Dominique Williams

Workout Updates: Seahawks, Patriots, Ravens

The Seahawks, with a below-average rushing attack and Thomas Rawls nursing a shoulder injury, worked out five free agent running backs Tuesday, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). Stevan Ridley, Jonas Gray, Dan Herron, LaMichael James and Dominique Williams all auditioned for the club. The most established member of the group is Ridley, who has been available since Atlanta released him Nov. 23. The 27-year-old has just one appearance and three carries to his name this season and has seen his playing time sharply decline since a 1,263-yard campaign with New England in 2012. Gray, also an ex-Pat, has made little impact since averaging 4.6 yards per attempt on 89 carries in 2014, his rookie year. He hasn’t found an employer since the Jaguars waived him Aug. 17.

Along with those rushers, defensive back L.J. McCray visited the Seahawks, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. The Seahawks agreed to acquire McCray from the 49ers back in early September, but the deal fell through after he failed his physical. San Francisco then cut McCray, who hasn’t landed anywhere since.

More workouts from Tuesday:

  • The Patriots auditioned linebacker Arthur Brown, according to Doug Kyed of NESN (Twitter link). Both the Jaguars and Jets have cut Brown this month. He entered the league in 2013 as Baltimore’s second-round pick.
  • Cornerbacks Tharold Simon and Steve Williams tried out for the Ravens, per ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). Simon made nine appearances earlier this season with the Cardinals, who cut him last week. He’s better known for his 11-appearance, five-start tenure with Seattle from 2014-15. Williams, meanwhile, moved on and off the Rams’ roster multiple times this year. He has totaled six appearances this season (five with San Diego) after playing in 14 games with the Chargers and intercepting two passes last year.
  • The Falcons worked out three tight ends – Orson Charles, Darion Griswold and Joel Ruiz – and defensive end Martin Ifedi, reports Howard Balzer of BalzerFootball.com (Twitter link). Griswold and Ifedi ended up signing with their practice squad.
  • The Dolphins also took a look at the aforementioned Tharold Simon, who joined fellow corner Demetrius McCray and two tight ends – Gabe Hughes and Chris Pantaletweets Caplan.
  • Tight end Rob Housler showcased himself to the Colts, relays Caplan (Twitter link). The five-year veteran has 109 catches, nearly all of which (105) came with Arizona from 2011-14.
  • The Eagles auditioned wide receiver Greg Ellingson, cornerback Tay Glover-Wright and Canadian Football League punter Richie Leone, according to Caplan (Twitter links).
  • Defensive ends Rufus Johnson and Rakim Cox worked out for the Lions (Twitter links via Caplan and Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle).
  • Linebackers Deon Lacey and Glenn Love tried out for the Cardinals, per Balzer (Twitter link).

Practice Squad Updates: 9/26/16

Here are today’s practice squad moves:

Chicago Bears

  • Signed: OL Colin Kelly
  • Cut: OL Jason Weaver (Twitter link via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune)

Indianapolis Colts

  • Signed: DL Kristjan Sokoli (Twitter link via agent Brett Tessler)
  • Cut: DL Sterling Bailey (Twitter link via Mike Chappell of CBS4)

New York Jets

  • Signed: RB Brandon Wilds (via press release)
  • Cut: RB Dominique Williams

Seattle Seahawks

  • Signed: OL Robert Myers (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times)

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/6/16

Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Signed: QB Aaron Murray, QB Zac Dysert (team announcement)

Atlanta Falcons

  • Signed: WR Nick Williams (Twitter link via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution), DL Joe Vellano (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com)
  • Cut: DT Joey Mbu (Twitter link via Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com)

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed: QB David Fales (Twitter link via Adam Caplan of ESPN.com), G Jarell Broxton (Twitter link via Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun)

Buffalo Bills

  • Signed: LB Carlos Fields, DB Damian Parms (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)

Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Minnesota Vikings

  • Signed: T Carter Bykowski (Twitter link via Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press)
  • Cut: CB Tre Roberson

New England Patriots

New York Jets

New Orleans Saints

Seattle Seahawks

  • Signed: OL Takoby Cofield

Tennessee Titans:

  • Signed: WR Tre McBride (Twitter link via Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com)
  • Cut: WR Ben Roberts

Chargers Sign 20 Undrafted Free Agents

The Chargers have become the first club to announce its list of undrafted rookie free agent signings. San Diego has signed the following 20 UDFAs:

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/19/16

Here are today’s minor NFL moves, with a focus on reserve/futures contracts:

  • The Colts have signed defensive lineman Ricky Lumpkin to a reserve/futures deal, according to Wilson (Twitter link). Lumpkin, who has NFL experience with both the Cardinals and Raiders, worked out for Indianapolis in mid-December.

Earlier updates:

  • The Steelers confirmed 10 reserve/futures signings today, including a pair – defensive end Caushaud Lyons and safety Ray Vinopal – that weren’t on Monday’s transactions report. Pittsburgh also extended the contracts of offensive lineman Chris Hubbard and fullback Roosevelt Nix. Both players, who had been eligible for exclusive rights free agency this winter, got one-year deals.
  • The Jets have now signed 17 players to reserve/futures contracts, announcing today in a press release that offensive lineman Sean Hickey and running back Dominique Williams are the latest recipients.
  • The Dolphins have signed quarterback Zac Dysert and tight end Dominique Jones to reserve/futures deals, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. Both players spent time with the Broncos as recently as 2014, when new Miami head coach Adam Gase was the offensive coordinator in Denver.
  • The Packers and Seahawks each signed a player who finished the season on the team’s practice squad injured reserve list, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com and Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times, respectively (Twitter links). Green Bay signed defensive end B.J. McBryde, while Seattle signed offensive lineman Terry Poole. Both contracts are reserve/futures deals.

Sunday NFL Transactions: NFC North

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four NFC North teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Bears, Lions, Packers, and Vikings are noted below.

Additionally, as of 11:00am today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. For the 2014 and 2015 seasons, changes were made to practice squad rules that allow teams to carry eight players instead of 10, and the eligibility requirements for those extra two spots were also loosened. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s NFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Minnesota Vikings

Vikings Reduce Roster To 53 Players

Having acquired offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles from the Chargers earlier today, the Vikings needed to remove 23 players from their active roster, as the league moved from 75-man rosters down to 53-man squads. Minnesota announced all of its moves in one go, issuing a press release that features 22 cuts, along with cornerback Jabari Price heading to the reserve/suspended list.

Here are the players cut today by the Vikings:

  • T Babatunde Aiyegbusi
  • DT Chigbo Anunoby
  • DE B.J. Dubose
  • G Isame Faciane
  • C Tom Farniok
  • WR Donte Foster
  • WR Isaac Fruechte
  • S Anthony Harris
  • RB DuJuan Harris
  • DT Greg Hickman
  • DE Leon Mackey
  • LB Michael Mauti
  • LB Brian Peters
  • CB Shaun Prater
  • FB Blake Renaud
  • CB Josh Thomas
  • T Tyrus Thompson
  • C Bobby Vardaro
  • LB Brandon Watts
  • WR Ryan Whalen
  • RB Dominique Williams
  • OL David Yankey

Vikings Sign Nine Players To Futures Deals

The Vikings have become the latest team to lock up their practice squad players to reserve/futures contracts for the 2015 season. The team announced today that it has signed all nine of the players who finished the year on the taxi squad to futures deals. Here’s the complete list of the guys who inked new contracts with the club:

Practice Squad Updates: Tuesday

As usual, Tuesday means plenty of practice squad signings and cuts for teams around the NFL. Here are today’s practice squad moves, with the latest updates added to the top of the page throughout the day:

  • To make room for their new practice squad additions, the Broncos have released defensive end Zach Thompson and wide receiver Douglas McNeil, tweets Mike Klis of The Denver Post.
  • The Saints signed former Chiefs inside linebacker Jerry Franklin to their practice squad, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets.
  • According to Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com (via Twitter), tackle Mark Asper and defensive back Josh Bush have joined the Broncos‘ practice squad. Denver previously had a full 10-man unit, so we’ll have to wait for word on which players are being replaced.
  • The Bengals have swapped one linebacker for another on their taxi squad, signing Terrell Manning and dropping Justin Jackson, per the team (Twitter link).
  • The Cowboys have made a few changes to their practice squad, releasing guard Jeff Baca and linebacker Will Smith and adding linebacker Keith Smith and cornerback Robert Steeples to replace them (Twitter link).

Earlier updates:

  • Rookie running back Dominique Williams, who was with the Vikings in camp, has re-signed with the team, joining the practice squad, according to a press release. Minnesota had a full 10-man unit, but now no longer lists safety Pierre Warren on its roster, so perhaps he was signed away by another club — the Saints, Warren’s former team, would be the most likely candidate.
  • In addition to making multiple changes to their 53-man roster, the Colts also tweaked their practice squad today, adding running back Michael Hill and cutting wide receiver Eric Thomas, the team announced today. We’ll have to wait to see whether Hill, the only running back on Indianapolis’ practice squad, has a chance to be promoted in Ahmad Bradshaw‘s absence, or if the team will opt for a veteran replacement instead.
  • The Falcons have filled the 10th and final spot on their taxi squad by signing former Oregon defensive tackle Ricky Havili-Heimuli, per Jay Adams of AtlantaFalcons.com (Twitter link).
  • Having recently worked out for the club, cornerback Marcus Cromartie has joined the 49ers‘ practice squad, replacing tight end Xavier Grimble, who has been cut, according to the club (Twitter link).
  • Outside linebacker Cordarro Law, who was cut from the Chargers‘ active roster prior to Sunday’s game against the Raiders, has re-signed with the team’s practice squad, according to the Chargers’ transactions list.

Practice Squad Updates: Tuesday

With Week 2 of the NFL season underway, teams have begun to again modify their 10-man practice squads. We’ll have Tuesday’s updates right here, with the latest moves added to the top of the page throughout the day:

  • The Eagles signed linebacker Brandon Hepburn and offensive lineman Tyler Hoover to the practice squad, writes Phil Sheridan of ESPN.com. Meanwhile, they released linebacker Colton Underwood, who was signed to the practice squad last week.
  • Running back Chris Rainey and cornerback Teddy Williams have joined the Cardinals‘ practice squad, taking the spots of receiver Kevin Cone and running back Dominique Williams, who was placed on the PS-injured list, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com.
  • The Redskins have made a couple more changes to their practice squad. According to Mike Barber of the Richmond Times-Dispatch (via Twitter), former Virginia Tech defensive tackle Derrick Hopkins has been added, while Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun tweets that cornerback Richard Crawford has been cut.
  • In order to make room for the previously-reported practice squad addition of wideout Greg Herd, the Bears have terminated the contract of defensive tackle Roy Philon, the team announced today (via Twitter).
  • Linebacker Josh Kaddu has filled the final opening on the Vikings‘ practice squad, the club announced (Twitter link).

Earlier updates:

  • Tight end Michael Egnew, a former third-round pick, has signed to the Jaguars’ practice squad, replacing offensive tackle Cody Booth, the club announced today in a press release. Tight end Reggie Jordan was also removed from Jacksonville’s injured reserve list.
  • The Chiefs will sign tight end Adam Schiltz to their practice squad, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). We heard yesterday that wideout Armon Binns would also join Kansas City’s practice squad, so the club will have to cut two players from the unit to make the additions official.
  • With an opening on their practice squad, the Broncos have filled it by signing tight end Dominique Jones, according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post.
  • The Redskins have cut wide receiver Nick Williams from their practice squad, a source tells Zac Boyer of the Washington Times (Twitter link).