COVID-19 Latest: Ravens, Williams, Browns

Earlier Wednesday, the NFL took the Ravens-Steelers rematch off its Thanksgiving schedule. That game is now on tap for 12:15pm CT Sunday. More is emerging on why the Steelers will see another of their games delayed. The Ravens disciplined a strength and conditioning coach for “conduct surrounding the recent COVID-19 cases that have affected players and staff.” The Ravens are levying the discipline because the unnamed staffer did not report symptoms or consistently wear a mask or a contact tracing device, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). This is believed to have contributed to the Ravens’ outbreak — one that comes nearly two months after a Titans outbreak altered the Steelers’ schedule. Seven Ravens players and at least five staffers have tested positive for COVID. This will not only weaken Baltimore against Pittsburgh but potentially deplete team’s roster for its Week 13 Thursday game against Dallas.

Several teams shuffled their rosters because of COVID on Wednesday. Here is the latest:

  • 49ers left tackle Trent Williams tested positive for COVID-19 last week, per ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano (on Twitter). A cancer survivor, Williams has not experienced issues with the virus yet, Graziano tweets. Williams, who landed on the 49ers’ COVID list earlier this month as a high-risk close contact, is on track to miss San Francisco’s Week 12 game in Los Angeles.
  • Six players remain on San Francisco’s virus list. The 49ers removed Arik Armstead and center Hroniss Grasu on Wednesday.
  • Browns linebacker Sione Takitaki tested positive Wednesday, according to Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com (on Twitter). Takitaki played against the Eagles and returned an interception for a touchdown. The Cleveland starting linebacker’s positive test follows Myles Garrett‘s. Neither they nor Denzel Ward (injury) will be available for Sunday’s game against the Jaguars. The Browns closed their facility Wednesday, but their Jags game remains on schedule.
  • The Bengals placed wide receiver Auden Tate and recently acquired offensive lineman B.J. Finney on their reserve/COVID-19 list. Cincinnati has seen staffers test positive, with D-line coach Nick Eason being the most recent. Eason was alerted of his positive test Tuesday. The Bengals now have five players on their reserve/COVID list.
  • Christian Wilkins is off the Dolphins‘ COVID list. Wilkins was not reported to have tested positive, but the second-year defensive lineman still missed two games after landing on the team’s virus list.
  • The Raiders activated Cory Littleton from their COVID list. The high-profile free agent addition has been out for two weeks due to a positive coronavirus test. Las Vegas’ defense remains shorthanded due to virus issues, with Clelin Ferrell testing positive last week and Lamarcus Joyner missing Sunday’s Chiefs game because of his status as a close contact.
  • Dante Fowler also tested positive two weeks ago and missed the Falcons‘ Week 11 game, but the big-ticket free agent addition is off the list now and on course to return to Atlanta’s lineup Sunday.
  • The Vikings and Chargers also removed players from their respective virus lists Wednesday. Minnesota activated guard Dru Samia; Los Angeles activated cornerback Brandon Facyson.

Chargers Designate Ekeler To Return

  • The Chargers are in the midst of yet another injury-plagued season, but reinforcements may be on the way. The team will designate star running back Austin Ekeler to return from injured reserve and he’ll practice this week, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network tweets. Pelissero adds that it’s not clear yet if he’ll be able to be active for this weekend’s game against the Bills, but either way it sounds like he’ll be back on the field very soon. He’s been one of the league’s most productive running backs the past two years, both as a runner and receiver. Ekeler hasn’t played since Week 4 due to a serious hamstring injury he suffered against the Buccaneers. He was averaging over five yards per carry with 17 receptions through only a little over three games.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/21/20

Here is Saturday’s usual flood of minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Washington Football Team

Brandon Mebane Announces Retirement

Longtime Seahawks and Chargers defensive tackle Brandon Mebane announced he will retire after 13 seasons.

The former Super Bowl starter called it quits via Facebook (Twitter link via SI.com’s Fernando Ramirez). This comes eight months after the Bolts released Mebane following a four-season stay.

Mebane, 35, enjoyed a lengthy career, coming into the league as a Seahawks third-round pick in 2007 and remaining a starter for almost all of the next 13 seasons. Mebane started 176 games in his career, with his most memorable stretch coming during the Seahawks’ 2010s ascent.

Drafted during Seattle’s Tim RuskellMike Holmgren regime, Mebane became an instant starter. He remained in that role through the 2015 season. During that time, the Seahawks made five postseason trips and won Super Bowl XLVIII. The Seahawks became the first team in the post-merger era to rank first in scoring defense in four straight seasons, doing so from 2012-15. Mebane graded as one of the NFL’s best defensive linemen during Seattle’s 2013 Super Bowl-winning season, in the view of Pro Football Focus.

Mebane did not play in Super Bowl XLIX, with a hamstring tear sidelining him midway through the 2014 season, but landed a three-year, $13.5MM deal with the Chargers in 2016. He ended up agreeing to two Bolts deals, the second one in 2019, and working as a starter for four seasons. While Mebane largely functioned as a run-stopping interior defender, he recorded a career-high 5.5 sacks and 18 quarterback hits in 2008. He notched a career-high 56 tackles for the 2012 Seahawks.

Chris Harris Returns To Bolts Practice

  • Former Simmons secondary mate Chris Harris will return to action soon. The Chargers designated the All-Decade cornerback to return from IR on Wednesday. The team has three weeks to activate him. Harris, who signed a two-year deal worth $17.5MM in March, has been out since Week 2 because of a foot injury.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/16/20

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

  • Signed: LS Rex Sunahara

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Washington Football Team

The Panthers were going to land Stevens as an UDFA back in April before the Saints snagged him in the seventh-round. He was recently cut from New Orleans’ practice squad last week. Stevens is a diverse athlete who played a Taysom Hill-esque role at Penn State before transferring to Mississippi State for the 2019 college season. His signing could be an indication the Panthers are worried about Teddy Bridgewater‘s status for Sunday, but since they had previous reported interest in Stevens it could be completely unrelated.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/14/20

Here are Saturday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Football Team 

Chargers Place Justin Jackson On IR

Justin Jackson will join Austin Ekeler on the Chargers’ injured reserve list. The Bolts placed Jackson on IR Saturday and promoted Kalen Ballage from their practice squad.

A knee injury will sideline Jackson and continue to change the Chargers’ backfield plans. Ballage played extensively last week after Jackson went down early. He, Joshua Kelley and Troymaine Pope will be Los Angeles’ running backs in Miami.

Ekeler remains on the Bolts’ IR because of a severe hamstring injury. No rumors have surfaced indicating his return is near. A 2018 seventh-round pick out of Northwestern, Jackson stepped in to replace Ekeler alongside Kelley and has averaged 4.1 yards per carry in his third NFL season.

Ballage gained 69 yards on 15 carries last week, doing so after Jackson went down and while Pope was out due to a concussion. Pope practiced fully throughout this week. The Bolts signed Ballage after the Jets waived him earlier this year. This will mark a return trip to Miami for Ballage, a Dolphins fourth-round pick in 2018. Ballage largely struggled with Miami, and the team ended up cutting him after an attempt to trade him failed this summer.

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:

  1. Cleveland Browns – $31MM
  2. New York Jets – $30.4MM
  3. Dallas Cowboys — $28MM
  4. Jacksonville Jaguars– $26.3MM
  5. Philadelphia Eagles– $23.9MM
  6. Washington Football Team – $23.3MM
  7. New England Patriots – $21.8MM
  8. Denver Broncos – $19.8MM
  9. Miami Dolphins – $15.6MM
  10. Detroit Lions – $14.2MM
  11. Cincinnati Bengals– $12.3MM
  12. Indianapolis Colts – $10.7MM
  13. Los Angeles Chargers — $8.4MM
  14. New York Giants – $8MM
  15. Chicago Bears – $7.6MM
  16. Houston Texans – $7.5MM
  17. Los Angeles Rams – $6.9MM
  18. Pittsburgh Steelers – $6.9MM
  19. Green Bay Packers – $6.7MM
  20. Arizona Cardinals– $6.2MM
  21. New Orleans Saints – $6MM
  22. Las Vegas Raiders – $6MM
  23. Kansas City Chiefs – $5.7MM
  24. Carolina Panthers – $5.5MM
  25. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $5.3MM
  26. Tennessee Titans – $4.6MM
  27. Minnesota Vikings – $3.8K
  28. San Francisco 49ers – $3.7MM
  29. Seattle Seahawks – $3.3MM
  30. Baltimore Ravens – $3.3MM
  31. Buffalo Bills – $3MM
  32. Atlanta Falcons – $1.8MM

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/7/20

Here are Saturday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

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