NFL - NEWS & NOTES

At least he doesn’t have any red flags.

 

Hmmm.... Rams waived TE Kendall Blanton. Any teams still needing TE depth should be scrambling to check in on that if their pro scouts don't already have a file on him.


Rams also confirmed that lineman Logan Bruss is out for the season after injuring his knee in the second preseason game. Torn ACL and MCL.

 

Here's another ACL, MCL injury.



The Buccaneers have lost another offensive lineman for the 2022 season.

Left guard Aaron Stinnie was carted off with a knee injury during Saturday’s game against the Titans and it is a season-ending injury. Head coach Todd Bowles confirmed that Stinnie tore his ACL and MCL.



The Bucs have also lost center Ryan Jensen to a knee injury and they were already replacing both of their starting guards from last season. Stinnie was at the top of the depth chart on the left side and the team’s in-house options are now rookie Luke Goedeke and veteran Nick Leverett. Bowles expressed comfort with them, but didn’t rule out an outside addition.

“We don’t mind playing rookies; we’ve been playing rookies since we’ve been here,” Bowles said, via Joey Knight of the Tampa Bay Times. “It’s just a matter of them getting in-game experience. So we’re comfortable with the guys we have right now, but if we can find an option that’s out there that fits us, we’ll look at it.”

Stinnie played in 14 games for the Bucs over the last three seasons.

PFT

 

Wide receiver David Moore’s push to make the Bears came to an end on Sunday.

The Bears announced that Moore has been placed on injured reserve, which means he won’t be eligible to return to their active roster this season. Moore injured his leg in practice this month.

Moore was a 2017 seventh-round pick of the Seahawks and he spent his first four seasons in Seattle. He had stints with four teams last year and signed with the Bears in April.

Moore has 78 career catches for 1,163 yards and 13 touchdowns in the regular season. He also caught three passes in four playoff games for the Seahawks.

The Bears filled his roster spot by signing fullback Jake Bargas. He played in two games for the Vikings over the last two seasons.

PFT

 

From Twitter after Minshew plays the firsthalf vs the Browns-@LesBowen Minshew just showed us why he is not a starting QB.
Shared via CBS Sports

So Minshew goes 14 for 17/142 yds and has 3 drives that all net more then 70 yards. Two of those drives result in Tds. I'm not saying they should sit Hurts but this guy is a horse's rear end.

 

He probably likes Trubisky.

 

1. Eagles offense buzzes with backups. The Eagles' second-team offense was humming in three first-half possessions, generating 227 yards, 18 first downs and 14 points while lapsing 20:54 off the clock. Gardner Minshew orchestrated it all efficiently, completing 14 of 17 passes for 142 passing yards, but Philadelphia's fluid offense was really spurred by the threat of its rushing attack. Boston Scott (33 yards) and Kenneth Gainwell (46 yards) were solely featured during the Eagles' first and second possessions, both of which ended with the running backs scoring touchdowns on their respective drives. A turnover on downs in the red zone wasted the Eagles' third long possession of the first half, but the chain-moving that went on is a good sign for a Philly team entering Year 2 under Nick Sirianni. As for the Eagles' heated WR competition, Deon Cain led the team with five receptions for 66 yards while his contemporary in competition, former first-round pick Jalen Reagor, mustered just two catches for 17 yards. Highlighting the entire Eagles second half, track star Devon Allen caught a 55-yard touchdown on his first offensive snap thanks to a slick double-move that fooled the Browns secondary in the third quarter. The champion hurdler followed it with a fitting celebration.
2. Joshua Dobbs all but secures crucial role. With the Browns in need of a backup to Jacoby Brissett, Dobbs impressed for the second straight preseason outing by completing 14 of 20 passes for 141 yards and leading the Browns to points on all four possessions he was under center. Dobbs made plays with his legs, too, highlighting Cleveland's day with a thrilling 36-yard scramble and finishing the Browns' opening drive with a 7-yard scamper to the end zone. Dobbs' performance was a far cry from that of Josh Rosen, who completed 7 of 20 passes for 88 yards and generated no points on the five drives he led. Rosen had a chance to save a drowsy second-half outing by getting the opportunity to lead a two-minute drill in the fourth quarter down one point. It ended with no yards gained and Rosen's third straight turnover on downs.

NFL.com

 

I'm happy to see Dobbs making it as a pro, even if it's simply as a career backup.

 

He misspelled "Rosen".

 

I like Dobbs but he isn’t taking a team anywhere except to a top draft pick.

 

Kayvon Thibodeaux on his knee injury: All good news



The Giants are breathing a collective sigh of relief as edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux appears to have avoided major injury.

Thibodeaux left the stadium without assistance and without a limp Sunday night and said he was “all right,” via video from Jordan Raanan of ESPN.


“I’m good. I’ll be back. All good news,” Thibodeaux said, via Paul Schwartz of the New York Post.

Still, coach Brian Daboll said Thibodeaux will undergo more medical testing Monday.

Thibodeaux injured his right knee with 11:16 remaining until halftime on a cut block by Bengals tight end Thaddeus Moss. The cart came out to take him to the training room, but the fifth overall pick waved it off and limped off the field and into the blue medical tent before heading into the training room.

He finished with one tackle.

PFT

 

1. Baltimore has the makings of a two-tight end nightmare. Fourth-round rookie TE Isaiah Likely exploded onto the scene for anyone who was watching Sunday night. Six other Ravens had one reception apiece during the first half. Baltimore's newest weapon collected eight. Backup quarterback Tyler Huntley was locked in on Likely for good reason. The rookie showed savvy far beyond his years, consistently sitting down in the soft spot of Arizona's zone coverage when necessary, but also using crisp routes to come open against single defenders. On the Ravens' last drive of the first half, which started at their own 20-yard line, Likely accounted for 67 yards on five catches and hauled in a touchdown in a crowd of four Cardinals. Likely finished his night with eight receptions on eight targets for 100 yards (52 coming after the catch) and one score. Lamar Jackson has shown a tendency to favor tight ends in the passing game, so the AFC North could be on watch if Likely continues this trajectory alongside Mark Andrews. And yes, the Ravens' preseason winning streak is now at 22 games.
2. Opportunity at the bottom of Arizona's RB room. James Conner is the unquestioned starter at running back, and Eno Benjamin has generated positive reviews from head coach Kliff Kingsbury since the beginning of the Cardinals' offseason program. That leaves players like Jonathan Ward, a 2020 undrafted free agent, to compete with the likes of free-agent acquisition Darrel Williams for a supporting role in Arizona's backfield. Williams only received one carry in this contest, which suggests the coaching staff already knows what it has in the former Chief, but Ward did his best to make a future cut difficult. Ward's foot-in-the-door might have come through his special teams play. On his second kick return of the game, the third-year back burst through Baltimore's coverage for 48 yards. Ward later diversified his contributions by taking a Trace McSorley checkdown for 27 yards, and he also rushed for 11 yards on three carries. The main snag in Ward's bid for a roster spot could unfortunately be a shoulder injury, which caused the Cardinals to rule him out at halftime.

NFL.com

 

TONIGHTS MNF GAME...

 

At least two teams did scramble. The Chiefs put in a waiver claim, but they lost out. Blanton got picked up by Washington.

 

That’s only a problem when you’re a winning team. Waivers are awarded according to record.

 

Yup, following the same order as the original pick order of the first round of the draft.

 

Falcons just had what I jokingly call the perfect preseason game. The first units (though missing a few starters) were rock solid. The second units made mistakes but still played well enough to extend the lead. And then the third/fourth stringers got absolutely slaughtered and lost the game.

That way you have confidence in your first unit, the coaches have the game film they need to help the up-and-coming players on the second unit, and the scrubs make it easy to pick guys to release - which is extra helpful when the next cuts have to be official less than 18 hours after the end of the game.

 

1. Mariota making best of second chance so far. With a second shot as a starter and another opportunity to play under Arthur Smith, Marcus Mariota has been impressive through two preseason starts. In four preseason series (three on Monday versus the Jets), Mariota has quarterbacked the Falcons to 17 points with a rushing and a passing touchdown. On Monday, Mariota started splendidly and finished his night 6 of 10 for 132 yards, a TD and a 137.5 rating. Highlighted by a 51-yard connection with tight end Kyle Pitts on the opening drive, Mariota was dialed in on the second drive, completing 3 of 4 passes for 65 yards, including a 13-yard score over the middle to Olamide Zaccheaus. Rookie Desmond Ridder has looked good, too, but for now this is Mariota’s job and, so far, he’s shown he’s going to do what it takes to hold on to it.
2. Jets offense needs rookie reason for excitement. The most celebrated draft class of 2022 was supposed to inject some enthusiasm into the Jets -- and it did in April, but thus far has fallen short. Preseason or not, New York needs to have some life breathed into its offense, in particular, with uncertainty ahead concerning when quarterback Zach Wilson will return. First-round wide receiver Garrett Wilson had three catches for 15 yards and second-round running back Breece Hall had an unsightly line of four carries for 1 yard. While first-rounders Sauce Gardner and Jermaine Johnson are still looking to make a splash, Garrett Wilson and Hall would do wonders for a beleaguered offense if they flashed some of the promise that excited the fan base in the spring. Hall and Wilson have thus far combined for 56 yards on 14 touches in the preseason. It’s time for some rookie excitement in Gotham.

NFL.com

 

Report: Jessie Bates at Bengals facility



Safety Jessie Bates didn’t get the long-term contract extension he wanted from the Bengals this offseason, so he has not taken part in any of the team’s work since they lost to the Rams in the Super Bowl.

The Bengals are seeing the Rams for joint practices and a preseason game this week. They’re also reportedly seeing Bates.


Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Bates is at the team’s facility on Tuesday. There’s no word on whether he’s officially signed his franchise tag tender and there were reports that he would not play out this season under its terms, but that view may have changed with the start of the season less than three weeks away.

If Bates signs it, he’ll be guaranteed $12.91 million for the 2022 season and be on track for free agency next year. Signing it would also position him to move on to the practice field to jumpstart the process of getting himself ready to be on the field against the Steelers in Week 1.

 

Raiders plan to release veteran RB Kenyan Drake

Kenyan Drake's two-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders appears to have ended prematurely.

The Raiders plan to release the veteran running back, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Monday, per a source informed of the situation.

Typically, when a team makes it known it plans to release a player, there's a last-ditch chance that team can negotiate a trade. Such a chance remains in this situation, but doesn't appear likely.

Drake joined the Raiders in 2021 on a two-year, $11 million deal, but he didn't live up to expectations, rushing 63 times for 254 yards and two touchdowns in 12 games (two starts). Josh Jacobs retained his role as the Raiders' lead back, receiving more than three times as many carries than Drake. Each averaged four yards per carry, but one is clearly valued more than the other, and the selection of rookie Zamir White in April crowded Las Vegas' running backs room.

Drake could certainly find work elsewhere. The speedy back carries value in both running and passing situations, and at 28 years old, he's still under the dreaded 30-year-old mark for running backs. That work just won't come in Las Vegas.

NFL.com