It’s the weird part of the week in the NFL when we’re past the Monday morning quarterback stuff but not quite ready to start thinking about next week’s games. Let’s take a look at some of the top stories that have made headlines over the past couple of days.
Adding Injury to Insult
It’s not bad enough that the Broncos are 0-4, but now they’re going to be without Bradley Chubb for the rest of the season. Chubb suffered a partially torn ACL in his left knee during last week’s loss to the Jaguars and will miss the rest of the season.
Chubb and Von Miller haven’t quite racked up the sacks this year as expected, but Broncos coach Vic Fangio still called Chubb’s injury a “huge loss.” Denver has signed Jerry Attaochu to take Chubb’s spot on the roster and give them another outside pass rusher.
Not Gonna Help
Another winless team has lost one of its few bright spots this season. Bengals wide receiver John Ross has come out of nowhere to help fill the void left by A.J. Green, but he’s now set to miss at least a few weeks after suffering a shoulder injury during Monday’s loss to the Steelers. Green isn’t particularly close to returning, putting the Bengals in a tough spot with Ross out for the foreseeable future as well.
It’s Over
Vontaze Burfict’s 2019 season is over, but not because of an injury. The Oakland linebacker was suspended for the rest of the season for his helmet-to-helmet hit on Indianapolis tight end Jack Doyle last week. Burfict is easily the league’s most infamous “dirty” player, as the NFL cited his history of dangerous hits as the reason for the season-long suspension. He has been fined or suspended 13 times during his seven years with the Bengals before signing with Oakland this past offseason.
Safety Shuffle
This must be the week that teams start worrying about their secondary because a few of them are making moves. The Texans have signed safety Mike Adams after his recent work out with the team. The 38-year-old will now get to extend his NFL career into a 16th season. The Houston pass defense hasn’t been too bad this year, although starter Justin Reid is dealing with a shoulder injury.
Elsewhere, the Falcons acquired safety Johnathan Cyprien from the Eagles on Monday. The two teams swapped late-round draft picks while Atlanta also sent linebacker Duke Riley to Philadelphia. Cyprien has barely played with the Eagles this season, although the Falcons figure to use him to help replace Keanu Neal, who suffered a season-ending injury for the second straight year.
Atlanta’s experiments in the secondary last week didn’t pay off in their 24-10 loss to the Titans, dropping them to 1-3 on the season and making them a little desperate to fix some of their issues.
Sorry, Actually Sorry
Kirk Cousins has been bad this year, and on his weekly radio show Tuesday, he actually offered an apology to wide receiver Adam Thielen for missed throws and missed opportunities during the team’s loss to the Bears on Sunday. Cousins spoke glowingly of Thielen and pledged to be better in the future, although that obviously remains to be seen.
