Extra Points: Foles, Benjamin, Dolphins
Earlier tonight, the Rams announced that they will be benching quarterback Nick Foles in favor of backup Case Keenum. However, coach Jeff Fisher told reporters that, at some point, Foles will resume starting duties.
“Nick also understands that he eventually will be under center for us again,” Fisher said (via Mike Florio of PFT). “But this is my decision based on what I think is best for this team offensively is to go this direction.”
While we wait to see how things shake out in St. Louis, here’s more from around the NFL:
- Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said in the wake of the team’s 30-9 loss to the Steelers that he doesn’t expect to make any changes to the coaching staff as the club enters its bye week. However, it seems increasingly likely that an offseason house-cleaning is around the corner, according to Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon Journal, who doesn’t envision GM Ray Farmer hanging onto his current position.
- Despite the Browns‘ struggles this season, wide receiver Travis Benjamin says his desire to re-sign with the team remains unchanged, adding that he’s willing to stick with the franchise for the long haul, tweets Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal.
- Sources tell Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports that Dolphins executive VP of football operations Mike Tannenbaum currently has a “strong say” when it comes to who plays on Sundays for Miami. Interim head coach Dan Campbell seems to be fine with that, and Garafolo wonders if that makes Campbell a stronger candidate to land the permanent job, since other candidates may not be able to co-exist as well with Tannenbaum, who likes to have input on game-day decisions.
- Former Ravens defensive tackle Terrence Cody has been acquitted of the most serious animal cruelty charges levied against him, as Alison Knezevich of The Baltimore Sun tweets. However, Cody was convicted of multiple neglect charges.
- The Saints worked out linebacker Brad Jones and running back Vick Ballard today, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Saints Fire DC Rob Ryan, Promote Allen
6:30pm: The Saints have fired Ryan, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Saints are promoting Dennis Allen to defensive coordinator, sources tell Rapoport (link). Allen had been calling the coverages anyway, he adds.
11:37am: Speaking to reporters today, head coach Sean Payton said that the Saints have not made any changes to their coaching staff at this time and that Ryan is “absolutely” still a member of the staff, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Of course, that doesn’t mean Ryan will continue to hold the defensive coordinator job by the time the team’s next game rolls around. Ryan hasn’t been officially let go yet, but at least one New Orleans scribe – Jeff Duncan of the Times-Picayune – suggests Payton may be just “playing semantics,” adding that the head coach definitely left the door open for a change (Twitter links).
9:27am: Following the Saints’ latest defensive meltdown on Sunday in Washington, the team has decided to part ways with defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, multiple sources tell Alex Marvez of FOX Sports (Twitter link). The move doesn’t come as a real shock, coming off a blowout loss, with a Week 11 bye looming.
Ryan, the brother of outspoken Bills head coach Rex Ryan, had been the Saints’ defensive coordinator since the 2013 season, having previously served as the defensive coordinator in Dallas. Between those two jobs, he agreed to become the Rams’ defensive coordinator in January 2013, but resigned a few days later.
While the Saints’ defense was solid in Ryan’s first year with the team, the unit struggled last year, ranking 31st overall in DVOA, according to Football Outsiders, including dead last against the run. This year, the New Orleans defense was 32nd in DVOA through nine weeks, and after the unit allowed Kirk Cousins to put up 47 points and a perfect passer rating in Week 10, that ranking surely isn’t improving.
While there’s no indication yet who will take over Ryan’s position for the rest of the season, defensive assistant Dennis Allen looks like a strong candidate. Allen, who has previous experience as a head coach and defensive coordinator, was hired by New Orleans in January to work with the defense, after having been linked to the Bears’ defensive coordinator opening.
Injury Updates: Bradford, L. Jones, Jaguars
While Peyton Manning‘s torn plantar fascia was probably the biggest injury news of the day, since it’ll lead to a Brock Osweiler start for the Broncos in Week 11, it’s hardly the only notable Monday injury update. Here are a few more:
- Based on initial tests, Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford, who sustained a concussion and a left shoulder injury, is expected to miss at least one game, and potentially two, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Philadelphia is scheduled to play on Thanksgiving afternoon in Week 12, so Bradford won’t have a full second week to recover if he aims to play in that game.
- Rapoport also provides another QB injury update, tweeting that Steelers signal-caller Landry Jones has a “pretty severe” low ankle sprain. Pittsburgh has a bye this week, but Michael Vick looks likely to back up Ben Roethlisberger for the team’s next game.
- Lions head coach Jim Caldwell told reporters today that cornerback Josh Wilson suffered a “significant” knee injury, according to Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com (Twitter link). Detroit has yet to make a roster move involving Wilson, but it sounds like his season might be over.
- Jaguars defensive tackle Sen’Derrick Marks has been diagnosed with a torn triceps, per Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (Twitter links). That’s typically a season-ending injury, though O’Halloran notes that Marks is getting a second opinion before Jacksonville makes any definitive decisions.
- O’Halloran adds (via Twitter) that surgery for a sports hernia may be in play for Jaguars wide receiver Allen Hurns, who would be sidelined for four to six weeks if he underwent that procedure. Hurns is visiting a specialist this week to assess the extent of his abdominal injury.
- Titans defensive tackle Al Woods has a high ankle sprain, and will be out for a few weeks, according to Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com (Twitter link).
NFC Notes: 49ers, Cousins, Lockette, Lions
Offensive lineman Daniel Kilgore and wide receiver DeAndre Smelter will begin practicing for the 49ers this week, head coach Jim Tomsula confirmed today (Twitter link via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle). Once they begin practicing, the Niners will have a three-week window to decide whether or not to activate Kilgore from the PUP list and Smelter from the NFI list.
Here’s more from around the NFC:
- Asked whether Washington has engaged in contract talks with quarterback Kirk Cousins, whose current deal expires at year’s end, head coach Jay Gruden said that the team will “keep that in-house for now,” tweets Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post. Gruden added that the team would love to retain Cousins, but said “that’s up to [GM] Scot [McCloughan], Kirk’s agent and Kirk” (link via John Keim of ESPN.com).
- Despite suffering a significant injury that required neck surgery, Seahawks wide receiver and special-teamer Ricardo Lockette expects to play next season, writes Jayson Jenks of the Seattle Times. At the time of the injury, there was concern that Lockette’s career could be over, but he has high expectations for himself, telling Jenks he aims to be a Pro Bowler in 2016.
- After shaking up their offensive coaching staff last month, the Lions are hiring Arizona State senior offensive analyst Ryan Silverfield as an assistant offensive line coach, a league source tells Thayer Evans of SI.com. Detroit parted ways with a pair of offensive line coaches when the team fired former offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi, and didn’t replace both assistants immediately.
- Following the team’s seventh straight loss, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) takes a look at an increasingly tense Cowboys locker room, with a focus on Dez Bryant and Greg Hardy.
Peyton Manning Has Torn Plantar Fascia
2:25pm: Osweiler will start against the Bears in Week 11, head coach Gary Kubiak confirmed today. Kubiak stressed that the focus will be on getting Manning healthy, so he won’t dress for Sunday’s game — Trevor Siemian will back up Osweiler (Twitter links via Troy Renck of the Denver Post).
10:56am: Schefter has updated his initial report, clarifying (via Twitter) that Manning’s torn plantar fascia is actually in his left foot, not his right foot. Nonethless, as Schefter adds, it’s hard to imagine that Osweiler won’t be starting in Manning’s place next week.
10:16am: The foot injury isn’t a new one for Manning, who had it get worse on the turf in Indianapolis in Week 9, according to various reports. Mike Klis of 9News tweets that Osweiler appears likely to get the Week 11 start vs. the Bears, though the team has yet to make that official.
8:43am: Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is coming off the worst game of his long NFL career, and according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter), a foot injury may have played a significant role in the future Hall-of-Famer’s poor performance on Sunday. Schefter reports that Manning, who had been battling plantar fasciitis, had the injury worsen, suffering a torn plantar fascia in his right foot.
As Schefter explains (via Twitter), it’s possible to play through such an injury — Peyton’s brother, Eli Manning, was able to play through a fully torn plantar fascia during the 2009 season, for instance. However, according to Schefter, Peyton has a partial tear, which is even more painful to play through.
Manning became the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yardage on Sunday, but the milestone was the lone bright spot in a dreadful performance that included four interceptions and just five completions on 20 passing attempts. While it seems unlikely the 39-year-old will continue to play that poorly, he hasn’t looked right for most of the 2015 season, and he has also been dealing with a rib issue. Ultimately, given how Manning is struggling to push of his back foot, the Broncos may prefer to let him rest for a little while, giving Brock Osweiler a shot.
Osweiler, who turns 25 next Sunday, wasn’t great in relief of Manning in yesterday’s game against the Chiefs, but he at least injected a little life into the offense, throwing for 146 yards and a touchdown. If Osweiler gets some additional playing time this season, it could go a long way to determining his potential stock on the open market this winter, since the former second-round pick is in a contract year.
Titans Placing Jason McCourty On IR
In addition to placing wide receiver Justin Hunter on injured reserve this week, the Titans will be sending a key defender to IR, according to Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com, who tweets that cornerback Jason McCourty will undergo groin surgery, ending his season.
McCourty, 28, was selected in the sixth round of the 2009 draft by the Titans, and is one of Tennessee’s more effective defenders when healthy. After racking up 85 tackles to go along with three interceptions a year ago, McCourty missed the first month or so of the season with a groin injury. The former sixth-round pick was able to return for four games, but will now see his season ended prematurely by a second procedure on that troublesome groin.
Around the trade deadline, there were rumblings that the Patriots had interest in McCourty, and spoke to the Titans about a possible deal that would pair him with twin brother Devin McCourty. Even if the Titans had been inclined to move their standout cornerback, however, it’s not clear if he would have passed a physical — he played his last game of the season prior to the trade deadline.
With Hunter and McCourty heading to IR, the Titans will open up two spots on their 53-man roster. According to Kuharsky (via Twitter), Tennessee will use one of those openings on a wide receiver, while the other one may or may not be filled by a cornerback.
Junior Galette Suspended Two Games
The NFL has suspended Washington pass rusher Junior Galette two games for his role in a January incident, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). Galette is out for the season and is on Washington’s injured reserve list, so he won’t miss any games that he wouldn’t have missed anyway, but the suspension will cost him two weeks of pay.
Galette, still a member of the Saints at the time, was arrested and booked on a count of misdemeanor simple battery related to domestic violence during the first week of 2015. The charge against Galette was ultimately dropped, but the NFL conducted its own investigation into the incident and decided to suspend the veteran pass rusher for two games.
Following Galette’s January arrest, a video from 2013 surfaced showing a man that appears to be Galette involved in a beach brawl, striking a woman with a belt. The off-field concerns resulted in the Saints releasing the edge defender, despite having to eat a huge chunk of dead money. Following the move, reports surfaced indicating that Galette had a negative influence on the New Orleans locker room, and his former teammates didn’t seem too broken up about his departure.
Nonetheless, Galette signed a one-year deal with Washington shortly after being cut by the Saints. The 27-year-old was New Orleans’ best pass rusher over the previous two seasons, recording 12 sacks in 2013 and picking up another 10 – along with three forced fumbles – in 2014.
Washington didn’t get to see that on-field production from Galette, however, as a torn Achilles in August prevented him from seeing any regular season action with the team. A report surfaced last week suggesting that Washington would like to re-sign him beyond this year, and since the club holds the right of first refusal on Galette, it will have the opportunity to match any rival offers he receives.
Traded NFL Draft Picks For 2016
While many 2016 NFL draft picks that get traded won’t be moved until the offseason, or during next year’s draft itself, plenty of selections have already changed hands. Unlike in 2015’s draft, no teams have surrendered a first-round pick for 2016 in a trade, but at least one pick in each of the other six rounds has been dealt.
Listed below are the 2016 draft picks that have been included in trades so far. In addition to the selections which will change hands no matter what happens between now and the 2016 draft, we’ve also included several picks which were conditionally traded. If we have information on what conditions must be met for those picks to be moved, those details have been included as well.
In some cases, those conditions have been included even if they won’t be met. For instance, the Eagles would have received a fourth-round pick from the Rams if Sam Bradford had played less than 50% of the team’s snaps this season. However, with Bradford having played every single one of Philadelphia’s offensive snaps for the first nine weeks, that pick won’t change hands.
Finally, a handful of picks were traded by teams holding multiple selections in a given round, meaning it’s not entirely clear which pick will change hands. For example, when the Broncos moved up in the 2015 draft to nab Shane Ray, they sent a 2016 fifth-round pick to the Lions. However, Denver held both its own fifth-round pick and Baltimore’s fifth-rounder at the time of that trade, so it’s not known which of those two picks was sent to Detroit.
This list will continue to be updated throughout the offseason, and can be found anytime on our right-hand sidebar under the PFR Features menu. Be sure to check back after trades have been consummated for an updated look at which picks are on the move for 2016. If you have any corrections, please contact us.
Here are 2016’s traded draft picks:
Updated 4-20-16
Round 1
- Browns acquired pick from Eagles in deal for No. 2 overall pick.
- Dolphins acquired pick from Eagles in deal for CB Byron Maxwell, LB Kiko Alonso.
- Eagles acquired pick from Browns in deal for No. 2 overall pick.
- Eagles acquired pick from Dolphins in deal for CB Byron Maxwell, LB Kiko Alonso.
- Rams acquired pick from Titans in deal for No. 1 overall pick.
- Titans acquired pick from Rams in deal for No. 1 overall pick.
Round 2
- Patriots acquired pick from Cardinals in deal for DE/OLB Chandler Jones.
- Rams acquired pick from Eagles in deal for QB Sam Bradford.
- Titans acquired two picks from Rams in deal for No. 1 overall pick.
Round 3
- Browns acquired pick from Eagles in deal for No. 2 overall pick.
- Eagles acquired pick from Lions in deal for DT Gabe Wright.
- Titans acquired pick from Rams in deal for No. 1 overall pick.
Round 4
- Bears acquired pick from Patriots in deal for TE Martellus Bennett.
- Browns acquired pick from Eagles in deal for No. 2 overall pick.
- Eagles acquired pick from Titans in deal for RB DeMarco Murray.
- Rams acquired pick from Titans in deal for No. 1 overall pick.
- Ravens acquired pick from Broncos in deal for C Gino Gradkowski.
- Titans acquired pick from Eagles in deal for RB DeMarco Murray.
Round 5
- 49ers acquired pick from Chargers in deal for RB Melvin Gordon.
- Broncos acquired pick from Jets in deal for T Ryan Clady.
- Broncos acquired pick from Ravens in deal for C Gino Gradkowski.
- Chiefs acquired pick from Seahawks in deal for S Kelcie McCray.
- Eagles acquired pick from Steelers in deal for CB Brandon Boykin.
- Lions acquired pick from Broncos in deal for OLB Shane Ray.
- Raiders acquired pick from Cowboys in deal for WR Brice Butler.
- Texans acquired pick from Patriots in deal for WR Keshawn Martin.
Round 6
- 49ers acquired pick from Broncos in deal for TE Vernon Davis.
- 49ers acquired pick from Cowboys in deal for TE Geoff Swaim.
- Bears acquired sixth-round pick from Panthers‘ in deal for DE Jared Allen.
- Buccaneers acquired pick from Washington in deal for S Dashon Goldson.
- Chargers acquired pick from Vikings in deal for T Jeremiah Sirles.
- Cowboys acquired pick from Raiders in deal for WR Brice Butler.
- Jaguars acquired pick from Steelers in deal for K Josh Scobee.
- Lions acquired pick from Seahawks in deal for CB Mohammed Seisay.
- Patriots acquired pick from Texans in deal for WR Keshawn Martin.
- Raiders acquired pick from Colts in deal for LB Sio Moore.
- Rams acquired pick from Titans in deal for No. 1 overall pick.
- Texans acquired pick from Jets in deal for QB Ryan Fitzpatrick.
- Titans acquired pick from Falcons in deal for G Andy Levitre.
- Vikings acquired pick from 49ers in deal for LB Gerald Hodges.
- Washington acquired pick from Saints in deal for CB Damian Swann.
(Note: Bears acquired sixth-round pick from Patriots in deal for LB Jon Bostic. However, Patriots later acquired pick back in deal for TE Martellus Bennett.)
Round 7
- Broncos acquired pick from 49ers in deal for TE Vernon Davis.
- Broncos acquired pick from Texans in deal for T Chris Clark.
- Dolphins acquired pick from Ravens in deal for CB Will Davis.
- Eagles acquired pick from Cardinals in deal for QB Matt Barkley.
- Jets acquired pick from Broncos in deal for T Ryan Clady.
- Patriots acquired pick from Texans in deal for QB Ryan Mallett.
- Seahawks acquired pick from Cowboys in deal for RB Christine Michael.
- Steelers acquired pick from Giants in deal for P Brad Wing.
- Texans acquired pick from Rams in deal for QB Case Keenum.
- Vikings acquired pick from Bills in deal for QB Matt Cassel.
- Washington acquired pick from Buccaneers in deal for S Dashon Goldson.
Lost draft picks
- Patriots lost first-round pick due to NFL discipline (Deflategate).
- Chiefs lost third-round pick due to NFL discipline (tampering).
- Falcons lost fifth-round pick due to NFL discipline (fake crowd noise).
- Rams lost fifth-round pick after using it in 2015 supplemental draft on T Isaiah Battle.
ProSportsTransactions.com was used in the creation of this post.
Victor Cruz Undergoing Season-Ending Surgery
In a video for Bleacher Report’s Uninterrupted series, Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz announced today that he’ll be sidelined for the rest of the 2015 season. According to Cruz, he’s undergoing a season-ending surgical procedure on his injured left calf.
Cruz, who turned 29 last Wednesday, had been working his way back from a torn patellar tendon that forced him to miss most of the 2014 season. However, during his recovery, he injured his calf, which has plagued him all season.
The Giants had hoped to see the veteran wideout back on the field earlier this year, and Cruz indicated in early October that he was “thoroughly convinced” he’d return and would be “playing at a high level” at some point in 2015. Repeated setbacks have made that impossible, however, and Cruz will undergo this procedure on his calf with the intention of getting back to 100% for the start of the 2016 campaign.
Whether Cruz’s return in 2016 happens in New York, with the Giants, remains to be seen. While the team would certainly like to hang onto him, the receiver’s cap number is set to jump to $9.9MM next year, including a $7.9MM base salary, and the Giants could create more than $6MM in cap savings by cutting him. I’d expect New York to explore the possibility of a pay cut and/or restructuring, since it’s unlikely the club would want to commit that sort of money to a player who has missed the last season and a half with major injuries.
The Giants haven’t made it official yet, but they’ll certainly place Cruz on the injured reserve list at some point this week, opening up a spot on the 53-man roster.
Los Angeles Relocation Fee To Be $500MM+
NFL owners have informally decided on a relocation fee worth between $500MM and $600MM per franchise for a potential Los Angeles relocation, reports Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal (via Twitter). According to Kaplan (via Twitter), the amount isn’t yet set in stone, but people within the league expect it to be in that $500-600MM range.
The NFL’s relocation policy dictates that a relocating franchise “will ordinarily be expected to pay a transfer fee to the league” in order to compensate the rest of the league’s teams for loss of opportunity to move to that new market themselves, as well as to account for a potential increase in the value of the relocating franchise. Kaplan had indicated (via Twitter) in August that the league may look to share a portion of a relocating team’s profits this time around, rather than charging a straight relocation fee, but it looks like that won’t happen.
Kaplan’s latest report falls somewhat in line with what Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune heard way back in April. At the time, Canepa wrote that the Los Angeles relocation fee could be worth upwards of a half billion dollars, suggesting that he thought it should be even higher than that.
The relocation fee shouldn’t be an issue for any team interested in moving to Los Angeles, though the fact that Kaplan specifies the fee applies “per team” is worth noting. There had been some speculation in the past that the Raiders and Chargers would split the relocation fee if the Carson project were to move forward, but it sounds like that’s not the case. It will be interesting to see if owners are more inclined to support the relocation of two teams rather than one, since that would mean essentially doubling that relocation fee.