Patriots DL Rob Ninkovich Suspended Four Games
More bad news for Patriots standout Rob Ninkovich as he has been suspended four games for a violation of the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes. 
“Few things are more important to me than my name and reputation. This might call that into question for some, which has me heartbroken,” the linebacker/defensive end told Reiss. “I don’t want to cut any corners. I want to do things the right way, with high integrity, and that’s what I have always wanted to stand for.”
Ninkovich was already slated to miss several weeks to start the season after suffering a torn triceps injury. Because of that, he is not necessarily missing any additional time. He will, however, be docked roughly 25% of his base salary.
The 32-year-old insists that he would never knowingly take an illegal substance. It is not immediately clear whether he plans to appeal.
“Any supplement I’ve ever used was bought at a store. I was unaware something I bought had a substance in it that would give me a positive test because it wasn’t listed [as an ingredient],” he told ESPN.
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Breer’s Latest: Dak, Rams, Kap, Prospects
The Dak Prescott hype train will continue into the regular season after Tony Romo‘s latest injury will put the former Mississippi State talent in command of the Cowboys. But how closely the fourth-rounder’s electric preseason will correlate with what happens beginning next week have NFL personnel split.
“He isn’t as good as his preseason performances. Teams haven’t schemed for him yet,” a league scout assigned to Mississippi State told Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com. “When they do, you’ll see his accuracy get exposed. [Dallas] will need to focus on quick, short, underneath throws, that’ll mask some of the downfield accuracy issues.”
The scout notes the Cowboys have enough talent around Prescott to keep him from being exposed but expects defenses to throw exotic blitzes at the rookie to gauge his readiness.
“He’s more accurate than I thought he would be; strong arm and a good athlete, good poise for a young guy. They’re so good up front, and should be able to run the ball behind Zeke [Elliott] and [Alfred] Morris. Those backs are good, so they can take pressure off him,” a Dolphins coach told Breer, before adding the August numbers would matter “very little” because “everyone is vanilla right now.”
Here’s more from Breer, beginning with the Rams’ behind-the-scenes approach after they were dealt a blow similar to what the Vikings endured earlier this week.
- Sam Bradford‘s preseason ACL tear in 2014 induced the Rams to inquire about trades for other quarterbacks. GM Les Snead did not confirm which passers the team pursued, but Breer reports the Rams made an effort to deal for Kirk Cousins and “seriously discussed” Jimmy Garoppolo with the Patriots. Snead discovered the price was too high on those passers before making a successful waiver claim for current starter Case Keenum.
- The offseason intrigue surrounding the pairing of Colin Kaepernick‘s athleticism with Chip Kelly‘s system dissipated considerably this summer. Unable to work out with the team for most of the offseason due to rehab efforts, Kaepernick, as a pro scouting director noticed, was running the 49ers‘ offense much slower than either Blaine Gabbert or Jeff Driskel in the 49ers’ game against the Packers. “When Kap was in the game, [the offense] slowed down—significantly,” the anonymous director said, via Breer. “I mean, it slowed down by 10 seconds [per play]. And that indicates he’s not comfortable getting them to the line, operating the offense the way they want him to do it. And it indicates the time he missed is costing him.”
- The next Notre Dame lineman to land in the first round could be left tackle Mike McGlinchey, who will take over for Ronnie Stanley. Moving from right to left tackle in advance of his redshirt-junior season, McGlinchey could follow in the footsteps of Stanley and Zack Martin. “He’s a beast!” said one area scout assigned to the Irish. “I haven’t watched film of him yet, but off the practice view alone, he’s a first- or second-round pick. He’s not as athletic as [Stanley], but he’s more physical.” McGlinchey will begin his second year as a starter for the Fighting Irish, doing so after helping Notre Dame runners average 5.63 yards per carry in 2015 — eighth-best in Division I-FBS last season.
Patriots, Matthew Slater Agree To Extension
The Patriots and Matt Slater have agreed to an extension, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. It’s a It’s a one-year, $1.8MM deal that will take the wide receiver/special teams specialist through 2017. 
[RELATED: Patriots Shopping WR Aaron Dobson]
The five-time Pro Bowler was originally slated to hit the open market following the 2016 season. Slater, who turns 31 in September, has just one reception and seven targets his credit in eight years with the Patriots. Still, he is an important cog in the third facet of the Pats’ game and they wanted to ensure that he would remain in New England beyond this season.
In other Patriots news, one-time Pats hopeful Tim Tebow auditioned for MLB teams on Tuesday afternoon. The Patriots also placed Sebastian Vollmer and Dion Lewis on the PUP list, as expected. Both players will be sidelined for at least six weeks of the NFL season.
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Reactions From Tim Tebow’s Baseball Workout
Tim Tebow worked out in front of representatives of 28 different MLB teams on Tuesday and he didn’t exactly look the part of a polished big leaguer. Tebow got “mixed reviews” after his audition on the USC campus, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com writes. 
Tebow, 29, ran a solid 6.70-second 60-yard-dash and belted some long home runs in practice. However, he struggled to hit off-speed pitches from former big-leaguers David Aardsma and Chad Smith. Also, according to one scout who spoke to Crasnick, Tebow showed a below-average 40 grade arm on the 20-80 scouts scale – an especially poor showing for a former NFL quarterback. Even though Tebow did not have a great day on the field, he still insists that he is serious about his baseball pursuit.
“This isn’t about publicity,” Tebow said. “It’s definitely not about money. I took a pay cut to do this. For me, you pursue what you love regardless of what else happens. If you fail or fall flat on your face, and that’s the worst thing that can happen, it’s OK. When did pursuing what you love become such a bad thing? I’ll make all the sacrifices to be the best I can.”
For what it’s worth, Tebow understands that he has some work to do before he reaches the big leagues and he may even consider playing winter league ball in Latin America. If Tebow is indeed willing to leave the country to play baseball, one can’t help but wonder why he was never willing to try and reignite his football career in the CFL.
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Patriots Release Ramon Humber
The Patriots have made several transactions to get their roster under the 75-man limit. In addition to placing Dion Lewis and Sebastian Vollmer on PUP (moves that were previously reported), New England has made the following moves.
Released/Waived:
- LB Ramon Humber
- OL Keavon Milton
- TE Steven Scheu
Humber, 29, agreed to a one-year deal with the Pats earlier this year. He served as a key special teams cog for the Saints after they signed him during the 2010 season. Since signing with the Colts as an undrafted free agent out of North Dakota State in 2009, the 28-year-old has appeared in 92 regular-season games and made 18 starts at linebacker.
Patriots Place Lewis, Vollmer On PUP
The Patriots have formally placed Dion Lewis on the PUP list. The running back is in need of a second knee surgery and reportedly will be out for at least another eight or 9 weeks. The PUP list designation sidelines him for the first six weeks of the season. 
The Patriots will also place tackle Sebastian Vollmer on the PUP list, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Theoretically, New England can bring him back, but it’s more likely that he will not play this year due to his nagging hip problems.
Lewis’ injury does not involve the ACL or any other ligaments, which is good news for his recovery. Lewis was a key cog of New England’s offense before his ACL tear, rushing 49 times for 234 yards and catching 36 passes for 388 yards. He also scored four total touchdowns, two through the air and two on the ground.
Vollmer, when healthy, has been a mainstay at tackle for New England since 2009. However, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked Vollmer as the 42nd-best tackle out of 77 qualified players last season, and he was thought to be on the roster bubble earlier this year. His contract is set to expire at the end of the 2016 campaign and earlier this offseason Patriots passed on discussing an extension with him as a result of his injury issues.
In related news, the Patriots cut linebacker Ramon Humber, tight end Steven Scheu, and offensive tackle Keavon Milton.
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Patriots Shopping WR Aaron Dobson
The Patriots are trying to trade wide receiver Aaron Dobson, according to Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com (Twitter link). Dobson has played 128 snaps this preseason, as Breer notes, allowing other clubs to get a good look at him.
[RELATED: Patriots Place Tre’ Jackson On PUP]
Dobson, 25, is a former second-round pick, but he’s never broken out since joining New England in 2013. In three seasons with the club, the Marshall product has only posted 53 receptions for less than 700 yards. Most of that production came during his rookie season, as Dobson has put up only 16 catches during the past two years. Entering the final year of his rookie deal, Dobson will earn about $872K in base salary.
The Patriots have already been active on the trade market in recent days, as they acquired Barkevious Mingo from the Browns and attempted to deal Bryan Stork to the Redskins. Stork, however, failed his physical, ending the trade.
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Patriots Place Tre’ Jackson On PUP
The Patriots announced that they’ve placed guard Tre’ Jackson on the reserve/PUP list. As such, Jackson will miss the first six weeks of the regular season — New England will then have a three-week window during which it can decide to activate Jackson.
Jackson, 23, was selected by the Patriots in the second round of last year’s draft. During his rookie season, Jackson played a key role on a New England offensive line that was dealt injury blows throughout the year, and he ended up starting nine games (and appearing in 13). According to Pro Football Focus, Jackson was roughly average in 2015, grading as the NFL’s No. 47 guard.
Additionally, the Patriots announced last Tuesday defensive lineman Frank Kearse was released, but he was instead was placed on IR, according to the NFL transaction wire (via NESN’s Doug Kyed). Originally drafted by Miami in the seventh round of the 2011 draft, Kearse has also had stops with Carolina, Tennessee, Dallas, and Washington.
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Patriots To Waive Bryan Stork
The Patriots have decided to waive center Bryan Stork after a trade that would have sent Stork to the Redskins fell through, according to Doug Kyed of NESN.com (Twitter link).
For those of you keeping score at home, here’s the finally tally of Stork’s travels over the last week. On Wednesday, Stork was supposedly on the verge of being released by the Patriots. However, the Redskins got word that Stork was about to be released and, rather than fight it out with other teams on the open market, they worked out a trade with the Patriots. Hours later, it was learned that Stork was thinking about quitting football altogether. The Redskins got Stork to change his mind, but it turns out he’s not healthy enough to play right now anyway.
Stork, 25 (26 in November), emerged as the Patriots’ starting center just four weeks into his rookie season in 2014, and finished the year there. Pro Football Focus’ grades suggested that Stork’s performance was somewhat up and down, but most of his worst performances came during the first half of the season. In 2015, Stork suffered a concussion which limited him to just eight games.
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Bryan Stork Trade Rescinded
Bryan Stork won’t be joining the Redskins after all. The center failed his physical with his new team, meaning that the trade between the Redskins and the Patriots has been rescinded, as Chris Cooley of ESPN 980 tweets. Stork’s rights will revert back to the Patriots while the Redskins get the conditional seventh-round pick back. 
For those of you keeping score at home, here’s the finally tally of Stork’s travels over the last week. On Wednesday, Stork was supposedly on the verge of being released by the Patriots. However, the Redskins got word that Stork was about to be released and, rather than fight it out with other teams on the open market, they worked out a trade with the Patriots. Hours later, it was learned that Stork was thinking about quitting football altogether. The Redskins got Stork to change his mind, but it turns out he’s not healthy enough to play right now anyway.
Had Stork actually joined Washington, he would have likely slotted in as the No. 2 center to Kory Lichtensteiger. In fact, there were some rumblings that the Redskins were hoping that Stork could push Lichtensteiger for the starting job. Now, Washington will have to look for interior line help elsewhere.
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