NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/21/19
We’ve got a couple of practice squad updates for you on a slow Saturday night.
New England Patriots
- Signed: LB Scooby Wright
- Released: DE Gerri Green
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DT Taylor Stallworth
- Released: TE Alize Mack
Stallworth made the Saints’ initial 53-man roster as they were missing defensive tackles Sheldon Rankins and David Onyemata, but got the axe earlier this week. Wright, the former Pac 12 Defensive Player of the Year with Arizona, was a seventh-round pick of Arizona’s back in 2016. After a stint in the AAF, he spent training camp with New England.
Antonio Brown Rumors: Kraft, Suitors, Cap
Antonio Brown‘s latest stay in free agency is, as expected, lasting longer than his brief unattached period between his Raiders and Patriots stints. He remains unemployed as Week 3 Sunday nears. Here is the latest from the Brown rumor mill, beginning with more on the Patriots’ decision to cut him:
- Robert Kraft became “enraged” while learning the details of Brown sending texts to a woman who accused him of sexual misconduct, and Jeff Howe of The Athletic reports (subscription required) he and Bill Belichick then spoke of the receiver’s status in New England. The two Pats power brokers agreed Brown had to go, after only 11 days with the team. The report from SI.com’s Robert Klemko about the messages broke late Thursday night, and barely 12 hours later, Brown had seen a third team part ways with him in less than seven months.
- While the Patriots are expected to have an avenue to avoid paying Brown anything beyond his Week 2 and Week 3 base salaries, Field Yates of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter) the receiver is still counting $4.5MM on New England’s cap. As it stands currently, Brown represents a $4.5MM cap hold on the Pats’ 2019 and ’20 cap sheets.
- If and when a Brown grievance comes regarding his $9MM signing bonus — which was set to be paid in two installments, Monday and then in early 2020 — Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap writes a Patriots victory in that setting would give them more than $5MM in 2020 cap credits.
- The Seahawks have already come out and said they are not interested in Brown this time around. Another suitor who was interested earlier this month is bowing out this time, too, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (video link). This may be a common refrain, as Brown is dealing with far more troublesome issues than he was when the Raiders cut the cord.
- It would be hard to imagine the Redskins pursuing Brown, considering what Jay Gruden saw his brother go through over the summer in trying to manage the mercurial talent, but Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes the NFC East franchise should not be ruled out. This is the team that placed a waiver claim on Reuben Foster when no one else did, and Florio adds this could be more of a Dan Snyder–Bruce Allen decision. Foster had been arrested on multiple occasions when Washington claimed him, and it does not appear an arrest is in the cards for Brown. The Redskins are also 0-2 and thin on skill-position talent. For now, the 31-year-old superstar is in the clear to seek NFL employment, though a commissioner’s exempt list stay may be on the horizon if he signs anywhere. That will hurt his chances of playing for another team in 2019.
Patriots Promote FB Jakob Johnson
With James Develin set to miss tomorrow’s division matchup against the Jets, the Patriots have promoted another fullback. Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com writes that New England has elevated Jakob Johnson to the active roster. The team had an open roster spot following yesterday’s release of Antonio Brown.
Hailing from Stuttgart, Germany, Johnson spent two years on the U19 team for the Stuttgart Scorpions of the German Football League. He moved to Florida for his senior year of high school, and he later played several seasons for the Tennessee Volunteers football program. He decided to return to the Scorpions for the 2018 campaign.
This past offseason, Johnson was signed as an undrafted free agent via the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program. He was released at the end of the preseason, but he quickly joined the Patriots practice squad.
Develin sat out three practices this week as he dealt with an upper back and neck injury. He’s currently considered week-to-week.
Brown Fallout: Patriots, Contract, Seahawks
The Patriots have released Antonio Brown, making them the third team to move on from the all-time receiver great in the past seven months. Here is the latest Brown fallout:
- Brown practiced with the Patriots earlier Friday, but some in the organization viewed the text messages Brown is believed to have sent to the artist who accused him of sexual misconduct to have crossed a line, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports (video link). Bill Belichick said earlier today the team was “looking into” some Brown-related matters. Brown having sent those messages after becoming a member of the Patriots changed the scope of this situation for the franchise, per Reiss.
- The Patriots are unlikely to have to pay Brown much money, per ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler. A representation warranty clause in Brown’s contract, which Fowler notes puts the short-term Patriot at risk of losing more guaranteed money because of not disclosing “any situations that may prevent continued availability” prior to signing with New England, stands to give the franchise cover here. Brown’s Patriots guarantees were believed to be in jeopardy after the first allegation surfaced. Instead of paying millions in guarantees, Fowler writes the Patriots are likely only to have to pay Brown his base salaries for Weeks 2 and Week 3. An NFLPA grievance could still emerge, however. Brown’s bonus payments were due in two parts — $5MM Monday and the other $4MM on Jan. 15.
- After the text messages became public, the NFL ordered Brown not to have any further interactions with the unidentified artist, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports. “The NFL has assured us that regardless of Antonio Brown’s roster status, it will continue to investigate all claims regarding his behavior,” the artist’s attorney, Kendra Barkoff said in a statement. The investigation into Britney Taylor’s allegations of multiple Brown sexual assaults is ongoing, with the NFL set to conduct more interviews. Taylor met with the league for 10 hours on Tuesday.
- One of the teams connected to Brown after the Raiders released him will not look into signing him now. The Seahawks are content with their wide receiver situation, Pete Carroll said (via ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson, on Twitter).
Agent: Antonio Brown “Hopes To Play For Another Team Soon”
Will Antonio Brown find another NFL deal soon after his Friday release from the Patriots? Agent Drew Rosenhaus seems to think so. 
“It’s unfortunate things didn’t work out with the Patriots,” agent Drew Rosenhaus said in a statement. “But Antonio is healthy and is looking forward to his next opportunity in the NFL. He wants to play the game he loves and he hopes to play for another team soon.”
For those of you just tuning in – Brown was cut by the Patriots following a new round of allegations from an artist who is accusing him of sexual assault (not to be confused with Brittany Taylor, the first known AB accuser). The artist – who is choosing to remain anonymous – says that Brown sent her intimidating text messages this week.
In turn, her lawyer shared screenshots of the text with reporters covering the NFL and the league office. The Patriots, less than 24 hours later, cut ties with the embattled wide receiver.
From a pure talent standpoint, the league’s 31 other teams would theoretically be interested in Brown now that he is a free agent. For obvious reasons, the Steelers and Raiders will not be suitors for him – that leaves 29. Now that Brown has been accused of four separate incidents of sexual assault by two different women, and made an apparent effort to dig up dirt on one of them, that number could very well be down to zero.
Patriots Release Antonio Brown
The Patriots have released Antonio Brown after just one game with the club. His release comes on the heels of a second round of allegations from his second accuser, who says that he sent her intimidating text messages. 
[RELATED – Accuser Says Brown Sent “Intimidating” Text Messages]
“The New England Patriots are releasing Antonio Brown. We appreciate the hard work of many people over the past 11 days, but we feel that it is best to move in a different direction at this time,” the team said in a statement.
New England is set to pay him $5MM of his $9MM signing bonus on Monday. The entire signing bonus is guaranteed, meaning that the Patriots and Brown are likely scheduled to rumble over whether the wide receiver will collect on it.
Cash aside, it’s unlikely that Brown will find another NFL home anytime soon. Then again, we’ve seen crazier things happen in the league.
While Brown faces civil suits from both of his accusers, he does not currently face any criminal charges. Recently, the Allegheny County District Attorney announced that he would not pursue charges against Brown for two 2017 events alleged by Brittney Taylor. It’s still possible that criminal charges arise from his alleged 2018 dalliance with Taylor, or from his interactions with the second anonymous accuser, known simply to be an “artist.”
Brown’s total stay in New England lasted just eleven days. He was the 72nd player in NFL history to catch a touchdown pass from Tom Brady and that could go down as his only on-field moment of note for the Patriots.
Injury Notes: 9/20/19
Here are the latest significant injury-related notes from around the league:
- Marshall Newhouse, whom the Patriots signed last week, will serve as the club’s starting left tackle until Isaiah Wynn returns, per Doug Kyed of NESN.com (via Twitter).
- As expected, Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson will not play in Week 3, but the club is still optimistic about the availability of Alshon Jeffery and Dallas Goedert, as Eliot Shorr-Parks of 94WIP.com tweets.
- Buccaneers LB Devin White will not play this weekend, per Greg Auman of The Athletic (Twitter link).
- Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard is out of the concussion protocol and will play in Week 3 per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com (via PFT). Rookie QB Daniel Jones will be making his first start, so Shepard’s presence will be especially helpful.
- The Seahawks are getting closer to full strength, as both WR David Moore and defensive end Ezekiel Ansah are expected to play in Week 3, per Curtis Crabtree of Pro Football Talk. We had already heard that Ansah was likely to make his Seattle debut this weekend, but Moore’s return is earlier than expected, even after we learned at the end of August that he would avoid IR.
- Top Jets defenders C.J. Mosley and Quinnen Williams are not expected to play this week, as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets. The Week 3 outlook is also bleak for WR Demaryius Thomas and LB Jordan Jenkins.
- Tyler Kroft‘s Bills debut may be put on hold for awhile longer. Kroft was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice, but as Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk writes, Buffalo HC Sean McDermott told reporters that Kroft injured his ankle in Thursday’s practice and will undergo further evaluation.
Accuser: Antonio Brown Sent “Intimidating” Text Messages
Antonio Brown won’t be facing criminal charges for two of the three sexual assault he’s being accused of, but he could still be in jeopardy with the NFL and the legal system. The latest accusation from Brown’s second accuser, if proven to be true, could easily take the Patriots star off of the field. 
Brown’s accuser claims she received threatening text messages from the wide receiver on Wednesday, as Robert Klemko of The MMQB writes. In turn, her lawyer notified the NFL of the matter on Thursday night and included screenshots of the text in his letter to the league office.
Brown, she says, texted her and three other people to encourage the other parties to dig into the woman’s past. In response, the accuser’s lawyer petitioned the NFL to take action against Brown for “intimidating and threatening” her client in what she views as a “violation of the NFL Personal Conduct Policy.”
Brown’s lawyer, Darren Heitner, was one of the people in the group text. He did not respond to the messages in the group chat and declined to comment when asked about the messages by Klemko.
Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports says the NFL is meeting with the accuer’s lawyer’s today (Twitter link). As of this writing, Brown is slated to take the field for the Patriots on Sunday afternoon when they face the Jets, but that could change in a matter of hours. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says AB has been caught with a smoking gun and suggests that the NFL and the Patriots should take swift and severe action against him.
In his meeting with the media today, Pats HC Bill Belichick said the team was “looking into” the latest incident but would not offer further comment. When he was asked again about Brown, Belichick cut the press conference short by walking off the podium.
AFC Notes: Ramsey, Wynn, Conner, Brady
Coach Doug Marrone confirmed at Jalen Ramsey will play for the Jaguars on Thursday Night Football, as Tiffany Blackmon of NFL Network relays (Twitter link).
“Jalen and I have always had a good open relationship,” Marrone said. “…we sat down yesterday and talked about what went on with him and I… that’s behind us right now…”
Blackmon adds that Ramsey is focused on the game against the Titans. It was reported earlier today that the team may be targeting Friday as the ideal time to trade the cornerback. While we await to see if Ramsey ends up elsewhere, let’s take a look at some notes from the AFC:
- With LT Isaiah Wynn on injured reserve with a toe injury, the Patriots may move starting LG Joe Thuney to the tackle spot, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes. Wynn isn’t eligible to return for another eight weeks but it’s possible he finds his way back on the field at that point.
- James Conner‘s knee injury doesn’t appear to be serious, Jeff Hathhorn of 93.7 The Fan relays (Twitter link). Conner expects to play for the Steelers this Sunday.
- Tom Brady is dealing with a “minor” calf ailment, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com passes along on Twitter. Brady was limited today in practice, though there’s been no indication that his status for the Patriots’ game this week is in jeopardy.
Antonio Brown Won’t Face Criminal Charges For Alleged 2017 Incidents
The Allegheny County District Attorney will not pursue criminal charges against Patriots wide receiver Antonio Brown for two alleged incidents that took place in 2017 (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). Former Brown cohort Brittney Taylor has accused him of three separate incidents, in total, so he is not necessarily out of the woods in terms of legal repercussions. It is presently unclear whether Brown will face charges for the third alleged incident, which is said to have taken place in May of 2018.
The DA will not pursue charges against Brown for these two alleged sexual assaults, which Taylor says took place in June of 2017, due to the statute of limitations. That is to say, the DA is not speaking to the merits of the accusations one way or another by declining to press charges.
While football is secondary in this entire matter, we must note that this will potentially impact Brown’s availability for the Patriots moving forward. If no charges, or convictions, come any of Taylor’s three separate accusations of sexual assault, it is possible that Brown will not face league discipline. Of course, the league office still reserves the right to suspend Brown based on the results of their own investigation.
In his Patriots debut on Sunday, Brown caught four passes for 56 yards and one touchdown. This week, he’s slated to turn his attention to the Jets. Brown’s status is very much day-to-day due to the issues surrounding him, but the NFL typically makes these types of rulings on players by Wednesday morning of any given game week. Barring something unforeseen, the Patriots will have Brown on the field at the Meadowlands.