Jaguars Release Timmy Jernigan
The Jaguars are staying busy Monday. Shortly after we heard they’d be signing kicker Stephen Hauschka the team announced a small flurry of roster moves, including the release of veteran defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan.
They also waived/injured kicker Brandon Wright, promoted defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale from the practice squad, and placed linebacker Leon Jacobs on injured reserve. Jernigan signed with Jacksonville in August, and had played a rotational role along the defensive line through the first three games. The 48th overall pick of the 2014 draft, Jernigan spent his first three years in Baltimore.
He was then traded to Philadelphia, and started 15 games for the Eagles team that won Super Bowl LII. He signed a four-year, $48MM extension midway through that year, but was limited to three games the following year following back surgery. He was cut after 2018, then re-signed with Philly on a cheaper one-year deal.
He appeared in ten games with nine starts for the Eagles last season. The Florida State product then inked a one-year, $3.75MM pact with Houston in April, but that deal was called off after a couple of months. He only turned 28 last week, and due to his past starting experience and production, should resurface soon with a team looking for run-stuffing help.
The Jaguars are clearly going all in on their youth movement on defense. Jacobs started seven games last year and two of the three this season, so that’s a significant loss even though he hadn’t been playing super heavy snaps. Ekuale is a 2018 UDFA from Washington State who appeared in seven games with the Browns last year.
Falcons K Younghoe Koo To Miss Time
The Falcons blew yet another large lead on Sunday to fall to 0-3, and they didn’t escape from their loss to the Bears unscathed. Kicker Younghoe Koo picked up a groin strain that will cause him to miss some time, a source told Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Pelissero adds that injured reserve is a possibility, which would keep him out at least three weeks. Koo has been a rare bright spot for Atlanta, as he’s been quite solid since becoming their kicker about halfway through last season.
He’s particularly adept at the lost art of onside kicking, and in a game last year against the Saints Koo incredibly had three onside kicks that were recovered by the Falcons. Atlanta doesn’t have a kicker on their practice squad, so they’ll need to bring in someone from outside the organization for the time being.
An UDFA out of Georgia Southern in 2017, Koo made the Chargers’ roster as a rookie but promptly missed a few crucial kicks and was let go after just four games. After a stint in the AAF and on the Patriots’ practice squad last year, he finally resurfaced and found a home with the Falcons.
Broncos’ Jurrell Casey Likely Done For The Year
Bad day for defensive tackles and their biceps. Just moments after it was reported that Washington’s Matt Ioannidis was done for the year, we’ve got word that Broncos defensive tackle Jurrell Casey also has a torn bicep and is likely out for the season as well, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
The hits just keep on coming for Denver, who has been sending players to injured reserve on a seemingly daily basis. Von Miller, Drew Lock, Courtland Sutton, and A.J. Bouye are just a small sampling of the high profile guys to go down with serious injuries. The Broncos acquired Casey in a trade with the Titans back in March, giving up only a seventh-round pick due to the veteran’s healthy salary.
He’s still a very solid player, making the Pro Bowl in each of the last five seasons, and it’s yet another huge blow to the Broncos’ defense. The USC product has had at least five sacks from the interior in each of the last seven seasons.
Needless to say, the 0-3 Broncos will be quit shorthanded for their trip to take on the Jets on Thursday Night Football this week. With Dre’Mont Jones also on injured reserve, this Denver defensive line is being held together by a thread. Casey is signed through the 2022 season thanks to the four-year, $60.4MM extension he signed in July of 2017.
Washington’s Matt Ioannidis Done For The Year
Washington has been dealt a tough blow. Defensive tackle Matt Ioannidis has a torn bicep and is done for the year, a source told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link).
The defensive line is the clear strength of this team, and now it’s taking a bit of a hit. If defensive end Chase Young‘s groin injury proves to be serious, the unit which had been a bright spot could take a big step back. Ioannidis is a very productive interior pass-rusher, as he made 15 starts and had 8.5 sacks coming up the middle last year.
He had 7.5 sacks in 14 games in 2018. The 2016 fifth-round pick from Temple signed a three-year, $21.75MM extension in April of last year. Ioannidis had 1.5 sacks of Carson Wentz in Washington’s surprise Week 1 victory over the Eagles, and he went down early in their Week 3 loss to the Browns. This certainly won’t help 1-2 Washington as they look to pull off a huge upset of the Ravens next week.
Jaguars To Sign Stephen Hauschka
The Jaguars have found their replacement for Josh Lambo. Jacksonville is signing veteran kicker Stephen Hauschka, a source told Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Lambo was placed on injured reserve last week with a hip injury, and the team had rookie Brandon Wright fill in for him on Thursday Night Football. Wright didn’t attempt a field goal and missed one of his two extra points, and the Jags clearly weren’t satisfied. The team worked out Hauschka and former Giants kicker Aldrick Rosas a couple of days ago.
Hauschka was cut by the Bills in August after three years as Buffalo’s kicker. Before that he had spent the previous six seasons in Seattle, winning Super Bowl XLVIII with the team. He was 21-23 from within 50 yards last year, but made just one of his five kicks from beyond 50.
Lambo has been reliable with the Jags, so he’ll probably get his job back whenever he’s healthy enough. The 1-2 Jaguars take on the Bengals on Sunday.
Nick Foles Named Bears Starter
Not that it’s too surprising, but now it’s official. Nick Foles will be the Bears’ starting quarterback for their Week 4 matchup with the Colts, head coach Matt Nagy announced Monday. Nagy went on to say this wasn’t just a temporary move, and that Foles would be the starter “moving forward.”
Foles came on in relief of Mitchell Trubisky Sunday, and led an improbable comeback over the Falcons to improve Chicago to 3-0. Foles was traded from Jacksonville this offseason, and lost the abridged training camp battle to Trubisky. Everyone figured Trubisky would be on a short leash, but after the Bears started 2-0 he had appeared to have bought himself some time.
Despite Trubisky’s heroics in a Week 1 comeback of his own, internally he clearly never had too much support. Buzz about a fourth-year leap was premature, and the UNC product will now hit the bench. In his first start with his new team Foles will be going up against Frank Reich, who helped guide him to a Super Bowl victory as his offensive coordinator with the Eagles.
Given that Foles has a somewhat lengthy injury history and is always capable of being ineffective himself, it’s quite possible we see Trubisky back under center before too long. It’s also quite possible that Trubisky, who had his fifth-year option declined back in May and will be a free agent at the end of the year, has thrown his last pass in a Bears uniform.
Extra Points: Eagles, McCown, Claiborne, Saints, Crawley
Josh McCown agreed to an unprecedented deal to become the Eagles’ emergency remote quarterback by signing to their practice squad earlier this month, and now we have more details on the arrangement. One of the reasons McCown was brought in was because of his strong relationship with Carson Wentz, and he’s been talking Wentz through his slow start, sources told Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports.
Sources also told La Canfora that McCown is viewed by the Eagles and other organizations across the league as a future NFL head coach. McCown is essentially working as a part-time coach right now, as La Canfora writes he’s staying in shape but not training with the team at all. “Several” execs told La Canfora that he “could be an NFL head coach within five years of retiring from the game, perhaps sooner.” Those same execs said he could have a quarterback coach job right now if he wanted it, and would be fast-tracked to be a coordinator.
This isn’t all that surprising considering the Eagles discussed a coaching job with him as far back as January. The 41-year-old McCown was the backup to Wentz last year when he was suddenly inserted in relief in their first-round playoff game against Seattle and nearly led them to an improbable win. If Wentz keeps playing like he has been, they might need him to come in cold off the bench one more time.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Speaking of guys on the verge of retirement, that’s apparently a good way to describe free agent corner Morris Claiborne. While not officially retired Claiborne is “not actively looking for work and spending family time,” Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. Fowler adds that while he’s “staying ready just in case,” it “would take the ideal circumstance” to get him off the couch. The sixth overall pick of the 2012 draft by the Cowboys, Claiborne won the Super Bowl with the Chiefs last year, appearing in eight games and starting one. He made 15 starts in each of the previous two seasons with the Jets. If this is really it for him, he’ll hang up his cleats having made 74 starts across eight years, but never quite living up to his draft status.
- The Saints are playing right now on Sunday Night Football, and they could be reuniting with a familiar face soon. New Orleans brought in cornerback Ken Crawley for a visit on Friday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The 2016 UDFA started his career with the Saints, and was with him until he was cut and claimed off waivers by the Dolphins in October of last year. He was with both the Raiders and Cardinals during training camp, and was ultimately cut by both. Still only 27, Crawley was a big part of the Saints’ defense for a while, starting 13 games in 2017 and five in 2018. He struggled pretty badly toward the end with the Saints, which is what led to his release.
Eagles TE Dallas Goedert To Miss Time
The Eagles’ offense looked bad yet again Sunday in their tie with Cincinnati, and now the unit is taking another hit. Young tight end Dallas Goedert will miss time with an ankle injury he suffered against the Bengals, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.
It looks like it’s a high-ankle issue for Goedert, which could have him out at least a few weeks. The South Dakota State product looked like he was going to play a huge role in the offense this year, as he had at least eight targets in each of the first two games. The 2018 second-rounder had 58 catches for 607 yards and five touchdowns last year.
Philly of course loves to run their two-tight end sets with Goedert and Zach Ertz, and this certainly isn’t going to help Carson Wentz snap out of his funk. Wentz has been downright atrocious so far, with multiple interceptions in all three games, and the passing offense has consistently looked out of sync.
Goedert was a potential lone bright spot, but it now looks like he’ll be on the shelf for a while. The 0-2-1 Eagles will be shorthanded when they travel to take on the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football next week. Left tackle Jason Peters also went down toward the end of the game, and we’re still awaiting an update on his status.
Bears Bench Mitchell Trubisky For Nick Foles
The move many predicted would inevitably happen came in Week 3, as the Bears benched Mitchell Trubisky in favor of Nick Foles. Even though the thought coming into the season was that Trubisky would be on a short leash, it was still a bit of a surprise considering Chicago had started 2-0.
Foles promptly led the team on a huge comeback, as the Bears beat the Falcons 30-26 after trailing 26-10 late in the fourth quarter. He finished his 2020 debut 16/29 for 188 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Trubisky was 13/21 for 128 yards and a touchdown and no turnovers, so it’s not like there was any one specific moment that led to his benching.
After Trubisky led his own furious rally in Week 1 against the Lions there was a lot of talk that he had made a fourth-year leap, but obviously head coach Matt Nagy didn’t feel that way internally. Nagy insisted after the game that he just wanted to enjoy the win and didn’t know who his quarterback would be in Week 4, but it would be pretty shocking to see them go back to Trubisky now after making the switch.
It’s not too often you see a 3-0 team with quarterback drama, and it’ll be very interesting to see what happens moving forward. Chicago of course traded for Foles from Jacksonville this offseason, but Trubs won the training camp battle. The Bears declined his fifth-year option back in May, so Trubisky will be a free agent at the end of the year.
If Foles takes the job and runs with it, it’s possible we’ve seen the former second overall pick throw his last pass with Chicago. That being said, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if Foles is banged up or ineffective and Trubisky is back out there within a couple of weeks. Buckle up.
Bears Fear Tarik Cohen Has Torn ACL
Hopefully this week (or any week) aren’t as bad as last week was for injuries around the NFL, but unfortunately we already have our first report of a season-ender to pass along today. The Bears fear running back Tarik Cohen has a torn ACL, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
Needless to say, Cohen will be done for the season. It unfortunately dampens the mood a bit around a team that’s otherwise feeling great on the heels of their latest comeback victory. Chicago is now 3-0 on the year, although there’s now officially a quarterback controversy with Nick Foles and Mitchell Trubisky.
Cohen’s role didn’t look like it was going to be huge this year, but he did have a handful of touches in each of the first two games. He was a big factor in the passing game before going down on Sunday, drawing six targets. Cohen just signed a three-year extension worth $17.25MM in new money exactly a week ago, so obviously his timing couldn’t have been any better.
It’s still a tough blow for the North Carolina AT&T product, but he should be able to make a full recovery in time for the 2021 season since it happened early enough. Cohen’s best season was in 2018, when he rushed for 444 yards and three touchdowns and added another 725 and five through the air.
He was also a first-team All-Pro as a return specialist that year. His production dipped last season as his yards per reception went from 10.2 to 5.8, but his absence will still leave a big hole for whoever is under center moving forward.