The Cowboys are dealing with a bit of a COVID problem. Per Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News, the club has placed right tackle Terence Steele on the reserve/COVID-19 list after a positive test. As Watkins’ colleague, Michael Gehlken, tweets, Dallas’ O-line coach Joe Philbin, O-line assistant Jeff Blasko, offensive assistant Scott Tolzien, and strength and conditioning coaches Harold Nash, Jr., Cedric Smith, and Kendall Smith are also on the list following positive tests.
Neither Steele nor the staffers (with the possible exception of Cedric Smith) will be available for the Cowboys’ game against the Saints on Thursday. La’el Collins will get the start at RT in Steele’s absence.
Steele, a 2020 UDFA, served as Collins’ primary replacement last season, which Collins missed due to hip surgery. This year, Collins was hit with a five-game PED suspension, and starting left tackle Tyron Smith has missed time with an ankle injury. So Steele has played both LT and RT in 2021, and Pro Football Focus’ metrics paint him as the 53rd-best offensive tackle out of 81 qualifiers.
To combat further spread of the virus, the Cowboys will be working virtually through Monday and will have daily testing through Tuesday. The good news is that WR Amari Cooper, who has missed Dallas’ last two games due to a positive COVID test of his own, should be back in action for the Saints game, as Watkins writes.
The Cowboy’s other top wideout, CeeDee Lamb, who missed the club’s Thanksgiving loss to the Raiders due to a concussion, is also expected to clear protocols and suit up against New Orleans (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com).
Generally speaking, one of the benefits of parting ways with a head coach in the middle of the season is that it gives a club a head start on the search for its next HC. The Raiders, though, do not plan on capitalizing on that opportunity. Las Vegas is currently being run by interim head coach Rich Bisaccia after Jon Gruden‘s resignation in October, but Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports hears that team owner Mark Davis has not started the search for Gruden’s permanent replacement and may not do so until after the season.
It has been something of a difficult year for Davis. The Raiders got out to a 5-2 start, but the Gruden resignation — circumstances surrounding which infuriated Davis — and the departures of 2020 first-rounders Henry Ruggs and Damon Arnette cast a pall over the organization. Still, Davis has been pleased with how his club has responded to the adversity, and after a big win over the Cowboys on Thanksgiving snapped a three-game losing streak and put the Raiders back into the AFC playoff picture, he is not keen to focus on anything other than wins and losses at the moment.
One source told La Canfora that Davis, “isn’t ready to go there yet. He’s not ready to launch a coaching search. That’s not where he is.”
Davis can probably afford to be patient here. The Las Vegas coaching gig is a highly desirable one, so even if he waits until the end of the season to begin his HC search in earnest, Davis still has a good chance to land his top choice, whoever that happens to be. Indeed, La Canfora reports that interested candidates have proactively reached out to the organization, only to be rebuffed.
In addition to making a call on the next head coach, Davis will also need to decide GM Mike Mayock‘s fate. The most recent news on the matter indicated that Mayock — who reported to Gruden in the club’s previous, unorthodox power structure — has a legitimate chance to retain his job, though it’s fair to wonder whether a top-tier head coach will want to partner with a holdover general manager.
Eagles QBJalen Hurts‘ recent run of quality play could have major ramifications for Philadelphia’s future. Aside from the obvious fact that getting the quarterback position settled is the most important agenda item for any NFL club, confidence in Hurts as the long-term solution under center opens a lot of other doors for the franchise, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com observes.
Although there are a number of high-profile passers that could be available via trade this offseason — Aaron Rodgers, Deshaun Watson, and Russell Wilson, for instance — the Eagles would not have to empty their cache of draft picks to acquire such a player if Hurts really is the answer. And considering the club has at least two 2022 first-round selections and is in line to recoup the Colts’ 2022 first-rounder as part of this year’s Carson Wentz trade, it would certainly be preferable to use those choices on cost-controlled young talent at other areas of need (like safety, where Bo Wulf of The Athletic believes the Eagles could make a significant splash this offseason).
Plus, this year’s crop of collegiate quarterbacks is not considered an especially strong one. Although some college signal-callers have played their way into first-round consideration, none of them have obvious franchise potential, and arguably none of them have the upside of Hurts. So Philadelphia will be happy to let other clubs take fliers on that group of players while it forges ahead with a QB that has shown marked improvement as the season has gone on.
Since Week 8, Hurts is the only player in the league with three or more rushing touchdowns and passing touchdowns. He is also averaging 5.4 yards per carry during that timeframe, good for seventh-best in the NFL (regardless of position). His running ability is part of what makes him such an intriguing player, so while his 90.4 quarterback rating on the season positions him closer to the bottom of the league than the top, Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics — which consider throwing and rushing prowess — consider him a top-10 QB, ahead of players like Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson.
So if Hurts’ arm continues to improve — he has thrown just one pick since Week 6 — there is reason to believe that he is, as owner Jeffrey Lurie hoped, the right QB to build around.
November 28th, 2021 at 9:00am CST by Zachary Links
Matt Nagy‘s job appears to be safe — for now. The Bears are unlikely to fire their head coach before the end of the season, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (Twitter link).
Rumors of Nagy’s imminent firing were rampant last week, with one report suggesting that he would be dismissed after the Thanksgiving Day game against the Lions. For his part, Nagy says such talk “is not accurate,” though he canceled the Bears’ scheduled meetings Tuesday afternoon. And, as of Tuesday, Nagy said he had yet to speak with owner George McCaskey, team president Ted Phillips, or GM Ryan Pace about his status.
“We all have our own decisions as to how we do things, and I think this whole entire time, for me and for ownership, we’ve had greatcommunication,” said Nagy when asked about the recent lack of clarity from the Bears’ top brass. “[We’re] focused on Detroit. That’s what it is.”
On Wednesday, McCaskey told players and coaches that Nagy would not get a pink slip for Thanksgiving. Still, barring a total 180, it’d be a surprise to see him return in 2022. Indeed, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports hears that change could be inevitable.
Around this time last year, we were hearing that it was more likely than not that Nagy would be fired at the end of the 2020 campaign. While ownership ultimately elected to give its HC one more chance to right the ship, the Bears’ struggles this season are probably too much for him to overcome.
The good news for Chicago is that many offensive-minded coaches view rookie QB Justin Fields as a quality passer that they can build around. So the club, which is expected to consider popular candidates like Tampa Bay OC Byron Leftwich, New England OC Josh McDaniels, and Buffalo OC Brian Daboll, might be able to land its top target. However, Northwestern HC Pat Fitzgerald, whom the Bears have coveted for some time, remains uninterested in the post.
Meanwhile, although we recently heard that Pace might not be fired at season’s end, La Canfora notes that his status is very much up in the air as well.
The Giants are sitting at 3-7 and are at the bottom of the NFC East. They are on pace for their fifth consecutive season of 10 or more losses, and if they pull off that dubious feat, GM Dave Gettleman — who was hired at the end of 2017 — will have presided over four double-digit loss campaigns. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com writes, Gettleman is not expected to return to the club in 2022.
It seems as though Gettleman has been under fire ever since he first took the job. Even late last December, the Giants were reportedly prepared to part ways with him and bring in a new top exec to head up the personnel department. However, Big Blue has traditionally given its GMs a long leash, and co-owner John Mara knew when he hired Gettleman that his team was embarking on a multi-year rebuild. He also knew that hiring a a new head coach (Joe Judge) last season could delay that rebuild a bit, as Judge would be implementing new systems and a new culture.
Gettleman, 70, managed to hit on a few of his free agent pickups in 2020 — cornerback James Bradberry, linebacker Blake Martinez, and defensive back Logan Ryan— which may have helped him retain his position for 2021. But Mara made it clear this summer that while he was not issuing a playoff mandate, any stagnation or regression could prompt an organizational shakeup.
And not only might the Giants fail to match last year’s six wins, but they also have not seen any progress from two of Gettleman’s defining draft choices, QB Daniel Jones and RB Saquon Barkley. Both selections garnered a fair amount of criticism when they were made — Gettleman’s use of the No. 6 overall pick on Jones in 2019 was widely regarded as a reach, and his use of the No. 2 overall pick on Barkley in 2018 was deemed too high for a running back for a rebuilding outfit — and between Jones’ struggles and Barkley’s injury problems, the G-Men are getting very little production from two picks that they needed to get right.
Of course, the team recently fired OC Jason Garrett, and it sounds as though Gettleman will be following him out the door. If Mara opts for an internal replacement, Rapoport names VP of football operations and assistant GM Kevin Abrams as one possibility. Any candidate from outside the organization would ideally have a background in the Patriots’ scouting system and would have philosophies more in line with those of Judge, an ex-New England staffer.
The clear implication is that Judge’s job is safe for at least one more season.
A year ago, Za’Darius Smith was closing in on his second straight season with double-digit sacks. Through his first two years with the Packers, Smith had done nothing but validate the 4-year, $66MM contract he’d earned in free agency. Unfortunately, a back injury that has forced the seven-year veteran to miss all but 18 snaps of the 2021 season will require the Packers and Smith to have some tough conversations.
A fourth-round pick out of Kentucky, Smith was drafted by the Ravens in the 2015 NFL Draft in hopes that he would replace pass rusher Pernell McPhee who had left in free agency to sign with the Bears. Little did they know, Smith would do quite an impressive imitation of McPhee. Both players had impressive rookie seasons – McPhee had 6.0 sacks and Smith had 5.5 – and fairly pedestrian numbers their second and third years – McPhee had 3.5 sacks over those two years and Smith had 4.5. Both players saved their best performances for their contract years with McPhee tallying 7.5 sacks and Smith racking up 8.5.
Smith leveraged that 8.5 sack season into his current contract with Green Bay. As a Packer, Smith started every game of the 2019 and 2020 seasons leading the team in sacks both years. When Smith missed Green Bay’s second game of the season it marked the first full game he had missed due to injury since Week 14 of the 2017 season.
Still, this injury has proven to be a major one. Smith started the season with his health in doubt due to a lingering back injury and it was clear after only 18 snaps that he was not ready to return to the field. Smith was shut down and hasn’t seen a snap since. The implications of an injury this debilitating have an unfortunate effect on the pass rusher’s contract status.
Now issues have already arisen with Smith’s contract after he showed dismay in the Packers’ handling of restructures this offseason. The Packers chose not to restructure quarterback Aaron Rodgers‘ contract during a tumultuous offseason but utilized an automatic conversion clause in Smith’s contract to help subsidize an extension for running back Aaron Jones. The restructuring of Smith’s contract created a monster $28.1MM cap hit for next year, up from $14MM this season. If the Packers were to release Smith to avoid the cap hit, they would be left with $12.38MM in dead money vs. $15.75MM in cap room.
If Green Bay only had to deal with the cap hit, it would be an easy conversation of how to extend a new deal to Smith and avoid the massive number in 2022. But, in conjunction with a lingering back injury, the cap hit makes Smith’s potential to end up as a cap casualty more and more likely.
Now it’s not a foregone conclusion that Smith won’t work out a deal with Green Bay, but he’d have to be willing to take a bit of a pay cut from a team that has already shorted him in a contract situation. More likely would be Smith’s acceptance of a release that allows him to test his value on the free agent market. The Packers also probably wouldn’t mind the market setting the price, as it will likely be lower than Smith’s initial demands.
It’s also worth noting that a late season return has not been ruled out for the ‘backer, possibly giving him a chance to make his case for another big pay day.
The race for the AFC West is far from over. There is no team with a losing record in the division, setting for up an exciting final stretch of the regular season.
The Chiefs (7-4) began the season as clear favorites to win the division, but they’ve failed to create the distance they’d hoped for between themselves and their divisional foes. Kansas City’s first five games were defined by shootouts in which its defense struggled to contribute to team success, leading to an opening record of 2-3. After the Chiefs’ 27-3 loss to the Titans in Week 7, their defense seems to have found its footing. The Chris Jones-led unit is allowing 11.75 points per game since then en route to a four-game win streak.
In Los Angeles, Justin Herbert has benefitted from having healthy weapons in running back Austin Ekeler and receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, an improvement from the 6-4 Chargers’ injury-riddled 2020 season. Much like the Chiefs, though, the Chargers’ defense has struggled to turn that success into wins as they’ve only managed to hold two opponents under 20 points this season.
The Raiders (6-5) have been a team of streaks this season. They began the year 3-0 with impressive wins over the Ravens and Steelers. They then lost two, won two, and lost three in a row through their next seven games with concerning losses to the currently reeling Bears and Giants. Las Vegas rebounded with an impressive Thanksgiving Day win in Dallas. The Raiders’ current winning record is all the more impressive when you consider the off-the-field controversies that have rocked the franchise.
Over their first eight games of the season, the Broncos (5-5) were fairly easy to decipher. They beat teams currently under .500 — the Giants, Jaguars, Jets and the Football Team — but they could not get past teams currently over .500 (Ravens, Steelers, Raiders, Browns). They did buck this trend in their past two games by beating the Cowboys (7-4) and losing to the Eagles (4-6). They certainly hope that trend is over, as the Lions represent the only team they face over the rest of the season with a sub-.500 record. Offseason pickup Teddy Bridgewater leads an offense that has seen the return of Pro Bowler Courtland Sutton, though Denver’s latest run of injury misfortune involved second-year receiver Jerry Jeudy missing most of the season’s first half. The running game has been split pretty evenly between seven-year veteran Melvin Gordon and second-round rookie Javonte Williams.
With seven weeks remaining in the regular season, potential for divisional chaos remains. The Chiefs don’t have any remaining opponents currently under .500. The Raiders are set to play just one — the Washington Football Team. The Bolts potentially have a softer route, with two teams remaining under .500 in the Giants and Texans. In addition, there’s plenty of divisional play left to ensue before the playoff field forms.
So who do you see taking control of the AFC West? Do the Chiefs regain their supremacy and claim the division for the sixth straight year? Or do any of the other contenders take advantage of Kansas City’s four early-season losses? Vote in our latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
After initial speculation that Darren Waller‘s season might be over due to the knee injury he sustained during the Raiders’ Thanksgiving Day win in Dallas, the team has received good news on its top pass-catching weapon.
Waller only suffered a strain to the IT band in his knee, according to Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network (on Twitter). Indeed, no major damage is believed to have occurred here, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler tweets.
Waller may need to miss some time to recover, though even this is not certain just yet. Even if Waller needs to sit next week, this update represents good news for a Las Vegas team hoping to have something to play for as this season winds down.
The former reclamation project is on pace for his third straight 1,000-yard season, and given the turmoil the Raiders have gone through this year, he serves as a key constant for the team going into a pivotal stretch. Waller has racked up 53 receptions this season, turning them into 643 yards and two touchdowns.
Before leaving Thursday’s game early, Waller had only missed one game this season — against Philadelphia in Week 7. He initially left his team’s Thanksgiving game with a back ailment but returned before ultimately being forced out because of his knee. The Raiders managed to win without notable Waller assistance, halting their three-game skid.
With Waller out, Las Vegas would stand to look to Foster Moreau and Daniel Helm to cover the tight end position. The Raiders will look forward to a speedy Waller recovery, as they sit one game back behind the division-leading Chiefs and a half-game back of the Chargers in the competitive AFC West.
SATURDAY: Greenlaw will return this week. The 49ers officially activated the starting linebacker from IR on Saturday. The third-year veteran will suit up for the first time since Week 1.
WEDNESDAY: The injury-ridden 49ers are set to see one of their promising young defenders return this week. Kyle Shanahan expects Dre Greenlaw to be activated from IR before Sunday’s game against the Vikings, Matt Barrows of The Athletic tweets.
This comes four days after fellow defender safety Jaquiski Tartt returned to the 49ers’ active roster. Similar to the 2020 season, the 49ers have seen a large number of role players spend time on injured reserve — including Greenlaw and Pro Bowlers Dee Ford and Jason Verrett. Recent first-round picks Mike McGlinchey and Javon Kinlaw, who are both out for the season, joined them.
Greenlaw is on track to return after a nine-game absence. The third-year linebacker underwent groin surgery following the team’s season-opening win in Detroit. Greenlaw returned an interception 39 yards for a touchdown in that game but has not suited up since.
A fifth-round pick out of Arkansas, Greenlaw has been a starter since being drafted in 2019. Prior to this extended absence, Greenlaw played in all but three games over his first two seasons. His presence alongside Fred Warner has been a saving grace after the Reuben Foster and Kwon Alexandermoves did not work out.
Ford is also set to return to practice, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle notes, following a four-game absence due to a flareup of ongoing back issues. Ford, 30, is still on San Francisco’s IR. It is expected the 49ers will monitor the veteran edge rusher’s snap count, as they did earlier in the season, to accommodate the back issues that Shanahan says “he’ll deal with most likely forever.”
After a one-game 2020, Ford returned to play in San Francisco’s first six contests this season. The former Chiefs first-rounder has tallied three sacks and a forced fumble this year.
