5 Key NFL Stories: 11/3/19-11/10/19
Trent Williams saga: The drama with Williams and the Redskins took a few turns this week, and the team ended up placing the left tackle on the NFI list, ending his season. Williams blasted the team and said there was no hope of reconciliation between the two sides, and Washington elected not to pay him any of his remaining salary for 2019. Williams was placed on the NFI list because he is unable to wear a helmet without pain, stemming from surgery he had to remove a growth on his head that turned out to be cancerous. Williams contends that Redskins doctors told him the growth was just a harmless cyst, and told him not to get it removed for years. A grievance could be in the works.
Derwin James to return in Week 13: The Chargers suffered a brutal loss on Thursday Night Football against the Raiders, but they did get some good news this week. Their star safety is apparently set to return in Week 13 following the team’s bye. When James is healthy, the Chargers have one of the league’s more talented defenses. The AFC is very muddled at the moment, so Los Angeles could still be very much alive in the playoff race when James returns.
Panthers place Cam Newton on IR: The Panthers officially pulled the plug on Newton’s 2019 season, placing their longtime franchise quarterback on injured reserve. Newton was initially only expected to miss a few weeks when he was shutdown because of his foot injury, but he has been unable to relieve the pain. With Newton on the shelf, it’ll be Kyle Allen under center the rest of the way. Earlier this morning we heard that Newton was considering surgery, and that he’s likely to be traded this offseason. It’s looking like we’ve seen Newton take his last snap as a Panther.
Desean Jackson to IR: Speaking of guys getting shutdown, Jackson was placed on injured reserve as well. He could come back for a playoff run technically, but that seems unlikely. Jackson will end his Philly return campaign having just played in just one full game. He had eight catches for 154 yards and two touchdowns in that game, and the Eagles’ offense just hasn’t looked the same without him in the lineup.
Seahawks considered Antonio Brown: The Seahawks ended up claiming Josh Gordon off waivers, but they apparently considered bringing in a different big-name receiver. Earlier this week we heard that the Seahawks kicked the tires internally on adding Brown before ultimately adding Gordon. Apparently Russell Wilson was lobbying for Brown to join Seattle, which would’ve been highly entertaining if nothing else. Despite the Seahawks’ interest, the most recent report indicated that Brown isn’t going to play in 2019.
Chiefs’ Emmanuel Ogbah Has Torn Pec
The Chiefs are suddenly struggling, and they suffered a huge injury during their loss to the Titans on Sunday. Defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah tore his pec, head coach Andy Reid announced after the game.
He will almost certainly miss the rest of the season. Ogbah had been playing a huge role and was playing well, so this is a big loss. Ogbah had 5.5 sacks on the year before going down, which was easily the most on the team. A second-round pick of the Browns back in 2016, he was shipped from Cleveland to Kansas City in April. Fellow pass-rusher Frank Clark said after the game that he has been dealing with a pinched nerve in his neck which slowed him down.
Clark was questionable for the game, and the Chiefs’ defensive front is now pretty banged up. Ogbah is in a contract year and will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, so the injury is especially brutal. Fortunately for him he likely showed enough through ten games to earn a relatively large payday in free agency.
Kansas City also had a couple of offensive line injuries during the game, and we’re awaiting updates on those. The Chiefs have lost four of their last six games, and are now only a half-game ahead of the Raiders for first place in the AFC West. Ogbah will be sorely missed during their divisional showdown against the Chargers next week on Monday Night Football in Mexico City.
NFC Notes: Giants, Panthers, Seahawks
The Seahawks waived rookie fourth-round pick Gary Jennings earlier this week, and many immediately speculated the Dolphins would claim the young receiver. That’s exactly what happened, and Miami was awarded the West Virginia product. If they hadn’t submitted a claim Jennings wouldn’t have tumbled very far though, as the Giants put in a claim for him as well, a source told Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The Giants are obviously toward the top of the waiver priority, and just barely missed him. With Sterling Shepard on the shelf for the foreseeable future, their interest makes plenty of sense. Jennings never appeared in a game for Seattle, and will likely see some run with the Dolphins, especially after Preston Williams‘ ACL tear.
Here’s more from the NFC on a quiet Friday night:
- Even without Cam Newton the Panthers are right in the thick of the playoff race, so they have to start thinking about some late-season moves. Carolina is apparently looking for a boost to their receiving corp, as the team plans on using one of their two injured reserve-return slots on receiver Chris Hogan, according to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic. Rodrigue notes that Hogan was out on the practice field on Wednesday. Hogan only had three catches through four games with his new team before getting put on IR.
- Speaking of late-season returns, Seahawks rookie Demarcus Christmas won’t be making one. Seattle declined to activate the defensive lineman off the PUP list meaning he will miss the rest of the season, according to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times (Twitter link). The Seahawks drafted the Florida State product in the sixth-round back in April, and he’ll officially be getting a redshirt year. Since he’s on PUP he isn’t allowed to practice, which means he’ll have a lot of catching up to do as he tries to crack the team next offseason.
- Alvin Kamara is officially back. Saints head coach Sean Payton announced Thursday that he expects to have his star running back on the field when New Orleans hosts the Falcons. Kamara has missed his team’s past two games as he dealt with knee and ankle issues. This will be the first time that Drew Brees and Kamara have shared the field since back in Week 2.
Extra Points: Coaches, Falk, Bibbs, Tevi
The 2019 NFL season is about halfway over (sorry for reminding you), and it won’t be long before everyone’s attention turns to the coaching carousel. It should be a busy cycle, with at least a handful of jobs opening up. The Redskins have already fired their head coach and several other teams, most obviously the Falcons, could do the same at any moment. But with several first-year head coaches disappointing, there’s also the chance we see some more ‘one and dones’ across the league. Steve Wilks, of course, was fired by the Cardinals after just one season this past cycle. With that in mind, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports took a look at all eight new head coaches, and which might be on the chopping block.
Despite the Bengals being 0-8 and the only winless team in the league, La Canfora doesn’t think Cincy owner Mike Brown would pull the plug on Zac Taylor given his penchant for loyalty. Brown gave Marvin Lewis nearly two decades, so that isn’t too surprising. Interestingly, La Canfora seems to float the possibility of a second Bruce Arians retirement after just one year in Tampa Bay. If the Buccaneers don’t show improvement and are forced to tear it all down, JLC wonders whether Arians would “want to endure a rebuild in 2020.” He adds that “this situation is being watched closely around the league.” La Canfora also seems to think there’s a real possibility the Jets and Browns move on from Adam Gase and Freddie Kitchens respectively, which isn’t all that shocking.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Just when you thought the Jets couldn’t get more dysfunctional, quarterback Luke Falk is filing an injury grievance against the team, sources told Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. New York cut Falk prior to Week 6 after he started two games for the team. Falk, who had a disastrous couple of outings under center, has a hip injury that requires surgery, sources told Mehta. Apparently Falk feels that the Jets released him outright instead of placing him on injured reserve to avoid paying him. Of course, the franchise is already dealing with an ongoing injury grievance filed by offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele.
- Free agent running back Kapri Bibbs has been suspended for one game, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. It’s unclear exactly what he was suspended for, but obviously it’s pretty minor for it to only be one game. After spending the first three years of his career with the Broncos, Bibbs has bounced around a bit. He finished last season with the Packers, and was cut by Green Bay back in June. He worked out for the Redskins last month, who he was with earlier last season. The pass-catching back received some decent run in a few random weeks with Washington in 2018, totaling 33 touches in ten games.
- The Chargers are going to be without starting right tackle Sam Tevi for a bit, as he underwent surgery on his knee to scope his meniscus, according to Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn said the injury isn’t season-ending, and that he’ll be back sooner rather than later. Trent Scott, a second-year UDFA, has been filling in. Scott has been dreadful in his place so Los Angeles could really use Tevi back, even though he has never been too solid either.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/8/19
Today’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Cole Luke
- Waived: DE Bryan Cox Jr.
Detroit Lions
- Released from IR: RB Tra Carson
Raiders To Sign D.J. Swearinger
Veteran safety D.J. Swearinger has found a new home. The Raiders are signing Swearinger to a deal, sources told Vic Tafur of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Oakland worked out Swearinger earlier this week, and apparently liked what they saw. With their win over the Chargers on Thursday Night Football the Raiders are now 5-4, and right in the thick of things in the AFC playoff hunt. Their secondary has lagged all season, so it’s not shocking that they’re bringing in some veteran help for the postseason push. Safety Karl Joseph also suffered a significant foot injury Thursday night, which might’ve contributed to this decision.
Swearinger has shown he’s capable of playing at a fairly high level in the past, but has often had falling outs with his coaching staffs. Originally drafted by the Texans in the second-round back in 2013, he was cut after just two seasons following disagreements with Bill O’Brien.
He has since spent time with the Buccaneers, the Cardinals on two different occasions, and the Redskins. After a public beef with Washington defensive coordinator Greg Manusky he was waived toward the end of last season, and claimed by Arizona. He played every snap through the first four games of this season with the Cardinals, but was then suddenly cut. Oakland’s secondary has been pretty banged up and promising rookie safety Johnathan Abram is on injured reserve, so they needed some depth at the position.
Latest On Trent Williams, Redskins
The Trent Williams story continues to get more complex by the hour, and we’ve got another batch of updates ready for you. Yesterday the Redskins placed Williams on the NFI list, ending his 2019 season. Early this morning Williams blasted the team and said there was no hope of reconciliation, and then just a few hours ago we heard Washington had decided not to pay the left tackle any of his salary for 2019.
Williams spoke with Dan Graziano of ESPN.com earlier today, and said that he underwent three surgeries this offseason but felt “football-ready” by Week 2 (Twitter link). Williams again confirmed to Graziano that he wants to play next season, saying “It’s what I do. I want to continue my Pro Bowl streak. I want to win a Super Bowl. I’ve got a lot of stuff I want to accomplish. I hate that I got derailed, but I’m blessed and I’m back. Looking for that helmet that can fit” (Twitter link).
When Williams ended his holdout and reported to the team, he said he couldn’t wear his helmet because of pain from the surgery to remove a cancerous growth on his head. Finally, Graziano tweeted that Williams didn’t sound too confident about winning a grievance to get some money back. Williams declined to say whether he’d be filing a grievance through the NFLPA but said “shoot, that’s their discretion. Non-football Illness, you know, it’s cancer, you can’t say it’s related to football. So I don’t know how much argument we have.”
However, Williams might have a case to make. He could argue that since Washington’s medical staff failed to advise him to remove the growth on his head earlier, they are at fault. And it’s possible the “failure to address the issue sooner makes the end result — Williams’ current inability to wear a helmet — a football injury and not a non-football injury,” writes Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. That being said, Florio writes that one source told him it will still be an “uphill battle” for Williams to get his current situation classified as a football injury.
Williams says team doctors repeatedly told him the growth on his head was just a harmless cyst over the years, which obviously turned out not to be true. That sounds like it could be grounds for a malpractice lawsuit, as Florio writes in a separate article. Florio also argues that it would “make sense for the team to offer to terminate his contract in exchange for a full and complete waiver and release of any and all claims,” since Williams has made it clear that he just wants to be released from his contract.
That could be the most sensible option for both sides, as Williams has made it clear he doesn’t want to go through a whole investigation, one that he says the Redskins would use to smear him. This saga is far from over, and it looks like things could get ugly as Washington has made it clear they don’t plan on budging anytime soon.
Derrius Guice Set To Return After Redskins’ Bye
It appears everything has gone smoothly in Redskins running back Derrius Guice‘s recovery. Washington has cut running back Craig Reynolds in order to clear the way for Guice’s return, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.
Guice missed his entire rookie season after tearing his ACL during the preseason, and complications from surgery prolonged his initial recovery. Everyone was excited to see what he would look like in 2019, but after carrying the ball ten times for 18 yards in Week 1, he was placed on injured reserve again with a knee issue. After missing the requisite eight games, it looks like he’s going to be ready to roll in Week 11 following Washington’s bye. He returned to practice recently.
Guice has had a lot of tough luck during his short time in the pros, and hopefully he’s able to stay healthy this time around. Guice was viewed by many as the second-best running back in the 2018 draft class behind Saquon Barkley, but he fell to the Redskins with the 59th pick amid rumors of off-field issues. It’ll be very interesting to see how interim Redskins coach Bill Callahan divides the playing time in his backfield moving forward.
Callahan has committed the team to running the ball a lot more, and has been pounding the rock with Adrian Peterson since he took over for Jay Gruden. Washington isn’t going anywhere this season, so they’ll likely be cautious with Guice at first. At the same time, they obviously want to see what they have in a young guy who has barely played in his first two seasons. Reynolds is an undrafted rookie from D-II school Kutztown, who was promoted from the practice squad a few weeks back.
Dolphins Waive Robert Nkemdiche
The Robert Nkemdiche experiment in Miami is done. The Dolphins are waiving the young defensive tackle, sources told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Nkemdiche is hitting the waiver wire after appearing in just two games with Miami, in which he played very limited snaps. When he originally signed with the team back in August there was a lot of talk about the former first-rounder jumpstarting his career, but that clearly never materialized. He started the season on the PUP list as he recovered from an ACL tear, and was activated less than two weeks ago. “Tardiness was a bit of an issue” for him in Miami, sources told Garafolo (Twitter link).
That’s certainly not a good sign for Nkemdiche’s future employment prospects, as he has faced questions about his conditioning and motivation in the past. The Cardinals drafted the Ole Miss product 29th overall back in 2016, and it didn’t take him too long to flame out in the desert.
The consensus top overall recruit coming out of high school in 2013, Nkemdiche has never lived up to his potential. Due to his youth and pedigree he’ll likely get scooped up by somebody, but he’s running out of chances. He was also arrested back in June. Through three seasons in Arizona, he only started six games.
Jets Place Trumaine Johnson On IR
It looks like the Trumaine Johnson era in New York is coming to an end. The Jets placed Johnson on injured reserve today, as well as receiver Josh Bellamy, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Johnson was a monster flop in the Big Apple after signing his massive free agent deal, and as Rapoport writes, “it’s safe to say Johnson has played his last down with the team.” Johnson is set to have $11MM in salary for 2020 become guaranteed in March, so he’ll almost certainly be cut by then. All told, Johnson will have received $34MM to appear in 17 underwhelming games for the Jets. New York apparently tried desperately to trade him at the deadline, but couldn’t find any takers.
After having a solid first six years in the league with the Rams, Johnson inked a five-year, $72.5MM deal last offseason. Things got off to a rocky start, and although he picked off four passes in ten games last year, he didn’t play up to standards. He was benched for a couple of weeks earlier on this season before ultimately regaining his starting role, and he clearly didn’t get along well with the new regime in New York.
Johnson has been graded very poorly by most observers this season, and he missed last week with an ankle injury. Still only 29, he should draw some interest on the open market. Bellamy is a former UDFA who had the occasional moment with the Bears over the past few years. He inked a two-year, $5MM deal with the Jets this offseason, but will finish 2019 with only two catches for 20 yards.