The Dallas Cowboys acquired veteran defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins from Las Vegas in a move to bolster the run defense for one of the NFL’s best units, a person with knowledge of the trade said Tuesday.

Dallas is giving the Raiders a sixth-round pick in next year’s draft and getting a seventh-rounder in 2024, the person told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal hasn’t been announced.

Hankins was a healthy scratch two weeks ago in his third season with the Raiders, with one start in the five games he has played.

The 30-year-old Hankins was drafted in the second round by the New York Giants in 2013. He didn’t get a second contract there, spending 2017 with Indianapolis before joining the Raiders.

The Cowboys lead the NFL with 29 sacks and had a season-high five takeaways in last week’s 24-6 victory over Detroit, pushing that total to 12.

The closest thing to a weakness for the Dallas defense has been against the run. The Cowboys are ranked sixth overall, but 20th in run defense.

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Hankins has 366 total tackles with 36 tackles for loss over 10 seasons.

REFEREES: The NFL says the two game officials seen interacting with Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans in the tunnel of Bank of America Stadium after the Buccaneers’ 21-3 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday didn’t ask for an autograph.

“After speaking with the individuals involved, we have confirmed that the postgame interaction between Jeff Lamberth, Tripp Sutter and Mike Evans did not involve a request by the game officials for an autograph,” the league said in a statement. “Both Lamberth and Sutter have been reminded of the importance of avoiding even the appearance of impropriety when interacting with players, coaches, and club staff on gameday – including during the pregame and postgame time periods.”

A reporter captured a video of Lamberth and Sutter approaching Evans as he made his way toward the locker room at the stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.

There was a short, inaudible exchange between the game officials and Evans, before the four-time Pro Bowl wideout turns around and is handed a slip of paper.

A second video appears to show Evans writing something as Lamberth stood next to him while Tampa Bay players walked past them to the locker room.

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According to the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and the NFL Referees Association, game officials are not allowed to “ask players, coaches or any other team personnel for autographs or memorabilia.”

In addition, game officials are not allowed “to sell or trade NFL tickets for anything of greater value than the face value of the tickets” or “sell or trade for anything of value NFL merchandise, autographs or memorabilia.”

The CBA goes on to stipulate that game officials may need to obtain player autographs or team merchandise or memorabilia for personal or charitable purposes, but said that such requests should be made through the officiating department and never to a player or team employee directly.

TITANS:  The Tennessee Titans’ proposed domed stadium would seat approximately 60,000 people and cover 1.7 million square feet under renderings released.

The renderings follow last week’s announcement that the Titans had reached an agreement with the Nashville mayor for local funding. That final piece of $760 million in bonds still must be approved by the Metro Nashville Council and Metro Sports Authority.

The new stadium would cost $1.2 billion in public funding, including $500 million in state bonds, and is considered to be the largest public commitment for an NFL stadium to date.

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The Titans had MANICA, an architecture firm based in Kansas City, design the renderings to help with site planning and cost estimates with help from Hastings, an architecture firm in Nashville. The team wants the new stadium to be a multipurpose building to host events throughout the year.

FALCONS: The Atlanta Falcons released defensive tackle Marlon Davidson, a second-round draft pick in 2020, from their reserve/injured list.

Davidson was placed on injured reserve on Sept. 1 following knee surgery. He started only one of 19 games in two seasons with Atlanta. He had 21 tackles with one sack and one interception in 2021 and had not been active for a game this season.

The Falcons, dealing with a depleted secondary, signed cornerback BoPete Keyes to the practice squad. Outside linebacker Jordan Brailford was released from the practice squad.

CHIEFS: Defensive end Frank Clark was suspended two games by the NFL after pleading no contest last month to two counts of misdemeanor possession of an assault weapon in Los Angeles.

The league announced the suspension as the Chiefs (5-2) head into their bye week. He will miss games against the Titans and Jaguars and will be allowed back with the team on Nov. 14 in time for that week’s game against the Chargers.

The three-time Pro Bowl pass rusher was sentenced to one year of probation and 40 hours of community service after he was arrested in March 2021, when he was pulled over while riding with another man in a vehicle that did not have a license plate. An officer noticed a weapon in the car and recovered two loaded firearms.

Three months later, Clark was pulled over for a code violation and officers discovered another gun in his vehicle.


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