Covered the Philadelphia Eagles for Philadelphia Magazine and Philly.com from 2008 to 2015.
Covered the Baltimore Ravens and the NFL for BaltimoreSun.com from 2006 to 2008.
The Seattle Seahawks have received a warning for not listing Richard Sherman’s knee injury on the injury report in the second half of last season, league sources told ESPN.
The league had considered docking the Seahawks a second-round pick for failing to disclose the injury, sources told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen last month.
The violation was determined to be the result of a misinterpretation of the policy’s reporting requirements, a source told ESPN’s Adam Caplan.
Sherman never missed a game last season. The Pro Bowl cornerback was listed on the injury report in 11 of the team’s final 12 games (including the playoffs), but the knee injury was never listed. In 10 of those weeks, he missed practice time, but the Seahawks listed the reason as “non-injury related.” In Week 12, Sherman was listed with an ankle injury.
The NFL’s rule says, “If any player has a significant or noteworthy injury, it must be listed on the practice report, even if he fully participates in practice and the team expects that he will play in the team’s next game.”
In the event of any future violation, this current violation will be taken into account in determining discipline, the source told Caplan.
NFL Network first reported the news of the NFL’s warning.
After the season, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said in a 710 ESPN Seattle interview that Sherman “dealt with a significant knee [injury] the whole second half of the season.”
FRISCO, Texas — Quarterback rankings in the Tony Romo era have always been a fun task, with those believing the Dallas Cowboys quarterback should not be ranked highly because of a lack of playoff success being just as correct as those who believe he is (was?) an elite quarterback, if not at the very top of the list.
While it looks like Romo’s days with the Cowboys will be coming to an end, unless Jerry Jones can truly sell ice to Eskimos and convince Romo to remain in a backup role, the rankings will not go away.
Dak Prescott was Offensive Rookie of the Year and played in the Pro Bowl, but to instill full confidence, he’s going to have to sustain his high level. AP Photo/Chris O’Meara
Here’s Graziano’s methodology, laid out in the column: This is not simply a ranking of starters, though starters (especially those who never miss games) obviously make up the bulk of the formula. Nor is it a pure comparison of quarterbacks’ accomplishments to date. It’s a rating based on the confidence each team currently should have in those at the position.
So this doesn’t mean Dak Prescott is the 19th-ranked quarterback in the NFL. It means the Cowboys’ quarterback situation is 19th-best in the NFL. Feel better? Yeah, I think that’s a little low, too. But my guy Graz breaks the index into categories: All set; Set but for how long?; Caught on a speed bump; Trending up; Just fine; Keep it up, kid; Watch your back, and No idea.
The Cowboys check in at “Keep it up, kid,” with Tennessee, Tampa Bay and Philadelphia.
An argument can be made that the quarterback situations are better for those four than for, say, Cincinnati and Minnesota, which are in the “Just fine” category. Would you rather have Prescott, Sam Bradford or Andy Dalton? Washington is in the “Trending up” category, with Kirk Cousins set to be franchise-tagged again if he doesn’t reach a long-term deal.
It’s interesting to compare this to the Confidence Index points from the 2016 season. The Cowboys checked in at No. 30 in September. Handing the keys over to a rookie fourth-round pick, even one who had played as well as Prescott had in the preseason, did not inspire much confidence, so it made sense for Dallas to be in the bottom third.
In October, the Cowboys moved up to No. 18. In November, they moved to No. 5. And they ended up at No. 6 in December.
Maybe the return of Romo had something to do with the confidence going up. If something happened to Prescott, the Cowboys would have been better off than any other team having to play its “backup” quarterback late in the season.
If I were constructing a ranking, albeit with different criteria than this list, I’d probably have Prescott somewhere in the 10-14 range.
Graziano wants to see more from Prescott, which is a completely fair expectation. Everybody should want to see more from Prescott, even as well as he played in a season that ended with him being named Offensive Rookie of the Year.
He is not a finished product by any stretch. Neither was Romo after the 2006 season. Romo ignited a Cowboys run to the playoffs that season and had 19 touchdown passes in 10 games. He was intercepted 13 times as well, but the Cowboys offense caught a spark.
In 2007, Romo threw 36 touchdown passes, which remains a team record, and piled up 4,211 passing yards, the most in franchise history at the time. The Cowboys went 13-3 and had home-field advantage in the playoffs.
That season didn’t end the way anybody in Dallas wanted it to, but the Cowboys knew they had their quarterback.
So there’s nothing wrong with observers wanting to see Prescott do it again in 2017 before moving him up the rankings.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — In an informative interview with ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter on the “Know Them From Adam” podcast, New England Patriots linebacker Dont’a Hightower shed light on his mindset as he enters unrestricted free agency this offseason.
Specifically, Schefter asked Hightower what he is looking for in a team.
“I love what I have in New England,” Hightower said. “I don’t have too much drawn up. I just want to be respected and loved.”
We highlighted Hightower’s value to the Patriots on Tuesday morning. He’s made two clutch plays in each of the team’s last two Super Bowl victories, and is in position to command a top-of-the-line contract.
“I love what I have in New England,” Dont’a Hightower said. “I don’t have too much drawn up. I just want to be respected and loved.” Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
He was asked by Schefter what he expects in free agency.
“I’m sure it will be a journey, a rough and rocky one. But I’m looking forward to it. I’ve had five good years and I’m looking forward to what’s coming my way.”
Would he consider taking the proverbial hometown discount?
“We’ll see, man, we have a long time coming. We’ve got a long process going throughout,” he answered. “I’m sure [agent] Pat [Dye], Nick [Caserio] and Bill [Belichick] will be in touch whenever that time comes. I’m going to soak up this Super Bowl LI. I haven’t had enough of that yet.”
Hightower, who on ESPN’s NFL Live program on Wednesday didn’t seem averse to receiving the franchise tag, laughed when Schefter set up the following scenario for him to see if it was accurate:
“In the NFL, you don’t get many chances to become a free agent. You’re 26 years old. They exercised the fifth-year option [in 2016] because that was their right. Now you get to exercise free agency and see what’s out there. So in a perfect world, yes, you would love to be back in New England and if it works out, that would be great. But it is your duty and obligation to go out there, explore the market, see what’s out there, and if some team shows you much more love, respect and appreciation than New England does, as disappointing as it would be, then it would be time to move on.”
Hightower’s thoughts on that?
“I’m not going to agree with you 100 percent,” Hightower responded, “but I think you’re about there. I think you did a lot better job than I did.”
Covered the Philadelphia Eagles for Philadelphia Magazine and Philly.com from 2008 to 2015.
Covered the Baltimore Ravens and the NFL for BaltimoreSun.com from 2006 to 2008.
Oftentimes when Seattle Seahawks coaches and players discuss the state of the offense, third-down efficiency becomes the focus.
Last season, the Seahawks struggled to extend drives, and the third-down issues factored significantly into the offensive inconsistencies. According to Football Outsiders, the Seahawks finished 20th in third-down efficiency in 2016 after finishing first the previous year.
Russell Wilson was 13th in YPA and 15th in yards per dropback last season. Just 38.5 percent of his third-down pass attempts (17th) netted first downs. In 2015, that number was 50.4 percent (third).
Russell Wilson on third down
Comp. pct.
YPA
Yds/drop back
Sack pct.
Pressure pct.
2015
67.20
9.02
7.13
9.10
33.50
2016
56.10
7.38
6.17
7.60
41.50
Pass protection was obviously an issue. In 2016, Wilson was pressured on 41.5 percent of his dropbacks (second-most). In 2015, it was 33.5 percent (17th). Wilson’s limited mobility, combined with bad offensive line play, produced poor results on third-and-long, specifically.
In 2015, the Seahawks ranked first in DVOA on third-and-long (7 yards or more). Last season, they dropped down to 18th.
Of course, short yardage was actually worse. The Seahawks ranked 25th in DVOA on third-and-short (3 yards or fewer), reflecting in part their inability to run the ball effectively.
The passing numbers by target are worth zeroing in on:
Tyler Lockett was only at 30.4 percent. Lockett played through multiple injuries in his second season. As a rookie, he led Seahawks receivers by catching 77.3 percent of his third-down targets, and 68.2 percent of his targets resulted in first downs.
Meanwhile, Jermaine Kearse’s third-down numbers were among the worst in the league this season. Among 144 qualifying players, Kearse had the worst catch rate (26.3 percent) in the NFL on third down. Wilson targeted Kearse less (on 12.3 percent of his routes) on third down than the other players, and the pair struggled to connect all season long. It’s worth noting that in the previous four years, Kearse caught 56.3 percent of his third-down targets and converted 45.8 percent of his targets into first downs. The Seahawks have to hope he can bounce back in 2017.
Seattle has several areas to hone in on to improve its third-down efficiency next season. The offensive line has to be better — both in protection and on short-yardage runs. A healthier Wilson will make a difference. And the coaches have to make sure they have the right personnel on the field.
When the Seahawks return to practice in a couple months, Pete Carroll and the coaches will emphasize third-down improvement as much as ever.
