No Ligament Tear For Anthony Hitchens
- Tests show that Cowboys linebacker Anthony Hitchens, who suffered a tibial plateau fracture recently, suffered no ligament damage, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. That means that no surgery will be needed and that, in theory, could help to speed up recovery. In a press release, the Cowboys indicated that Hitchens likely will not go on IR. The latest projections have Hitchens missing total eight weeks of action.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/30/17
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Waived: WR Reginald Davis III, T Wil Freeman, S Jordan Moore, S Deron Washington
- Waived from IR: T Kevin Graf
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: RB Brandon Brown-Dukes
Houston Texans
- Waived from IR: WR Devin Street
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: K Travis Coons
New York Giants
- Waived from IR: WR Darius Powe
Philadelphia Eagles
- Claimed off waivers: DE Jake Metz
Tennessee Titans
- Waived/injured: CB Jeremy Boykins, WR Mekale McKay
Latest On Ezekiel Elliott’s Suspension Appeal
Ezekiel Elliott‘s appeal of his six-game suspension will last through Thursday as the Cowboys running back fights a ban stemming from domestic violence allegations. Elliott could still suit up for Week 1 if he files a lawsuit against the NFL, but for now, the appeal hearing will proceed.
Here’s the latest on Elliott and the proceedings:
- Tuesday’s session was spent sorting through the evidence relating to the domestic violence claims and listening to investigators, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Elliott himself will speak on Wednesday, and it appears most of today will be dedicated to hearing from the Cowboys back. Thursday, meanwhile, will witness a doctor analyzing photos of the alleged victim’s injuries.
- If Elliott and his team believed arbitrator Harold Henderson were truly a neutral judge, they’d have “incredible optimism” about what occurred at Tuesday’s hearing, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter links). However, Henderson was hired by the NFL, so Elliott has understandable skepticism regarding Henderson’s motives. A source tells Anderson that “things happened that were amazingly good for [Elliott’s] side,” although that report should be taken with a grain of salt given that it’s coming from Elliott’s camp.
- “Enormous inconsistencies” emerged on Tuesday regarding the NFL’s investigative process, adds Anderson (Twitter links). On the other side of the hearing, Anderson questioned while Elliott didn’t make a definitive denial through his attorneys or via his own statement, and was told Elliott has “said it enough before.”
- While the hearing was originally scheduled for only two days, it’s been extended because the NFL will allow a witness that was initially rebuffed to testify by phone, reports Dan Graziano of ESPN.com. The NFLPA requested that witness be allowed to communicate via phone, although the identity of said witness is unclear at present.
Browns Release CB Joe Haden
The Browns have released veteran cornerback Joe Haden, the club announced today. Cleveland had been “aggressively” shopping Haden as of yesterday, but evidently wasn’t able to find a taker.
Cleveland’s efforts to trade Haden didn’t start only recently, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link), who indicates the team had been marketing Haden for more than year. But the 28-year-old Haden’s contract likely proved a hindrance, as he’s due $11.1MM in 2017 base salary, a figure that includes $4MM in guarantees. That guarantee didn’t kick in until February, tweets Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap, so the Browns could have parted ways with Haden before that time and saved that total. However, the club presumably was willing to take the risk of eating that $4MM in the hopes of finding a trade partner.
An acquiring team would have also taken on Haden’s base salaries over the next two seasons: $11.1MM in 2018 and $10.4MM in 2019, though none of that money would have been guaranteed. Haden’s signing bonus proration will now accelerate onto the Browns’ salary cap over the next two campaigns, meaning the club will take on $7.2MM in dead money in 2017 and $3.6MM in 2018. Cleveland attempted to convince Haden to accept a pay cut before releasing him, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link), but Haden declined.
Haden’s performance probably wasn’t overly appealing to potential suitors, either, as he’d struggled with both injuries and ineffectiveness over the past several seasons. He missed 14 games from 2015-16, and ranked as just the No. 88 cornerback among 110 qualifiers last year, per Pro Football Focus. Among the 84 qualified cornerbacks in Football Outsiders’ data, Haden finished only 64th in yards allowed per pass (8.2).
The Browns will move forward with free agent acquisition Jason McCourty and 2016 waiver claim Briean Boddy-Calhoun as their starting corners, with Jamar Taylor in the slot. Fourth-round rookie Howard Wilson is also available for depth, while Haden’s release likely opened up a roster spot for a corner such as Trey Caldwell or Marcus Burley to earn space on the squad. Cleveland, which owns the NFL’s No. 1 waiver priority, may also be active in poaching players from other teams during roster cutdowns this weekend.
Haden, for his part, shouldn’t have any trouble finding a new team in relatively short order, and the Saints and Chiefs are among the clubs expected to have “strong interest” in him, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). New Orleans has inquired on Haden before, making a play for him prior to the 2016 trade deadline, but Cleveland’s asking price was reportedly too steep. The Cowboys, too, are eyeing Haden, but aren’t likely to get into a bidding war, per Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star Telegram (Twitter link). Haden’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, told Schefter there is “tons of interest” in his client, and predicted Haden will have a new contract by Thursday (Twitter link).
Ezekiel Elliott's Appeal Hearing To Last Through Thursday
- Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott‘s appeal hearing with the NFL regarding his six-game suspension will last through Thursday, Adam Schefter reports (Twitter links). Final briefs are due Friday, notes the Washington Post’s Mark Maske, who adds that a ruling probably won’t come until next week.
Cowboys Place Leon McFadden On IR
Dallas Cowboys
Cowboys Notes: Gathers, Smith
- Cowboys tight end Rico Gathers has been dealing with a concussion for two weeks and could head to injured reserve as a result, Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes. An IR placement for Gathers would keep him out of game action for at least the first eight weeks of the season and deprive Dallas of a burgeoning weapon. The former Baylor basketball player and 2016 sixth-round pick was a shoo-in to make the Cowboys’ 53-man roster prior to his injury, Davison relays. Gathers’ absence would leave the Cowboys with the experienced James Hanna as their No. 2 tight end behind Jason Witten, though he’s coming off a season lost to injuries and isn’t a receiving threat.
Latest On Ezekiel Elliott
Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott‘s appeal of his six-game suspension will last into a second day, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Elliott, who’s fighting a ban stemming from domestic violence allegations, faced off with the NFL on Tuesday, but there’s “no end in sight,” per Rapoport.
While Elliott may miss the first six games of the season, there’s actually a strong chance he’ll be on the field for the Cowboys’ opener against the NFC East rival Giants, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says (Twitter link via Rob Guerrera of NBC Sports Radio). Elliott suiting up for Week 1 will occur if he files a lawsuit against the league, which Florio expects to happen.
One issue Elliott’s camp continues to have is an inability to access to the notes from Tiffany Thompson’s interviews with the league, Josina Anderson of ESPN tweets. Thompson, Elliott’s ex-girlfriend who accused him of domestic violence on June 22, 2016, has credibility issues, according to the running back. However, hearing officer Harold Henderson barred Elliott’s side from including her interviews with the league in the appeal hearing. Regardless, Elliott’s team has to explain how she suffered bruising during the week of June 22, 2016. Their contention is that “virtually all of the alleged victim’s injuries were outside the timeline,” Anderson reports (on Twitter).
The notion of Elliott’s suspension being delayed until next season if he doesn’t achieve the desired result during the appeal process has come up in recent days, and it doesn’t seem that Tuesday’s events have closed the door on that possibility.
Latest On Ezekiel Elliott’s Appeal Effort
Ezekiel Elliott will be away from the Cowboys on Tuesday in order to face off with the NFL at his appeal hearing. But it sounds like the running back’s side knows it’s up against a fight it might not win in this setting.
However, Elliott’s camp and the NFLPA are prepared to fight this further. If the second-year back’s suspension is upheld, Elliott’s defense team and the union are likely going to file a lawsuit against the NFL, Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com reports.
The parties battling the NFL in this latest case are looking to challenge the league in court on a procedural violation they believe occurred, Robinson reports. The exact violation these groups believe the NFL committed is not known, but Robinson reports they are related to the NFL’s arranging of this appeal.
Elliott’s defense team wanted Roger Goodell to select an arbiter other than Harold Henderson, a former league exec whom the union does not view as independent, and wanted to make the running back’s accuser available for cross examination. Henderson denied each of these requests while also dismissing Elliott’s camp’s push to make Tiffany Thompson’s notes and six interviews with investigators available during this process.
The union and the armada of attorneys representing Elliott — one that now includes longtime NFL legal adversary Jeffrey Kessler — believe they have enough working against them here to make the case a procedural violation occurred, Robinson notes. A procedural violation helped Tom Brady and the union sue the NFL in 2015, and it ended up delaying his four-game Deflategate ban until 2016. This would allow a federal court challenge and delay this process, and ultimately, the suspension while the matter is being sorted out.
Cowboys Not Interested In Daryl Washington
Daryl Washington has been lobbying hard to sign with the Cowboys, but it’s just not happening. The Cowboys have no interest in signing the troubled veteran and are happy with their current group of linebackers as-is, Clarence Hill of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter) hears. 
Earlier this summer, Washington detailed his vision for a comeback which started with joining the Cowboys and ended with a Hall of Fame induction. The Cowboys have a reputation for rolling the dice on players with checkered backgrounds, but the decision makers in Dallas do not feel that Washington’s promise offsets the potential headaches.
The linebacker was a Pro Bowler in 2012 after recording an eye-popping 134 total tackles with 9.0 sacks. He was productive again in 2013, but he has now been out of the game for three straight NFL seasons thanks to repeated violations of the substance abuse policy.
At this best, Washington was among the league’s top linebackers. Today, it’s hard to see him getting back into the league considering his age, rust, PED history, and alleged history with domestic violence.