Latest On Redskins WR Josh Doctson
Redskins first-round receiver Josh Doctson could be a candidate for injured reserve as he continues to deal with an Achilles injury, coach Jay Gruden told reporters, including Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post (Twitter link). Gruden indicated that Docston will be sidelined at least through Washington’s bye week, meaning the pass-catcher wouldn’t return to the field until Week 10, at earliest, according to Liz Clarke of the Washington Post.
[RELATED: Washington Redskins Depth Chart]
“I think it’s a possibility, we’ll see,” said Gruden about Doctson going on IR. “I think we send him to another doctor, get another opinion. I think the plan right now is probably immobilize him for a little bit just to take complete stress off of it for a little bit of time and see where that leads us. IR — maybe, maybe not. We don’t know yet.”
Earlier this month, Gruden had similary expressed a hope that the Redskins wouldn’t have to shelve Doctson for the year. “We’ll have to wait and see if this thing gets any better the next week or so and go from there,” said Gruden at the time. “I hate to put him on IR and then he’s better tomorrow, you know what I mean, because he’s such a valuable, big play type guy. We’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and see what happens.”
The 22nd overall pick in this year’s draft, Doctson has only managed to appear in two of the Redskins’ five games to this point. In those two contests, Doctson has hauled in two-of-six targets for 66 yards, but hasn’t found the end zone just yet. Washington isn’t wanting for wide receivers without Doctson, as the club still boasts DeSean Jackson, Pierre Garcon, and Jamison Crowder.
Seahawks TE Luke Willson Suffers Knee Injury
Tight end Luke Willson suffered ligament damage in his knee during the Seahawks’ win over the Falcons yesterday, head coach Pete Carroll told reporters, including Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter link). It’s possible that Willson will require surgery, per Carroll.
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Willson, 26, has taken a backseat to Jimmy Graham in 2016 as the latter has finally found his footing in Seattle. However, while Graham has outproduced Willson in terms of offensive numbers, Willson has actually played more snaps that Graham (168-to-159), and Willson has been a valuable asset as a blocker in two-tight end sets. While he hasn’t graded well overall according to Pro Football Focus’ statistics, Willson has ranked as an above-average pass-blocking tight end.
The Seahawks do have the tight end depth to withstand the loss of Willson, as the club boasts third-round rookie Nick Vannett and fifth-year pro Brandon Williams. If Seattle wants to add another tight end to its roster, one obvious candidate would be Marcus Lucas, who is currently on the Hawks’ practice squad.
Packers To Promote RB Don Jackson
The Packers are a bit shorthanded at running back after James Starks underwent surgery yesterday, so the club will promote RB Don Jackson from their practice squad, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). No corresponding move has been announced as of yet.
[RELATED: Green Bay Packers Depth Chart]
Starks will likely be out “about four weeks” after going under the knife to repair a knee issue on Sunday morning, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Eddie Lacy, who is nursing an injury of his own, is the only other true running back on the Green Bay roster. Wide receivers Randall Cobb and Ty Montgomery are options to line up in backfield, but Jackson will give the club an actual back.
This morning, head coach Mike McCarthy left the door open to signing a running back (and/or a cornerback), but he acknowledged that it might be difficult to pull off without thinning out the team in another area, as ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky wrote. However, the need for another RB apparently outweighed any concern the Packers had about robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Jackson, 23, is an undrafted rookie free agent that originally signed with Green Bay over the summer. After being waived, he’s spent the year on the Packers’ taxi squad.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/17/16
Today’s practice squad moves:
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DB Charles Washington
- Cut: WR Jay Lee
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: DT Brian Price (Twitter link via Ryan Wood of PackersNews.com)
New England Patriots
- Signed: FB Glenn Gronkowski (Twitter link via Doug Kyed of NESN.com), RB Tyler Gaffney
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: WR Donteea Dye, WR Freddie Martino, S Trae Elston, TE Tevin Westbrook
Panthers Sticking With Kicker Graham Gano
The Panthers are standing by kicker Graham Gano even after he missed another critical kick during yesterday’s contest against the Saints, as head coach Ron Rivera told reporters, including Joe Person of Charlotte Observer.
[RELATED: Panthers Re-Sign DE Wes Horton]
“We’re going to stand pat,” Rivera said. “If you go back and you evaluate it as an extra-point kicker, he’s right about 95 percent, which is a little bit more than league average I believe. And then in clutch kicks, again he’s well above the league average.”
Gano missed an extra point on Sunday that would have allowed the Panthers to tie New Orleans late in a game that Carolina ultimately lost, dropping the club to 1-5 on the year. The 29-year old Gano was also wide on a game-winning field goal attempt in Week 1 against the Broncos, and missed another kick in a Week 5 loss to the Buccaneers.
For what it’s worth, Rivera didn’t sound quite so certain earlier in the day, as Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review writes. “Well, we’ll see,” Rivera said about Gano’s status. “You’ve got to look at what’s happened not just now but what’s happened over the period of time. There are some things that we’re going to look at and evaluate (over the bye week), obviously, and we’ll see what happens.”
If Carolina does opt to make a change, veteran kickers such as Robbie Gould, Randy Bullock, Kai Forbath, Garrett Hartley, and Shayne Graham present the best options on the free agent market.
Texans Expected To Place Kevin Johnson On IR
The Texans are expected to place cornerback Kevin Johnson on injured reserve after he suffered a broken foot in last night’s game against the Colts, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Per Wilson, Johnson is unlikely to play again this season, meaning he won’t be a candidate to return from IR.
[RELATED: Tension Emerges Between O’Brien, Osweiler]
Houston’s defense had already taken one tremendous hit this year, as defensive end J.J. Watt is on injured reserve with a back injury. The loss of Johnson isn’t quite on a Watt level, but his absence will be notable — Pro Football Focus had graded Johnson as a top-10 cornerback through 10 games. The Texans’ defense has still managed to rank as a top-15 unit by DVOA, but the unit will unquestionably be affected by Johnson’s loss.
The club’s secondary, specifically, is reeling, as fellow corner Kareem Jackson is still dealing with a hamstring injury, while Johnathan Joseph suffered a forearm ailment during last night’s contest (but is expected to be ready for next week). Reserve safety K.J. Dillon, meanwhile, tore his ACL on Sunday night and is now done for the year.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/17/16
Today’s minor moves:
- The Panthers have claimed tight end Chris Manhertz off waivers from the Saints, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. A basketball player turned tight end, Manhertz was cut loose by New Orleans late last week to make room for the promotion of a wide receiver. He’ll slot in behind Greg Olsen and Ed Dickson on the Carolina roster. To clear a spot on the 53, the Panthers waived cornerback Lou Young, per Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
- The Broncos waived reserve guard Darrion Weems, reports Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post (Twitter link). Weems, 28, had played on roughly a third of Denver’s offensive snaps, but graded as one of the worst interior lineman in the league, according to Pro Football Focus.
- The Colts have waived cornerback Frankie Williams, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Williams was promoted from the practice squad prior to Sunday night’s game against Houston.
5 Key Stories: 10/9/16 – 10/16/16
The 49ers turn to Kaepernick. San Francisco agreed to a restructured contract with quarterback Colin Kaepernick, wiping out the remaining four years of the deal and therefore ridding itself of Kaepernick’s injury guarantees. With that fear out of 
the way, the Niners opted to start Kaepernick over the embattled Blaine Gabbert, though the results on Sunday weren’t much different. Kaepernick completed less than half his passes as the Niners lost big to the Bills. Kaepernick, meanwhile, is reportedly likely to opt out of his deal following the 2016 campaign.
The Ravens make a change. The last time Baltimore made a midseason offensive coordinator change, the club went on to win the Super Bowl. Will that chain of events repeat itself in 2016? It’s too early to say, but the Ravens are obviously hoping that’s the case after they fired play-caller Marc Trestman and replaced him with quarterbacks coach Marty Mornhinweg. Following Baltimore’s Week 5 loss to the Redskins, quarterback Joe Flacco described the offense as “embarrassing” and said that the struggles so far this year have been “frustrating.” The Ravens’ struggles continued today, as the team lost 27-23 to the Giants.
Raiders inch closer to Vegas. The Nevada Assembly approved a funding bill for the Raiders’ proposed stadium in Las Vegas, meaning that the club has taken a major step towards relocating to Sin City. The state of Nevada will now contribute $750MM to the project, which is estimated to cost about $1.9 billion. The NFL, meanwhile, is reportedly pushing for a CBA extension in order to secure funding for stadiums in Vegas and San Diego. UNLV’s stadium could prove to be a stopgap option for the Raiders while a new arena is built.
Greg Hardy moving to MMA. With no options remaining in the NFL, free agent edge rusher Greg Hardy is transitioning to MMA. Hardy, once a top defensive player in the NFL, was 
suspended for the bulk of the 2014 season and part of the 2015 season for a domestic violence incident. The Cowboys gave Hardy a second chance, but he was reportedly a thorn in the side of coaches. This offseason, teams were unwilling to take on all of the headaches that would come with signing Hardy and it now sounds like he is moving on from football altogether.
Eagles lose a key offensive lineman. The NFL upheld Philadelphia right tackle Lane Johnson‘s 10-game suspension for PEDs, dealing a massive blow to the Eagles’ front five. Johnson’s ban initially came down over the summer, but he had been fighting the decision. Now, the fight is over and Johnson will be out of action until Philly’s Week 16 game against the Giants. Johnson tested positive for PEDs in August but he claimed that he unknowingly took a tainted amino acid. $25MM in guarantees has now been voided in Johnson’s contract thanks to the ban.
Colin Kaepernick Likely To Opt Out After 2016
Under the terms of his restructured contract, 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has the option of opting out following the 2016 campaign. And as sources tell Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, Kaepernick “fully plans to exercise” that right and hit the free agent market next spring.
[RELATED: San Francisco 49ers Depth Chart]
Kaepernick’s new deal wiped out the remaining four years of his contract, and San Francisco is allow barred from using the franchise tag on its quarterback in 2017. The revised contract put to bed any concerns the club may have had about Kaepernick’s injury guarantees kicking in, and perhaps allowed the 49ers to feel comfortable starting Kaepernick over Blaine Gabbert. In today’s loss to the Bills, Kaepernick 13 of 29 passes for 187 yards and one touchdown, and added 66 yards on the ground.
Despite Kaepernick’s struggles, he’d be one of the more attractive free agent options on next year’s market, as the 2017 quarterback class is wholly uninspiring. Aside from Kirk Cousins, other available signal-callers while include Geno Smith, EJ Manuel, Brian Hoyer, Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Mike Glennon. Of course, veterans such as Jay Cutler or Tony Romo could also hit the market if released in the coming months.
Patriots Notes: Lewis, Jackson, Bennett, Butler
The Patriots have made team-friendly extension offers to a number of their pending free agents — including Martellus Bennett, Malcolm Butler, Jamie Collins, Dont’a Hightower, and Logan Ryan — but so far, no player has been interested in putting pen to paper, according to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe. Given that the salary cap continues to rise, each of these impending free agents figures to cash in the open market, and therefore have little incentive to agree to any offer New England puts on the table.
Here’s more on the Patriots, who are now 5-1 after beating the Bengals today:
- After opening the year on the physically unable to perform list, running back Dion Lewis is eligible to begin practicing this week. There’s a chance that happens, but it also wouldn’t be surprising for the Patriots to hold Lewis out of game action until after the club’s November bye, writes Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Lewis has made “positive progress” as he recovers from ACL surgery, per Reiss, but New England will exude caution nonetheless.
- Offensive lineman Tre’ Jackson also started the season on the PUP list, but he’s closer to returning than is Lewis, reports Reiss. Mason is expected to practice this week, and should be able to play again as soon very soon. In fact, New England’s release of guard Jonathan Cooper may have precipitated by Mason’s health.
- The Patriots recently gave $52,700 raises to four practice squad players — running back Bishop Sankey, defensive end Geneo Grissom, guard Chris Barker, and defensive tackle Anthony Johnson. For what it’s worth, Grissom and Johnson were then promoted to active roster on Saturday.