Adrian Peterson Cleared In Second Incident
Controversy struck again for Adrian Peterson on Monday. After the Vikings decided to activate him, with intent to play him this weekend against the Saints, reports of a second child abuse incident surfaced, involving another one of Peterson’s sons by a different mother.
A report was filed to Child Protective Services, acccording to Ben Goessling of ESPN.com and the Associated Press. No files were charged in the case.
According to TMZ, the case did not progress despite the four-year old son of Peterson having a scar on his head. Peterson reportedly did not strike his son on the head to cause the scar. That injury was ruled to be an accident.
The updated report also notes that the form of discipline in this second case was “not impermissible” under Texas law. This incident occurred in June of 2013, and while it may color the current investigation, it is unlikely to amount to anything on its own merits.
Josh Gordon To Be Back At Browns’ Facility
As the impending drug policy is readied to be put in place in time for week three of NFL action, many players will see their active drug suspensions reduced. Josh Gordon, who once faced a season-long ban, now may be able to return to the field after serving a reduced 10-game suspension.
Maybe even more importantly, language in the new deal would allow Gordon to immediately return to the Browns’ facilities, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Rapoport noted that this was a result the team wanted badly.
Under the current policy, Gordon is not allowed to have any contact with the team or team officials. The team would not have had the ability to counsel the star wide receiver through his rehab, or monitor his workout regimen while he was suspended.
Once the new drug policy is passed, the team will be able to take a much more hands on approach with their troubled All Pro player.
Vikings’ Mike Priefer To Be Reinstated
Vikings’ special teams coach Mike Priefer will be reinstated on Monday, September 15th, reports Albert Breer of the NFL Network (via Twitter).
Priefer was suspended in relation to homophobic remarks he made that came to light during the Chris Kluwe lawsuit.
The statement, tweeted by Breer, is as follows:
The Minnesota Vikings will reinstate Special Teams Coordinator Mike Priefer effective Monday, September 15. The decision by Vikings ownership follows extensive conversations with the independent professional consultants retained to conduct individualized anti-harassment, diversity and sexual orientation training with Coach Priefer. Those consultants have conveyed to the team that Coach Priefer was fully and thoughtfully engaged throughout the process and successfully completed the program. Details within the settlement agreement pertaining to the actions by the team remain confidential.
The team struggled on special teams today against the New England Patriots, as Chandler Jones blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown.
Shaun Hill Will Start For Rams When Healthy
Rams’ head coach Jeff Fisher remains committed to veteran quarterback Shaun Hill, despite his injury struggles. Fisher announced that when he is healthy enough to return to the field, he will return as the starter, according to the team’s official Twitter page.
Hill missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday with a thigh injury, and Austin Davis started today in the 19-17 win over the Buccaneers.
Davis also played a large number of snaps in relief last week in a 34-0 loss to the Vikings, after Hill originally suffered the injury.
Davis made a number of plays as the teams swapped field goals down the stretch of today’s game. He put the team in position for what turned out to be a game winning field goal. If Hill misses more time, and Davis can continue to make plays, he could force Fisher to make a tough decision when Hill is healthy enough to return.
Teammates React To Peterson’s Absence
While the Vikings have decided not to address the Adrian Peterson situation until Monday, his absence became a huge part of the story of the team’s 30-7 loss to the New England Patriots.
Master Tesfatsion of the Star Tribune captured some of head coach Mike Zimmer’s press conference following the loss.
“I don’t want to discuss the Adrian issue at all today,” said Zimmer. “This is about the football game here. We’ll talk about it Monday or whenever we have the press conference on.”
While Tesfatsion noted many players declined to comment on playing without the star running back, there were some players willing to discuss it. Tom Pelissero of USA Today noted that even players who were willing to broach the subject, they had no answers for the media.
“He’s one of the best players in the NFL. Obviously, everybody knows that,” said linebacker Chad Greenway. “The reality is there’s going to be some interesting times ahead. We don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“I don’t think we have any excuses for what happened out there today,” said center John Sullivan. “If you go out and execute the way we did on the first drive the entire game, this question isn’t being asked right now.”
“We obviously don’t condone any of the alleged (actions),” said safety Harrison Smith. “But we’re going to stand behind our guys, and that’s pretty much all I’ve got to say.”
The entire organization was still frustrated following the blowout loss. Zimmer made an emphasis on how little the lack of Peterson influenced the game.
“It didn’t affect the team,” said Zimmer. “You know what affected the team? Throwing interceptions. Getting a field goal blocked. Not tackling well enough. Having penalties on defense.”
The team will likely not have Peterson rejoin the team anytime soon, and must go into a game against the 0-2 Saints without their best offensive weapon. The team’s new best player on the offense also commented on how the team is handling the situation, according to Mark Craig of the Star Tribune (via Twitter).
“We just have to get that mindset,” said Cordarrelle Patterson. “28 probably ain’t going to be here with us.”
Alex Boone Offered To Play 2014 For $1
Alex Boone and the 49ers were at an impasse this offseason over contract negotiations for the Pro Bowl guard.
A league source reports that Boone was willing to play out the season for only one dollar, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The only caveat was that he wanted it guaranteed that the team could not franchise him at season’s end.
There would be no way for the 49ers to get away with paying Boone anything less than the veteran’s minimum. Boone however offered to to donate the rest of his salary to charity for the right to enter unrestricted free agency in 2015.
The team eventually did rework Boone’s deal at a substantially higher rate than Boone was willing to play for, at two years and an increased salary of $6MM. He would be eligible for free agency in 2016, but language prevent the 49ers from franchising him at that time.
Boone will be in the starting lineup for the 49ers as they take on the Bears for Sunday Night Football, reports Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter).
Matt Cassel To Remain Vikings’ Starter
Matt Cassel threw four interceptions during the Vikings’ 30-7 loss to the New England Patriots, and the team was unable to get any offense going after an opening drive touchdown pass to backup running back Matt Asiata.
Vikings’ fans began openly begging for rookie first-round pick Teddy Bridgewater as the offense continued to stall throughout the game.
Those fans will not get their wish, at least not yet, according to Master Tesfatsion of the Star Tribune. Head coach Mike Zimmer will not make a change at the quarterback as the team prepares to face the Saints in New Orleans next week.
“As I’ve said before, I’m going to hold the quarterback position just like every position here to the same standard,” Zimmer said. “And I also said I wasn’t going to have a quick hook. Matt needs to play better. It’s pretty obvious he needs to play better.”
If Cassel keeps throwing the ball to the other team, the Bridgewater era might be coming to a start early in the season.
Minor Moves: Saturday
Here are some minor transactions that have occurred this Saturday before the rest of the week two action begins:
- The Bears have promoted three players to their active roster for Sunday’s game against the 49ers, reports Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribute (via Twitter). Receivers Josh Bellamy and Chris Williams will be suited up tomorrow, along with center Taylor Boggs.
- The Vikings have signed running back Joe Banyard off of their practice squad, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN (via Twitter). The team has waived full back Zach Line to make room for Banyard.
- The Patriots have promoted linebacker Deontae Skinner to their active roster, reports Field Yates of ESPN (via Twitter). The team waived linebacker Darius Fleming to make room for the roster move.
Earlier updates:
- The Jaguars have waived fifth-round pick Chris Smith, reports Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (via Twitter). The defensive end was released to make way for the signing of safety Craig Loston.
- The Raiders have officially promoted linebacker Bojay Filimoeatu from the practice squad to the active roster, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (via Twitter). Wilson originally reported the teams plans to do so yesterday, and it has now become official. Filimoeatu slots in the roster spot that was vacated when the team placed Taiwan Jones on the injured-reserve, according to Wilson (via Twitter).
- The Lions are promoting safety Nate Ness to the active roster, reports Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter). Birkett has not played in a game since 2011.
Drug Suspension Not Lifted In Time For Week 2
The deadline to activate players for Sunday action was 4 P.M. ET today, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Without a new deal agreed to, teams will not have a chance to activate players who had suspensions about to be reduced in time for the games this weekend.
Those players will not have been reinstated into the NFL in time to play, and will now have to wait until next week to see their suspension lifted, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).
The player representatives approved the new deal, but it has not yet been made official.
Some players, such as Wes Welker, Orlando Scandrick, Reshad Jones, and Dion Jordan have each been suspended four games, but could have those suspensions thrown out under the new policy.
Josh Gordon, who was suspended for the entire season, could see his ban reduced to only 10 games.
The entire group will have to wait until next week for these changes to take effect, reports Mike Garafalo of Fox Sports 1 (via Twitter).
Legal Ramifications Of Adrian Peterson Case
In light of the recent information surrounding the Adrian Peterson child abuse case, there will be a long and arduous legal process that will have to play itself out. It was already reported that the All-Pro running back was released on bond after turning himself in to Texas authorities this morning, but other details surrounding his legal situation were still surfacing at that time.
Master Tesfatsion and Matt Vensel put together an overview of the proceedings for the Star Tribune, noting that there are many layers to the case. They fed from Montgomery County first assistant district attorney Phil Grant’s press conference to cull information about Peterson’s potential trial.
Tesfatsion provided some of the key points through his Twitter account. According to Tesfatsion, Peterson is facing one charged count of injury to a child. If convicted, that crime calls for a maximum two-year prison sentence and a fine of up to $10,000. Probation would be a possibility for someone with no prior criminal record (via Twitter).
No court date has been set, and Grant assumes that will not happen for a few weeks, and even longer before a trial date is set (via Twitter). He also noted that the grand jury in charge of the investigation was provided “lots of evidence over a significant number of weeks,” (via Twitter).
Grant expects the case to go to trial, and that likely will not occur until sometime in 2015.
In terms of his current status with the Vikings, the league released a brief-statement, saying that the incident will be reviewed under the NFL’s personal conduct policy. The Vikings have decided to deactivate Peterson for this Sunday’s game against the Patriots on their own, and no decision has been made as to his status further than this Sunday’s game.