Today’s minor moves:
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: OL Phil Haynes
- Placed on IR: CB Tre Brown, OT Jamarco Jones
Washington Football Team
- Promoted: C Jon Toth
- Placed on IR: T Samuel Cosmi
Dan Arnold may be done for the year. The Jaguars tight end has been diagnosed with a grade 2 MCL sprain that will sideline him for 4-6 weeks (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
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The Jaguars acquired Arnold in late September, shipping former first-round pick C.J. Henderson and a fifth-round choice to the Panthers in exchange for the tight end and a third-round pick. Since then, he’s been a bright spot for the Jaguars in an otherwise trying year.
Through eleven games (three with the Panthers and eight with the Jags), Arnold has 35 grabs for 408 yards. That’s roughly in line with his entire 2020 with the Cardinals — 31 grabs for 438 yards and four touchdowns. On the plus side, the Jaguars still have Arnold under contract for 2022, thanks to the reasonable two-year, $6MM deal he inked with Carolina earlier this year.
The Jaguars, sans Arnold, will head west this week to face the Rams. At 2-9, they aren’t playing for much, so it’s unlikely that Arnold will return before the year is through.
The Browns believe that right tackle Jack Conklin is dealing with a torn patella tendon in his knee, according to a source who spoke with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). Conklin, who was carted off during last night’s loss to the Ravens, will know more after additional testing this afternoon.
“You hate that for anybody, especially Jack, who’s been fighting to come back after the dislocated elbow,” said quarterback Baker Mayfield (via ESPN.com). “It’s just one of those freak deals. He’s one of our guys, and it’s just a really, really unfortunate thing.”
Conklin has already missed time this year, thanks to the elbow dislocation he suffered in Week 8 and another knee injury earlier in the year. Of course, when healthy, Conklin has performed as one of the game’s best right tackles. In 2019 and 2020, Pro Football Focus ranked him as the tenth best tackle in the NFL. And, even in this injury-marred season, PFF has him slotted 14th.
The Browns gave the former first round pick a three-year, $42MM deal in 2020. He’s still under contract for 2022 and almost certain to return — releasing him would save just $6MM against $9MM in dead money. Beyond that, they’d be hard-pressed to find a better option for less on the open market.
The NFL will have to wait. On Sunday, Lincoln Riley confirmed that he is leaving the University of Oklahoma to become the next head coach of the USC Trojans. 
[RELATED: Oklahoma Eyeing Cardinals’ Kliff Kingsbury]
“Leaving OU was probably the most difficult decision of my life,” said Riley in a statement issued by Oklahoma. “OU is one of the best college football programs in the country, and it has been forever…This was a personal decision solely based on my willingness to go take on a new challenge, and I felt like it was the right opportunity for me and my family to do that.”
Not long ago, many believed that Riley’s next challenge would come in the professional ranks. Multiple NFL clubs have shown interest, including the Eagles earlier this year, before they settled on Nick Sirianni.
Riley has amassed a 55-10 record since taking over for Bob Stoops in 2017. Though the National Championship has eluded the Sooners, Riley’s work with No. 1 overall picks Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray made him a hot NFL candidate. Riley’s still just 38 years of age, so he could make the leap sometime in the future. For now, he’s headed to Southern California while Stoops resumes his old job in an interim capacity.
In related news, Oklahoma has interest in Kliff Kingsbury, but it’s hard to imagine him leaving the first-place Cardinals.
In case you missed it, here’s a look back at some of our recent originals:
- Through his first two years with the Packers, Za’Darius Smith did nothing but validate the four-year, $66MM contract he’d earned in free agency. Now, as Ely Allen writes, his lingering back injury could make him a cap casualty this offseason.
- Four years ago today, Darren McFadden announced his retirement from the NFL. He was still just 30 years old, but McFadden felt that his best days were behind him.
- Will Patrick Mahomes mega-contract prevent the Chiefs from re-signing Orlando Brown? Ely broke down Brown’s case for a big payday of his own and what it’ll take for him to skip the open market.
- Up until the Steelers’ afternoon loss, every team in the AFC North had a winning record. Over the weekend, we asked PFR readers to predict the eventual winner. Nearly half of you picked the Ravens, but at least 25% of you believe in the Bengals.
- Speaking of competitive divisions, the AFC West race is far from over. But, in Saturday’s poll, over 60% of PFR readers picked the Chiefs to top the Chargers, Raiders, and Broncos.
Four years ago today, Darren McFadden announced his retirement from the NFL. He was still just 30 years old, but McFadden felt that his best days were behind him. 
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“Today, I am announcing that I am retiring from the NFL. I have been extremely privileged to play in the league for a long time,” McFadden wrote in a statement. “And now that time for me is done.”
McFadden was limited to just one game and one carry (for negative two yards) in 2017. And, even in the wake of Ezekiel Elliott‘s suspension, he wasn’t healthy enough to take on the workload. Instead, it was Alfred Morris who jumped to the top of the depth chart, with support from RB2 Rod Smith.
This was a familiar refrain for McFadden, who couldn’t stay healthy after being drafted No. 4 overall by the Raiders in 2008. His best Oakland season came in 2010 when he ran for 1,157 yards plus 507 yards receiving. Unfortunately, out of seven seasons with the Raiders, he was only able to turn in one 16-game slate.
McFadden went on to have a late career re-emergence with Dallas, eclipsing 1,000 yards in 2015. Then, he lost most of 2016 and basically all of ’17 to injury.
The ex-Razorback’s blend of size and speed (6’1″; 4.33-second 40-yard-dash at the combine) never translated into superstardom, but he did manage a ten-year run — more than most get in the NFL. He also left the game with a pair of 1,000-yard seasons to his credit and nearly $50MM in lifetime NFL earnings.
University of Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley has agreed to become the next head coach of the USC Trojans, according to sources who spoke with Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports. In turn, the Sooners’ own search is underway, and they’re targeting Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). 
Kingsbury still has one full year remaining on his deal and it’s not clear if he’d consider a return to the college ranks. Given his recent success, it’d be nothing short of shocking. At 9-2, the Cardinals are bonafide contenders for the first time in a long time.
Kingsbury made his name at Texas Tech, even though his teams went just 35-40 during his time there. In an era where new bowls continue to spawn, the Red Raiders only qualified for bowl games in three of those six seasons. There was also a noticeable drop from the final Patrick Mahomes season (fifth in scoring) to the post-Mahomes teams — 23rd in points in 2017, 100th in 2018 — for the Red Raiders’ offense.
Despite the hiccups, Kingsbury’s quarterback-whispering skills scored him the Cardinals’ job, ahead of several big-name candidates with pro experience. Now, in Year 3, there’s no questioning that the Cardinals made the right pick. Even with Kyler Murray sidelined and Colt McCoy under center, Kingsbury’s Cardinals have managed to go 2-1 in their last three games.
The Cardinals will look to pad their NFC lead next Sunday when they face the Bears in Chicago.
More bad news for Rashaad Penny. Thanks to his latest hamstring flare-up, the Seahawks running back will be held out of tomorrow night’s game against Washington (Twitter link via Adam Jude of the Seattle Times). Beyond that, head coach Pete Carroll says that the injury could result in him reverting to IR, which would rule him out for the rest of the year. 
Penny’s hammy and calf issues have limited him to just four games this year. All in all, he has just 17 carries for 43 yards and one score on the year. He also sat out the majority of the 2020 campaign while recovering from a torn ACL.
On top of that, Travis Homer has been ruled out for this week with a calf injury. The Seahawks — already without Chris Carson thanks to a season-ending neck injury, are down to just Alex Collins, DeeJay Dallas, and newcomer B.J. Emmons. Practice squader Josh Johnson could be elevated for additional support, but the Seahawks may need to consider other options in the long-term.
For Penny, it’s yet another setback in what was shaping up to be a promising career. Through his first two seasons in the NFL, Penny notched 947 all-purpose yards and six touchdowns. And, in 2019, he managed a 5.7 yards per carry average, albeit in a limited sample size of 65 totes.
The Seahawks have already declined Penny’s fifth-year option, so he’s on course for free agency in the spring.
Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore has cleared up the legal matter that was hanging over his head. Lattimore, who was arrested in March and charged with possessing a loaded handgun that was believed to be stolen (a fourth-degree felony), recently pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of failing to promptly inform officers that he was carrying a concealed handgun, as Mike Triplett of ESPN.com writes. The felony count was dropped as part of the plea deal.
Triplett points out that Lattimore has a permit to carry a concealed weapon. The 25-year-old DB was a passenger in a car that was pulled over for multiple traffic violations, and he did not tell the officers that he had the gun until they asked. Lattimore’s attorney, Marcus Sidoti, said his client was unaware that the gun was stolen.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy says the matter is still being reviewed by the league office. But now that the criminal case has been resolved, one would think that a decision as to whether Lattimore will face any sort of punishment under the NFL’s personal conduct policy will come fairly quickly.
The Saints were clearly not too concerned about this incident, as they handed Lattimore a record-setting contract extension in September. Pro Football Focus has not been particularly high on the Ohio State product since his rookie campaign, and that trend has continued this year. PFF’s metrics give him a 63.6 overall grade, good for 54th out of 118 qualified players. Still, Lattimore is viewed in a different light by New Orleans brass, and as the club’s CB1, he is often matched up against an opponent’s top receiver.
He chipped a bone in his thumb in the Saints’ Week 1 win over the Packers, missed Week 2 as a result, and played a few games with a cast. On the season, the three-time Pro Bowler has 42 tackles, one interception, and 11 passes defensed.
Lattimore was sentenced to one year of unsupervised probation and was required to pay a $1K fine.
The future of 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has once again become a talking point, though this time it’s due to his stretch of quality play as opposed to an injury or the presence of rookie passer Trey Lance. Over his last four games, three of which have resulted in wins, Garoppolo has posted QB ratings of 100.6, 100.6, 141.7, and 126.3, throwing for six TDs against just one interception.
He has helped the Niners crawl back into the NFC playoff race, and he has missed just one full game this year due to injury. With Lance struggling in his one start this year, many have wondered whether San Francisco might consider keeping Garoppolo for 2022, the final year of his current contract.
Earlier this week, head coach Kyle Shanahan sort of left the door open for a Garoppolo return next season, though he was adamant that Lance is still the team’s long-term play at QB. And as Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported this morning, the 49ers — barring a Super Bowl run — will seek to trade Garoppolo this offseason, thereby clearing the path for Lance (video link). That is, of course, in line with what we have heard since Lance was drafted.
So Garoppolo’s recent run is not only keeping the team in the postseason picture, it is also increasing the return that San Francisco will realize in an offseason trade. The 30-year-old passer does have a no-trade clause, and his performance makes it more likely that a team he wants to play for will be involved in the bidding for him, which makes it a win-win proposition for him and the 49ers. Matt Barrows of The Athletic, who also believes the 49ers’ preferred course of action is to trade Garoppolo, says that such a deal will likely include some sort of extension or reworked contract with the acquiring club.
If Garoppolo should start to struggle or get hurt again, the Niners could still release him and save $25.6MM against the cap, but they would obviously prefer to swing a trade and net draft pick compensation. Garoppolo will battle former Shanahan pupil and would-be 49er Kirk Cousins in this afternoon’s key matchup with the surging Vikings.