NFL notebook: Seahawks WR Baldwin out at least 2 weeks

Seattle Seahawks top wide receiver Doug Baldwin will be sidelined for at least two weeks with an ailing knee. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll on Tuesday told reporters that Baldwin arrived at training camp with a sore knee. "We're going give it a couple weeks here before we bring him back," said Carroll, per the News Tribune. "We just want to make sure we take care of him. ... It's a little bit of a problem." Baldwin was named to the Pro Bowl as an injury replacement after he caught a team-leading 75 receptions for 991 yards and eight touchdowns in 2017. It marked the third consecutive season with at least 75 catches for Baldwin, who set career highs with 94 receptions and 1,128 yards in 2016 while also earning Pro Bowl honors. --Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs paid significant dividends after being on the receiving end of the "Minneapolis Miracle" six months ago. Diggs cashed in again by signing a contract extension, the team announced. While the Vikings did not divulge the terms of the deal, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that it is for a maximum of $81 million with more than $40 million guaranteed. Diggs received a $15 million signing bonus plus this year's base salary ($1.907 million) is guaranteed, per NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. The contract will keep Diggs with the Vikings through the 2023 season. --The Los Angeles Chargers suffered another blow at cornerback when Trevor Williams had to be helped off the field at practice. Chargers coach Anthony Lynn said after practice the Williams suffered a sprained left ankle. Williams was using crutches and in a walking boot. Williams appeared to injure his leg after he was beaten on a pass by wide receiver Mike Williams, according to multiple media reports. The incident comes four days after former Pro Bowl cornerback Jason Verrett suffered a season-ending torn Achilles during a conditioning test on Friday. --San Francisco 49ers defensive end Arik Armstead is expected to be sidelined week-to-week as he nurses a hamstring injury, the team announced. The 49ers also announced that they signed tight end Wes Saxton to a one-year contract and waived cornerback C.J. Goodwin. Armstead is no stranger to injuries during the last two seasons, as an ailing shoulder and broken hand have limited him to 14 games over the last two years. The 24-year-old Armstead recorded 16 tackles and 1.5 sacks in six games last season. He has collected 50 tackles and six sacks in 30 career contests since being selected by San Francisco with the 17th overall pick of the 2015 draft. --Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Dirk Koetter expressed optimism for the health of Vita Vea despite the team's first-round pick being spotted in a walking boot on his left leg and using a scooter to get around. Vea, who was the 12th overall pick of the 2018 draft, raised concerns after he exited Sunday's practice on a cart. WFLA8 posted video of Vea using a scooter to move around during practice on Tuesday. "It was better than we thought," Koetter said, per the Tampa Bay Times. "What Vita described when it happened was what you would think when a guy tore his Achilles. Thankfully it's not that, it's a calf injury. He's gonna be out for right now, but it's not what it could have been. "So, in that respect, we're better off than we thought we were." --Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said there have been no talks with holdout safety Earl Thomas and shed some light on the injury to defensive end Dion Jordan. Thomas, who wants a long-term extension, was placed on the reserve/did not report list on Friday. He missed his fifth day of training camp Tuesday. Asked if there had been any communication between management and the six-time Pro Bowl safety, Carroll said "no," per the Seattle Times. Jordan, who is still recovering from offseason knee surgery, also is dealing with that Carroll termed a "stress issue" on his other leg. According to the NFL Network, Jordan is dealing with a stress reaction in his shin. --Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle Austin Howard has been activated from the non-football injury list, the team announced. Howard, who was nursing an undisclosed injury, signed with the Colts in May after starting all 16 games at right tackle for the Baltimore Ravens last season. The 31-year-old, who is listed at 6-foot-7 and 330 pounds, is expected to compete with Denzelle Good after working as the first-team right tackle for the Colts this spring. Howard, who has started at least 10 games in each of the last six seasons, has also spent time with the Oakland Raiders, New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles. --The Tennessee Titans placed cornerback Tye Smith on injured reserve, the team announced. The team did not disclose the nature of the injury to Smith, who appeared in 15 games and had one interception with the Titans in 2017, making one start. A fifth-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks in the 2015 NFL Draft, Smith also started both playoff games for Tennessee last season. The Titans also added a pair of defensive linemen to the roster, signing Johnny Maxey and Du'Vonta Lampkin. The team waived defensive lineman Claude Pelon with an injury designation. --The New England Patriots worked out wide receiver Eric Decker on Monday, ESPN reported. The Patriots are dealing with a depleted wide receiving corps. Kenny Britt and Malcolm Mitchell are both on the physically unable to perform list and offseason acquisition Jordan Matthews was unable to practice Monday due to an ailing hamstring. On Tuesday, the Patriots agreed to terms with offensive lineman Brian Schwenke. The 6-foot-3, 318-pound Schwenke started 30 of 57 games over his first five seasons with Tennessee. Decker had 54 receptions for 563 yards and one touchdown last season with the Tennessee Titans. It was his lowest touchdown total since his rookie season in 2010. --Denver Broncos cornerback Tramaine Brock missed a second straight day of practice with a hamstring injury. Broncos coach Vance Joseph said Brock is expected to be sidelined about a week, according to multiple media outlets. Joseph characterized the severity of the injury as "medium" and "not mild." Brock is entering his ninth NFL season overall and first with the Broncos. He played sparingly for the Minnesota Vikings in 2017, appearing in 11 games and notching only six tackles. The 29-year-old Brock spent his first seven seasons with San Francisco, starting all 31 games in which he appeared in the 2015-16 seasons. --Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey reported to training camp, approximately one week after the birth of his first child. Ramsey missed the first four practices while in Tennessee with his family after the arrival of a baby girl named Breelyn. Jaguars coach Doug Marrone said last week that he was informed of the process every step of the way. "This is something we did know about probably six or seven months ago," Marrone said, via Jacksonville.com. "We've been in constant communication and basically what his plans are now is to make sure baby and mom are OK. Once they are OK and settled then we expect him to come back." The Jaguars' first preseason game is against the New Orleans Saints on Aug. 9. --The Oakland Raiders released offensive lineman Vadal Alexander, the team announced. Vadal, who did not report to training camp, was waived with a non-football injury designation. The move came three days after the team signed offensive lineman Oday Aboushi. A seventh-round draft pick of Oakland in the 2016 NFL Draft, appeared in 24 games over his first two seasons with the Raiders, making nine starts. In May, the 6-foot-5, 326-pound Alexander was suspended for the first four games of the 2018 season for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances. --Indianapolis Colts middle linebacker Anthony Walker will miss significant time due to a groin injury. Walker, who was in line to be the team's starter this season, will be sidelined for a "few weeks," head coach Frank Reich told reporters, per the Indianapolis Star. A fifth-round pick out of Northwestern in the 2017 NFL Draft, Walker appeared in 10 games and made two starts last season. He finished the year with 19 tackles. Rookie Skai Moore, an undrafted free agent out of South Carolina, will get the first crack at replacing Walker. He practiced with the first unit on Tuesday. --San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman didn't mince words when discussing Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who recently declared that his team's players will be required to stand for the national anthem. "Our policy is you stand during the anthem, toe on the line," Jones said. The NFL reportedly has instructed Jones to refrain from talking about the national anthem as it negotiates a new policy with the NFL Players Association. "The owner of the Dallas Cowboys, with the old plantation mentality. What did you expect?" the 30-year-old Sherman told USA Today. --Philadelphia Eagles right guard Brandon Brooks returned to practice, two days removed from being sent to the hospital due to dehydration. "I came out here and got dehydrated. It was humid," Brooks told NBC Sports Philadelphia. "My kidneys weren't functioning the way they needed to, which was pretty scary in itself. But got my numbers back down and wanted to get back out here with the boys." Brooks, who is listed at 6-foot-5 and 335 pounds, said he needed to go to the hospital because he was so dehydrated that trainers had trouble finding his veins at the NovaCare Complex. The 28-year-old has started 33 games for the Eagles over the last two years, including all three playoff games following last season. --The Detroit Lions added one offensive lineman and let go of another. The Lions signed offensive tackle Jamar McGloster and released Adam Bisnowaty, the team announced. The 6-foot-7, 309-pound McGloster was signed by the San Francisco 49ers on May 1 but was waived last week. He started every game during his final two seasons at Syracuse. Bisnowaty was a sixth-round pick of the New York Giants in 2017. The 6-5, 307-pounder appeared in one game, starting the regular-season finale. --John Madden donated his original "Madden Cruiser" to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The famed Greyhound bus, which was converted into the "Madden Cruiser" in 1987, was made over to resemble its original look when it arrived in Canton, Ohio. Madden, a former NFL coach turned broadcaster, opted to travel via train before taking a bus became a more attractive option to him. "We've kept the original 'Madden Cruiser' for all these years, and when it came for us to decide what we were going to do with it in perpetuity, the only place which made sense was the Pro Football Hall of Fame," the 82-year-old Madden said. "We asked to donate it and they accepted and we are happy that it will be there forever." --Quarterback Johnny Manziel will face a familiar foe when he starts the Montreal Alouettes' home game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Friday. Alouettes coach Mike Sherman announced on Tuesday that Manziel will get the nod versus the Tiger-Cats, with whom he served as a backup to Jeremiah Masoli for the first five games of the Canadian Football League season. Manziel, a former Cleveland Browns quarterback and 2012 Heisman Trophy winner, will make his first regular-season start since Week 16 of the 2015 NFL season. The Alouettes fell to 1-5 following a 44-23 loss to Edmonton last week. Montreal acquired Manziel and offensive linemen Tony Washington and Landon Rice from Hamilton last Tuesday in exchange for wide receiver Chris Williams, defensive lineman Jamaal Westerman and 2021-22 first-round draft picks.