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[December 01, 2017] The Sports Xchange

12/01/2017 NFL Note - Minnesota Vikings Keenum, Case

QB Case Keenum led the Minnesota Vikings to three straight wins in November en route to being named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month, the NFL announced on Thursday. The honor is the first for Keenum, who recorded eight touchdowns (seven passing, one rushing) in that stretch as the Vikings (9-2) strengthened their hold on first place in the NFC North.

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NFL Note - New England Patriots Brady, Tom

QB Tom Brady was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Month after throwing for 833 yards with 10 touchdowns en route to leading his team to win all three of its games. Brady has received the honor on 10 occasions in his career.

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NFL Note - Los Angeles Chargers Hayward, Casey

CB Casey Hayward had three interceptions to be named AFC Defensive Player of the Month for November.

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NFL Note - New Orleans Saints Jordan, Cameron

DE Cam Jordan received NFC Player of the Month honors for November after collecting three sacks

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Prosinski, Chris

S Chris Prosinski was signed Thursday to the 53-man roster. Prosinski was with the Bears in 2015 and 2016 and was a key special teams player, as well as a reserve safety. He was with the Bears in training camp this season, but was a cutdown victim and received an injury settlement, then had a tryout with Buffalo earlier this month.

The signing of Prosinski is further indication the Bears will be without starting safety Adrian Amos (hamstring) for a while, if not the rest of the season. Deon Bush is likely to start in Amos' place. Amos was possibly the most improved player on the Bears defense this season, after losing his starting spot and then regaining it in Week 4 after Quintin Demps' arm injury.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Jones, Howard

OLB Howard Jones was waived on Thursday, but is expected to be brought back to the practice squad.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Houston, Lamarr

LB Lamarr Houston practiced for the first time Thursday after being signed off waivers. He was released in the cutdown to 53 players before going to the Texans and being cut.

"Out there at practice it felt like I had never left," Houston said. "So hopefully I'll just get back into the swing of things."

It would seem Houston might be a candidate for some snaps, especially since linebacker Isaiah Irving has suffered a practice injury. However, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio wasn't optimistic over the thought of playing Houston immediately.

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NFL Note - Oakland Raiders Cooper, Amari

WR Amari Cooper of the Oakland Raiders remains in concussion protocol and could miss Sunday's game against the visiting New York Giants. Cooper remained off the field while media members were allowed to watch Thursday's practice. The 23-year-old currently is in the league's concussion protocol and also is battling an ankle issue. Cooper departed last Sunday's game after taking a shot to the head from Broncos safety Darian Stewart. The former first-round pick has 42 receptions for 499 yards and five touchdowns this season for the Raiders (5-6).

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NFL Note - Cincinnati Bengals Vigil, *Nick

LB Nick Vigil did not practice on Thursday, making his status for Monday night's game against the Steelers more uncertain. Vigil left Sunday's game twice with an ankle injury before being ruled out in the third quarter. Vigil leads the team in tackles.

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NFL Note - Cincinnati Bengals Ogbuehi, Cedric

LT Cedric Ogbuehi showed up on Thursday's injury report with a shoulder issue. It was uncertain if it was the same shoulder that ended his 2016 season prematurely. The Bengals' offensive line has shown improvement in recent weeks, including Ogbuehi.

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NFL Note - Cincinnati Bengals Mixon, *Joe

RB Joe Mixon rushed for a career-high 114 yards last week against the Cleveland Browns, who owned one of the NFL's best rush defenses. Mixon will again face a team that ranks high against the run on Monday night in the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mixon and Steelers RB Le'Veon Bell exchanged words this week when Bell accused the Bengals rookie of copying his running style and first-down celebration.

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NFL Note - Dallas Cowboys Prescott, Dak

QB Dak Prescott shook off a first-half hand injury, and he and running back Alfred Morris powered the Cowboys in the second half on the way to a 38-14 victory over the Washington Redskins on Thursday night at AT&T Stadium.

Prescott passed for 102 yards and two touchdowns, including a 13-yard scoring pass to Dez Bryant early in the fourth quarter that boosted Dallas to a 17-point advantage. He hit Jason Witten with an 8-yard touchdown pass in the first half.

"I thought Dak did a really good job of making timely throws," coach Jason Garrett said. "Down in the red area, the throw to Witten for a touchdown, the throw to Dez for a touchdown. He made some big plays in the game for us."

Prescott went to the locker room during the second quarter to have an injury to his right hand examined, but he returned to the game by the end of the first half. In his postgame press conference, Prescott confirmed that he injured the hand on an option play that converted a third-and-1 from the Redskins' 10.

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NFL Note - Dallas Cowboys Morris, Alfred

RB Alfred Morris powered the Cowboys in the second half on the way to a 38-14 victory over the Washington Redskins on Thursday night at AT&T Stadium. Morris rushed for 127 yards and a touchdown, all but 38 yards coming in the second half. He successfully moved the chains for Dallas (6-6), which had lacked a consistent running game since Ezekiel Elliott began serving a six-game suspension for violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy four games ago.

Morris, who played his first four seasons in the NFL with the Redskins, ran 1 yard for a touchdown with 4:55 left in the fourth quarter, sealing the win for Dallas.

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NFL Note - Washington Redskins Cousins, Kirk

QB Kirk Cousins completed 26 of 37 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns. However, he was intercepted twice and fumbled once, part of the Redskins (5-7) losing the turnover battle, 4-0.

"I don't think it was flat, I think we just dropped the ball," Washington coach Jay Gruden said. "We had two fumbles and the dropped pass resulted in the interception, so don't think we came out flat. We just didn't protect the football."

Cousins said Dallas' defensive front kept the Redskins from keeping up on offense. The Cowboys sacked the Washington QB four times.

"I think that they had a really good pass rush tonight," Cousins said. "There's a reason pass rushers are highly paid because when you have one they can wreck a game and make a big difference. I thought their pass rush was effective all night long."

Cousins had been sacked 31 times this season, already eight more times than he was sacked all of last season. He was sacked four times Thursday.

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NFL Note - Minnesota Vikings Kendricks, Eric

MLB Eric Kendricks returned to practice Thursday and was limited. He hasn't missed any game time because of the injury and looked good moving around during the brief portion of Thursday's practice that was open to the media. He is expected to play Sunday.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Trevathan, Danny

LB Danny Trevathan (calf) went through a full practice Thursday for the first time since before his injury Oct. 29 and is expected to play against the 49ers on Sunday. It would put the Bears' defensive leader back on the field as Trevathan is responsible for calling signals and lining up players. When Trevathan went out, the Bears were ranked eighth overall on defense and 12th against the run. They are now 12th overall and 16th against the run.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Demps, Quintin

S Quintin Demps (arm) has been out since a Week 3 injury, but the Bears on Thursday began the possible three-week assessment period for bringing him back from injured reserve. They are facing a shortage at safeties due to a hamstring injury to Adrian Amos and also several others.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Irving, Isaiah

LB Isaiah Irving (knee) did not practice Thursday (Nov. 30) due to an injury suffered in Wednesday's practice and his status is uncertain for Sunday's game.

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NFL Note - Dallas Cowboys Smith, Rod

RB Rod Smith added a 1-yard scoring run with 2:37 left.

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NFL Note - Dallas Cowboys Heath, Jeff

S Jeff Heath intercepted a Kirk Cousins pass after it deflected off the hands of intended receiver Jamison Crowder. Heath returned the interception 14 yards to the Dallas 16, but the Cowboys could not follow up by gaining a first down.

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NFL Note - Dallas Cowboys Switzer, Ryan

WR Ryan Switzer put the exclamation point on an eventful first half for the Dallas special teams units when he returned a punt 83 yards for a score.

Switzer's touchdown put the Cowboys in front 17-0 with 3:46 left in the second quarter.

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NFL Note - Washington Redskins Grant, Ryan

WR Ryan Grant caught a 20-yard pass for the score with just over a minute remaining before halftime.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Bush, Deon

S Deon Bush (ankle) did not practice Thursday due to an injury suffered in Wednesday's practice and his status is uncertain for Sunday's game. Bush had been expected to start in place of Adrian Amos, who suffered a hamstring injury last week and hasn't practiced this week. Without Bush, it's possible Deiondre Hall could be activated from injured reserve and get playing time or the Bears could also activate Quintin Demps, who had an arm injury earlier this year.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Sitton, Josh

G Josh Sitton (concussion) was able to practice on a limited basis after a concussion last week and is in the NFL's protocol. He is showing improvement and it's possible he will be available for Sunday's game with San Francisco.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Compton, Tom

G Tom Compton (ankle) went through a full practice for the first time since his injury Oct. 29 and it's possible he will be available for Sunday's game. Compton could play for left guard Josh Sitton, if he doesn't recover from a concussion enough to pass the NFL's protocol.

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NFL Note - Baltimore Ravens Tucker, Justin

K Justin Tucker made all six field-goal attempts and eight extra-point tries to win AFC Special Teams Player of the Month honors for November.

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NFL Note - Los Angeles Rams Zuerlein, Greg

K Greg Zuerlein went 12 of 12 on field goals and 11 of 12 on PATs to win the NFC Player of the Month honors for November.

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NFL Note - Cleveland Browns Peppers, Jabrill

S Jabrill Peppers was fined $24,000 by the NFL on Thursday for his illegal hit on Bengals WR Josh Malone. The play occurred during last Sunday's contest, and Peppers was assessed a personal foul for the hit that prevented Malone from making a catch. "I don't know what they want us to do, especially in terms of football's a violent game," Peppers said. "I don't know why they're trying to take the violence out of it. I think they're trying to make it too friendly." Peppers said he will appeal the fine. He said he doesn't understand what he did wrong.

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NFL Note - New York Giants Collins, Landon

S Landon Collins, who has 30 total tackles and an interception over his last two games, fought through an early-season high-ankle sprain, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said. Spagnuolo added that Collins has been able to fly around the field more these days because the injury has taken a sharp turn for the better.

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NFL Note - New York Giants Pugh, Justin

OL Justin Pugh (back) participated in his first individual drill work in nearly three weeks. Pugh is unlikely to play Sunday at Oakland given the long cross-country flight, but he is hoping to be ready for the following week when the Giants host the Dallas Cowboys.

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NFL Note - Tampa Bay Buccaneers Winston, Jameis

QB Jameis Winston of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is confident he will not be punished by the NFL following its investigation into an allegation that he groped a female Uber driver in March 2016. "I have no fear at all, but I have to respect their process," Winston said on Thursday. "I'm just going to respect the process, most importantly. That's all I can do." Winston denied the allegations after they surfaced in a BuzzFeed report. There is no police report stemming from the alleged incident, although the driver filed a complaint with her employer and Winston's Uber privileges were revoked.

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NFL Note - Minnesota Vikings Remmers, Mike

RT Mike Remmers is over the concussion that has sidelined him the past three games. But a lower back injury is threatening to keep him out of a fourth straight game. He sat out Thursday's practice after being limited on Wednesday. If he can't play, the Vikings will give Rashod Hill his fourth straight start.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Robertson-Harris, Roy

DE Roy Robertson-Harris (hamstring) went through a full practice on Thursday and could be available for the first time since suffering his injury against Detroit Nov. 19.

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NFL Note - Chicago Bears Bellamy, Josh

WR Josh Bellamy was involved in an argument with wide receiver Tre McBride on Monday at Halas Hall, a day before McBride was cut from the team. The argument was overheard by media since it happened right outside the media room.

Neither the Bears nor Bellamy confirmed the identities of those involved, but Bellamy did say on Thursday to reporters: "Hey, brothers get into it. You ever get into it with your brother?"

Bellamy said it's the duty of players to point out when teammates aren't doing their job right.

"If I wasn't doing what I was supposed to do, I would expect somebody to come tell me what I'm doing wrong," Bellamy said. "That's what you're supposed to do. That's what a brother does to another brother."

Told when brothers argue, it doesn't necessarily mean one should get fired, Bellamy said, "Who got fired? Oh, man. ... He's just on leave."

Asked if he felt bad about McBride being cut after an argument, Bellamy said, "I don't feel bad for nothing."

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NFL Note - Miami Dolphins Moore, Matt

QB Matt Moore (foot) didn't practice Thursday and hasn't practiced this week. If Moore can't go David Fales would serve as the backup.

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NFL Note - Washington Redskins Perine, *Samaje

RB Samaje Perine, who played high school football in the Austin, Texas, area and college football at Oklahoma, was riding a two-game streak of 100-yard rushing games as he headed back to his old stomping grounds. Perine was limited to 38 yards on 12 carries against the Cowboys.

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