NFL News

[Futureshock]

Dalvin Cook: Wherever Vikings want me to fit in offense is good for me

Posted by Josh Alper on June 22, 2022, 9:00 AM EDT

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Running back Dalvin Cook is one of many Vikings getting used to life with a new head coach this offseason and Kevin O’Connell’s arrival has led to a lot of speculation about how the team’s offense will change in 2022.

One change that could be in the works is where Cook will line up on offense. Dispatches from Vikings OTAs shared that Cook was lining up as a wide receiver at times in practice and that would represent a new look for the team this season.

During a recent interview with Hobie Artigue of KMSP, Cook said that he views himself as a “bell-cow” back who can carry the ball 30 times a week but added that he sees himself “rising to the occasion” in any role that the Vikings want him to play.

“Wherever they want me to fit in,” Cook said. “We got to run the football. That’s a must. So, we’ve got to do a good job at that. However many touches I get, I’m going to take advantage of it. I’m just ready to win games. Wherever I fit in at, if it’s an opportunity to help us win a game, ‘Put me in there, coach.’ That’s my mindset. Whatever it is, just throw me out there and I’m ready to make a play.”

Whether Cook winds up seeing time split out wide or not, it’s a good bet that he’ll be seeing plenty of work on the ground as long as he’s healthy this season. Varying the way he’s used could increase the odds he stays healthy after missing eight games over the last three seasons, however, and that could make it a wrinkle worth exploring in Minnesota this season.

[Futureshock]

Ravens defensive end Jaylon Ferguson dies at 26

Posted by Mike Florio on June 22, 2022, 8:28 AM EDT

USA TODAY Sports

Jaylon Ferguson, defensive end for the Ravens, has died. He was 26.

The team announced Ferguson’s passing on Wednesday.

“We are profoundly saddened by the tragic passing of Jaylon Ferguson,” the team said in a statement. “He was a kind, respectful young man with a big smile and infectious personality. We express our heartfelt condolences to Jaylon’s family and friends as we mourn a life lost much too soon.”

Ferguson was a third-round pick of the Ravens in 2019. He appeared in 38 regular-season games. At Louisiana Tech, he had 45.0 sacks, including 17.5 in his senior year.

We extend our condolences to his family, friends, teammates, coaches, and other colleagues.

[Futureshock]

Torrey Smith: Rookie dinners are BS, I’m glad veteran teammate Anquan Boldin taught me that

Posted by Michael David Smith on June 22, 2022, 4:49 AM EDT

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The practice of veteran NFL players forcing rookies to pay for dinners that cost tens of thousands of dollars has once again been in the news lately, with Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson expressing shock when told that he’ll have to spend $75,000 on a dinner for veteran teammates. One former NFL player is calling for an end to the practice.

Former NFL wide receiver Torrey Smith wrote on Twitter that rookie dinners are a terrible tradition, and he singled out fellow receiver Anquan Boldin, who was in his ninth NFL season when the Ravens drafted Smith in 2011, for protecting him from the practice.

“Rookie dinners are BS! I’m glad I had an OG that realized teaching me to blow money is STUPID! It does not prove you belong on a team. Shout out to Anquan Boldin!” Smith wrote.

Smith noted that few NFL rookies are equipped to suddenly become millionaires, and a supportive veteran teammate would help those rookies learn about smart financial management, not stupid practices like dinners that cost more than a nice new car.

“Dudes come into the league with no financial literacy and real problems but folks think 50k dinners are cool! NAH!” Smith wrote.

Smith is right. People defend rookie dinners by pointing out that millionaire athletes can afford them, but that’s not the point. Yes, they can afford that particular dinner. What they can’t afford is to learn as a 21-year-old that being young and rich means routinely paying excessive bills for other people. That’s how so many rich 21-year-olds become broke 41-year-olds. The stories of NFL players making millions of dollars and having nothing left by the time they’re middle-aged are legion.

Rookie dinners are a practice that should end, and it’s the veteran players who should do the right thing and end them.

[Futureshock]

On eve of Congressional hearing, details of 2009 allegation against Daniel Snyder emerge

Posted by Mike Florio on June 21, 2022, 7:36 PM EDT

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Of the various allegation of workplace misconduct made against the Washington Commanders, only two claims relate specifically to owner Daniel Snyder. One surfaced during a Congressional roundtable hearing in February. The other dates back to 2009.

The details of the incident, which resulted in $1.6 million settlement following claims of misconduct directed at Snyder on a private jet from the Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, previously has been kept secret. On the eve of a public hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight & Reform, an event at which Snyder has declined to testify, someone has leaked the details to the Washington Post.

Via Will Hobson of the Post, a female employee of the team “accused Snyder of asking her for sex, groping her and attempting to remove her clothes.” That information comes from a letter sent by an attorney for the team to the employee’s lawyer in 2009. Snyder denied the allegations. An in-house investigation accused the employee of fabricating the allegations as part of an “extortion attempt.” If it was extortion (and efforts to resolve legal claims before they are filed most definitely are not extortion), it worked; Snyder eventually paid $1.6 million, per the report.

The letter from Snyder’s lawyer threatened the former employee with litigation.

It’s unclear, as Hobson notes, whether the NFL ever was made aware of the situation. The Personal Conduct Policy requires teams to notice the league office of potential violations. By settling the claim pursuant to a confidentiality agreement, the goal was to keep it quiet, forever.

That surely will be one of the lines of questioning Commissioner Roger Goodell faces on Wednesday. Did the team report the incident? If not, should the team has reported it?

And, again, the Committee surely won’t be taking a non-answer for an answer.

[-Deborah-]

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[jaadam4]

Oh man that sucks. Goose had such an awesome personality. Damn he went young. What’s up with all the athletes dying right now?

[Fraquar]

He was a throwback guy, kinda reminded me of Art Donovan.

[-Deborah-]

Oh man that sucks. Goose had such an awesome personality. Damn he went young. What’s up with all the athletes dying right now?

I read his father died at a young age as well. :(

[Nick Pappageorgio]

Football players are almost always overweight….and it goes double for linemen.

I was friends with this guy in my 20s…he was a former college basketball player for St. John’s and was affiliated with an arena league team as a TE (unsure if he ever played a game for them). Dude was 6 foot 9 and ripped…this guy was in athlete shape.

He”d bitch to me that every time he went for a checkup…the Dr. Would chide him for being overweight. It’s not always about being out of shape…being that big of a person takes a toll.

[CGVT]

My "guess" would be sleep apnea. Big (fat) guys have problems with it moreso than smaller guys. It is what killed Reggie White, BTW.

[Futureshock]

Good goobey goo. Just like "Ballers" or hanging with Jaad on Dort Hiwghway

Former Washington COO David Pauken has offered some interesting testimony about Daniel Snyder

Posted by Mike Florio on June 23, 2022, 12:10 PM EDT

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Before Wednesday’s public hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight & Reform, the Committee questioned witnesses in a private, deposition setting. Some of that testimony has come to light.

While much of the testimony is not directly relevant to the workplace issues that sparked attorney Beth Wilkinson’s 10-month investigation and the league’s effort to hide all facts and findings, there are comments that help fill out the public portrait of owner Daniel Snyder, if the testimony is true and accurate.

Via Michael Phillip of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, former team COO David Pauken testified about a 2001 trip to the NCAA men’s final four basketball tournament in Minneapolis.

Asked for an example of conduct that was “unprofessional, unfitting for an owner of a team” from Snyder while traveling, Pauken said that he was recruited to join a “day trip” to Minneapolis for the basketball games on a Saturday, that he later found out “we’re going to be gone for a couple of days,” that Snyder didn’t care about “irrelevant details” such as Pauken’s family obligations or the fact that he brought no other clothes.

Then came a fairly relevant detail, as it relates to the Mad Men culture that prevailed within the organization.

“He said, we’ve got girls lined up, and there’s one for you,” Pauken testified. “And to be honest, I wasn’t sure what to do with that, other than to know I was in trouble here and needed to figure a way out. And we got to Minneapolis, we get over to the hotel that we’re staying in. And there are a number of beautiful women in this hotel suite who are physically very affectionate and they — nobody said they were prostitutes. I assumed they were prostitutes. They had flown in from Dallas.”

Pauken also testified that Snyder, miffed at a deal he had done with Washington Nationals owner Mark Lerner, instructed Pauken to pour milk on the carpet under the seats in Lerner’s suite at FedEx Field, so that it would smell of sour milk when Lerner and his family attended a game.

Likewise, Pauken testified that Snyder openly questioned Pauken’s sexual orientation because Pauken resisted efforts to sexualize the team’s cheerleading crew. Pauken testified that Snyder would say of Pauken, “Yeah, he has to be gay. As ugly as these cheerleaders are. Pauken, are you gay? You must be gay. How could you have a cheerleading squad that looks like this?”

On Wednesday, Committee chairperson Carolyn Maloney said that Snyder will be subpoenaed to testify at a deposition of his own. Needless to say, he will have plenty of questions to answer.

[Futureshock]

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Teammates remember Tony Siragusa as a big-time player with a bigger personality

Posted by Michael David Smith on June 23, 2022, 4:28 AM EDT
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Tony Siragusa, the former NFL defensive tackle who died Wednesday at the age of 55, was remembered by teammates for the major role he played on the Ravens’ Super Bowl XXXV championship.

“This is a tough one,” Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis said. “I love Goose like a brother. From the first day we met, I knew that life was different. I knew he was someone who would change my life forever. He was a one-of-a-kind person who made you feel important and special. You can never replace a man like that. On the field, he was the ultimate competitor who brought out the best in all of us. We should never put off tomorrow for what we can do today. Hug your loved ones for Goose.”

Said defensive tackle Sam Adams, who played alongside Siragusa in the middle of the Ravens’ defensive line, “It was an honor and a privilege to line up next to Tony Siragusa. He made the game fun and was a true competitor. Our D-line room was special on and off the field. May he rest easy, and may God bless and keep his family.”

Said Hall of Fame defensive back Rod Woodson, “Tony was always the life of the party. I know he loved his family and friends. My feelings are overwhelmed right now with grief for his family.”

Said Ravens kicker Matt Stover, “I am sorry to lose such a great teammate and friend. I truly believe that the Super Bowl XXXV team would have never been as good as it was without Tony. He not only plugged up the middle, but his locker room presence created a loose environment when things were tight. He will be missed, but not forgotten.”

[Futureshock]

Steve Bisciotti: Tony Siragusa’s personality made an enormous impact on the Ravens

Posted by Josh Alper on June 22, 2022, 6:26 PM EDT
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The death of longtime NFL defensive lineman Tony Siragusa has elicited responses across the football world, including a remembrance from Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti.

Siragusa played 73 regular season games over five seasons with the Ravens and also appeared in six postseason contests, including all four games the Ravens won en route to the team’s Super Bowl XXXV win over the Giants. Bisciotti recalled Siragusa’s on-field contributions to those teams as well as the impact his personality had on the organization.

“He was a special person and clearly one of the most popular players in Ravens history,” Bisciotti said in a statement. “Tony’s larger-than-life personality made an enormous impact on our organization and throughout the Baltimore community. On the football field, Goose was a difference-maker who contributed immeasurably to the success of many great Ravens defenses, including the record-setting 2000 Super Bowl team. Our deepest prayers and sympathies go out to Kathy, their three children and the rest of the Siragusa family. This is a tremendously sad day for the Baltimore Ravens. We appreciate everyone who has expressed an outpouring of support for our players, coaches and staff.”

Brian Billick coached that Ravens championship team and called Siragusa “a warrior on the field and a team unifier with a giving, generous heart who helped teammates and the community more than most people know.” Billick added in a statement that the Ravens would not have won the championship without Siragusa’s contributions and joined Bisciotti in offering his condolences to Siragusa’s loved ones.

[edindetroit]

My "guess" would be sleep apnea. Big (fat) guys have problems with it moreso than smaller guys. It is what killed Reggie White, BTW.

It's causing my friend to lose sight in one eye

[Futureshock]

Does he have a CPAP machine?