Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott “seems very focused” a day after getting the news he is eligible to play in Sunday night’s season opener against the New York Giants even though an arbitrator upheld his six-game suspension handed down by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
Elliott was on the practice field Wednesday for the only padded practice of the week, but his eligibility to play beyond Week 1 remained in question.
“He seems very focused, locked in on meetings, the walk-through,” Cowboys coach Jason Garrett told reporters. “We’ll have a good practice today. He’s done an excellent job in his preparation.”
Elliott’s six-game suspension for violation of the NFL’s domestic-violence policy was upheld by league arbitrator Harold Henderson on Tuesday. The second-year running back will be allowed to play Sunday because of the timing of the announcement.
— Six practices, no limits: Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco claims he’s ready for the Cincinnati Bengals and Week 1 of the regular season after idling for more than a month to calm a balky back.
“It’s not ideal,” Flacco said Wednesday. “I feel good now and I’m ready to go.”
General manager Ozzie Newsome and head coach John Harbaugh followed medical instruction to give Flacco ample rest to avoid dealing with his back injury into the regular season. The injury report and injured list dominated storylines for the Ravens in 2016. Losing Flacco for an extended period would be catastrophic for a team without a proven backup to take the reins.
— Quarterback Tyrod Taylor cleared concussion protocol and will start in the regular-season opener for Buffalo Bills against the New York Jets on Sunday.
“We expect him to start on Sunday,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said Wednesday morning.
Taylor was sidelined Aug. 26, when he sustained a concussion against the Baltimore Ravens.
— An impressive preseason from No. 2 overall pick Mitchell Trubisky forced the Chicago Bears to promote him from third on the depth chart.
“He’s one play away,” offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains said Wednesday in confirming Trubisky had leapfrogged Mark Sanchez to become Mike Glennon’s top backup at the position.
Trubisky completed 67 percent of his passes in the preseason and showed more mobility and overall athletic ability than some draft evaluators credited him for; even head coach John Fox, not prone to hyperbole, said the team was impressed.
— Former All-Pro linebacker Ray Lewis claims the Baltimore Ravens were close to signing Colin Kaepernick before the free agent quarterback’s girlfriend posted a “racist” tweet featuring Lewis and team owner Steve Bisciotti.
Lewis made his comments on Showtime’s “Inside the NFL” on Tuesday night. He is a new regular analyst on the weekly program.
“We were going to close the deal to sign him,” Lewis said of his former team. “Steve Bisciotti said, ‘I want to hear Colin Kaepernick speak to let me know that he wants to play football.’ And it never happens because that picture comes up the next day.”
Lewis described the Aug. 2 tweet by Nessa Diab as “racist” that compared a picture of Lewis hugging Bisciotti to a scene from “Django Unchained.” In the movie scene, actor Samuel L. Jackson portrayed a loyal house slave held by Leonardo DiCaprio’s cruel plantation owner character.
— J.J. Watt’s online fundraiser to aid flood victims of Hurricane Harvey is now over $27 million and the Houston Texans All-Pro defensive end says Sunday’s season opener is “going to be special.”
A $5 million donation from the Texas-based H-E-B grocery chain on Wednesday is the largest to the online campaign started by Watt, continuing to surpass his target goals from more than 189,000 donors at YouCaring.com.
H-E-B president Scott McClelland presented Watt with the check on behalf of company owner Charles Butt.
“There are no words to describe when someone steps up to the plate like this,” Watt said.
— Twenty-one game officials attained full-time status in a landmark move by the NFL designed to be a pilot program for expansion if successful.
The league dictated in a decision announced Wednesday that officiating must be the “top professional priority” of all full-time NFL game officials, but other jobs are still permitted. For example, Walt Anderson, one of four referees granted full-time status, remains the Big 12 Conference officiating coordinator.
According to the NFL Referees Association, the benefit of full-time officials would be in the offseason, when additional training and on-field work could be done to incorporate rules changes and address new or added emphasis to existing game measures.
— Rookie defensive end Myles Garrett was unable to finish Wednesday’s practice with the Cleveland Browns due to an ankle injury and his status for Sunday’s regular-season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers is uncertain.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft dealt with lower leg and foot issues at Texas A&M and tweaked his left foot this summer.
With the Aggies, Garrett had a high ankle sprain in 2016 and spent time in a walking boot.
— New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. did not practice Wednesday because of his lingering ankle injury, but he still hopes to play in Sunday night’s regular-season opener against the Dallas Cowboys.
“Wouldn’t count it out,” Beckham said regarding the possibility he will play Sunday.
Beckham was present at practice Wednesday but did not participate. He did some light jogging without a brace, and said his left ankle is feeling better.
He said he would not play if he needed a brace or extensive taping. Beckham assessed his status as day-to-day.
— The Cincinnati Bengals bolstered their defensive line by acquiring defensive tackle Christian Ringo on waivers from the Green Bay Packers.
Ringo, 25, played eight games for the Packers in 2016, totaling seven tackles and a forced fumble. The former sixth-round pick from Louisiana-Lafayette spent the entire 2015 campaign on the Green Bay practice squad.
Ringo joins a defensive tackle group in Cincinnati that also includes Geno Atkins, Andrew Billings, Ryan Glasgow and Pat Sims.