The well-traveled Ficken got off to a hot start in 2020, but his New York Jets career appears to be over after two seasons.
The New York Jets have announced several roster moves leading into their season finale against the New England Patriots (1 p.m. ET, CBS). Their most consequential moves may be the release of kicker Sam Ficken and the activation of starting blocker Greg Van Roten off of injured reserve.
Ficken, 28, sees his Jets career end after two seasons, continuing the Jason Myers saga on a sour note. He began the year on a strong note, converting his first nine field goal attempts and all six of his extra point opportunities through Week 6 action. A groin injury sidelined him for the next three games before he briefly returned for the Week 11 tilt against the Los Angeles Chargers, missing two extra points in the 34-28 defeat. In yet another visit to Los Angeles, this one coming against the Rams, Ficken score 11 of the Jets’ 23 points in their first win of the season, but he missed two, an extra point and field goal each, in last week’s victory over Cleveland at home.
The Jets (2-13) will use Chase McLaughlin as their kicker in New England. McLaughlin entered the league in 2019 and has spent time with eight different organizations in some capacity. This season, he was originally cut by Indianapolis after training camp before joining Minnesota’s practice squad. He later served as the Jacksonville Jaguars’ kicker for three weeks, converting all four field goal attempts, before the Jets picked him up in December. McLaughlin will become the fourth different kicker to appear in a regular season game for the Jets since the Pro Bowler Myers departed for Seattle after the 2018 campaign.
Van Roten partook in every offensive snap over the Jets’ first 11 games before leaving their Week 13 contest against Las Vegas with a toe injury. Ironically, the 30-year-old Van Roten was also paced in IR with a toe injury last season during his final year with the Carolina Panthers. Signed to a one-year deal over the offseason, Van Roten has been one of the Jets’ more consistent offensive line.
In addition to Van Roten and McLaughlin, a quartet of other Jets will make their debut on the active roster this week. Linebackers Noah Dawkins and Brady Sheldon were promoted from the practice squad, while another linebacker, Sharif Finch, and a defensive lineman, Tanzel Smart, were picked up and moved to the 53-man ledger.
The New York Jets announced on Wednesday that defenders Jordan Jenkins and Saquon Hampton will be placed on injured reserve. With visits to IR lasting at least three weeks, their seasons are effectively over.
Jenkins (shoulder) had partaken in 12 games this season, missing last weekend’s visit to Seattle. His fifth season as a Jets ends with 32 tackles, including a pair of sacks, after earning 15 quarterback takedowns over the last two seasons. The linebacker, 26, joined the team as a third-round pick (83rd overall) in 2016. He is set to become a free agent this offseason after inking a one-year, $3.75 million deal.
Hampton, 25, returned to New Jersey after starring in his native Hamilton and later in college at Rutgers. A member of the secondary and former sixth-round draft pick in New Orleans, Hampton joined the Jets in November after he part of the Saints’ final training camp cuts. He made his New York debut on Sunday in Seattle, partaking in five special team snaps before leaving with an Achilles injury.
As the Jets (0-13) prepare to partake in their final games of the season, they’ll be missing some crucial names on defense. Jenkins becomes the sixth opening day starter to not finish the year on the active roster, whether it’s through injury or transactions. His role at outside linebacker will likely be filled by rookie Jabari Zuniga, who has mostly been used as a defensive end but maintains experience from his days at Florida.
Earlier this week, the Jets partially prepared for the medical departures by signing Trevon Coley on Monday, two days after he was released by the Arizona Cardinals.
New York continues to play out the final stretches of their schedule out west, as they’ll wrap up their interconference slate on Sunday at SoFi Stadium against the Los Angeles Rams (4:05 p.m. ET, Fox).
Stefon Diggs has reached heights few Buffalo Bills have seen before. Yet, the Orchard Park newcomer is anything but satisfied.
In the history of the Buffalo Bills, 49 men have earned at least 100 receptions. Only two have reached that landmark in a single season. Eric Moulds first set the record in 2002, adding intrigue to an otherwise meaningless season finale against a two-win squad from Cincinnati. It took Stefon Diggs 13 games with a charging buffalo on his helmet to get to triple digits.
Diggs, one of the newest players to enjoy the Western New York experience, has wasted no time in leaving a lasting impression on the Bills’ history books. Moulds may be trending over the next few weeks, if only because Diggs is set to break his single-season franchise marks. The pair are currently tied at the century-mark for the most receptions in franchise history (good enough for Diggs to lead the league entering Week 15), and Diggs will have three weeks to earn the 201 yards necessary to pass Moulds in that department.
It also helps that Diggs has saved his best performances for the Bills’ most crucial contests. When NBC’s football cameras descended upon Orchard Park for the first time since 2007, Diggs earned 130 yards on 10 receptions, one of which went for a score in the Bills’ 26-15 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Six days prior, he had 10 other receptions in a visit to Glendale, Arizona to battle the displaced San Francisco 49ers on ESPN’s Monday Night Football.
But after the former performance, Diggs said perhaps the scariest thing an NFL defender could hear going into the postseason.
“I could be a lot better so I don’t think too much of it. I’m just trying to chase these wins,” Diggs said after his latest showing against the Steelers, per Cameron Hogwood of Sky Sports. He was keener to give credit to his offensive comrades, namely quarterback Josh Allen and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.
“I give a lot of credit to the people around me, especially Josh Allen. Young quarterback, he put his faith and his trust in me to make plays with the ball in my hands and catching the ball. And coach Daboll, he calls the right stuff, he draws it up upstairs and puts me in the best position to make plays. Then my wide receivers coach Chad Hall, we put in a lot of work in practice. We rep a lot of stuff that is more game-like than anything.”
With Diggs in tow, the franchise quarterback Allen has taken several steps forward in his development, and Buffalo (10-3) has gone from mere playoff contender to potential division champion, one that would be a quarter-century in the making. The NFL has taken notice, as each of the Bills’ four December games will be broadcast on national airwaves. That division title can arrive when the Bills travel to Denver for the league’s traditional late-season Saturday showcase (4:30 p.m. ET, NFL Network).
A talented roster has been assembled in Orchard Park, one that many see in the postseason on a consistent basis moving forward. But many Buffalo representatives have yet to taste how sweet the playoffs can be, much of their experienced limited to cameos on the road in the wild-card rounds of 2018 (Jacksonville) and 2020 (Houston).
Who better to bring in than the star of one of the most renowned highlights in recent January memory?
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Diggs’ time as a Minnesota Viking came to an end after five seasons in March, but his time in purple was immortalized through the “Minneapolis Miracle”, the jaw-dropping 61-yard touchdown in the final seconds of the 2018 NFC divisional playoff tilt against New Orleans. Some place the video on the same playlist as the Immaculate Reception or The Catch.
With Diggs disgruntled in purple, the Bills reached out and sent over four draft picks to obtain him. One of those choices has since become Justin Jefferson, the 22nd overall pick in April’s selection meeting who is well on his way to Rookie of the Year honors.
But in a year filled with uncertainty and a team on the cusp of true contention, Bills general manager Brandon Beane wanted a surefire veteran to work with when it came to molding the offense into a fearsome unit. He knew he had that player in Diggs.
“Yes, the draft is stacked with receivers,” Beane said during the offseason, per Chris Brown of BuffaloBills.com. “But I think it became evident with what’s going on around us now, that we don’t know what kind of offseason we’ll have. I just felt like it was going to be really hard, unless I traded up really high to find a guy that I know could walk in, day one, August 1st, and be ready to roll.”
“Obviously, time will tell if this move for Stefon was right. Sometimes the best-laid plans don’t always translate, but we’re confident and that’s why we swung with a first-round pick. You know I love draft picks and that was not easy for me to part with a first-round pick, but at the same time I view (Stefon) as our first-round pick and I thought it was good for the value of getting a guy like Stefon.”
After ending the longest playoff drought in Buffalo Bills history, Beane has been locked up through a multi-year extension.
The Buffalo Bills announced on Friday that they have signed general manager Brandon Beane to a multi-year extension. Beane has been with the team since 2017.
“Brandon is an outstanding leader, and he has brought a great level of stability throughout our organization. One of the things we appreciate and respect about Brandon is that he is very thorough in his decision-making process,” Bills owners Kim and Terry Pegula said in a statement on the team website penned by Maddy Glab. “No decision he makes comes without a great deal of study and research. We appreciate his strong communication skills, and he works extremely well with us, with Sean, and with all levels of the organization. We are happy to extend his contract and to have Brandon and Sean leading our football team for many years to come.”
In his first season at the helm, Beane helped end the Bills’ franchise-long playoff drought at 17 seasons. The team has now been to the postseason in two of the past three years and is currently on pace to earn its first division title since 1995. Buffalo won 10 games for the first time since 1995 during the last campaign.
Head coach Sean McDermott offered his praises after news of Beane’s extension emerged. The two previously collaborated in Carolina, where Beane served in a variety of front office roles. McDermott served as the Panthers’ defensive coordinator for the final six years of Beane’s watch and was brought over when the latter came to Buffalo.
“I think for most GMs to have that experience on the business side of the football end of things, I really can’t envision myself working with anybody else but Brandon moving forward,” McDermott said in Glab’s statement. “For coaches, as I mentioned earlier, it’s one thing to be a good coach and develop players. But if you’re not being fed good players, it’s almost like drinking from a dry hose. That’s a hard thing to sustain over the course of time. So being fed good players, being fed players that match what we’re looking for, Brandon has done a phenomenal job. I can’t envision myself working with any other GM.”
Among Beane’s most notable Buffalo moves is the selection of quarterback Josh Allen with the seventh overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft and a trade that brought former Minnesota Viking Stefon Diggs to Buffalo. Allen is on pace for career-highs in his third season and has also garnered MVP consideration. Diggs currently leads the NFL with 90 receptions.
The Bills (9-3) return to action on Sunday night, as they battle the Pittsburgh Steelers at home (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC). In another sign of how far they’ve come under Beane’s watch, Sunday will mark the first time a Sunday night game has been staged in Orchard Park since 2007.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the New York Jets have fired defensive coordinator Gregg Williams in the midst of his second season with the team. The team has yet to confirm the report.
Williams, 62, was heavily scrutinized in the aftermath of the Jets’ 31-28 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday after calling for an emphasized blitz in the final minute of the game. With little deep coverage, Derek Carr was able to find Henry Ruggs for a 46-yard scoring pass, allowing the Raiders to erase a rare New York lead with five seconds remaining. The Jets (0-12) are the only winless team left in football. Their defense currently ranks 29th in the league in yards allowed (398.8 per game) and 30th in points against (29.4).
This story will be updated pending further developments.
[EDIT: 2:00 p.m, ET]:The Jets have confirmed Williams’ firing in a statement. They also announced that inside linebackers coach Frank Bush will take over as the interim defensive coordinator over the final four games of the season. Bush previously served in the same role with the Houston Texans during the 2009-10 seasons.
An original star of the New York Liberty is set to take her second head coaching job after spending the past 15 years with the Aces franchise.
Per Chantel Jennings of The Athletic, New York Liberty legend Vickie Johnson is set to become the new head coach of the Dallas Wings. Johnson, 48, would be the 11th head coach of a franchise that began life as the Detroit Shock in 1998.
The Coushatta, Louisiana native has spent the past 15 years in some capacity with the Las Vegas Aces franchise, which was previously known as the San Antonio Silver Stars (later simply known as the Stars). She spent the final four seasons (2006-09) of her WNBA career with the team before serving as an assistant coach under Sandy Brondello (2010) and Dan Hughes (2011-16). Johnson would later oversee the final season in San Antonio (2017), going 8-28 before the team moved to Las Vegas. She was retained over the last three seasons on Bill Laimbeer’s staff, working alongside another Liberty alumna, Tanisha Wright, in the last.
Johnson began her WNBA career as an original member of the Liberty, drafted by the team in the “elite” portion (reserved for players who had previously played internationally) of the inaugural draft in 1997. Working with fellow former Louisiana Tech Lady Techster Teresa Weatherspoon and several others, Johnson helped the Liberty reach four of the first six WNBA Finals (1997, 1999, 2000, 2002). The team earned a franchise-best 21 wins in 2001, a record that stood until 2015. Johnson reached two All-Star Games as a member of the Liberty (1999, 2001). Upon her departure in 2005, she was the Liberty’s all-time leading scorer with 3,246 points, which was broken by Tina Charles in 2019. Johnson remains the Liberty’s all-time leader in games played (282) and is one of five players in the team’s Ring of Honor (joining teammates Weatherspoon, Becky Hammon, Kym Hampton, Rebecca Lobo, and Sue Wicks).
In joining Dallas, Johnson inherits the only team in the WNBA that’s younger than the Liberty in terms of age. No one on the team has more than four years’ experience in the WNBA, the roster headlined by 2020 first-rounders Satou Sabally, Bella Alarie, and Tyasha Harris. Sabally was the second overall pick in last April’s draft, chosen immediately after the Liberty took her Oregon teammate Sabrina Ionescu at No. 1. Also present is Arike Ogunbowale, the 2019 Rookie of the Year. Johnson takes over for Brian Agler, who went 18-38 in two seasons at the helm. Johnson will also be the first Black female to service in a head coaching capacity since Pokey Chatman in Indiana (2016-19).
The Liberty and Wings will each partake in the 2020 WNBA Draft Lottery on Friday night, set to be held during halftime of the college basketball game between Louisville and DePaul (6:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). New York will own the best odds in the lottery with a 44.2 percent chance of gaining the top overall pick. General manager Jonathan Kolb is expected to represent the team.
When it comes to Silly Season, ESM has you covered with this updating list of offseason ride exchanges at the Cup Series level.
(This list will be updated)
No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet (formerly No. 88)
IN: Kyle Larson OUT: Alex Bowman
Larson returns to NASCAR after his ousting from Chip Ganassi Racing over his use of a racist slur earlier this spring during an event on the iRacing platform. His efforts to rehabilitate since the incident were enough to satisfy both NASCAR (who will lift his indefinite suspension on January 1) and team owner Rick Hendrick, who has resurrected the No. 5 branding last used by Kasey Kahne in 2017. Previous occupants of the HMS No. 5 include Mark Martin, Kyle Busch, and Terry Labonte, who won the 1996 Cup Series championship in the car. The No. 88 identity will be retired after 13 seasons, it’s tenure represented by Bowman and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Larson won six races over six full seasons at Ganassi, the most recent coming in 2019’s fall event at Dover.
No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
IN: Corey LaJoie OUT: New Car
Having purchased Leavine Family Racing’s assets, the low-budget Spire is hoping to take a big step forward by adding a second car to their stable (also fielding the No. 77, whose full-season plans will be announced at a later date). The new driver will be LaJoie, who spent the past two seasons in GoFas Racing’s No. 32 (which will now run as a part-time team), earning three top-ten finishes.
No. 13 Germain Racing Chevrolet
IN: Team folding OUT: Ty Dillon
The midbudget team from Bob Germain had been racing at the Cup Series level since 2008. Success in the Cup Series proved elusive, but the team earned a pair of Truck Series titles with Todd Bodine behind the wheel (2006, 2010). The team was forced to shut down when longtime sponsorship partner GEICO opted not to renew their deal (though they will remain a NASCAR partner), shutting down the No. 13 machine. Dillon’s future remains uncertain, as he hopes to continue racing at the Cup level but would be open to a return to the Xfinity Series.
No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
IN: Chase Briscoe OUT: Clint Bowyer
Bowyer’s retirement and subsequent transfer to the Fox Sports booth opened the door for Briscoe, who won 11 races at the Xfinity Series level (including a series-best nine this past season). It’s a dream come true for a Tony Stewart fan like Briscoe as he will occupy the car in which team owner Stewart won his third and final Cup title in 2011. Bowyer had operated the No. 14 car for four seasons, reaching the playoffs in each of the final three.
No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
IN: Christopher Bell OUT: Erik Jones
After starring for Gibbs at the Xfinity level (15 wins over two full seasons), it seemed inevitable that Bell would be racing for the Super Bowl-winning coach at the Cup level sooner or later. He got his feet wet in the premier series with his rookie campaign at the smaller, Gibbs-affiliated Leavine Family Racing, posting respectable results (16 finishes in the top 20, first top 20 standings finish for LFR). Jones failed to live up to the reputation pushed ahead by No. 20 predecessors Stewart and Joey Logano, missing out on the playoffs entirely this season.
No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
IN: Bubba Wallace OUT: New Team
All eyes will be on this new endeavor from Wallace, Michael Jordan, and Denny Hamlin. The debut vehicle will bear the famous numerals that Jordan wore during a majority of his NBA days. Championship figures from other sports have entered into NASCAR endeavors before and there have been more misses than hits. For every Joe Gibbs Racing, there are multiple Hall of Fame Racings (headed by former Dallas Cowboys champions Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach). But Jordan’s acumen and resources…not to mention Wallace’s skills that were quite respectable for his equipment over at Richard Petty Motorsports…should certainly set this team apart from other start-ups. The team has secured a charter from the aforementioned Germain.
No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
IN: Ross Chastain OUT: Matt Kenseth
Kenseth was never meant to be a permanent solution in the No. 42 after Larson’s firing, and that was confirmed with Kenseth more or less announcing a third retirement, calling his full-time racing days “over” earlier this week. Chastain was a strong, veteran solution with strong postings with equipment that wasn’t always the best at both the Xfinity and Truck levels. He made a three-race cameo in Ganassi’s Xfinity program (ironically also driving a car number 42) back in 2018, winning a visit to Las Vegas.
No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet
IN: Erik Jones OUT: Bubba Wallace
Jones will take over the seat that Wallace left behind at RPM. Despite being dealt his walking papers from Gibbs, Jones, the 2015 Truck Series champion, managing to score four finishes in the top five over the ten playoff races. He has two wins at the Cup level, the last being the 2019 Darlington race. RPM is seeking their first win since 2014, when Aric Almirola drove the iconic No. 43 to victory lane.
No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
IN: Alex Bowman OUT: Jimmie Johnson
For months, the 2021 status of the iconic No. 48 was in question with the retirement of seven-time Cup champion Johnson looming large over the entire season. Hendrick went in-house for the succession, calling up Bowman, the former bearer of the No. 88. Bowman made a strong case to take over Johnson’s seat with his strongest season to date. He finished a career-best sixth in the final standings and finished no worse than 16th over the final dozen races of the year, a stretch that included nine postings in the top ten.
No. 78 Live Fast Motorsports Ford
IN: BJ McLeod OUT: New Team
McLeod will serve as the has entered into a new team endeavor with Matt Tifft, who returns to NASCAR after a seizure indefinitely ended his racing career in 2018. The team has obtained its charger from Go Fas Racing, whose No. 32 will be reduced to a part-time schedule next year. McLeod has run his vehicles at several NASCAR levels since 2016.
No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota
IN: Team folding OUT: Christopher Bell
A technical alliance with Joe Gibbs and a strong performance from Bell (his 20th-place in the standings being the best in team history) wasn’t enough to save LFR. Previous drivers of the No. 95 include Kasey Kahne and Matt DiBenedetto. LFR’s assets have since been sold to Spire Motorsports, which is seeing an expanded role in the Cup for 2021 (their full plans have yet to be announced).
No. 99 Trackhouse Chevrolet
IN: Daniel Suarez OUT: New Team
Suarez, the 2016 Xfinity Series champion and formerly of both Gibbs and Stewart-Haas, joins with this new team after a year with the No. 96 of Gaunt Brothers Racing (whose 2021 plans have yet to be revealed). The endeavor is headed by former road course ringer and current racing businessman Josh Wise and former Dale Earnhardt Inc. executive Ty Norris.
Per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, the New York Jets are releasing cornerback Pierre Desir. The defender was signed to a one-year deal by the Jets last spring after his release from the Indianapolis Colts.
Desir, 30, earned 47 tackles and three interceptions during his brief New York tenure. His most memorable moment came in the Jets’ Thursday night tilt against the Denver Broncos at the start of Week 4, when he tallied the second multi-interception game of his career, as well as his first touchdown. Desir also had an interception in the Jets’ Week 2 loss against San Francisco.
Despite these turnovers, Desir mostly struggled in a Jets uniform. According to Pro Football Focus, receivers covered by Desir have earned 35 catches, the ninth-worst in football. Desir was also called out by New York Daily News reporter Manish Mehta for not appearing to give a full effort during a crucial moment in the Jets’ latest loss, a narrow 30-27 defeat at the hands of the New England Patriots. The aforementioned Denver game also saw Desir victimized on a highlight reel touchdown catch by Jerry Jeudy in the Jets’ 37-28 loss.
With the reported departure of Desir, the Jets have bid farewell to a trio of former Indianapolis Colts in their secondary, joining Nate Hairston and Quincy Wilson. The previously released duo has since respectively signed with the Ravens and Giants.
The departure of Desir will likely lead to extended opportunities for the Jets’ rookie class. Fifth-round rookie Bryce Hall came in for Desir during the New England game, while the Jets are also experimenting with undrafted first-year man Lamar Jackson and sophomore Bless Austin in primary roles. New York is allowing over 281 passing yards per game, 29th in the NFL.
The Jets (0-9) return to action on Sunday late afternoon against the Los Angeles Chargers (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS).
New York Liberty legend Teresa Weatherspoon will serve as a full-time assistant coach under Stan Van Gundy.
Teresa Weatherspoon and a Van Gundy indirectly united to create hardwood magic at the turn of the century in the Big Apple. That magic is on its way to the Big Easy.
The New Orleans Pelicans announced a series of adjustments to their coaching staff on Monday, headlined by the promotion of Weatherspoon, who will take a full-time assistant coach position with the NBA franchise. She will work under newly-minted head coach Stan Van Gundy, the brother of former New York Knicks boss Jeff, whose New York tenure (1996-2001) overlapped with Weatherspoon’s glory days.
Weatherspoon, 54, joined the team last season as a player development coach and spent her time between the Pelicans and the Erie BayHawks, their G League affiliate. Now, Weatherspoon becomes the eighth woman to serve on an NBA bench, joining fellow Liberty legend and longtime San Antonio Spurs assistant Becky Hammon.
Weatherspoon partook in the first seven seasons of Liberty basketball (1997-2003), appearing in five WNBA All-Star Games and three WNBA Finals. She is perhaps best known for launching the most famous shot in WNBA history, a desperation three-pointer from beyond half-court that allowed the Liberty to steal a Finals win from the Houston Comets in the 1999 championship series. Weatherspoon also earned the first two WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards and currently ranks 12th all-time in assists (1,338) and 21st in steals (465). Induction into the Naismith Memorial Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame awaited Weatherspoon last season. She has since been named to the WNBA’s anniversary teams in 2011 and 2016.
Weatherspoon retired after a single season in Los Angeles in 2004. Since then, she has been involved in several coaching positions, including a variety of front office and player development roles with the Liberty in the six seasons before receiving the call from New Orleans. She also served as the head coach at her alma mater of Louisiana Tech for five-plus seasons (2009-14), taking them to a pair of NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournaments (2010, 2011).
Another New Orleans hire with a local connection is Beno Udrih, The two-time NBA champion and former first-round pick spent part of last year’s shortened G League campaign with the Knicks’ affiliate in Westchester as an assistant, his first coaching position.
The New York Jets have called for reinforcement to their offensive line as they return from their bye week, claiming veteran blocker Pat Elflein off the waivers list.
Elflein, 26, has worked as a center and guard on both sides. The interior lineman was chosen in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings (70th overall). He went on to partake in 44 games with Minnesota, starting all but one, though injuries have reduced him to a single game this season, starting at right guard and sharing snapping duties with Garrett Bradbury in the Vikings’ opening weekend loss to Green Bay.
A thumb injury suffered in practice has since kept him sidelined. Elflein was placed on injured reserve short after the ailment. He was activated last Friday but was placed on waivers the next day.
The Jets (0-9) are currently working with offseason free agents signees veterans Connor McGovern and Josh Andrews at center while Alex Lewis and Greg Van Roten respectively flank the left and right interior roles. Their offense is coming off a season-high output of 322 yards in their last tilt, a 30-27 last-second defeat last Monday night against the New England Patriots. The latest defeat came with a bit of a hefty casualty on the offensive line, as starting tackle and first-round pick Mekhi Becton left in the first half with a chest injury and did not return.
New York will once again roll out Joe Flacco at quarterback in their next contest on Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS) as head coach Adam Gase said that Sam Darnold was still nursing a shoulder injury, per notes provided by the team.
