Raiders To Place Several Defenders On Reserve/COVID-19 List
4:09pm: The following Raiders landed on the reserve/COVID-19 list: Johnathan Abram, Maliek Collins, Johnathan Hankins, Arden Key, cornerback Isaiah Johnson and defensive tackle Kendal Vickers. While this comes in under the rumored eight-starter number, five Raiders defensive first-stringers are currently sidelined — when Ferrell and Joyner are included.
3:06pm: The Raiders already prepared for a game without their first-string offensive line. They will face another difficult task ahead of their Week 11 rematch with the Chiefs.
At least eight members of the Raiders’ starting defense will land on their reserve/COVID-19 list, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Some of Las Vegas’ non-starter contributors on defense will also surface on the COVID list soon.
These players qualify as high-risk close contacts, and while Rapoport and NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero note they are not ruled out of Sunday night’s game (Twitter link), this certainly will bring another challenge for a team accustomed to dealing with them on the coronavirus front.
This news comes after the Raiders placed Clelin Ferrell and Lamarcus Joyner on their coronavirus list. The former tested positive for COVID-19, Rapoport tweets. With two starters already on the list — and Ferrell set to miss the team’s Week 11 game — Wednesday’s news would cover almost every other starting defender. The latest slew of players set to appear on Vegas’ COVID list are indeed close Ferrell contacts, Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal tweets.
Players who land on the virus list must isolate for five days. That timetable starts not at the point they land on the list but dates back to the individuals’ last contact with someone who contracted the virus. The Raiders are currently down right tackle Trent Brown due to COVID-19 and have lost a 2021 draft choice — and more than $1MM in total this season — because of failure to comply with the NFL’s COVID protocols.
Ahead of their Week 7 game against the Buccaneers, the Raiders practiced without Brown and the rest of their starting offensive line because of the group qualifying as high-risk close contacts of the mammoth tackle. The rest of the Raiders’ O-line returned to face the Bucs, which was moved from Sunday night to Sunday afternoon. With more Raiders out of practice because of the virus a month later, it would not be surprising if the NFL removes this game from the Sunday-night time slot as well to create flexibility in the event a postponement is necessary.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/17/20
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Placed on IR: TE Nick Boyle, CB Terrell Bonds
- Signed from practice squad: S Geno Stone
Denver Broncos
- Released: CB Davontae Harris
Green Bay Packers
- Activated off IR: WR Allen Lazard
Houston Texans
- Activated off reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Jacob Martin
Indianapolis Colts
- Released: DT Sheldon Day
- Activated off PUP: DE Kemoko Turay
Las Vegas Raiders
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Clelin Ferrell, S Lamarcus Joyner
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed from practice squad: OL Brett Jones
New York Giants
- Signed: P Ryan Santoso
Philadelphia Eagles
- Promoted from practice squad: Michael Jacquet
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: SS Johnathan Cyprien, RB JaMycal Hasty
Tennessee Titans
- Released: P Ryan Allen
Washington Football Team
- Released off IR: OL Michael Liedtke
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DL Matt Ioannidis
Raiders Promote David Irving, Activate Damon Arnette
David Irving will have a chance to play in his first game since October 2018 on Sunday. The Raiders are activating the defensive lineman from their practice squad.
Irving will join first-round pick Damon Arnette in being on the team’s 55-man game-day roster. Las Vegas moved Arnette back to its active roster from IR. The Ohio State-developed cornerback has run into multiple instances of thumb trouble as a rookie.
The Raiders added Irving to their practice squad last month, doing so shortly after the NFL reinstated the oft-suspended inside pass rusher. The Cowboys let Irving walk in free agency in 2018, doing so after he played in only two games for the team in 2018.
Irving has been suspended four times, with his most recent substance-abuse ban sidelining him for over a year. He has shown flashes as a productive rusher, most notably in 2017 when he recorded seven sacks in eight games. The Raiders rank 31st this season with just nine sacks.
Arnette initially broke his thumb during training camp but landed on it awkwardly against the Patriots in September. He has played in just three games as a pro. The Raiders surprised many by taking Arnette at No. 19 overall. They are yet again having issues against the pass — an evergreen issue for the team — and enter Week 10 ranked 30th in defensive DVOA. A 32nd-ranked rush defense also contributes to that ranking.
The Raiders also promoted offensive lineman Jaryd Jones-Smith from their practice squad.
Cory Littleton Lands On Raiders’ Reserve/COVID-19 List
The Raiders continue to run into issues with the coronavirus. They placed top tackler Cory Littleton on their reserve/COVID-19 list Thursday.
An offseason addition, the former Rams linebacker has registered 48 tackles this season. He joins Trent Brown on the Raiders’ COVID list. While Brown is out for Sunday’s game against the Broncos and is without a firm return timetable, Littleton’s status will come down to when he last came in contact with someone who contracted the virus.
The NFL requires players who land on the reserve/COVID list to isolate for five days, even if they did not test positive. This in-season policy change resulted in the Raiders practicing without their first-string offensive line prior to their Week 7 game against the Buccaneers.
While the Titans led the NFL in players placed on a reserve/COVID list, the Raiders have incurred the stiffest punishment for violating coronavirus protocols. The NFL docked the team a sixth-round pick and has levied more than $1MM in fines against the organization this season.
One of the NFL’s top coverage linebackers over the past two seasons, Littleton opted to sign with the Raiders this offseason. Pro Football Focus has not viewed Littleton’s Raiders debut as a success so far, interestingly rating him as one of the league’s worst coverage ‘backers through Las Vegas’ eight games.
49ers, Browns, Raiders Put In Claims For Takk McKinley
The Bengals’ 2-5-1 record aided them Wednesday, with Takk McKinley now Cincinnati-bound after a waiver claim. Other suitors were ready to pounce if the Bengals did not make a claim.
The 49ers, Browns and Raiders submitted claims for McKinley, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. This comes after McKinley curiously tweeted the Falcons declined trade offers for him. The Browns were one of the teams to discuss a McKinley trade with the Falcons, per SI.com’s Albert Breer (on Twitter).
McKinley would have been thrust into the AFC playoff race had he landed in Cleveland or Las Vegas. The Browns eyed Jadeveon Clowney for months, submitting what was believed to be a strong offer for the high-profile edge rusher, but instead reworked Olivier Vernon‘s contract and ran back the Vernon-Myles Garrett tandem. McKinley would have joined ex-Falcons teammate Adrian Clayborn as an auxiliary pass rusher in Cleveland.
Although the Raiders have seen Maxx Crosby play well after arriving as a fourth-round pick, the team has not seen much production from No. 4 overall selection Clelin Ferrell. The Raiders were also in the Clowney mix. Only Crosby (five sacks) has registered more than one sack among Raiders, and the team’s nine QB drops rank 31st.
Injuries have depleted the 49ers’ once-formidable defensive line. They are without Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas for the season, and Dee Ford is not certain to return in 2020. McKinley, who recorded 13 sacks between the 2017-18 seasons, has one in four games this year. The 2017 first-round pick does have seven QB hits in abbreviated time (85 defensive snaps) this season, however.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/10/20
Here are the NFL’s recent practice squad moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: Nate Brooks, T R.J. Prince
Carolina Panthers
- Activated from practice squad injured list: RB Reggie Bonnafon
- Signed: DT Woodrow Hamilton
- Released: K Taylor Bertolet, DT Mike Panasiuk
Chicago Bears
- Signed: OL Eric Kush, QB Kyle Sloter
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: CB Stephen Denmark, TE Kyle Markway, C Javon Patterson
- Released: C Evan Brown, T Timon Parris, CB Prince Smith
- Placed on practice squad injured list: WR Ryan Switzer
Denver Broncos
- Signed: TE Troy Fumagalli, C Jon Halapio
Detroit Lions
- Signed: TE Khari Lee
Houston Texans
- Signed: LB Curtis Bolton, LB Kendall Futrell
- Released: WR Devin Smith
- Placed on practice squad injured list: LB Davin Bellamy
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: WR Rico Gafford, S Rashaan Gaulden
Los Angeles Rams
- Released: C Cohl Cabral
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: CB Cordrea Tankersley
New England Patriots
- Signed: TE Dylan Cantrell, TE David Wells
- Released: DT Ryan Glasgow
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: DT Treyvon Hester
- Released: RB Adrian Killins
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: WR Chris Finke
Seattle Seahawks
- Released: DE DeMarkus Acy
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: DL Miles Brown, CB Greg Mabin, OL Daniel Munyer, K Giorgio Tavecchio
2020 NFL Cap Space, By Team
The trade deadline is in the rear view mirror, but teams are still keeping a watchful eye on their salary cap figures. For contenders, the available dollars can be used for late-season signings. For all clubs, a portion of the unspent dollars can be rolled over into future seasons, giving them a larger budget to work with in the first wave of free agency.
Here are the most recent figures for each team, via Over The Cap:
- Cleveland Browns – $31MM
- New York Jets – $30.4MM
- Dallas Cowboys — $28MM
- Jacksonville Jaguars– $26.3MM
- Philadelphia Eagles– $23.9MM
- Washington Football Team – $23.3MM
- New England Patriots – $21.8MM
- Denver Broncos – $19.8MM
- Miami Dolphins – $15.6MM
- Detroit Lions – $14.2MM
- Cincinnati Bengals– $12.3MM
- Indianapolis Colts – $10.7MM
- Los Angeles Chargers — $8.4MM
- New York Giants – $8MM
- Chicago Bears – $7.6MM
- Houston Texans – $7.5MM
- Los Angeles Rams – $6.9MM
- Pittsburgh Steelers – $6.9MM
- Green Bay Packers – $6.7MM
- Arizona Cardinals– $6.2MM
- New Orleans Saints – $6MM
- Las Vegas Raiders – $6MM
- Kansas City Chiefs – $5.7MM
- Carolina Panthers – $5.5MM
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $5.3MM
- Tennessee Titans – $4.6MM
- Minnesota Vikings – $3.8K
- San Francisco 49ers – $3.7MM
- Seattle Seahawks – $3.3MM
- Baltimore Ravens – $3.3MM
- Buffalo Bills – $3MM
- Atlanta Falcons – $1.8MM
Injury Updates: T. Brown, Garoppolo, Clowney
Let’s round up a few injury-related items from around the league.
- Raiders OT Trent Brown is back on the reserve/COVID-19 list, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says Brown is expected to miss at least a month of action (Twitter link).
- Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports confirms a report from several days ago that 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo will not require surgery on his injured ankle, but the 29-year-old signal-caller is expected to miss at least a month (Twitter link). The injury further clouds Garoppolo’s uncertain future in San Francisco.
- Titans edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney is out for today’s game against the Bears. He is dealing with a meniscus issue and may ultimately opt for surgery.
- The Browns have a bye this week, and next time they’re on the field, they hope to be rejoined by Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb (Twitter link via Rapoport). Chubb has been dealing with an MCL injury, and though Kareem Hunt and D’Ernest Johnson have played reasonably well in his absence, getting Chubb back will be a big boost to Cleveland’s playoff push.
- Some may be wondering if WR Odell Beckham has already played his last game for the Browns, as he will miss the rest of the season with an ACL tear and has never really embraced Cleveland. Kim Jones of WFAN reports that OBJ will undergo surgery to repair the ACL on Tuesday (Twitter link).
- Ravens RB Mark Ingram left Baltimore’s game against the Eagles several weeks ago, and he still has not returned to action. Rapoport says Ingram is dealing with a high-ankle sprain (Twitter link), which explains the multi-week absence. Ingram has been ruled out for today’s game against the Colts, but younger backs Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins may be the better options anyway.
- When the Eagles return to their facility following this week’s bye, they expect to have RB Miles Sanders back, and they believe WR Alshon Jeffery will be a full participant in practice (Twitter link via Rapoport).
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/7/20
Here are Saturday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from IR: TE Maxx Williams
- Promoted: DL Michael Dogbe, RB D.J. Foster, CB Jace Whittaker
- Waived: TE Jordan Thomas
Atlanta Falcons
- Activated from IR: CB Darqueze Dennard
- Promoted: LB Edmond Robinson, LB Pita Taumoepenu
- Placed on IR: CB Jordan Miller
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from IR: LB Del’Shawn Phillips
- Promoted: CB Dane Jackson, WR Jake Kumerow
Carolina Panthers
- Activated: DE Yetur Gross-Matos, RB Christian McCaffrey (story)
Chicago Bears
- Promoted: QB Tyler Bray, OL Dieter Eiselen, WR Dwayne Harris, DL Daniel McCullers, Badara Traore
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on IR: P Chris Jones
- Promoted: P Hunter Niswander, RB Sewo Olonilua, QB Cooper Rush, CB Saivion Smith
Denver Broncos
- Promoted: S Alijah Holder
Detroit Lions
- Activated from reserve/PUP list: DE Austin Bryant
- Promoted: OL Marcus Martin
- Placed on IR: CB Darryl Roberts
Houston Texans
- Promoted: LB Nate Hall, DL Corey Liuget, OL Greg Mancz
Indianapolis Colts
- Activated from IR: LB Matthew Adams
- Promoted: WR Daurice Fountain, WR DeMichael Harris
- Placed on IR: WR Ashton Dulin
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted: LB Joe Giles-Harris, S Doug Middleton, CB Josh Nurse
- Placed on IR: LB Shaquille Quarterman
Kansas City Chiefs
- Promoted: WR Gehrig Dieter, G Bryan Witzmann
Las Vegas Raiders
- Activated from IR: DT Daniel Ross
- Added to active roster: DE Chris Smith
- Waived: WR Rico Gafford
Los Angeles Chargers
- Promoted: RB Kalen Ballage, DE Jessie Lemonier, DB Quenton Meeks
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Brandon Facyson
Miami Dolphins
- Activated from IR: T Austin Jackson
- Promoted: WR Kirk Merritt
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted: DT Abdullah Anderson, C Brett Jones
New York Giants
- Activated from IR: CB Brandon Williams
- Promoted: DB Montre Hartage, RB Alfred Morris, G Chad Slade
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Promoted: S Antoine Brooks, LB Jayrone Elliott
- Waived: RB Trey Edmunds, OL Stefen Wisniewski
Seattle Seahawks
- Activated from IR: DE Rasheem Green
- Promoted: RB Alex Collins, CB Jayson Stanley
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: DL William Gholston
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted: WR Cameron Batson, CB Breon Borders, RB D’Onta Foreman, LS Matt Overton, LB Wyatt Ray, DL Teair Tart
- Placed on IR: CB Tye Smith
- Waived: OL Daniel Munyer
Washington Football Team
- Activated from IR: WR Steven Sims
- Promoted: WR Jeff Badet, OL Ross Pierschbacher
- Waived: DE Nate Orchard
Raiders Lose Draft Pick For COVID Violations
The NFL will fine the Raiders $500K and strip the team of a sixth-round pick for their COVID-19 protocol violations (Twitter link via Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports). They’ve also fined head coach Jon Gruden $150K for infractions stemming from Trent Brown‘s positive test late last month.
In total, the Raiders have been fined $1.2MM for COVID-19 protocol violations. Now, they’ve become the first team to lose a draft pick over them. Gruden, meanwhile, has been docked a grand sum of $250K by the league office. Quarterback Derek Carr and many other Raiders players were also previously fined for not wearing a mask at a charity event.
The latest wave of sanctions has also impacted the Steelers. Head coach Mike Tomlin was fined $100K for not wearing his mask against the Ravens in Week 8 and the franchise was fined $250K in total. That game has came under additional scrutiny after Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey tested positive for the coronavirus.