Page 24 - Florida Sentinel 8-24-18

Sports
Buccaneers Face Lions Friday
Steelers WR Eli Rogers Suspended One Game
For Violation
ELI ROGERS
Pittsburgh Steelers wide re- ceiver Eli Rogers has been suspended one game for a vio- lation of the league’s substance abuse policy.
Rogers will be eligible to participate in all preseason practices and games, but things change after the roster is final- ized on Sept. 1.
According to a statement by Pittsburgh’s GM, Rogers “will be allowed to continue his re- habilitation and attend meet- ings at team’s headquarters, but he will not be permitted to practice with the team during his suspension or attend the Week 1 game.”
Rogers is recovering from a torn ACL suffered in the play- offs. He had just 18 catches for 149 yards and a touchdown last season.
Ravens CB Jimmy Smith Suspended Four Games For Conduct Violation
JIMMY SMITH
Baltimore Ravens corner- back Jimmy Smith has been suspended four games by the NFL for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.
Smith was involved in a custody battle with the mother of his child, which led to some nasty allegations. She accused him of a “history of substance abuse” and getting “physically violent” towards her. Smith denied the allegations and has not been charged based on them. But the Ravens say they found evidence of “threatening and emotionally abusive behav- iors” by Smith towards the woman.
Smith is recovering from a torn Achilles’ tendon suffered in December. He was suspended four games last year for a PED violation and will now be sus- pended four games this year.
Kaepernick Pounces On John Elway Slip-Up As Tensions Escalate
JOHN ELWAY AND COLIN KAEPERNICK
On Friday, August 24, 2018 at 8 P.M. EST the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will face the Detroit Lions.
The Tampa Bay Bucca- neers will play their first home game of the preseason.
Jameis Winston
looked spectacular last week against the Tennessee Titans. He completed 13/18 passes for 226 yards, no intercep- tions, no fumbles and 2 touchdowns.
“I don’t know if I’ll be legally able to say this,” pref- aced John Elway, before shutting down any Colin Kaepernick-to-the-Broncos chatter.
Kaepernick’s lawyer has an answer for him: You can’t legally say that.
Mark Geragos went on the “Reasonable Doubt” pod- cast and called out Elway for violating a gag order con- cerning deposition given in the collusion case against the NFL — a gag order the attor- ney alleges has been strictly applied to his own words.
“Clearly he violated the protective order that the NFL has been wielding like a club at me,” the celebrity lawyer said. “... We’ll deal with that in the hearing.”
Elway, the GM of the Broncos, could use a backup quarterback, so he was asked
Thursday if Kaepernick could enter his radar. After the legal caveat, Elway went ahead anyway, saying Kaepernick had turned down his one chance to go to Denver.
“Colin had his chance here,” Elway said. “We of- fered him a contract. He did- n’t take it.”
The Broncos had dis- cussed a trade for the then- quarterback of the 49ers in March 2016, after Peyton Manning retired and Brock Osweiler bolted for Houston. San Francisco was shopping Kaepernick, whose contract guaranteed him $12 million if he were on a roster April 1. Elway wanted Kaepernick to take a paycut; Kaepernick did not want to take a paycut. So the trade was never consum- mated.
Bucs LT Donovan Smith Out 2-4 Weeks With Sprained Knee
The injury news on Donovan Smith appears to be much better than initially feared.
Smith had an injury scare in practice on Tuesday, but Smith has a sprained knee and is only expected to miss 2-4 weeks.
A source reported earlier that there was optimism that Smith would be ready for the Bucs’ Week 1 game against New Orleans on Sept. 9.
Smith has not missed a
DONOVAN SMITH
game since being drafted No. 34 overall in 2015.
Jets In No Rush To Trade Teddy Bridgewater
Teddy Bridgewater has boosted his trade value with a strong showing in the pre- season, but the New York Jets may prefer to hang onto him unless a team blows them away with an offer.
The Jets have made it known to teams that Bridge- water is available, but they have no problem keeping the 25-year-old quarterback if their asking price isn’t met.
While all indications have been that the Jets want rookie Sam Darnold to be their Week 1 starter, Bridge- water has been impressive during the preseason. The former first-round pick has completed 17-of-23 passes for 212 yards, two touch- downs, and one interception. The Jets also have veteran
TEDDY BRIDGEWATER
backup Josh McCown, but QB depth can be extremely important when starting a rookie.
Bridgewater has report- edly generated interest from at least two teams, but most teams aren’t looking for a starting quarterback this close to the season.
PAGE 14-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, AUGUST 24, 2018