HEADLINES

Month: September 2019

AFC Notes: Glenn, Robinson, Haden, Harris

September 8th, 2019 at 1:34pm CST by cwcrouse

Bengals left tackle Cordy Glenn has been ruled out of the team’s Week 1 game, Ben Baby of ESPN.com relays. Back-up left tackle Andre Smith will take over duties and will face a fearsome defensive front in Seattle that includes newcomers Ziggy Ansah and Jadeveon Clowney.

Here’s more from the AFC:

  • Jaguars LT Cam Robinson is not playing vs. the Chiefs but it’s not the knee that he recently had surgery on that’s keeping him out, as Phillip Heilman of The Athletic relays (Twitter links). Robinson’s right knee is now the issue.
  • Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (Twitter link) has details on Joe Haden‘s extension with the Steelers. The pact comes with a signing bonus of $13.8MM.
  • Don’t expect an extension for Broncos CB Chris Harris anytime soon. Troy Renck of ABC Denver (Twitter link) hears that an extension is not in the team’s plans right now, as John Elway & Co. will wait until the offseason to handle the matter.

 

NFC Notes: Inactives, Peterson, Evans, Jones

September 8th, 2019 at 11:17am CST by PFR Staff

Adrian Peterson will not suit up vs. the Eagles today, as Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com report. Redskins coach Jay Gruden has made it clear that Derrius Guice will be the starter and handle most of the rushing work.

Some of Peterson’s teammates aren’t happy that he’s a healthy scratch, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The future Hall-of-Famer is regarded by some as the best back on the team and many members of the Redskins believed that come week 1, the question would be how many carries Guice would be taking away from Peterson and not whether Peterson would be suiting up.

Washington gave Peterson a $1.5MM signing bonus and another $1MM to re-sign with the club this offseason. No word if the team has plans to trade or release him.

Here’s more from the NFC:

  • TE Jordan Reed is among the other inactives for the Redskins, John Keim of ESPN.com tweets. QB Colt McCoy will also not suit up.
  • Mike Evans and Devin White will both play for the Buccaneers today, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The pair were listed as questionable heading into the contest will illnesses.
  • CB Byron Jones won’t start for the Cowboys today, Schefter adds in a separate tweet. Jones will play, but he’ll be limited as he is still recovering from offseason hip surgery.
  • RT Marcus Gilbert will not play for the Cardinals today, as Darren Urban relays on the team’s website. Gilbert is nursing a knee injury.

Several Teams Had Interest In Antonio Brown

September 8th, 2019 at 10:18am CST by PFR Staff

Several teams were interested in signing Antonio Brown prior to him agreeing to a deal with the Patriots, Chris Mortensen reports on ESPN. Mort lists the Seahawks and Browns among the teams that were eyeing the wide receiver. QB Russell Wilson worked out with Brown during the offseason.

As a vested veteran, Brown was not subjected to waivers, meaning he was able to sign anywhere he pleased once the Raiders released him. Here’s more on the Brown-saga:

  • The Patriots attempted to trade for Brown back in March but the Steelers rebuffed those inquiries as they didn’t want to send him to a rival, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. New England was willing to give up picks for him then but now, after the signing him as a free agent, they were able to land Brown without surrendering compensation.
  • According to Mortensen (above link), the Patriots were willing to give the Steelers a first-round pick for Brown during the offseason. Pittsburgh ultimately didn’t want to trade Brown to a place they would have to face him.
  • Antonio Brown sought advice from social media consultants on how he could accelerate his release from the Raiders, per Mortensen (same link). Posting the letter from GM Mike Mayock that stated he would be fined was among the moves Brown made on social media leading up to his release.
  • Brown could be suspended by the league office, as we passed along on Saturday. It was reported that the Raiders were considering suspending him prior to him finding his way to the free agent market.

Latest On Negotiations Between Dak Prescott, Cowboys

September 8th, 2019 at 8:56am CST by cwcrouse

Dak Prescott and the Cowboys are not expected to have a deal completed before the team plays its week 1 game against the Giants later today.

Prescott isn’t rushing to sign a new contract, as he’ll instead wait to receive what he deems as a fair one. The quarterback isn’t too worried about the potential risk for injury, as he has loss of value and disability insurance policies that are valued at over $50MM, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Prescott also has several multi-year endorsements.

“Obviously I want to see it done,” Prescott previously said. “To put a time frame on it, I think I’ve said this before, I’m not going to do that. At this point my focus is all on the Giants and the Giants defense and what this team needs to do to win the game. And next week it will roll to the next opponent. I don’t want to blur my mind or distract myself any with thinking about those talks or thinking about what’s going on when I’ve got enough on my plate to handle. So I’m just focused on the Giants and I’ve got people to take care of [the contract].”

The team would like to get a deal done before the game, though they’ll continue negotiations through the season if they can’t accomplish that goal. Should Prescott and the Cowboys not come to a deal before the offseason, the franchise tag would be a possibility for the quarterback. The two sides are undergoing negotiations this morning, as David Moore of the Dallas Morning News tweets.

Chargers’ Melvin Gordon Plans To Report

September 8th, 2019 at 8:21am CST by cwcrouse

The Chargers remain without Melvin Gordon as the running back is holding out for a new contract. Sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com that Gordon will not sit out the entire season like Le’Veon Bell did last year. Instead, he plans to report between Weeks 6 and 8. 

Gordon will play on the $5.6MM fifth-year option of his contract this season, though that amount will be prorated based on how many games he plays. He must report before Week 10 in order to qualify for free agency next season.

Gordon’s plan to sit out for up to half of the season is a risk management tactic, as he wants to mitigate the chances of injury heading into free agency. He’s missed nine games because of injuries in his four years, though he’s played hurt in several games.

Los Angeles has already fined Gordon over $1MM and previously gave him permission to seek a trade. The Eagles were among the interested teams in his services, though the Chargers found their offer underwhelming. Austin Ekeler and Justin Jackson will split touches while Gordon is away.

NFL Workout Updates: 9/7/19

September 7th, 2019 at 9:33pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We’ve got another big batch of workouts, all courtesy of veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (on Twitter).

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Texans could be looking for specialist help, as they worked out a pair of punters and a longsnapper. Boddy-Calhoun, who worked out for the Vikings, is probably the biggest name on this list. He started at least seven games for the Browns each of the past three seasons, but was released by Houston at final cuts.

Latest On Antonio Brown

September 7th, 2019 at 8:56pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

One of the weirdest opening weeks in recent memory is starting to wind down, and a full slate of regular season games is right around the corner. Before that though, we have one more batch of notes on Antonio Brown. The All-Pro receiver is a member of the Patriots now, and there will surely be more fallout to come as the dust settles. Brown was on the open market for just a few hours before inking a one-year deal with New England, and the defending champions now have one of the best group of skill position players in the league.

Here’s the latest on the star of the 2019 offseason:

  • First off we have more details on his new contract, courtesy of Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. It was initially reported that Brown’s deal would be worth “up to” $15MM, and include a $9MM signing bonus. Per Schefter, there’s only $1MM in guaranteed money besides the signing bonus. The other $5MM is incentives, he reports.
  • The Raiders ultimately didn’t suspend Brown over his confrontation with GM Mike Mayock, and the Patriots obviously won’t be suspending him. That doesn’t mean he is out of the woods entirely though, as Brown could apparently be suspended by the league office for a Personal Conduct Policy violation. A league spokesman declined to comment on the matter, per Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, who notes the policy specifically prohibits “[v]iolent or threatening behavior toward another employee or a third party in any workplace.” If the league finds that Brown threatened Mayock as some have reported, he could be slapped with a suspension.
  • The Patriots raised a lot of eyebrows by giving Brown a $9MM signing bonus given his recent erratic behavior. Teams can usually recoup 25 percent of a signing bonus if something goes wrong, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (Twitter link). La Canfora wonders whether the Patriots asked for different language in the contract to protect them further in the event that things go off the rails like they did in Oakland.
  • The Raiders voided Brown’s guarantees before releasing him, and there have been rumblings that Brown might pursue a grievance to try to recoup some of that money. Even if his agent Drew Rosenhaus does pursue the grievance and it is successful, he won’t be getting all that money back. Brown’s deal with Oakland contained offset language, so “the $9 million signing bonus he’ll get from the Patriots — and any other money he earns as a player in 2019 and 2020 — reduces the amount he could pursue in a potential grievance over his voided guarantees,” Tom Pelissero of NFL Network tweets. As such, it doesn’t seem like the grievance will be very high-stakes, if it gets filed at all. 

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/7/19

September 7th, 2019 at 8:09pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Today’s practice squad moves:

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

Seattle Seahawks

The big name here is Jones, who now has a new home after getting cut by the Chargers. The former Ohio State star was drafted by the Bills in the fourth-round back in 2016, then traded to Los Angeles after a year. He spent last season on the practice squad, then lost out to Easton Stick in the competition to be the Chargers’ third-string passer this summer. The Seahawks had room for a developmental quarterback after waiving Paxton Lynch.

Free Agent OL Rod Taylor Suspended 4 Games

September 7th, 2019 at 7:48pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Free agent Rod Taylor has been dealt a blow in his quest to get back in the league. The young offensive lineman has been suspended four games, according to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (Twitter link).

It’s unclear what the ban is for, although a four-game suspension is often for violations related to banned substances of PEDs. Taylor entered the league last year as a seventh-round pick of the Bengals. He missed his entire rookie season after tearing his ACL on the first day of training camp in late July. The team was apparently confident he was going to make the roster before the injury, but they didn’t like what he looked like when he returned.

Back on June 10th the Bengals cut him, and we haven’t heard of any interest since. As a senior at Ole Miss in 2017, Taylor started all 12 games at right tackle. Cincinnati had converted him to a guard before he went down. Perhaps he’ll be able to latch on somewhere in a few weeks when he’s done serving his suspension.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/7/19

September 7th, 2019 at 7:10pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Here are today’s minor moves on the eve of regular season openers:

Arizona Cardinals

Cleveland Browns

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Redskins

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