The L.A. Clippers were safe. Until they weren’t.
In one of the most stunning examples of ESPN-on-ESPN crime on record, Shams Charania of ESPN reports that the NBA has levied unprecedented punishment on the L.A. Clippers for salary-cap circumvention in connection with Kawhi Leonard: Five first-round picks and a $30 million fine to owner Steve Ballmer. The NBA also has suspended Ballmer and others.
The report comes only a few weeks after ESPN reported that the NBA has no evidence of salary-cap circumvention by the Clippers as to Leonard.
The only way to harmonize the two reports is this — the NBA must have found a shitload (technical term) of evidence since August 17.
It’s the harshest cap penalty ever levied, in any sport. The NFL hasn’t issued one in years (except for a “clerical payroll error” by the 49ers in 2024).
Most recently, the NFL fined the Broncos a total of $1.918 million and stripped them of two-third round draft picks for a series of salary-cap violations in the 1990s. Before that, the NFL penalized the 49ers for a cap violation in 2000, taking a fifth-round pick in 2001 and a third-round pick in 2002; the league also fined former 49ers (then Browns) president Carmen Policy $400,000, and it fined 49ers vice-president Dwight Clark $200,000. That same year, the Steelers were fined $150,000 for a self-reported salary-cap violation. (Thanks to Team PFT for doing the research on this.)
All of those examples pale in comparison to what the NBA has done to the Clippers. And it all traces to the reporting of Pablo Torre, whose efforts secured a Pulitzer Prize for Pablo Torre Finds Out. (After ESPN’s August 17 report, some were suggesting it should be rescinded.)
That’s the true value of modern sports journalism. At a time when most are chasing transactional nuggets that will inevitably be announced (sometimes only minutes after the exclusive report), the best stuff to chase is the stuff they don’t want anyone to know about.
But for Pablo, the Clippers’ infraction never would have been discovered.
Broncos Clips
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid hasn’t set anything in stone regarding quarterback Patrick Mahomes’s availability for their Monday night game against the Broncos in Week 1, but all indications are that he’ll be in the lineup.
Assuming that’s the case, the biggest question will be whether his lack of work in the preseason and the long layoff since he tore his ACL last year will have any negative impact on the offense. Wide receiver Xavier Worthy said at a Wednesday press conference that Mahomes’s “will and want to” will help ensure that the team doesn’t hit any rough patches.
“Me and Pat, we’ve kind of been working this offseason and obviously the timing and stuff you need to work on. . . . I feel like when it’s time to play, we’ll all be ready,” Worthy said.
Reid also had a press conference on Wednesday and said only that Mahomes will keep practicing in the days leading up to the opener. The Chiefs will practice once more this week and then reconvene on Monday to begin their final preparations for Denver.
The Chiefs practiced without a key member of their defense on Wednesday, but there’s no sign of concern about the absence extending into Week 1.
Defensive tackle Chris Jones sat out of practice with a back injury. Head coach Andy Reid said at a press conference, via multiple reporters, that the team believes he’ll be “alright” moving forward.
Jones started every game for Kansas City last season and finished the year with 29 tackles, seven sacks and 25 quarterback hits.
Left guard Kingsley Suamataia left practice early with an illness and left tackle Josh Simmons, who has been dealing with a back injury of his own, did not take part in the practice.
Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper was put on paid leave over the weekend due to his domestic violence arrest this offseason and he was in a Colorado courtroom for a hearing on those charges Monday.
Cooper pleaded not guilty to several charges, including a felony count of second-degree assault. Cooper was arrested after an incident with his former girlfriend in June and again a week later for violating a protective order.
Cooper is allowed at the team’s facility while on paid leave, but cannot practice or play in games.
“It’s part of the process,” general manager George Paton said on Sunday, via Arnie Melendrez Stapleton of the Associated Press. “We continue to take this very seriously. We’re going to continue to monitor all the legal developments and continue to support Jonathon. Jonathon’s worked very hard to better himself and it’ll be good to have him in the building, be in meetings and just be a part of the team.”
A trial date of November 10 was set in the case.
On Sunday, the NFL placed three players on paid leave, officially known as the Commissioner Exempt List. The question now becomes: When will they return?
Under the Personal Conduct Policy, placement on paid leave “will generally last until the Disciplinary Officer and/or the league makes a disciplinary decision and any appeal from that discipline is fully resolved.” Because the league doesn’t finalize its disciplinary decisions until after the player’s criminal case ends, paid leave continues at least through the conclusion of the prosecution.
It doesn’t always work that way. In 2024, Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers missed seven games on paid leave. He was then reinstated before his case ended. In January 2025, a jury acquitted him of domestic assault charges.
So why did he return from paid leave before the case ended? That was never explained.
The fact that it happened for Peppers means that it could possibly happen for Packers running back Josh Jacobs, Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper, and/or Seahawks cornerback Terrion Arnold.
Some in league circles believe the Peppers case is an indication that the NFL will, in some cases, treat paid leave like an advance suspension, with the player (if later found responsible) getting credit for the games missed and returning the salary earned during the paid absence.
What that means for Jacobs, Cooper, and Arnold remains to be seen. Given that Jacobs is facing a misdemeanor battery charge, and in light of the fact that the baseline suspension for domestic violence is six games, it’s possible he’ll be reinstated after six games, even if his case is still pending.
It’s not a bad approach. Indefinite paid leave pending the resolution of the case puts extra pressure on the player to do a plea deal, and it incentivizes the prosecution to drag its feet. Yes, the player is getting paid. But he’s not playing. He wants to play.
Cooper’s situation is similar, although he’s facing a felony charge. Arnold’s case doesn’t involve domestic violence, but it includes eight serious felonies and a potential sentence of life in prison.
Regardless, the presumption that the player on paid leave won’t be back until his criminal case ends isn’t a hard-and-fast rule, as the Peppers case demonstrated. Any of the three players placed on paid leave could be back before their cases end.
The Broncos’ reduction to 53 includes the release of a fourth-year running back who has appeared in 41 games with nine starts.
Jaleel McLaughlin is among the cuts the Broncos made.
The following players also were waived: defensive tackle Israel Antwine, cornerback Brent Austin, wide receiver Michael Bandy, long snapper Luke Basso, cornerback Sean Fresch, defensive back Ricardo Hallman, tackle Reid Holskey, tight end Justin Joly, wide receiver Kolbe Katsis, wide receiver Dane Key, wide receiver Joseph Manjack, outside linebacker Dasan McCullough, nose tackle Jordan Miller, tackle Tyler Miller, linebacker Red Murdock, offensive lineman Gavin Ortega, safety Parker Robertson, wide receiver Cameron Ross, wide receiver Kyrese Rowan, running back Cody Schrader, safety Miles Scott, outside linebacker Ron Stone Jr., cornerback Reese Taylor, outside linebacker Johnny Walker Jr., defensive tackle Kristian Williams and inside linebacker Taurean York.
The Broncos also designated linebacker Drew Sanders as waived/injured.
The Broncos released the following vested veterans: long snapper Mitchell Fraboni, tight end Lucas Krull, fullback Adam Prentice, tackle Foster Sarell, center Lecitus Smith, and guard Calvin Throckmorton.
Also, the Broncos placed tackle Frank Crum and tight end Caleb Lohner on injured reserve, with a designation to return. Guard Nick Gargiulo was placed on the reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list.
As expected, linebacker Jonathon Cooper was placed on the Commissioner Exempt list.
The vast majority of fifth-round draft picks make the 53-man roster as rookies. Broncos tight end Justin Joly did not.
Joly, a fifth-round pick out of North Carolina State, is being released, according to Mike Klis of 9 News.
If he clears waivers, Denver will likely ask Joly to come back on the practice squad.
Joly had an 88-yard touchdown catch in last week’s preseason finale, which many thought was the big play he needed to make the roster. But that proved not to be enough, and now he’s available on waivers to any team that wants to put in a waiver claim and add him to its 53-man roster.
The NFL is taking care of multiple items of business under the Personal Conduct Policy.
Not long after announcing that Packers running back Josh Jacobs has been placed on paid leave, the league announced that Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper has been placed on the Commissioner Exempt list.
Cooper faces multiple charges arising from a June 2026 domestic violence incident. His lawyer, Harvey Steinberg, had a very strong reaction when charges against Cooper’s girlfriend were dropped.
A seventh-round pick in 2021, Cooper has started 17 regular-season games for three straight years in Denver.
He received $10.275 million earlier this year through a restructuring of his contract. He has a base salary of $1.215 million, which he’ll continue to receive.
His $30,000 in per-game active roster bonuses may be forfeited, depending on the language of his contract.
As all NFL franchises scramble to reduce their rosters to the maximum of 53 players as of 6:00 p.m. ET today, the possibility of paid leave lingers for several players and teams.
The Seahawks officially signed cornerback Terrion Arnold on Saturday, but he has yet to be officially placed on the Commissioner Exempt list. If that doesn’t happen before today’s deadline, they’ll have to devote to him a spot on the 53-man roster that could have been filled by another player.
Several other players are facing off-field issues that could result in paid leave, at some point. They include Rams receiver Puka Nacua, Rams offensive lineman Alaric Jackson, Packers running back Josh Jacobs, and Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper.
If they’re not placed on paid leave before 6:00 p.m. ET, they’ll occupy one of the 53-man roster spots. They’ll only move off the roster if/when the league exercises its prerogative to put them on the Commissioner Exempt list.
Under the Personal Conduct Policy, paid leave doesn’t happen until a player is formally charged with a felony or a crime of violence or the NFL concludes through its own investigation that a violation may have occurred or the NFL believes, as to an alleged crime of violence, that further investigation is warranted.
Will any players other than Arnold (who has been formally charged with eight felonies arising from an alleged armed robbery and kidnapping) be placed on paid leave? For now, it’s not known by the players or by the teams.
The last thing any team wants to see is a significant contributor get hurt in the final week of the preseason, so it wasn’t a great development for the Broncos when wide receiver Marvin Mims went to the medical tent early in Thursday’s game.
Mims limped off after an incomplete pass in his direction and had his right foot checked out. After the game, head coach Sean Payton said it was a minor issue.
“With Mims, he’s going to be fine. It’s a bruise,” Payton said. “We were really more just cautious with him. There were a few guys that we were going to get some snaps with that may have been —certainly front-line guys for us and he was one of those players.”
Mims missed time this summer with another lower-body injury and did not play in the first two preseason games, which explains why the Broncos gave him some snaps on a night when other key players were out of uniform. The injury wasn’t ideal, but it doesn’t sound like it should impact his availability for the Monday night opener against the Chiefs.
