Chiefs WR Chris Conley Ruptures Achilles
Chiefs wide receiver Chris Conley ruptured his Achilles during the club’s Sunday night victory over the Texans and will miss the remainder of the 2017 season, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Week 5 was dismal in terms of injuries around the NFL, as the league saw stars such as Odell Beckham Jr., J.J. Watt, and Whitney Mercilus go down for the year. Conley may not be a household name like those players, but he’s been a reliable weapon for Andy Reid‘s Kansas City squad. He actually leads all Chiefs wideouts in snaps this season, and has registered 11 receptions for 175 yards. In 2016, the 24-year-old Conley was an excellent complementary receiver, as he managed 44 catches for 530 yards.
Conley, a third-round pick in 2015, has one year left on his rookie deal. While he was never going to garner a hefty extension, Conley could have possibly inked a new deal following this season. With an Achilles injury now on his record, Conley will likely need to play out his contract before earning any new money.
Kansas City’s offense will continue to run through Kareem Hunt, Tyreek Hill, and Travis Kelce, but wide receivers such as Albert Wilson, De’Anthony Thomas, Demarcus Robinson, or rookie Jehu Chesson could now see increased usage. The Chiefs have two pass catchers — Gehrig Dieter and Marcus Kemp — on their practice squad, and both could be candidates for promotion.
Texans LB Whitney Mercilus Done For Season
The Texans’ Sunday night went from bad to worst, as the club not only lost superstar defensive lineman J.J. Watt, but edge rusher Whitney Mercilus. A torn pectoral will require surgery and end Mercilus’ 2017 campaign, tweets Mark Berman of FOX 28.
[RELATED: J.J. Watt Out For Year]
Houston ranked fourth in defensive DVOA and seventh in adjusted sack rate heading into Week 5, but have now seen two of their best defensive players go down in a single night. Without Watt and Mercilus available, the Texans could give more work to internal options Brennan Scarlett or Ufomba Kamalu, or potentially promote practice squad players LaTroy Lewis or Gimel President.
A free agent acquisition can’t be ruled out, as well, and there are a number of edge defenders who could make sense for the Texans. Dwight Freeney, Mario Williams, Paul Kruger, Jaye Howard, Arthur Jones, and Vance Walker are among the available players who could provide assistance on either the defensive line or at outside linebacker. Houston has auditioned linebackers such as Andrew Gachkar and Michael Mauti in recent weeks, but those veterans are more valuable on special teams than in defensive packages.
Mercilus will be difficult to replace, however, as the 27-year-old ‘backer has become an underrated asset over the past few seasons. From 2015-16, Mercilus put up 19.5 sacks for the Texans, and had managed one quarterback takedown in 2017. Pro Football Focus had graded Mercilus as just the No. 46 edge defender this season, but his marks had been significantly better in the prior two years.
Mercilus is signed through the 2019 campaign under the terms of an extension he signed in 2015. He’s due base salaries of $4.75MM and $5.75MM over the next two seasons.
J.J. Watt Suffers Tibial Plateau Fracture, Out For Season
The Texans announced J.J. Watt suffered a tibial plateau fracture, which the San Diego Union-Tribune’s David Chao noted would cause the defensive end to either undergo surgery or be shelved for a lengthy period of time. It looks like both are set to occur.
That absence looks like it will include the rest of the 2017 season. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets Watt will indeed be out for the remainder of this season. This will require surgery, Mark Berman of Fox 26 tweets, confirming Rapoport’s report about this being a season-ending setback.
While additional tests are coming for Watt, the severity of this injury to the 28-year-old defender’s left shin bone looks to provide yet another substantial hurdle to surmount. This injury also affects the knee joint, with John McClain of the Houston Chronicle noting (on Twitter) it’s a range-of-motion issue. This will be a recovery process spanning several months, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle adds (via Twitter).
The Texans placing Watt on IR would sideline him for eight weeks, but the Texans announcing this precise injury looks to be a fairly indicative sign they don’t believe Watt will be able to return this season.
Watt suffered the malady during the first quarter of Sunday night’s game against the Chiefs. The three-time defensive player of the year missed 13 games last season with a back injury and underwent three surgeries in 2016, sidetracking what had begun as a stratospheric career.
The four-time first-team All-Pro missing the rest of this season would end up shelving him for 24 games over the past two regular seasons. Previously, Houston’s 2011 first-round pick and franchise cornerstone had gone through five seasons without missing a game. Watt entered Sunday night’s game appearing to have bounced back fully from the back injury that ended his 2016 slate, ranking as Pro Football Focus’ No. 6 interior defender.
Houston managed to finish as the 2016 No. 1 defense without Watt’s services beyond September, and this continues a pattern of injuries preventing the franchise’s top defenders from playing together. Jadeveon Clowney struggled mightily with maladies during Watt’s apex in 2014-15, but the former No. 1 overall pick emerged as a top-notch defender last season and was playing alongside Watt to start this one. Clowney will have to anchor the Houston front seven again.
NFC East Rumors: Jones, Johnson, Giants
Jerry Jones spoke at length after Sunday’s Packers-Cowboys game and expanded on his stance about players’ protests that have intensified this season. The longtime owner announced a policy that figures to be a key talking point across the league.
“If there’s anything that is disrespectful to the flag, then we will not play,” Jones said, via Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk. “OK? Understand? If we are disrespecting the flag, then we won’t play. Period. Period. We’re going to respect the flag, and I’m going to create the perception of it. And we have.”
Although no Cowboys decided to sit or kneel during the national anthem today, David Irving and Damontre Moore raised their fists. Jones was asked directly about that. It’s not known if the owner considers what the defensive ends did as disrespecting the flag. Jones said he was “not aware” of Irving and Moore’s protests and called the team “very much on the same page together” regarding this issue. The defensive linemen (via Williams) each did not view it as such. Jones’ decree comes two weeks after the owner knelt with his team during a nationally televised game against the Cardinals, doing so before the anthem played.
The NFLPA also released a statement after these comments and Vice President Mike Pence’s decision to leave the 49ers-Colts game once players knelt during the anthem.
“NFL players are union members and part of the labor movement that has woven the fabric of America for generations,” the statement read (via Mike Florio of PFT). “Our men and their families are also conscientious Americans who continue to be forces for good through our communities and some have decided to use their platform to peacefully raise awareness to issues that deserve attention. … We should not stifle these discussions and cannot allow our rights to become subservient to the very opinions our Constitution protects.”
Shifting to on-the-field matters in this division, here’s the latest on that front.
- Lane Johnson may have a difficult time taking the field for the Eagles on Thursday after suffering a concussion in Philadelphia’s Week 5 rout of the Cardinals. While the Eagles said their right tackle left the game because of a head injury, Les Bowen of Philly.com reports a concussion caused Johnson to miss the second half. Halapoulivaati Vaitai took over for Johnson at right tackle and would seemingly be in line to start there Thursday night against the Panthers, with the league’s concussion protocol making it difficult for players to return on short weeks.
- The Giants lost four wide receivers during their loss to the Chargers on Sunday, and while Odell Beckham Jr.‘s broken fibula will hit the team hardest, Big Blue also will likely be without Sterling Shepard in the near future. The complementary wideout sprained an ankle and is expected to miss a couple of weeks, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). The Giants believe this injury is similar to one Shepard suffered over the summer. The Giants will travel to Denver next week and will likely have to make roster moves before taking the field against the Broncos, considering Brandon Marshall and Dwayne Harris also left the game due to injuries. Beckham and Harris will be out for sure, with the latter fracturing his foot.
- Adding to this nightmarish Giants season that’s spiraled to 0-5, Eli Manning underwent a neck X-ray after the loss to the Chargers, John Healy of the New York Daily News notes. The 36-year-old quarterback’s X-ray was negative, however. Manning has never missed a start since taking over in that role midway through his rookie season.
Dwayne Harris To Miss Rest Of Season
The Giants’ wide receivers endured one of the more brutal injury days to affect one position group in NFL history on Sunday, with four players leaving the game due to injury. Two of those players suffered severe injuries.
In addition to Odell Beckham Jr. fracturing a fibula, Dwayne Harris broke his foot and will miss the rest of the season, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
Harris has functioned as Big Blue’s kick returner since the 2015 season, when he signed with the Giants after a Cowboys tenure. He’s also served as a backup wide receiver for the Giants, who are suddenly in desperate need of those after both Brandon Marshall and Sterling Shepard left the team’s Week 5 outing. Roger Lewis was the only pure wideout left, and with the Giants only carrying five wide receivers, a slew of roster moves may be required to field a receiving corps next week against the Broncos.
The 30-year-old Harris finished as a Pro Bowl return man for the Giants last season. He’s returned both kicks and punts for the team since arriving, taking a kick and a punt back for touchdowns in 2015.
Teams Targeting Peyton Manning As GM?
Despite making frequent public appearances, including Sunday for a jersey-retirement ceremony in Indianapolis, Peyton Manning has not been involved in football since retiring from the Broncos in March 2016. However, the future Hall of Fame quarterback plans to change that soon.
Jay Glazer of Fox Sports reports Manning “will be back in the NFL next year as a GM,” mentioning the Rams, Browns and Titans as possible landing spots (via Mike Jurecki of Arizonasports.com, on Twitter).
This is indeed strong language regarding Manning accepting a GM job when none are as of now available, but the 41-year-old recent retiree has been connected to both the Titans and Browns as a possible executive and would certainly be a coveted commodity among teams for a front office position.
However, the rumblings connecting Manning to the Titans and Browns were at their strongest in 2015 — when neither Tennessee’s nor Cleveland’s current power structures were in place. Jon Robinson took over as Titans GM in 2016, and Sashi Brown began a polarizing tenure as Browns executive VP that year as well. The Browns’ job could well be available if the team continues to crater like this, but it’s also debatable if Manning would consider the position given the franchise’s lack of success since rebooting.
The Rams were once listed as a possible Manning suitor if he were to have continued playing in 2016 rather than retiring. Los Angeles has Les Snead operating in his sixth season as GM, and while Snead’s tenure hasn’t been especially successful, the franchise kept him around to make a second coaching hire this offseason.
An arrangement like the one the Jaguars now have with Tom Coughlin presiding over GM Dave Caldwell could seemingly be a consideration, and Jurecki notes one of these teams could offer Manning an ownership stake as well. Manning was also connected to the Colts’ GM role before Jim Irsay confirmed that wasn’t a path considered this offseason. A high-level Indianapolis exec job would be waiting for Manning, should he want it, however.
Zimmer Anticipates Bradford Monday Return
Sam Bradford could be on the verge of returning for the Vikings after what’s been a longer-than-expected absence. Mike Zimmer told ESPN (via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press) on Sunday night he anticipates his starting quarterback will be ready to reclaim the reins Monday.
The Minnesota starter took most of the first-team reps this week in practice, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com called Bradford “increasingly likely” to suit up against the Bears. But Zimmer as of Saturday had no update on his starter.
It appears Bradford will be ready to return from his knee injury and suit up for the second time on a Monday-night game. Case Keenum started the past three weeks for the Vikes, and the team has gone 1-2 in that span. In Bradford’s one start thus far this season, he completed 27 of 32 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns. So his presence stands to elevate the Vikings’ hopes considerably.
While Bradford could well return Monday night, this left knee problem will obviously be something to monitor for a while considering he tore that ACL twice as a pro.
Dolphins Not Planning To Bench Jay Cutler
Jay Cutler has not exactly settled into a groove as the Dolphins’ starter after re-emerging from a brief retirement, and he delivered another unimpressive performance in Week 5.
Cutler finished with just 92 yards passing despite attempting 26 passes. Although the Dolphins beat the Marcus Mariota-less Titans, Cutler has not played well for most of this season. But the team is not planning a quarterback switch this season.
Not only do the Dolphins plan to stick with Cutler next week, they don’t intend to bench him for the rest of the season, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports. Multiple sources inside the organization informed Salguero the job is Cutler’s, despite his string of ineffective performances.
Adam Gase said (via Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald) Cutler’s “way down on the list” of the Dolphins’ offensive problems, adding the offense would be better if “guys would do their job, catch the ball, block the right guys, give the quarterback a chance to do something.” The Dolphins dropped five passes on Sunday, with four of those coming in a seven-play span.
Gase was asked about a possible benching of Ryan Tannehill last season and steadfastly shot that down, so the team both publicly and privately expressing Cutler support isn’t surprising even if the offense is not where it was during Gase’s first season at the controls.
AFC North Notes: Browns, Brown, Ben
The Browns lost to the rebuilding Jets and are now 0-5 and, more importantly considering where this franchise stands in the NFL, 1-20 since their new power structure began its tenure. Consistent reports of friction between this team’s decision-making parties have come out of Cleveland, and Jimmy Haslam‘s patience may be wearing thin. The Sashi Brown/Paul DePodesta/Hue Jackson arrangement has yet to produce results, and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes a league source predicted a major shakeup could come in the event of a Jets defeat. That happened, and the Browns benched starting quarterback DeShone Kizer for 2016 practice squad promotion Kevin Hogan in the process.
Haslam developed a deserved reputation for being impatient, abandoning previous regimes since taking over the Browns. But this one’s unique effort — placing an even greater premium on draft picks, at the expense of short-term results — has been allowed to persist thus far. However, Florio adds the perception by some around the league is the Browns’ obsession with draft picks doubles as a way for management to preach patience for future success — not unlike an MLB team stockpiling cornerstone high school talent and waiting several years for it to surface in the majors — while avoiding immediate responsibility for the on-field product.
With the Browns set to face the Texans and Texans before a Vikings tilt in London. A Patriots date follows that. Florio notes the London game could double as a Jackson firing window while adding the team could take the route the Lions did recently by firing GM Martin Mayhew and keeping coach Jim Caldwell. That would mean siding with Jackson over Brown. For his part, Jackson said postgame there was “no wavering support” from ownership, per Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com (on Twitter).
This franchise’s recent history points to a change happening soon. Here’s more from the AFC North.
- Regarding Cleveland’s quarterback decision, Jackson did not say who he plans to start in Week 6. The second-year Browns coach indicated (via Nate Ulrich of ohio.com, on Twitter) he needed to watch film to decide between his second-round pick and Hogan, a Chiefs 2016 fifth-round who didn’t make the Kansas City roster out of camp last year. So instead of a Kizer-Deshaun Watson matchup next week, it could be Hogan in command. The Stanford product completed 16 of 19 passes for 194 yards and two touchdowns today compared to Kizer’s 8-for-17, 94-yard, one-INT line.
- Antonio Brown‘s outburst last weekend wasn’t solely motivated by frustrations on the field, with CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reporting the All-Pro wide receiver was upset by the Steelers‘ decision to remain in the tunnel for the national anthem instead of allowing players to make protest choices individually. Brown has strongly considered kneeling in protest during the anthem, but Ben Roethlisberger helped steer the team toward the stance of remaining in the entrance tunnel as a group during the anthem. Big Ben missing his top target for a would-be touchdown against the Ravens struck a chord with Brown, per La Canfora, who reports the wideout believed Roethlisberger’s decision not to locate him on that play was related to the two’s anthem-based argument. After a loss to the Jaguars today, Brown was diplomatic, saying (via Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com) Roethlisberger was going to “bring the best out of us this week.”
- Myles Garrett limped off the field in the fourth quarter of the Browns’ 17-14 loss but said he did not re-aggravate the high ankle sprain that kept him out for four weeks, Cabot tweets. The No. 1 overall pick described his ankle as merely being “very sore.”
5 Key NFL Stories: 10/1/17 – 10/8/17
OBJ done for the year? The Giants’ 2017 season can’t get any worse — not only did Big Blue fall to 0-5 after losing to the Chargers today, but star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. suffered a fractured ankle and could now require season-ending surgery. Beckham, who at times seems to represent the entirety of New York’s offense, had been pushing for a new contract, but that almost assuredly won’t happen with him on the mend. Even if OBJ can return later this year, the Giants may choose to hold him out given the club’s record.
Rookie running back goes down. Two NFC contenders — the Vikings and Seahawks — both lost their starting running backs in Week 4, as Minnesota’s Dalvin Cook suffered a torn ACL while Seattle’s Chris Carson broke his leg. Although Cook was a second-rounder and Carson wasn’t selected until the seventh round, both first-year players had been contributing to their respective offenses. The Vikings will turn to veteran Latavius Murray, who inked a three-year, $15MM deal earlier this year, while the Seahawks will use a combination of Eddie Lacy and Thomas Rawls.
Bears choose a new quarterback. Mike Glennon signed a three-year deal worth $45MM with Chicago in March, but he’s already been benched after just four games. The former Buccaneers signal-caller ranked near the bottom of the league in nearly every quarterback metric, meaning the Bears had little choice to turn to No. 2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky. Chicago sacrificed a haul of draft pick capital to move up one spot for Trubisky, and the UNC product will face a stiff test against the division-rival Vikings on Monday Night Football.
Raiders, Titans without QBs. Derek Carr and Marcus Mariota went down at a similar time in 2016, and they’ve done so again in 2017. The signal-callers reportedly face different timetables however, as Carr is apparently eyeing a return in Week 6 after suffering a transverse process fracture in his back. Mariota, meanwhile, was originally considered day-to-day after straining his hamstring, but Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported today that Mariota could be dealing with a two-to-four week injury.
Bucs have kicking problems (again). Tampa Bay worked through rookie kicker Roberto Aguayo‘s struggles in 2016 before ultimately waiving him earlier this year, and now the club is experiencing trouble again. Veteran Nick Folk missed three kicks in a game the Buccaneers ultimately lost by five points on Thursday night, leading Tampa to look at Andrew Franks, Josh Lambo, Mike Nugent, and Cairo Santos. Still, it’s not inconceivable that the Bucs simply stick with Folk.