NFC Notes: Long, Newton, 49ers, Giants
As if the Rams‘ season wasn’t already off to a bad enough start, with the team coming off a blowout loss at home and struggling to find a healthy and competent quarterback, the club received more bad news today. Per head coach Jeff Fisher, defensive end Chris Long will have surgery this week and will miss at least “a few” games (Twitter link).
Long left Sunday’s contest against the Vikings with an ankle injury, and according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link), the veteran pass rusher could miss the next eight to 10 weeks. That would seem to make him a candidate for the IR list with the designation to return, and according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Rams will indeed use that spot for Long (Twitter link). That would make him eligible to return to practice after six weeks and to game action after eight weeks.
As we wait to see what can go wrong next in St. Louis, let’s round up a few other Wednesday items from around the NFC….
- According to Cam Newton, the Panthers have yet to approach him about a contract extension, which isn’t his focus right now anyway, tweets Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. There was some speculation this week that the decision to restructure Charles Johnson‘s contract could mean the club would explore an extension for Newton sooner rather than later.
- After cutting LaMichael James, the 49ers don’t intend to add a third running back to their roster this week, tweets Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, passing along a comment from coach Jim Harbaugh. It looks like San Francisco will head into Sunday’s contest with the Bears with Frank Gore and Carlos Hyde as its only active halfbacks.
- Giants punter Steve Weatherford won’t require surgery, but he does have torn ligaments in his left ankle after being hit during a kick on Monday night, writes Conor Orr of NJ.com. It’s not clear if Weatherford will be forced to miss the team’s Week 2 game, but according Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (via Twitter), the Giants have reached out to the agents for some free agent punters to put them on “standby,” just in case.
- Joel Corry of CBSSports.com takes a look at some huge contract extensions signed within the last year and determines how soon teams could reasonably get away from them, if necessary. Among the deals examined by Corry: Colin Kaepernick‘s with the 49ers, Jay Cutler‘s with the Bears, and Jimmy Graham‘s with the Saints.
Goodell Issues Memo On Rice Investigation
John Abraham’s NFL Career In Jeopardy
After suffering a concussion during Monday night’s game against the Chargers, linebacker John Abraham has left the Cardinals, possibly for good, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links). According to Schefter, Abraham is suffering from memory loss and has been for more than a year. Following his most recent concussion, the 36-year-old may not play in another NFL game.
Abraham, a Pro Bowler for Arizona last season, was late reporting to camp this year because he was reportedly in rehab after facing a DUI charge earlier in the offseason. There’s not necessarily a correlation between that incident and his reported memory loss, but the personal and health issues Abraham has faced within the last few weeks make it clear that football should be a secondary concern at the moment.
According to Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic (Twitter links), the Cardinals have received a roster exemption for Abraham, who will be replaced on the 53-man roster by Marcus Benard. The team will place Abraham on the reserve list, and he’ll have five days to return to the team, or else he won’t be eligible to play this season.
Although Abraham’s health should be the most important consideration, it’s worth noting that his absence is another significant blow for a Cardinals defense that already has lost Darnell Dockett to a season-ending injury, Daryl Washington to a year-long suspension, and Karlos Dansby in free agency.
Chargers Place Nick Hardwick On IR
The Chargers have lost veteran center Nick Hardwick for the season, the team announced today in a press release. According to the club, the longtime Chargers center has been placed on injured reserve due to a neck injury. After starting 67 consecutive games for San Diego, Hardwick is still adjusting to the fact that he’ll miss the rest of the 2014 campaign.
“It’s hard and it’s still setting in,” Hardwick said. “I have a touch of shock I guess and I don’t really know how I feel right now. You’re programmed one way and through everything you’ve done you’ve always continued to push forward and push through to find ways to get on the field. Unfortunately for this season it’s not going to happen anymore.”
With Hardwick out of the lineup, San Diego is expected to turn to Rich Ohrnberger as its starting center. The club will also have an open spot on its 53-man roster, so a corresponding move will likely be announced soon.
As for Hardwick, who turns 33 this Friday, he had been in the last year of his contract, so it remains to be seen whether he’ll be back with the Chargers – or even playing in the NFL at all – next season. This isn’t the first neck injury for the former Pro Bowler, who would require medical clearance before returning to the field.
Lions Eyeing DBs, Audition Dimitri Patterson
With the Lions preparing to place offensive lineman Corey Hilliard on injured reserve, the team appears likely to add a defensive back to fill Hilliard’s roster spot. As Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com tweets, head coach Jim Caldwell didn’t dispel that notion today, telling reporters that it’s possible the Lions sign a cornerback or safety.
A handful of free agent defensive backs worked out for the Lions last week, including Champ Bailey, Roc Carmichael, Tommie Campbell, Chris Clemons, and Anthony Walters. And today, the team added another name to the list of notable veterans to audition for the team. According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter), the Lions had Dimitri Patterson in for a tryout. Patterson, who spent last season with the Dolphins, joined the Jets for training camp and the preseason, but was cut after he reportedly went AWOL about a week before the regular season got underway.
The secondary was already considered one of the weak spots on the Lions’ roster heading into the season, and while it looked solid in the club’s Week 1 win over the Giants, it took another hit during that game. Cornerback Bill Bentley suffered a torn ACL and has since been placed on injured reserve.
Bengals Place Tyler Eifert On IR-DTR
The Bengals have placed tight end Tyler Eifert on the injured reserve list with the designation to return, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Albert Breer of the NFL Network initially reported after Eifert suffered an elbow injury on Sunday that the young tight end would be a candidate for Cincinnati’s IR-DTR slot.
Eifert, who turned 24 on Monday, grabbed 39 balls for 445 yards in 2013, and was primed for a bigger role in the Bengals’ offense this season. Cincinnati made use of Eifert in tandem with Jermaine Gresham in two-tight end sets in 2013, and in 2014’s season opener, before the Notre Dame product went down with what appeared to be a dislocated elbow.
Because he received the designation to return, Eifert will be eligible to return to practice after six weeks, and can play in a game after eight weeks. That would put him on track to return to the field for Cincinnati’s November 16th contest against the Saints, assuming he’s ready at that point. In the interim, the Bengals may look to add another tight end to the 53-man roster.
To keep tabs on how the NFL’s 32 teams are using their IR-DTR spots, check out our complete list.
Steelers Extend Cortez Allen Through 2018
WEDNESDAY, 10:25am: Allen received a $6.75MM signing bonus, with an overall value of $24.5MM on the four new years, says Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap (Twitter links). Fitzgerald adds that the deal includes a $3MM roster bonus in 2015.
SATURDAY, 7:48pm: Allen’s reported $26MM figure will apply to the five total years he’ll be under contract rather than just the four new years, says Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter).
7:18pm: The Steelers and cornerback Cortez Allen have reached an agreement on a four-year contract extension worth more than $26MM, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Considering Pittsburgh generally doesn’t negotiate in-season extensions, the two sides took talks down to the wire, with news of a new deal breaking less than 24 hours before the team’s first game of the 2014 season.
Allen, a fourth-round pick in 2011, has steadily become a more important part of the Steelers’ defense during his first three NFL seasons, making eight starts for the club last year and recording 51 tackles, 13 passes defended, and a pair of interceptions. Pro Football Focus’ metrics (subscription required) liked his play too, grading him as an above-average corner and ranking him 36th out of 110 qualified players at the position.
Allen’s extension is the latest in a string of new deals between the Steelers and their key players this offseason. Offensive linemen Maurkice Pouncey and Marcus Gilbert also agreed to extensions, and the team secured kicker Shaun Suisham to a long-term pact as well. Ben Roethlisberger is the one notable extension candidate not to receive a new contract from the team thus far, but both parties intend to revisit that topic after the season.
We’ll have to wait for the full details on exactly how much of Allen’s new money is guaranteed, and what the year-by-year breakdown looks like, but based on the numbers reported so far, it looks a little richer than Alterraun Verner‘s four-year, $25.5MM deal with the Buccaneers. A handful of corners, including Sam Shields, Aqib Talib, Vontae Davis, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, and Brent Grimes, inked contracts with larger annual average values than Allen’s $6.5MM, but considering the Steeler only has 11 career starts on his résumé, that’s not all that surprising.
The 25-year-old Allen had been set to enter the final year of his rookie contract, which paid him a $1.431MM base salary for 2014. Assuming that figure remains unchanged, Allen’s next five years should be worth over $27MM, with the new deal keeping him under team control through the 2018 season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Bucs Cut Scott Solomon; Mike Jenkins To IR
Yesterday, we heard that the Buccaneers had signed cornerback Crezdon Butler and claimed defensive end Jacquies Smith off waivers, and now the team has announced the corresponding roster moves for those additions. According to Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com (via Twitter), the team has waived defensive end Scott Solomon and placed Mike Jenkins on injured reserve with a season-ending pectoral injury.
While Alterraun Verner was Tampa Bay’s major offseason addition at cornerback, Jenkins was expected to play a key role in the secondary as well, so losing him will be a blow for the Bucs’ defense. While the team only signed him to a one-year deal in the offseason, his entire $1.5MM salary was fully guaranteed. Now, he’ll spend that one year on injured reserve in the hopes of getting healthy for 2015’s free agent period.
Solomon, a former seventh-round pick by the Titans, wasn’t expected to play a significant role on the Buccaneers’ defensive line, though he did see 31 defensive snaps in the team’s opener, logging three tackles.
In addition to tweaking their 53-man roster, the Buccaneers filled the 10th and final opening on their practice squad by adding defensive end Adrian Robinson, according to Smith (via Twitter).
Injury Notes: Lions, Raiders, Browns, Cowboys
We don’t cover every single injury here at Pro Football Rumors, but we’ll always keep tabs on the more significant ones that may force a team to make a roster move or two to add reinforcements. Let’s round up the latest injury news that falls into that category…
- Lions offensive lineman Corey Hilliard is expected to be sidelined for the rest of the season with a foot injury, reports Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter). That helps to explain why the club re-signed Garrett Reynolds this morning, and it means Hilliard will likely head to IR. Having already added a lineman to the 53-man roster today, the Lions could fill Hilliard’s roster spot by signing a cornerback, since the secondary is a little short-handed as well.
- Raiders special teams ace Taiwan Jones became the first 2011 draftee to sign a contract extension earlier this offseason, but now he’s set to miss a month or two of action. According to Bill Williamson and Adam Caplan of ESPN.com, the recovery timeline for Jones’ foot injury will be about four to eight weeks. If Oakland believes the timeline will be closer to eight weeks than four, Jones could be a candidate for the team’s IR-DTR spot.
- The Browns expect running back Ben Tate to be out for two to four weeks with a knee sprain, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links). Cleveland might add another back to the active roster or practice squad for depth purposes, but I doubt any major move is coming, since Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell played well after Tate left Sunday’s game.
- Having already lost Sean Lee for the season, the Cowboys saw another linebacker go down on Sunday, as Justin Durant figures to miss the next three or four weeks with a groin injury, a source tells David Moore of the Dallas Morning News. An outside addition is possible for Dallas, though the club could also turn to in-house options like Kyle Wilber or the recently-claimed Korey Toomer.
Lions Re-Sign Garrett Reynolds
The Lions have re-signed offensive lineman Garrett Reynolds to the fill the final opening on their 53-man roster, according to Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com (via Twitter). That open spot was created when the team placed injured cornerback Bill Bentley on injured reserve. ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan first reported (via Twitter) that Reynolds would rejoin the Lions.
Reynolds, who started 10 games for the Falcons in 2013, lost his starting job late in the 2013 season, despite grading as Pro Football Focus’ 32nd overall guard (subscription required). The 27-year-old was subsequently cut by Atlanta and picked up by the Lions, but failed to earn a spot on the club’s regular season roster during the cut down to 53 players. He’ll provide depth and insurance on the interior of Detroit’s offensive line.
As for Bentley, there was speculation that his season-ending ACL injury would prompt the Lions to add more help in the secondary, and that could still happen, though for now his roster spot has been taken by an offensive lineman. The team worked out Champ Bailey, Chris Clemons, and several other veteran defensive backs last week, and could revisit those options before too long.