Page 20 - Florida Sentinel 8-28-20

Sports
Mike Evans And Others Are Already Singing The Praises Of Tom Brady
MIKE EVANS AND TOM BRADY
Dalvin Cook, Vikings Reportedly Break Off Contract Talks
Odell Beckham, Jr. Looking ‘Explosive’ For Browns
If Tom Brady was nerv- ous at all about joining a new team after 20 years with the New England Patriots, it doesn’t seem to be showing.
With training camp now officially underway, the new Buccaneers quarterback seems right at home in his new digs and threads. The Tampa Bay signal-caller will be leading one of the league’s best offenses this year, giv- ing him perhaps one of the most talented rosters he’s ever had to work with.
And Brady is already making an impression on his teammates. When he’s not photobombing Devin White, Brady has been
dishing out deep balls and advice to his receivers, many of whom have been singing his praises, including wide receiver Mike Evans.
And second-year receiver Scotty Miller, who caught a deep pass from Brady in the team’s first padded prac- tice, says the future Hall of Famer has been giving out great tips for how to run routes.
It’s clear Brady is al- ready making his mark on this squad. While it’s disap- pointing we won’t get to see them in action in any presea- son games, fans can look for- ward to what’s coming in the 2020 regular season.
Cook’s representatives and the Vikings had been negotiat- ing a deal during training camp, but those talks broke off last week. Negotiations could resume at some point, but Cook says he is focusing all his attention on preparing for Week 1.
Cook is set to make $1.33M this season in the final year of his rookie deal. He is underpaid for a running back who had 1,135 yards and 13 touchdowns in 14 games last season with 53 catches for 519 yards. If the Vikings are unable to sign him to a long-term deal, they have the option of using the fran- chise tag on him next offseason.
Majority Of NFL Executives Confident In Having Full Season
Dalvin Cook wants a long-term con- tract extension from the Min- nesota Vikings, but it does not sound like he is close to get- ting it.
DALVIN COOK
Odell Beckham, Jr. is in for a big season for the Cleve- land Browns, if one source is to be believed.
A Browns source reported that Beckham is looking “healthy” and poised for a huge season. The source specifically said that Beck- ham looks “explosive.”
Beckham is entering his second season with the Browns after being traded to Cleveland last year. He had 74
ODELL BECKHAM, JR.
catches for 1,035 yards and four touchdowns last season while playing through an in- jury that required surgery.
Bashaud Breeland
NFL teams have now had time to adjust to the new coro- navirus health and safety pro- tocols that are in place. The reaction has largely been pos- itive, and there is plenty of op- timism that there will be a full 2020 season.
Kalyn Kahler of Bleacher Report polled 20 coaches, executives and scouts across the NFL to gauge how confident they are in having a complete season. The majority — 16 to be exact — said they believe there will be a full season.
“I feel a lot more confident
than I did before we got in the building and saw all the pro- tocols that we have,” one team executive told Kahler. “(I’m) confident we will have a sea- son with playoffs and a Super Bowl, whether it is 16 games, or 12 or 14. I have complete confidence that we will have a season.”
One of the executives who believes the NFL won’t finish the season still said he feels safer at his team’s facility than anywhere else outside his own home. Another praised his team’s commitment to follow- ing the new protocols.
Facing Four-Game
Suspension For
Drug Violation
The Kansas
City Chiefs will
likely be with-
out one of their
top defensive
players to start
the season, as Bashaud
Breeland is BASHAUD facing a sus- BREELAND pension.
Breeland is facing a four- game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance abuse pol- icy. The suspension appears to be unrelated to the corner- back’s arrest earlier this offsea- son.
Breeland was arrested back in April in South Carolina on multiple drug- and alcohol- related charges. His lawyers hinted that excessive force was used in the arrest. A video from the incident showed an officer pull his gun on Breeland at a gas station.
Not long after the arrest that Breeland was facing a suspension for an unrelated vi- olation.
Cowboys Flagged Gerald
McCoy’s Quad As An Issue
Prior To Signing Him
Gerald McCoy suffered a torn quad muscle on Monday that will end his season, and the injury may not have come as a big surprise to the Dallas Cowboys.
The Cowboys last Tuesday released McCoy with an in- jury waiver and only ended up paying him his $3 million signing bonus. If that sounds like the Cowboys got off easy considering they signed McCoy to a 3-year, $18 mil- lion deal, it’s because they did, and it’s due to some due dili- gence.
According to NFL reporter Jim Trotter, the Cowboys had specific language in their contract waiver for McCoy about the defensive lineman’s
GERALD MCCOY
quad. That’s because McCoy previously had issues with his quad, and the Cowboys flagged it during his physical.
That was some good think- ing by the Cowboys to give themselves protection, but it shows how little “guaranteed” money is actually guaranteed when it comes to NFL con- tracts.
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