MORE NFL TRADE DEADLINE DEALS LIKELY
Action picks up in final 24 hours with bottom-dwelling teams looking to unload
The NFL's 2020 trade deadline is just hours away — Tuesday at 4 p.m. EST — and on Monday afternoon deals were starting to fly.
That's in keeping with the past few years, which has now made the NFL's trade deadline one of the more active, interesting ones in North American pro sports.
On Monday, San Francisco dealt linebacker Kwon Alexander to New Orleans for a reported conditional fifth-round draft pick, plus veteran backup linebacker Kiko Alonso. Alexander hasn't played since early October because of a high ankle sprain.
The Los Angeles Chargers dealt disgruntled slot corner Desmond King to Tennessee for a 2021 sixth-round pick. The Titans got carved up Sunday by rookie quarterback Joe Burrow in a loss at Cincinnati.
Also, the New York Jets continued their purge, shipping linebacker Avery Williams and a seventh-round 2022 pick to Pittsburgh for a fifth-round 2022 pick.
What big names might yet switch teams?
Plenty of Dallas Cowboys fans — what with the NFC East title still within reach for their terrible 2-6 team — want owner/ general manager Jerry Jones to acquire a better temporary starting quarterback than Andy Dalton or overmatched rookie Ben DiNucci.
How about Miami's now expendable Ryan Fitzpatrick? Rookie Tua Tagovailoa is the Dolphins' starter now and
Fitz proved more than capable through Week 6.
There was lots of buzz last week that the reigning NFL defensive player of the year, New England cornerback Stephon Gilmore, might be moved. That'd make sense.
The Pats are 2-5 and just about done for 2020, plus Gilmore is due to earn US$15 million in 2021, the last year of a five-year contract, per Spotrac.com. That's cap-unfriendly.
MORE PLAYERS TEST POSITIVE
COVID-19 isn't going away in society, and it isn't going away in the NFL, either. Two more players tested positive on Monday — and maybe a third.
Only an infected player is permitted, by NFL and NFLPA agreement, to confirm as much publicly and star Baltimore cornerback Marlon Humphrey did so Monday.
“I got the Rona hopefully I'll be back healthy soon,” he tweeted.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Humphrey won't play Sunday at Indianapolis, and while the team will practise normally this week, all meetings will be conducted virtually as part of the NFL's intensive protocol after a possible outbreak.
Reports said the other player is Green Bay Packers running back A.J. Dillon, who played 14 snaps Sunday versus Minnesota. He's out for the Packers' game Thursday in San Francisco.
Any teammates or coaches found to be high-risk close contacts of Dillon's must quarantine for five days and would be unable to travel to California.
While the Arizona Cardinals had two confirmed positive tests on the weekend when they had an open date, no other positive tests came in Monday. And no teammates or coaches were deemed to be high-risk contacts, so the Cards began the week as normal.
Lastly, a Cleveland player phoned in Monday to say he had coronavirus-like symptoms and the team — which is off this week — decided to hold virtual meetings only for the rest of the day for caution's sake.
BEAR SUSPENDED
The NFL on Monday suspended Chicago Bears wide receiver Javon Wims for two games after he lost it on a New Orleans Saints defender Sunday.
Wims was rightly ejected for twice wailing roundhouse punches at the helmeted head of Saints defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson. Video making the rounds showed that earlier in the game, when the two were jawing, Gardner-Johnson ripped Wims' mouth guard off his face mask and dropped it to the ground.
Wims reportedly told Bears teammates that Gardner-Johnson also spat on him earlier, but Gardner-Johnson denied it Monday: “I'm innocent … It ain't got nothing to do with me. If he's acting out that's on him.”
BANGED- UP 49ERS
Has there ever been an NFL team as pummeled by major injuries in one season as the San Francisco 49ers?
Now the defending NFC champs have lost Jimmy Garoppolo and George Kittle.
Garoppolo aggravated the high right ankle sprain he suffered earlier in the season and is expected to miss many weeks.
What's more, all-pro tight end Kittle broke a foot bone Sunday and ESPN's Adam Schefter said he'll miss eight weeks — which might mean his season is done.
The Niners (4-4) are in last place in the rugged NFC West.
Twelve San Francisco players already were on injured reserve entering Monday, including DE Nick Bosa, CB Richard Sherman, DLs Solomon Thomas and Dee Ford, DE Ezekiel Ansah, RBs Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson, WRs Jalen Hurd and Chris Thompson and TE Jordan Reed.