NFL notebook: Vikings' ownership backs anthem policy

Minnesota Vikings co-owner Mark Wilf told reporters that the organization supports the NFL's new anthem policy and each member of the team will be on the same page. League owners approved a new policy last month that requires players and league personnel on the sideline to stand for the national anthem but gives them the option to remain in the locker room if they desire. The policy subjects teams to a fine if a player or any other personnel do not show respect for the anthem. Those clubs will also have the option to fine any team personnel for the infraction. "Whatever we do, we're going to do as a team," Wilf said, via the Star Tribune. Coach Mike Zimmer is on record as saying the team will stand for the anthem. "I think it's important we stand for the anthem," he said recently. "A lot of people have died for that flag. That flag represents our country and what we stand for." -- Houston Texans running back D'Onta Foreman is not sure when he will return from his Achilles tendon injury. Foreman's rookie season was cut short in November when he tore an Achilles tendon and he is still rehabbing the injury. General Manager Brian Gaine said in May the Texans were hoping Foreman would return in time for training camp later this summer. That seems far from certain. Foreman finished 2017 with 78 rushes for 327 yards and two touchdowns. Lamar Miller is expected to remain the starter for the Texans, who re-signed veteran Alfred Blue this offseason. The team also has Tyler Ervin and Troymaine Pope. -- New Orleans Saints guard Andrus Peat is expected to be healthy when the team returns for training camp, multiple media outlets reported. Peat injured his left fibula during the second quarter of the Saints' wild-card victory over the Carolina Panthers in January. The 6-foot-7, 312-pounder was unable to walk for eight weeks after undergoing surgery. "It's getting better," the 24-year-old Peat told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "I'm taking (my recovery) day by day, and my goal is to be back for training camp, so that's kind of what (the Saints) set for me and I feel like I'm on schedule." A first-round draft pick (No. 13 overall) of the Saints in 2015, Peat has started 37 of 42 games in his three seasons in New Orleans, including 14 in 2017. -- Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Brandon Marshall was not healthy enough to fully participate in the team's offseason workouts since he was signed last month, but coach Pete Carroll expects him to be ready for training camp. Carroll told the Seattle Times last week that he was being cautious with Marshall because of a balky hamstring. "We're just making sure that we don't have a setback on a hamstring that's recovering," Carroll said. A six-time Pro Bowl pick, Marshall had just 18 catches for 154 yards and no touchdowns in five games for the New York Giants before an ankle injury ended his season. The Giants released him in April and he signed with the Seahawks in May. -- Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott believes the Cowboys' offense will be formidable despite no longer having wide receiver Dez Bryant and tight end Jason Witten. Bryant was released this offseason in a salary-cap move and Witten retired. They were the top two pass catchers on the team last year. "We're going to be an exciting team this year," Prescott told Showtime at a boxing event in Frisco, Texas, on Saturday night. "A lot of new faces. I think you're going to find we have a lot of new guys on this team, within this organization, that can make plays. We plan on surprising a lot of people." The Cowboys added several wide receivers this offseason including Tavon Austin, Allen Hurns, Deonte Thompson and draft picks Michael Gallup and Cedrick Wilson. -- One former LSU running back sees big things on the horizon for another as Leonard Fournette talked up former teammate Derrius Guice recently. Washington selected Guice in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft, and the Jacksonville Jaguars running back thinks the Redskins got a bargain. "He's going to have a great year," the 23-year-old Fournette told the New Orleans Times-Picayune on Friday. "He always had the talent when I was there at LSU. He's a hard worker. He's a great kid. Big things are going to come for Derrius this year." Guice rushed for 1,251 yards and 11 touchdowns last season. He was even better as a sophomore, piling up 1,387 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. Guice set school records for the longest run (96 yards) and rushing yards in one game (285). -- Johnny Manziel remained a spectator in the Hamilton Tiger-Cats' season opener against the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday. Manziel looked on as starter Jeremiah Masoli threw for 344 yards with a passing and rushing touchdown in the Tiger-Cats' 28-14 loss to the Stampeders. The 2012 Heisman Trophy winner is attempting a comeback in the Canadian Football League after being released by the Cleveland Browns in March 2016. He completed 21 of 32 passes for 168 yards and a touchdown in two exhibition games. Manziel signed a two-year contract last month when no NFL team showed interest in signing him after the abbreviated two-week stint in the Spring League. -- Detroit Lions coach Matt Patricia is bringing along a familiar phrase from his time with the New England Patriots: Do your job. Per the Detroit Free Press, that message is prevalent at the team's facility. "It always comes down to being accountable to your teammates and so many times you get caught up in everything else going on," Lions quarterback -- and former Patriot -- Matt Cassel said. "And I remember as a young guy, you always worry about, 'Well, who's getting the reps,' and this, that and the other, and it takes you and distracts you away from just doing your job." Patricia was hired by the Lions on Feb. 5, one day after New England fell to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII. Patricia previously served as defensive coordinator for the Patriots. He replaced Jim Caldwell, who was fired on Jan. 11 after posting a 36-28 record in four seasons. Patricia joined the Lions after spending the last 14 seasons with New England. During his tenure working for coach Bill Belichick, the Patriots won three of their five Super Bowl titles in addition to six AFC titles and 13 AFC East Division championships. -- Baltimore Ravens rookie offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr. honors his father by wearing a white bandana under his helmet during practices and games. Brown, who was selected in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma, said he wears that bandana as a daily reminder of his father. Orlando Brown Sr. died at age 40 of diabetic ketoacidosis on Sept. 23, 2011. "My biggest wish right now is I wish he could see it," the 6-foot-8, 340-pound Brown told ESPN.com. "At the end of the day, that's my motivation for getting to this point and continuing to make sure I carry on his legacy." Orlando Brown Sr., who was nicknamed "Zeus", started 119 games for the Cleveland Browns and Ravens in an NFL career that stretched from 1993 to 2005. The younger Brown was a three-year starter with the Sooners and a unanimous first-team All-America selection. -- Buffalo Bills wide receiver Zay Jones is going to need to earn his spot, according to general manager Brandon Beane. Jones dealt with a shoulder injury last year and knee surgery this offseason after being selected by Buffalo with a second-round pick of the 2017 NFL Draft. Many believe he will start opposite Kelvin Benjamin in 2018, although Beane wasn't guaranteeing as much during an appearance on Buffalo talk radio station WGR. "He's not just going to necessarily go right to the top of the line," Beane told NewYorkUpstate.com. "He'll have to earn his way. Part of that will just be just getting his feel." Jones had 27 receptions for 316 yards and two touchdowns during his rookie season for the Bills, whose thin wide receiver corps consists of Jones, Benjamin, Andre Holmes, Jeremy Kerley, Ray-Ray McCloud and Brandon Reilly among others. The 23-year-old Jones made bigger headlines in a bizarre incident in March when he was arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism. Video of the incident showed him naked in a hallway in an apartment building, arguing with his brother, Cayleb Jones, who is a wide receiver with the Minnesota Vikings. Prosecutors declined to pursue criminal charges, citing insufficient evidence. -- New York Jets rookie quarterback Sam Darnold was quite recognizable while walking the grounds of the U.S. Open on Saturday at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club. So much so that a fan wearing a polo shirt with the New York Giants logo asked for a photo with Darnold, who was the third overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. "We've got to get you a Jets polo," the 21-year-old Darnold said with a smile, per the New York Post. "That blue doesn't look good on you." Darnold attended the event with friend and fellow rookie quarterback Josh Allen, who was selected with the seventh overall pick of the draft by the Buffalo Bills. New York's desire for a top-tier quarterback was on display after the team made a blockbuster pre-draft trade with the Indianapolis Colts to move up three slots to No. 3. It paid a hefty price to do so as the Jets sent the No. 6 pick and two second-rounders (Nos. 37 and 49) this year and a second-round pick in 2019 to the Colts. -- New York Jets linebacker Kacy Rodgers II sees his father when he goes to work. Kacy Rodgers, after all, is the Jets' defensive coordinator. The two represent the NFL's only active father-son duo of player and coordinator on the same team. With the younger Rodgers vying for a roster spot, he took a moment to relay his feelings on his interesting dynamic. "It's definitely an initial shock," the younger Kacy told USA Today Sports. "You go from seeing him at the house, just 'Pops' or 'Dad,' to you walk in the building and he's leading the defensive meetings, and guys are calling him 'Coach Kacy' or 'Coach Rodgers.' After that initial shock, you get used to it. But I've loved every minute of it." The elder Rodgers echoed a similar sentiment. "I was seeing my son once, twice a year, max. Now I see him every day," the 48-year-old said. "You look out there on the practice field, and that's not only player No. 39, that's my son." The younger Rodgers was signed by the Jets in February. The 26-year-old spent the last two years with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League, accumulating 74 tackles, an interception, a sack and two forced fumbles in 25 games.