Workout Notes: Bears, Broncos, Patriots
Clubs continue to update their emergency lists as the season winds down, so let’s take a look at the latest workouts from around the league…
- We’ve learned the names of half of the eight players the Broncos worked out today, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports (via Twitter) that in addition to the previously-reported Still, Denver tried out defensive end DeAngelo Tyson, linebacker Dekoda Watson, and defensive tackle Phil Taylor.
- The Colts also tried out a couple of additional players, including kick returner Demarius Washington and defensive back Terell Floyd, tweets Wilson.
- Looking for depth along their front seven, the Texans worked out linebackers Jordan DeWalt-Ondijo and Xzavier Dickson, per Wilson (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- The Bears auditioned six players today, including running backs Vick Ballard and Alonzo Harris, receiver Chris Harper, and defensive linemen Davon Coleman, Euclid Cummings, and Keith Browner (Twitter links via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune). The 25-year-old Ballard is the most notable name here, as he ran for more than 800 yards during his rookie season with the Colts before suffering a string of injuries.
- Not to be outdone, the Broncos tried out eight players, including former Bengals defensive tackle Devon Still, per Field Yates of ESPN (Twitter link). Still, a former second-round pick, hasn’t played in 2015, but after announcing last month that his daughter’s cancer is in remission, he surely has many around the NFL rooting for him.
- The Patriots brought in a pair of CFL defensive ends for workouts, auditioning Freddie Bishop and Cleyon Laing earlier today, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
West Rumors: Chargers, Raiders, Manning, Tomsula
With the Cardinals and Seahawks having traded places in the standings from last season’s playoff bracket, the NFC West has been settled. The AFC West, suddenly, hasn’t, as the Chiefs are now one game back of the reeling Broncos and hold the tiebreaker.
Here’s what’s developing out of the Western teams’ locales as Week 15 concludes.
- Between six and 14 owners have yet to decide which way they’ll vote on the relocation issue in January, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes. The majority of the six owners who comprise the Committee on Los Angeles Opportunities, however, are behind the Chargers‘ and Raiders‘ Carson-based project, and their opinion will have the most sway among the 32 voters, Acee offers. San Diego, in the NFL’s opinion, being unlikely to approve public funding to be allocated toward a new Chargers stadium provides a significant stumbling block in the city’s efforts to retain the team.
- Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio wonders if the Raiders, who have expressed no desire to replace the Rams in St. Louis, would consider a San Diego relocation if the city became serious about financing a new stadium. With the Chargers, in Florio’s view, not being inclined to wait on the city to decide on a stadium solution in order to find a more-lucrative landing spot in Los Angeles, the city won’t merely shut down football operations. Like Baltimore and St. Louis after the cities lost their teams in 1984 and 1988, respectively, Florio expects San Diego to keep pushing to land a team if the Chargers depart.
- Gary Kubiak is open to Peyton Manning returning next week at less than 100%, Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports. “Absolutely. We are trying to work him back to where he feels like he can go play, and go be himself,” Kubiak said. “That’s been the plan all along but we are not there yet.” The first-year Broncos coach’s view of Manning’s health led him to maintain the status quo of Brock Osweiler atop the depth chart going into this week’s practices. Osweiler failed to lead the Broncos to any second-half points in their past three games.
- 49ers first-year coach Jim Tomsula appears to be safe, with the team in full-on rebuilding mode, after a rocky debut, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes. Although owner Jed York told media, “We’ll talk about everything at the end of the season,” CBS sideline reporter Jay Feely‘s conversation with 49ers COO Al Guido can be interpreted as the 49ers showing faith in Tomsula’s process. “They knew what they were getting into when they had all the defections,” Feely said, describing Guido’s view of the offseason chaos that consumed the team. “(Guido) said they underestimated a little bit the impact that it had in the locker room, specifically the lack of leadership. . . But I think they’re confident with Jim Tomsula going forward.”
AFC Notes: Blackmon, Miller, Browns, Reid
As detailed on the website for the Carter County Sheriff’s Office, Jaguars wide receiver Justin Blackmon was arrested once again this weekend, charged with driving under the influence. It’s the latest off-field incident for Blackmon, who remains suspended indefinitely — even though he’s technically still under contract with the Jaguars, the team has expressed skepticism that he’ll ever play football again, and his latest run-in with the law likely ensures that he won’t be reinstated anytime soon.
Here’s more from around the AFC:
- Dolphins running back Lamar Miller took a back seat to rookie Jay Ajayi in terms of plays and touches on Sunday, and he isn’t thrilled with his decreased role, as Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post details. With Miller nearing free agency, it’s hard to imagine him re-signing with Miami, as the team seems to be preparing Ajayi for a bigger role in 2016.
- Browns tight end Gary Barnidge, recently extended by the team, would like to see Cleveland’s coaching staff remain intact for the 2016 season, and other players – including some speaking off the record – are saying the same thing, tweets Jeff Schudel of the Morning-Journal. Whether or not that will have any impact on the Browns’ end-of-season decisions remains to be seen.
- Browns guard John Greco has sustained an MCL injury that won’t require surgery, but will sideline him for the last two games of the season, head coach Mike Pettine said today (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com). The team figures to send Greco to IR to open up a roster spot.
- Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (all Twitter links) provides some specific details on Jah Reid‘s extension with the Chiefs, reporting that the three-year, $11.371MM deal includes a $3.1MM signing bonus , and cap figures of $1.825MM, $3.625MM, and $3.975MM from 2016 through 2018. Reid’s 2016 salary ($860K) becomes fully guaranteed on the third day of the ’16 league year.
- A pair of players – Jaguars linebacker Telvin Smith and Broncos safety David Bruton – played through injuries on Sunday, with Smith separating his right shoulder and dislocating a finger on his left hand, while Bruton, incredibly, played through a broken fibula (Twitter links via John Oehser of Jaguars.com and Lindsay Jones of USA Today). It’s not clear whether either player will return to the field this season — Bruton said he was told he’d have a recovery time of four to six weeks (Twitter link via Jones).
Community Tailgate: AFC Wild Card Race
As the NFL regular season nears its home stretch, there are plenty of topics and storylines to discuss, and PFR’s Community Tailgate is designed to address those stories. What’s the Community Tailgate all about? Well, it’s pretty simple. We’ll highlight one of the top stories going on in the NFL. Then, in the comment section below, we want you to weigh in and let us know what you think.
Of course, while the debate may get spirited, we ask that it all stays respectful. If you need a reminder of our rules, please check out our commenting policy. Basically, we ask that you refrain from inappropriate language, personal insults, and attacks. Speaking of commenting: we’ve made it much easier to leave a comment here at Pro Football Rumors. You are no longer required to be a registered user – simply put in your name, email address, and comment and submit.
With two weeks to go (plus the Week 15 Sunday night and Monday night games), six teams have already clinched their playoff berths. The Panthers, Cardinals, Packers, and Seahawks will be playing in the postseason in the NFC, and Patriots and Bengals have guaranteed spots in the AFC.
While that means half of the playoff spots have been filled, there are still a group of teams fighting for those final six postseason berths this season. In the NFC one of those spots will go to the winner of the NFC East, while the Vikings heave a nice lead over the rest of the also rans in that conference. Atlanta could potentially sneak in if they end up tied with both the Vikings and the Seahawks, but the Vikings own the head-to-head advantage.
In the AFC there is a little more drama. One of those four available spots will belong to the winner of the AFC South, which will be either the Texans or Colts. The Texans have the advantage after winning head-to-head today, but with quarterback woes nothing is guaranteed over the next two weeks.
The Chiefs, Steelers, and Jets are all in the running for a wild-card berth. At 9-5 across the board, all three teams have put themselves in a great position record wise to make the playoffs. The Bills and Raiders would be the closest wild-card competitors, and both have been mathematically eliminated with losses today.
The Jets are currently on the outside looking in, despite having identical overall records. Should all three teams finish with the same record, the Chiefs and Steelers will get the nod via tiebreakers. The Chiefs prevail in a three-way tie based on conference record, and the Steelers get in over the Jets based on record in common games.
The Jets also have arguably the toughest remaining matchup as they face the Patriots in Week 16. Kansas City gets the Browns and Raiders, while the Steelers finish with the Ravens and Browns. It would seem that the Jets would have to beat the Patriots and the Bills, and hope either the Chiefs or Pittsburgh drop a game. If the Jets lose to the Patriots, they would need to beat the Bills and hope one of those teams go winless the rest of the season.
Two of those three teams will likely find themselves playing in the first round of the playoffs, but there is still a chance all three teams make it into the tournament. If the Chiefs were to win the AFC West outright, the Jets could tie the Broncos and would own certain tiebreakers over them, depending on how exactly things break out around the league. It seems unlikely as the Broncos have been presumed AFC West champs for a while, but a tough game against the Bengals followed by a Week 17 matchup with San Diego could knock them off their perch.
What do you think? How do you the see the last two weeks of the regular season playing out in the AFC? Who are your picks for the two wild card teams? Can the Chiefs overtake the Broncos in the AFC West, leaving the Jets with another chance to get in? Weigh in below in the comments section with your thoughts!
Extra Points: Broncos, Cowboys, Draft
With quarterback Peyton Manning nearing a return from injury, the Broncos are on the brink of having to make the most important decision of their season, Troy Renck of The Denver Post offers.
The 39-year-old Manning was having a bottom-of-the-barrel season before he landed on the shelf in mid-November with a torn plantar fascia in his left foot, and his loss looked like addition by subtraction as the Brock Osweiler era got off to a solid beginning. Osweiler’s first three starts all ended up as wins for Denver, but some shine wore off two weeks ago in a 17-3 victory over a horrific San Diego team and matters worsened in a 15-12 loss to Oakland last Sunday.
Manning will be inactive for Sunday’s game against playoff-caliber Pittsburgh, but he’s likely to be healthy enough for activation by Week 16. That means Osweiler might be playing for the starting job at Heinz Field. As Renck points out, Denver’s Osweiler-led offense has gone 23 straight possessions without scoring a touchdown, which isn’t going to cut it with a prolific Steelers offense on the other side. With another underwhelming showing from Osweiler, head coach Gary Kubiak could turn back to Manning as the playoffs near.
Some other NFL news and notes:
- Tonight is potentially the end of the Matt Cassel era in Dallas. The 33-year-old has fared poorly in place of Tony Romo this season, and he’ll be on a short leash against the Jets, ESPN’s Ed Werder tweets. The Cowboys’ current No. 2 QB, Kellen Moore, got some first-team reps in practice this week and could see his first action since going undrafted out of Boise State in 2012.
- Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright capped off an injury-riddled junior year Saturday by announcing he’ll enter the 2016 draft, Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk reports. A foot injury cost Wright all but three games this season, making it a disappointing follow-up to a highly productive 2014 campaign that saw him earn All-America honors, the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year Award, the Jack Lambert Award (nation’s best linebacker), and the Chuck Bednarik Award (nation’s top defender).
- A list of the top 20 failed free agent signings from last offseason reveals predictable names – Dwayne Bowe, DeMarco Murray, Brandon Browner, among others – but also mentions lower-tier additions like Tampa’s Bruce Carter and Arizona’s Sean Weatherspoon, Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com writes. Both Carter and Weatherspoon were beaten out early for starting linebacker jobs.
Sam Robinson contributed to this report.
West Notes: Rams, Manning, Scifres
The latest from the NFL’s two West divisions:
- On Friday, the Board of Aldermen in St. Louis will approve a financing package for a $1.1 billion riverfront stadium for the Rams, according to David Hunn of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.. The package counts on $300MM coming from the NFL, which is a problem: Commissioner Roger Goodell wrote in a letter to Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon and his stadium task force that the league only funds up to $200MM on new stadiums. Goodell referred to the notion of the league putting $300MM toward a stadium in St. Louis as “fundamentally inconsistent with the NFL’s program of stadium financing.” In response, downtown Alderman Jack Coatar said, “We are not changing this bill. “We are passing the bill as is tomorrow. We have the votes and we’re moving forward.” Coatar added that the proposed amount is “what we’re willing to spend.”
- Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning has been out since mid-November with a plantar fascia injury, but his father, Archie, told WDSU-TV in New Orleans that Manning has been dealing with it “for five or six months,” per Lionel Bienvenu of KMGH ABC-7 in Denver. Archie also stated that Peyton is unsure whether he’ll return in 2016, his age-40 campaign, and will decide after this season ends.
- Unlike Manning, Chargers punter Mike Scifres expects to play again next year. “Mike doesn’t plan on retiring for many more years. … I hope when he does retire, it’ll be as a Charger,” his agent, Harold Lewis, said, per Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Scifres, who currently ranks 20th in the league in yards per punt and 30th in net yardage, has been with the Chargers since they drafted him in 2003. He’s set to count over $4MM against their cap next season, though, and cutting him would save the Bolts upward of $3.5MM.
West Notes: Rams, Chargers, Raiders, Broncos, Chiefs
The Rams won’t fire Jeff Fisher and GM Les Snead after this season, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com report (Twitter link).
Despite a 25-35-1 record in more than four seasons, Fisher and Snead won’t be discarded even as the franchise potentially relocates to Los Angeles. Fisher’s job would have been one of the key positions out there post-Black Monday, with the speculation the Rams will be moving back to the west coast.
Schefter did mention that Fisher could step away on his own accord (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk), although the 57-year-old coach who has just six playoff appearances in 21 seasons with the Oilers/Titans and Rams probably wouldn’t receive a third head-coaching opportunity if he did so.
Fisher is a Los Angeles native who played at USC before being drafted by the Bears in 1981.
Here’s some more from the Los Angeles situation and additional notes from the Western divisions.
- The Rams and Chargers remain in the lead in the LA pursuit, Schefter reports, with the Raiders still in the race but lagging behind. Schefter notes the NFL shutting down the San Diego market would be hard to believe; it’s housed an NFL team since the Chargers moved from Los Angeles in 1961. Both note the NFL apparently planned ahead for a scenario in which these fanbases say goodbye to their teams prior to the end of the season, with the Rams playing their season’s final home game tonight and the Chargers doing so Sunday.
- Some coaches and executives have taken issue with John Elway‘s decision to hire Gary Kubiak, knowing what it meant for Peyton Manning‘s role with the Broncos, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com reports. Elway initially proposed a $10MM paycut for Manning, who eventually took a $4MM reduction, but Mortensen notes that was a message to leave town, with Kubiak’s style ill-suited for the 39-year-old quarterback’s skill set. A defensive coach mentioned Denver’s once-prodigious offense is much easier to game-plan for now that Kubiak’s in charge compared to Adam Gase and his more-nuanced attack. “Kubiak is a good offensive mind, a well-respected guy, but it’s about as elementary as it gets,” this coach said. “He did a good job in Baltimore but he also had a veteran offensive line, maybe one of the three best in the NFL. I think he has to take a serious look that it’s 2015 going on 2016.” This coach also pointed out Manning supplanting Brock Osweiler might not make that much of a difference considering how many hits the Broncos’ offensive line, which houses two of Pro Football Focus’ worst tackles in Ryan Harris and Michael Schofield, are allowing Osweiler to take.
- Justin Houston received a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews today that revealed a hyperextended knee, per Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder (via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star, on Twitter). “I don’t want anyone to be alarmed that he saw Dr. Andrews. We knew it; we’re good with it, Burkholder told Paylor (Twitter link). Houston remains without a return timetable, with reports circulating he will miss the regular season’s remainder. Andrews also told the Chiefs’ top active player the swelling in his knee has decreased.
West Notes: Manning, Houston, Boone, 49ers
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak announced that Brock Osweiler would continue to start for his team in Week 15, with Trevor Siemian serving as the No. 2 quarterback (Twitter link via Troy Renck of the Denver Post). That means Peyton Manning will be inactive for another week, despite the fact that he has returned to practice.
If and when Manning gets healthy, he has earned another shot at the starting job, in the view of Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports. Osweiler had all the momentum after his first couple starts, but the Broncos are coming off a home loss and haven’t scored an offensive touchdown in seven quarters. If he continues to struggle this weekend against the Steelers, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Manning return to action to play Cincinnati in Week 16, assuming he’s ready to go by then.
Here’s more from out of the NFL’s West divisions:
- As first reported by Rand Getlin of the NFL Network (Twitter link), Chiefs pass rusher Justin Houston paid a visit to Dr. James Andrews recently, tweets Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. According to Getlin, there was “some fear” that Houston could miss the rest of the regular season, but there’s been no official word yet on the 26-year-old’s status.
- Veteran guard Alex Boone – who is expected to be sidelined for the rest of the season – has likely played his last game for the 49ers, having not gotten close to a long-term extension with the team, writes Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. Still, while he’s looking forward to free agency, Boone says he’d “love to hear an offer” from the Niners.
- Shortly after a San Francisco Chronicle columnist speculated about the York family selling the 49ers, co-owner John York acknowledged on Wednesday that he has been disappointed by the on-field results this season. However, as Daniel Brown of the San Jose Mercury News details, York also said his family is “extremely passionate” about the Niners, and is looking ahead to the future of the franchise.
- Writers and columnists for the Bay Area News Group looked into their crystal balls to attempt to determine who will be back and who won’t be for the 49ers in 2016.
Workout Notes: 12/16/15
It’s been a busy last couple of days around the NFL, with teams still looking to fill up their squads for the rest of the season. Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweeted a whole bunch of workout notes this afternoon, which we’ve compiled for you below…
Arizona Cardinals
- CB Mitchell White (link)
Atlanta Falcons
- OT Cody Booth (link)
- DE Xzavier Dickson (link)
- OG Cole Manhart (link)
Buffalo Bills
- TE Andrew Gleichert (link)
- LB James-Michael Johnson (link)
- TE Jacob Maxwell (link)
Carolina Panthers
- OG Al Bond (link)
- DT Eric Crume (link)
- CB Travell Dixon (link)
- QB Zac Dysert (link)
- TE Joseph Fauria (link)
- NT Ishmaa’ily Kitchen (link)
- C Tyler Larsen (link)
- OG Matthew Masifilo (link)
- OG Shelley Smith (link)
- S Usama Young (link)
QB Rumors: Luck, Hoyer, Dalton, Cousins
The race for the AFC South title will take another interesting twist this week, as the starting quarterbacks for the division’s top teams have both been ruled out for Week 15. The Texans announced today that Brian Hoyer won’t play due to a concussion, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle details, while Colts head coach Chuck Pagano told reporters that Andrew Luck won’t play, though Matt Hasselbeck should (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com).
The two current leaders in the AFC South are, of course, scheduled to play each other this Sunday, so one of the two 6-7 clubs will almost certainly get back to .500. But they’ll have to attempt to do so without their starting QBs.
Here are a few more updates on quarterback situations around the NFL:
- Bengals players expect quarterback Andy Dalton to be sidelined for about four to six weeks, tweets Ed Werder of ESPN.com. If he can heal quickly and return in four weeks, that would put Dalton on track to potentially start a game on Wild Card weekend for Cincinnati.
- With Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins nearing the end of his rookie contract, Joel Corry of CBSSports.com takes a look at what a contract extension for Cousins might look like. As Corry observes, a Nick Foles-type deal could work for both sides, but Cousins should be in no rush to sign an extension if he finishes the season strong, since making Washington have to consider using its franchise tag would give him plenty of leverage.
- Cousins is one of a handful of potential free agent quarterbacks that Daniel Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks discuss in a piece for NFL.com, and the duo agrees that Washington should do all it can to hang onto the fourth-year signal-caller. Jeremiah and Brooks also examine Eagles QB Sam Bradford, Blaine Gabbert of the 49ers, and Broncos QB Brock Osweiler, among others.
- Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, and Jay Cutler are among the players whose teams – the Saints, Broncos, and Bears respectively – will face some tough cap decisions this offseason, writes Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports. Each case is a little different, but restructured contracts, trades, or cuts could be in play, as Robinson details.