HEADLINES

Justyn Ross

AFC West Rumors: Ross, Broncos, Williams

October 26th, 2023 at 9:59pm CST by Ely Allen

While Chiefs wide receiver Justyn Ross is dealing with some pretty serious issues off the field, his inability to get onto the field before then never made much sense to people. Yet, according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, it was his problems on the field that kept him from making more of an impact.

After an incredibly productive freshman and sophomore year at Clemson, injuries and a bit of a downgrade at quarterback would keep Ross from reaching those heights again for the remainder of his college career. Even after those late struggles kept him from being drafted, many believed that a transition to the NFL, coupled with the opportunity to work in an offense with Patrick Mahomes, would result in a return to greatness for the former top-100 recruit.

Ross would spend his rookie year on injured reserve following offseason foot surgery but would finally enter the 2023 season ready to make his NFL debut. Instead, what we’ve seen is a role receiver who plays mostly on special teams while occasionally rotating in on offense.

Breer’s report claims that there are legitimate football issues keeping him off the field. While Ross is a big body at receiver, he’s not very versatile, struggling to create separation with speed or route-running. In an offense that requires its weapons to contribute in several different ways, it becomes less surprising that Ross is only able to find the field in certain situations.

Here are a few other rumors coming out of the AFC West, starting with an update on one of the Chargers‘ top missing weapons:

  • Los Angeles has been tasked with running an effective offense without wide receiver Mike Williams following the veteran receiver’s season-ending ACL tear. While his status for this year is obviously not going to change, Williams underwent a successful surgery yesterday, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. This may not provide much solace to fans in 2023, but undergoing surgery at this point sets the expectation that Williams will be fully ready by training camp next year.
  • The Broncos made an alteration to their ownership shares earlier this month, according to Mike Klis of 9NEWS. With the team’s chief executive officer Greg Penner has been handling day-to-day operations since the Walton-Penner group purchased the organization, the Broncos’ controlling owner Rob Walton transferred a block of his shares to Penner, allowing Penner to take the mantle of controlling owner in addition to CEO. Penner’s four children will also receive an allotment of Walton’s shares in the exchange.
  • Denver cornerback K’Waun Williams suffered a setback from a preseason foot surgery that was reported this week to likely be season-ending. The setback required further surgery, which Williams underwent this past Monday, per Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette. The procedure on Williams’ left ankle reportedly went “very well” and will require a recovery period of approximately 12 weeks, allowing him to return in time for spring football practice.

Chiefs WR Justyn Ross Arrested On Domestic Battery Charge

October 24th, 2023 at 8:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

OCTOBER 24: It turns out Ross is facing two misdemeanor charges. The young wide receiver is accused of domestic battery and property damage of less than $1K, KMBC’s Andy Alcock reports. This incident involved Ross’ ex-girlfriend, and a judge granted her request not to have any contact with the accused wideout, per KSHB’s David Medina.

Dispatch audio reveals the alleged victim told a 911 operator Ross was “dragging her through the house and has torn up the house,” according to TMZ, which adds Ross allegedly broke the woman’s phone. Ross pleaded not guilty today and has another court date set for Dec. 4.

OCTOBER 23: Second-year Chiefs wide receiver Justyn Ross is facing a felony charge after a Monday arrest, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher. Ross was arrested today in Shawnee, Kansas.

Booked into the Johnson County Jail, Ross was hit with a charge of criminal damage more than $25K. The Clemson alum has a Tuesday court date on tap. Ross, 23, is in his second season with the Chiefs, who added him as a UDFA following the 2022 draft.

Once viewed as a high-end prospect, Ross saw a neck injury while at Clemson sidetrack his career. After a breakthrough freshman season, the 6-foot-4 pass catcher missed the 2020 campaign but returned in 2021. Though, his performance that year did not move the needle toward a draft investment. Ross also missed all of his rookie season due to a foot injury.

The Chiefs have encountered persistent struggles establishing consistency among its receiving corps, but Ross has not been looked to as an answer often. Ross has played just 81 offensive snaps this season, catching three passes for 34 yards during his first run as an NFL wideout. Given his status as a backup who primarily contributes on special teams, Ross could certainly see this latest hurdle become an issue.

Chiefs Expect Kadarius Toney To Return For Week 1

August 8th, 2023 at 2:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Leaning into a low-cost setup at their non-Travis Kelce skill-position spots since trading Tyreek Hill, the Chiefs are currently without Kadarius Toney. The 2022 trade acquisition suffered his latest injury came minutes into training camp.

Toney sustained a torn meniscus and has undergone surgery. The defending Super Bowl champions expect the third-year wide receiver to be ready for the regular season, GM Brett Veach said (via ESPN’s Adam Teicher).

[RELATED: Isiah Pacheco Expects To Return For Week 1]

Toney’s recovery should generate attention, as he doubles as an injury-prone player whom the Chiefs want to install as their top wide receiver. The Giants bailed on Toney’s rookie contract after numerous health setbacks over his first two seasons. Ankle, quad, oblique and knee trouble has plagued Toney, with an onslaught of hamstring issues – which at one point saw the talented youngster sidelined because of injuries to both legs – impeding his 2022 efforts. The 2021 first-round pick has missed 15 career games and left a few others early.

The Chiefs attempted to re-sign JuJu Smith-Schuster but were unwilling to match the Patriots’ offer. They also let Mecole Hardman walk in free agency. Kansas City negotiated with Arizona on a DeAndre Hopkins trade but did not appear to come too close to matching Tennessee’s offer for the former All-Pro in free agency. The team used a second-round pick on Rashee Rice this year but had high hopes for Toney moving into the top wideout spot after a full offseason in Missouri.

As the Chiefs will be without the shifty performer for the next several weeks, they have the likes of Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Skyy Moore and second-year UDFA Justyn Ross in place as options. Ross, who resided as a high-end prospect early during his Clemson career, missed both the 2020 and ’22 seasons due to major injuries. A neck injury threw his NFL aspirations off track in 2020, and he missed all of last season because of a foot injury.

AFC West Rumors: Ross, Chargers, Broncos

July 30th, 2022 at 4:44pm CST by Ely Allen

Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross was one of the biggest names left on the board when the 2022 NFL Draft concluded. Unfortunately for the team that signed him, Ross was placed on the injured reserve by the Chiefs earlier this week. 

Ross helped lead the Tigers to their 2018 national championship as a true freshman with 46 receptions for 1,000 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. He followed it up as a sophomore with 66 catches for 865 yards and eight touchdowns.

Ross’s college career was derailed by a congenital fusion condition of his neck and spine. The condition and the required surgery had the potential to end his entire career. He missed the entire 2020 season and came back to play in ten games of his redshirt junior season, catching 47 balls for 524 yards and three touchdowns. It wasn’t quite the end he desired in Clemson, but Ross decided to forgo his senior year and head to the NFL.

His debut with the Chiefs will have to wait, though, as he underwent foot surgery that will delay his first appearance in red and yellow.

Here are a few other notes from around the AFC West, starting in the City of Angels:

  • The Chargers announced the hiring this week of Pat White as a new offensive assistant for the team. White is the former star quarterback for West Virginia who became a second-round pick for the Dolphins in 2009. White appeared in 13 games as a rookie for the Dolphins but never threw a pass, mainly being utilized in the Dolphins’ infamous Wildcat formation of the time. White spent last year’s training camp with the Chargers as part of the team’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship and has spent the past few regular seasons coaching quarterbacks in the college ranks at institutions such as Campbell, Alcorn State, South Florida, and Alabama State. It will be interesting to see where White fits in the coaching staff for the Chargers this season.
  • With new ownership set to take over in Denver, senior vice president of strategy, and former heir apparent to be controlling owner of the Broncos, Brittany Bowlen has stepped down from her role with the team, according to Ryan O’Halloran of The Denver Post. The daughter of late owner Pat Bowlen, Brittany was long presumed to be the next in line, taking all the necessary steps in preparation to take over. But with the team’s sale last month, Bowlen informed the Broncos’ staff that she would be stepping away, wishing the Walton-Penner Family Ownership luck in the process.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/25/22

July 25th, 2022 at 9:09pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor roster moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Minnesota Vikings

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Chiefs Place Four Players On PUP List

July 23rd, 2022 at 8:46pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Chiefs are the latest team set to begin training camp with a few noticeable absentees. The team has placed four players on the active/PUP list, per Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network (Twitter link). 

The lone defender on the list is cornerback Rashad Fenton. In May, it was reported that the 25-year-old wasn’t a lock to be healthy by the start of camp. He is rehabbing a shoulder injury which required offseason surgery, and kept him out of spring workouts. He is likely to be slated at No. 3 on Kansas City’s depth chart at the position, which has seen plenty of turnover this offseason. His steady growth in playing time and effectiveness could make him not only an important piece in the team’s secondary upon his return, but a priority for the Chiefs from a financial standpoint.

On the offensive line, right tackle Lucas Niang is another unsurprising inclusion. He suffered a season-ending torn patellar tendon in January, marking the latest example of availability concerns associated with the former third-rounder. A 2020 opt-out, Niang has played just 12 total games two years into his NFL career, including nine starts. He was replaced when out of the lineup last season by veteran Andrew Wylie, who was brought back on a one-year deal in free agency. The two will compete for the starting role upon Niang’s return. Backup linemen Prince Tega Wanogho is also among the players placed on the list.

Finally, the Chiefs will have to wait for the training camp debut of perhaps the most notable UDFA of the 2022 draft class. Wide receiver Justyn Ross recently underwent foot surgery, as noted by Pro Football Talk’s Charean Williams. The former Clemson star was widely thought of as a surefire first-rounder before multiple neck injuries derailed his junior campaign and led to many teams taking him off their draft boards altogether. Health will always be a concern with Ross, but there will be a role available to him in Kansas City’ re-vamped WR room.

Of course, any of these players can be activated at any time – something the Chiefs will be anticipating with the potential starters in particular.

Chiefs Announce Signing Of 10 UDFAs

May 6th, 2022 at 7:37pm CST by Ely Allen

After an impressive Draft performance, the Chiefs announced the signing of 10 undrafted free agents that will be joining their rookie class:

Beyond Ross, who we’ve posted on already, headliners of the group include Fleet-Davis, Ealy, Crum, and Oginni.

Fleet-Davis had his best year for the Terrapins last year totaling 1,026 yards from scrimmage and 9 total touchdowns. Ealy was a consensus five-star recruit for the Rebels. The smaller back averaged 745.0 rushing yards per season and 181.67 receiving yards per season while racking up 20 rushing touchdowns and adding 4 receiving touchdowns over his three years in Oxford.

Crum was a three-year starter for the Golden Flashes, leading them to two bowl games, not qualifying after playing only four games during the COVID-shortened 2020 season. In 31 games as a starter, Crum completed 67.41% of his passes, throwing for 7,012 yards and tossing 52 touchdowns to 12 interceptions. He’ll compete for the backup quarterback position behind Patrick Mahomes with veteran-Chad Henne, Anthony Gordon, and Shane Buechele.

Oginni will make the move to America after coming up in the NFL’s International Player Pathway program in Nigeria. Despite being involved in a bus crash that killed three of his teammates, Oginni continued to train in Nigeria after his visa application was continuously denied. Oginni will get his opportunity in the big leagues and will have a chance to learn from one of the best in Travis Kelce.

Chiefs To Sign UDFA Justyn Ross

May 3rd, 2022 at 10:49am CST by Adam La Rose

One of the biggest names amongst undrafted free agents appears to be headed to Kansas City. Former Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross is signing with the Chiefs, per Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson (Twitter link). 

Ross was one of the more intriguing prospects in this year’s class. His college career began with a hugely productive freshman season in 2018, where he registered 46 catches for exactly 1,000 yards and nine touchdowns. Standing out on a team which also featured the likes of Tee Higgins and Hunter Renfrow, he was thought to be a first-round lock and the next in a long line of high-end Tigers receivers.

The following season did little to quell those thoughts. He put up 66 receptions and another eight touchdowns, playing a key role in Clemson going undefeated. In the National Championship game victory over Alabama, he was the team’s leading receiver, averaging over 25 yards per catch. It was after that, however, that his draft stock began to plummet.

In 2020, Ross underwent surgery to correct a congenital fusion in his neck. The procedure cost him his entire junior season, and, for a time, left his ability to play football in doubt. Those concerns were amplified by a second fusion surgery he underwent, as noted by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). Ross was able to come back last year, however, playing in 10 games.

Given his injury history, “many teams” took Ross off of their draft boards completely, as noted by Rapoport. His earlier production, coupled with his size (six-foot-four, 205 pounds), though, made him worth a flier in the Chiefs’ eyes. In Kansas City, he will enter a WR room which has seen Tyreek Hill, Demarcus Robinson and Byron Pringle leave this offseason. In response, the team has added JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and second-rounder Skyy Moore.

Clemson WR Justyn Ross Out For Season

June 1st, 2020 at 4:16pm CST by Sam Robinson

Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross, one of the top prospects who will be eligible for the 2021 draft, will not play this season. A diagnosis of congenital fusion will prompt Ross to undergo surgery Friday, The Athletic’s Grace Raynor tweets.

Ross suffered an injury during spring workouts in March. The subsequent X-ray revealed he was born with this condition, which occurs when two of the seven bones in the neck are abnormally fused. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney confirmed the surgery. While Ross’ doctor said there is a good chance the talented wideout can play football again, he did not guarantee it (Twitter link via Raynor).

After showing immense potential at Clemson the past two years, Ross resides on first-round radars for next year. He sits 12th on Todd McShay’s ESPN.com big board for the ’21 draft. This diagnosis could obviously change everything for the 6-foot-4 talent.

Ross totaled 112 receptions for 1,865 yards and 17 touchdown receptions during his freshman and sophomore seasons. He was expected to be Clemson’s top receiver this season, following Tee Higgins‘ early draft declaration, and is viewed as a higher-ceiling prospect than his former Tigers teammate.