NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Danielle Hunter done for the year



Before the season began, Vikings fans thought the team’s pass rush would have both Danielle Hunter and Yannick Ngakoue. Currently and for the rest of the year, the Vikings will have neither.

On the same day the Vikings traded Ngakoue to the Ravens, news has emerged that Hunter will have season-ending surgery. According to NFL Media, Hunter will have a procedure aimed at repairing a herniated disc in his neck.

The injury, repeatedly dubbed a “tweak” by coach Mike Zimmer in the preseason, derails a promising career that saw Hunter rack up 54.5 sacks in five seasons.

The question now becomes whether his next season will happen in Minnesota. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media says that the Vikings will have to decide in the offseason whether to make Hunter the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL or trade him.

The Vikings, however, have Hunter under contract for three more years. They could choose to keep him, or to adjust his contract in a way that doesn’t make him the highest-paid defensive player in football.

With the salary cap possibly slipping to $175 million next year, the notion of the Vikings or anyone else paying Hunter $27 million or more per year becomes a stretch. It becomes even harder for the Vikings, who have plenty of money tied up in plenty of other players.

NBC

 

Why trade a player for less than what you traded for him a couple of months ago?

 

To try and recoup something while he still has value? Especially when there isnt much hope of doing anything realistically as far as the post season.

 

But he’s a quality pass rusher, they should have held out for at least a second

 

NFL announces Seahawks-Cardinals moves to Sunday Night Football



There’s a new game on Sunday Night Football this week.

The Seahawks-Cardinals game that had been scheduled for Sunday afternoon will now be played on Sunday night on NBC, the NFL announced this afternoon.

The Buccaneers-Raiders game that had been scheduled for Sunday night will now be a 4:05 p.m. ET kickoff on FOX.

The league said the changes “were made out of an abundance of caution” after two Raiders players were placed on the NFL’s COVID-19 reserve list and other Raiders players self-quarantined. Although the league is still expecting the Raiders to be able to play on Sunday, if it turns out that they can’t, the NFL didn’t want to be left without a Sunday night game. And fans are guaranteed games to watch both on Sunday afternoon and on Sunday night.

NBC

 

Julio Jones returns to practice



Wide receiver Julio Jones thinks the Falcons can keep it going after winning their first game of the season last week and he took a step toward being in the lineup on Thursday.

Jones took part in practice after sitting out on Wednesday. Jones has been dealing with a hamstring injury since the first week of the regular season and has missed two games, but he was on the field to catch eight passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns in a 40-23 win.

Jones said after the session that he thinks the team can play well against the Lions this week too.

“I think it’s going to be another great week for us,” Jones said, via William McFadden of the team’s website.

Defensive end Takk McKinley (groin) was the only other Falcons player out of practice for injury reasons on Wednesday. He was not seen on the field Thursday either.

NBC

 

DeSean Jackson likely out long term again after this dirty hit. No flag on the late hit but he got hit helmet first just before and that was called. Man this was late. Probably no discipline but then again he isn't a big name like Jadaveon Clowney.

 

Eagles rally from 11-point deficit in final six minutes to earn 22-21 win over Giants



Carson Wentz and the Philadelphia Eagles rallied from an 11-point deficit over the final six minutes to earn a 22-21 victory over the New York Giants on Thursday night.

After a 2-yard touchdown catch by Sterling Shepard gave the Giants a 21-10 lead with 6:17 left to play, the Eagles managed two straight touchdown drives to steal away a potential road win for New York. A 3-yard touchdown pass to Greg Ward pulled the Eagles within a score and Boston Scott caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Wentz with 40 seconds left to play to lift the Eagles to victory.

It was a rather sloppy night of offensive football for both teams before points started to flow in the fourth quarter.

Trailing 14-10, Wentz led the Eagles inside the Giants’ 5-yard line midway through the fourth quarter only to have the drive end without any points. The Eagles elected to go for a fourth-and-goal from the Giants’ 3-yard line only to have a fade to Hakeem Butler fall incomplete for a turnover on downs.

Daniel Jones and the New York Giants managed to execute a 15-play, 97-yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter that culminated with the 2-yard touchdown pass to Shepard that pushed the Giants’ lead to 21-10 with 6:17 left to play.

A 59-yard pass from Wentz to John Hightower helped the Eagles quickly answer the Giants’ scoring drive. Wentz would connect with Greg Ward on a 3-yard touchdown to close the gap to 21-16. However, a two-point attempt was stopped by New York as Wentz was tackled short of the goal line on a quarterback run.

Evan Engram dropped a third down pass from Jones that would have allowed the Giants to essentially run out the rest of the close. Instead, the Giants punted to Philadelphia and Wentz engineered the game-winning drive. It took just 1:22 and six plays for the Eagles to drive 71 yards for the go-ahead score.

Brandon Graham then strip-sacked Jones on the final drive to seal the victory for the Eagles.

Wentz completed 25 of 43 passes for 359 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He also scored on a 1-yard touchdown to open the scoring for the Eagles.

Golden Tate caught a 39-yard touchdown pass from Jones to even the score at 7-7. A 31-yard Jake Elliott field gave the Eagles a 10-7 advantage at halftime.

Jones’ 80-yard run-trip-and-fall on an option-keeper set up a 1-yard touchdown run from Wayne Gallman that gave New York their first lead of the night, 14-10, in the third quarter. Jones completed 20 of 30 passes for 187 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He also rushed for 92 yards on four carries.

Two teams dealing with myriad injuries saw more coming out of Thursday night’s game as well.

Devonta Freeman was listed as questionable to return with an ankle injury for the Giants.

Meanwhile, defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway was ruled out with a biceps injury while tackle Lane Johnson (knee) and cornerback Craig James (hamstring) were questionable to return for the Eagles.

DeSean Jackson was also injured on the final punt return of the game on a late hit by Madre Harper that saw Jackson’s leg caught awkwardly underneath him. He had missed the previous three games due to injury and was carted off from the sidelines.

NBC

 

The helmet contact was bad and it was poor tackling...a lot of players don't know how to tackle when the offensive player goes low. Harper coming in was doing what you are coached to do all your life...finish the play. It wasn't dirty..he didn't purposely ensure Jackson's leg would get caught under him.

I think the helmet to helmet will warrant a fine. I don't think Harper deserves any disciplinary action.

 

To try and recoup something while he still has value? Especially when there isnt much hope of doing anything realistically as far as the post season.

Will.........as a Viking Fan do you want to Tank and try and get Trevor Lawrence ???

 

No one's beating the Jets to the #1 pick. No team is that incompetent.

 

No one's beating the Jets to the #1 pick. No team is that incompetent.

Well said dline........I'm surprised Case has not been fired yet.

 

The real question is does Adam Gase ever get an NFL job above that of a position coach again in his career?

 

If a team wants to suck enough to get the number one overall pick Gase is their man.

 

No, not at all. Vikings are close to contenders now... they just need to get their shit together. Maybe the draft next year lands another rock star like Jefferson and some coaching changes are in order... I dont know.

These are the Vikings... been heartbreak city since 1961.

 

Joe Mixon ruled out for Bengals



The second Battle of Ohio of the 2020 season will unfold without Joe Mixon.

Mixon missed a third straight practice on Friday due to the foot injury that he suffered in the first half of last Sunday’s loss to the Colts. He was able to return to the game, but things did not progress well for him this week and he has been ruled out of the game against the Browns.

Giovani Bernard should see a jump in his workload. Samaje Perine and Trayveon Williams will also be on hand for Cincinnati.

Cornerback William Jackson has also been ruled out for Sunday. Jackson has been out all week with a concussion.

NBC

 

These are the Vikings... been heartbreak city since 1961.


I forget the year Will but I went to a Seahawk game vs the Vikings.....I was very impressed with the amount of Minnesota fans.

I picked up Jefferson JR in my Money League.....the guy has been getting me Points.....Yahoo Buckaroo.

 

Report: Antonio Brown, Bucs agree to a one-year deal



Well, that didn’t take long.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reports the Buccaneers and Antonio Brown have agreed to a one-year deal that will reunite the star receiver with quarterback Tom Brady and coach Bruce Arians.

The sides still must finalize language, and Brown must pass both a physical and COVID-19 protocols, Schefter adds, but the four-time All-Pro is likely to make his Bucs’ debut in Week 9 against the Saints when Brown’s suspension ends.

It did not take long from the initial report that Brown would visit Tampa to a report that the sides were “very close” to now the report that it is done.

Brady has pushed for Brown to join him in Tampa since the day he signed his deal in March.

The last game Brown played — in Week 2 of the 2019 season — he caught four passes from Brady for 56 yards and a touchdown with the Patriots.

Offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich also has been an advocate for signing Brown. Brown not only gives the Bucs another big-time playmaker but depth as the Bucs’ top wideouts, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, have battled injuries this season.

Brown, who has made seven Pro Bowls, has 841 career catches for 11,263 yards and 75 touchdowns.

NBC

 

Giants trade Markus Golden to Cardinals



The Cardinals are bringing back a familiar face to help their pass rush.

Arizona will send a 2021 sixth-round pick to the Giants in exchange for Markus Golden. Golden was a 2015 second-round pick of the Cardinals and spent four seasons with the team before leaving as a free agent.

Golden had 12.5 sacks during his second season with the Cardinals, but tore his ACL the next year and didn’t produce at the same level upon his return in 2018. He had 10 sacks for the Giants last year and had a sack in Thursday night’s loss to the Eagles.

The Cardinals lost Chandler Jones for the season to a torn biceps a couple of weeks ago. Haason Reddick had a pair of sacks in last Monday’s win over the Cowboys, but the team obviously wanted more options off the edge for the weeks to come.

NBC