Ravens’ coach on board with combine bans
Agrees players like Mixon, Kelly shouldn’t get invites
INDIANAPOLIS — There’s been almost as much talk this week about the players who weren’t invited to the NFL scouting combine than the more than 300 prospects who will be at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The NFL’s decision to not extend combine invites to Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon and QB Chad Kelly, two players who have had significant off-the-field issues, has been criticized by several team officials around the league.
However, Ravens coach John Harbaugh said he agrees with the message the league is sending.
“Our job as a coach, or a scouting staff, is to turn over every stone, to find out everything we can about every single guy, regardless of whether they’re here at the combine or not, for whatever reason,” Harbaugh said Wednesday during a morning news conference at the Indiana convention center. “We respect the NFL’s priorities and what they’re trying to accomplish, and the statement that’s being made with that policy. And also our job is to turn over every stone on every player, and we’ll do that on all of those guys.”
Mixon, who some draft evaluators consider a first-round talent, punched a female student in 2014, an action caught on tape. Kelly, a potential early to midround pick, was arrested after he got into a physical altercation with two bouncers at a Buffalo nightclub in 2014, and reportedly threatened to return to the fray with a gun. He eventually pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct.
CARDINALS: Arizona is looking for a successor to 37-year-old quarterback Carson Palmer.
The Cardinals are not in any rush because Palmer recently announced he would return this fall. But, unlike some transitions, Palmer sounds as if he’s OK with the notion of grooming the Cardinals’ next franchise quarterback.
VIKINGS: One day after cutting All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson, Minnesota GM Rick Spielman is keeping the door open to re-signing the longtime face of the franchise. He’s just not sure what, or how much, it might take.
CHIEFS: Kansas City declined to use the franchise tag on defensive tackle Dontari Poe, which means the two-time Pro Bowl selection could become a free agent for the first time next week.
SALARY CAP: The NFL salary cap for the upcoming season will be $167 million per team, up more than $12 million over last year.
STEELERS: James Harrison, a five-time Pro Bowl linebacker, has signed a two-year contract with the team that will keep him in black and gold past his 40th birthday.
RAMS: Los Angeles placed the franchise tag on Trumaine Johnson for the second straight year Wednesday, likely making him the NFL’s highestpaid cornerback next season.