Antonio Brown Loses Second Grievance
Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown has lost his second helmet-related grievance, per Pro Football Talk (via Twitter). AB will wear a league-approved helmet in 2019 and beyond (Twitter link).
This was the expected outcome, and the ruling should resolve this issue once and for all. Brown has been practicing and seems to be past the foot malady he suffered during a cryotherapy mishap, so Raiders fans just have to cross their fingers and hope that Brown has put his off-field matters behind him.
Indeed, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says that no further proceedings are expected (Twitter link). Pro Football Talk tweets that Brown is close to selecting a new helmet, and that it will be a custom-made model. Brown is also going to get an endorsement deal from the maker, so, once again, AB lands jelly-side up.
The 31-year-old wideout has not played this preseason, though he is expected to be ready to go for Week 1. The Raiders are not favored to make the playoffs this year, but this year’s “Hard Knocks” outfit should at least be interesting to watch.
The club opens the season at home against the Broncos on September 9.
Falcons’ OL Kaleb McGary Returns To Full Practice
Good news for Falcons fans, as 2019 first-rounder Kaleb McGary has returned to full practice, per Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (via Twitter). McGary, who resumed on-field activities last week after undergoing a cardiac ablation procedure at the end of July, is now set to compete for Atlanta’s starting RT job.
Although a heart procedure sounds frightening, McGary has had the same operation twice before, and it is a minimally-invasive surgery. GM Thomas Dimitroff previously stated that he was comfortable with McGary’s health situation, and as of right now, it appears everything is on the right track.
McGary, of course, has a lot of ground to make up, but his competition for the RT job is not particularly inspiring. Ty Sambrailo has had a poor preseason and is presently a limited participant in practice due to a shoulder injury — as McClure notes in a separate tweet — and Matt Gono is a former UDFA who has yet to see regular season action.
Per McClure (Twitter link), head coach Dan Quinn has expressed confidence in all three of those players, but obviously the team would prefer that McGary takes the job and runs with it.
McGary, the No. 31 overall pick in this year’s draft, was the second O-lineman Atlanta added in the first round. The club also selected Boston College guard Chris Lindstrom in an effort to get better while also getting younger on the offensive front.
Raiders Release Doug Martin
The Raiders have released veteran running back Doug Martin, as Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports (via Twitter). Martin was Oakland’s leading rusher in 2018, but the club selected Josh Jacobs in the first round of this year’s draft with the expectation that he would become the new No. 1 RB, and DeAndre Washington‘s excellent preseason earned him the top backup job behind Jacobs.
Martin, a former first-round pick of the Buccaneers, spent the first six years of his career with Tampa Bay before catching on with the Raiders in March 2018. In his lone season with the Silver-and-Black, Martin compiled 723 rushing yards on 172 carries — good for a respectable 4.2 YPC mark — and four touchdowns. It’s a far cry from his 2015 First Team All-Pro campaign, when he piled up 1,402 yards on the ground and 271 yards through the air, but he proved that he can still be a serviceable back.
Head coach Jon Gruden is fond of Martin, so this move may be about getting the 30-year-old back a chance to catch on with an RB-needy team as the preseason draws to a close. Indeed, the Texans are now very much in the market for an established rusher, and many pundits are already connecting Martin to Houston.
Oakland cleared $1.9MM of cap space with the move.
Fallout From Andrew Luck’s Retirement
Andrew Luck‘s decision to step away from the game of football at the age of 29 will go down as one of the most surprising retirement decisions in the history of the league. But in his impromptu press conference last night, Luck kept using the word “exhausted,” as Zak Keefer of The Athletic observes. Luck’s latest health concern, a calf/ankle ailment, was just part of that exhaustion.
Keefer sums up Luck’s run of major injury woes over the past few years quite nicely. As Keefer writes, Luck “once played an entire quarter against the eventual Super Bowl champs with both a lacerated kidney and a partially torn abdomen muscle – and led the Colts to a win. He played half a season with torn cartilage in two ribs. There was an injured thumb, a bum ankle, at least one diagnosed concussion and the torn labrum in his throwing shoulder that nearly cost him his career at age 28.”
All of those issues forced Luck to move on to the next chapter of his life much sooner than he wanted. Anyone who watched his presser could see the anguish in his face, how his smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, and how painful it was for him to make this decision. But as Luck himself said, “[i]t’s been four years of this injury-pain cycle. And for me to move forward in my life the way I want to, it didn’t involve football.”
Here’s just some of the fallout from Luck’s stunning announcement:
- Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports that Luck and the Colts have reached an agreement wherein the team will not attempt to recoup any money to which it would be entitled under the CBA. As Joel Corry of CBS Sports notes, the team could have recovered $24.8MM from the former No. 1 overall pick ($12.8MM of the $32MM signing bonus he was entitled to under his current contract, plus two $6MM March 2019 roster bonuses). If the Colts did seek repayment, any money they got back would have counted as a salary cap credit (Twitter links). Colts fans are already taking plenty of heat for booing Luck during the team’s preseason game last night — which Luck admitted was hurtful — and it would not have been a good look if the team were to try and seek repayment (especially in light of how the club mismanaged his early career, as Conor Orr of SI.com summarizes).
- The Colts are high on their new QB1, Jacoby Brissett, but as Stephen Holder of The Athletic says, the team needs a veteran signal-caller behind Brissett, and it’s likely that GM Chris Ballard is already working feverishly to make a move. Indianapolis has enough draft capital to swing a trade of some kind (Twitter links).
- Indianapolis may well remain competitive with Brissett at the helm, and Matt Miller of Bleacher Report says team brass does not believe the Colts will be drafting high enough in 2020 to land one of next year’s top QB prospects (Twitter link).
- Colts owner Jim Irsay sounds like a man who hopes that Luck will unretire at some point. Irsay said, “[y]ou know, I don’t rule it out. Because as quickly as this thing sort of descended on us, and as mysterious as it was coming upon us, it could leave the same way” (h/t Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk). It was clear that Luck had thought long and hard about his decision, so as shocking as his retirement is, it would be even more shocking if he were to return to the field as a player. But Irsay is not ready to give up hope.
- Irsay estimates that Luck left about $500MM on the table by retiring early given the ever-increasing QB salaries and the $64MM he was already due under the remaining three years of his current deal. As Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network tweets, that’s probably an accurate assessment. But if Luck is willing to walk away from that kind of cash, it seems as though he really is retired for good.
- Luck’s contract will toll, so if he were to reverse course and come back, Indianapolis would hold his rights for three more seasons, as Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com reminds us (via Twitter).
- We heard last night that the Colts had known for at least two weeks that Luck was seriously considering retirement, but Ballard says that Luck only began discussing the possibility with the team Monday (less then a week ago), as Albert Breer of SI.com tweets.
Texans Seeking OT In Jadeveon Clowney Trade?
There was a lot going on in the AFC South on Saturday night. In addition to Andrew Luck‘s shocking retirement announcement, reports surfaced that the Texans were likely to trade star edge defender Jadeveon Clowney in the next couple of days.
Those reports suggested that Houston is looking to acquire a wide receiver in a Clowney trade, but John McClain of the Houston Chronicle says that while he does expect Clowney to be dealt, he believes the Texans are going to swap him for an offensive tackle when he signs his franchise tender.
As we heard last night, Clowney does have some control over where he gets traded since he has to sign the tender before he can be moved. McClain thinks that head coach and de facto GM Bill O’Brien already has a deal worked out with another team, but the Texans and their trade partner just have to wait until Clowney puts pen to paper.
The O-line was the Texans’ biggest weakness in 2018, and while the club made some efforts to address that unit this offseason, it’s unclear whether the additions will result in a notable uptick in performance. But, with Luck out of the picture, the AFC South landscape has changed dramatically, and Houston now looks like the favorite to bring home the division crown. Given that, and since it’s clear the Texans are never going to sign Clowney to a long-term contract, it makes sense that Houston would want to get something of value for the former No. 1 overall pick before the season starts.
Of course, it’s fair to question whether losing Clowney on the defensive side of the ball will be worse for the team than rolling with their current group of O-lineman, but it seems that Houston is set on trading him. McClain believes the team should also ask for a running back in a trade in order to offset the loss of Lamar Miller, who tore his ACL in Saturday’s preseason game.
Packers To Cut S Josh Jones
The Packers will be cutting safety Josh Jones today, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). Jones skipped the club’s OTAs in the spring with the hope of forcing a trade, and his wish to get out of Green Bay has finally been granted.
The Packers selected Jones in the second round of the 2017 draft, and he has started 12 games over his first two years in the league. He seemed to take a step back during his sophomore season, finishing with 55 tackles, one sack, and two passes defensed in 13 games (five starts) in 2018. Pro Football Focus ended up ranking Jones 70th among 93 eligible safeties.
Green Bay invested heavily in the safety position this offseason, as the team inked former Bears safety Adrian Amos to a four-year, $36MM deal in free agency and later traded up in the first round to select Maryland safety Darnell Savage Jr.. As Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com writes, Amos and Savage are expected to serve as the Packers’ starting safeties in 2019, and former UDFA Raven Greene has worked ahead of Jones both at safety and at inside linebacker in sub-packages during training camp.
Demovsky also notes that Jones has not practiced in nearly two weeks because of an undisclosed illness, and he got kicked out of practice on July 31 for a hit and a fight during a non-tackling period. Plus, even though the Packers traded Ha Ha Clinton-Dix halfway though last season, Jones was not elevated into the starting lineup until rookie Kentrell Brice suffered an ankle injury in Week 10.
Clearly, Jones’ stock had plummeted in Green Bay, though he should catch on with another club fairly quickly given his youth and draft pedigree.
NFC Notes: Cowboys, Compton, Fales
When announcing the new extension for linebacker Jaylon Smith at a press conference today, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones sent a clear message to a few other high-profile players who are eligible for extensions. Jones said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic, “[t]he team takes precedent at a point over the opinion or the demand of the individual. The team takes precedent. This was a team move we are talking about today. The team takes precedent. And I’ve got the backbone to keep it that way” (Twitter link).
Obviously, that statement suggests that Jones is going to hold firm on the offers that have been extended to Ezekiel Elliott, Dak Prescott, and Amari Cooper, and as we detailed earlier today, Smith’s extension looks relatively team-friendly. Jones did say that there is “enough pie left” to get deals done with all of them, though he did not have an update on negotiations with the trio.
Let’s check out more from the NFC:
- Free agent linebacker Will Compton will work out for the Saints, as John Keim of ESPN.com tweets. Compton, who played for the Redskins from 2013-17, was a full-time starter as recently as 2016. However, his 2017 campaign was marred by injury, and he played only 79 defensive snaps for the Titans last year in his first and only season in Tennessee. He would provide experienced LB depth in New Orleans, and he could also contribute on special teams.
- Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press examines the Lions‘ backup QB situation, noting that presumptive QB2 Tom Savage missed his seventh straight practice on Tuesday (Savage is in the concussion protocol). That has meant more reps for David Fales and Josh Johnson, but Birkett says the Lions are unlikely to carry three QBs. So if Savage cannot be medically cleared by next Saturday, he could be cut. Fales looked sharp in the team’s last preseason game while Johnson struggled, so Fales may have a leg up if Savage can’t get healthy.
- The 49ers fear that rookie wide receiver Shawn Poindexter suffered a torn ACL in Monday’s preseason win, as Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area writes. Poindexter, a UDFA from Arizona, appeared to be a prime practice squad candidate, and the club has already signed WR/KR Chris Thompson to take Poindexter’s place on the 90-man roster.
Dolphins To Sign Jakeem Grant To Extension
The Dolphins have agreed to a four-year contract extension with wide receiver Jakeem Grant, a source tells Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). The deal will keep Grant under club control through 2023.
The fresh deal will be worth up to $24MM, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). That means Grant will make just $6MM per year, despite having only 34 career catches for 471 yards across three seasons.
Grant is, at best, the No. 4 wide receiver on Miami’s depth chart at the moment, but most of his value comes from his return ability. The 2016 sixth-rounder has returned 59 punts and 58 kickoffs over his first three years in the league, and he took a punt and a kickoff to the house last year. The 16.3 yards-per-return he provided across 14 punt returns in 2018 is a stellar mark, as was his 29.7 yards-per return average on kickoffs.
The Texas Tech product is diminutive, checking in at 5-7, 171. But he is shifty and quick, and those skills do allow him to be an occasional threat in the passing game as well. He has two receiving touchdowns in each of the past two seasons, with a 65-yard strike in 2017 and a 52-yard score in 2018.
Grant had been battling a hamstring injury that kept him sidelined over the past several weeks, but he returned to practice Monday, and the Dolphins apparently believe he is back to full health. His rookie contract expires at the end of the 2019 season.
Jets To Sign Stephone Anthony
The Jets are signing linebacker Stephone Anthony, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Anthony was cut by the Falcons on Saturday.
New York has been seeking a replacement for Avery Williamson, who tore his ACL last week. The club signed Albert McClellan on Saturday, and Anthony gives them a higher-upside option.
Anthony, whom the Saints selected in the first round of the 2015 draft, showed some promise with a 112-tackle rookie campaign. He started all 16 games that year for a bottom-tier New Orleans defense, but the team moved him from middle linebacker to strongside linebacker in 2016, and he regressed considerably. The Saints dealt him to the Dolphins in 2017, but the change of scenery didn’t do much for him. Anthony had just seven tackles across 16 appearances last year, and the Dolphins declined his fifth-year option, making him a free agent this offseason.
The Falcons signed him at the end of July, but he did not last a full month on Atlanta’s roster. With the Jets, Anthony will have a chance to compete for playing time alongside free agent acquisition C.J. Mosley, and he will also reunite with Adam Gase, his head coach for two years in Miami, and Joe Vitt, the Saints’ LB coach during Anthony’s first two years in the league.
The Jets cut safety Santos Ramirez in a corresponding move.
Chargers To Sign Dontrelle Inman
The Chargers have signed wide receiver Dontrelle Inman, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter). This will be a homecoming for Inman, who played for the Chargers from 2014-16 and for the first quarter of 2017 before the Bolts traded him to the Bears.
Inman, 30, became a free agent after the 2017 season and did not sign with a club until October 2018, when he joined the Colts. He caught 28 passes for 304 yards and three scores for Indy, and he added another eight grabs for 108 yards in the club’s two postseason contests. Advanced metrics were fond of his work, and he has always been a solid contributor when given the opportunity. His best season, which featured 810 yards and four TDs, came with the 2016 Chargers.
The UVA product signed with the Patriots in May but requested his release shortly after Josh Gordon was reinstated. He generated interest from the Lions and Jets, but Rapoport says the chance to reunite with Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers ended up being the deciding factor. However, RapSheet says in a separate tweet that the Jets made a “very strong offer” to Inman, and that the veteran wideout was impressed with the New York outfit.
Inman should see a fair amount of action, especially if Keenan Allen — who is expected to miss the remainder of Los Angeles’ preseason slate — is forced to miss any regular season action. Even if Allen stays healthy, Inman currently looks like the No. 3 or No. 4 option on the Chargers’ WR depth chart.