Tag: Ty Nsekhe

6 takeaways from Rams’ disappointing 27-20 loss to Saints

The Rams suffered their 4th straight loss of the season to the Saints in Week 11 and here are 6 immediate takeaways from the game.

The Los Angeles Rams have lost four games in a row for the first time under Sean McVay after losing 27-20 to the New Orleans Saints in Week 11. The Rams have fallen to 3-7 on the season and their hopes of crawling into the playoffs have seemingly dissipated.

Injuries have plagued the reigning Super Bowl champions and McVay is desperately trying to duct tape canyon-sized holes on the current roster. There is only so much you can do when you endure the number of injuries that Los Angeles has this season.

With another loss in the books for the Rams, here are six takeaways from Sunday’s loss to the Saints on the road.

Rams LT Ty Nsekhe suffers injury vs. Saints, replaced by Bobby Evans

The Rams suffered another injury on their offensive line, with Ty Nsekhe going down in the first half against the Saints

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The Rams were left with just six healthy offensive linemen before promoting two from the practice squad and signing rookie Zachary Thomas from the Bears. They’ve gotten dangerously thin up front and it’s not getting any better.

In the first half against the Saints, left tackle Ty Nsekhe went down with an apparent knee injury and had to be helped to the sideline. Bobby Evans replaced Nsekhe as Matthew Stafford’s blindside blocker.

Evans has struggled at guard when called upon this season, but he’s a more natural tackle and played that position in college.

The team announced Nsekhe is questionable to return.

Colts to sign OT Ty Nsekhe to the practice squad

The Colts are adding veteran OT Ty Nsekhe to the practice squad.

The Indianapolis Colts are signing offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe to the practice squad, according to multiple reports Tuesday.

Nsekhe was one of three players to try out for the Colts on Monday, and it appears they were impressed enough to bring him onto the practice squad.

The news was first reported by Jordan Schultz of The Score, and he also reported that the Colts have plans to eventually promote Nsekhe to the active roster.

The news of the signing was confirmed by Joel A. Erickson of The Indianapolis Star.

The Colts have had major issues along the offensive line through the first five games of the season. They’ve allowed 21 sacks—tied for the league-high—and they’ve allowed 45 quarterback hits. Only the Washington Commanders have allowed more through five games.

Some type of change has to happen when it comes to the offensive line. Maybe they give veteran Dennis Kelly a chance. It couldn’t hurt. It also appears Nsekhe, even at 36 years old, will get the chance to carve out a role on the active roster.

As a corresponding move, the Colts signed defensive tackle Chris Williams from the practice squad to the active roster and placed wide receiver Ashton Dulin on the injured reserve list.

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Colts work out trio of players

The Colts worked out three players on Monday.

The Indianapolis Colts held a workout for three players on Monday, per the league’s transaction wire.

The three players that worked out were defensive tackle Tyeler Davison, offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe and offensive tackle Will Richardson.

It’s no secret that the Colts have had offensive tackle issues to begin the season. They’ve allowed 21 sacks, which is tied for the most in the NFL.

Davison was a fifth-round pick with the New Orleans Saints in the 2015 NFL draft. In 105 career games (86 starts), he has 5.0 sacks, 18 tackles for loss and 15 quarterback hits.

Nsekhe has bounced around the league since 2012 and even had a one-month stint with the Colts back in 2012. He’s appeared in 93 career games while making 17 starts.

Richardson was a fourth-round pick with the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2018 NFL draft, appearing in 44 games while making five starts.

We’ll see if anything comes of these workouts in terms of a signing, but the Colts will continue to see what’s out on the market.

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5 free agent tackles the Texans should consider

The Houston Texans may need to use free agency to address their tackle positions. Here are five free agents Houston should keep in mind.

The Houston Texans will need free agency and the draft to effectively complete their rebuild in the second year of general manager Nick Caserio.

Houston has some decisions to make at tackle. Tytus Howard, a former 2019 first-round pick, has shown versatility to play guard and tackle, feeling more comfortable with the later. The Texans still have left tackle Laremy Tunsil under contract, although he struggled to get back on the field after Week 5 with a thumb injury. Tunsil could also be effective trade bait with any tackle-hungry teams.

No matter whether the Texans keep Tunsil, draft Ikem Ekwonu, or elevate Charlie Heck to a starting role, here are five free agent tackles the Texans should consider signing when free agency starts.

All salary figures are according to Spotrac.

Handling Tyron Smith’s injury could spur Cowboys to success or disappointment

Did Pollard’s kick do him in? Would surgery help? What can Dallas do in the meantime? @DailyGoonerRaf goes looking for answers with the help of a surgeon to shed light on the left tackle’s prognosis.

The injury bug has taken regular bites out of the Cowboys this season, and made its most recent visit in the off days, putting Randy Gregory (calf) on the IR list just as Demarcus Lawrence (foot) nears being ready to resume play.

The bug’s impact on Dak Prescott was also evident in Sunday’s loss to Denver. The quarterback was rusty after missing the prior week with his own calf injury, missing open receivers throughout the first three quarters of the contest. Dallas fell into a 30-0 hole before Prescott gained some traction and rallied the team to two late scores. Prescott seemed to regain his lost form in that last quarter and it seems the effects of his injury may be short term. Lawrence’s rehab (he was photographed working with resistance bands on the practice field Thursday) offers some balance to Gregory’s short-term loss.

The only injury with a status that remains unknown, and whose handling could have the biggest impact on Dallas’ playoff hopes is that to Tyron Smith’s ankle.

The perennial Pro Bowler had a tremendous start to the season, coming off neck surgery, but has been in and out of the lineup since he was kicked in the back of the leg by Tony Pollard in the New England game. Smith missed two series after that incident but finished the game.

He started against Minnesota but left the contest midway through the second quarter. He then missed all of the Denver game with what the club has termed “bone spurs.”

Are we seeing an ankle version of Smith’s neck maladies? I asked a surgeon this week to explain the options with bone spurs, and how soon he could return. His answers were as muddy as the Cowboys’ information.

McCarthy: Cooper, Neal could play for Cowboys; Armstong, Watkins, Nsekhe out for MNF

Dorance Armstong, Carlos Watkins, and Ty Nsekhe have been declared out for Monday’s game with Philly. Amari Cooper is limited Thursday. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy delivered updates on several players as the team gets into their prep for the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night. Three line players have already been ruled out of the Week 3 matchup, while the team’s top wide receiver and the linebacker who last week led the team in snaps both have a chance to be ready, with four full days to go before kickoff.

During his pre-practice press conference Thursday, McCarthy revealed that wide receiver Amari Cooper would be limited in the day’s work. Cooper left the field during the offense’s game-winning drive on Sunday. McCarthy classified the injury then as bruised ribs, a re-aggravation of a hit he took in Week 1 versus Tampa.

Defensive end Dorance Armstrong sustained a high ankle sprain in the Week 2 game against the Chargers, and defensive tackle Carlos Watkins suffered a knee injury. Neither will play Monday in the Cowboys’ home opener. McCarthy confirmed.

Of Watkins, McCarthy told reporters that he had just seen the former fourth-round pick in the weight room, and that “he feels good and he’s making progress.”

Armstrong may be out, but McCarthy was not ready to say whether that would mean another week subbing on the edge for rookie linebacker Micah Parsons.

“I’m not going to really get into that,” the coach said. “There’ll be more opportunities playing different combinations. I think, really, the true focus is: this [Eagles] offense is different than the first two teams we played. This offense is about speed and space. Their offensive line is- they just had the one injury last week- but this is the healthiest they’ve been in some time. A big athletic offensive line with five perimeter players that can really, really go. So we’re really focused on speed and space and what we need to do to combat that.”

Randy Gregory has been re-activated from the Reserve/COVID list and is back fully with the team; he is expected to start Monday night at defensive end.

Linebacker Keanu Neal was just placed on the COVID watchlist on Wednesday, but apparently has not tested positive. McCarthy explained, “There’s definitely a chance” he could be cleared to face the Eagles.

Safety Donovan Wilson remains a non-participant in practice as he nurses a groin injury.

And of offensive lineman Ty Nsekhe, who was taken to a Dallas hospital last week with what was termed heat exhaustion, McCarthy says he will not play in Week 3. “It’s an illness,” the coach shared. “There’s a plan to bring him back. Just got to be smart. This is a long year.”

It’s already been an epic adventure for the Cowboys, with players moving to and from the Reserve/COVID list and the La’el Collins suspension adding to the complications of regular football injuries. It’s made for a delicate dance with the club’s practice squad players to keep them ready for action.

“That’s the beauty of this new roster setup,” McCarthy explained. “It gives you the ability to move guys up; you have potentially a COVID exempt also. So all those things factor into it. You have a projected 48 [players] each week, but you never just work 48 players.”

McCarthy went on to say that the whole goal is to not let various injuries paint the coaching staff into a corner when it comes to assigning positions for gameday.

“I think it’s clearly why you play chess the whole week,” he concluded. “You play the different combinations. You want to have foresight on what move you want to make next, because, really, when you get into the game, you want to be playing checkers.”

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Cowboys’ Ty Nsekhe taken to hospital Thursday night

Dallas Cowboys backup tackle Ty Nsekhe is out Sunday following a heat related illness that sent him to the hospital on Thursday. | From @NoHuddle

Dallas Cowboys backup offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe was thought to be the first man up in case of a familiar emergency: games being missed by Tyron Smith or La’el Collins. After all, the 36-year-old isn’t the kind of inexperienced player that the team would focus on developing into a solid contributor over the course of years. Some thought his time was now to replace the suspended Collins. His week went otherwise.

First it was owner Jerry Jones announcing on the radio that Terrence Steele would be starting on Sunday. Head coach Mike McCarthy wasn’t totally on board with the claim, though did little to walk it back, though it appears there initially may have been some misdirection in play. On Thursday, Nsekhe’s week got worse when he went to the hospital after practice with a heat related illness.  He has since been released.

With another tackle unavailable for the matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, the Cowboys are even thinner up front. As it stands, Brandon Knight might be the only option should an injury crop up in game. Fans will clamor for Zack Martin to slide out to hold down the fort, but he’s made it clear he has absolutely no interest in doing so and prefers to stay exactly where he is.

Regardless of who’s called upon, they’ll have their hands full with a Chargers line led by Joey Bosa who is undoubtedly licking his chop at the prospect of eating up backup tackles.

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Jerry Jones: Cowboys to start Terence Steele at RT against Chargers

The Cowboys will start Terence Steele at RT against the Los Angeles Chargers in the wake of La’el Collins’ suspension. | From @BenGrimaldi

The Dallas Cowboys were without one of their top offensive linemen to start the season against one of the best defensive lines in the league. Zack Martin missed the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers due to COVID. Another week, another starting offensive lineman will be missing, this time it’s RT La’el Collins, who is out for five weeks due to suspension.

Thankfully, Martin is slated to return at RG, but without Collins, the Cowboys will have their hands full with the Los Angeles Chargers defensive line. The Chargers don’t have the depth or quantity the Tampa Bay Buccaneers do, but this week’s opponent has the more devastating pass rusher. And according to owner Jerry Jones, it’s going to be second-year UDFA Terence Steele replacing Collins.

Chargers DE Joey Bosa is about as good as it gets coming off the edge and the Cowboys will be sending out a much-maligned back-up to slow Bosa down. That is not optimal for a team trying to avoid going 0-2 to start the season.

When Collins went down, the Cowboys had a few options to replace him. The top choices were veteran Ty Nsekhe, Steele or Brandon Knight who they’ve practiced both on the inside and outside.

There was an outside chance the team would move Martin to RT and use Connor McGovern at RG to have the best starting five offensive linemen on the field, but Dallas, and maybe Martin, appear reluctant to make that move.

It didn’t take long to get the answer as to what the Cowboys would do. In typical  Jones fashion, he spilled the beans.

Aside from Jones announcing it instead of the coaches, Steele is an interesting choice after the Cowboys made it a point to sign Nsekhe this offseason to be the main swing tackle. Steele and fellow undrafted free agent Knight saw plenty of action as the starting tackles last season, and after a rough start to his rookie year in 2020, Steele did improve as the year went on.

However, the team saw fit to try an upgrade the position and Nsekhe was supposed to be the answer. Neither Steele, nor Nsekhe distinguished themselves in training camp or in the preseason, but the team is clearly willing to bet on Steele’s improvement over Nsekhe’s experience.

The Cowboys did rave about Steele’s offseason work to prepare for his sophomore season, and now fans will get to see if that talk was justified. It’s a tough assignment for Steele and the assumption is that he’ll get help instead of having too many one-on-ones against Bosa.

One of football’s mantras has long been next man up. For the Cowboys at RT, Steele gets the first chance. Collins’ suspension is currently for five weeks, and it remains to be seen if Steele can keep the job for the entirety of that absence.

You can chat with or follow Ben on twitter @BenGrimaldi.

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Practice report: Collins, Prescott, Goodwin, Wilson among Cowboys’ full participants

Dallas saw several key players participate fully in what coach Mike McCarthy dubbed the team’s “heaviest workload” before the season opener. | From @ToddBrock24f7

“Today is huge for us,” said Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy on Monday morning, in advance of the day’s practice session. With Dallas slated to kick off the 2021 season Thursday night, McCarthy and the team are several days ahead of their typical weekly workflow. That made the Labor Day practice a significant one, especially following the news that All-Pro right guard Zack Martin had tested positive for COVID over the weekend and would almost assuredly miss the season opener versus the Buccaneers.

But Monday’s practice- which McCarthy referred to as “our heaviest workload of the whole preparation” for Thursday’s game in Tampa- brought huge news indeed for several Cowboys players who are making their way back to game readiness.

Offensive tackle La’el Collins was a full participant on the day, as were quarterback Dak Prescott, cornerback C.J. Goodwin, edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence, and safety Donovan Wilson.

Defensive end Chauncey Golston was at first listed as a full participant; the club later released a correction reclassifying the Iowa product as “limited.” Offensive lineman Ty Nsekhe was also limited in the day’s work.

Collins missed all of last season with hip issues and then was forced out of two separate practices in recent weeks with a neck stinger. His return to form will help an offensive line that will have its hands full Thursday, minus their best player and going against the defending Super Bowl champs, who just activated Ndamukong Suh off their Reserve/COVID list.

Wilson was pulled from practice on August 25th with a groin injury, and will be important to a defensive back rotation aiming to shut down Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Tom Brady’s cast of lethal pass-catchers.

Prescott, of course, is coming off last season’s horrific ankle injury and a muscle strain in his throwing shoulder that kept him out of preseason action entirely and limited for much of camp. It is no understatement to suggest that, as Prescott goes, so go the Cowboys.

Recovery from back surgery caused Lawrence to miss all of the team’s spring work and most of training camp. He was on the PUP list until August 3rd. He, too, was held out of preseason games and is eager to return to live action.

Special teams ace Goodwin missed four weeks with a bad hamstring and returned to practice just last Thursday.

Golston remains a mystery to anyone not inside the Cowboys’ facility. The rookie was selected in the third round of the draft, but started training camp on the PUP list with a hamstring malady.

Nsekhe has been bothered by a foot issue. His availability in Tampa will be important, given the focus on the offensive line and questions about whether the starters will be able to remain healthy.

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