West Notes: 49ers, Cardinals, Ford
The 49ers have used three first-round picks on defensive linemen since 2015, and each of those figures to be in the starting lineup Sunday. With Tank Carradine on IR, Solomon Thomas will likely start at San Francisco’s strong-side defensive end spot, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee notes. The 49ers have used Thomas as an edge defender, but DC Robert Saleh envisions the No. 2 overall pick as a “premier inside rusher” once he develops. Saleh said Thomas “could be a good edge rusher,” so it’s clear the first-year 49ers coordinator wants to see how the Stanford product functions from a defensive tackle spot.
“We do need to find ways to get him inside to rush the passer a little bit more,” Saleh said, via Barrows.
The 49ers, though, used first-round picks on interior defenders Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner the previous two years. Buckner rates as Pro Football Focus’ No. 3 interior defender, behind only J.J. Watt and Ndamukong Suh, through three games. The new-look 49ers defensive staff wanted to decrease Buckner’s workload upon being hired, Saleh calling it “criminal” for Buckner to exceed 1,000 snaps as he did as a rookie, but Barrows observes those stances softening as the season’s begun. At 179 defensive plays, Buckner is on pace for nearly the 1,005 snaps he played last season now. Injuries to Carradine and Ronald Blair, and the release of current Packers cog Quinton Dial, has thinned out a potential 49ers D-line rotation.
Here’s the latest from the Western divisions.
- The Cardinals are not receiving Jared Veldheer‘s best work thus far this season. The team’s move of the veteran left tackle to the right side has not gone well, and Veldheer might be playing in his final Arizona season. While Veldheer took a day away from the team to consider leaving football earlier this year, Mike Jurecki of ArizonaSports.com notes (on Twitter) the veteran lineman would like to return in 2018. However, Jurecki does not expect him to stay with the Cardinals. Veldheer’s in the fourth season of a five-year, $35MM deal — one that includes a $10.25MM cap hold for 2018. He profiles as a cap casualty at this point.
- Deone Bucannon will make his season debut after an extensive layoff due to an ankle injury. Bruce Arians confirmed the inside linebacker will be ready to suit up in Week 4. Haason Reddick, the fill-in player here, will likely start Sunday while Bucannon is gradually worked back into the fold, per Arians.
- The Chiefs, though, will be without a key front-seven piece in their Week 4 game. Dee Ford will miss Kansas City’s Monday-night home game against Washington. With Tamba Hali already being conserved for the stretch run via the PUP list, this will leave the AFC West leaders thin at outside linebacker. Ford’s dealing with a back injury.
- The gap between Brian Hoyer and C.J. Beathard remains too wide for the 49ers to consider a quarterback change, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes. Hoyer’s system knowledge giving the embattled 49ers their best chance to win now makes him unlikely to be unseated any time soon, Maiocco notes.
Danny Trevathan Suspended Two Games
The NFL’s review of Danny Trevathan‘s violent hit on Davante Adams resulted in the league suspending the Bears linebacker for two games.
Trevathan was penalized for the hit on Adams, one that sent the Packers wide receiver to the hospital, and he will miss time because of it. This is Trevathan’s first NFL suspension.
The sixth-year linebacker will have a chance to appeal, with the Bears’ next game not coming until next Sunday, and ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano tweets an appeal will be expected within three days. Either Derrick Brooks or James Thrash will hear Trevathan’s appeal, which the linebacker will do, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Thrash reduced Vontaze Burfict‘s suspension from five games to three, leading to the Bengals linebacker being set to debut Sunday.
NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan made the call to suspend Trevathan because of the “excessive” nature of the hit, a helmet-to-helmet blow that came after Adams’ progress was stopped as two other Bears were in on the tackle.
Should an appeal be denied, the 27-year-old inside ‘backer won’t be able to return to the Bears until Monday, Oct. 16. This suspension will leave the Bears without either of their preferred starting inside linebackers, with Jerrell Freeman already on IR. A third linebacker, Nick Kwiatkoski, also suffered an injury early this season, continuing Chicago’s health woes thus far in 2017.
Trevathan, who signed with the Bears last year after starting for John Fox in Denver as well, missed extensive time this offseason with a knee injury. He missed seven games during his first season with the Bears.
Chiefs Waive Cairo Santos
Cairo Santos sustained a groin injury during his last warmup kick against the Chargers this weekend. It may well end up being his final kick as a Chief.
The Chiefs waived Santos with an injury designation on Saturday, the team announced. He is expected to be healthy later this season, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), so the fourth-year kicker will now be able to land with another team. The Chiefs placed Santos on IR earlier this week, clearing the way for their claim of rookie Harrison Butker off the Panthers’ practice squad.
Santos served as Kansas City’s kicker since the start of the 2014 season, when he beat out Ryan Succop in training camp. A Brazil native, Santos made a career-best 88 percent of his kicks last season (31 of 35) and has kicked in every game since the start of the ’14 campaign.
Butker did not beat out Graham Gano for Carolina’s kicking job out of camp, but the Panthers used a seventh-round pick on the Georgia Tech product. It looks like the Chiefs will be turning to Butker for the time being.
Panthers Place LB Jeremy Cash On IR
The Panthers injury woes continue. The team has placed linebacker Jeremy Cash on the injured reserve, reports Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter). The team has promoted defensive end Bryan Cox Jr. from the practice squad to take Cash’s place on the roster.
Cash, a standout at Duke, surprisingly wasn’t selected during the 2016 draft. The former safety ultimately signed with the Panthers, and the team subsequently converted him to linebacker. He played in eight games during his rookie campaign, compiling six tackles (mostly on special teams). He appeared in his team’s season-opening win over the 49ers, but he hasn’t gotten into a game since. The Panthers could be seeking some more linebacker depth down the road, as they’re only rostering a trio of reserves in Ben Jacobs, David Mayo, and Jared Norris.
Cox signed with the Panthers as an undrafted free agent out of Florida following this past year’s draft. After being waived in early September, he caught on with the organization’s practice squad. The son of former Pro Bowler Bryan Cox, the rookie should provide the organization with some depth on the defensive line. Julius Peppers is currently dealing with an injured shoulder, and the team would have only been left with defensive ends Wes Horton and Daeshon Hall on the bench had he missed tomorrow’s game.
Poll: Will The Patriots Trade CB Malcolm Butler?
Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler had been the subject of trade rumors throughout the offseason. With the trade deadline rapidly approaching , it begs the question: will New England look to trade their former Super Bowl hero?
Before we discuss the logic of such a move, let’s review why the Patriots and Butler find themselves in this situation in the first place. The former undrafted free agent has proven himself as one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL over the past two years, earning a Pro Bowl spot in 2015 and a second-team All-Pro nod in 2016. Unsurprisingly, the underpaid cornerback requested a raise prior to last season, although the Patriots predictably made him play on his $600K salary. With the cornerback set to hit restricted free agency, the Patriots slapped a first-round tender on him early in the offseason.
Instead of signing Butler to a lucrative extension, the Patriots decided to ink free agent corner Stephon Gilmore to the most expensive contract for a defensive player in team history. Predictably, Butler was “extremely frustrated” by this move. Subsequent reports indicated that the team was shopping Butler to New Orleans, and the player’s agent was apparently asking front offices for a Gilmore-type contract (around $14MM annually). While there seemed to be some momentum towards a deal with the Saints, talks ultimately died, and Butler eventually signed his tender.
With reports indicating that the cornerback was likely going to leave New England following the season, some assumed that the Patriots would ride out the season with a deadly duo of Butler and Gilmore. However, coach Bill Belichick has never really operated under that logic. Last year, we saw the team trade impending free agents Chandler Jones and Jamie Collins. Previously, the front office dealt Deion Branch and Richard Seymour, who were also set to hit free agency. In all these cases, the trades arguably hurt New England’s on-field product, which only emphasizes why Belichick isn’t afraid to trade a player before he’s set to walk. For what it’s worth, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported back in April that a trade was still possible, although unlikely. Reports also indicated that the team has no interest in franchising the defensive back.
Through the first three games of the season, the cornerback hasn’t done much to boost his free agent stock. After playing nearly all of his team’s snaps in 2016, he found himself on the bench during the beginning of the Patriots’ Week 2 contest. He’s compiled nine tackles and one pass defended this year, and Pro Football Focus ranks him 37th among 109 qualified cornerbacks.
Even if he has taken a slight step back this season, the Patriots could still receive some type of draft-pick compensation for Butler. Sure, he is an impending free agent in pursuit of a huge payday, but any acquiring team would have the leverage of a franchise tag.
So that leads back to the original question: will the Patriots trade Malcolm Butler prior to the trade deadline? Vote below, and let us know what you think in the comment section.
Will The Patriots Trade Malcolm Butler?
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Yes 58% (865)
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No 42% (635)
Total votes: 1,500
Eagles Promote DT Justin Hamilton, Waive S Trae Elston
With Fletcher Cox set to miss tomorrow’s game against the Chargers, the Eagles have added some depth on the defensive line. According to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter), the team has promoted defensive tackle Justin Hamilton from the practice squad. To make room, the team has waived safety Trae Elston.
Hamilton has bounced around the league since going undrafted out of Louisiana–Lafayette in 2015. The 24-year-old has already spent time with the Bills, Packers, and Seahawks during his brief career, although he’s yet to get into an NFL game. The defensive tackle signed a futures contract with Philly back in January, although he was waived in early September. He was subsequently signed to the team’s practice squad, and he’s already been released and re-signed since then. Hamilton is expected to provide the Eagles with some depth at defensive tackle, and he should slot in behind Timmy Jernigan, Beau Allen, Elijah Qualls, and Destiny Vaeao on the depth chart.
Elston, a 2016 undrafted rookie out of Mississippi, was claimed off waivers from the Bills earlier this month. The 23-year-old has appeared in three games this season between Buffalo and Philly, compiling a single tackle. The defensive back has also spent time with the Saints, Buccaneers, and Browns. Starting safety Rodney McLeod has been sidelined with a hamstring injury, but the team still has plenty of depth at the position, as they’re also rostering Malcolm Jenkins, Corey Graham, Jaylen Watkins, and Chris Maragos.
Jets Notes: Kerley, Henderson, Darnold
We learned earlier this week that former Jets linebacker Erin Henderson was suing the organization, with the player citing “wrongful termination and disability discrimination” stemming from his placement on the NFI list. Yesterday, coach Todd Bowles responded to the news, saying that he doesn’t regret cutting the veteran.
“No, not that I know,” Bowles said when asked if he’d do it differently (via Alex Squadron of the New York Post). “It’s a personal matter, and I think the team is taking care of it. I have no regrets.”
Henderson, who is seeking $3.3MM in compensatory damages in addition to punitive damages, says he wasn’t hurt when the Jets placed him on the non-football injury list. The organization previously said that the linebacker “was not fit” to play in the NFL, although Bowles wouldn’t elaborate on that sentiment yesterday.
“I am not going to get into that,” Bowles said. “It was just our decision that we came to. … I’ll let the legal system take care of everything else.”
Let’s take a look at some other notes coming out of New York…
- When asked how many “foundational players” were currently on the Jets roster, ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini (on Twitter) named five: defensive end Leonard Williams, safety Jamal Adams, safety Marcus Maye, defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson (who he accompanies with a “maybe” tag), and linebacker Darron Lee.
- Following his return to the Jets, Jeremy Kerley was relieved to learn that “nothing changed,” the wideout told Darryl Slater of NJ.com. “Picking up the offense was fairly easy,” the 28-year-old said. “Todd [Bowles] is still here. Some of the guys I know are still here. Back in the area that I know well. It just seems like nothing really changed, man. Everything just feels normal now. San Francisco, I loved it out there. Beautiful. San Fran is home, too. Don’t get me wrong. San Fran is my second home. But here is where I started at. It’s where the dream started.” In two games this season, Kerley has eight receptions for 56 yards.
- The Jets were “credentialed” to have three representatives, including general manager Mike Maccagnan, at yesterday’s USC vs. Washington State matchup, reports ESPN.com’s Kyle Bonagura. The team was presumably attending the game to get a first-hand look at Trojans quarterback Sam Darnold, who WalterFootball.com currently has going first-overall in their 2018 mock draft. The prospect wasn’t particularly impressive during his team’s loss, completing 15 of his 29 pass attempts for 164 yards and one interception (he also lost a key fumble in the fourth quarter).
AFC Notes: Pats, Browns, Raiders, Dolphins
Dont’a Hightower is expected to return to action for the Patriots on Sunday after missing each of the club’s past two games with a knee sprain, a source tells Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald. New England, notably, ranks dead last in the NFL in points allowed, yards allowed, and defensive DVOA. With the Patriots’ defense clearly missing its leader, Hightower’s return can’t come too soon. As Howe writes, New England had been using Hightower as an edge defender, but several defensive mistakes could lead the Pats to shift Hightower back to his natural off-ball linebacker position. Elandon Roberts, and possibly Kyle Van Noy, will likely see his snaps reduced as a result of Hightower’s return.
Here’s more from the AFC:
- While Hightower will be back on the field in New England, the same can’t be said for Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who is expected to miss Sunday’s game against the Bengals, reports Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Garrett, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft, hasn’t played a regular season down this year as he deals with a high ankle sprain. Browns head coach Hue Jackson has hinted on multiple occasions that Garrett is “close” to returning, but the Texas A&M product will have to wait until at least Week 5 to make his NFL debut. Without Garrett in tow, Cleveland ranks just 23rd in adjusted sack rate.
- Raiders cornerback Sean Smith pleaded not guilty on charges of assault and battery stemming from an alleged July altercation, as Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal writes. The details of the incident are rather sordid, but Oakland head coach Jack Del Rio indicated the club would stand behind Smith until the legal process runs its course. On the field, Smith is no longer starting just one year after agreeing to a four-year, $38MM free agent contract. Thus far, he’s played only a quarter of the Raiders’ defensive snaps, fourth among Oakland corners.
- Punter Brandon Fields has announced his retirement from the NFL following a nine-year career, his agent announced on Twitter. Fields, 33, last played for the Saints in 2015, but is most well-known for his eight-season run with the Dolphins from 2007-14. The former seventh-round pick appeared in 130 career games and maintained a yards per punt average of 46.7.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/29/17
Today’s minor moves:
- The Bills have filled the vacant slot on their 53-man roster by promoting defensive end Eric Lee from their practice squad, the club announced today. Lee, an undrafted free agent out of South Florida in 2016, will make his NFL debut on Sunday if he sees the field against the Falcons. After finishing with 11.5 sacks during his final collegiate season, Lee spent the entirety of the 2016 campaign on the Texans’ practice squad, but was waived by Houston during final cutdowns earlier this month.
NFL Workout Updates: 9/29/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to Twitter unless otherwise noted:
Carolina Panthers
- QB Marcus McDade; WRs C.J. Board and Germone Hopper (link via Howard Balzer)
Cleveland Browns
- P Brock Miller (link via Howard Balzer)
Dallas Cowboys
- LBs Richie Brown and Kenneth Olugbode (story via Todd Archer of ESPN.com)
Kansas City Chiefs
- WR Marcus Lucas (link via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star)
New England Patriots
- C Anthony Fabiano; OTs Jake Rodgers and Victor Salako; LBs Austin Calitro and Cam Johnson (link via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com)
New York Giants
- RBs William Stanback and James Summers (link via Art Stapleton of the Record)
New York Jets
- LB Jayrone Elliott (link via Howard Balzer)
Seattle Seahawks
- LB Bryan Braman (original story) (link via Balzer)
Washington Redskins
- WR Rashard Davis (link via Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post)