The Jacksonville Jaguars waived running back Leonard Fournette on Monday. Michael Conroy/Associated Press

The Jaguars moved another step closer to purging Tom Coughlin’s tumultuous tenure in Jacksonville.

The team waived running back Leonard Fournette on Monday, a stunning decision many outsiders view as the latest in a series of head scratchers that could help the franchise tank the season and get the No. 1 draft pick.

“If that’s the case, then the realization is if that happens, then I’m not going to be here,” coach Doug Marrone said. “At the end of the day, if I don’t win enough games or do enough with this team, I don’t foresee me still being employed. I’m doing everything I can to make sure we have the best team to make sure we win football games. That’s as simple as I can be on it.”

Coughlin wanted Fournette as the centerpiece of his old-school, run-first philosophy. It worked in 2017, although it became clear that Fournette needed to be a better pro. He was fined repeatedly for being late and skipping mandatory functions.

The Jaguars spent months trying to trade Fournette, the fourth overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft who’s coming off a career year. He was on the block during the NFL draft and again over the summer.

“We couldn’t get anything, a fifth, a sixth, anything,” Marrone said.

Advertisement

So they dumped the 25-year-old former LSU star one day after trading former Pro Bowl defensive end Yannick Ngakoue to Minnesota in exchange for a second-round draft pick in 2021 and a conditional fifth-rounder in 2020. Jacksonville also traded Jalen Ramsey, fellow cornerback A.J. Bouye and defensive end Calais Campbell in the last 10 months.

JETS: New York signed veteran Donte Moncrief to help their banged-up wide receiver corps.

The team also announced Monday it has released Brett Maher, meaning incumbent Sam Ficken won the kicker competition.

Moncrief agreed to terms with the Jets on Friday, but the receiver had to go through COVID-19 protocols before officially signing.

GIANTS: The New York Giants reached agreement on a one-year contract with cornerback Logan Ryan, who is from southern New Jersey and attended Rutgers.

“I’m coming home!! @Giants #TogetherBlue” Ryan tweeted.

Advertisement

A standout for New England, where he won two Super Bowls in his four seasons (2013-16), Ryan played for Tennessee the past three years. A solid cover man with 17 career interceptions, Ryan also is an active tackler for his position.

Ryan also could wind up at safety, where the Giants lost second-round draft pick Xavier McKinney, a projected starter, until November with a broken foot. But the Giants also saw cornerback Sam Beal opt out for the season because of the coronavirus pandemic, and DeAndre Baker has had off-field issues and is on the commissioner’s exempt list.

TEXANS: Houston signed inside linebacker Zach Cunningham to a four-year, $58 million contract extension.

“We were very happy to be able to get something done,” coach and general manager Bill O’Brien said. “Zach’s a really good football player, a very important part of our team … he’s a dependable player, he’s a tough player, he’s a smart player and … he does a lot for us.”

The 25-year-old Cunningham was a second-round draft pick in 2017 and ranked second in the NFL last season with a career-high 137 tackles. His 137 tackles were the fourth most in franchise history.

49ERS: San Francisco placed linebacker Fred Warner on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Advertisement

Warner didn’t practice on Sunday and then was placed on the COVID-19 list the following day. The list is used for NFL players who either test positive for the coronavirus or have been in close contact with an infected person.

Warner is the third 49ers player to be placed on the list this summer. Receiver Richie James Jr. and running back Jeff Wilson Jr. each had short stints on the list early in training camp.

SOCIAL JUSTICE: NFL end zones will be inscribed this season with two slogans: “It Takes All Of Us” on one end line, “End Racism” on the other.

As part of its social justice awareness initiatives, the NFL also will allow similar visuals on helmets and caps.

Previously announced were decals on the back of helmets, or patches on team caps, displaying names or phrases to honor victims of racism and/or police brutality.

Now, a T-shirt designed by NFL Players Association executive committee member Michael Thomas, a safety with the Houston Texans, can be worn in warmups. That T-shirt says: “Injustice against one of us is injustice against all of us,” in the front. The back says reads: “End racism.”

Advertisement

Players can choose either a name of a victim or one of four preferred phrases the NFL has approved: “Stop Hate”; ”It Takes All Of Us”; “End Racism”; or “Black Lives Matter.’” The same choices are available for coaches and on-field officials.

Each week, the NFL will feature the story of a victim of social or racial injustice or police brutality and tell that person’s story “in and around” the games, the league said.

NBC Sports initially reported the end zone displays and warmups designed by Thomas.

CHARGERS: Derwin James could miss significant time for the second straight season after suffering a right knee injury.

The Los Angeles Chargers safety sustained the injury during Sunday’s scrimmage. Coach Anthony Lynn said on Monday that James continues to be evaluated and that a timetable for his return has not been determined.

“We don’t know the final results, so I will leave it at that,” Lynn said.

The injury could be a huge blow to the Chargers and their defense as they look to bounce back from last year’s 5-11 season. It would also be the second time in five years that James has had a knee injury. He tore the meniscus in his left knee in 2016 at Florida State during the team’s second game and missed the rest of the year.

Comments are not available on this story.