PANTHERS CB JAYCEE HORN NOT SERIOUSLY INJURED IN CAR ACCIDENT, IS DAY TO DAY WITH THUMB INJURY
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn escaped serious injury on Wednesday morning after being involved in a car accident on his way to the team’s stadium.
Horn injured his left thumb and sat out a joint practice with the Cleveland Browns.
Panthers coach Dave Canales said Horn will be day to day moving forward.
“I’m glad that Jaycee was OK,” Canales said. “He did have to have a few stitches in his left thumb area. So they got that all cleaned up and sutured up. … It doesn’t seem like anything else happened, but you know we’re just gonna kind of evaluate him each day.”
Canales said Horn will not play in Friday night’s preseason game against the Browns, but hopes to have him available for the team’s second preseason game against Houston on Aug. 16.
“Hopefully we can get him turned around so we can take advantage of an opportunity in Houston for that game, which was kind of the plan all along,” Canales said.
Horn was alone in his car when the incident occurred at an intersection just outside the stadium. The team announced that no one involved in the incident was transported by emergency medical personnel. Horn was later evaluated by team medical personnel.
Horn took in practice from the sideline in street clothes and was seen moving around and joking with teammates.
The Panthers signed Horn to a $100 million contract extension earlier this offseason, which at the time made him the league’s highest-paid cornerback. Horn was the eighth overall pick in the 2021 draft by the Panthers out of South Carolina.
ROOKIE QB SHEDEUR SANDERS TO START IN BROWNS PRESEASON OPENER AGAINST THE PANTHERS
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Rookie Shedeur Sanders will start Cleveland’s preseason opener Friday night against the Carolina Panthers.
Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said Tyler Huntley, who signed with team earlier this week, is also expected to play if he can get up to speed with the playbook. Joe Flacco, Cleveland’s projected starting quarterback this season, is healthy but will not play. Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel will sit out while rehabbing from injuries, Stefanski said.
“My expectation for Shedeur is no different than the rest of the guys,” Stefanski said prior to the team’s joint practice with the Panthers. “I just expect him to go out and operate. When you get in these preseason games you try to keep it very simple so guys can play very fast. It’s all concepts that these guys know and don’t have to think too much about.”
Stefanski was initially coy during his news conference when asked directly if Sanders would start, saying “we’re going to work through it. (Huntley) just got here yesterday and I want to see how he is doing with the terminology.”
However, the Browns communications staff confirmed later to The Associated Press that Sanders will start.
Pickett and Gabriel were scheduled to participate in 7-on-7 drills in practice, but not team drills.
The 6-foot-1, 212-pound Sanders fell to the fifth round of the NFL draft after winning the 2024 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm award following his final season playing for his father Deion Sanders at Colorado. Sanders remains fourth on the Browns’ depth chart, but injuries have increased his reps in practice. He took some reps with the second team in practice Wednesday.
Sanders has had some recent shoulder soreness, but Stefanski said that is no longer an issue.
Sanders played two seasons at Jackson State before transferring to Colorado, where he played for two more seasons. He played in 50 games in college, completing 1,267 of 1,808 passes for 14,353 yards with 134 touchdowns and 27 interceptions. He also ran for 17 touchdowns.
Panthers coach Dave Canales had previously said Bryce Young will start at quarterback against the Browns, a notable change from last year. The 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick did not play in the first two preseason games last year and only saw action in one series in the preseason finale.
Carolina’s starters are expected to play one or two series against the Browns, per Canales.
Canales said his decision was based on having a young team, adding that he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get players some reps and develop some chemistry.
Young said he’s “super excited” about the chance to play more in the preseason.
“Every year we’re a new team, so I think it’s just a great opportunity for us to, at the first opportunity we can, get out there and try to establish ourselves, get more and more comfortable (and) get reps,” Young said. “I think it’ll be a great thing for myself, for all of us, just to kind of get our feet wet a little bit in the preseason.”
Young wouldn’t say if not playing much in the preseason contributed to his slow in 2024.
He was benched two games into the season after the team started 0-2 and was outscored 73-13 by the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Chargers. He didn’t return to the starting lineup until Oct. 27 after Andy Dalton injured his thumb in a car accident midseason.
Young said he didn’t have any input with Canales in the decision to play more in the preseason this year.
“I trust the coaches and the decisions they make,” Young said. “I’m sure that they look at things from a year-to-year basis, whatever they feel like the team needs. Whatever decision is made, that’s the best for the team. There’s no pointing fingers, there’s no blaming. And again, all that’s last year. This was a decision for this year. I’m excited for it, and that’s all I’m focused on.”
CAM WARD, TRAVIS HUNTER AND ASHTON JEANTY ARE AMONG THE NFL ROOKIES TO WATCH THIS SEASON
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Impressive and fantastic are a couple of the words that have been used to describe Tennessee quarterback Cam Ward as the No. 1-overall pick in April’s draft takes over as the starter for a franchise that won just three games last season.
Yes, the preseason means many rookies will be surrounded by the hype that made them top draft picks, even if some might be tagged already as potential busts soon to be forgotten. Ward isn’t the only one being watched closely to see how his first NFL season turns out.
Travis Hunter will have to show he really can play wide receiver and cornerback in the NFL, just like he did in winning the Heisman Trophy at Colorado. The Las Vegas Raiders certainly hope Ashton Jeanty runs through defenses like he did at Boise State.
Abdul Carter won’t have to carry the New York Giants’ pass rush by himself.
Then there’s Shedeur Sanders, who was projected to be a first-round selection but who wasn’t taken until the fifth round by Cleveland. After his draft slide, everybody will be monitoring what Sanders does all season long.
Here’s a closer look at some of the NFL rookies to watch this season:
Cam Ward
The Titans tried to temper expectations for the rookie during the offseason. They embraced giving him as much work as possible and listed him as the starter to start the preseason with Will Levis’ decision to have season-ending shoulder surgery.
Ward has shown the ability to adapt quickly after playing at three different colleges. He set a Division I record with 158 touchdown passes in his career. He threw for 18,184 yards during his college career while running for 473 yards and 20 more TDs. He became an AP All-American at Miami.
Titans coach Brian Callahan, who worked with Joe Burrow as a rookie in Cincinnati as the Bengals’ offensive coordinator, has studied how other top picks fared in their rookie seasons at quarterback, hoping to help Ward avoid missteps.
“There’s really no stone unturned when it comes to getting a rookie quarterback ready,” Callahan said. “And there’s nowhere I won’t look for potential edges or advice or anything like that. So it’s been a fun process for sure.”
Travis Hunter
Yes, Jacksonville plans to give the man they traded up to select at No. 2 overall a chance to play both offense and defense in the NFL. The Jaguars have Hunter listed as a starting wide receiver and a backup cornerback to start the preseason.
Hunter is getting plenty of work with the offense, where the Jaguars want Hunter to help receiver Brian Thomas Jr. and franchise quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
Jacksonville also is making sure Hunter gets practice time on defense. Hunter did join Charles Woodson (1997) as the only full-time defensive players to win the Heisman Trophy. The Jags have packages for the rookie to contribute defensively.
“He’s still learning,” Jaguars coach Liam Coen said.
Ashton Jeanty
The Raiders finished last in the NFL in 2024 by managing just 79.8 yards rushing per game. That’s why they selected Jeanty at No. 6 overall and made him the highest-drafted running back since Saquon Barkley was taken No. 2 overall in 2018 by the Giants.
Jeanty’s production easily won over the Raiders, overcoming concerns about his size at 5-foot-8 and 208 pounds. Jeanty led the nation by rushing for 2,601 yards and 29 TDs last season, averaging 7.0 yards on 374 carries.
He just missed Barry Sanders’ college record set in 1988 by 27 yards and finished second to Hunter in the Heisman voting.
Now Jeanty just has to prove he can help the Raiders run in the AFC West.
Abdul Carter
Unlike Ward, who got Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon’s permission to wear his No. 1, Carter was sacked by Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor in his quest to wear No. 56 even though he came to the Giants after 12 sacks at Penn State and after leading the nation with 23 1/2 tackles for loss last year.
The third-overall pick in April won’t have the pressure of carrying the Giants’ pass rush, a unit that features three-time Pro Bowl tackle Dexter Lawrence and edge rushers Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux. The 6-3, 250-pound Carter will have the chance to be rested and strong throughout games.
Shedeur Sanders
Projected to be drafted as high as No. 2, Sanders had to wait until No. 144 overall to hear his name called during the draft.
Now the quarterback is at the back end of a crowded quarterback room. The Browns have him fourth on the depth chart behind veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel, a third-round pick.
But it is Cleveland, where four different quarterbacks started at least one game during the 2024 season.
COMMANDERS QB JAYDEN DANIELS WILL NOT PLAY IN EXHIBITION OPENER AGAINST PATRIOTS
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels will not play in Washington’s exhibition opener at New England, coach Dan Quinn said.
Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota was among multiple players that did not travel. Mariota is working through a lower leg strain, Quinn said. That means quarterbacks Josh Johnson and Sam Hartman will handle the offense in Friday’s game.
But Quinn said Daniels was expected to have a sizable workload during Wednesday’s practice, as would several others. He added that other players who received heavy reps would also not play Friday.
Among those not making the trip was receiver Terry McLaurin, who is on the physically unable to perform list with an ankle injury in addition to “holding in” as contract talks continue.
BUFFALO BILLS RELEASE LINEBACKER BAYLON SPECTOR FOLLOWING LATEST INJURY TO 4TH-YEAR PLAYER
PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills released oft-injured linebacker Baylon Spector on Wednesday, two days after the fourth-year player was sidelined by a calf injury.
Spector was designated as waived/injured, essentially ending the once-promising player’s tenure in Buffalo.
A seventh-round pick in the 2022 draft out of Clemson, Spector showed flashes of potential to fill the Bills primary backup linebacker spot behind starters Matt Milano and Terrel Bernard. Injuries, however, derailed his development. The 26-year-old Spector was limited to appearing in 26 games, including four starts, and spent four stints on the injured reserve list over three seasons.
Spector entered camp competing for a backup spot with veteran offseason free agent addition Shaq Thompson and second-year players Joe Andreessen and Edefuan Ulofoshio.
The Bills filled the roster spot by signing linebacker Jimmy Ciarlo, a 2024 undrafted rookie free agent out of Army. He spent his rookie season on the New York Jets injured reserve list after being hurt in a preseason game.
49ERS’ GEORGE KITTLE ‘DISTRAUGHT’ OVER BAN OF SMELLING SALTS
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is making a stink about the NFL’s recent ban on smelling salts.
Kittle interrupted an NFL Network interview at training camp on Tuesday to “air a grievance” about the policy.
“Our team had a memo today that smelling salts and ammonia packets were made illegal in the NFL, and I’ve been distraught all day,” said Kittle, who added that he uses the substances on “every drive.”
Starting this season, teams are prohibited from “providing or supplying ammonia in any form” on game days either on the field or in the locker room, according to the league memo.
“In 2024, the FDA issued a warning to companies that produce commercially available ammonia inhalants (AIs), as well as to consumers about the purchase and use of AIs, regarding the lack of evidence supporting the safety or efficacy of AIs marketed for improving mental alertness or boosting energy,” the memo says, per ESPN. “The FDA noted potential negative effects from AI use. AIs also have the potential to mask certain neurological signs and symptoms, including some potential signs of concussion.”
Kittle, 31, is far from the only NFL player who regularly uses smelling salts. That includes athletes in other sports, including ice hockey.
The six-time Pro Bowler said he has always used them for a boost of energy, joking that the change made him consider hanging up his cleats.
“I considered retirement,” Kittle said. “We have got to figure out a middle ground here, guys. Somebody help me out. Somebody come up with a good idea. That’s all I had to get out there. Get that off my chest.”
REPORTS: ESPN EXTENDS NFL DRAFT RIGHTS THROUGH 2030
ESPN will remain the home of the NFL draft through 2030, multiple media outlets reported on Wednesday.
ESPN’s draft rights had expired after the 2025 event in Green Bay.
The extension came in the wake of this week’s news that ESPN is selling a 10 percent equity stake to the NFL.
The NFL confirmed a “multi-year extension” on Wednesday but did not provide a specific end date.
The year 2030 is significant as it will mark the 50th edition of the draft on ESPN, which launched in 1979 and began broadcasting the event the following year.
Starting with the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, Disney+ and Hulu will also begin streaming draft coverage.
REPORT: RAMS’ MATTHEW STAFFORD ON TRACK FOR ON-FIELD WORK THIS WEEK
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is in line to resume working out this week, Pro Football Talk reported Wednesday.
Stafford received an epidural to address a back injury and has been considered week-to-week by head coach Sean McVay.
NFL Network reported that Stafford is nursing an aggravated disc, however the former Super Bowl champion remains in the plan to take the field for the Rams’ season opener against the Houston Texans on Sept. 7 in Inglewood, Calif.
Stafford, 37, completed 340 of 517 passes (65.8 percent) for 3,762 yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions while starting all 16 games that he played in 2024. He also was 45 of 71 (63.4 percent) for 533 yards, four TDs and no picks in two playoff games last season.
A two-time Pro Bowl selection, Stafford has completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 59,809 yards, 377 TDs and 188 interceptions in 222 regular-season games (all starts) with the Detroit Lions (2009-20) and Rams. The Lions selected him with the first overall pick of the 2009 NFL Draft out of Georgia.
Stafford led the Rams to a 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI.
REPORT: STEELERS QB WILL HOWARD BREAKS FINGER, COULD MISS PRESEASON
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Will Howard broke the pinky finger on his throwing hand and is out indefinitely, The Athletic reported.
The rookie left practice early Tuesday after suffering the right-hand injury, which is believed to have occurred as he took the ball from the center at training camp in Latrobe, Pa.
NFL Network said Howard was having additional tests but would miss at least three weeks.
That timeline would knock Howard out of preseason games, where he had hoped to compete with Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson for the backup job to Aaron Rodgers.
Now, his preseason learning is likely to come by watching veterans Rodgers and Rudolph and not through getting preseason reps. Howard, 23, was expected to get a long look in the preseason opener on Saturday in Jacksonville.
Pittsburgh selected Howard in the sixth round of April’s NFL draft out of Ohio State, where he led the Buckeyes to a national championship in his lone season at the school.
In four seasons at Kansas State and one at Ohio State, Howard threw for 9,796 yards, 83 touchdowns and 35 interceptions, including 4,010 yards, 35 TDs and 10 picks in 16 games last year.
GIANTS QB RUSSELL WILSON TOUTS BRIAN DABOLL’S ‘BEAUTIFUL MIND’
He has yet to throw a pass in a game setting for the New York Giants, but new quarterback Russell Wilson, a 10-time Pro Bowler, is already singing the praises of head coach Brian Daboll’s offensive knowledge and understanding.
He expressed his thoughts on Daboll and other topics while speaking with reporters on Wednesday.
“Daboll’s got a beautiful mind, how he sees the game, he’s coached tremendous football players, he’s won Super Bowls, he’s been around winning — national championships, all that stuff,” Wilson said. “… I think that the best part is in terms of the knowledge and what we get to share back and forth is pretty cool.
“… Just over the years, all my experience, his experience, how we see the game the same way.”
Wilson also sang the praises of assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, who will continue calling plays for the Giants in 2025.
“Obviously Kaf’s played the game, played the position, he sees it like the quarterback does and he’s got a great viewpoint of the game,” said Wilson. “We get to spend a lot of time together in the quarterback room and I think Kaf is a really brilliant mind, too.
“I think the ability to share ideas, the collaboration, is what’s really special here.”
Kafka, with the Giants’ coaching staff since 2022, also highlighted the importance of communication with his new pivot.
“Yeah, just opening up (those) lines of communication, having dialogue on plays that he likes, things that I like, things that are within the offense already, maybe there’s some crossover, maybe there’s some new thoughts,” said the former journeyman QB. “It’s just about opening those lines of communication.”
After two down years with the Denver Broncos in 2022 and 2023, Wilson started 11 regular-season games for the playoff-bound Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024, posting a 6-5 record while passing for 2,482 yards (225.6 per game), 16 touchdowns and five interceptions. He added another two scores on the ground.
Now the 2013 Super Bowl champion is adapting to another new team in New York and transitioning well.
“It’s going great,” said Wilson. “I think guys are working their butts off, man. We’re battling every day, going against a really good defense every day, too, so it’s even better.
“You always want practice to be harder than the games, that mentality of that. … I think we’re getting better every day.”
Wilson has also expressed his eagerness to play alongside talented second-year receiver Malik Nabers.
“I mean, that was (the) first thing I told you guys when I watched him on film. … It was just his explosiveness,” said Wilson of the 2024 sixth overall pick out of LSU. “Once he catches the football, there’s only so many people in the world that can do it like he can and I think he’s one of the best in the world to do it.
“He’s going into a second year of it all and it’s all fresh and all new, but he’s definitely experienced in terms of how he sees the game, his mentality attacking the football in the air. … It’s going to be a special thing. I’m excited to play with him, obviously.”
At age 36, Wilson added that he’s already enjoying playing for his fourth NFL team.
“I love this locker room, the guys, just the fellowship that we have together all the way from the lunchroom to the film room after practice,” Wilson said. “…It’s been great, man. I am truly grateful to be a New York Giant.”
