NFL Roundup: Bills running back Nyheim Hines out for season after jet ski accident

Nyheim Hines authored the most uplifting moment of the Buffalo Bills’ trying 2022 season. Unfortunately, a freak accident will prevent him from playing in 2023.

Hines, 26, an explosive running back and returner, was sitting stationary on a jet ski in the water last Friday when he was struck by another rider, sources said. He sustained a season-ending knee injury that at minimum is believed to include a torn ACL.

It’s heartbreaking news for a player who returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in the Bills’ first game after last season’s Damar Hamlin scare, including a 96-yard score on the game’s opening kick.

Hines was Buffalo’s top punt returner and kick returner, in addition to being a dynamic dual-threat receiver out of the backfield.

It also calls into question how much of Hines’ current contract is in jeopardy of not being paid out, given the non-football nature of his injury and the rules that govern NFL deals.

The Bills’ healthy running back depth chart now includes James Cook, Damien Harris, Latavius Murray and undrafted rookie Jordan Mims. NFL Network first reported Hines’ injury.

SCARE IN DETROIT: Lions safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was carted off the practice field on Monday with a non-contact knee injury, according to reporters on the scene, but an MRI revealed no structural damage and he is considered day-to-day, per ESPN.

Gardner-Johnson, 25, had six interceptions on the NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles’ defense last season and signed with Detroit to beef up one of the NFL’s worst secondaries from a season ago. So dodging a major injury would be a huge relief for both the player and the team.

RBs GET ON ZOOM: Chargers running back Austin Ekeler organized a running back Zoom call on Saturday night to discuss the state of the position’s devalued market.

Cleveland Browns back Nick Chubb confirmed the 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey, the Titans’ Derrick Henry and the Giants’ Saquon Barkley were on the call. And he said, unfortunately, there aren’t a ton of solutions available.

“Right now it’s just talking; there’s really nothing we can do,” Chubb told reporters on Sunday. “We’re kind of handcuffed with the situation. But what I took from it — McCaffrey and Derrick Henry and Saquon all had a lot of good points — but the biggest thing is we’re at a position where our production hurts us the most. If we go out there and run for 2,000 yards with so many carries, the next year they’re gonna say you’re probably worn down.”

Chubb said of Barkley’s situation: “Saquon’s a great player. You can ask anyone around the league or even on the Giants how much he means to that team. So it’s hard not seeing him get what he deserves.”

CAN’T PAY EVERYONE? Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, and wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, are all on rookie contracts and deserving of their own respective paydays.

Bengals owner Mike Brown told reporters, though, that it’s difficult to make sure everyone is getting a sufficient slice of the pie — and the quarterback isn’t going to be the one that’s short-changed.

“It’s pretty obvious that Joe is the heart of the matter,” Brown said before the opening of camp. “And after that, we want all the guys we can get, but we may have to go short in a couple cases.”

It will be interesting to see how the Super Bowl contenders out in Ohio make the puzzle pieces fit.

HILL ESCAPES JUDGMENT: Miami Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill and the man he allegedly slapped in mid-June have “resolved their differences,” according to a statement provided by both sides’ attorneys to ESPN. So it appears the Dolphins’ best player has successfully nipped an investigation from the Florida State Attorney’s Office in the bud. The NFL has been investigating Hill, as well, but it wouldn’t be shocking if the league bowed out of that with the legal process now winding down. And so Hill and his history of alleged domestic violence will be back on the field this season.

GIANTS ADDITIONS: The Giants signed former Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Brandin Bryant, 29, a veteran of six NFL teams who has nine tackles in 11 career games. He is the second depth defensive tackle to sign with the Giants this summer following Kobe Smith’s addition in mid-June. D-tackles A’Shawn Robinson, Vernon Butler and D.J. Davidson were all either rehabbing or nursing ailments by the end of June’s mandatory minicamp. All Giants players are due to report on Tuesday, and with players taking physicals, it’s important that the team can field depth competition throughout the roster. The Giants’ first practice of camp, and their first media availability, will be Wednesday. That will include a press conference with GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll … The Giants also hired two-time Pro Bowl safety Mike Adams as an assistant special teams coach. Adams, 42, who hails originally from Paterson, N.J., replaces Anthony Blevins, who left Daboll’s staff to become head coach of the XFL’s Vegas Vipers. The former Passaic County Technical Institute standout played for Giants special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey in 2017 with the Carolina Panthers. He was the Chicago Bears’ assistant defensive backs coach in 2021. Now he joins another first-year Giants special teams assistant, Stephen Thomas, under McGaughey. The Giants also waived WRs Dre Miller and Makai Polk.

TONEY TWEAKED: Chiefs receiver Kadarius Toney, who recently spent time lashing out at Giants fans on Twitter, aggravated a knee injury on Sunday while fielding a punt and is expected to miss some time in training camp but be ready for the start of the regular season, per ESPN. Toney reportedly underwent an offseason cleanup procedure on his knee, which marks the second straight year he’s had something done on his knee in the offseason. Toney, 24, was a fourth-quarter hero in the Chiefs’ Super Bowl win over the Philadelphia Eagles in February, but he has consistently struggled to stay on the field during his NFL career. Don’t sleep on former Giants receiver Richie James emerging as a popular Patrick Mahomes target this summer, especially in Toney’s absence.