NFL Notes: DeflateGate 2, Buccaneers, Jets, Lions & Packers

DeflateGate 2

• A source tells Jason Cole mentions that the relationship between the Giants owners (the Maras) and the Steelers owners (the Rooneys) makes it unlikely that anything will come of the report that New York contacted the NFL about the Steelers’ football being underinflated. (NFLTR)

Buccaneers

• Alex Marvez expects Buccaneers DC Mike Smith to be back on the head-coaching radar again very soon, possibly as soon as next year.

Jets

• Jets RB Matt Forte (knee) will undergo an MRI on Monday, but Kimberly A. Martin has been told the ligaments in his knee are in tact.
• Forte said of his knee injury: “It has something to do with the clicking/popping that’s going on in there.”

Lions

Lions QB Matthew Stafford mentioned during an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio after the game that his finger injury didn’t impact him much during their win over the Bears.

“The finger’s OK. It’ll get better,” Stafford said, via Pro Football Talk. “I had to throw the glove on to help with some grip. It impacted me but the guys ended up playing well to help us win the game.”

Stafford will have to wear a glove on his throwing hand for the remainder of the season, but it doesn’t sound like he expects it to be a big issue for him. (NFLTR)

“It just takes some getting used to,” Stafford said.

Packers

Packers QB Aaron Rodgers told reporters after Sunday’s win over the Seahawks that he suffered a right calf injury during the first series of the game.

According to Rodgers, it’s too early to tell if the calf injury is as bad as the left calf strain he sustained back in 2014.

“It’s hard to tell; it just happened a few hours ago,” Rodgers said, via ESPN.com. “So I’ll give you a better update on Wednesday.”

With the Packers up several scores, HC Mike McCarthy elected to go with backup QB Brett Hundley to finish out the game.

“Well, we’re up four scores, there wasn’t a discussion,” Rodgers said. “They just came to me and told me they were making a change, and I wasn’t going to fight ’em based on how I was feeling.“