HEADLINES

COVID-19 News & Rumors

Devin White Tests Positive For COVID-19

January 1st, 2021 at 3:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

Devin White is out for the Buccaneers’ regular-season finale and likely the team’s playoff opener. The second-year linebacker tested positive for COVID-19, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter).

In addition to White being sidelined, the Bucs placed Shaquil Barrett on their reserve/COVID-19 list. As a close contact, Barrett will miss Week 17. As a close contact, Barrett will be eligible to return for Tampa Bay’s wild-card game.

White and Barrett represent two key pillars of the Bucs’ pass rush. Despite profiling as an off-ball linebacker, White has nine sacks this season. Barrett has produced eight. Jason Pierre-Paul (team-high 9.5) will go it alone this week, and the Bucs will face the NFC East champion next week — in all likelihood — without part of their standout inside ‘backer tandem.

The Bucs used the No. 5 overall pick on White last year, marking the first time a team had devoted a top-five selection to a traditional linebacker since the Seahawks chose Aaron Curry fourth overall in 2009. White has worked out better thus far. Though Pro Football Focus has not been especially impressed with the non-pass-rushing elements of White’s game this season, he is far and away the Bucs’ tackles leader with 140. The LSU product has also racked up 15 tackles for loss and 16 QB hits in what has been a breakthrough second season.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/1/21

January 1st, 2021 at 2:53pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:

Buffalo Bills

  • Signed: WR J.J. Nelson, CB Duke Thomas
  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: S Josh Thomas, RB Christian Wade
  • Released: OL Marquel Harrell, LB Deon Lacey, CB Lafayette Pitts

Dallas Cowboys

San Francisco 49ers

Washington Football Team

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/31/20

December 31st, 2020 at 5:28pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the minor moves from 2020’s final day:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

  • Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: C Alex Mack

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Latest On Browns’ COVID-19 Situation

December 31st, 2020 at 3:15pm CST by Zachary Links

The Browns’ COVID-19 situation will keep at least four players out of their crucial Week 17 game. Linebacker Malcolm Smith and tight end Harrison Bryant are the players who tested positive for the coronavirus, sources tell NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). They’ll be held out of Sunday’s tilt against the Steelers, along with linebacker B.J. Goodson and safety Andrew Sendejo. 

[POLL: Which AFC Contender Will Miss Playoffs?]

Although the team reopened its facility after a contact tracing effort Wednesday, the Browns closed it again Thursday. They will, however, have their top four receivers back this week. Jarvis Landry, Rashard Higgins, Donovan Peoples-Jones and KhaDarel Hodge are off the team’s reserve/COVID-19 list. So is linebacker Jacob Phillips. The Steelers-Browns rematch remains on schedule for 1pm ET Sunday.

Denzel Ward, however, is the latest Browns player to run into COVID trouble. The Browns’ No. 1 cornerback tested positive for the coronavirus and is out Sunday, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports (on Twitter). He is out for Sunday’s game and would be a long shot to play in the Browns’ playoff opener, should they qualify.

The Browns are playing to snap the NFL’s longest active playoff drought. If they win, they’re in. If they lose, they’ll need the Colts to do the same, but that would hinge on a quality performance from the lowly Jaguars. If the Browns lose and the Colts win, they’ll need a Titans loss, plus wins from the Ravens and Dolphins to sneak into the postseason.

On the plus side, the Steelers indicated they will rest Ben Roethlisberger this weekend. Plus, they’ll be without top defenders Devin Bush and Bud Dupree, who limited the Browns to just six points in their October meeting. As it stands, Football Outsiders gives the Browns a 44% chance to hold at the No. 6 seed and a 20% chance to make it as the No. 7 seed.

Dolphins’ Ryan Fitzpatrick Tests Positive For COVID-19

December 31st, 2020 at 1:48pm CST by Zachary Links

The Dolphins will be without Ryan Fitzpatrick for Sunday’s game against the Bills. The backup quarterback has tested positive for COVID-19, as Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweet.

Fitzpatrick has been the steady hand and occasional fill-in behind rookie Tua Tagovailoa. The Dolphins won’t have that safety net for their pivotal Week 17 game. Instead, they’ve signed Jake Rudock to serve as their temporary QB2.

“It hurts. He’s a leader on our team. He brings energy,” Dolphins safety Eric Rowe said (via ESPN.com’s Cameron Wolfe). “I’m sure it’s worse for him because he loves the game and no one wants to catch COVID. With that, you have to push forward. COVID is a real-deal thing whether you don’t have symptoms or you do. Just praying he doesn’t have symptoms or he didn’t pass it to his kids.”

FitzMagic’s latest outing boosted the Dolphins to a 26-25 win over the Raiders. All in all, the 38-year-old is 4-3 as a starter in 2020. He’ll be watching from a distance as the Dolphins look to clinch their spot with a win over Buffalo.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/30/20

December 30th, 2020 at 5:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves:

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

  • Signed: DB Sojourn Shelton
  • Placed on practice squad IR: OL Badara Traore

Cleveland Browns

  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Ryan Switzer

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Terry Godwin

Los Angeles Rams

  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: DL Eric Banks

Miami Dolphins

  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Tyshun Render

New Orleans Saints

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Cody Hollister

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/30/20

December 30th, 2020 at 4:57pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Baltimore Ravens

  • Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: K Sam Koch

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: C Ryan Groy; Groy remains on IR

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Browns Close Facility Due To COVID-19

December 30th, 2020 at 3:13pm CST by Zachary Links

3:13pm: While several Browns remain on the coronavirus list, they have completed a contact tracing effort and reopened their facility, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com tweets. They also added center Javon Patterson to the practice squad COVID list, Cabot adds (via Twitter).

11:06am: On Wednesday, the Browns closed their team facility due to a positive COVID-19 test. This comes after the Browns learned that a coach and a practice-squad player have tested positive for COVID-19 (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero).

The Browns have also placed safety Karl Joseph, Andrew Sendejo and Harrison Bryant on the reserve/COVID-19 list, a sign that he was likely in close contact with one or both of those individuals.

The Browns were in similar territory last week with the ripple effect of B.J. Goodson‘s positive COVID-19 test. Contact tracing deemed several Browns wide receivers Jarvis Landry, Rashard Higgins and Donovan Peoples-Jones to be high-risk close contacts, keeping them out of Sunday’s game against the Jets. The Jets went on to win 23-16, bumping the Browns to 10-5 and knocking themselves out of the No. 1 draft pick sweepstakes.

The Browns can make the playoffs for the first time in a long time with a win over the Steelers in Week 17. Alternatively, they can still reach the postseason if the Colts fall to the Jaguars. There’s also a third scenario that would give them a playoff berth, though that would be dependent on the outcome of three different games.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/29/20

December 29th, 2020 at 6:12pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:

Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Rams Place Cooper Kupp On Reserve/COVID-19 List, Darrell Henderson On IR

December 29th, 2020 at 5:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Rams continue to run into issues on offense ahead of a pivotal Week 17 game. Cooper Kupp‘s availability for the team’s regular-season-ending game against the Cardinals is now in doubt after the veteran wideout landed on the Rams’ reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday.

This designation does not mean Kupp is out for Sunday’s game. If the fourth-year receiver did not test positive for the coronavirus, he would be on track to return this week. If Kupp did contract the virus, he cannot play in Week 17.

Kupp’s now-murky status, however, comes at a time when the Rams are reeling on offense. They are set to be without Jared Goff due to injury for the first time, with Alliance of American Football refugee John Wolford in line to start Sunday. Darrell Henderson is now on IR, according to the team, and Cam Akers‘ status — after missing Week 16 with a high ankle sprain — may be iffy at best given his injury. The Rams, who have lost two straight to put them in danger of missing the playoffs, have also been without Andrew Whitworth for several weeks.

Kupp has not missed a game since suffering a torn ACL midway through the 2018 season. He needs 26 yards for his second career 1,000-yard season. The Rams gave Kupp and Robert Woods extensions this year, committing to the duo after trading Brandin Cooks. With the team needing a win or a Bears loss to ensure playoff qualification, Kupp’s status certainly will be a key matter for the team this week.

Henderson followed Akers in encountering ankle trouble. Unless the Rams make a run to the NFC championship game, Henderson will not be able to return until next season. Although Akers surpassed him in Los Angeles’ backfield pecking order late this season, Henderson started against the Seahawks and leads the team with 624 rushing yards.

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