Aug 19 (The Sporrts Xchange) - NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith in harsh terms said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's explanation of how the league's personal conduct policy was overhauled was a falsehood.
Aug 19 (The Sporrts Xchange) - NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith in harsh terms said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's explanation of how the league's personal conduct policy was overhauled was a falsehood.
"He lied," Smith said in response to questioning from Bryant Gumbel during an interview that will air Tuesday night on HBO.
NFL owners unanimously approved a more stringent personal conduct policy in December 2014 following a series of high-profile incidents, the most notable featuring former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice. How that policy evolved is what drew a terse response from union chief Smith during the sit-down with Gumbel.
"When Roger Goodell can stand up there as he did and say, 'We're drafting a new NFL Personal Conduct Policy. We're gonna do so in conjunction with the union,' and then doesn't consult the union, comes up with a new policy, that says what?" Gumbel asked Smith.
"That says he lied," Smith said.
With the NFLPA filing an appeal last week of a six-game suspension handed to Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott for violating the league's personal conduct policy after multiple domestic violence incidents, the relationship between the union and league office again is in the spotlight.
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Two prominent organizations showed support for quarterback Colin Kaepernick and his inability to catch on with an NFL team.
The NAACP chapter in Atlanta is calling for all football fans to boycott NFL games by not watching those contests until a team signs Kaepernick. Meanwhile, a number of current and former New York City police officers, including Frank Serpico, gathered in Brooklyn in support of Kaepernick.
Kaepernick, 29, brought controversy when he decided to kneel during the national anthem prior to NFL games in protest of racism in America. He became a free agent after playing for the San Francisco 49ers last season, but no team has signed him for the coming season.
Gerald Griggs, the vice president of the NAACP's Atlanta chapter, said this week that his chapter will boycott all things related to the NFL as long as Kaepernick remains unsigned.
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Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, as expected, was not playing in Saturday afternoon's preseason game against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium.
Backup Derek Anderson started against the Titans, and he was expected to be followed by Joe Webb and Garrett Gilbert.
The 28-year-old star quarterback, who also did not play in last week's preseason opener against the Houston Texans, continues to rehabilitate his surgically repaired throwing shoulder. He had surgery on March 30 to repair a partially torn rotator cuff that was expected to require a four-month rehab process.
Coach Ron Rivera has not been concerned if Newton ends up missing all four preseason games, with the goal being to have him ready for the Sept. 10 opener on the road against the San Francisco 49ers.
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The Miami Dolphins and veteran linebacker Rey Maualuga agreed to a one-year contract, according to multiple reports.
The move follows the loss of rookie linebacker Raekwon McMillan to a season-ending torn ACL in his right knee suffered in the preseason opener last week against the Atlanta Falcons.
Maualuga, who was released by the Cincinnati Bengals in March, is expected to compete with Mike Hull for the starting job at middle linebacker after the injury to McMillan, who was the Dolphins' second-round pick out of Ohio State.
The 30-year-old Maualuga agreed to a deal that will pay him $900,000 in base salary (the minimum for a ninth-year veteran), according to the Miami Herald.
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Seattle Seahawks starting left tackle George Fant, who was carted off the field during Friday night's preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings, needs surgery after tearing his ACL.
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll confirmed after the game that Fant likely will miss the 2017 season because of the right knee injury suffered in the second quarter.
Fant, 25, went down at the end of a passing play when center Justin Britt fell and rolled into the back of Fant's leg. He was carted off the field with an air cast on his right leg.
A former college basketball player out of Western Kentucky, the 6-foot-5, 322-pound Fant signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted rookie free agent last year and played in 14 games with 10 starts at left tackle.
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Seattle Seahawks kicker Blair Walsh said his gestures toward the Minnesota Vikings' sideline in a preseason game Friday night were in response to his ex-teammates taunting him.
Walsh was spotted gesturing each time after nailing a pair of 52-yard field goals in the Seahawks' 20-13 win at CenturyLink Field. He pointed at the sideline after his first make and walked toward the bench and appeared to say something after the second.
"I felt like it was nothing that was serious or meant to be hurtful, but I wanted to let them know that it just wasn't going to roll off," Walsh said, via ESPN.com. "I didn't say anything though. Just looked at them."
Walsh was asked by reporters after the game what the Vikings were saying to him. "Nothing I can repeat here. That's for sure," said Walsh, who played five seasons in Minnesota before the team released him in November after nine games.
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Just as former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Zachary Orr officially stepped away from the NFL, another door has apparently opened.
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said there might be an opportunity to work for the organization in some capacity. Months after initially announcing that his career was over because of a congenital neck and spine condition, a second opinion provided Orr with a glimmer of hope for a comeback with Baltimore or another team.
However, after further evaluation, Orr was not cleared to play by any NFL franchise, forcing him to officially retire for good. That doesn't mean other opportunities don't await in another capacity as a scout or an assistant coach.
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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed offensive tackle Austin Albrecht and cornerback Vernon Harris.
The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Albrecht is a college free agent out of Utah State. He played in 39 games for the Aggies, including starting his final 25, earning honorable mention All-Mountain West in both his junior and senior seasons
The 6-1, 197-pound Harris originally entered the league as a college free agent with the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2016 offseason. The Dartmouth product spent last season on the Chiefs' injured reserve list before being waived this offseason.
The Bucs also announced that cornerback Maurice Fleming and tackle Cole Gardner were waived/injured.
(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
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