Vikings Place Andrew Sendejo On IR
The Vikings placed safety Andrew Sendejo on injured reserve, according to a team announcement. In a related move, rookie cornerback Craig James was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster. 
Sendejo, 31, suffered a groin injury in Week 5 and has been out of action ever since. It may be coincidental, but the Vikings’ defense has been stronger since turning to reserves Anthony Harris, George Iloka, and Jayron Kearse in his stead. In the first five weeks of the season, the Vikings surrendered 26.2 points per contest. Since then, they’ve allowed 20.3 points per game and lost only to the Saints and Bears, two of the NFC’s best teams.
Sendejo’s 2018 season ends with 27 total tackles and one pass deflection in five games. He faces an uncertain future next year as his $5.5MM salary for 2019 is completely non-guaranteed.
James, a UDFA who attended the University of Minnesota and Southern Illinois, has been with the Vikings’ practice squad for the last six weeks.
49ers Notes: Mullens, Foster, Shanahan
Despite an iffy performance on Sunday, the 49ers will move forward with Nick Mullens as their starting quarterback, head coach Kyle Shanahan says (Twitter link via Matt Barrows of The Athletic). Given the 49ers’ lack of other viable options, it’s not a huge surprise.
C.J. Beathard is the only other QB on the roster and he didn’t exactly inspire confidence in his five starts this year. Granted, neither player has set the world on fire. Beathard completed just 60.4% of his passes with eight touchdowns against seven interceptions while Mullens has completed 65.6% of his throws with five TDs and four picks. However, Mullens did have a strong outing in his first start against the Raiders a few weeks back.
Ultimately, both men are playing for an opportunity to stick with the Niners as Jimmy Garoppolo‘s backup in 2019. Mullens is signed through next year and Beathard is under contract through 2020, but Beathard can be cut with minimal fiscal penalty and there are zero guarantees remaining on Mullens’ pact.
Here’s more from San Francisco:
- The latest allegations against Reuben Foster put a harsh spotlight on 49ers GM John Lynch, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports opines. The 49ers gave Foster a second chance after he was accused of domestic violence back in February. Then, on Saturday night, Foster allegedly struck girlfriend Elissa Ennis again, prompting the Niners to cut him. Robinson questions the team’s wisdom in drafting Foster in the first place given his red flags, giving him a second opportunity after the first DV arrest, and allowing Foster to be with his girlfriend in the team’s hotel.
- Shanahan says he decided to release Foster immediately after hearing of the allegations over the weekend. “We’ll see what happens in the court of law,” Shanahan said (via Barrows). “I wasn’t there. But too many things have happened and we’ve tried to help him out a lot. I know he’s been trying, too, but this was a mess-up (so significant) that it doesn’t matter whether he did it or not. It’s time to move on.”
ASU WR N’Keal Harry To Enter NFL Draft
Arizona State wide receiver N’Keal Harry will forgo his senior season to declare for the 2019 NFL Draft. Harry ranks as one of the top wide receivers in this year’s class and is on course to be a first-round pick. 
[RELATED: Michigan DL Rashan Gary To Enter NFL Draft]
“I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who has supported me throughout this journey,” Harry said. “These past three years have been filled with unforgettable memories that I will cherish for the rest of my life. It has truly been an honor to represent Arizona State University.”
Harry finished out the season with 73 catches for 1,088 yards and nine touchdowns. Some say he’s the very best wide receiver talent in this year’s class, though there figures to be plenty of debate between him, Oklahoma’s Marquise Brown, and others between now and April.
It remains to be seen whether Harry will suit up for ASU’s bowl game. Head coach Herm Edwards says that Harry will prepare as though he’ll play, but it seems unlikely that he’ll risk an injury.
Panthers To Place Damiere Byrd On IR
Panthers wide receiver/punt returner Damiere Byrd suffered a broken arm in Sunday’s loss to the Seahawks, sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). With only five weeks to go in the regular season, the Panthers will place Byrd on injured reserve. 
Byrd, 25, has just one catch to date, but he been a special teams contributor with eleven punt returns for 104 yards on the year. Without him, the Panthers may look to sign another wide receiver, though they have five others already on the roster. Rookie D.J. Moore can also step in to handle punts, so they don’t necessarily have to add a returner.
Byrd isn’t a superstar in Carolina, but the Panthers can ill afford any setbacks as they make their playoff push. The NFC South title is pretty much out of the question and they’ll have to fight their way through a crowded Wild Card picture to make the postseason. Thanks to a three-game losing streak, the 8-4 squad has just a 31% chance of making the postseason, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Michigan DL Rashan Gary To Enter NFL Draft
Michigan defensive lineman Rashan Gary is going pro. On Monday, the highly-rated defensive lineman announced that he will enter the 2019 NFL Draft. 
We’re still several months away from the draft, but Gary profiles as a Top 10 and possibly Top 5 pick. He’s no stranger to attention – he went to Ann Arbor as one of the top ranked high school seniors in the nation and largely lived up to expectations on campus.
Gary, who turns 21 next week, tallied 38 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in his junior season. He’ll Michigan with 134 tackles and 10.5 sacks in total powered largely by a monster sophomore campaign. The timing of his announcement suggests that he’ll sit out Michigan’s bowl game – particularly since he missed time with shoulder and leg injuries this year – but there’s no official confirmation on that front yet.
Gary is one of several talented defensive linemen to enter this year’s draft, along with Houston’s Ed Oliver, Clemson defensive end Clelin Ferrell, and former Ohio State pass rusher Nick Bosa.
Jaguars G Andrew Norwell Suffers Injury
The Jaguars will be without guard Andrew Norwell for a bit. Norwell is believed to have a sprained ankle that is expected to sideline him for “a few weeks”, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
[RELATED: Jaguars Fire OC Nathaniel Hackett]
Norwell will undergo a full MRI on Monday to determine the full extent of his injury. No matter what, it sounds like Norwell will miss multiple games, though it won’t have a major impact on the Jaguars’ season one way or another.
After Sunday’s loss to the Bills, the Jaguars dropped to 3-8 and officially took themselves out of playoff contention. They also dropped offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, which may be the first of several changes to go down in Jacksonville.
Norwell joined the Jaguars in March on a five-year, $66.5MM deal with $30MM fully guaranteed at signing. With a salary of $13.3MM per year, Norwell stands as the highest-paid left guard in the NFL.
As underscored by the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus, Norwell hasn’t been his usual self in 2018. PFF ranked Norwell as the third-best guard in the league last year for his work with the Panthers. So far this year, the 27-year-old is 27th among guards in the NFL.
Chargers’ Melvin Gordon To Miss Time
The Chargers won in dominant fashion on Sunday, but it didn’t come without a price. Running back Melvin Gordon suffered a grade 2 MCL sprain against the Cardinals and will miss the “next few weeks,” according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). On the plus side, Gordon is expected to return before the regular season is through. 
Gordon has been positively stellar in his fourth pro season. Through ten games, Gordon has nine rushing touchdowns and has averaged 5.2 yards per carry. He also has 44 catches for 453 yards and four scores, positioning him as one of the league’s very best running backs.
Thanks in large part to his efficiency, the Chargers are 8-3 on the year and are virtually assured a spot in the playoffs, even if they cannot catch the Chiefs for the divisional lead. By the time Gordon is cleared to return, the Chargers may be in position to rest him – or at least ease his workload – before the postseason gets underway.
The Chargers will be without their top rusher when they face the Steelers on Sunday night and for their subsequent game against the Bengals on Dec. 9. It remains to be seen whether he’ll be available to play against the Chiefs on Dec. 13 and the Ravens on Dec. 22.
In the interim, the Chargers will lean a bit more on pass-catching specialist Austin Ekeler and fellow ‘backs Justin Jackson and Detrez Newsome.
Jaguars Fire OC Nathaniel Hackett
The Jaguars fired offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Jaguars are 28th in points scored this season and they believe the offensive play calling is at least partially to blame.
The Jaguars dropped to 3-8 on Sunday with their loss to the Bills. Leonard Fournette averaged 5.3 yards and gave the Jags two of their three scores, but it wasn’t enough to pull out the win. The loss pushed them from extremely unlikely to make the playoffs to mathematical elimination and that led to the firing of their OC.
Some would argue that Hackett has not been given the right personnel in Jacksonville, starting with quarterback Blake Bortles. Bortles completed just 12-of-23 passes for 127 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. After the game, head coach Doug Marrone said that he did not consider making a QB change, but the club did feel the need to shake up the staff.
“We would like to thank Nathaniel for his hard work and dedication to the Jaguars organization, and we wish him and his family the best moving forward,” Marrone said in a statement. “These are always tough decisions, but as the head coach, I have to do what I think is best for this football team.”
Hackett joined the Jaguars as their quarterbacks coach in 2015 and took over as offensive coordinator midway through the 2016 season. The Jaguars finished sixth in total offense and first in rushing offense last year, but have been unable to reprise that performance in 2018.
Hackett served under Marrone at Syracuse University and with the Bills, so it’s not clear whether this was a decision made by Marrone or by the higher-ups with the Jaguars. In either case, the pressure is on in Jacksonville, and Marrone is far from safe this offseason.
Texans Owner Bob McNair Dies At 81
Texans owner Bob McNair died on Friday at the age of 81, the team announced. 
McNair purchased an NFL expansion franchise in 1999, giving Houston its first team since the Oilers moved to Tennessee in 1997. It was a landmark event for H-Town and for professional sports as a whole. McNair paid $700MM for the team, which dwarfed the $140MM price paid for the Jaguars and Panthers expansion franchises just six years earlier.
McNair was an entrepreneur who struggled to find his footing after college. After several failed businesses, he founded Cogen Technologies in 1984, a company that later blossomed into the most profitable energy cogeneration outfits in the world.
McNair battled multiple types of cancer in recent years, but his health situation took a turn for the worst in 2018. We here at PFR extend our condolences to his wife Janice and the rest of his family.
Sharrif Floyd Drops Vikings Grievance
Former Minnesota defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd has withdrawn his grievance against the Vikings, as Ben Goessling of the Star-Tribune tweets. Floyd’s case against the Vikings has been put to rest, but he still seeking $180MM in his lawsuit against the Andrews Institute. 
Floyd was scheduled to earn $6.757MM on his fifth-year option in 2017, but the Vikings placed him on the non-football injury list when a nerve issue in his knee prevented him from playing. The Vikings paid him $2MM even though teams are under no obligation to pay players who are on the NFI list. Floyd was seeking the remainder of that salary before halting his pursuit this week.
While the case was pending, 40% of Floyd’s potential grievance amount ($1.9MM) counted against the Vikings’ cap. Now that the case is over with, the Vikes have been credited that amount plus the $2MM they paid to the defensive tackle. The Vikings had less than $300K to work with earlier this month, but they now have $4.235MM in breathing room. That money can be (and likely will be) rolled over into next year’s cap, which may help to re-sign players such as linebacker Anthony Barr and defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson.
Floyd’s legal team will now focus solely on the case against Dr. James Andrews. Floyd says that he OK’d an operation that would sideline him for three to four weeks during the 2016 season, but he alleges that a pain blocker injected directly into a nerve caused him permanent damage.