Cardinals, Ravens Complete Trade
The Cardinals have traded offensive lineman Tony Bergstrom to the Ravens for a seventh-round pick, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Bergstrom signed with the Cardinals back in May. 
Bergstrom appeared in 15 games as a backup for the Texans last year, but he did not see a lot of burn. The 31-year-old offers experience at both tackle and guard, so he could be a worthwhile piece for Baltimore. He’s not a world beater, but his versatility could come in handy for a Ravens offensive line that has been decimated by injuries.
Already, the Ravens have lost offensive linemen Alex Lewis and Nico Siragusa for the entire season.
Rams Meet With Aaron Donald’s Camp
Aaron Donald‘s holdout is ongoing, but the Rams are working to bring it to an end. Team brass flew to Atlanta on Wednesday for an in-person meeting with Donald’s representatives, sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
Recently, Rams general manager Les Snead admitted that Donald is unlikely to be in uniform for the team’s opener against the Colts on Sept. 10 if he does not end his holdout this week. Snead said the team has tried to “come up with creative scenarios” regarding Donald’s contract, but refused to get into specifics on the negotiations.
Donald, 26, is slated to earn $3.225MM in 2017 and $6.892MM in 2018 through the fifth-year option. It’s not exactly chump change, but Donald is willing to miss game checks and take his holdout into the regular season, if necessary.
Donald may be looking for a deal that tops Ndamukong Suh‘s six-year, $114MM pact, making him the league’s highest paid defensive tackle. The Rams, meanwhile, want to avoid setting a bad precedent by caving into a holdout. Because Donald is such an exceptional talent, L.A. might be able to make an exception in this case without setting the wrong tone for others down the road.
Ravens Cut Bobby Rainey, Larry Donnell
The Ravens are getting a head start on their roster cuts. On Friday, they released both running back Bobby Rainey and tight end Larry Donnell. 
Rainey was signed in late July and it was believed that he had a chance to make the team following Kenneth Dixon‘s season ending injury. Despite getting positive reviews from coaches this summer and performing well in preseason action against the Saints on Thursday night, the veteran is being shown the door. Rainey’s most notable pro seasons came with the Buccaneers in 2013 and 2014, as he rushed for more than 400 yards in each year. Despite his age (he’ll turn 30 in October), Rainey could still hold appeal for other clubs thanks to his experience and pass catching acumen.
Donnell was also signed to fill a major gap for the Ravens, but he did not earn a spot despite the losses of Dennis Pitta and Crockett Gillmore. Ben Watson, Maxx Williams, and Nick Boyle are now set to serve as the team’s top three tight ends heading into Week 1.
Broncos Trade Ty Sambrailo To Falcons
The Broncos have traded offensive tackle Ty Sambrailo to the Falcons for a 2018 fifth-round pick, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
Sambrailo is the third notable offensive tackle to be traded for a fifth-round pick this week. The Browns got the ball rolling when they sent former FSU standout Cameron Erving to the Chiefs. The next day, the Lions shipped Laken Tomlinson to the Niners for a 2019 fifth-rounder. Erving and Tomlinson were both former first-round picks. Sambrailo was a second-round choice.
Sambrailo was fighting for his roster spot this year and, apparently, he didn’t do enough in camp to prove worthy of significant playing time. This year, the Broncos spent a first-rounder on tackle Garett Bolles and added Menelik Watson on a three-year, $18.3MM deal in free agency.
Sambrailo projects to be the Falcons’ first swing tackle off the bench, ahead of August addition Austin Pasztor. Rookie Sean Harlow and second-year man Wes Schweitzer will be the primary support for starting guards for Andy Levitre and Ben Garland.
Le’Veon Bell Reports To Steelers
As expected, Le’Veon Bell reported to the Steelers on Friday morning. He’ll sign his franchise tender, meaning that he’ll play out the 2017 season for $12.12MM. 
Had Bell waited until after Saturday’s roster deadline to show up to team headquarters, he could have put his first two game checks in jeopardy. The Steelers, in theory, would have had the option to place him on the roster exempt list through Week 1, meaning that the two sides would have to negotiate his pay for that period. That was unlikely to happen, but the running back now knows for sure that he will collect his full $711K payout for each game.
Bell turned down a multi-year extension offer prior to this year’s deadline that would have paid him $60MM over a five-year term (assuming the Steelers kept him for the full span of the deal). Depending on who you ask, Bell’s camp may have agreed to the deal before 86’ing it at the last minute.
If Bell turns in another strong year, he’ll force the Steelers to tag him again for $14MM, make him a lucrative extension offer, or allow him to test the open market as an unrestricted free agent. If he falters or gets injured, he may regret turning down the $60MM deal.
Extra Points: Luck, Colts, Manziel, Kaepernick, RG3
In speaking with reporters on Thursday night, Colts owner Jim Irsay indicated that Andrew Luck is unlikely to suit up for Week 1, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (Twitter link). Interestingly, Irsay also insinuated that the matter is now more in Luck’s head rather than his shoulder.
Whether it’s mental or not, it sounds like the Colts will be without their No. 1 QB when they face the Rams on Sept. 10. Meanwhile, the Rams could be without their best defensive player.
Here’s more from around the NFL:
- Johnny Manziel‘s recent audition for the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats went well enough for the team to maintain interest in the troubled quarterback. Manziel and the Tiger-Cats continue to discuss a contract, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Manziel “very much wants” to sign with the Tiger-Cats or another Canadian club, as he regards the CFL as a good avenue to return to competitive football, a source suggested to Fowler. Hamilton owns Manziel’s CFL rights, and if he decides to immigrate to that league, the Tiger-Cats would have a 10-day window to sign the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner or trade him. The 24-year-old Manziel last played in a game on Dec. 27, 2015, when he was with the Browns.
- Speaking of high-profile, out-of-work signal-callers, NFL teams are not blackballing Colin Kaepernick over his political activism, anonymous executives and a coach who spoke with Albert Breer of The MMQB insist. The general belief among the group is that both Kaepernick and Robert Griffin III would have jobs if teams believed they could truly help. There are worse QBs (particularly backups) around the league than those two, but clubs are more comfortable with how their current reserves fit their offenses than either Kaepernick or RG3 would.
- It would have been “negligent” for Pittsburgh to not look into signing cornerback Joe Haden after the Browns released him Wednesday, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert told reporters, including Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Steelers added Haden shortly after the Browns parted with the eighth-year man. While Haden’s effectiveness has faded in recent seasons, the Steelers regard him as a “capable starter” and the type of player who’s not typically available in late August, per Colbert.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Vikings To Put Teddy Bridgewater On PUP
The Vikings are expected to keep quarterback Teddy Bridgewater on the PUP list for six games, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. This means that the Vikings haven’t ruled out the possibility of him playing in 2017. 
[RELATED: Dolphins Considered Teddy Bridgewater]
If placed on PUP, Bridgewater will be shelved for the first six weeks of the season. After that point, if he’s healthy enough, he can return to the active roster as Sam Bradford‘s understudy. Even if Bradford stays healthy and productive, that could be a significant development for Bridgewater. It is believed that Bridgewater can avoid having his contract toll if he does not miss the entire 2017 season. If he does miss the year, then the Vikings will be able to keep him under contract through 2018 as a part of his rookie deal.
In May, it was reported that Bridgewater would fight a PUP designation if he believed he could pass a physical. It’s not clear if Bridgewater can get a medical green light at this point, nor do we know whether that’s still his intent.
Ezekiel Elliott Accuses NFL Of “Conspiracy”
Things just keep getting uglier in Ezekiel Elliott‘s fight with the league office. The Cowboys’ star running back has filed suit against the NFL in Texas federal court, alleging that he is the victim of a “league-orchestrated conspiracy…to hide critical information” from commissioner Roger Goodell and other key decision makers. 
Elliott’s camp argues that the league’s director of investigations, Kia Roberts, found accuser Tiffany Thompson to be “not credible” in her allegations and saw little evidence to support her claims. His team alleges that the league then kept Roberts away from meetings in which experts made recommendations to Goodell. Furthermore, Roberts chronicled her concerns about Thompson in an internal memo entitled “Tiffany Thompson Inconsistency Transcripts,” a league source told Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports.
The NFL denies any wrongdoing.
“They’re trying to create a grand conspiracy story where none exists,” league spokesman Joe Lockhart told Tom Pelissero of NFL.com.
Lockhart says there is no truth to allegations that the league kept Roberts’ concerns away from Goodell. In fact, he says the commissioner was aware of her doubts heading into the aforementioned meetings. At the same time, Lockhart says that it is not common for someone in Roberts’ role to make a disciplinary recommendation.
“In fact, at Kia’s level, she wouldn’t, and she didn’t [make a recommendation for discipline],” Lockhart said. “She made her point of view on particularly the credibility issues known in the report; they are reflected in the report. It is the commissioner and the commissioner’s sole role to decide on discipline. In fact, the union filed a grievance to force him not to delegate the decision [on disciplinary decisions].”
Jaguars Cut RB DuJuan Harris
DuJuan Harris‘ time with the Jaguars did not last long. The team released the running back on Friday morning, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. 
Harris, 29 on Sunday, inked a deal with Jacksonville on Aug. 20. He had a grand total of seven carries for 26 yards in the preseason and had zero receptions. He held down the fort while rookie Leonard Fournette and T.J. Yeldon dealt with injuries, but both players should be ready to go for Week 1, which meant that Harris was no longer needed.
Last year, Harris totaled 38 carries for 138 yards (3.6 YPC) for the Niners, adding eight catches for 115 yards and a TD. The 49ers re-signed him to a one-year deal in March but released him just a few weeks later.
Dolphins, T.J. McDonald Discussing Extension
The Dolphins signed T.J. McDonald to a one-year deal this past offseason to bolster their secondary. They’re so happy with their decision to add the safety that they’re already discussing an extension with his representatives, Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald writes. 
McDonald, 26, has thrived over the last few months. He won’t be in action until the ninth game of the season thanks to his substance abuse suspension, but he has impressed the Dolphins by flashing the skills that made him a four-year starter with the Rams.
Last year, McDonald had 62 total tackles, two interceptions, one sack, and six passes defensed for Los Angeles, but the Rams did not show any interest in re-signing him. He graded out as as Pro Football Focus’ No. 58 safety.
McDonald projects to start opposite strong safety Reshad Jones when he is in the lineup. In the interim, Nate Allen will hold down the fort at free safety.