2016 September - Pro Football Rumors

Month: October 2024

Browns’ McCown To Miss Significant Time?

September 19th, 2016 at 9:52am CST by Zachary Links

Could the Browns lose two quarterbacks in two weeks? That’s the fear in Cleveland right now after Josh McCown hurt his left shoulder on Sunday. The team expects him to be “out awhile,” though they’ll have a better handle on his condition after he gets an MRI done today, Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer writes.

If McCown has to miss multiple games, the Browns can be expected to look out-of-house for quarterback solutions. In theory, third-round rookie Cody Kessler is the next man up and the team is said to be happy with what they’ve seen out of him this offseason. However, despite the promise he has shown and the veteran guidance he has received from McCown, he may not be ready for live action just yet. The Browns do have rookie Kevin Hogan on the taxi squad and wide receiver Terrelle Pryor has quarterback experience, but neither one presents a better option than Kessler.

McCown, 37, went 1-7 as a starter for the Browns last season. In his one game under center for Cleveland this year, the veteran completed 20 of his 33 passes and threw two touchdowns with two interceptions. Next up for the Browns is a Sunday road contest against the Dolphins.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Jimmy Garoppolo

September 19th, 2016 at 8:52am CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots got some good news today with regards to Jimmy Garoppolo‘s injury. It looks like quarterback won’t start on Thursday night against the Texans, but there is hope he’ll back by Week 4, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Ideally, the Pats would like to have Garoppolo in uniform against Houston, but they might not have to delve into the third-string realm for two straight weeks before Tom Brady‘s return. And, although it may be a longshot, the Patriots have not given up hope yet that Garoppolo can play on Thursday, a team source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

Garoppolo suffered a sprained AC joint in his throwing shoulder on Sunday in the team’s 31-24 win over Miami. After Garoppolo was taken out by Kiko Alonso‘s hit, Jacoby Brissett was put in the game for the first time in his NFL career. The third-round rookie got the job done, completing 6-of-9 passes as he guided New England the rest of the way. Brissett will be asked to provide that same poise from wire-to-wire on Thursday night, but the Pats likely won’t have to depend on him for two games in a row.

Now, we’ll wait and see what the Pats do about their backup quarterback situation for their upcoming game. Brissett stands as the team’s only healthy QB on the active roster and there are no signal callers currently on the practice squad. The Pats may turn to someone they have a recent history with, like Ryan Lindley or Matt Flynn.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC East Notes: Bills, Roman, Jets, Patriots

September 18th, 2016 at 9:37pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s the latest from the AFC East:

A recent report indicated that former Bills offensive coordinator Greg Roman has hard feelings towards Rex Ryan and felt that being associated with the outspoken coach would be damaging to his career. For what it’s worth, Roman went on the record with Alex Marvez of The Sporting News and denied any issues with Ryan. “I have nothing but respect for coach Ryan and I thought we had a great working relationship,” Roman said. “We met and he informed me of his decision. I thought it was handled very professionally. We then discussed how we could best make this work for everybody moving forward.”
After Brandon Marshall landed awkwardly on Thursday night, Jets coach Todd Bowles told reporters that the wide receiver was “fine.” Apparently, that’s not entirely the case. Marshall suffered an MCL injury and while the team believes that he’ll be ready to go against the Chiefs, it’s not a guarantee, a source tells Mike Florio of PFT. It’s an injury worth keeping an eye on as Marshall is arguably Gang Green’s greatest weapon. Through two games this year, Marshall has nine catches for 133 yards. In 2015, Marshall had 109 receptions for 1,502 yards and 14 touchdowns – arguably his strongest season to date.
Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has once again established himself as a hot head coaching candidate, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano writes. The Pats have now gone 2-0 without Tom Brady or Rob Gronkowski and they even survived on Sunday afternoon without Jimmy Garoppolo for much of the game. “I was more so worried if (Garoppolo) was going to be OK or not,” running back LeGarrette Blount said. “As far as how we were going to do as an offense, I wasn’t worried about that.” McDaniels went 11-17 as the head coach of the Broncos before he was fired late in the 2010 season.
Speaking of Garoppolo, he’ll likely miss New England’s game against the Texans on Thursday because of a sprained AC joint in his throwing shoulder. That would open the door for third-round rookie Jacoby Brissett to make his first NFL start.

DeMarcus Ware Fractures Forearm

September 18th, 2016 at 9:08pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Led by their dominant defense, the Broncos improved to 2-0 on Sunday with a 34-20 victory over the Colts. The Denver ‘D’ sacked Colts quarterback Andrew Luck five times and scored two touchdowns, but the unit may have lost a key cog for the foreseeable future. Outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware fractured his forearm, head coach Gary Kubiak said after the game. Further evaluation Monday will help the Broncos determine whether Ware needs surgery (via Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com).

Ware will likely miss three to four weeks, reports Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link). It’s worth noting that the next four quarterbacks on the Broncos’ schedule are Andy Dalton (Bengals), Jameis Winston (Buccaneers), Matt Ryan (Falcons) and Philip Rivers (Chargers).

Before leaving early in the third quarter Sunday, Ware contributed a half-sack, giving him two this year and 136.5 in his decorated career. Ware, who’s in his third season with the Broncos, has never finished a season with fewer than six sacks. He piled up 7.5 last year in just 11 regular-season games – the lowest total of his career – and tallied another 3.5 in three playoff contests as the Broncos’ defense steamrolled its way to a Super Bowl championship.

Entering this year, Ware missed the Broncos’ offseason program and the preseason while dealing with a back issue. He’ll now try to overcome what could be another significant injury, one that could leave the Broncos with Shane Ray as their primary weakside linebacker. Ray, whom the Broncos chose in the first round of last year’s draft, appeared in 15 of 16 regular-season games as a rookie and amassed four sacks. He has three tackles in the early going this year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Teammates Unhappy With Kirk Cousins?

September 18th, 2016 at 8:47pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

After winning nine games last season en route to an NFC East title, the Kirk Cousins-led Redskins fell to 0-2 this year with a 27-23 loss to the division-rival Cowboys on Sunday. Both defeats have come at home for Washington, which previously lost in embarrassing fashion, 38-16, to Pittsburgh on Monday. As a result of their slow start, some Redskins offensive players have begun privately complaining about Cousins’ performance thus far, a source told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

On the possibility of benching Cousins in favor of backup Colt McCoy, the source said of the latter, “At least he’d play with poise.”

McCoy has never been any kind of solution since entering the NFL as the Browns’ third-round pick in the 2010 draft. Cousins, however, looked like a franchise-caliber passer during the second half of the 2015 campaign. In all, he completed 69.8 percent of passes for 4,166 yards and 29 touchdowns against 11 interceptions, but 19 of those scores and just two picks came in the Redskins’ final eight games. That led the Redskins to place the franchise tag on the 28-year-old in the offseason, thus committing a $19.95MM salary to him in the process.

While Cousins has thrown for a prolific 693 yards during the first two weeks of this season, he has tossed just one touchdown against three INTs. Aside from his late-season breakout last year, Cousins has mostly been a pedestrian pro signal-caller since the Redskins used a fourth-rounder on him in 2012. That explains why the team was reluctant to hand the ex-Michigan State Spartan a sizable long-term deal in lieu of the franchise tag over the summer.

Assuming Cousins stays at the helm, he’ll next lead the Redskins into New York for a a crucial Week 3 showdown with another NFC East rival, the Giants, who lead the division at 2-0. A loss would quickly place the Redskins well behind Big Blue in the East race and put them at 0-2 in the division. For Cousins, another poor showing also wouldn’t do the impending free agent’s potential long-term earning power any favors.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Roger Goodell On Raiders’ Future, Las Vegas

September 18th, 2016 at 8:22pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Raiders are seemingly progressing toward a move to Las Vegas by next season, but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants the franchise to remain in Oakland, its longtime home.

“No market should lose their team once let alone twice. I believe there’s a solution in Oakland,” Goodell told reporters Sunday (Twitter link via Brian Murphy of the Pioneer Press).

The Raiders first played in Oakland from 1960-1981 before relocating to Los Angeles through the 1994 campaign. The club then returned to Oakland, though it now appears in danger of heading elsewhere again.

The Raiders haven’t made progress toward the construction of a new stadium in Oakland, but earlier this week, the Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure Committee approved the use of a record $750MM in public money for a facility that would house the team in Las Vegas. The next step is for the $1.9MM billion stadium proposal to receive a thumbs up from Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and state Legislature, which appears likely, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report said Friday.

It helps Vegas’ cause that Raiders owner Mark Davis is eager to move the team there. After the SNTIC’s decision, Davis told USA Today via text message, “We are excited and thanks to the committee.”

While Goodell would like for Davis to keep the Raiders where they are, he didn’t close the door on relocation Sunday.

“We recognize the power and strength of the Raiders’ brand and understand their desire to explore all possible options for the team’s future,” said Goodell (via CSNBayArea.com).

Goodell added that there’s “still a lot of work to be done” for Las Vegas to become part of the NFL (via the Associated Press). While Goodell acknowledged that it’s up to the league’s 32 owners whether a franchise will end up there, he’s unsure if placing a team in a casino-filled city would be a good idea.

To this point, the city of Oakland, led by Mayor Libby Schaaf, hasn’t shown a willingness to commit nearly as much in public money to a new stadium as Vegas could.

“As Mayor of Oakland, it’s my job to remain fully focused on what I can do to responsibly keep the team where they belong, here in Oakland,” Schaaf said Thursday. “While Nevada lawmakers consider making the largest public investment in a private stadium deal in history by approving a $750 million public subsidy for a facility in Las Vegas, I will continue to work with the NFL and the Raiders’ designee Larry McNeil to iron out a deal that works for the team, the league, the fans and the taxpayers in Oakland.”

If the Raiders’ Vegas plans fall through, their only choice might be Oakland. In theory, a return to Los Angeles could happen if the Chargers don’t join the Rams there, but CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reported on Sunday that the Bolts look likely to move there. He added that the league doesn’t want the Raiders to go back to LA.

For now, the Raiders are on a one-year lease to play at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, which opened in 1966. In what could have been the team’s final home opener in Oakland, the Raiders dropped a 35-28 decision to the Falcons on Sunday.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Chargers’ Jahleel Addae Fractures Collarbone

September 18th, 2016 at 7:49pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Chargers safety Jahleel Addae fractured his left collarbone in the team’s 38-14 win over the Jaguars on Sunday, reports Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Addae will likely undergo surgery, which would require a four- to six-week recovery period.

Addae has been with the Chargers since 2013, when the club signed him as an undrafted free agent from Central Michigan. After combining for 27 appearances and seven starts in his first two years, Addae picked up 12 of a possible 13 starts last season and amassed a career-high 65 tackles. He added another 11 during the Bolts’ first two games this season before departing in the fourth quarter Sunday.

With Addae set to miss the next several weeks, San Diego could turn to in-house options Dexter McCoil, Darrell Stuckey or Adrian Phillips in his absence. McCoil and Stuckey took the field in the Chargers’ first two games, but Phillips has been inactive thus far.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Jimmy Garoppolo Likely To Miss Week 3

September 18th, 2016 at 7:31pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Tom Brady-less Patriots improved to 2-0 on Sunday with a 31-24 win over the AFC East rival Dolphins, but life may have gotten a bit tougher for a team that will be without its suspended franchise quarterback for two more games. Brady’s backup, Jimmy Garoppolo, suffered a sprained AC joint in his throwing shoulder and will likely miss the Patriots’ Week 3 matchup against the 2-0 Texans on Thursday, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (via Gregg Rosenthal).

Garoppolo left the Pats’ win in the second quarter after taking a hit from Dolphins linebacker Kiko Alonso, thereby paving the way for third-string rookie Jacoby Brissett to garner his first NFL experience. Brissett, a third-round pick from North Carolina State, impressed in completing 6 of 9 passes for 92 yards. The Pats will need similar efficiency from him against the Texans, who have held their first two opponents to 26 points. Houston sacked Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith four times on Sunday, and 1.5 came from superstar J.J. Watt.

While Brissett will likely make his first start Thursday, the Patriots hope to have Garoppolo back under center in Week 4 against an 0-2 Buffalo team that has struggled mightily out of the gate. That will be the last contest of Brady’s four-game ban over his role in the Deflategate scandal, which would set him up to return against the lowly Browns on Oct. 9.

As for Garoppolo, injury aside, the Patriots are undoubtedly thrilled with what the 24-year-old has shown in his first real taste of NFL action. Garoppolo helped lead the Pats to an upset win in Arizona last Sunday and ended up completing 42 of 60 passes for 498 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in his first two starts. Whether with New England or someone else, the 2014 second-round pick from Eastern Illinois could end up as a full-time starter down the line.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Following Specific Players On PFR

September 18th, 2016 at 6:55pm CST by Zachary Links

As we’ve outlined before, there are a number of different ways to follow Pro Football Rumors via Facebook, Twitter, and RSS. If you don’t want to follow all the site’s updates, you can subscribe to team-specific or transaction-only Facebook, Twitter, and RSS feeds. Although we don’t have Facebook pages or Twitter feeds for specific players, it’s easy to follow all our updates on your favorite player as well.

If, for instance, you want to keep track of all the latest news and rumors on Jaguars running back Chris Ivory as he works his way back from an undisclosed illness, you can visit this page. If you’re interested in keeping tabs on the latest rumors involving Josh Gordon, who has drawn trade interest in recent weeks, you can find Gordon’s page right here.

In addition to dedicating pages to players, we also maintain archives for certain specific topics. For example, all our posts relating to the city of Los Angeles can be found here, while our updates on Las Vegas are here.

Every player we’ve written about has his own rumors page, and each of those players also has his own RSS feed, making it even easier to follow the latest updates. Links to RSS feeds for specific players are all located on this page. You can also find links to RSS feeds for various miscellaneous categories there. For instance, if you only want to receive one update every Sunday recapping the week’s notable headlines, you can subscribe to our Week in Review RSS feed, right here.

5 Key Stories: 9/11/16 – 9/18/16

September 18th, 2016 at 4:15pm CST by Sam Robinson

Relocation talk heats up again. Both the Raiders’ and Chargers’ future playing sites populated the NFL news cycle this week, with the Raiders-to-Las Vegas prospective venture clearing a key hurdle. The Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure Committee approved $750MM in public funds for a potential Raiders $1.9 billion stadium in Vegas. Before a league vote can commence, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and the state legislature must approve it. Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf continued to declare the city was working to keep the Raiders, however. As for the Chargers, former GM A.J. Smith said they’d stay in San Diego, but a later report from CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora pointed to the Bolts leaving their home of 55 years.

Bills turmoil continues. After a second straight loss, the Bills moved to fire OC Greg Roman after just 18 games working under Rex Ryan. While Roman’s rushing offense led the league in 2015 and his unit as a whole outproduced Ryan’s defense, Bills sources pointed to a dissatisfaction between Bills ownership and Roman’s offense, and while Doug Whaley‘s job may be in jeopardy despite his offseason extension, Ryan’s is reportedly safe — for now.

More Browns quarterback drama. The Browns were forced to pivot back to Josh McCown after an MRI revealed Robert Griffin III’s shoulder injury to be far more severe than anticipated after the free agent signing finished Cleveland’s Week 1 game. Browns sources may not view this as a crushing blow, however. The embattled team stayed in the news regarding a quarterback its new regime didn’t select. Since-replaced scouts were said to have preferred Carson Wentz to Jared Goff, the favorite of the Browns’ new power structure, before Cleveland traded out of the No. 2 pick.

Linemen receive extensions. After the Packers cut Josh Sitton, they opted to extend tackle David Bakhtiari via four-year, $51.67MM deal. The Rams moved to continue the fortification of their dominant defensive line, inking defensive tackle Michael Brockers to a long-term deal worth $33MM over three years. Brockers joins Robert Quinn as Los Angeles front-line stalwarts extended long-term. Aaron Donald is extension-eligible after this season.

Extensions in question for Rams’ decision-makers. Both Jeff Fisher and GM Les Snead have been long rumored to be upcoming recipients of extensions despite the team’s middling play under their leadership. This week, we initially heard Fisher’s extension would be tabled after a 28-0 season-opening loss, before another report kept the timeline for Fisher and Snead extensions on course. On Saturday, however, a report had the Rams and their fifth-year coach already agreeing on an extension but waiting to announce at a more appropriate time.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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