Quentin Groves

Former NFLer Quentin Groves Dies

Former NFL linebacker Quentin Groves has died of a heart attack at the age of 32.

Heart problems had troubled Groves for several years, sadly. Tests at the 2008 combine showed that the ex-Auburn star had Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which causes rapid heartbeats. He also underwent minor surgery between the combine and the draft.

Quentin Groves

Despite his health issues, the Jaguars drafted Groves in the second round of his class. The 52nd overall selection spent only two seasons in Jacksonville, where he amassed 32 appearances (seven starts), 2.5 sacks and forced a pair of fumbles.

From 2010-14, Groves played with the Raiders, Cardinals, Browns and Titans. In a combined 68 appearances and 25 starts with those clubs, Groves totaled 7.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. Groves signed with the Bills in August 2015, but his career ended when they released him a couple weeks later.

PFR sends its condolences to Groves’ family and friends.

Bills Release 16 Players, Waive Meeks

5:04pm: In addition to their moves earlier today, the Bills have waived safety Jonathan Meeks, ESPN’s Mike Rodak tweets. The Bills attempted to trade Meeks, per Rodak, but were unable to find any takers. Rodak writes that Meeks is a candidate to end up on the Bills’ practice squad if he goes unclaimed on waivers. According to Fox Sports’ Alex Marvez, the Bills tried – and failed – to trade a receiver in order to keep Meeks on their 53-man roster (Twitter link).

1:07pm: The Bills announced that they have cut 16 players, including defensive end IK Enemkpali, as a part of their effort to get down to a 53-man roster. The full list of transactions is below:

Released:

  • OL William Campbell
  • FB John Conner
  • WR Andre Davis
  • DE IK Enemkpali
  • DT Andre Fluellen
  • LB Quentin Groves
  • RB Bronson Hill
  • OL Darryl Johnson
  • OL Alex Kupper
  • DE B.J. Larsen
  • WR Dezmin Lewis
  • CB Merrill Noel
  • WR Tobais Palmer
  • G Cyril Richardson
  • QB Matt Simms (as reported earlier today)
  • RB Cierre Wood

Reserve/NFI List:

  • CB Leodis McKelvin

Waived/Injured:

  • WR Deonte Thompson

Enemkpali is now (and perhaps, forever) best known as the player who punched Jets quarterback Geno Smith, causing him a broken jaw and many weeks on the sidelines. Immediately after the incident, the Jets waived the linebacker/defensive end and old pal Rex Ryan wasted little time in claiming him. Enemkpali only saw the field sparingly in his rookie season, playing 40 defensive snaps and contributing a little on special teams as well.

Groves, 31, appeared in all 16 regular season games for the Titans last season, including three starts. The linebacker, a former second round pick by the Jaguars, has bounced around a bit over the years and despite signing with Buffalo in August, he’ll be looking for a new NFL home once again in 2015.

Fluellen, 30, spent nearly all of his career with the Lions since being drafted by the team in the third round back in 2008. However, he has never played a significant role in Detroit, acting as a part-time contributor over the course of 77 career games (75 with Detroit). In 2014, Fluellen recorded 10 tackles, two sacks, and a fumble recovery in 183 defensive snaps. In June, he hooked on with Buffalo, but his stay in Western New York was brief.

 

Bills Place Jarius Wynn, Ty Powell On IR

The Bills have made a handful of roster moves in the wake of a pair of season-ending ACL injuries, the team announced today in a press release. In addition to confirming the previously-reported signing of linebacker Quentin Groves, the Bills announced they’ve signed running back Ricky Seale, waived defensive lineman Erik Williams, and placed defensive end Jarius Wynn and linebacker Ty Powell on injured reserve.

Wynn and Powell both suffered ACL injuries that will prematurely end their 2015 seasons, creating some depth issues among the Bills’ front seven. Groves, a former second-round pick, will have an opportunity to compete for a roster spot and could be a solid veteran backup for Rex Ryan‘s squad. The 31-year-old has played in 100 regular season games for a total of five teams in his NFL career.

Although the Bills removed three players from their active roster and added just two, it doesn’t appear there will be a new opening on their 90-man roster. Prior to the first set of roster cutdowns, players with less than four years of NFL experience must pass through waivers before they can be placed on injured reserve. Since there’s no indication that Powell was waived/injured, which would have given another team the chance to claim him, it seems he’ll still count against the Bills’ 90-man roster for now, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com tweets.

Bills To Sign Quentin Groves

Veteran linebacker Quentin Groves has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Bills, a source tells Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

Groves, 31, appeared in all 16 regular season games for the Titans last season, including three starts. The linebacker, a former second round pick by the Jaguars, has bounced around a bit over the years and will now be joining his sixth team, assuming that he makes the Bills’ roster.

Over the course of seven NFL seasons, Groves has appeared in 100 games for the Jaguars, Raiders, Cardinals, Browns, and Titans. As an outside linebacker for Arizona in 2012, Groves amassed 4.0 sacks and 41 tackles, his best season to date.

Extra Points: Osweiler, Seahawks, Bills

As Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) explains, the Broncos have a pair of questions to answer in regard to Brock Osweiler. The first is whether the quarterback is capable of replacing Peyton Manning when the future Hall-of-Famer retires, and the second is whether the club will be able to retain Osweiler beyond the 2015 season.

According to Cole, John Elway and the Broncos decide they want to keep the young signal-caller around, they may try to work out a deal that’s heavy on incentives, meaning Osweiler would earn those bonuses if he eventually lands the starting job. However, it’s not clear yet if Denver would try to get something done with Osweiler in the next few weeks, or if the club is more inclined to wait until after the season to make its decision.

Let’s check out a few more Monday odds and ends from around the NFL….

  • With Tarvaris Jackson dealing with a sprained ankle, the Seahawks may add another quarterback to their roster, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. Per Condotta, the club worked out a QB today, though that player has yet to be identified.
  • Having seen multiple players in their front seven go down injuries over the last few days, the Bills are bringing in several free agent defenders for workouts, according to Mike Rodak and Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Per the ESPN report, defensive lineman Red Bryant and edge defenders Marcus Benard and Quentin Groves are auditioning for Buffalo.
  • Free agent running back Joe McKnight, who is recovering from a torn Achilles, has been fully cleared for all activities by foot/ankle specialist Dr. Robert Anderson, tweets Caplan. McKnight worked out for the Texans recently, but didn’t sign with the team.
  • Peter King of TheMMQB.com covers a number of topics in his latest piece, listing Ahmad Bradshaw atop his list of the best available free agent running backs, and suggesting that new Bills DE IK Enemkpali will likely face at least a two-game suspension.
  • Colts head coach Chuck Pagano refuses to let his contract status be a distraction as he enters the final year of his deal, telling ESPN’s Mike Wells that he has “the best job in the entire world right now,” and his focus is on getting the most out of his team.
  • There were rumblings that the Falcons might consider re-signing linebacker Prince Shembo after his legal case was resolved, but D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that the team decided to pass on bringing back the former fourth-round pick.

Minor Moves: AFC South

Here are some minor transactions from around the AFC South this Labor Day:

 

Sunday Transactions: AFC South

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC South 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 are noted below.

Additionally, as of 11:00am CT 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 AFC South transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Houston Texans:

Indianapolis Colts:

Jacksonville Jaguars:

  • Claimed off waivers: Mickey Shuler, TE (via Ryan O’Halloran on Twitter)
  • Cut: Marcel Jensen, TE (via Aaron Wilson on Twitter)
  • Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Cody Booth, T; DeAndre Coleman, DT; Henry Josey, RB (via Adam Caplan on Twitter); Craig Loston, S; Stephen Morris, QB; Kerry Taylor, WR; Tony Washington, WR; Marcus Whitfield, LB. The team has also added cornerback Peyton Thompson, reports Michael DiRocco (via Twitter), although the team has not officially announced the signing.

Tennessee Titans:

Texans Release Eight Players

The Texans have released tight end Zach Potter, according to Dave Zangaro of CSNHouston.com (on Twitter). Earlier today, Houston released wide receiver Travis Labhartkicker Chris Boswellfullback Toben Opurum, and former USC safety Jawanza Starling. Here’s your running list of the players released in Houston today:

Texans To Sign Lawrence Sidbury, Quentin Groves

10:56pm: In addition to Sidbury, the Texans have agreed to sign linebacker and special-teamer Quentin Groves, tweets John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. Groves had worked out for the Jets earlier this week, after previously auditioning for the Patriots, Redskins, and Titans. The 30-year-old, who has played for four teams in the last six seasons, saw limited action last year for the Browns, but recorded a pair of sacks.

9:19pm: It’ll be a one-year deal worth the veteran’s minimum, tweets Tania Ganguli of ESPN.com.

9:04pm: The Texans figure to add an outside linebacker to their roster shortly, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com, who reports (via Twitter) that Lawrence Sidbury is expected to sign with the club.

Sidbury, a fourth-round pick in 2009, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Falcons. Although he was active in 48 games for the team, he played sparingly, totaling just 362 defensive snaps in those four years, along with occasional contributions on special teams. The 28-year-old signed joined the Colts in 2013, but was sidelined with a shoulder injury and landed on injured reserve.

Assuming the Texans finalize a deal with Sidbury, the team will have to cut a player to make room on the roster. Subsequently, the veteran linebacker will have a chance to earn a roster spot with the club for the regular season.

AFC Notes: Groves, Broncos, Watt, Raiders

As we look forward to more training camps around the NFL opening this week, let’s round up a few items from across the AFC….

  • Edge defender and special-teamer Quentin Groves worked out for the Jets on Monday, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Groves has been busy since being released by the Browns in early June, auditioning for the Redskins, Patriots, and Titans, though he has yet to find a home for the coming season.
  • Demaryius Thomas and Julius Thomas are both extension candidates for the Broncos, but Mike Klis of the Denver Post points out that the tight end figures to be motivated to get a deal done sooner. As a fourth-round pick in 2011, Julius Thomas’ career earnings to date are dwarfed by Demaryius Thomas’, since the receiver was selected in the first round in 2010.
  • The Texans have made a habit of extending their best players well before their contracts expire, and could make a statement with J.J. Watt by becoming the first team to lock up a 2011 first-rounder to an extension, says John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.
  • Citing a repaired salary cap and financial structure, Raiders owner Mark Davis says he feels like the team had a “phenomenal” offseason, as Jerry McDonald of the San Jose Mercury News details.