HEADLINES

Michael Burton

Extra Points: Lions, Taliaferro, Chancellor

August 25th, 2015 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Linebacker Kyle Van Noy, the Lions‘ second-round pick in 2014, had half of his rookie season wiped out by a stint on injured reserve, and he never got fully healthy after he returned, contributing just six tackles for the year. After undergoing hip surgery earlier this year, Van Noy had higher hopes for the 2015 campaign, but the 24-year-old continues to be nagged by injury issues with the season approaching.

According to head coach Jim Caldwell, the first opinion Van Noy received on his latest injury suggested more surgery isn’t necessary at this point, but the team is seeking a second opinion (Twitter link via Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com). While it’s possible that Van Noy lands in Detroit’s IR-DTR spot again, the timetable on his return isn’t clear yet, and the club may want to save that designation this time around.

Let’s check in on several more items from around the NFL…

  • Caldwell also said today that he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of two fullbacks – Michael Burton and Emil Igwenagu – making the Lions‘ roster (Twitter link via Rothstein).
  • Phones are lighting up across the league as teams look to make trades before the roster cutdown to 75 players next week, tweets Dianna Marie Russini of ESPN.com. Russini adds that, despite all the chatter, it’s not clear how many deals will actually go down.
  • Ravens coach John Harbaugh says running back Lorenzo Taliaferro will miss a “few weeks” with an MCL sprain, writes Garrett Downing of BaltimoreRavens.com. Taliaferro was listed as the Ravens No. 2 running back behind Justin Forsett, but now rookie fourth-round pick Buck Allen figures to see an increased workload for the rest of the preseason — and potentially early in the regular season.
  • Drawing on his past experience as an NFL executive, Jeff Diamond of The Sporting News takes a closer look at Kam Chancellor‘s holdout, suggesting that GM John Schneider and the Seahawks will have to consider the possibility of trading Chancellor if his holdout extends into September.
  • Speaking today to reporters, including Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link), Eagles linebacker Mychal Kendricks said that his new extension came together within the last two weeks or so.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Lions Sign Five Rookies

May 7th, 2015 at 10:12pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lions announced that they have signed draft picks Alex Carter, Gabe Wright, Michael Burton, Quandre Diggs, and Corey Robinson, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com tweets.

Carter, a third round choice, was the highest draft pick of any of the players that signed today. The former Stanford standout was ranked as the third-best safety prospect of his class coming out of high school. Carter hit the ground running as a true frosh and after a solid 2014 season, he decided to enter his name in the draft early.

First-round choice Laken Tomlinson and second-round pick Ameer Abdullah remain unsigned.

Draft Notes: Packers, Pats, Dolphins

April 2nd, 2015 at 8:27pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s the latest draft news..

  • Maryland nose tackle Darius Kilgo told Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (on Twitter) that he has visited the Packers, Patriots, and Dolphins. He’ll also visit the Bengals and attend the Panthers‘ local prospect day.
  • Maryland wide receiver Deon Long told Wilson (Twitter links) he’ll attend the Ravens‘ local prospect day on April 21st. He added that he has drawn interest from the Bears and Panthers. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com wrote about the intriguing prospect earlier today and noted that he has drawn the interest of the Patriots.
  • The Patriots met with Maryland wide receiver Stefon Diggs, according to Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (via Twitter).
  • Rutgers fullback Michael Burton worked out for the Buccaneers this morning at RU, according to Dan Duggan of the Star-Ledger (via Twitter). Next up is a visit with the Browns on Friday.