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NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/2/25

December 2nd, 2025 at 10:07pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Twenty-one different teams made practice squad transactions on Tuesday. Here are the latest updates:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

  • Signed: CB Jalen Kimber 

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

  • Released: WR Kyrese Rowan

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

  • Released: OL Wyatt Bowles

Miami Dolphins

  • Signed: OL Kion Smith
  • Released: OL Braeden Daniels

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed: DB Daequan Hardy

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

With J.J. McCarthy close to a return from his concussion, the Vikings parted ways with Ridder. He was signed last week after McCarthy entered concussion protocol, but was not elevated to back up Max Brosmer in Week 13. That responsibility instead went to John Wolford, who remains in Minnesota.

Bishop was released by the Steelers at the beginning of November. After appearing all 17 games last year with a 50% snap share, he did not make the 53-man roster this season and remained on the practice squad. He will now join the Saints in the hopes of making his 2025 debut in New Orleans.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/2/25

December 2nd, 2025 at 8:29pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Several NFL teams made minor roster on Tuesday as they prepare for crucial Week 14 games with major playoff implications. Here are the latest updates:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

New York Giants

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Cardinals Unsure Of QB Kyler Murray’s Return Timeline

December 1st, 2025 at 10:57pm CST by Adam La Rose

4:43pm: Gannon said this afternoon (via team reporter Darren Urban) Murray will not practice this week. Evaluation in this case will continue with Murray’s status still unclear.

9:54am: Kyler Murray appeared to be nearing a return to full health following a foot injury when it became clear he would not resume starting quarterback duties upon being medically cleared. Shortly thereafter, the Cardinals moved him to injured reserve.

That decision ensured an absence of at least four weeks. As early as Wednesday, though, Murray could return to practice. Head coach Jonathan Gannon was asked by ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss if the team plans on opening Murray’s practice window this week, but he replied, “I’m not sure.”

Since Gannon revealed Murray would not immediately reprise his starting role upon being cleared, speculation has understandably increased about a parting of ways taking place this coming offseason. Murray is already owed $36.8MM in guaranteed salary for 2026, so a trade or release would have major cap implications. The former No. 1 pick’s base salary ($19.5MM) is set to vest in March, so a decision will need to be made by that point.

A recent report indicated the Cardinals could elect to retain the current regime featuring Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort and in doing so allow for a reset under center. Gannon and Ossenfort were both hired in 2023, well after Murray had been drafted. Year 3 of the Ossenfort-Gannon tandem has not gone to plan, and Arizona sits at 3-9 on the year. That leaves the Cardinals as one of the teams already eliminated from playoff contention and a potential candidate to select a passer during the opening round of April’s draft.

Murray’s entire seven-year career has taken place in Arizona, but a change in organizational direction could leave him on the move relatively soon. The 28-year-old would be an interesting target for other teams seeking at least a short-term move at the position, but of course his market value will be heavily influenced by his health. Receiving clearance for the end of the campaign would be a welcomed development for all involved.

The coming days will thus be important with respect to Murray’s status over the closing weeks of the season. A return to full health – even without any accompanying playing time – would add an interesting layer to Arizona’s final games of 2025. Whether or not the team plans to open Murray’s practice window in the near future will be worth monitoring.

Updated 2026 NFL Draft Order

December 1st, 2025 at 10:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

Week 12 saw the Giants become the first team in the NFL to be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Based on Sunday’s results, another two teams from each conference saw their postseason chances officially come to an end.

The Titans, Saints, Raiders and Cardinals have now been eliminated as well. Attention in the case of those teams will increasingly turn toward the offseason. For some, questions about changes at the quarterback spot will be ongoing through the spring. Free agency is not expected to include many notable options, so the draft will be sought out in several instances as a means of finding a 2026 starter.

Of course, the incoming class of passers has largely underwhelmed this season. That has led to uncertainty regarding the ceiling for many of the top prospects at the quarterback position. Nevertheless, supply often outweighs demand at the top of the Day 1 order in the NFL draft. How things shake out over the closing weeks of the season will be key in determining which QB-needy teams find themselves in the best position to select a new QB1.

For non-playoff teams, the draft order is determined by the inverted 2025 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. Playoff squads are slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular season record.

Here is an early look at the first-round order:

  1. Tennessee Titans (1-11)
  2. New York Giants (2-11)
  3. New Orleans Saints (2-10)
  4. Las Vegas Raiders (2-10)
  5. Cleveland Browns (3-9)
  6. Washington Commanders (3-9)
  7. New York Jets (3-9)
  8. Arizona Cardinals (3-9)
  9. Los Angeles Rams (via Falcons)
  10. Cincinnati Bengals (4-8)
  11. Minnesota Vikings (4-8)
  12. Miami Dolphins (5-7)
  13. Kansas City Chiefs (6-6)
  14. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6)
  15. Carolina Panthers (7-6)
  16. Dallas Cowboys (6-5-1)
  17. Detroit Lions (7-5)
  18. Houston Texans (7-5)
  19. Baltimore Ravens (6-6)
  20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-5)
  21. Buffalo Bills (8-4)
  22. Philadelphia Eagles (8-4)
  23. New York Jets (via Colts)
  24. San Francisco 49ers (9-4)
  25. Los Angeles Chargers (8-4)
  26. Cleveland Browns (via Jaguars)
  27. Dallas Cowboys (via Packers)
  28. Seattle Seahawks (9-3)
  29. Los Angeles Rams (9-3)
  30. Denver Broncos (10-2)
  31. Chicago Bears (9-3)
  32. New England Patriots (11-2)

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/1/25

December 1st, 2025 at 6:49pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

New England Patriots

New York Giants

The Lions continue to work through their tight end depth with Sam LaPorta done for the season. The team’s first move today was claiming Hayden Rucci, who was waived by the Dolphins on Saturday. A former UDFA out of Wisconsin, Rucci spent much of the 2024 and 2025 campaigns in Miami. He got into four games with the organization this season, with the majority of his snaps coming on special teams.

The Lions also welcomed Shane Zylstra back to practice today. The tight end has been out since Week 2, when he suffered an ankle injury while blocking on a punt return. The veteran has gotten into 31 games with the Lions since the 2021 season, hauling in 15 catches for 116 yards and four touchdowns.

Otherwise, the Lions placed center Frank Ragnow back on the reserve/retired list after the veteran failed his physical.

Cardinals Place Will Hernandez On IR, Activate Hayden Conner

November 29th, 2025 at 4:43pm CST by Connor Byrne

The Cardinals made a pair of changes to their offensive line on Saturday, per Darren Urban of the team’s website. Right guard Will Hernandez is headed to IR with hip and knee injuries. Rookie O-lineman Hayden Conner is coming off IR to take Hernandez’s roster spot.

Hernandez was a durable starter for the Giants and Cardinals from 2018-23. The former second-round pick missed just seven regular-season games out of a possible 99 during that six-year span.

Hernandez’s career was thrown off course when he tore his ACL in October 2024, limiting him to five contests. Shortly after receiving medical clearance, Hernandez re-upped with Arizona on a one-year contract in August. He played in seven games this season before going on IR.

Hernandez won’t be eligible for activation until Week 17. With the Cardinals sitting at 3-8 and all but guaranteed to miss the playoffs, it’s possible he won’t return in 2025. Regardless, the Cardinals will have to decide whether to re-sign Hernandez in the offseason. For now, Isaiah Adams is likely to take over again as the Cardinals’ starting right guard. The 2024 third-rounder started five games earlier this season when Hernandez was working back from last year’s knee injury.

The Cardinals spent a sixth-rounder in last spring’s draft on Conner, who is finally in position to debut after suffering a knee injury in the preseason. Conner started in 43 of 51 games with the Longhorns.

In other moves on Saturday, Arizona elevated two practice squad players – tight end Pharaoh Brown and linebacker Channing Tindall – for Sunday’s game against the Buccaneers. It’s the third standard gameday elevation of the year for Brown. That’s the limit, which means the Cardinals will have to sign Brown to their active roster if they want to use him again.

Cardinals Release Xavier Thomas; Baron Browning To Return In Week 13

November 28th, 2025 at 6:46pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Cardinals will have outside linebackers Baron Browning and BJ Ojulari on the field together for the first time this season in Week 13.

Browning is returning from a two-game absence due to a concussion, while Ojulari missed Arizona’s first nine games as he recovered from last year’s knee injury. With both players back in the fold, the Cardinals waived 2024 fifth-rounder Xavier Thomas, per team reporter Darren Urban.

Despite playing 54% of the team’s defensive snaps in his nine appearances, Browning has just 26 tackles, two sacks, and three tackles for loss on the season. However, he has been credited with 22 pressures and a 12.5% pass rush win rate, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), which both rank third among the Cardinals’ pass rushers. Based on those numbers, he is due for some better production for the rest of the season.

Thomas only appeared in four games this season with 15 snaps on defense and 42 on special teams. As a rookie, Thomas played 208 snaps with 2.5 sacks and two tackles for loss, but the addition of Josh Sweat this offseason and the return of Ojulari in Week 11 pushed him out of the rotation. Thomas will hit waivers and leave a dead cap hit of $93k in 2025 and $186k in 2026.

NFL Minor Transactions: 11/26/25

November 26th, 2025 at 7:34pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are Wednesday’s minor moves and some standard gameday practice squad elevations for the annual Thanksgiving slate of games:

Arizona Cardinals

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Green Bay’s regular kicker Brandon McManus was off the injury report with three full practices this week, so Havrisik will take his leave after filling in for three games this year. The team had been keeping Havrisik close even during McManus’ healthy stretches, but after the backup missed two extra point attempts at MetLife this weekend, the Packers relinquished him to the waiver wire.

Jones missed most of his rookie campaign due to a knee injury, and the same has been true for most of his sophomore season. This time, though, he’s coming back with a bit more time left in the season.

O’Connell had already been called up as a gameday elevation three times this year, so if Seattle wanted to see him on the field again, this move was necessary. In his most recent elevation, O’Connell was asked to play a much bigger role, staying in for over half the team’s defensive snaps. In his first extended opportunity, O’Connell finished second on the team with nine tackles and even logged his first career sack.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/26/25

November 26th, 2025 at 6:44pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s midweek practice squad transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

2025 Injured Reserve Return Tracker

November 22nd, 2025 at 9:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

The 2024 offseason brought a change in how teams could construct their 53-man rosters while retaining flexibility with injured players. Clubs were permitted to attach return designations to two players (in total) placed on IR or an NFI list before setting their initial rosters.

In prior years, anyone placed on IR before a team set its initial 53-man roster could not be activated in-season. All August 26 IR- or NFI-return designations, however, already count against teams’ regular-season limit of eight. Teams will be tasked with determining which players injured in-season will factor into activation puzzles as the year progresses.

All players designated for return on August 26 became eligible to be activated beginning in Week 5, though any player placed on IR after a team set its initial 53 has not been designated for return and therefore does not yet count toward a club’s eight-activation limit. Playoff teams will receive two additional injury activations once the postseason begins.

Here is how the 32 teams’ activation puzzles look for Week 14:

Arizona Cardinals

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Atlanta Falcons

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Baltimore Ravens

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 6

Buffalo Bills

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Carolina Panthers

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Chicago Bears

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Cincinnati Bengals

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Cleveland Browns

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Dallas Cowboys

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

Denver Broncos

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Detroit Lions

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Green Bay Packers

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Houston Texans

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Indianapolis Colts

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Jacksonville Jaguars

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Kansas City Chiefs

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Activations remaining: 6

Las Vegas Raiders

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Los Angeles Chargers

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Los Angeles Rams

Designated for return:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 7

Miami Dolphins

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Minnesota Vikings

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

New England Patriots

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 7

New Orleans Saints

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

New York Giants

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

New York Jets

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Philadelphia Eagles

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Pittsburgh Steelers

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

San Francisco 49ers

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Seattle Seahawks

Eligible for activation:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 6

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 7

Tennessee Titans

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Washington Commanders

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

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