NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Jerry Jones: Ezekiel Elliott is good to go, will be full-speed for the rest of the season



Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott is dealing with a knee injury, and it’s been a month since he has managed to gain even 50 yards in a game. But Elliott isn’t blaming his knee for his poor production, and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones says the knee will be fine as well.

Jones said on 105.3 The Fan that he fully expects Elliott to be able to handle a full workload for the rest of the season.


“His trainers, the people that are the closest to his health, his medical situation, they think he’s really good to go,” Jones said, via the Dallas Morning News. “And, so, I don’t see after a 10-day rest here, you know, a lot of times, if you can get through games, if you can push on, then that’s better for you than sitting it out. You actually, if you have an issue, it improves if you’re able to get through and not injure it more. He certainly didn’t injure anything more last night. So, I really look forward to a powerful and dynamic Zeke as we move on into this last part of the season.”

Whether Elliott’s knee is the reason or not, the Cowboys’ other running back, Tony Pollard, has generally outplayed Elliott this season. So the Cowboys don’t need to rush Elliott back. But Jones sounds confident that Elliott will be in good shape for the five remaining games this season and, he hopes, multiple games in the postseason.

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NFL tentatively pegs 2022 salary cap at $208 million



Next year’s salary cap is expected to be where this year’s cap would have been, but for the pandemic.

The NFL has essentially sent the in-house memo that the salary cap is expected to be $208 million in 2022. That represents a $25.5 million jump over 2021, and it lands roughly at the spot where the 2021 cap would have ended up, but for the dramatic reduction from $198 million to $182.5 million, due to the severe limitations on in-stadium attendance during the 2020 season.


The NFL and the NFL Players Association agreed to account for the multi-billion-dollar losses flowing from the pandemic over three seasons. Thus, even with the spike to $208 million, the cap would have been dramatically higher next year, maybe even as high as $230 million per team.

The per-team spending limit is negotiated by the league and the union every year. The final number emerges in the days preceding the official launch of the new league year, in March.

In past years, the NFLPA has expressed skepticism regarding the projected cap number annually generated in advance of the December ownership meeting, believing that the league deliberately keeps the number low, which in turn influences the setting of individual team budgets. Then, by the time the real number emerges, it’s too late for many teams to adjust spending plans based on the initial number.

Whatever the final number for 2022, it’s definitely growth-mode time for the cap. With new TV deals, an extra regular-season weekend, two extra playoff games (one of which will be played on a Monday night), and an ever-growing infusion of gambling money, everybody is going to be making more money, from the oligarchs down to the waterboys.

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Report: Seahawks Activate Adrian Peterson Ahead of Game vs. 49ers

The Seahawks plan to activate running back Adrian Peterson off the practice squad ahead of the team's divisional matchup against the 49ers on Sunday, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

Peterson, 36, signed with Seattle and was placed on the Seahawks practice squad after he was released by Tennessee last week. He played in three games for the Titans where he rushed for 82 yards on 27 carries and a touchdown in the absence of star running back Derrick Henry (broken foot).

Seattle enters Sunday's game ranked 25th in the league in rushing yards (92.5) per game after running back Chris Carson suffered a season-ending neck injury in mid-November. Carson was responsible for 232 yards on the ground on 54 carries and three touchdowns before being placed on the team's injured reserve list.

With Peterson joining Seahawks, he has the opportunity to move up on the NFL's all-time rushing list. The 2012 NFL MVP is just 367 yards shy of passing NFL legend Barry Sanders for the fourth-most yards on the all-time rushing list and can cross the 15,000-yard threshold with just 98 more yards.

Currently, Peterson ranks fifth in NFL history with 14,902 career rushing yards. Peterson played his first 10 seasons with the Vikings before going to play with the Cardinals, the Saints, the Washington Football Team, the Lions and most recently the Titans.

Seattle (3–8) sits at the bottom of the NFC West.

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Every week we bring you all the inactives from the 1 p.m. ET games in one post, constantly updated with the latest information.

The Cardinals have wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins back in the lineup for Sunday’s game, but the Bears will remain without their top wideout. Allen Robinson is inactive with a hamstring injury.


He was listed as doubtful on Friday, so there wasn’t much hope that he would be able to play. It’s the third straight game that Robinson has missed and quarterback Andy Dalton will have to find other options as he tries to lead Chicago to an upset at Soldier Field on Sunday.

While Robinson is out, rookie tackle Teven Jenkins is active for the Bears for the first time this season.

Cardinals at Bears

Cardinals: WR Andy Isabella, QB Trace McSorely, DB Jace Whittaker, G Justin Pugh

Bears: WR Allen Robinson, QB Justin Fields, CB Teez Tabor, WR Marquise Goodwin, DL Akiem Hicks, DE Mario Edwards Jr.

Eagles at Jets

Eagles: QB Jalen Hurts, RB Jordan Howard, DT Marlon Tuipulotu, DB Kary Vincent Jr., CB Tay Gowan, CB Mac McCain

Jets: RB La'Mical Perine, TE Trevon Wesco, OL Isaiah Williams, DL Tim Ward, DL Sheldon Rankins, CB Rachad Wildgoose, S Jarrod Wilson

Buccaneers at Falcons

Buccaneers: S Jordan Whitehead, WR Jaelon Darden, DL Steve McLendon, QB Kyle Trask

Falcons: DE Jonathan Bullard, RB Wayne Gallman, DL John Cominsky, OL Josh Andrews, LB James Vaughters, DL Mike Pennel

Colts at Texans

Colts: DL Ben Banogu, T Julien Davenport, RB Marlon Mack, WR Mike Strachan

Texans: QB Deshaun Watson, RB David Johnson, S Terrence Brooks, OL Justin McCray, TE Jeff Driskel, LB Zach Cunningham, TE Jordan Akins

Chargers at Bengals

Chargers: CB Asante Samuel Jr., S Alohi Gilman, QB Easton Stick, OL Senio Kelemete, RB Gabe Nabers

Bengals: C Trey Hopkins, T Riley Reiff, HB Chris Evans, WR Mike Thomas, CB Darius Phillips, DE Khalid Kareem, DT Tyler Shelvin

Vikings at Lions

Vikings: QB Kellen Mond, RB Dalvin Cook, WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette, T Christian Darrisaw, LB Eric Kendricks, LB Anthony Barr, S Cam Bynum

Lions: RB D’Andre Swift, LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin, T Matt Nelson, DT John Penisini, CB Bobby Price, QB David Blough, WR Trinity Benson

Giants at Dolphins

Giants: QB Daniel Jones, CB Adoree’ Jackson, WR Kadarius Toney, WR Sterling Shepard, LB Oshane Ximines, G Wes Martin

Dolphins: CB Trill Williams, S Brandon Jones, RB Phillip Lindsay, DE Darius Hodge, TE Adam Shaheen, NT John Jenkins

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Dolphins beat Giants 20-9, extend winning streak to five games

 

Cardinals are first team to 10 wins, Kyler Murray returns to beat Bears



Arizona remains atop the standings in the NFL after an easy win on a cold and rainy day in Chicago.

Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, returning after missing the last month with an ankle injury, looked as good as ever, passing for two touchdowns and running for two more in a 33-22 win.

The game was never really in doubt. The Cardinals scored a touchdown on their first possession, extended their lead to 14-0 before the first quarter was over, and cruised through the second half.

Bears quarterback Andy Dalton had an ugly game, throwing four interceptions, and the Bears’ offense looked out of sorts. With Bears coach Matt Nagy on the hot seat, a game like this pretty much ensures that he won’t be back as the Bears’ head coach in 2022.

The loss drops the Bears to 4-8, and as a team without a first-round draft pick in 2022 (traded to move up in this year’s draft and select Justin Fields), the rebuilding effort won’t be easy.

But for the Cardinals, everything is looking up. At 10-2 they have the best record in the NFL and the inside track to the all-important No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, which comes with a bye week and home-field advantage. Arizona is playing great football as the season heads into the stretch run. The Cardinals might just be Super Bowl favorites.

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Colts shutout Texans 31-0 as Jonathan Taylor rushes for 143 yards, two scores



The Colts rebounded from a 38-31 loss to the Buccaneers last week to shut out the Texans 31-0 on Sunday. Indianapolis has won four of five to get to 7-6. The Texans fell to 2-10.

Jonathan Taylor, the NFL’s leading rusher, had 32 carries for 143 yards and two touchdowns. He scored on runs of 1 and 3 yards.


Carson Wentz went 16-of-22 for 158 yards and a touchdown, a 2-yard throw to Ashton Dulin right before the half. Indianapolis led 14-0 at halftime.

Deon Jackson tacked on a touchdown on a 3-yard run with 1:56 left.

It was Houston’s second shutout of the season. The Texans lost to the Bills 40-0 in Week 4.

The Texans rank last in the NFL in yards per game and points per game, and it didn’t get any better Sunday with 141 total yards. They allowed four sacks. Houston replaced Tyrod Taylor in the third quarter with Davis Mills after a miserable 2 1/2 quarters.

Taylor threw a pick on the team’s first play from scrimmage, and Houston had two turnovers in its first five plays with Pharaoh Brown losing a fumble. Taylor went 5-of-14 for 45 yards and an interception.

Mills was 6-of-14 for 49 yards.

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Lions win first game of 2021, defeat Vikings with walk-off touchdown



The streak is finally over.

The Lions have won their first game of 2021, stunning the Vikings with a 29-27 walk-off victory on Sunday.



It looked like the Vikings were in good position to win when quarterback Kirk Cousins hit receiver Justin Jefferson for a 3-yard touchdown with just 1:50 left on the clock — especially because the Lions had no remaining timeouts. That was the first time the Vikings had a lead all game. But the team’s two-point conversion failed, which kept the score at 27-23.

Detroit’s previous possession had ended when Jared Goff fumbled on fourth-and-1 from the team’s 28.

But Goff was able to pilot his offense to a 14-play, 75-yard drive that ended with an 11-yard strike to receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown for the game-winning score. The Lions converted their first third downs of the game on the possession, with Goff hitting a pair of throws.

Detroit made it to third-and-2 on Minnesota’s 11 with eight seconds on the clock. Goff’s third-down pass to the end zone was incomplete to receiver Josh Reynolds. But after Minnesota took a timeout to set up its defense, Goff found St. Brown open on the left side of the field for the TD.

The Lions are now 1-10-1 and will not have another winless season. It also marks Goff’s first victory without Sean McVay as his head coach. Goff was 0-7 as a starter in his rookie season.

Goff finished the contest 25-of-41 for 296 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.

The Vikings lost receiver Adam Thielen early to an ankle injury. But receiver Jefferson caught 11 passes for 182 yards with a TD. Cousins finished the game 30-of-40 passing for 340 yards with two TDs.

Still, the Vikings are now 5-7 and could have trouble finding themselves in the playoff chase. They will take on the Steelers on Thursday.

With the monkey of a winless season off their back, the Lions will travel to Denver for a matchup with the Broncos next Sunday.

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Eagles roll over Jets 33-18



This week’s trip to MetLife Stadium had a happier ending for the Eagles than their Week 12 trip.

Gardner Minshew played well in place of the injured Jalen Hurts and the Eagles scored on all but one of their possessions to power their way to a 33-18 win over the Jets. The victory moves them to 6-7 as they head into a bye week to rest up for a final push at a playoff spot in the final weeks of the season.



The Eagles finished with 185 rushing yards, which ended a three-game run of putting up more than 200 yards on the ground, but Minshew’s play made that count for plenty. He was 20-of-25 for 242 yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles dominated time of possession in the second half of the game.

Philly had a field goal drive that ate up over eight minutes to open the third quarter and then forced a three-and-out after 70 seconds to get the ball back. Their next drive took them into the fourth quarter and ended with another field goal that helped push them closer to a win. All in all, the Eagles had the ball for 21 minutes in the second half and that allowed them to salt away the win.

Center Jason Kelce and running back Miles Sanders both left with injuries late in the game, so the bye week will be welcomed by both players as they try to get ready for Washington in Week 15.

The Jets had as good a first half as they’ve had all season and scored touchdowns on their first three possessions. Kicker Alex Kessman missed two extra points in his first NFL game, however, and the Jets couldn’t convert a two-point try after their final score. They weren’t able to keep things rolling from there, however. They had three-and-outs on either side of halftime and Zach Wilson threw an interception in the fourth quarter as they tried to rally from two scores down.

Wilson finished the day 23-of-38 for 226 yards and two touchdowns and will try to find more of that early success when the Saints visit MetLife next weekend.

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Chris Godwin catches team-record 15 passes in Bucs’ 30-17 win over Falcons

 

Justin Herbert throws three touchdowns, Chargers defeat Bengals 41-22

 

Washington squeezes past Raiders 17-15

 

Steelers survive as Ravens’ two-point conversion fails



A wild game in Pittsburgh came down to a single point, as the Ravens failed on a two-point conversion with 12 seconds left and the Steelers won 20-19.

The two-point conversion pass from Lamar Jackson to tight end Mark Andrews sailed a bit too far, and Andrews got one hand on the ball but couldn’t reel it in.


The Steelers recovered the Ravens’ subsequent onside kick to seal the win.

Jackson ran for 55 yards and passed for 253, while Ben Roethlisberger had one of his better games this season, passing for 236 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.

The loss drops the Ravens to 8-4, while the win improves the Steelers to 6-5-1. The AFC North race remains wide open.

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Oh Yeah.
Minshew magic comes through.

 

If the Bills win tomorrow then all the division leaders will have equal 8-4 records still but it will be interesting that the Chiefs would have lost to all other leaders and would be in 4th due to Head-to-head tiebreakers before it even gets to their terrible conference record.

 

NFL Circle of Parity... aka Circle of Suck.

 

Sunday Night Football: Chiefs stay atop AFC West with 22-9 victory over Broncos



Not every victory will be pretty. But the Chiefs still did what they needed to do for a significant division win over the Broncos on Sunday Night Football.

Kansas City defeated Denver 22-9 behind a solid defensive performance. The Chiefs intercepted Teddy Bridgewater twice, with the quarterback finishing 22-of-40 for 257 yards and a touchdown.


The second interception was a pick-six by safety Daniel Sorensen, which gave Kansas City a 22-3 lead with 9:42 left in the fourth quarter. That effectively clinched the game.

The Broncos made it closer with a 13-yard touchdown reception by Javonte Williams with 5:12 left in the contest. And Denver had a chance to get more points late in the fourth quarter, but Bridgewater was stopped 2-yards short of the sticks on a fourth-and-8 scramble with 1:15 left in the contest.

Making his first start in place of an injured Melvin Gordon, Williams was a clear bright spot for Denver. He had 102 yards on 23 carries with another 76 yards on six receptions.

The contest turned late in the second quarter, when the Broncos had a 20-play drive but came away with zero points. Linebacker Willie Gay and edge rusher Melvin Ingram combined to stuff Williams for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-2 from Kansas City’s 8-yard line.

At that point, Denver was down 10-3. The team didn’t score again until the fourth quarter.

But Kansas City’s offense wasn’t able to do all that much on Sunday. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes finished with the lowest passer rating of his career in a regular-season game at 57.3. He was 15-of-29 passing for 184 yards with an interception. The pick went off receiver Tyreek Hill’s hands and into the waiting arms of Denver rookie corner Pat Surtain II. But the turnover proved inconsequential, as the Broncos had to punt after three plays.

Mahomes also opened the scoring with a 10-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

Running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire had 54 yards on 14 carries. Darrell Williams had five yards on 20 carries plus three catches for 60 yards.

Tight end Travis Kelce had just three catches for 27 yards, while Hill had two for 22.

Nevertheless, the Chiefs pushed their winning streak over the Broncos to 12 consecutive games, dating back to 2015. Head coach Andy Reid is now 20-3 after a regular-season bye week. And Kansas City is now 8-4 on the season, keeping their hold of first place in the AFC West.

The Chiefs will try to continue to pace their division next week as they host the Raiders.

The Broncos will look to get back in the win column next Sunday against the no-longer-winless Lions.

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Report: Kenyan Drake out for season with broken ankle



Raiders running back Kenyan Drake was carted off the field in the second quarter of Sunday’s loss to Washington and was ruled out with an ankle injury.

Now Drake is apparently done for the rest of the year.


Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Drake suffered a broken ankle on the play and will miss the remainder of the 2021 season.

Drake signed with the Raiders as a free agent in the spring. He started a couple of games for Las Vegas, recording 254 yards rushing and 30 catches for 291 yards. He had three total touchdowns.

Drake tweeted a video of his injury occurring, saying that the NFL “needs to look at this specific style of tackling.”

“They are throwing flags for taunting and protecting QBs from getting touched but this is my [second] straight season being injured by a guy pulling me back and using his body weight to roll up my legs,” Drake wrote. “If the emphasis is to protect the players this should be an illegal form of tackling like a horse collar. We lose players weekly to high ankle sprains and broken bones but the league would rather flag players for erroneous taunting penalties. Let’s get the priorities together.”

The Raiders will travel to Kansas City to play the Chiefs next week.

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Report: Marlon Humphrey believed to have season-ending shoulder injury



Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said after Sunday’s 20-19 loss to the Steelers that cornerback Marlon Humphrey could be out for a while after getting hurt during the game and it looks like that timeframe will cover the remainder of the season.

Harbaugh did not specify the nature of Humphrey’s injury, but he could be seen holding his right arm tight to his body as he left the field. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Humphrey suffered a shoulder injury and that it is believed to be a season-ending one.


Humphrey started every game this season and had 58 tackles, an interception, and a forced fumble.

The Ravens lost Marcus Peters for the year to a torn ACL in a summer practice and they’ve dealt with a number of other injuries to their cornerbacks this season. Assuming the Humphrey news is confirmed by further tests, Jimmy Smith, Tavon Young, Anthony Averett, Chris Westry, and Robert Jackson on the current roster. Kevon Seymour should also be cleared from the COVID-19 reserve list in the near future.

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Bills in familiar spot trailing Patriots as showdown looms


ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) - Bills safety Jordan Poyer can appreciate the message coach Sean McDermott is attempting to send in publicly referring to Buffalo's next opponent as "the first-place New England Patriots."

Subtle or not, McDermott just might be reminding the inconsistent Bills where they were a year ago, where they're not today, and what's at stake Monday night, when Buffalo (7-4) hosts New England (8-4) with — guess what? — first place in the AFC East on the line.

"Yeah, it definitely gives you a little bit of motivation," Poyer said, before refusing to say whether the coach made similar references during team meetings.

"I think you guys are trying to get too much into the locker room now. I think I'm going to keep that to myself," Poyer said.

What's not a secret is a year after sweeping the Patriots and running away with their first division title in 25 years, the Bills find themselves in the all-too familiar position of looking up at New England in the standings come December. It's a place Buffalo became very accustomed to from 2001 to 2019, when quarterback Tom Brady and coach Bill Belichick essentially ruled the division and went 34-4 against the Bills.

Brady might have left for Tampa Bay in 2020, but Belichick remains, and is again proving how the combination of a steady offense, this time under rookie Mac Jones, and an opportunistic defense is a formula for success.

The Patriots have won six straight and outscored opponents by an average of 35-11 during that stretch, while not allowing a point in the second half in each of their past three outings.

The Bills, by comparison, resemble a shadow of the juggernaut they were a year ago, when they won 13 games for the first time since 1991.

Since beating Kansas City to improve to 4-1 on Oct. 10, the Bills have been stuck in a lose-one, win-one pattern over their past six outings, and coming off a 31-6 victory against the injury depleted New Orleans Saints. It's a stretch in which penalties, turnovers, a stagnant offense and sagging defense have all played factors in the three losses.

"Yeah, we've been inconsistent at times, and I think it really comes down to us shooting ourselves in the foot in some situations," McDermott said. "So the great part about the season is we've got to continue to work every week to improve. ... And that's our challenge this week, along with playing the first-place New England Patriots."

Belichick, meantime, stuck to the familiar script of praising Buffalo, something he did even when the Bills were in the midst of a 17-year playoff drought spanning 2000-2016.

"From top to bottom, just a good football team that does everything well," Belichick said. "Good, solid team. Good as anyone we've played. We know it'll take a good effort from us Monday night."

In a season Buffalo has defeated one team, the Chiefs, entering Week 13 with a winning record, and lost to Tennessee (8-4) and Jacksonville (2-9), the question is which version of the Bills show up?

BALL HAWK

New England's J.C. Jackson continues making the case of being one of the league's top cornerbacks.

The AFC defensive player of the month ranks second in the NFL with seven interceptions, with four coming in his past four games. He'll face Allen, who has thrown seven interceptions in his past four outings, and 10 overall. Jackson's 24 interceptions are the most among NFL players since he entered the league as an undrafted rookie in 2018.

"J.C., you leave any trash laying around, he's going to pick it up," Belichick said.

REPLACING TRE'

The Bills are turning to second-year cornerback Dane Jackson to take over as starter with Tre'Davious White to miss the remainder of the season after tearing a ligament in his left knee against New Orleans.

"Listen, you can't replace a Tre' White, right?" McDermott said. "The challenge is not just Dane's, it's everyone's to raise our game to another level."

HELPFUL PUSH

Another player Allen will need to be on the lookout for is linebacker Matt Judon.

The former Raven has fit right into New England's system in his first season by having generated a career-high 11 1/2 sacks.

He credited the success to the attention rookie defensive lineman Christian Barmore has drawn this season. In sacking Tennessee's Ryan Tannehill last week, Barmore drew four blockers, freeing up Judon to slip around the edge and pull Tannehill down from behind.

"Sometimes they gotta block him. Sometimes they gotta block me. But they gotta pick their poison," Judon said.

JEKYLL AND HYDE

In seven wins, the Bills have averaged 37 points, with Allen throwing 19 TDs passing, scoring three rushing, with five interceptions.

In four losses, the Bills have averaged 17 points with Allen throwing six TDs passing, with five interceptions and losing two fumbles.

On defense, Buffalo has generated 23 takeaways, including 15 interceptions, and 17 sacks in seven wins, as compared to an interception, a forced fumble and four sacks in four losses.

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