As Week 13 of the NFL season gets set to continue on Sunday, teams are starting to feel the angst as they battle for playoff positioning (just ask Jerry Jones about Jason Garrett and the Dallas Cowboys). Still, the games become crucial at this point for contenders, and this week has a lot of interesting matchups, including the Tennessee Titans vs. the Indianapolis Colts, the San Francisco 49ers vs. the Baltimore Ravens, the New England Patriots vs. the Houston Texans, and the Minnesota Vikings vs. the Seattle Seahawks. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the news from around the league:
Shaw Suspended By The League
In quite an interesting story, the National Football League has suspended the Arizona Cardinals’ defensive back Josh Shaw for the rest of this season and next season due to having bet on numerous games this season. Over the course of his career, which spans five seasons, Shaw has played in a combined 55 games and has 108 combined tackles, one fumble recovery and an interception.
While it does not seem like he has used “insider information,” the news of him betting on NFL games is nevertheless concerning. Obviously, if he were to have been betting on his own game, it may be even more concerning as the question of integrity when it comes to how hard players are playing. It is certainly an interesting story to continue to follow, especially if more details of the betting allegations come out.
Eagles, Johnson Agree To Extension
Lane Johnson won’t have to worry about money for a while. The Eagles’ offensive lineman agreed to a massive four-year, $72 million deal on Friday, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com. The contract comes with just under $55 million guaranteed.
This agreement now means that four out of the five starting linemen for the Eagles are signed for the next several years, with only Jason Peters (who is 37) signed on a short-term deal. Additionally, the $72 million deal now makes Johnson the highest-paid lineman in the league. The Eagles now have the top paid guard and tackle on their team.
Eagles Promote Tight End Perkins
Zach Ertz has been dealing with a hamstring injury, so while he is questionable for Sunday’s game, the Eagles are playing it safe by promoting Josh Perkins from the practice squad. It is likely that if Ertz is a no-go that Dallas Goedert will likely be the starter, but Perkins will certainly give the Eagles depth on Sunday.
Not having Ertz would be a major loss for the Eagles’ offense as he currently has 67 receptions for 712 yards and three touchdowns. Still, for the Eagles, who are currently 5-6 and sit just a half-game back of the Dallas Cowboys going into Sunday, the absence of Ertz would be a tough loss as they take on the Miami Dolphins.
Williams Has ACL Tear
Not only did Dallas lose its game on Thanksgiving, it has also lost its starting left guard for the rest of the season. Connor Williams, a 2018 second-round pick, tore his ACL in the Cowboys’ 26-15 loss to the Buffalo Bills. In his place, Xavier Su’a-Filo will probably be getting the start.
Lions Place Driskel On IR
The Detroit Lions continue to have a rotation of quarterbacks on their active roster. After Matthew Stafford went down with an injury, the Lions turned to Jeff Driskel as their backup. Unfortunately for the backup, he is heading to injured reserve with a hamstring issue.
David Blough, who started and did a respectable job against the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving, will continue to be the starter moving forward. To give some security, the Lions have signed quarterback Kyle Sloter to serve as the backup and only other healthy quarterback for the Lions.
While Stafford is not on injured reserve, it is unlikely that he will play in the next couple weeks, if at all for the rest of the season. For the Lions, who are out of the playoff race, it is more about getting through the rest of the season as opposed to truly competing at this point.
Lock To Start For Broncos
Speaking of organizations turning to backup quarterbacks, the Denver Broncos are activating rookie Drew Lock from the injured reserve to start this weekend. The second-round pick is expected to start this week.
After losing Joe Flacco to injury and the inconsistent play of Brandon Allen, the Broncos, who like the Lions are simply looking to see what they have for the rest of the season, will turn to Lock in their game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Pryor In Stable Condition
In a bit of sad news, free-agent wide receiver Terrelle Pryor is recovering after being stabbed in Pittsburgh Friday night, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. After undergoing surgery Saturday morning, Pryor was upgraded from critical to stable condition.
Pryor last played in eight games last year between the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets. Pryor broke into the league as a quarterback, but after a few seasons, he switched to wide receiver. As a wide receiver, his most productive season was in 2016 when he had 77 receptions for 1,007 yards and four touchdowns.
Unfortunately for Pryor, no other season was near that productive. Now, though, it appears that Pryor has more concerning matters at hand as he fights to recover from the stabbing incident.
