven weeks after shoulder surgery (Twitter link via Ryan Wood of the Press-Gazette). “He’s back there slinging it around and throwing with great velocity,” McCarthy said. “The recovery has been impressive.” A Rodgers return could be right around the corner as the team hopes to get him back on the field for Week 15.
  • Packers tight end Lance Kendricks has been charged with marijuana possession stemming from his traffic stop earlier this fall, Michael Cohen of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. Initially, the 29-year-old believed that he would not face any charges related to the pot that cops found when he was pulled over for speeding. Because there is a drug offense involved, Kendricks could face league discipline for the incident. However, it stands to reason that the NFL will wait for the legal situation to resolve itself before coming down on the tight end. If there’s any suspension to be served, it won’t happen until the 2018 season, at the earliest. So far this year, Kenrdricks has just 11 catches for 151 yards and one touchdown. Last year, he had a career high 50 catches for 499 yards and two TDs with the Rams.
  • The Giants and Browns held key members of the organization accountable for their losing this week. John Mullin of NBC Sports Chicago wonders when the Bears will do the same. Coach John Fox and GM Ryan Pace find themselves on the hot seat, but it’s possible that the Bears will give them each one more year to turn things around. The team’s final four games against the Bengals, Lions, Browns, and Vikings obviously won’t have any playoff implications for the Bears, but the results could factor into the futures of both Fox and Pace.
  • The Fritz Pollard Alliance released its list of candidates for coaching and GM jobs this week. Packers exec Alonzo Highsmith is a recommended GM candidate while Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin and Vikings DC George Edwards were both offered up as potential head coaches.

Pollard Alliance To File Complaint Against Browns

December 9th, 2017 at 10:44am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns say that they satisfied the Rooney Rule by interviewing Doug Whaley for their GM job. The Fritz Pollard Alliance, however, is not satisfied with their explanation. John Wooten, the chairman of the group, says that the Browns failed to comply with proper procedure by not telling the league about the Whaley interview. Browns fans (vertical)

[RELATED: Pollard Alliance Releases HC, GM Candidates]

“For whatever reason, [owner Jimmy] Haslam or whoever is running their operation there did not report that they had interviewed a minority candidate before they announced that they had signed John Dorsey,” Wooten told PFT. “That threw the whole thing into question, because everybody was asking, ‘Who did they interview?’ Well, we checked with the league, and the league said it had not received any information on who they interviewed or anyone that they intended to interview. Under league rules, the fact that Doug Whaley and John Dorsey were not in the league, they could in fact talk to those guys, but you still have to report you talked to Doug Whaley, and they didn’t do that.”

Initially, Wooten said he was “livid” about the team’s quick hiring of Dorsey because the Whaley interview had been kept under wraps. He’s not quite as angry now, but he has asked civil rights lawyer (and former candidate for the NFLPA’s top job) Cyrus Mehri to file a complaint with the league.

“That’s where we are,” said Wooten. “We’re still waiting for the league to clear this up. We’ve put it on their table. It’s their responsibility. It’s the team’s responsibility to tell the league, and the league gets it to us. We’ll let the league decide what they want to do there [as far as any punishment].”

NFL Workout Updates: 12/8/17

December 8th, 2017 at 9:47pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:

Arizona Cardinals

  • S Cedric Thompson (link)

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Minnesota Vikings

  • WRs Darel Walker, Brandon Zylstra; DE Craig Roh; DBs Jonathon Mincy, Kacy Rodgers (link via Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press)

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

  • RB Roy Finch (link)

Seahawks RB Chris Carson Suffers Setback

December 8th, 2017 at 8:55pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Seahawks running back Chris Carson‘s attempt at a 2017 comeback has been halted for the time being, as head coach Pete Carroll told reporters that Carson suffered a setback in his recovery from a broken leg, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.Chris Carson (vertical)

“(Carson) a little bit of an ankle turn. Just caught it a little bit,” said Carroll. “So just got to make sure we know what that means as he bounces back from it. We were looking to try to find a time when we could put him back on the practice field next week or the week after that.

We were looking with real optimism. But I don’t know if that’s going to happen after the little setback. We’ll have to see when we get though the weekend. We won’t know until like Wednesday or something of next week where that fits.”

As Carroll alluded to, Seattle was hopeful that Carson would be able to return from injured reserve at some point this year. In fact, Carroll said earlier this week that Carson had been “unbelievably ahead of schedule” in his rehab. While a return now appears doubtful, Carson could conceivably come back if/when the Seahawks earn a postseason berth. Carson has already been sidelined for more than eight weeks (the league minimum when placed on IR), so he can return to Seattle’s active roster at any time.

Carson, whom the Seahawks selected in the seventh round of the 2017 draft, had seized the club’s starting running back job before going down with injury. On 49 carries, the 23-year-old Carson had managed 4.2 yards per carry while also handling seven receptions. Even though he’s been absent for two months, Carson’s 208 yards rushing are still tops among Seattle running backs.

Without Carson available, the Seahawks have tried a number of options in the backfield with little success, as the club ranks just 22nd in rushing DVOA. The latest candidate for playing time is former fourth-rounder Mike Davis, whom Seattle claimed off waivers from San Francisco before the season began. Davis managed 64 yards on 16 carries in Week 13 against the Eagles.

Nick Caserio “Willing To Listen” To Offers

December 8th, 2017 at 7:19pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Patriots vice president of player personnel Nick Caserio is “willing to listen” to offers that would make him a general manager with another club, according to Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com.

Caserio, who has spent the entirety of his 17-year NFL career with the Patriots, would particularly be interested in the Giants’ general manager position, per Breer. New York, of course, is the only club currently without a permanent GM after firing Jerry Reese on Monday. The Browns, notably, went roughly 11 hours without a general manager on Thursday, as they parted ways with Sashi Brown and hired ex-Chiefs GM John Dorsey on the same day.

Caserio has been linked to other vacancies in the past: he interviewed for the Dolphins general manager job in 2014 but declined an offer, and also declined an interview with the 49ers earlier this year. San Francisco was interested in hiring both Caserio and Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels in a package deal, but both ultimately stayed put in New England.

While Caserio doesn’t have final say on the Patriots’ roster (head coach Bill Belichick calls the shots in New England), he has contributed in variety of roles during his time with the club. The 41-year-old Caserio has not only worked as a scout and a personnel executive, but spent the 2007 campaign as the Patriots’ wide receivers coach. His current contract is believed to tie him to New England through 2020, but he’d be allowed to take another position if it offered him full roster control.

Seahawks To Place OL Oday Aboushi On IR

December 8th, 2017 at 5:36pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Seahawks will place guard Oday Aboushi on injured reserve with a dislocated shoulder, head coach Pete Carroll told 97.3 KIRO Radio.Oday Aboushi (Vertical)

Aboushi joined Seattle on a one-year contract this spring after spending the first three seasons of his career with the Jets and Texans. With the Seahawks, Aboushi started all eight games in which he appeared, grading out as the No. 60 guard among 76 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus, which assigned Aboushi bottom-five marks as a run blocker.

With Aboushi sidelined, Seattle is likely to turn to second-round rookie Ethan Pocic to fill in at right guard. Pocic played every snap at right guard in the Seahawks’ Week 12 victory over the Eagles, and has played more than half the club’s offensive snaps this season. Overall, of course, Seattle’s offensive line has struggled: the unit ranks 17th in adjusted sack rate and 30th in adjusted line yards, according to Football Outsiders.

The Seahawks promoted interior offensive lineman Joey Hunt from their practice squad earlier in the week to serve as depth, but general manager John Schneider & Co. are getting tight on cap space. As noted Tuesday, Seattle still hasn’t placed safety Kam Chancellor on injured reserve because it simply doesn’t have the cap room to pay another player for the rest of the year. Hunt, for what’s it worth, should count for $109K for the remainder of the year, a figure that will make a dent in the Seahawks’ $279K worth of space.

Saints’ David Parry Suspended By NFL

December 8th, 2017 at 4:07pm CST by Zachary Links

Saints defensive tackle David Parry has been suspended by the NFL for four games, a source tells Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Parry has been on IR since Week 4, but the suspension goes into effect immediately. The ban stems from his February incident/arrest, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. David Parry (vertical)

The ban actually began with last nights New Orleans contest, tweets Nick Underhill of the Advocate. As such, Parry will serve the entirety of the suspension in 2017, and won’t have to worry about the punishment slipping into next season.

In the winter, Parry was alleged to have attacked a taxi cart driver, car(t)jacked said vehicle, and threatened police officers. At one point in time, Parry was facing jail time with four charges against him. One of the charges was for committing a “Super Extreme” DUI in the state of Arizona, since he operated the cart with a high blood alcohol level.

Parry started 32 games for the Colts as a nose tackle in Indianapolis’ 3-4 scheme, but few teams were interested in him after his booze-fueled incident. He signed with the Saints’ practice squad in early September and earned a promotion to the main roster weeks later, but he suffered a season-ending injury in his first game back.

 

Browns Release Kenny Britt

December 8th, 2017 at 3:05pm CST by Zachary Links

The Browns have released Kenny Britt, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. Because the trade deadline has come and gone, Britt will be subject to waivers. Kenny Britt (vertical)

This marks John Dorsey‘s first move as Browns GM, and it’s a massive one. This past offseason, the Browns signed Britt to a four-year, $32.5MM deal. He was a monumental disappointment, however, with just 18 catches for 233 yards and two scores to date.

The story on Britt hasn’t changed much since his collegiate days. Although he is a tremendously talented athlete, his suspect work ethic has prevented him from fulfilling his true potential. The Titans used a first-round pick on him in 2009, but he floundered after his first two NFL seasons. The light appeared to go on for Britt last year when he eclipsed 1,000 yards for the Rams, but one has to wonder if he was motivated strictly by his impending free agency.

There was internal conflict between head coach Hue Jackson and former Browns czar Sashi Brown about whether to play Britt, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears. Jackson was not a fan of the temperamental wide receiver, so it sounds like Dorsey is off on the right foot with his coach. Jackson benched Britt on Oct. 29 against the Vikings and sent him home early when he missed curfew on the eve of their Oct. 15 game against the Texans (Britt was injured, but did not make it back to the team hotel until 1 a.m.).

The league’s 31 other teams will have an opportunity to claim Britt, but it’s not terribly likely that anyone will take on his contract. Meanwhile, the Browns are out $10.5MM – the amount fully guaranteed to him at the time of signing.

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