Ezekiel Elliott Rumors: Thursday
On Thursday afternoon, a hearing convened on the Ezekiel Elliott injunction that wasn’t originally supposed to happen. Reportedly, Elliott’s camp saw the hearing, which was not an automatic to happen, as a positive.
Here’s the latest on that hearing and where things stand for the Cowboys’ star running back:
- The hearing ended after 30 minutes without a decision and there is no timetable for a ruling (Twitter link via Dan Graziano of ESPN.com). If no ruling comes down by the end of the business day on Friday, Elliott will presumably in action on Sunday against the Falcons.
- If the next ruling does go in the NFL’s favor, his six-game ban will start immediately. “The moment the stay is lifted, the suspension is enforced,” league spokesman Joe Lockhart said (via the Dallas News’ David Moore). “Whatever time that happens, it’s enforced. If the result is some extension to hear further arguments, the suspension is stayed. This is very much in the court’s hands right now. They will dictate when the suspension will start.”
- The judges asked the NFLPA what difference it would have made to have Elliott’s accuser testify at the arbitration hearing, as requested by Elliott’s camp (Twitter link via Kate Hairopoulos of the Dallas Morning News).
- They also wondered how NFL investigators could suspend Elliott on a “credible evidence” standard when they admitted to finding credibility issues with the accuser (Twitter links). The league replied that the credibility issues were about only two of the five alleged incidents and Elliott was not punished for those.
Extra Points: Bennett, Kaepernick, Goodell
Did Martellus Bennett quit on the Packers after Aaron Rodgers suffered a broken collarbone? That was the feeling in Green Bay, according to one source who spoke with Ryan Wood of USA Today. Wood also indicates that the Packers took Bennett’s decision to retire after the season as a sign that he was already checked out and that may have led the team to release him here in November.
Bennett, one of the most sought-after free agents of the offseason, is now available for any team to claim off of waivers. It is expected that he will go unclaimed, but teams may consider signing him once he is available as a free agent.
While we wait to see how that plays out, here’s from around the NFL:
- NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart says contract negotiations with commissioner Roger Goodell have been “productive [and] amicable” and he expects “that they’ll be wrapped up soon,” (Twitter link via Lindsay Jones of USA Today). Lockhart also noted that owners voted, 32-0, to authorize the compensation committee to negotiate a five-year contract extension with Goodell (Twitter link via Mark Maske of The Washington Post). Of course, that unanimous vote includes Cowboys owner Jerry Jones who is reportedly threatening to sue the NFL over the pending Goodell deal. Goodell is said to be “furious” about Jones’ actions, but Lockhart tells reporters that is not the case.
- Colin Kaepernick attorney Mark Geragos will have the leeway to ask NFL owners about a great deal in the collusion case, as detailed by Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports. His line of questioning could include past high-profile disciplinary cases including the Ezekiel Elliott investigation, Deflategate, and Ray Rice. Meanwhile, those in the know like retired Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Peter Lichtman (now one of the top arbitrators in California) say that Geragos is a force to be reckoned with.
- The NFL says that Kaepernick recently declined an invite to meet one-on-one with Goodell, but Geragos says that’s not the case (link via Robinson). “We responded immediately [to the Oct. 31 invite] that Colin would be happy to attend,” Geragos said of a personal meeting with Goodell. “Because of the grievance we asked that a mediator be present. A mediator would ensure that the discussions were productive and confidential and not used as a public relations stunt or prop by the league. Colin’s proposal was rejected.” Lockhart, meanwhile, says the lawyer’s claim is “disingenuous.”
AFC Notes: Browns, Gordon, Jets, McCown
Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon was asked this week about whether he wants to continue his career in Cleveland. He didn’t exactly give a straight-on answer.
“I’m here to help the team win, that’s my first priority,” Gordon said (video link via ESPN.com). “Being the best football player I can be, that comes first and foremost. Anything else after that, I have no control over. I’m here to help this team win and I’ll do that the best way I know how.”
With the trade deadline in the rear view mirror, we know that Gordon will be in Cleveland at least until the end of the year. The Browns are working to get the newly-reinstated receiver ready in time for their Week 13 clash against the Chargers. If he plays well, it’s possible that the Browns could shop him to interested teams.
Here’s more from the AFC:
- Jets GM Mike Maccagnan won’t rule out bringing Josh McCown back as the starting quarterback in 2018. “We’re just midway thorugh this season. We’ll see how the rest of this season plays itself out. But again, I can only speak very highly of what Josh has brought to this organization not only as a player, but as a person,” the GM said (via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY). Next year, McCown will be 39 years old. Although he is playing well this year, it would be surprising if the Jets do not try and upgrade the quarterback position to better position themselves for the future. If McCown would be willing to sign another one-year deal with something similar to his $5MM base, however, he could once again serve as a “bridge” to whoever the Jets’ next signal caller will be.
- Bengals coach Marvin Lewis told Sirius XM that right tackle Jake Fisher has an irregular heartbeat that will need a procedure to be corrected (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Katherine Terrell). Lewis added that doctors recommend no contact sports for a while. Fisher was placed on the NFI list on Wednesday but did not disclose his condition at the time.
East Notes: Giants, McAdoo, McDaniels, Dolphins
Has Ben McAdoo lost control of the Giants? Two unnamed players told Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link) that McAdoo is no longer the right coach in New York.
“McAdoo has lost this team,” one of the anonymous players said. “He’s got going 80 percent on Saturdays before we get on a plane to play a game, it’s wild. Changed our off day. He’s dishing out fines like crazy. Suspended two of our stars when we need them most. Throws us under the bus all the time. He’s ran us into the ground and people wonder why we’ve been getting got.”
The Giants are 1-7 heading into Sunday’s game against San Francisco.
Here’s more from the East divisions:
- If the Giants fire McAdoo, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY speculates that Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will be among those considered for the job. If GM Jerry Reese is also canned, the Giants could move to put together an ex-Pats tandem of Scott Pioli and McDaniels. Of course, it will take a lot to lure McDaniels away from New England where he might be the eventual successor to Bill Belichick. Besides McDaniels, Vacchiano lists Bucs defensive coordinator Mike Smith, Alabama coach Nick Saban, Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley, Eagles OC Frank Reich, Stanford coach David Shaw, and Lions DC Teryl Austin as other names to keep in mind.
- The Jay Ajayi trade was puzzling to some within the Dolphins organization, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald hears. One Dolphins person who in the locker room frequently said he never saw malcontent behavior from Ajayi.
- Practice squad quarterback Brandon Doughty was passed over for a promotion a couple of weeks ago when the Dolphins signed David Fales as a backup. But, the team made it up by giving him a raise from $7,200/week to $15,200/week, Jackson writes. “It was a good raise,” Doughty said, adding he appreciated it. “He put his money where his mouth is. He said he wanted a veteran backup with experience. At the end of the day, you want to be on the 53.” Doughty is in his second year with Miami.
- Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has threatened to sue the NFL over Roger Goodell‘s pending extension.
Saints’ Delvin Breaux Done For Year
Cornerback Delvin Breaux will remain on injured reserve this year, Saints coach Sean Payton tells reporters. This was the expected news after Breaux suffered an undisclosed setback in practice last week. 
In October, the Saints designated Breaux to return from IR. He began practicing on Oct. 20, triggering a three-week window for the team to place him on the 53-man roster. His new issue will reportedly require an extra 3-6 weeks of recovery, so the Saints simply could not have him tie up a roster spot for that long.
Breaux was stellar in 2015, grading out as a high-end starter per Pro Football Focus’ metrics. Although he could not deliver an encore in 2016, the Saints were very much looking forward to getting him back on the field to see what he could contribute.
Breaux’s three-year UDFA contract with the Saints will expire after the season. The former CFL standout was hoping to to use this season as a platform year to cash in, but he’ll have to prove himself in workouts instead.
Colts Cut CB Vontae Davis
The Colts have cut Vontae Davis, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The defensive back will be subject to waivers since the league’s trade deadline has passed. 
It has been a perplexing couple of weeks for Davis. First, Davis was withheld from Sunday’s game against the Texans for reasons that were not exactly clear. The Colts swore up and down that Davis’ absence was not injury-related. Afterwards, there were conflicting reports. Some indicated that the Colts were covering up Davis’ previously unreported groin injury. There was also talk that Davis had been demoted from the starting lineup and was not taking the news well. Then, on Wednesday night, we learned that Davis’ season is likely over thanks to the aforementioned groin issue.
Given everything going on with the 29-year-old, we’re not expecting another team to claim him and the final year of his four-year, $36MM contract. Once he passes through waivers, Davis will still have to determine whether he wants to go through with season-ending surgery and teams will have to figure out whether it’s worthwhile to bring him into the locker room after things deteriorated so quickly in Indianapolis.
If he doesn’t get the surgery, the Bills might be one team to keep in mind for Davis. Buffalo showed interest in acquiring the veteran before the trade deadline, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter).
Although Davis’ entire body of work has been impressive, he has looked like a shell of himself over the last season-and-a-half. He currently rates as the NFL’s No. 94 cornerback out of 117 qualifiers, according to Pro Football Focus. Last year, PFF had Davis as one of the ten worst qualified corners in the league. It’s a major drop for a player who earned an excellent 95.1 overall score in 2014 and followed it up with a strong 81.9 mark in ’15.
2018 NFL Free Agents
Pro Football Rumors’ up-to-date list of 2018 NFL free agents is below. These are players who are eligible for restricted or unrestricted free agency after the 2017 season. The player’s 2018 age is in parentheses. Players are generally sorted by the position at which they played most in ’17, or the position at which their most recent team listed them.
Players who are currently on an NFL roster but don’t have a contract for 2018 are listed below, along with a few other notable free agents who aren’t on a roster at the moment.
Players eligible for restricted free agency are marked with (R), while franchise and transition players will be marked with (F) and (T) respectively. Exclusive rights free agents are not included. All other free agents are assumed to be unrestricted.
If you have any corrections or omissions, please contact us. For instant free agent updates, be sure to follow us on Twitter @pfrumors.
Updated 11-26-18 (2:58pm CT)
Quarterbacks
Sam Bradford (31)
Trevone Boykin (25)
Kellen Clemens (35)
Austin Davis (29)
Chad Kelly (24)
Josh Johnson (32)
Landry Jones (29)
Paxton Lynch (24)
Ryan Mallett (30)
EJ Manuel (28)
Matt McGloin (28)
Kellen Moore (30)
Matt Moore (34)
Scott Tolzien (31)
Running Backs
C.J. Anderson (27)
Joe Banyard (29)
Brice Butler (28)
Jamaal Charles (31)
Orleans Darkwa (26)
Lance Dunbar (28)
Andre Ellington (29)
Kenneth Farrow (25)
Tyler Gaffney (27)
Mike Gillislee (28)
Mike James (27)
Matt Jones (25)
Eddie Lacy (27)
Christine Michael (27)
Branden Oliver (27)
Cedric Peerman (32)
Bobby Rainey (31)
Thomas Rawls (25)
Bishop Sankey (26)
Charles Sims (28)
De’Anthony Thomas (25)
Jordan Todman (28)
Mike Tolbert (32)
Fitzgerald Toussaint (28)
Robert Turbin (28)
Terron Ward (26)
Charcandrick West (27)
Terrance West (27)
Andre Williams (26)
Kerwynn Williams (27)
Read more
Colts CB Vontae Davis Likely Done For Year
Cornerback Vontae Davis may have played his last game for the Colts, as the veteran defensive back — and pending free agent — is likely to undergo season-ending surgery on his injured groin, according to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.
Davis’ injury situation has been riddled with controversy, as Colts head coach Chuck Pagano indicated Davis’ inactivation — which the cornerback refers to as a “demotion” — was simply a personnel decision based on performance. While the issue may seem minor, Davis indicated that his recent poor play is a result of his health questions.
“I’ve been here six years,” Davis said, per a separate piece from Holder. “We’ve had similar situations where I played hurt. These things happen. And I never got confronted and (no one) said, ‘Your play has slipped.’ Nothing. I was playing at a level that was acceptable.But now, my play slips and this? They should have come to me way earlier and said, ‘Vontae, you’re not yourself. You’re not playing well.’ I told the trainers my groin was not responding.”
“It should be more about the respect. I’m a professional,” Davis continued. “I’ve been in (the league) long enough. When I look at the situation, I feel like there was no respect. Knowing Chuck, I figured it would come from him. It really bothered me. I just figured it would be handled differently just knowing our (relationship). That’s the frustrating part. I felt like I was demoted for my (health). That’s the thing. If I get demoted and it’s because I can’t play, I would just say, ‘I (freaking) suck.’”
Regardless of how the situation was handled, there’s no question that Davis has struggled over the past two seasons. Following an entirely successful career that topped out with Pro Bowl appearances in 2014-15, Davis hasn’t played well since 2016. This year, he’s played on roughly half of Indianapolis’ snaps and graded as the league’s No. 94 cornerback among 117 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus.
Davis is a free agent at season’s end, and while his relationship (whether positive or negative) with Pagano may not matter much given that the Colts could have a new head coach next year, Indy could certainly move on from Davis, whom they acquired via trade in 2012. Entering his second campaign as general manager, Chris Ballard may opt to secure younger options on the defensive side of the ball.
NFL Workout Updates: 11/8/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:
Chicago Bears
- WR Rodney Smith; TEs Josiah Price, Beau Sandland (link)
Kansas City Chiefs
- WRs Alonzo Russell, Noel Thomas, Paul Turner; CB Will Redmond (link)
Los Angeles Chargers
- G Jake Eldrenkamp; C Anthony Fabiano (link)
New England Patriots
- S Lorenzo Jerome (link)
New York Giants
- LBs Akeem Ayers, Chris Casher, Jayrone Elliott, Boseko Lokombo (link via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com)
Philadelphia Eagles
- LSs Andrew East, Jimmy Landes, Jeff Overbaugh (link)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- RBs Dare Ogunbowale, Kalif Phillips; CB Sojourn Shelton; S Jack Tocho (link)
Roger Goodell “Furious” Over Contract Delay
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is reportedly “furious” over the league’s insistence that he accept a contract that includes performance-based incentives that could still allow him to reach his prior salaries, according to Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham of ESPN.com.
A potential Goodell extension has been in the works for months, but has been consistently delayed — the latest hurdle, of course, is Cowboys owner Jerry Jones‘ threat to sue the NFL over Goodell’s contract. At least one source tells the ESPN scribes that Jones’ lawsuit is simply a “scare tactic,” although Jones could hope to change rules that currently require only two-thirds of NFL owners to approve a Goodell extension. Jones reportedly wants a new deal to be signed off on by three-fourths of the league’s owners.
Jones had essentially been acting as an “ad hoc” member of the NFL’s compensation committee, but that group has since removed his access. Still, Jones believes four to five owners agree that Goodell should be replaced as commissioner, while another 12-15 owners are “on the fence.” Jones, though, reportedly has his own candidate in mind to serve as the league’s next commissioner, a fact that may have lessened his support.
Goodell, meanwhile, has earned in excess of $200MM since taking over as NFL commissioner in 2006, and isn’t interested in accepting a pay reduction. “He feels as if the owners have made a lot of money and he should be compensated accordingly,” a source tells Van Natta and Wickersham. “The incentives thing really angers him.”
While Goodell is seemingly under fire, other reports have indicated his situation isn’t quite as dire — Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reports (Twitter link) Goodell’s extension is still a “certainty,” adding Jones has “maybe three” owners on his side.