FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots tight end Lance Kendricks has been suspended one regular-season game for violating the NFL’s policy and program for substances of abuse, the league announced Saturday.
Kendricks, 31, is permitted to practice and play through the end of the preseason. He signed with New England in late July after spending eight seasons with the Rams and Packers.
Kendricks is a candidate to make the Patriots’ final 53-man roster, though veteran Matt LaCosse and 2018 draft pick Ryan Izzo have taken snaps ahead of him in the team’s first three preseason games. Kendricks caught one pass for 11 yards in New England’s 10-3 win over the Panthers on Thursday.
The Patriots will begin the season without presumptive starter Ben Watson, who is suspended for the first four games because of a performance-enhancing drugs violation.
ESPN reported that Kendricks was sentenced to six months of probation earlier this month as the result of a 2017 traffic stop in Wisconsin in which he was cited for marijuana possession.
LIONS: Coach Matt Patricia says injuries to linebacker Jarrad Davis and center Frank Ragnow are not season-ending.
Patricia did not elaborate much more on the severity of the injuries to two of Detroit’s starters. Davis went down with an injured right leg, and Ragnow had to be helped off the field because of an apparent ankle injury during the Lions’ 24-20 loss to Buffalo on Friday night. Speaking on a conference call Saturday, Patricia said he didn’t think injured reserve was necessary, but he did not put a timetable on their returns.
“They’ll be healing day by day and we’re still evaluating where they’ll be at,” Patricia said. “The one great thing about these two guys is that they have tremendous work ethic and we know they’re going to be working as hard as they can to get back as soon as possible.”
Davis and Ragnow were first-round draft picks in 2017 and 2018. Each started every game last season.
PANTHERS: Coach Ron Rivera says he expects injured quarterback Cam Newton to return to practice “pretty soon,” without giving a timetable.
Rivera remains “cautiously optimistic” that Newton, who remains in a walking boot, will be ready for the Sept. 8 regular-season opener against the Los Angeles Rams.
Newton sustained a left foot sprain in Carolina’s 10-3 loss to New England on Thursday night. Rivera expressed relief the injury wasn’t worse, saying “very much so – he’s our starting quarterback.”
SATURDAY’S GAME
VIKINGS 20, CARDINALS 9: Dalvin Cook had an 85-yard touchdown run for Minnesota, the highlight of an otherwise rough first half by the first-team offense during a victory over visiting Arizona.
The Vikings totaled 190 yards on 29 carries – by far the best development of an afternoon when quarterback Kirk Cousins was 3 of 13 for 35 yards while taking two sacks, and Kaare Vedvik missed field goals from 43 and 54 yards.
Cardinals rookie quarterback Kyler Murray was relatively sharp while going 14 for 21 for 137 yards over five possessions against a Vikings defense that was almost at full strength. Three of the drives ended with successful field goals by Zane Gonzalez.
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