The NFL season has yet to officially kick-off, but players are already starting to opt-out at alarming rates. The Patriots might have taken the biggest hit in terms of losing guys, but Bill Belichick is going to do his thing. Let’s dive into some of the news from around the league this week.
Top News This Week
- Chargers’ DE Joey Bosa, who is in search of a new contract with the team, did show up for his COVID-19 testing as scheduled. The new collective bargaining agreement makes holdouts punishable, so Bosa decided to show up on time.
- Just three hours ahead of the deadline, Jaguars veteran CB Rashaan Melvin has decided to opt-out of the 2020 season. Players have until 4PM Easter time to decide whether or not they will be participating in the NFL season.
- The NFLPA announced that COVID-19 testing yielded only 56 positive tests for the nearly 2600 players that were tested. That means that only 2 percent of all players tested came back with positive results, which is an encouraging sign for professional sports.
- The Bill made a little bit of an adjustment to the contract of Stefon Diggs this past week. They increased his 2020 compensation by $3.3 million and reduced his 2021 cash by $300k. They also increased his guaranteed by $7.7 million in the process. Diggs’ 2022-2023 cash goes down from $25.55 to $22.67 million.
- Steelers’ QB Ben Roethlisberger talked about this injury from last year that held him out for the season. Big Ben apparently tore three flexor tendons off of the bone and had elbow surgery that he believes no QB has ever come back from. While it was not necessarily Tommy John surgery, it is somewhat familiar and very serious. He says that he is feeling great and ready to go for the season.
Browns’ Wide Receiver Odell Beckham Jr does not believe that a 2020 NFL season should even be happening at this point. He later backtracked and reiterated that he would still be playing regardless.
Odell Beckham Jr. told the Wall Street Journal that he doesn't think the 2020 NFL season should happen. pic.twitter.com/2sF0DDsfUE
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 3, 2020
List of Opt-Outs for the Season(So Far)
VOLUNTARY OPT-OUTS
Baltimore Ravens: KR De’Anthony Thomas, OL Andre Smith
Buffalo Bills: DT Star Lotulelei, CB E.J. Gaines
Dallas Cowboys: CB Maurice Canady, WR Stephen Guidry
Green Bay Packers: WR Devin Funchess
Houston Texans: DT Eddie Vanderdoes
Jacksonville Jaguars: EDGE Lerentee McCray, CB Rashaan Melvin
Kansas City Chiefs: OL Laurent Duvernay-Tardif
Miami Dolphins: WR Allen Hurns, WR Albert Wilson
New England Patriots: LB Dont’a Hightower, FB Dan Vitale, RB Brandon Bolden, OL Najee Toran, WR Marqise Lee
Philadelphia Eagles: WR Marquise Goodwin
San Francisco 49ers: WR Travis Benjamin
Seattle Seahawks: OL Chance Warmack
Tennessee Titans: OL Anthony McKinney
HIGHER RISK OPT-OUTS
Arizona Cardinals: OL Marcus Gilbert
Carolina Panthers: LB Christian Miller
Cleveland Browns: OL Colby Gossett
Los Angeles Rams: OT Chandler Brewer
Minnesota Vikings: DT Michael Pierce
New England Patriots: OL Marcus Cannon
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: OT Brad Seaton
Washington Football Team: DE Caleb Brantley
UNSPECIFIED OPT-OUTS
Carolina Panthers: LB Jordan Mack
Chicago Bears: DT Eddie Goldman, S Jordan Lucas
Cincinnati Bengals: DT Josh Tupou, OT Isaiah Prince
Cleveland Browns: G Drew Forbes, T Drake Dorbeck, DT Andrew Billings, G Malcolm Pridgeon
Dallas Cowboys: FB Jamize Olawale
Denver Broncos: DT Kyle Peko, RT Ja’Wuan James
Detroit Lions: DT John Atkins, WR Geronimo Allison, C Russell Bodine
Indianapolis Colts: LB Skai Moore, DB Rolan Milligan, DB Marvell Tell
Jacksonville Jaguars: DT Al Woods
Kansas City Chiefs: RB Damien Williams, OT Lucas Niang
Las Vegas Raiders: DB D.J. Killings, DE Jeremiah Valoaga, LB Ukeme Eligwe
New England Patriots: S Patrick Chung, TE Matt LaCosse
New Orleans Saints: TE Jason Vander Laan, TE Cole Wick
New York Giants: OL Nate Solder, WR Da’Mari Scott, CB Sam Beal
New York Jets: OL Leo Koloamatangi, LB C.J. Mosley
Washington Football Team: LB Josh Harvey-Clemons
All of that news and more, this week in the NFL! Check back weekly with GMS Sports for the most up-to-date information on your favorite sports.
