Rodgers-Cromartie walks out on collapsing Giants
Cornerback suspended after leaving team meeting, New York coach McAdoo says
Coming out of the weekend, things looked bleak enough for the 0-5 New York Giants.
Over and above the usual angst, strife and challenges of being winless in the NFL at midOctober, the Giants on Sunday lost three of their top four wide receivers, and for the season: Odell Beckham Jr. (after surgery on a fractured ankle), Brandon Marshall (surgery on a fractured ankle) and Dwayne Harris (surgery on a fractured foot).
New York’s fourth top wideout, second-year player Sterling Shepard, has a less severe ankle issue and did not practise Wednesday.
Yet on top of these and other pressing concerns second-year head coach Ben McAdoo and the Giants face — such as the inability to run the ball well or stop the run, when their Broncos opponent Sunday night in Denver excels at both — came this bombshell Wednesday.
According to ESPN and other reports, volatile veteran cornerback Dominique RodgersCromartie informed McAdoo at a Wednesday morning meeting he was leaving the team, then followed through and walked out. The Giants immediately suspended him.
ESPN later reported it’s possible the team might let RodgersCromartie return as early as this week.
Have the Giants become the Jets — Team Circus — all of a sudden? The actions of “DRC” are all the more strange seeing as it was just last week he was promoted to starter over struggling second-year player Eli Apple.
But Rodgers-Cromartie apparently had a sideline tantrum just before halftime of Sunday’s 27-22 loss to the visiting Los Angeles Chargers. ESPN speculated Rodgers-Cromartie might have faced discipline he felt to be unjustified.
All McAdoo would tell reporters is, “DRC came in yesterday. We had a conversation that was personal upstairs and he came in today. Decided to leave. We will suspend him … That’s all I have for you right now.”
McAdoo didn’t announce DRC’s departure to his team before practice. Here’s how Apple said he deduced it:
“I was just, like, looking around and I didn’t see (number) 41.”
Was there any indication Rodgers-Cromartie was unhappy to such a degree?
“I just try to stay in my lane, man. That’s all I do,” Apple said.
But doesn’t DRC’s departure at least mean more job certainty for Apple?
“I just stay in my lane,” he said. “That’s all I do.”
What a mess.
HOGAN TO START
Speaking of messes, Kevin Hogan is the new starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. Head coach Hue Jackson announced the news Wednesday.
Jackson said he thinks the weak-armed Hogan gives Cleveland the best chance to win, at least this week. So rookie DeShone Kizer is benched. He’ll serve as Hogan’s backup.
Jackson surprisingly benched Kizer at halftime in Sunday’s home-field, 17-14 loss to the New York Jets. Why the switch to Hogan, after Jackson all but promised in late August he was going all-in with Kizer for the season?
“I just think it was the best chance to give our offence a chance to stay in rhythm and play consistently over four quarters,” Jackson said. “(We’ll) see if Kevin can do it. Obviously, he has done that in games. We have moved the ball. We have done some good things there.
“I just want to see if I can see him do that for a whole game. See where it goes.”
Hogan hasn’t even taken the field as a pro in the first five minutes of a game. Now he’s going to start one.
BRADY’S SORE SHOULDER
Tom Brady banged up his left, non-throwing shoulder in last Thursday’s win at Tampa Bay. Even though he did not practise Wednesday, the 40-year-old insisted he will play Sunday against the Jets in New Jersey.
“I’m good. I’m not worried about it,” he told Patriots beat reporters. “Yeah, I’ll be there Sunday. Don’t worry about that. I’ll be there.”
Even if he has to play through pain, he said.
“I think everybody does. I mean, there’s a lot of bumps and bruises over the course of a year. So I’m not concerned.”
BRADFORD’S SORE KNEE
Sam Bradford did not practise Wednesday for the Minnesota Vikings. Before practice, head coach Mike Zimmer said Bradford was “feeling better again today, so we’ll just see how it goes. If it comes to a time where he can’t go, then I’ll declare him out. We’re just going to keep seeing what he can do and how he can go.” Bradford’s left knee — the same one in which he has twice torn the ACL — has been sore since the opener. He played for the first time since then Monday night in Chicago, but couldn’t last long. On Tuesday a team trainer described the injury as “wear and tear” related to the two surgeries.
CARR’S SORE BACK
Before the Oakland Raiders’ practice Wednesday, head coach Jack Del Rio said he believes Derek Carr is “ready to go. We’ll see how practice goes and monitor as we go through the week, but I think things are encouraging.” Carr suffered a fracture to the tip of a back vertebrae two weeks ago and sat out Sunday’s home-field loss to Baltimore.
Carr wasn’t disclosing much Wednesday, especially whether he’ll play Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers.
“We’ll see. I was ready to play last week in my head. I think that’s how I always think. We’ll let coach make that decision. My job is to show up every day … I just have to go out there and practise hard, show him that I’m ready.”
PLAYERS, OWNERS TO MEET
NFL owners hold their fall meeting next Tuesday and Wednesday in New York, and have invited “player leadership” to attend, according to a joint statement released Wednesday by the league and players’ union.
NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith also will attend.
“The agenda will be a continuation of how to make progress on the important social issues that players have vocalized,” the statement said.
“Everyone who is part of our NFL community has a tremendous respect for our country, our flag, our anthem and our military, and we are coming together to deal with these issues in a civil and constructive way.”
Left unsaid were the words: “so as (1) not to keep hurting our multibillion-dollar business, and (2) to stop the president from stirring up his agitated followers against us.”