Latest On Redskins’ Kirk Cousins
After the defending NFC East champion Redskins fell to 0-2 on Sunday with a 27-23 loss to the division-rival Cowboys, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported behind-the-scenes frustration in Washington. Specifically, some Redskins players have complained about the early season performance of quarterback Kirk Cousins, a source told Florio. Cousins acknowledged his teammates’ alleged frustration Monday, calling it “understandable” (per Breaking Burgundy.com).
“I have to play better. You take ownership, you step to the forefront and you lead and you challenge guys and you say what you need to do better,” said Cousins. “I think together, we can do that. That’s what I’m going to do. That’s what I’ve done my whole life, my whole life as a football player. This no different. This not new territory for me. I’ve faced challenges before, adversity before on the football field. We’re going to find a way to move forward and play better. We’re going to do it together.”
So far this year, Cousins hasn’t resembled the signal-caller who dominated during the second half of last season and helped the Redskins secure a division title. Cousins threw 19 touchdowns against two interceptions over the year’s final eight games in 2015, which led the Redskins to place the franchise tag on him in the offseason.
Now making $19.95MM as Washington’s franchise player, Cousins has tossed three picks against one score in two games, a pair of home defeats in which the Steelers and Cowboys outscored the Redskins 65-37. One major problem for Cousins thus far has been his work near the opposing end zone. As ESPN’s Ed Werder tweeted Sunday, Cousins failed to complete any of his five attempts, one of which went for an interception, inside the Cowboys’ 10-yard line in Week 2. Against Pittsburgh, he missed on two of three throws inside the 10 and also tossed a pick. During what seemed like a breakout showing last season, he amassed 16 scores and only one INT in the same area.
As the Redskins prepare for a crucial game this week against another NFC East opponent, the 2-0 Giants, head coach Jay Gruden is expecting a bounce-back effort from Cousins.
“Kirk’s game will take care of itself. We have total faith that Kirk will get it done,” he said Monday (via Lorenzo Reyes of USA Today). “And he will get it done. He has proven that he can be a successful quarterback in this league. He can make all the throws, without a doubt.”
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Browns Looking For Quarterback Help
With quarterback Josh McCown‘s shoulder injury set to keep him on the shelf for at least the Browns’ game against the Dolphins on Sunday, head coach Hue Jackson said Monday that Cleveland is on the hunt for signal-callers.
“Regardless what the situation will be with Josh, it’s important we get another arm on our football team as fast as we can,” he said (via Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com). “It’s too important. Too many things can happen this weekend.”
The only healthy quarterbacks under Browns control are two rookies: third-rounder Cody Kessler, who looks primed to make his first career start this week, and fifth-rounder Kevin Hogan. The Chiefs drafted Hogan, an ex-Stanford Cardinal, and ultimately released the 23-year-old Sept. 3, leading him to join the Browns’ practice squad.
“We’re going to get a chance to see Cody play, and we wish it wasn’t like this, but this is how it is,” said Jackson.
Kessler, formerly of USC, entered the season as the Browns’ third-stringer behind Robert Griffin III and McCown. RG3 could be out for the year after suffering a shoulder injury on opening weekend, however, which pushed McCown into action in Week 2 against the Ravens. The Browns blew a 20-0 lead en route to a 25-20 loss, one that dropped them to 0-2, though it didn’t help that McCown was playing through excruciating pain. Fortunately for McCown and the Browns, his injury is not as serious as Griffin’s, but the club will still need help at the position until the veteran is able to return.
As Cabot notes, free agent possibilities include Michael Vick, Jimmy Clausen and Jason Campbell. Jackson is fond of Campbell, per Cabot, as he coached the former Browns passer in both Oakland and Cincinnati. However, the 34-year-old was committed to retirement as of late August. And while Browns receiver Terrelle Pryor played QB at Ohio State and has NFL experience at the position, Cleveland doesn’t seem to view him as an option, according to Cabot.
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Pats Try Out Glenn Gronkowski, Others
There could be a second Gronkowski on the Patriots’ roster soon. The club worked out free agent fullback Glenn Gronkowski, brother of superstar tight end Rob Gronkowski, on Monday, ESPN’s Adam Caplan reports (Twitter link). As of now, there’s no indication the team plans to sign “Baby Gronk.”
The younger Gronkowski signed with the AFC East rival Bills this year as an undrafted free agent from Kansas State and cracked their Week 1 roster, but the team cut him after its opening loss to the Ravens.
Joining Gronkowski in auditioning for New England were seven other free agents, per Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com (Twitter link) : running back Storm Johnson; tight ends Rory Anderson and Austin Traylor; defensive tackles Brandin Bryant and Trevon Coley; and defensive backs Jamell Fleming and Doran Grant. Of that septet, only Johnson, Fleming and Grant have seen NFL action. Fleming easily possesses the most experience, having appeared in 46 regular-season games with the Cardinals, Jaguars and Chiefs from 2012-15. Fleming, on whom Arizona once used a third-round pick, appeared in all Kansas City’s games last year, though he didn’t play a significant role with the team.
Notably, no quarterbacks tried out for the Patriots on Monday. With Jimmy Garoppolo hurt and third-round rookie Jacoby Brissett set to start, wide receiver Julian Edelman – a former high school and college quarterback – could be the Pats’ backup Thursday against Houston. Earlier Monday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that New England wasn’t planning on signing any signal-callers before its tilt with the Texans, who are also 2-0.
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Latest On Bills’ Offense
After the Bills fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman on Friday, head coach Rex Ryan insisted that it was his decision. However, there were reports that team ownership actually spurred the move. Bills owner Terry Pegula dismissed that notion in a text message to the Associated Press on Monday, writing, “We do things together like any well run org would. Head coach runs the team and staff.”
Pegula and his wife, Kim, did hold a meeting with members of the Bills’ offense Friday. That meeting did not include Ryan, who reportedly wasn’t pleased with his absence. He downplayed that Monday, though.
“That happens all the time,” Ryan said of meeting between owners and players (via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com). “I feel fortunate that our owners — I mean, they talk to our players, they talk to everybody. I can tell you this: I’m in full support of our owners. At the end of the day, it really doesn’t matter, does it? They own the football team. They don’t have to get permission to talk to anybody, myself included. I have no problem with it whatsoever. In fact, I think it’s a real positive thing for us.”
Among the players at the meeting with the Pegulas was the Bills’ top receiver, Sammy Watkins, who hasn’t been much of a factor during the club’s 0-2 start. While battling a foot injury, Watkins has amassed just six catches for 63 yards on 11 targets. The third-year man didn’t reveal much about the meeting to the AP, only saying that it centered on ways for the entire team to improve.
A report Saturday indicated that Bills players are pleased with the dismissal of Roman, whom the team replaced with assistant head coach/running backs coach Anthony Lynn. One thing that won’t change with Lynn is the language of the offense, according to Ryan.
“I think the spin on the offense is going to be immediate,” he stated. “Some things that we’ll do from a tactical standpoint, I think we’ll see immediately. Change in the verbiage and playbook and all that stuff, we’ll pull from the same playbook. There may be an occasional play here and there, but it’s still gonna be — we’re definitely keeping the verbiage and everything else that’s already in place.”
Under Lynn, the Bills hope to “showcase” quarterback Tyrod Taylor, Ryan said Friday. He also called Taylor a “rare talent.” The Bills signed Taylor to a six-year, $92MM contract extension in August, but they’ll be able to escape it relatively unscathed during the winter if they’re unhappy with his performance.
DeMarcus Ware Fractures Forearm
Led by their dominant defense, the Broncos improved to 2-0 on Sunday with a 34-20 victory over the Colts. The Denver ‘D’ sacked Colts quarterback Andrew Luck five times and scored two touchdowns, but the unit may have lost a key cog for the foreseeable future. Outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware fractured his forearm, head coach Gary Kubiak said after the game. Further evaluation Monday will help the Broncos determine whether Ware needs surgery (via Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com).
Ware will likely miss three to four weeks, reports Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link). It’s worth noting that the next four quarterbacks on the Broncos’ schedule are Andy Dalton (Bengals), Jameis Winston (Buccaneers), Matt Ryan (Falcons) and Philip Rivers (Chargers).
Before leaving early in the third quarter Sunday, Ware contributed a half-sack, giving him two this year and 136.5 in his decorated career. Ware, who’s in his third season with the Broncos, has never finished a season with fewer than six sacks. He piled up 7.5 last year in just 11 regular-season games – the lowest total of his career – and tallied another 3.5 in three playoff contests as the Broncos’ defense steamrolled its way to a Super Bowl championship.
Entering this year, Ware missed the Broncos’ offseason program and the preseason while dealing with a back issue. He’ll now try to overcome what could be another significant injury, one that could leave the Broncos with Shane Ray as their primary weakside linebacker. Ray, whom the Broncos chose in the first round of last year’s draft, appeared in 15 of 16 regular-season games as a rookie and amassed four sacks. He has three tackles in the early going this year.
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Teammates Unhappy With Kirk Cousins?
After winning nine games last season en route to an NFC East title, the Kirk Cousins-led Redskins fell to 0-2 this year with a 27-23 loss to the division-rival Cowboys on Sunday. Both defeats have come at home for Washington, which previously lost in embarrassing fashion, 38-16, to Pittsburgh on Monday. As a result of their slow start, some Redskins offensive players have begun privately complaining about Cousins’ performance thus far, a source told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
On the possibility of benching Cousins in favor of backup Colt McCoy, the source said of the latter, “At least he’d play with poise.”
McCoy has never been any kind of solution since entering the NFL as the Browns’ third-round pick in the 2010 draft. Cousins, however, looked like a franchise-caliber passer during the second half of the 2015 campaign. In all, he completed 69.8 percent of passes for 4,166 yards and 29 touchdowns against 11 interceptions, but 19 of those scores and just two picks came in the Redskins’ final eight games. That led the Redskins to place the franchise tag on the 28-year-old in the offseason, thus committing a $19.95MM salary to him in the process.
While Cousins has thrown for a prolific 693 yards during the first two weeks of this season, he has tossed just one touchdown against three INTs. Aside from his late-season breakout last year, Cousins has mostly been a pedestrian pro signal-caller since the Redskins used a fourth-rounder on him in 2012. That explains why the team was reluctant to hand the ex-Michigan State Spartan a sizable long-term deal in lieu of the franchise tag over the summer.
Assuming Cousins stays at the helm, he’ll next lead the Redskins into New York for a a crucial Week 3 showdown with another NFC East rival, the Giants, who lead the division at 2-0. A loss would quickly place the Redskins well behind Big Blue in the East race and put them at 0-2 in the division. For Cousins, another poor showing also wouldn’t do the impending free agent’s potential long-term earning power any favors.
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Roger Goodell On Raiders’ Future, Las Vegas
The Raiders are seemingly progressing toward a move to Las Vegas by next season, but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants the franchise to remain in Oakland, its longtime home.
“No market should lose their team once let alone twice. I believe there’s a solution in Oakland,” Goodell told reporters Sunday (Twitter link via Brian Murphy of the Pioneer Press).
The Raiders first played in Oakland from 1960-1981 before relocating to Los Angeles through the 1994 campaign. The club then returned to Oakland, though it now appears in danger of heading elsewhere again.
The Raiders haven’t made progress toward the construction of a new stadium in Oakland, but earlier this week, the Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure Committee approved the use of a record $750MM in public money for a facility that would house the team in Las Vegas. The next step is for the $1.9MM billion stadium proposal to receive a thumbs up from Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and state Legislature, which appears likely, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report said Friday.
It helps Vegas’ cause that Raiders owner Mark Davis is eager to move the team there. After the SNTIC’s decision, Davis told USA Today via text message, “We are excited and thanks to the committee.”
While Goodell would like for Davis to keep the Raiders where they are, he didn’t close the door on relocation Sunday.
“We recognize the power and strength of the Raiders’ brand and understand their desire to explore all possible options for the team’s future,” said Goodell (via CSNBayArea.com).
Goodell added that there’s “still a lot of work to be done” for Las Vegas to become part of the NFL (via the Associated Press). While Goodell acknowledged that it’s up to the league’s 32 owners whether a franchise will end up there, he’s unsure if placing a team in a casino-filled city would be a good idea.
To this point, the city of Oakland, led by Mayor Libby Schaaf, hasn’t shown a willingness to commit nearly as much in public money to a new stadium as Vegas could.
“As Mayor of Oakland, it’s my job to remain fully focused on what I can do to responsibly keep the team where they belong, here in Oakland,” Schaaf said Thursday. “While Nevada lawmakers consider making the largest public investment in a private stadium deal in history by approving a $750 million public subsidy for a facility in Las Vegas, I will continue to work with the NFL and the Raiders’ designee Larry McNeil to iron out a deal that works for the team, the league, the fans and the taxpayers in Oakland.”
If the Raiders’ Vegas plans fall through, their only choice might be Oakland. In theory, a return to Los Angeles could happen if the Chargers don’t join the Rams there, but CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reported on Sunday that the Bolts look likely to move there. He added that the league doesn’t want the Raiders to go back to LA.
For now, the Raiders are on a one-year lease to play at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, which opened in 1966. In what could have been the team’s final home opener in Oakland, the Raiders dropped a 35-28 decision to the Falcons on Sunday.
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Chargers’ Jahleel Addae Fractures Collarbone
Chargers safety Jahleel Addae fractured his left collarbone in the team’s 38-14 win over the Jaguars on Sunday, reports Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Addae will likely undergo surgery, which would require a four- to six-week recovery period. 
Addae has been with the Chargers since 2013, when the club signed him as an undrafted free agent from Central Michigan. After combining for 27 appearances and seven starts in his first two years, Addae picked up 12 of a possible 13 starts last season and amassed a career-high 65 tackles. He added another 11 during the Bolts’ first two games this season before departing in the fourth quarter Sunday.
With Addae set to miss the next several weeks, San Diego could turn to in-house options Dexter McCoil, Darrell Stuckey or Adrian Phillips in his absence. McCoil and Stuckey took the field in the Chargers’ first two games, but Phillips has been inactive thus far.
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Jimmy Garoppolo Likely To Miss Week 3
The Tom Brady-less Patriots improved to 2-0 on Sunday with a 31-24 win over the AFC East rival Dolphins, but life may have gotten a bit tougher for a team that will be without its suspended franchise quarterback for two more games. Brady’s backup, Jimmy Garoppolo, suffered a sprained AC joint in his throwing shoulder and will likely miss the Patriots’ Week 3 matchup against the 2-0 Texans on Thursday, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (via Gregg Rosenthal).
Garoppolo left the Pats’ win in the second quarter after taking a hit from Dolphins linebacker Kiko Alonso, thereby paving the way for third-string rookie Jacoby Brissett to garner his first NFL experience. Brissett, a third-round pick from North Carolina State, impressed in completing 6 of 9 passes for 92 yards. The Pats will need similar efficiency from him against the Texans, who have held their first two opponents to 26 points. Houston sacked Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith four times on Sunday, and 1.5 came from superstar J.J. Watt.
While Brissett will likely make his first start Thursday, the Patriots hope to have Garoppolo back under center in Week 4 against an 0-2 Buffalo team that has struggled mightily out of the gate. That will be the last contest of Brady’s four-game ban over his role in the Deflategate scandal, which would set him up to return against the lowly Browns on Oct. 9.
As for Garoppolo, injury aside, the Patriots are undoubtedly thrilled with what the 24-year-old has shown in his first real taste of NFL action. Garoppolo helped lead the Pats to an upset win in Arizona last Sunday and ended up completing 42 of 60 passes for 498 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in his first two starts. Whether with New England or someone else, the 2014 second-round pick from Eastern Illinois could end up as a full-time starter down the line.
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Rams’ T.J. McDonald Charged With DUI
SATURDAY, 8:35am: The Rams have released a statement (via Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times):
“We are aware the city attorney filed charges today against T.J. McDonald stemming from his arrest in May. As this is an ongoing legal matter, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”
Jeff Fisher also commented on McDonald, noting that the defensive back did an admirable job of ignoring these distractions during last week’s game.
“We were concerned with respect to the issues he was working through,” the head coach said. “But we stood behind him the whole time, knowing that he would come back.”
FRIDAY, 5:13pm: The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office announced Friday that it has charged Rams safety T.J. McDonald with one misdemeanor count of driving under the influence of drugs, reports Rich Hammond of the Los Angeles Daily News. If McDonald is found guilty, he could face up to six months in county jail and a $1k fine. The NFL could also discipline him.
McDonald was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of a substance on May 10 in Woodland Hills, Calif., after police said he crashed into a parked car and seemed inebriated. It’s not clear which substance police believe McDonald had used at the time, though Hammond notes that it could have been a narcotic, prescription drug or an over-the-counter drug.
On the field, the 25-year-old McDonald has started in all 38 of his appearances since the Rams selected him in the third round of the 2013 draft. Along the way, the former USC standout has accrued 229 tackles, including a career-high 105 in 2014, four sacks and two interceptions. He amassed eight tackles in the Rams’ 28-0 loss to the 49ers in Week 1.
McDonald is the son of six-time Pro Bowler Tim McDonald, a former NFL defensive back who enjoyed a 13-year career with the Cardinals and 49ers.
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