Week two is officially in the books but there are already a lot of season altering things that have happened thus far.
Former Oakland Raiders and now New England Patriots wide receiver Antonio Brown dominated the NFL news cycle with the report of rape charges alleged against him and then a Sports Illustrated piece alleges even more sexual misconduct that came out on Monday.
But all of that aside, here are the craziest things that have happened in the NFL in the last four days.
Quarterback Reshuffling
Just by playing the odds, you can pretty much be assured there will be a catastrophic injury to at least one star player – usually a quarterback. It’s the type of injury that will be the end of the season for the team in most cases.
But you wouldn’t think it would be two tier-one veterans like Ben Roethlisberger and Drew Brees. Pittsburgh Steelers two-time Super Bowl champion, Roethlisberger, is out for the remainder of the year and will undergo Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow.
Initial reports are not promising and it could very well be the end of Roethlisberger for the 37-year-old not just because of his age, but also due to the fact that throwing a football after Tommy John surgery isn’t the same as being an MLB pitcher. Footballs are heavier and some analysts believe he’ll only be able to throw ball 35 yards, if that. Sunday may have been the last game of his career.
The New Orleans Saints were inarguably Super Bowl contenders this year, but not when the star quarterback, Drew Brees, tore ligaments in his thumb. The injury has a six week timeline but at that point it might already be a season lost for the Saints.
It’s the end of an era for the New York Giants. The Giants officially announced on Tuesday that two-time Super Bowl Champion Eli Manning will be benched in favor of the number six overall pick in this past draft, Daniel Jones, who had a phenomenal preseason.
Mad Defensive Players
Antonio Brown’s off-the-field antics while he was an Oakland Raider not only worked to get him out of his contract to sign with the New England Patriots, but it rubbed off on other players as well.
Miami Dolphins safety Minkah Fitzpatrick asked the team for a trade and then on Tuesday the Pittsburgh Steelers made the best offer including giving up a first round pick for him.
Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey got into an on-field argument with head coach Doug Marrone during Sunday’s game with the Houston, Texans. Ramsey asked the team to trade him but the Jaguars are asking absurdly for two first round picks in exchange for maybe the best corner in the league. However, Ramsey is on the verge of a big contract (or extension) and not only will the team that trades for him have to give up a lot of draft capital but they’ll also have to pay him a lot of money. The price may be too steep for Ramsey.
The New York Jets and Cleveland Browns faced off on Monday Night Football to cap off week two. It was one of the worst games in the fifty-year history of the program. Quarterback Sam Darnold was out due to being diagnosed with Mononucleosis, which meant backup Trevor Siemian took over, but that didn’t last long because he left the game in the first quarter because of a leg injury. The third stringer wasn’t any good either.
It was one-sided the whole way but the leader of the defense for the New York Jets, Jamal Adams, was benched late in the game. And then Adams reportedly unfollowed the team on Instagram. That might seem like a non-story but look for Adams ask to be traded in the coming days.
Many analysts and talking heads say this has been the craziest week in the entire history of the NFL. It was one catastrophic injury after another, on top of all the frustrated players with their teams. This might turn off millions of fans, especially when it already looks like a foregone conclusion the New England Patriots will win the Super Bowl once again.