TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Bay receiver Chris Godwin has a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and will be out for the remainder of the season.
Godwin was injured early in the second quarter of a 9-0 loss to New Orleans on Sunday night after catching a pass from Tom Brady over the middle and taking a hard hit directly on the knee from Saints cornerback P.J. Williams.
The tackle flipped the receiver into the air and Godwin remained on the ground momentarily before being helped to his feet and walking off the field under his own power. He was later seen running on the sideline, but did not re-enter the game.
Coach Bruce Arians said Monday that the hit was legal, but is the type of play that needs to be examined as part of ongoing efforts to make the game safer.
“You feel bad for him because he was having such a great year, and the type of hit it was – totally legal, but I think that’s one of the things we have to look at in the offseason,” Arians said.
“We’re so concerned about hitting people in the head and we’re getting a lot of knee injuries now because of that type of tackle. But it is legal and wasn’t a bad play at all.”
Godwin was well on his way to a third consecutive game with at least 10 receptions and 100 yards receiving with six for 49 when he was hurt with just under 13 minutes remaining in the first half. The fifth-year pro finished with a career-best 98 catches for 1,103 yards and six touchdowns (five receiving, one rushing).
COVID-19: Several asymptomatic, vaccinated NFL players tested positive for COVID-19 on the first day of “targeted” testing, a person familiar with the results told The Associated Press.
Overall, 47 players were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list, the most in a single day since the pandemic began. The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because of privacy issues, didn’t specify how many of the players are asymptomatic and fully vaccinated.
Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce, Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa and Lions quarterback Jared Goff are among the players who landed on the reserve list. Bosa will miss this week’s game, according to Coach Brandon Staley.
Players who test positive must quarantine until they’re cleared to return. Under the NFL’s revised protocols which went into effect Monday, asymptomatic, vaccinated players can return in less than 10 days.
New England was hit hard as WR Kendrick Bourne, LBs Harvey Langi and Cameron McGrone, and DE Ronnie Perkins went on the list.
GIANTS: The New York Giants are shutting down Daniel Jones for the remainder of the season because of a sprained neck.
Coach Joe Judge said the team’s medical staff reviewed Jones’ medical scans over the past 24 hours and determined it would be best if he did not play in the team’s final three games.
The doctors have said Jones only needs rest at this point to get over the injury. Surgery is not an option at this point, Judge said, adding the injury is nothing more than a sprained neck.
Jones, the No. 6 overall pick in 2019, was hurt on Nov. 28 in a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium. The injury was diagnosed after the game.
JAGUARS: Offensive coordinator and interim head coach Darrell Bevell is giving up play-calling duties for the rest of the season.
Bevell said he will delegate that role to quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator Brian Schottenheimer for the remaining three games, beginning at the New York Jets (3-11) on Sunday.
The Jaguars (2-12) have scored just seven touchdowns in their past eight games, with three of those coming in the fourth quarter while trailing by double digits.
Bevell called plays from the sideline during Sunday’s 30-16 loss to Houston. Giving up that responsibility should allow him to “take on more of the head coach role that I’m being asked to do,” he said.
Schottenheimer replaced Bevell as Seattle’s play-caller in 2018 and spent three years in that position before joining Urban Meyer in Jacksonville.
BRONCOS: The Denver Broncos are preparing backup quarterback Drew Lock for his first start of the season at Las Vegas next weekend after Teddy Bridgewater was knocked unconscious Sunday against the Bengals, carted off the field and hospitalized overnight.
Bridgewater was discharged Monday morning and is in the league’s concussion protocol for the second time this season.
Battered behind a porous offensive line Sunday, Bridgewater scrambled for the first down marker late in the third quarter of Denver’s 15-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Linebacker Joe Bachie squared up to stop him and when they collided, Bridgewater went airborne and was hit from the side by defensive tackle B.J. Hill just as he faceplanted into the ground.
Bridgewater lay motionless, his arms bent awkwardly.
The crowd quieted as Bridgewater and Bachie lay on the ground and their teammates gathered around, some kneeling. As Bachie was helped off a minute later with a leg injury and ruled out, Bridgewater came to as he was rolled over and strapped onto a body board to be carted off the field.
As he was being transported via ambulance to a hospital, the Broncos said he had movement in his arms and legs and would be evaluated for a head injury.
PANTHERS: Cam Newton’s struggles have left Coach Matt Rhule looking for answers at quarterback.
Rhule said he “can’t speculate” on who’ll be the team’s starting quarterback this Sunday when the Panthers host Tampa Bay.
The Panthers’ second-year head coach said he’ll “continue working” with Newton, but added that he wants to see where Sam Darnold’s shoulder is on Wednesday when the team returns to practice. Darnold remains on injured reserve, but stepped up his throwing last week.
Darnold is 4-5 as the team’s starter, while Newton is 0-4.
Newton threw for a touchdown and ran for another score in a 31-14 loss to Buffalo on Sunday, but he also tossed another interception and his poor decision-making and inability to consistently complete passes down the field continue to be an issue for the Panthers (5-9).
NFL HALL OF FAME linebacker Lawrence Taylor is facing felony charges in South Florida after failing to report an address change as required because of his status as a registered sex offender, authorities said.
Taylor, 62, was booked into the Broward County jail Thursday on two counts of failing to alert authorities to an address change, according to court records. He turned himself in after Pembroke Pines police informed him of an active warrant for his arrest. Taylor was released shortly after his booking on $500 bail.
Taylor’s attorney, Arthur Aidala, said in statement that Taylor has been compliant with all the rules and regulations regarding his legal status for the past decade.
“Sadly he is in the middle of a divorce and his local police department suggested it would be best if he slept at a nearby hotel,” Aidala said. “Mr. Taylor was constantly a resident of the marital home where he was registered, but on advice of local law enforcement he was sleeping outside the home. We are confident that this will be resolved favorably for Lawrence at the first court hearing.”
Taylor pleaded guilty in New York in 2011 to misdemeanor criminal charges of sexual misconduct and patronizing an underage prostitute. He was sentenced to six years of probation and ordered to register as a sex offender.
Taylor spent his entire 13-season career with the New York Giants and helped the team win Super Bowl titles in 1987 and 1991.
BILLS: New York Governor Kathy Hochul expressed confidence she can reach a deal involving hundreds of millions of dollars in public funding to build a new stadium for the Buffalo Bills in time to be included on the state’s budget due in April.
Hochul said she has provided the team two timelines to negotiate an agreement by either the end of the year or extend talks through March. The governor added the Bills will have the final say whether to have the new facility based near their current home in Orchard Park or downtown.
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