Mychal Kendricks To Meet With League Office
Seahawks linebacker Mychal Kendricks, who was suspended indefinitely earlier this month, will meet with the league office sometime this week to discuss his ban, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Kendricks’ suspension, of course, stems from his involvement in insider trading, to which he has pleaded guilty. He will be sentenced in January 2019 and could receive 30 to 37 months in prison.
As a result, Kendricks, his lawyers, and the NFLPA have been battling to prove that the NFL does not have the right to impose an indefinite suspension under these circumstances. Although the indefinite suspension was upheld on appeal, arbitrator Harold Henderson’s written ruling suggested that a more specific punishment should be forthcoming. Some sources familiar with the situation, however, believe the league wants to postpone such a decision until after Kendricks is sentenced.
Florio opines that the NFL should impose a suspension of a fixed number of games and should do it quickly out of fairness to Kendricks. He adds that, since the standard punishment for first-time domestic violence offenders is a six-game suspension, Kendricks should be banned for at most four games, and Florio says there is no good reason a decision in that regard has not been made already. Kendricks’ suspension has forced him to miss Seattle’s last two contests, though the team is on a bye this week.
He was playing well in his brief time as a Seahawk, posting 15 tackles and two sacks in three games with the club. Seattle, at 3-3, would certainly like to have him back soon, and Kendricks — who may be 31 when he is released from prison — is obviously anxious to get back on the field while he still can.
Seahawks Franchise Expected To Be Sold
The “sense” at the NFL’s ongoing league meetings is that the Seahawks franchise will be eventually be sold following owner Paul Allen‘s death, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Allen, who passed away Monday due to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, purchased the Seahawks in 1996. Allen never married and has no children, so there’s no clear heir to helm the club. As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes, the Seahawks could be turned over to Allen’s sister Jody, but it’s not apparent she has any interest in running an NFL team.
As such, the team is likely to be sold at some point, although the organization is expected to remain in Seattle, tweets Jenny Vrentas of TheMMQB.com. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who holds a significant amount of sway in league matters, told Garafolo that he “can’t imagine the Seahawks not being in Seattle.”
Per Forbes, the Seahawks are currently valued at $2.5 billion, with yearly revenue of $413MM and an operating income of $71MM. Those are obviously unofficial figures, but the price of NFL teams has only risen in recent years. The Bills, sold in 2014, went for roughly $1.1 billion, while the Panthers, who were purchased by David Tepper earlier this year, sold for at least $2.2 billion.
No matter who owns the team, the Seahawks don’t need to worry about their head coach. Asked if he wanted to stay in Seattle following Allen’s death, Pete Carroll responded “absolutely,” according to Florio. Carroll is currently under contract through the 2019 season under the terms of a 2016 extension that is believed to have made Carroll one of the NFL’s highest-paid coaches.
K.J. Wright Experienced Setback
- Pete Carroll had hoped his top outside linebacker would be ready to start his season sometime in September, despite undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery just before the season. But K.J. Wright‘s missed six games. the Seahawks coach revealed Tuesday (Twitter link via the Seattle Times’ Percy Allen) Wright encountered a setback during Week 3 practice to delay his recovery. But he’s back on track now. The Seahawks have their bye this weekend and may be ready to finally see Wright in action in Week 8. The second half of the season will be critical for the 29-year-old linebacker, who is in a contract year.
Practice Squad Updates: 10/16/18
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: OL Jake Eldrenkamp, WR Blake Jackson
Green Bay Packers
- Cut: WR DeAngelo Yancey
Houston Texans
- Signed: RB Josh Ferguson
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: WR K.J. Brent
- Cut: QB Phillip Walker
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: CB Craig James
- Cut: CB Jalen Myrick
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DB Chris Campbell, WR Shane Wynn
- Cut: DB Darius Hillary, WR Tanner McEvoy
New York Giants
- Signed: WR Kalif Raymond, DE Myles Humphrey
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: LB B.J. Bello, DT Winston Craig
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR Keenan Reynolds
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: OL Ruben Holcomb, CB David Rivers
- Cut: OT Jarron Jones, RB Dare Ogunbowale
Seahawks Owner Paul Allen Dies At Age 65
Seahawks owner Paul Allen has died at the age of 65. The Northwest billionaire succumbed to complications of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma on Monday afternoon.
“My brother was a remarkable individual on every level. While most knew Paul Allen as a technologist and philanthropist, for us he was a much loved brother and uncle, and an exceptional friend,” Paul’s sister Jody Allen, said in a statement. “Paul’s family and friends were blessed to experience his wit, warmth, his generosity and deep concern. For all the demands on his schedule, there was always time for family and friends. At this time of loss and grief for us – and so many others – we are profoundly grateful for the care and concern he demonstrated every day.”
Allen was well-known in the sports world as the owner of the Seahawks and the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers. Of course, his cultural significance spread well beyond that realm. As the the co-founder of Microsoft, Allen’s work made an indelible impression on technology and human interaction. His net worth was believed to be somewhere in the realm of $20 billion, making him one of the 100 richest people in the world.
There’s no word yet on the Seahawks’ succession plan for ownership.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/13/18
Here are Saturday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Promoted from practice squad: RB Gus Edwards
- Placed on IR: RB De’Lance Turner
Cleveland Browns
- Released via injury settlement: FB Dan Vitale
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Tyrone Swoopes
- Waived: WR Keenan Reynolds
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: WR Freddie Martino
- Placed on IR: CB Marcus Williams
K.J. Wright Out This Weekend
- While there’s still optimism surrounding Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright‘s return to the field, it won’t happen this weekend. ESPN’s Brady Henderson writes that the veteran will miss this weekend’s London matchup against the Raiders. Wright is still recovering from knee surgery, and head coach Pete Carroll said there’s no use in rushing him back. “He’ll run all throughout the week,” said Carroll. “It’s going to be too much to ask of him to get him back this game. I think we’ve got to make sure and take care of him and get him strong and confident and all that … I think we just need to maximize his opportunity to be at full strength, really recovered and confident and all that.”
[SOURCE LINK]
More Practice Squad Updates: 10/9/18
Here are the rest of today’s practice squad moves (earlier version can be found here):
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: WR Tim White
- Released: OL Randin Crecelius
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: RB Darius Jackson
Houston Texans
- Signed: CB Robert Jackson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: TE Tyrone Swoopes
- Released: TE Marcus Lucas
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: WR Damoun Patterson
Washington Redskins
- Signed: OT Justin Evans
- Released: OT Chris Durant
NFL Workout Updates: 10/8/18
Here’s the latest from the workout circuit, courtesy of veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer unless otherwise noted:
Cleveland Browns
- S Chris Cooper, S Marwin Evans, WR Josh Huff, LB Greer Martini, WR Francis Owusu, QB Peter Pujals, TE Will Tye (Twitter link)
Indianapolis Colts
- S Elijah Campbell, S Tray Matthews (link)
Miami Dolphins
- CB De’Vante Harris, CB Robert Jackson (link)
New England Patriots
- WR Reggie Davis, WR Damoun Patterson, RB Brandon Radcliff, T Toby Weathersby (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss)
New York Jets
- G John Fullington, CB Quinten Rollins (link)
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
- QB Joe Callahan, G J.J. Dielman, TE Scott Orndoff, LB Aaron Wallace, TE Clive Walford (link)
Latest On Earl Thomas, Mychal Kendricks
The obscene parting shot that Seahawks safety Earl Thomas made in the direction of his team’s bench as he was being carted off the field last week was not directed at any one person or player, but at the Seattle organization as a whole, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. And, even though all signs were already pointing towards a parting of the ways between Thomas, who will be a free agent at the end of the season, and the only NFL team he has ever known, Schefter reports that the Seahawks are not expected to use the franchise tag on Thomas, which all but ensures that he will not return to Seattle in 2019.
- Seahawks LB Mychal Kendricks was hit with an indefinite suspension earlier this week, and Schefter reports that Kendricks, his lawyers, and the NFLPA are still battling to prove that the NFL does not have the right to impose such a ban in his case. Instead, Kendricks is arguing that the league should suspend him for a specific number of games, thereby allowing him to return to action this season and play until he receives his sentence for insider trading in January.