Month: December 2024

Packers, Elgton Jenkins Agree On Extension

The Packers will not let Elgton Jenkins hit free agency. They agreed to a four-year extension with the fourth-year offensive lineman, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

The versatile blocker agreed to bypass a run on the 2023 market by signing a $68MM deal that could max out at $74MM. While Jenkins has worked at both guard and tackle, he has settled in at guard this season. This deal makes him the league’s second-highest-paid guard — behind only Quenton Nelson. Incentives can take the deal to the $74MM mark, per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein (on Twitter).

Davante Adams notwithstanding, Green Bay has an extensive history of keeping its priority free agents. (Though, this deal does come around the same point on the calendar when the Packers locked down Adams to his second NFL contract back in 2017.) Months after Jaire Alexander‘s cornerback-record contract, the Packers have Jenkins locked in through the 2026 season. The former second-round pick will collect a $24MM signing bonus, Rapoport adds (on Twitter). ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler has the signing bonus at $22MM (Twitter link).

The Packers do not have too much history with the franchise tag, going 12 years between bringing it out for Ryan Pickett (in 2010) and Adams. But Rapoport notes a tag was likely here. Jenkins’ signing bonus comes in a few million north of the projected $18.3MM O-lineman tag, which undoubtedly came into play during the talks. Jenkins, 27 next week, would have been one of the top free agents on next year’s market. Instead, the Packers paid to make him a long-term cornerstone.

At $17MM per year, Jenkins’ extension checks in closer to the guard field than to Nelson, who is attached to a $20MM-per-year accord. But Nelson’s accomplishments are on another level compared to his age group. Like Alexander, the Packers did not appear to deviate from their preferred contract structure of not including guarantees beyond Year 1. If the signing bonus represents the full guarantee here, Jenkins will be tied to either the fifth- or seventh-highest figure among guards.

This agreement also punctuates Jenkins’ return from the ACL tear that cut his 2021 season short. Although the Packers’ 2022 season has fallen well shy of expectations, this deal rewards a player who has bounced to a few positions along the O-line. Jenkins has made a Pro Bowl at guard — in 2020 — but began last season filling in for David Bakhtiari at left tackle. After Bakhtiari made his long-awaited return to his blindside post this season, Jenkins began his contract year at right tackle. But the Packers kicked him back inside to guard. Despite the move, Friday’s extension compares favorably to most right tackles’ money. The AAV matches Taylor Moton‘s for the fifth-highest at right tackle.

Green Bay selected Jenkins 44th overall in 2019 and made him an instant starter. Stationed alongside Bakhtiari, the Mississippi State alum soon teamed with the All-Pro blindsider to form one of the league’s top inside-outside duos. After Bakhtiari’s career-altering ACL tear on New Year’s Eve 2020, it took until this season for he and Jenkins to play together again. By the time they did, Corey Linsley — whom the Packers let walk in 2021 — was in his second season with the Chargers. Letting Linsley leave freed up funds for Jenkins, who is four years younger.

Last season represented a missed opportunity, though the Packers still secured the No. 1 seed without either standout. Bakhtiari, who underwent three surgeries to address the knee injury, has bounced in and out of the lineup this season. He remains tied to the four-year, $92MM contract he inked during the 2020 campaign. While Bakhtiari has missed five games this season, Jenkins has only missed two. He returned in Week 2 and has played at a Pro Bowl level. No such honor came this week, but Pro Football Focus ranks Jenkins as the league’s No. 7 overall guard. The Packers are paying up for what should be his prime seasons.

Latest On Rams QB Matthew Stafford’s Future

Matthew Stafford‘s Super Bowl defense didn’t get off to the best start when the QB was sidelined for much of the summer with an elbow issue. The veteran struggled for much of the regular season before ultimately landing on injured reserve in early December. With Stafford set to turn 35 years old in February while collecting a growing list of ailments, there have been some pundits questioning whether he could hang up his cleats following the 2022 campaign.

During an appearance on his wife’s podcast earlier this week, Stafford rejected the notion that he’d retire following the season. When asked by Kelly Stafford if he was planning on calling it a career, the QB quickly responded “oh no,” per Larry Holder of The Athletic.

Both Stafford and the Rams have generally downplayed his injuries. The quarterback’s elbow injury wasn’t expected to impact his throwing ability, and while his numbers were generally down across the board, the organization generally attributed the struggles to Stafford’s inability to develop a rapport with his offense prior to the regular season.

Stafford’s latest injury, a spinal cord contusion, isn’t expected to be a long-term issue and should still allow the veteran to enjoy a “healthy offseason.” Stafford also missed a pair of games this season while in concussion protocol. The former first-overall pick has generally been healthy throughout his career; after missing 19 games through his first two seasons in the NFL, Stafford only missed eight games over the following 11 years, with all of those games missed coming during the 2019 campaign.

Stafford also has plenty of financial incentive to stick around the NFL. The QB inked a four-year, $160MM deal with the Rams back in March, with the organization giving their Super Bowl-winning signal-caller $135MM in guaranteed money.

Patriots LS Joe Cardona Done For Year

One of New England’s longest-tenured players is done for the season. ESPN’s Mike Reiss reports (via Twitter) that long snapper Joe Cardona has a torn tendon in his foot and won’t play again this season.

The 30-year-old suffered a partial tear in his foot earlier this month, but he still managed to play through the injury in Week 15. It’s uncertain if Cardona made the injury worse by playing, but either way, he won’t be back on the field until the 2023 campaign. Reiss notes that the veteran is expected to be fully recovered by the spring.

Cardona made a name for himself when he became the fourth long snapper in NFL history to be drafted, with the Patriots selecting the Navy product in the fifth round of the 2015 draft. Cardona hasn’t missed a game since joining the organization, appearing in all of New England’s 127 regular season games and 13 playoff games over that stretch. During his time with New England, Cardona has earned a pair of Super Bowl rings. He was also named to the organization’s ‘All-Dynasty Team’ in 2020. Cardona inked a four-year extension with the Patriots in 2018 that is set to expire following this season.

Elsewhere on the injury front, receiver DeVante Parker and cornerback Jalen Mills will both be out again for the Patriots this weekend when they take on the Bengals. Running back Damien Harris, cornerback Jack Jones, and receivers Tyquan Thornton and Jakobi Meyers are all questionable for this weekend.

Saints CB Marshon Lattimore Closer To Return, WR Jarvis Landry To IR

The Saints revealed some good and bad news on the injury front today. Coach Dennis Allen told reporters that cornerback Marshon Lattimore continues to progress, per Mike Triplett of NewOrleans.Football (on Twitter). However, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reveals (on Twitter) that wideout Jarvis Landry is heading to injured reserve.

Lattimore has been sidelined since October after suffering a lacerated kidney. The Pro Bowler has missed nine games with the injury, but Allen told reporters that the defensive back is “as close as he’s been” to returning to the field. The Saints will continue to monitor Lattimore, and while it sounds like he’ll be back before long, there’s no guarantee that he’ll play against the Browns this weekend.

Landry suffered an ankle injury that limited him to only 19 offensive snaps in Week 15. An ankle injury also forced the veteran wideout to miss most of October and a bit of November. With his placement on IR, Landry wouldn’t be allowed to return to the Saints until the postseason.

Landry hasn’t put up big numbers during his first season in New Orleans, hauling in 25 receptions for 272 yards and one touchdown. Still, when he’s been active, he’s played at least half of the Saints offensive snaps, and he’s effectively served as the team’s WR2 behind rookie Chris Olave.

The veteran’s placement on IR is poor timing for the Saints, as Olave has also been ruled out this weekend with a hamstring injury. Tre’Quan Smith will likely lead the depth chart, with Rashid Shaheed and Marquez Callaway also soaking up snaps.

Titans Place C Ben Jones, CB Terrance Mitchell On IR

The Titans’ injury problems are not relenting. Following the report of Ryan Tannehill likely being out for the season, the AFC South leaders are placing center Ben Jones and cornerback Terrance Mitchell on IR.

Jones suffered his second concussion this season, and Mitchell sustained a hamstring injury against the Chargers. Neither player could return until the divisional round of the playoffs, but the Titans’ injury issues overall will present a test to merely qualify for the postseason.

Tennessee will face Houston with Malik Willis under center and its offensive line banged up. Taylor Lewan has been out since September, and guard Nate Davis joins Jones in being sidelined. The Titans ruled out Davis because of an ankle injury. The team also placed tackle Dillon Radunz on IR on Wednesday. The team elevated O-lineman Daniel Munyer from its practice squad Thursday. Lewan is a Pro Bowler, while Pro Football Focus has slotted Jones as a top-10 center and Davis a top-20 guard. The Titans will face the Texans without their three best blockers.

Drawing praise for his toughness this season from Mike Vrabel, Jones has signed three contracts with the Titans. The rare O-lineman to sign four multiyear deals during his career, Jones inked his most recent accord this offseason. Tennessee gave its longtime center a two-year, $14MM pact to return to block for Tannehill and Derrick Henry. Jones, 33, had been an iron man coming into this season, missing just one game over his first 10 years. By the end of this season, he will have missed five contests. The former Texans fourth-round pick has started 151 career games (108 with the Titans).

Tennessee’s draft strategy did not point to Mitchell being required to play a key role this season, but the journeyman cornerback has made five starts. Tennessee’s 2021 first-round pick, Caleb Farley, struggled to carve out a role and is now out for the season with another injury. Regular starter Kristian Fulton, a 2020 second-round pick, has not played since Week 13. The Titans have ruled out Fulton for a third straight game. Slot man Elijah Molden remains on IR, having been placed on the injured list for a second time.

Despite being one of the Patriots’ final cuts in August, Mitchell has played 398 snaps for the Titans this season. The former seventh-round pick has been a regular for most of his career, having seen extensive run as a starter for the Chiefs, Browns and Texans. Of the Titans’ top five corners, only second-round rookie Roger McCreary is healthy.

The Titans have run into rampant injury issues for a second consecutive year. They used an NFL-record 91 players last season and are moving toward that total this year. Tennessee has a league-high 19 players on IR heading into Week 16. Owner Amy Adams Strunk cited the team’s injury problems as one of the reasons GM Jon Robinson was fired. Tennessee has two IR activations left. The team designated linebacker Zach Cunningham for return last week; an activation would leave them with one IR-return move left.

FiveThirtyEight gives the Titans a 46% chance to win the division. Friendlier odds would appear if the Jaguars lose to the Jets on Thursday night. If the Titans miss the playoffs, they would join only the 2021 Ravens as teams to start 7-3 or better and miss out since 2017.

Titans’ Ryan Tannehill Likely Out For Season

DECEMBER 22: It will be Willis, for this week at least, at quarterback for the Titans. Vrabel ruled out Tannehill for the Titans’ Week 16 rematch against the Texans. This will be Willis’ second start against the Texans.

DECEMBER 21: Ryan Tannehill‘s ankle injury could ultimately end his season. According to Paul Kuharsky, the Titans quarterback’s injury could require surgery and “will very likely end his season.”

[RELATED: Ryan Tannehill Unlikely To Play In Week 16]

Tannehill suffered a right ankle injury during Sunday’s loss to the Chargers. While the veteran QB only missed one series, he dealt with significant pain after returning to the game. Tannehill suffered an injury to the same ankle earlier this season, forcing him to miss a pair of games.

We heard yesterday that Tannehill was facing an uphill battle to play in Week 16, and as Kuharsky notes, offensive coordinator Todd Downing spoke as if third-round rookie Malik Willis will start against the Texans. Coach Mike Vrabel also gave the young signal-caller a vote of confidence this week.

“I’ve seen a lot of maturity and growth, seen the way that his reps are coming in our show team and trying to get him to act like the starting quarterback and lead that unit and communicate our language, the call that’s on the card, the operation, the snap count, the cadence, whether we go on the ball the next play,” Vrabel said (via Nick Suss of the Nashville Tennessean). “All those looks that we try to give him, I’ve seen a lot of maturity and growth in that regard.”

Willis didn’t look completely hopeless during his two starts, although the coaching staff limited him to only 26 pass attempts between the two games. With Derrick Henry in the backfield, the Titans should have enough to get past the Titans in Week 16.

The Titans would surely prefer their veteran QB under center against the Cowboys and Jaguars, but it’s not like he was doing a whole lot to help their playoff chances. While Tennessee currently sits atop the AFC South, they’ve dropped four straight, with Tannehill throwing three touchdowns vs. two interceptions over that stretch.

Falcons DC Dean Pees Cleared To Return

The Falcons had to make an emergency switch to their defensive coaching staff last week. A pregame collision resulted in defensive coordinator Dean Pees needing to be hospitalized and inside linebackers coach Frank Bush assuming play-calling duties.

Fortunately, Pees will be back with his team in its Week 16 game Saturday in Baltimore. The veteran DC received clearance to return, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com notes.

Pees, who had come out of retirement to be Arthur Smith‘s defensive architect last year, was talking to FOX sideline reporter Kristina Pink during pregame warmups when he collided with Saints wide receiver Rashid Shaheed. Pees, 73, said he does not believe he lost consciousness, but due to blood thinner medication he is taking, doctors told him he could have bleeding in his brain. A CT scan cleared Pees, however.

Just kind of looking up and going, ‘What the hell just happened?” Pees said of the collision, via Rothstein. “I thought I was good enough, beat up a little bit but don’t feel like I’m concussed or anything like that. They said, no, because of that, they wanted to take precautionary measures and put the stuff on my neck and all that kind of stuff. It looks terrible, but it’s precautionary.”

Bush, who served as the Texans’ defensive coordinator for two seasons under Gary Kubiak and finished the 2020 season as the Jets’ interim DC, said he initially thought Pees would coach from the box after his fall. But Smith informed him he would need to call plays for the Falcons, who lost 21-18 in their Saints rematch. Pees was back at the team’s practice facility Monday.

Ravens Rule Out Lamar Jackson For Week 16

Shortly after Lamar Jackson‘s PCL sprain, a return after two missed games was rumored. John Harbaugh closed that door Thursday. Tyler Huntley will make a third consecutive start this week.

This will be Jackson’s eighth missed game in two seasons. The Ravens are 1-1 with Huntley at the controls this year, but they are coming off a listless performance — particularly in the passing game — and will also be without Devin Duvernay in Week 16. The third-year wide receiver suffered a season-ending foot injury in practice this week.

Ahead of the first game Jackson missed, a report indicated there was a “strong chance” he would not be fully healthy until the end of the regular season. This three-game absence matches Zach Wilson‘s miss count, but the Jets quarterback missed around a month before the regular season because of surgery. Jackson did not undergo surgery and obviously relies far more on his running ability compared to the Jets QB.

Last season, Jackson missed one game because of COVID-19 and four more because of a sprained ankle. While Huntley fared decently in the former MVP’s stead, the Ravens lost the five games Jackson did not finish to close out the season. This year, Jackson had the Ravens at 8-4 and atop the AFC North. Although the Ravens’ offense was scuffling a bit with Jackson before he went down — albeit with injuries at running back and a low-end wideout situation — the contract-year performer ranks ninth in QBR. That is up from 17th last season.

Jackson, 25, passed on Ravens extension offers this year and appears poised to be cuffed with the franchise tag before the March deadline. The exclusive tag number is expected to check in north of $45MM, giving the Ravens a historic cap hold on their payroll — unless they and Jackson can reach an extension agreement — entering free agency. Jackson has not exactly boosted his value this season, but his three Pro Bowls and historic run-game impact at his position will continue to make a case for an extension at or near the top of the QB market. Jackson is believed to have pushed for a deal on the Deshaun Watson level, guarantee-wise. While the Ravens have certainly missed him, the $100MM-plus gap between Watson ($230MM fully guaranteed) and the field in terms of full guarantees could create another staredown.

Baltimore closes the regular season with games against the Falcons, Steelers and Bengals. The team is one game back of Cincinnati going into Week 16. The Ravens’ October win over the Bengals would allow for a winner-take-all season finale — should both teams hold serve, a task that might be more difficult for the Bengals considering the Bills will head to Ohio for a Monday-night showdown Jan. 2 — in two weeks. Having Jackson back in time for that game will be paramount for a Ravens team that now has running backs J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards together. Jackson has not played with both those backs in a game since the 2020 season.

Commanders DE Chase Young To Return In Week 16

Activated from the Commanders’ reserve/PUP list weeks ago, Chase Young has seen his long-awaited return from a severe knee injury delayed. But the wait appears to be over.

The former Defensive Rookie of the Year will make his season debut Saturday, Ron Rivera said. Young has been out since mid-November 2021, being sidelined by an ACL tear and other knee damage. Washington has played it carefully with Young and managed to crawl from a 1-4 hole into the playoff picture without him, but the third-year defensive end’s return will undoubtedly boost the Commanders’ pass rush.

Young said earlier this week he would discuss the full extent of his knee injury “eventually,” but it is believed he suffered a ruptured patellar tendon in addition to the ACL tear, John Keim of ESPN.com tweets. Young will be on a pitch count against the 49ers, Rivera added (via the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala, on Twitter). But the prospect of Young lining up alongside Montez Sweat, Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne to reform the four-first-rounder D-line that led the way to Washington’s 2020 playoff berth certainly represents great news for the NFC East squad.

Young went down during a Washington-Tampa Bay game on Nov. 14, 2021. The reconstructive surgery on Young’s right knee also required a graft from his left patellar tendon, complicating his recovery from the two major injuries. While dozens of ACL recoveries happen each year in the NFL, patellar tendon issues can be more troublesome. Young, 23, coming back from both makes for quite the rehab achievement, one that will aid the Commanders’ playoff prospects.

The Commanders had planned to have Young ready for their pivotal Giants rematch, but it was determined the Ohio State product was not quite ready. Young and the Commanders were aligned on this late change. Should Young show the form he did as a rookie, he will be in line for a monster extension. However, the fifth-year option — which must be exercised by May — would be a valuable tool to help the team gauge Young’s form next season. Saturday’s snap-count strategy may be the norm the rest of the way, so 2023 would stand to be a better window to evaluate its prized edge defender.

After the Bengals took Joe Burrow first overall in 2020, Washington selected Young. The best-player-available pick bolstered the then-Washington Football Team’s pass rush, which already had four first-rounders, along with Matt Ioannidis and Tim Settle at the time. Young’s 7.5 sacks and four forced fumbles played a lead role in helping the team go from 1-4 to the NFC East title. Washington is attempting to complete a similar route this year, and it will be interesting — considering Young’s second-year step back (1.5 sacks, four QB hits in nine games) — how the former Heisman finalist looks after this 13-month rehab odyssey.