Not that it matters. Not that anyone should care what Jones thinks or says…but, the Bengals cornerback stayed true to his word today and issued an apology to Antonio Brown regarding his “injury faking” remarks. Jones swore that Brown was faking and that he’d be playing Sunday.
https://youtu.be/iOn_uk0W7gc
Here’s his apology.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BAkr72EEjlI/
Gary Kubiak has been hired as the new Denver Broncos head coach.
https://twitter.com/Broncos/status/557277216657010689
This announcement comes just a little over a week after Kubiak announced that he was not interested in leaving Baltimore. How quickly things change. Kubiak’s departure totals five members of the Ravens coaching staff to leave so far this offseason. Quarterback’s Coach Rick Dennison, Assistant Head Coach/Secondary Coach Steve Spagnola, Tight Ends Coach Brian Pariani, and Quality Control Coach Jay Harbaugh have all taken positions outside of Baltimore.
Kubiak is no stranger to the Broncos. He was quarterback’s coach and offensive coordinator from 1995-2005.
It’s not a stretch of the imagination to say that Kubiak’s departure is a big loss to the Ravens. Finding an offensive coordinator of his caliber will be a very tall task.
The NFL has announced that Ravens defensive lineman Haloti Ngata will be suspended for four games due to a violation of the PED policy. The veteran defensive lineman will be not be able to return until December 29th- the day after the regular season finale.
Ngata quickly released a statement regarding the suspension, stating that he used Adderall.
“I made a mistake, and I own this. I took Adderall and take full responsibility for doing this,” Ngata said in the statement. “I am deeply sorry and broken up over this. I let down my family, my teammates, Ravens fans and myself. My hope is that the Ravens make the playoffs, and I believe they can do this. And, then I can come back and help us win.”
If you aren’t aware, Adderall is said to be widely used as a PR excuse to soften the PED suspension news. Afterall, if a player wanted Adderall, it’d be pretty easy for him to get a prescription for it. Since the league does not disclose what substance the player tested positive for, the player can tell the media whatever he wants.
The Ravens released their own statement about the suspension this morning.
“This is disappointing news for the Ravens,” G.M. Ozzie Newsome said of the four-game suspension. “We are disappointed with Haloti, but no more than he is with himself.”
According to one Baltimore beat reporter, the team learned about the suspension yesterday. Ngata will lose $2 Mil in base salary over the course of his 4 week suspension.
The Cincinnati Bengals have signed former Steelers linebacker Chris Carter today according to ESPN.
https://twitter.com/caplannfl/status/540221208760160256
Carter was drafted by the Steelers in the 5th round of the 2011 draft. The veteran linebacker was cut by the Steelers at the end of August, and spent time with the Colts before being released in October.
With the Steelers facing the Bengals twice in the next 4 weeks, the addition isn’t a surprise. It’s not uncommon for teams to add former players of their upcoming opponents in hopes to get an edge in preparation.
If he sees the field at all this Sunday, it will be to contribute on special teams.
Johnny Manziel has managed to avoid trouble for a while. In fact, it’s been pretty quiet on the Johnny Football gossip front…until now. According to clevescene.com, police responded to a call at 2:36 am Saturday morning. The caller alleged that there was a riot in progress involving 20 men and 2 security guards.
The gist of the story is that the self proclaimed “biggest Browns fan ever” saw Manziel and wanted to give him a hug. When he got too close to Manziel, someone in his entourage punched him in the face, then he was tackled and thoroughly beaten down.
According to the victim, his brother saw what was going on and tackled Manziel.
“My brother saw what was going on and he ran he tackled Johhny Manziel — I guess he got the sack and the fumble. He tackled him, yeah, I’m talking about he speared him all the way to the back wall. I was cornered; I was by myself and Johnny Manziel and like three or four of his buddies were all coming at me. (My brother) just came to help me out, and I guess Johnny sucker punched him while the security guard was holding him. It should be all on video.”
Browns General Manger Ray Farmer released the following statement regarding the incident:
“We are aware of the incident and are in the process of gathering additional information in order to gain a complete understanding of what occurred. Nonetheless, the time of the incident is concerning to us. We continually stress to all of our players the importance of sound decision making in an effort to avoid putting themselves in these types of situations. We have addressed this appropriately with the player and will have no further comment at this time.”
Four Ravens have received fines for their transgressions during Baltimore’s epic loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night. Terrell Suggs has been fined $8,268 for hitting RB LeGarrette Blount low and late from behind, after forward progress had stopped. The hit earned Suggs a “dirty” player rep around the internet this week.
OLB Courtney Upshaw was fined $20,000 for hitting Ben Roethlisberger late and striking him in the head or neck area.
Offensive lineman Jeremy Zuttah was fined $8,268 for striking Cam Heyward during an altercation. Zuttah was flagged for unnecessary roughness following a Ravens touchdown.
Lastly, LB Albert McClellan was fined $8,268 for a personal foul which was flagged during a Ravens punt. Jacoby Jones signaled for a fair catch, and McClellan laid a block that resulted in a penalty after the whistle had blown. He reportedly plans to appeal his fine…
The NFL has issued it’s ruling on Josh Gordon’s appeal and they will not be overturning his suspension. The Browns wide receiver has been suspended indefinitely due to violating the league’s drug and substance abuse policy. According to a league spokesman, Gordon’s eligibility for reinstatement will be determined after the 2014 season.
Gordon argued that second hand marijuana smoke was the cause for his most recent failed drug test, but NFL arbitrator Harold Henderson apparently wasn’t convinced. Last year, Gordon was suspended for failing a league drug test for at least the second time. The cause for that failed test according to Gordon was because he ingested cough syrup that contained codeine.
Adam Schefter reports that Gordon will miss all of training camp next year as well. The wide receiver issued a statement regarding the news. “I am very disappointed that the NFL and its hearing office didn’t exercise better discretion and judgment in my case.”
Rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel added a little Johnny Football class to Monday Night Football tonight. While the cameras were fixed on the Browns QB, Manziel flips the bird to the Redskins sideline. Here’s a gif.
It’s unknown exactly what prompted the sideline salute, but many might view it as improvement over his trademark cash gesture. Perhaps he thought he saw Dan Snyder on the sideline. Kidding aside, no flag was thrown, but the league will surely be sending a fine Johnny’s way. The first time fine for profanity (towards fans officials or other teams) or unsportsmanlike conduct is $11,025.
During the post game press conference (the Browns lost), Manziel was asked about the inappropriate gesture. “I get words exchanged with me throughout the entirety of the game, game after game … I need to be smarter than that,” he said. He added, “I should’ve been smarter. It was a Monday Night Football game – the cameras were probably solidly on me.”
H/T to @rheddpanda
Ravens running back Ray Rice has been suspended for two games for knocking his wife out in an Atlantic City casino in February. In addition to the very lenient suspension, the league has also fined Rice an additional game check for conduct detrimental to the NFL in violation of the league’s Personal Conduct Policy. The total salary lost for Rice totals $705,082.
The NFL’s PR machine is really trying to spin this slap on the wrist as a firm act of discipline. Here’s some of the language I’m referring to:
In the press release issued by the NFL on the discipline-
“Despite the court’s decision not to impose criminal punishment, the Commissioner determined, as he advised Rice, that the conduct was incompatible with NFL policies and warranted disciplinary action.”
From Roger Goodell’s letter to Rice-
“As you acknowledged during our meeting, your conduct was unquestionably inconsistent with league polices and the standard of behavior required of everyone who is part of the NFL. The league is an entity that depends on integrity and in the confidence of the public and we simply cannot tolerate conduct that endangers others or reflects negatively on our game. This is particularly true with respect to domestic violence and other forms of violence against women.”
At the end of the day (the day before most training camps open and all NFL news machines focus on all that news), the NFL wants the public to think it really takes exception to violence against women, but please don’t focus on the fact that we don’t punish those perpetrators as much as say…someone who misses a scheduled drug test.
Here is a graphic illustrating what offenses get the most severe punishments from the league. Made by SportsonEarth.
Here’s what Rice had to say about the suspension: “It is disappointing that I will not be with my teammates for the first two games of the season, but that’s my fault,” Rice said in a statement. “As I said earlier, I failed in many ways.
“But, Janay and I have learned from this. We have become better as a couple and as parents. I am better because of everything we have experienced since that night. The counseling has helped tremendously.”
Rice will be allowed to participate with the Ravens through all of training camp and throughout preseason, as his suspension doesn’t technically begin until August 30th.
Ravens CB Jimmy Smith’s actual mug shot.
It’s been a busy offseason for the Baltimore Ravens. Usually you associate the phrase ‘busy offseason’ with free agent signings, coaching staff turnover, contract extensions, and things of that nature. In Baltimore’s case, it mainly refers to players being checked in and out of the Iron Bar Hotel.
Last night, Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith was arrested by Baltimore police officers for disorderly conduct. The incident occurred at The Greene Turtle in Towson, MD. Police arrived at the bar in response to a call about an unconscious woman in the bathroom. The call was made by the bar’s general manager according to The Baltimore Sun.
The responding officers said that Smith was in the bathroom with the unconscious woman when they arrived. The woman was apparently intoxicated, and Smith was assisting her while she was vomiting in the sink, according to police. Smith told the officers that he had done a photo shoot with the woman earlier in the evening. According to the police report, the officers later found what they suspected was a bag of cocaine in the woman’s purse. She wasn’t charged as of this writing.
Police said that after the paramedics arrived, officers repeatedly asked Smith to stay out of the way and he refused to comply, stating several times that he was helping the woman. Police said Smith became argumentative when they asked him to step into the hallway.
According to the police report, Smith was asked three times by an officer to leave the restroom before being escorted out to the hallway. Smith allegedly cursed at the arresting officer and asked him “What the **** are you gonna do?” When told again to leave, Smith replied: “**** you. What the **** are you gonna do?” Officers then placed Smith in handcuffs. According to the police report, at the precinct Smith told the officer: “The only reason you arrested me is so you could get on the news.You will see this tomorrow on ESPN.” The Ravens cornerback was released later that evening, and a court date is pending. The woman was sent to the hospital.
Smith’s arrest makes the fifth Ravens player arrested this offseason. The others who have been arrested so far are RB Ray Rice, (felony aggravated assault), OL Jah Reid (misdemeanor battery), WR Deonte Thompson (felony possession of marijuana) and RB Lorenzo Taliaferro (misdemeanor destruction of property, drunk and disorderly). One has to wonder at what point the media will start asking, “Has John Harbaugh lost control of his team?”