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Corey Linsley

Injury Rumors: Jackson, Linsley, Johnson

November 30th, 2022 at 9:00pm CST by Ely Allen

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is on the team’s injury report for the third straight week after not finishing practice today, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN. This is not a continuation of any previous injuries and his status for the weekend is still far from determined.

Two weeks ago, Jackson sat out of a practice due to illness and followed that up with a missed practice last week because of a hip injury. The former MVP was sidelined today with a quadriceps issue that caused him to seek treatment from a trainer and miss his usual media session.

Although many have assumed Jackson’s running tendencies would lead to an increase in injuries, he has been remarkably durable. Over five years in the league, Jackson has only missed four games over a four-week stretch last year as he dealt with an ankle injury. His continuous ability to play despite being banged up is an encouraging sign for Baltimore.

The team will want their most valuable player as they prepare to face one of the league’s more stout defenses from Denver this week. If Jackson is unavailable, the Ravens will turn to Tyler Huntley, who went 1-3 as a starter in the four games Jackson had to miss last season.

Here are a few more injury rumors from around the NFL, starting with a couple of bumps and bruises on the Chargers offensive line:

  • Los Angeles could be down two offensive linemen this week as they head to Las Vegas for a divisional battle, according to Daniel Popper of The Athletic. Starting center Corey Linsley is in the league’s concussion protocol and may not be available in time to return. Trey Pipkins, who has performed as the Chargers’ starting right tackle this season, reportedly aggravated an MCL injury in his left knee. If neither player can go this weekend, Will Clapp is expected to fill in for Linsley at center and two others will contend for the open tackle position. Storm Norton is the team’s primary backup tackle, but the Chargers have given former practice squad tackle Foster Sarell an opportunity to start this season, as well.
  • The Seahawks have officially shut down outside linebacker Darryl Johnson after the fourth-year defender underwent foot surgery, according to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times. He’s been on injured reserve since suffering a foot injury in Week 4. Johnson had earned the first start of his career in the game that saw his season come to an end. Seattle has used a combination of Darrell Taylor and veteran Bruce Irvin since Johnson went down.

Chargers To Start Jamaree Salyer At LT

October 2nd, 2022 at 11:49am CST by Rory Parks

The Chargers have placed starting LT Rashawn Slater on injured reserve, and they will be turning to a rookie to fill the void. As Daniel Popper of The Athletic reported earlier this week, the Bolts will deploy 2022 sixth-rounder Jamaree Salyer on QB Justin Herbert‘s blind side for the team’s Week 4 matchup with the Texans (Twitter link).

It would have been fair to expect veteran Storm Norton, who started 15 games at right tackle for the Chargers in 2021 and who filled in at left tackle in Week 3 when Slater went down with a torn biceps tendon, to get the nod, at least for the next couple of games. That is especially true given that Salyer, who is listed at 6-3, has less than ideal height for an NFL tackle. Given his size, Salyer was originally drafted as a guard, though he does have long arms and acquitted himself well as a tackle against Aidan Hutchinson — this year’s No. 2 overall pick — in the College Football Playoff semifinals last year.

Salyer also has a higher ceiling than Norton, a 2017 UDFA who lost this summer’s training camp battle for the starting RT job to Trey Pipkins III. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com writes, the expectation is that Salyer will be a capable replacement for Slater. In the first three weeks of his pro career, Salyer has seen the field for 11 special teams snaps, so Sunday’s game will represent a trial by fire.

Herbert, of course, needs all the protection he can get. The passer is dealing with fractured rib cartilage, and while he came off the injury report on Friday, head coach Brandon Staley has confirmed that the injury will linger and will impact Herbert for some time. Luckily, starting center Corey Linsley — who exited the team’s Week 2 loss to the Chiefs due to a knee injury and who was inactive for the Week 3 loss to the Jaguars — is active for Sunday’s Houston contest.

RapSheet also passes along some good news with respect to Slater. Despite reports that the second-year pro would miss the remainder of the season, he may be able to return near the end of the campaign. If the Chargers are in the playoff hunt, Slater could suit up for one of the final two games of the season, or at least for the first game of the postseason if Los Angeles should qualify.

Cornerback J.C. Jackson, like Herbert, also came off the injury report on Friday.

NFL COVID-19 List Updates: 12/29/21

December 29th, 2021 at 3:19pm CST by Sam Robinson

Several key players returned to practice Wednesday. Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from around the league:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Activated from practice squad/COVID-19 list: WR Rico Bussey

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

NFL COVID List Updates: 12/20/21

December 20th, 2021 at 10:23pm CST by Ben Levine

A long list of players were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. We listed the players who landed on the list today, as well as those who were activated off the list:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE John Franklin-Myers, DB Sharrod Neasman

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Chargers Place Joey Bosa, Austin Ekeler On COVID-19 List

December 20th, 2021 at 12:33pm CST by Zachary Links

The Chargers will be forced to place edge rusher Joey Bosa, center Corey Linsley, and running back Austin Ekeler on the COVID-19 list (Twitter link via Daniel Popper of The Athletic). The Bolts will likely add more players to that list later today, which may leave them at less than full strength for Sunday’s game against the Texans. 

Bosa was reported to be unvaccinated earlier this year. So, unless he has received the vaccine in recent weeks, he’ll still be subject to the league’s 2020 protocols and held out of this week’s game. Even under the revised rules, unvaccinated players who test positive must remain in quaratine for a minimum of ten days.

Bosa was briefly placed on the COVID-19 list back in November when he was ID’d as a high-risk close contact. But, after testing negative, he was cleared to face the Steelers in Week 11.

The 26-year-old is in the midst of another sensational season with 43 tackles, 9.5 sacks, and a league-leading six forced fumbles. Needless to say, he’s well on his way to a third straight Pro Bowl selection, which would give him four for his young career. The Chargers have Bosa under contract for years to come, thanks to the five-year, $135MM mega-deal he inked in 2020.

Unfortunately, the Chargers be without Bosa for at least a little while as they work to clinch a playoff berth. At 8-6, the Bolts have a 75% chance of. making the cut, per Five Thirty Eight, plus an outside chance of catching the Chiefs for the divisional crown.

NFL Contract Details: Bolts, Griffin, Broncos

March 16th, 2021 at 3:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

With the tampering period in full swing, here are some of the latest contract details to emerge:

  • Chargers C Corey Linsley: Five years, $62.5MM. $26MM guaranteed, $13MM signing bonus. Linsley is due $26MM through 2022, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. Linsley’s 2021 base salary ($4MM) is fully guaranteed. His 2022 base salary ($9MM) is guaranteed for injury at signing; it becomes fully guaranteed if he is on the Bolts’ roster on Day 2 of the 2022 league year, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets.
  • Jaguars CB Shaquill Griffin: Three years, $40MM. $23.5MM fully guaranteed, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. $12MM signing bonus, base salaries of $1MM, $11.5MM and $11.5MM. Griffin is due a $1MM roster bonus in 2023, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
  • Lions DE Romeo Okwara: Three years, $39MM. $14MM signing bonus, $20MM fully guaranteed. Another $5MM will be guaranteed by next March, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter).
  • Broncos DL Shelby Harris: Three years, $27MM. $9MM signing bonus. Harris’ $1MM 2021 base salary and $5.5MM of his $7.5MM 2022 base are guaranteed, Wilson tweets.
  • Patriots DB Jalen Mills: Four years, $24MM. $2.5MM signing bonus, $3MM base salary in 2021, $4.5MM in ’22. Williams will have $3.5MM of his 2022 base salary fully guaranteed, Breer tweets.
  • Panthers OL Cameron Erving: Two years, $10MM. This contract includes base salaries of $990K and $2.01MM, with Wilson tweeting a March 2022 roster bonus of $2.5MM is guaranteed.
  • 49ers CB Jason Verrett: One year, $5.5MM. $2MM signing bonus, $2.5MM base salary, $1MM in per-game roster bonuses. Another $1MM is available via incentives, Yates tweets.

Chargers To Sign C Corey Linsley

March 15th, 2021 at 3:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

After cutting multiple key veteran starters last week, the Chargers will use some of those funds to make a big addition on their offensive line. They are signing longtime Packers center Corey Linsley, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.

The deal, which will reunite Linsley with former Green Bay O-line mate Bryan Bulaga, is expected to make Linsley the NFL’s highest-paid center. Linsley expected to hit the market, and after the Packers prioritized Aaron Jones just before the legal tampering period began, his Wisconsin exit appeared a near-certainty.

It is a five-year, $62.5MM contract, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. That will come in just above Ryan Kelly‘s recently established center-record contract.

Linsley broke through in his contract year, becoming an All-Pro blocker. Pro Football Focus slotted him as far and away the No. 1 overall center. The Bolts have battled issues up front for years, and their investments in Mike Pouncey and Trai Turner did not end up working out especially well. Pouncey retired after missing all of last season, and Turner saw his run of Pro Bowls stop after an injury-plagued 2020. The Chargers cut Turner last week.

This will give Justin Herbert a high-end offensive lineman to work with as well. Linsley and Bulaga were also teammates from 2014-19. The Packers signed Linsley to an extension that ran through 2020 but could not strike a deal to keep him off this year’s market. The 2021 season will be Linsley’s age-30 campaign.

Linsley will represent a key free agency loss for the Packers, who cut 2020 starter Ricky Wagner last month. The Jets were also interested in Linsley, likely joining several other teams, but the Chargers moved quickly to secure his services. Los Angeles still has holes on its offensive front, however, so Linsley might not be their last big upgrade here.

Jets Interested In Corey Linsley, Joe Thuney

March 15th, 2021 at 8:42am CST by Zachary Links

The Jets missed out on Kevin Zeitler and they won’t have an opportunity to speak with Andrew Norwell. However, they have two other interior linemen on their list. The Jets are expected to pursue center Corey Linsley and guard Joe Thuney, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com (Twitter link). 

The Jets were said to be keenly interested in Thuney last week with plans to call him bright and early on Monday morning. The Patriots declined to tag him again, making him an unfettered free agent. A second-team All-Pro in 2019 and a key part of the Patriots’ most recent Super Bowl wins, Thuney is regarded as one of the better guards in the NFL.

Linsley, meanwhile, was a First-Team All-Pro for his work with the Packers last season. It’s expected that he’ll approach or best Ryan Kelly‘s $12.4MM per-year average, so either player would be mighty costly for the Jets. Still, the offensive line is a long-standing need for Gang Green, so they’re willing to spend the big bucks.

Latest On Aaron Jones, Corey Linsley

March 5th, 2021 at 9:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Packers have not dusted off their franchise tag in a while, last using it on nose tackle Ryan Pickett in 2010. They may be on the verge of a change in offseason strategy.

Beginning his fourth offseason as GM, Brian Gutekunst has top-tier free agents Aaron Jones and Corey Linsley barely a week away from being able to negotiate with other teams for the first time. An All-Pro center, Linsley expects to test the market. This would leave Jones in the tag crosshairs.

“We certainly could (tag Jones). I think it’s something we’re working through. Again, it’s not a philosophical thing to avoid it,” Gutekunst said of using the tag, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. “I do think there’s usually better ways to go about it, but certainly if I think as we get down the road here over the next week or so, if that becomes what is in the best interest of the Packers, I think we’ll do that. But at this point, we haven’t done that.”

It cost the Titans $10.3MM to tag Derrick Henry last year, though the sides reached an extension agreement on deadline day last July. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic’s anticipated impact on the 2021 cap, the Packers may have the opportunity to tag Jones at barely $8MM. This would be a difficult scenario for Jones, who saw fellow 2017 draftees Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, Dalvin Cook and Joe Mixon cash in — all on deals worth at least $12MM annually — last year. But it would allow the Packers an unusual way to retain one of the best players.

The Packers and Jones negotiated extensively last year, and the 25-year-old running back changed agents during the process. An offer that would have paid Jones at least $12MM annually did not result in a deal. That proposal was light on guarantees, however. The team has until March 9 to tag Jones. Green Bay RB2 Jamaal Williams is expected to depart via free agency, which would seemingly elevate 2020 second-round pick A.J. Dillon.

A 2014 fifth-round pick, Linsley agreed on a Packers extension that ran through 2020. Coming off an All-Pro season, Linsley appears poised to approach or surpass Ryan Kelly‘s market-topping contract ($12.4MM AAV, $25MM fully guaranteed). It does not sound like the Packers will extend him to keep him off the market by the time the legal tampering period begins March 15.

“Finding a way to bring him back would be ideal, but at the same time obviously, at the level of compensation that he’s at, he’s earned that,” Gutekunst said. “We certainly would never close the door on someone like Corey Linsley. We’ll see as we get down what’s possible and what’s not.”

Going into the spring tag deadline, the Packers have work to do before being free to tag Jones. They are more than $11MM over the projected salary cap, even after a David Bakhtiari restructure and the releases of Rick Wagner and Christian Kirksey. The Packers are discussing a restructure with Aaron Rodgers, Demovsky adds.

A $6.8MM Rodgers roster bonus could be converted to a signing bonus without the quarterback’s approval, creating $4.5MM in 2021 cap space. And the Packers could also move some of Rodgers’ 2021 base salary ($14.8MM) into a signing bonus to free up more room. This would, of course, complicate matters down the road. But the NFL’s post-2021 future is unlikely to include any further cap reductions, likely making present restructures easier to stomach for teams.

Packers’ Corey Linsley Doesn’t Expect To Return

February 25th, 2021 at 12:39pm CST by Zachary Links

Packers center Corey Linsley tells SiriusXM that “all signs are pointing to” a change of teams this offseason. Linsley, a pending free agent, made similar comments after the Packers’ playoff ouster.

[RELATED: Mutual Interest Between Dolphins, Aaron Jones]

“We’re not closing the door for anything,” Linsley said (via PFT). “Obviously we’d never do that for any team, especially the Packers, but yeah it definitely feels weird. It looks like all signs are pointing towards snapping the ball somewhere else next year.”

Linsley, has spent his entire career in Green Bay since being selected in the fourth-round of the 2014 draft. Fresh off of his first All-Pro nod, he’s now positioned for free agent riches. The Packers, meanwhile, have other matters to address and limited resources to work with. Their own free agent list includes running back Aaron Jones, who could be on track for the franchise tag.

Linsley, 30 in July, has a chance to top Ryan Kelly‘s new high-water salary mark for centers with a deal worth more than $12.4MM per year on average.

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