NFC Notes: White, Forte, Ogletree, Kam
While Roddy White is happy with the Falcons‘ 4-0 start, and is focused on his No. 1 goal of obtaining a championship ring, the veteran wideout tells Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com that he’s frustrated about not contributing more to those victories.
“For me, at the end of the day, I want to catch passes,” White said. “I’m not out here just f—ing around just to sit around to just block f—ing people all day. It’s not what I want to do. … I’ve contributed to offenses for this franchise for the last nine, 10 years. It always bothers me when I go out and don’t catch any balls in a game because it hasn’t happened in so long.”
Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links) speculates that White wouldn’t be averse to a trade, and adds that there are teams that would have interest in determining the receiver’s trade value. That’s not how I interpreted White’s comments though, and I’d be pretty shocked if Atlanta seriously considered that option — I think it could just be a matter of getting the longtime Falcon a few more looks going forward.
For what it’s worth, White told D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he’s not “disgruntled” — he simply wouldn’t mind a bigger role on offense.
Here are some more Tuesday odds and ends from around the NFC:
- Appearing this morning on The Dan Patrick Show, Bears running back Matt Forte was asked about the trade rumors swirling around him, and said he’s not worried, adding that “a lot of it is media speculation.” Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk has the details, along with the quotes from Forte.
- We heard on Sunday that Rams linebacker Alec Ogletree‘s 2015 season could be in jeopardy due to a right ankle injury. Josina Anderson of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that Ogletree underwent surgery and it went well, but St. Louis has yet to announce a potential timeline for his return — don’t expect him back anytime soon though, says Anderson.
- Following Kam Chancellor‘s crucial forced fumble in Monday night’s win over the Lions, Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett interrupted Chancellor’s post-game interview to implore team owner Paul Allen – the “17th-richest man in the world,” according to Bennett – to give the star safety a new contract (Twitter link via Matt Miller of Bleacher Report). Chancellor appears unlikely to negotiate a new deal until after the season, but I’m sure he appreciates the support from his teammate.
- Cardinals running back Chris Johnson admitted that he seriously contemplated retirement earlier this year after getting shot in the shoulder, as Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com details.
- In the wake of the Dolphins’ decision to fire Joe Philbin, Panthers head coach Ron Rivera told reporters that owner Jerry Richardson has assured him he wouldn’t fire him in the middle of a season, as Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer writes. Of course, with the Panthers riding a four-game winning streak, it doesn’t look like that’s something Rivera would have to had worry about in 2015 anyway.
Bears Place Will Montgomery On IR
TUESDAY, 3:06pm: The Bears have officially placed Montgomery on injured reserve, ending his season, the team announced today (via Twitter).
MONDAY, 1:13pm: Multiple sources tell Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune that Montgomery will require surgery and will miss the remainder of the 2015 season. The veteran center is expected to be placed on injured reserve this week.
SUNDAY, 5:14pm: Bears center Will Montgomery broke his fibula in his team’s 22-20 win over the Raiders on Sunday, according to Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). The injury occurred on the Bears’ first drive of the game, and left guard Matt Slauson subsequently took over for Montgomery at center.
It’s currently unknown how much time Montgomery will miss, head coach John Fox said.
“As far as timeframes, I don’t know yet,” Fox stated, per Jahns.
Montgomery, 32, is in his first year with the Bears. He saw extensive action the last four seasons in Washington and Denver, respectively, making 40 starts. He started the first four games of 2015 for Chicago.
Bears To Sign Sherrod Martin
A month after releasing him from their roster, the Bears are set to re-sign free agent defensive back Sherrod Martin, reports Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. The corresponding move for Martin’s signing isn’t yet known, but center Will Montgomery will likely be heading to the injured reserve list after breaking his leg this weekend.
Martin, who turns 31 next Monday, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Panthers, starting 36 games during that stretch, including all but one in 2010 and 2011. The former second-round pick hasn’t played a significant role for an NFL defense since then, though he did earn a couple starts in 2014 for Jacksonville, as well as contributing for the Jaguars on special teams.
Martin survived Chicago’s initial cutdown to 53 players last month, but was one of two players let go on the Sunday after teams’ initital rosters were set, as the Bears claimed a pair of players off waivers. The Troy product will return to the team with safety Antrel Rolle‘s availability in doubt for Week 5. Rolle suffered a right foot injury against the Raiders on Sunday, leaving Adrian Amos, Harold Jones-Quartey, and Chris Prosinski as the only healthy safeties on Chicago’s roster.
NFC Notes: Norman, Reed, Bears, Bucs
Panthers GM Dave Gettleman doesn’t negotiate contracts during the regular season, but David Newton of ESPN.com wonders if the bye week might be an exception. If it is, perhaps Carolina could explore getting something done with cornerback Josh Norman this week, but as Newton acknowledges, that seems unlikely. Norman reportedly turned down a contract offer worth about $7MM annually prior to the regular season and a new pact would likely require an offer of $10MM+ per year.
Here’s more out of the NFC..
- Washington may be in the market for a tight end once again, as Jordan Reed is dealing with an MCL sprain, an ankle sprain, and a concussion, per John Keim of ESPN.com. Head coach Jay Gruden said he’s concerned about Reed’s status, though he’s not sure yet about the magnitude of the injuries.
- Former Giants wide receiver Julian Talley has a workout scheduled with the Bears on Tuesday, a source tells Jordan Raanan of NJ.com (Twitter link). Talley was cut from the Giants’ roster at the end of the preseason, then released off the team’s practice squad last week.
- With the Buccaneers searching for a new kicker to replace Kyle Brindza, head coach Lovie Smith said today that accuracy will be the team’s top priority — a big leg for kickoffs and longer field goal attempts would be a bonus (Twitter link via Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com).
- After Zach Hocker missed a late 30-year field goal against the Cowboys on Sunday, the Saints are planning kicker tryouts this week, Alex Marvez of FOX Sports tweets.
- The Rams are expected to re-sign linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar to fill the roster spot of injured linebacker Alec Ogletree, Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch tweets. However, they have not decided whether or not to sign him just yet (link).
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Extra Points: Browns, Bears, Rex, Eagles
Browns wideout Dwayne Bowe signed for $9MM guaranteed during the offseason and was expected to upgrade a receiving corps in desperate need of help. That didn’t happen through the first three weeks of the season, though, as the former Pro Bowler went without a catch in the opener and then missed the next two games because of a strained hamstring. Nevertheless, the ninth-year man entered Sunday’s game against San Diego brimming with confidence.
“I can’t wait to go out there and showcase my talent and be a ringleader for the guys and go out there and bring home a win,” Bowe said, per Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer.
Bowe got back on the field in Week 4, but he once again failed to catch a pass. Quarterback Josh McCown, who completed passes to eight different teammates, targeted Bowe just once. The Browns lost, 30-27.
Here’s more on the Browns and a few of their counterparts from around the NFL:
- After the Bears dealt linebacker Jared Allen to Carolina earlier this week, fellow LB Willie Young asked Chicago for a trade, according to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. Young played defensive end in the Bears’ 4-3 scheme last year and had 10 sacks. They switched to a 3-4 this season, forcing him to shift to linebacker, and he’s currently without a sack. Young doesn’t believe he’s a fit for the Bears’ defense anymore, and if the team agrees, Florio writes that it should grant his request and send him elsewhere.
- The Bills turned in a horrendous performance in their 24-10 loss to the Giants on Sunday, especially with respect to discipline. Their 17 penalties gives them 57 for the year, the most any team has had through the first four weeks of the season since 2005, per ESPN’s Mike Rodak. Head coach Rex Ryan wasn’t upset with his team, however. Contrarily, he said he was “proud” of how the Bills played. “Can you play a lot smarter? Absolutely,” Ryan continued. “But I’ll take a team that can fight over a team that won’t — that will sit back and take it — any day of the week. And bring on the next team.”
- Much of the dialogue regarding the Browns this year has centered on the quarterback position – whether they should start McCown or Johnny Manziel. That shouldn’t be the case after Week 4, writes Bud Shaw of the Northeast Ohio Media Group. Shaw believes McCown’s sensational Sunday output (32 of 41 for 356 yards and two touchdowns) should be enough for him to keep the No. 1 job going forward. A better performance from Cleveland’s defense, which allowed 438 total yards (358 passing), could’ve helped earn the team a win and improve to 2-2 instead of drop to 1-3.
- The Eagles’ Chip Kelly was a successful coach during his first two NFL seasons, leading the team to back-to-back double-digit-win seasons and a playoff berth. Now, after the Eagles gave him full control over their roster, Kelly looks like both a coach unable to adjust to how other clubs are game planning against Philly and a football czar who built a highly flawed team, opines Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report.
- Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson suffered a left knee injury during their 23-20 loss to Washington on Sunday and will have an MRI on Monday. Johnson said he re-injured his MCL, and Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer speculates that it’s a sprain (Twitter link).
Latest On Matt Forte, Bears
As NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport correctly points out, the Bears’ recent trades of Jared Allen and Jonathan Bostic do not exactly constitute a “fire sale,” a term that has been generously applied to those transactions over the past week. After all, trading two players who were not integral to the team’s defense moving forward does not signal that the Bears are going to tear their roster apart and play for the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2016.
Nonetheless, according to one rival general manager, Chicago has essentially told the other 31 teams in the league that they should not be afraid to ask if they are interested in someone on the roster. Rapoport writes that there are only a few players the Bears would not consider trading, and the list is fairly predictable: Kevin White, Kyle Long, Alshon Jeffery, Kyle Fuller, and Pernell McPhee. Noticeably absent from that group, of course, are Jay Cutler and Matt Forte.
It has been reported that the Bears considered dealing both Cutler and Forte during the draft, though a source familiar with the team’s thinking says the conversations regarding Forte never happened. And, although rumors surrounding Forte have heated up in the wake of Chicago’s disappointing start, it would be difficult for the Bears to recoup much value in a Forte trade, given the back’s age (30 in December) and salary (over $7MM).
That does not mean, though, that the Bears are not trying. Per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, they are more than willing to deal the two-time Pro Bowler, who has been one of the club’s few bright spots this season, but they would want at least a second- or third-round draft pick in exchange. It would take a special set of circumstances for Chicago to net that type of return for Forte–perhaps a team with legitimate championship aspirations losing their starting running back to injury–and even then, any trade would likely not happen until closer to the November 3 deadline, when the Bears’ asking price would be more likely to drop.
As for Cutler, his declining production and contract have continued to make the prospects of any trade remote. But if you’re a GM and there is someone on the Bears that intrigues you, apparently all you have to do is ask; Ryan Pace is willing to listen.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/3/15
Here are today’s minor signings, cuts and other transactions from around the NFL as 28 teams are making their final preparations for Week 4.
- A fixture in this space, defensive end Frank Kearse once again received notice of his being cut by Washington, Mike Jones of the Washington Post reports (on Twitter), to make room for cornerback Deshazor Everett‘s promotion from the practice squad. Initially, Washington waived Everett, an undrafted player out of Texas A&M who signed with the Bucs initially, last month. But now with Chris Culliver questionable for Sunday’s game with a knee injury, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter), cornerback depth is needed. Kearse has played in 31 games since 2011, including 15 with Washington in 2014, but has been yo-yoing on and off the Washington roster this season.
- The Packers activated suspended defensive tackle Letroy Guion, who will take injured tight end Andrew Quarless‘ place on the 53-man roster, according to Jason Wilde of ESPNWisconsin.com (on Twitter). Guion missed three games due to a substance abuse-induced suspension. Green Bay placed Quarless on short-term IR with an MCL sprain.
- The Packers also made a move to fortify their ailing receiving corps, promoting Jared Abbrederis from their practice squad, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports. To make room for the second-year receiver from Wisconsin, Green Bay cut defensive lineman Bruce Gaston. The Packers downgraded Davante Adams from questionable to doubtful, creating a void at the position. Abbrederis has reportedly excelled as a practice-squadder thus far this season, according to the Milwauke Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein (Twitter link).
- After punting 10 times against the Seahawks last weekend, Pat O’Donnell will miss the Bears‘ game against the Raiders with a knee injury. As a result, the Bears signed Spencer Lanning, per Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Browns’ punter in 2013-14 before their trade for Andy Lee, Lanning spent time with the Broncos this summer before being a preseason cut. The Bears waived defensive tackle Brandon Dunn to make room, but Finley adds he could be a practice squad candidate.
- The Buccaneers promoted cornerback Jude Adjei-Barimah to their 53-man roster and cut tackle Reid Fragel, Jenna Laine of SportsTalkFlorida.com reports (on Twitter). The longtime Bucs scribe indicates that the promotion of the undrafted rookie provides an indication as to whether regular right corner Johnthan Banks, who left the Bucs’ Week 3 game with a knee malady, will play Sunday.
Breer’s Latest: London, Bears, Colts
Albert Breer of NFL.com notes that the league had a 15-year plan to get London its own franchise when they played their first game at Wembley Stadium in 2007, and that means the NFL is more than halfway there. He writes that the people in charge in England are still looking at a timetable for 2022, including NFL Executive Vice President for International Mark Waller.
“It’s a realistic time frame,” Waller said Wednesday. “But there are still things we need to test for, so we have to be able to build a lot of things into the next few years. We don’t need to prove as much on the fan-demand side. We feel comfortable that, in a few years, we’ll be where we need to be there. The real focus is doing things to keep testing. We’re really focusing on the logistical and operational side.”
- Breer also notes that the NFL will look to add at least one more international game in 2016. With three games already in London, they could add a fourth game at Wembley or take that fourth game to another international market, and there is a chance the league could take both options.
- While Breer writes the league is still on target to have a franchise in London and Waller’s public comments back up that stance, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report hears that the NFL isn’t optimistic about getting a franchise in London anytime soon. Coles says that after speaking with more than 10 team executives, the consensus is that there is no way the league puts a permanent team in London and that the league has largely given up on the idea.
- Breer also writes that the recent trades of Jared Allen and Jon Bostic are new Bears general manager Ryan Pace and head coach John Fox admitting that they inherited a roster that is barren due to poor drafting and trades in the past. The team would like to continue to strip the team down, but of the players with trade value, only Martellus Bennett and Matt Forte are older players who aren’t likely to be a part of the future in Chicago.
- The Colts have benched Todd Herremans, even though he was the biggest pickup this offseason for a team that pushed offensive line help in the offseason. Additionally, the only draft pick the team used up front was the 255th overall selection of Denzelle Good, so the team has only themselves to blame for Andrew Luck‘s early season issues, performance and injury alike.
Bears To Sign Spencer Lanning
With Pat O’Donnell battling a knee injury, the Bears are signing a free agent punter, according to Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com, who reports (via Twitter) that Spencer Lanning has agreed to a deal with the team. There hasn’t been an official announcement from the team yet on O’Donnell’s status, but the signing of Lanning doesn’t bode well for the incumbent punter’s availability this weekend.
In 2014, only two punters had more attempts than the 93 punts Lanning made for the Browns. On those 93 attempts, he averaged 44.5 yards, with a net distance of 39.2 yards per punt. Those were middle-of-the-road numbers, and the Browns decided to move on from Lanning back in June, acquiring Andy Lee from the 49ers for a conditional 2017 seventh-round pick.
Lanning, 27, was claimed off waivers by the Buccaneers after being dropped by the Browns, and also spent time with the Broncos this summer, but he didn’t survive Denver’s cutdown to 53 players. Lanning, who also worked out for the Panthers earlier this week, auditioned for the Bears yesterday, along with former Giants punter Steve Weatherford.
NFC Notes: Bears, Falcons, Foster
While some observers may view the Bears‘ recent moves as a sign that the team is rebuilding and looking ahead to 2016, a few players think the shake-up could have a positive effect on this year’s team, as Gene Chamberlain of The Associated Press writes. Veteran safety Antrel Rolle suggested the message sent would be beneficial to younger players, while tight end Martellus Bennett expressed faith in the front office.
“I think the organization is doing every single thing possible to make the team better,” Bennett said. “I mean, there’s a lot of hiccups right now, but that’s what happens when there’s a lot of change happening.”
Here’s more from across the NFC:
- The Falcons brought in a tight end for an audition this week, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com, who tweets that ex-Giant Adrien Robinson came in for a workout with Atlanta. A fourth-round pick in 2012, Robinson caught just five balls during his time in New York, with all of those receptions coming last season.
- Among this year’s first-team head coaches, former Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn has stood out as a potential difference-maker. Peter King of TheMMQB.com examines what sort of impact Quinn has had so far on the 3-0 Falcons.
- After signing with Washington this week, veteran linebacker Mason Foster is expected to contribute immediately in D.C., according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post. Foster’s assertion that he “loves” playing special teams suggests that even if he doesn’t see many defensive snaps, his new team could find other ways to use him.