NFC Notes: Miller, Bridgewater, Juszczyk, Seahawks
One of the scarier stories of this season was the situation regarding Bears tight end Zach Miller‘s serious leg injury. Just a week ago, doctors were performing surgery to save his leg after he dislocated his knee while playing. However, after a successful procedure, the 33 year-old is set to be released from the hospital on Monday, reports Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com. According to Mortensen, the surgery was described as “heroic” by one doctor, who relayed that the surgeons needed to repair a torn popliteal artery. The road to recovery is still ongoing as the tight end will likely need multiple surgeries before starting his way to rehab, but the outlook is much better than it was because of the many great doctors and Miller himself as Mortensen outlines in his piece.
- Speaking of amazing recoveries, Teddy Bridgewater is on track to return to the gridiron after many months of rehab and uncertainty regarding his serious knee injury. The Vikings former first round pick is expected to be activated and in uniform for the team’s Week 10 contest versus Washington, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. Bridgewater was placed on the PUP list at the start of the regular season after he had been recovering from an injury he suffered back in training camp two years ago. It’s been a long road for the soon-to-be 25 year-old, but it looks like the quarterback’s resiliency will soon pay off. Although, it remains to be seen what role Bridgewater will have when he returns, especially with the recent solid play of third string QB Case Keenum. Bridgewater last played in the team’s heartbreaking playoff defeat at the hands of the Seahawks back in 2015.
- 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk will undergo an MRI on Monday after suffering a concussion in today’s defeat at the hands of the Cardinals, tweets Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. The news comes right after it was learned that safety Jaquiski Tartt would be placed on the IR with a fractured arm that he suffered in today’s game as well. Juszczyk, 26, hasn’t been as big of a factor in the 49ers offense as people may have thought after signing by far the richest contract of any fullback this past offseason. The former Raven has totaled just 23 rushing yards and 8 catches for 80 yards this year.
- The Seahawks cut tackle Isaiah Battle a few days ago after the team added the highly regarded Duane Brown prior to the trade deadline. However, it seems like Seattle would like to retain the offensive lineman as general manager John Schneider said on a pre-game show that he hopes to re-sign the 24 year-old to the team’s practice squad this week, reports Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter link).
AFC Notes: Dolphins, Green, Ramsey
Just a day after activating offensive lineman Ted Larsen, the Dolphins have decided to make him inactive for their Sunday night affair versus the Raiders. Larsen, 30, was forced onto the injured reserve for the first two months of the season after suffering a torn biceps in the offseason. It remains to be seen how long it’s going to take until Larsen returns to the starting lineup, but he’s expected to replace left guard Jesse Davis at some point over the next few games.
- Just as a key starter is returning in Larsen, Miami said goodbye to lead running back Jay Ajayi when they dealt him to the Eagles for a fourth round pick on the day of the trade deadline. The move came as a surprise to many Dolphins fans given the importance of the 24 year-old to the team’s offense. Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald opines that the deal was just another in a series of questionable decisions that the franchise has made over the last few years. Salguero points out the team’s moves to get rid of Vontae Davis, Brandon Marshall, Mike Wallace and Karlos Dansby as points in time where the team gave up too early on talent. The trade does open up more playing time for the likes of Kenyan Drake and Damien Williams, but the Dolphins’ offense will certainly look a lot different without Ajayi in the backfield.
- One of the many brawls as a part pf today’s slate of games came from an incident between Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Green. After Ramsey pushed one of the league’s best receivers after the whistle, Green unleashed a flurry of punches onto the Jaguars second-year defensive back, which prompted both sidelines into a shoving match. Both Green and Ramsey were ejected after the scuffle. However, Green was apologetic about the incident after the loss, as Michael DiRocco and Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com pass along. “I shouldn’t have reacted that way. I apologize to my teammates, [Bengals owner Mike] Brown, and everybody, because that’s not who I am. It just got the best of me today.” We’ll see how the league reacts to the situation as a suspension could be in order given the severity of Green’s reaction.
- While both players were forced to leave the contest, many around the league pointed out that Ramsey did not actually throw a punch. However, there was some clarity given out on that front after the game. Apparently, the officials said that Ramsey was ejected because they thought he did throw a punch, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Rapoport reports that the Jags cornerback was informed by league officials after the team’s win that he was sent to the locker room because they thought he engaged Green too, even though it appears that Ramsey did not punch back. We’ll have to see how the Jacksonville players and coaches react to the apparent officiating mistake.
49ers’ Jaquiski Tartt Out For The Season
The 49ers are still winless on the year after dropping their ninth game in the row to the Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. However, that’s not the only bad news that came from today’s defeat. San Francisco has learned that safety Jaquiski Tartt would be out for the year after suffering a fractured arm in the contest, reports Cam Inman of the Mercury News (Twitter link). The team will be forced to place the 25 year-old defensive back onto the injured reserve because of the injury.
This is the second season ending injury the 49ers have seen to their safety corps in as many weeks, with Jimmie Ward hitting the IR with the same ailment after last week’s game versus the Eagles.
Tartt, 25, played opposite of Ward for most of the season, which eventually forced Eric Reid to make a position switch to linebacker. The former 2015 third round pick had accumulated 52 tackles and one interception on the season, but was rated very highly by Pro Football Focus, registering as the site’s 11th best safety in the league through eight weeks.
The news acts as just another blow to what has been a trying season for the 49ers, but the team will have no choice but to soldier on without their their young defensive back. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has just one backup safety on the roster in Dexter McCoil, so it seems likely that the team will look to add some depth to the position before the team plays the Giants next Sunday.
NFL Workout Updates: 11/5/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:
Green Bay Packers
- LS’s Nolan Frese, Colin Holba, Zach Triner; CB Raysean Pringle (via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com) (Twitter link)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- P Brock Miller (Twitter link)
San Francisco 49ers
- T’s Will Beatty, Cameron Jefferson, Andrew Lauderdale, Max Rich; Ss K.J. Dillon, Deron Washington (Twitter links)
West Notes: Garoppolo, Chiefs, Raiders
Even with the trade deadline being one of the most active in years, whenever a quarterback gets traded, that deal takes center stage. After years of will they or won’t they, the Patriots finally gave in and dealt backup Jimmy Garoppolo to San Francisco for a 2018 second round pick a few months before the signal caller was about to hit free agency. Now given some time to digest the move, NFL coaches and execs are starting to express their thoughts. Albert Breer of the MMQB, has relayed some of those opinions from anonymous personnel throughout the league in his column yesterday. The overall sentiment from the coaches and front office members from the article loved the deal for the 49ers given Garoppolo’s talent and the general lack of starting caliber QB’s throughout the league. But there was also a general understanding about the Patriots rationale for making the move given how unlikely it was they were going to use the franchise tag on their backup QB. Obviously it’s far too early to declare winners and losers, but the opinions from actual NFL coaches and front office people are definitely worth the read.
- The Chiefs will be without some solid contributors in linebacker Dee Ford and wideout Albert Wilson on Sunday, reports Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star. Wilson is currently the second leading wide receiver in terms of catches and yards, while Ford racked up 13 combined tackles and 2.0 sacks. Kerkhoff also notes that pass rush specialist Tamba Hali‘s status was a little more up in the air according to head coach Andy Reid. “He’s literally just knocking the rust off,” Reid said. “We’re literally taking it day by day and seeing; let’s just see what happens.” The veteran just started practicing this week after just being activated from the PUP list yesterday.
- Another AFC West team is dealing with the injury bug, particularly to the secondary. The Raiders will be without defensive backs David Amerson, Gareon Conley and Demetrius McCray this Sunday, according to Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. However, he does also point out that the team will get some much needed help as rookie safety Obi Melifonwu is set to make his NFL debut after being activated from the injured reserve this week. Oakland’s pass defense has been a weakness all year and they’ll be searching for answers in new places when they take on the Dolphins in Week 9.
- In off the field Raiders news, it was announced today that the target date for the completion of the team’s Vegas Stadium will be July 31, 2020, according to Steve Sisolak, who is a candidate for Nevada Governor (Twitter link).
Redskins Activate DeAngelo Hall from PUP
Washington looks to be getting some reinforcements to their secondary in the form of a 33 year-old defensive back. The Redskins have activated safety DeAngelo Hall from the PUP after the veteran returned to practice in Week 7, according to a team announcement. Washington has waived offensive lineman Orlando Franklin to make room on the active roster.
Hall was placed on the PUP back in training camp as he recovered from a torn ACL he suffered last season against the Giants.
The 14-year veteran brings another capable asset into a defensive backfield that consists of Josh Norman, Quinton Dunbar, D.J. Swearinger and Montae Nicholson. It remains to be seen how much playing time Hall will get in the early goings, but it will certainly be a welcomed addition coming on the heels of two crushing defeats by division foes Philadelphia and Dallas.
Hall is not the player he once was when he came into the league with the Atlanta Falcons in 2004, having played his last full season in 2013 when he had four picks on the year. The safety has not registered an interception since that time.
Franklin, 29, signed with the team last week, but was vulnerable after the Redskins offensive line got healthier. The former second round pick spent his first four years in the NFL with the Broncos before moving onto the Chargers for the last two seasons. The guard was cut by Los Angeles at the beginning of this year and will once again be an option for teams looking to build up their offensive line depth in the second half of the year.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/3/17
Today’s minor moves:
Houston Texans
- Waived: G Dorian Johnson
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted to active roster: T Tyreek Burwell
Los Angeles Rams
- Placed on injured reserve: S Cody Davis
Today’s practice squad updates:
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: DT Justin Hamilton
Latest on Aaron Rodgers’ Potential Return
Last month the entire football world was flipped on its head when Aaron Rodgers broke his collarbone versus the Vikings and was presumably out for a long period of time if not the entire season. There’s been rumors about the 33 year-old’s potential return since he was placed on the disabled list just about two weeks ago. Now the quarterback is addressing his potential return for the first time in a session with the media earlier today.
Rodgers spoke to a group of reporters after the team’s Friday practice, including Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com, who outlined Rodgers’ mindset for the rest of the season. Demovsky passed along that the former MVP is first and foremost focused on getting right physically.
“First of all, I want to be healthy,” Rodgers said. “That’s the most important thing. But if we’re healthy in eight weeks and it would make sense to come back, then I’m going to come back.”
Based on the quote, it would seem that the Rodgers isn’t putting it out of the question that he could return right before the start of the playoffs. According to league rules, the earliest Rodgers can return would be in Week 15 against Carolina. While the being on injured reserve is certainly not what one of the league’s best signal callers wanted, he looks to be thinking about the Packers decision to place him on the IR as a positive.
“I think the best thing that happened probably in this is just to put me on IR, because now you know it’s going to be at least eight weeks,” Rodgers said. “Where the last time, the holdup was the bone wasn’t healed. That was the main holdup. You could see me throwing at practice, you could see me [feeling] positive about it and feeling good, but then you’d go to the scan and it’s not healed yet. So it did take the duration.”
While Rodgers is focusing on moving forward he also pointed out that he didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes all too high regarding his recovery, given the severity of the injury.
“I would just temper expectations because, as much as I would love to get back out there this year, if it’s not healed, then there’s no conversation,” Rodgers said. “If it is healed, then there’s a conversation and we’ll go from there.”
Of course, Rodgers’ return would be a moot point if current starter Brett Hundley can’t keep the team above water until Rodgers is healed and ready to return to the field. As it stands, Green Bay is 4-3 and 1.5 games behind the NFC North division leading Vikings.
Poll: Who’s the Best Backup QB Right Now?
Right now there’s a lot of news about the guys holding the clipboard over the past few weeks. Injuries to starting quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers, Deshaun Watson, Andrew Luck, Jay Cutler, Carson Palmer, Sam Bradford have forced backup quarterbacks into long-term starting action.
But unfortunately, injuries have become commonplace in the game, it’s what has transpired with the trade news and other stories that have sort of set this season apart from years past in terms of the number two’s on the QB depth chart.
The trade deadline showed one of the league’s brightest backups backups get moved in Jimmy Garoppolo and another almost get dealt (A.J. McCarron) if not for some poor timing at the the hands of the Cleveland Browns.
Speaking of Cleveland, they’ve been going back and forth with their two main QB options in DeShone Kizer and Kevin Hogan. The Vikings are down to their third string too in Case Keenum, who has of course led them to a 6-2 record thus far.
Denver is in the midst of a signal caller fiasco too as the team has officially replaced incumbent starter Trevor Siemian with former starter then backup and now starter again Brock Osweiler. Throw in injury scares to Joe Flacco, Jameis Winston and yes even Jay Cutler and you have your eye on who’s your team’s backup more than ever before.
In all, 15 backup quarterbacks have seen the field this season and that number will most certainly increase before the year is through. So with league’s clipboard holders in the news more than ever, I pose the question…of all the backups in the game the today who would you feel most confident in leading you to a win right now?
It should be noted that this list excludes the likes of Garoppolo and Siemian because while these two are currently number two’s on the depth chart, neither is really classified as a typical long-term backup.
NFC Notes: Zeke, Beasley, Seahawks
It’s been a roller coaster news cycle regarding Ezekiel Elliott‘s six-game suspension since the regular season started. Now in another twist, it appears that if the second-year running back’s suspension is officially handed down in December, the league will force him to sit out through the playoffs, reports Clarence Hill Jr. of the Star Telegram (Twitter link). This news adds another aspect to the ongoing legal feud in that if the team felt that Elliott was going to eventually serve his suspension, wouldn’t they rather him take it now rather than wait till playoff time? It’s an interesting question, and while the 22 year-old has repeatedly stated his intention to fight the league, the issue will remain a cloud over Jerry Jones‘ organization for the rest of the year. Elliott will be allowed to suit up for this Sunday’s game after the United States Court of Appeals granted him a stay earlier in the day.
- In other Cowboys news, another pivotal member of the offense is set to play in Week 9 as well. Wide receiver Cole Beasley cleared his final step of concussion protocol today after taking the week trying to recover from his head slamming to the ground in last Sunday’s game versus Washington, according to Brandon George of Dallas News. Beasley stated that he didn’t really suffer any concussion symptoms throughout the week, but was definitely feeling the effects of the contact during the game. “It wasn’t crazy,” Beasley said. “It was just kind of some dizziness when I hit the ground and it only lasted for a little while. I was able to pass most of the concussion test stuff, but some of the stuff we did it started making me kind of nauseous and made feel like I was going to throw up and they held me out.”
- The Seahawks are in a tough spot with injuries heading into this week’s contest against Washington. Apart from Earl Thomas potentially missing a few games, the team also may be without defensive starters Sheldon Richardson (oblique) and Bobby Wagner (hamstring) with both players being officially listed as questionable, according to Brady Anderson of ESPN.com. Anderson does report that safety Kam Chancellor will play in Week 9 after dealing with an ankle injury throughout the week. However, losing these three key defensive starters would greatly hurt a Seattle team that is riding a ton of positive momentum after winning their last four games.
- Anderson also passes along that Seattle’s newest trade acquisition, tackle Duane Brown, is adjusting to his new team’s offense well because of his experience with the Seahawks zone-blocking scheme, according to head coach Pete Carroll. “He’s done exceptionally well,” Carroll said. “Like we said earlier, the carry-over that he had from six years being in the same system has really ensured that he can make this transition as fast as you possibly could make it.” Brown figures to be a major upgrade at left tackle ahead of the team’s former starter on the blind side, Rees Odhiambo, who ranks as the worst qualified tackle in the NFL according to Pro Football Focus.