HEADLINES

Rashaun Simonise

Bengals Bring Roster To 53

September 3rd, 2016 at 1:25pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bengals are now in roster compliance, having brought their roster to 53. The following players have been cut:

Additionally, DT Marcus Hardison was placed on injured reserve and WR Mario Alford was waived with an injury settlement, tweets Owcazrski.

Kumerow had been fighting for a reserve wide receiver spot on a Cincinnati club that lost several of its pass-catchers over the offseason. And though he offers special teams value, Kumerow wasn’t able to beat out the likes of Cody Core and Alex Erickson to join a depth chart that includes A.J. Green, Tyler Boyd, and Brandon LaFell.

On Friday, the Bengals released safety Jimmy Wilson.

Bengals To Sign Rashaun Simonise

July 14th, 2016 at 1:24pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bengals will sign wide receiver Rashaun Simonise, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (via Twitter). The Canadian wide receiver was one of six entrants in today’s Supplemental Draft and became a free agent after he went unselected. Of course, the other five players in this year’s “second chance” draft also went unselected.

In 2015, Simonise made some noise when he racked up 1,079 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns in eight games in his junior season at the University of Calgary. However, he was recently declared academically ineligible for the upcoming season, which led him to enter his name into the 2016 Supplemental Draft. Since the end of the ’15 season, the 6’5″ receiver has been staying in football shape and even had a brief stint with the Chicago Eagles of the Champions Indoor Football League.

As shown on Roster Resource, Simonise will now look to battle with the likes of Brandon Tate, rookie Cody Core, Jake Kumerow, Mario Alford, James Wright, and Michael Bennett for one of the team’s final wide receiver spots.

The Vikings showed some early interest in Simonise, Wolfson notes, but they did not make it to his pro day or make an attempt to sign him today.

Supplemental Draft Ends, No Players Chosen

July 14th, 2016 at 12:19pm CST by Zachary Links

Well, that was fast. The 2016 Supplemental Draft has come and gone without a single player chosen, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Ra'Zahn Howard (Vertical)This year’s Supplemental Draft kicked off at 12 p.m. CT but all teams passed when called upon in all rounds of the draft. All of the players who were eligible for the draft are now unrestricted free agents and free to sign with any team.

Last month, Purdue defensive tackle Ra’Zahn Howard became the first player to declare for the Supplemental Draft. Soon after, Virginia Tech long snapper Eddie D’Antuono, Sam Houston State running back Jalen Overstreet, Concordia College defensive end Cameron Walton, Ole Miss cornerback Tee Shepard, and Canadian wide receiver Rashaun Simonise also entered their names for consideration.

Many viewed Howard as the strongest player out of this bunch and early projections had him going somewhere between rounds five and seven. However, Howard apparently flopped in a recent workout for NFL teams, prompting one GM to label him as “undraftable.” Meanwhile, Overstreet received some good news this week when he had his felony credit card abuse charges dropped, but his cleared up legal status still did not entice any teams to pull the trigger on selecting him. Simonise reportedly had six teams in attendance for his pro day, but it’s not immediately clear if any of those teams are interested in giving him a roster spot.

The supplemental draft allows clubs to select players who, for one reason or another, were unable to enter the standard draft. If a team selects a player in the supplementary draft, it will lose its corresponding pick in the following year’s standard draft. For example, if a club were to select a player in the fourth round of the supplemental, it will lose its 2017 fourth-rounder as a result.

Most players who enter the Supplemental Draft are not selected, enabling them to sign with any NFL team. In fact, this marks the third straight year in which supplemental draft day came and went without any selections. Some of the most recent players to be picked have been Isaiah Battle (Rams, 2015), Terrelle Pryor (Raiders, 2011) by the Raiders, and Josh Gordon (Browns, 2012).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Six Teams Meet With Rashaun Simonise

July 12th, 2016 at 2:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Six NFL teams have met with Supplemental Draft prospect Rashaun Simonise, according to NFL Draft Diamonds (on Twitter). The Rams, Cardinals, Packers, Colts, Jets, and Redskins were all in attendance for a recent workout by the Canadian wide receiver. University Of Calgary/Rashaun Simonise (vertical)

In 2015, Simonise made some noise when he racked up 1,079 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns in eight games in his junior season at the University of Calgary. However, he was recently declared academically ineligible for the upcoming season, which led him to enter his name into the 2016 Supplemental Draft. Since the end of the ’15 season, the 6’5″ receiver has been staying in football shape and even had a brief stint with the Chicago Eagles of the Champions Indoor Football League.

Last month, Purdue defensive tackle Ra’Zahn Howard became the first player to declare for the Supplemental Draft. Soon after, Virginia Tech long snapper Eddie D’Antuono, Sam Houston State running back Jalen Overstreet, Concordia College defensive end Cameron Walton, Ole Miss cornerback Tee Shepard, and Simonise also entered their names for consideration.

The supplemental draft allows clubs to select players who, for one reason or another, were unable to enter the standard draft; academic trouble or disciplinary issues are often – but not always – key factors. If a team selects a player in the supplementary draft, it will lose its corresponding pick in the following year’s standard draft. For example, if a club were to select a player in the fourth round of the supplemental, it will lose its 2017 fourth-rounder as a result. Most players who enter the Supplemental Draft are not selected, enabling them to sign with any NFL team.

Extra Points: NFL-NBA, Supp. Draft, Spillman

July 1st, 2016 at 8:31pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Several NFL players took to social media Friday to post incredulous reactions to the big money thrown around at the outset of NBA free agency, as ESPN.com highlights. Among those who weighed in were Broncos receiver Emmanuel Sanders, Steelers running back DeAngelo Williams and Lions tight end Eric Ebron. One of Sanders’ teammates, safety, T.J. Ward, had perhaps the strongest and most controversial response, referring to the money NFLers are making as “peanuts” compared to NBA and Major League Baseball players. As a result, ESPN’s Jim Trotter (Twitter link) expects the dollars bandied about in the NBA to come up when union meetings with NFL players take place at training camp. The system in the NFL favors the owners, meaning the players don’t have the ability to institute real change, Trotter notes (Twitter link).

To keep up with all the latest from the NBA, bookmark Hoops Rumors and follow HR on Twitter.

Back to the NFL…

  • In addition to Purdue defensive tackle Ra’Zahn Howard – who declared for the July 14 supplemental draft last week – the league has given eligibility to Cameron Walton (Concordia College), running back Jalen Overstreet (Sam Houston State), defensive back Tee Shepard (Mississippi), wide receiver Rashaun Simonise (Canada) and long snapper Eddie D’Antuono (Virginia Tech), reports The Associated Press. Given that he’s almost completely deaf, Shepard’s story is the most interesting of the group, and the defender insisted when he left the Ole Miss program last October that his hearing problems have never served as an impediment on the field. Mississippi’s coaches disagreed, though, according to a frustrated Shepard. If an NFL team selects any of these players, it’ll have to surrender a corresponding pick in the 2017 draft. That means a player who goes in, say, the fourth round of the supplemental draft would cost his new team a fourth-rounder in next spring’s draft.
  • Returning to the basketball-football connection, former NBA point guard Nate Robinson has shifted his focus to becoming an NFL wideout, writes ESPN.com’s Sheil Kapadia. The 32-year-old previously tried out for the Seahawks as a defensive back, and head coach Pete Carroll suggested that Robinson take a shot at receiver. The former dunk champion is now working with trainer Dwayne Frampton, whose other clients include Odell Beckham Jr. and DeSean Jackson.
  • One year after his arrest, former NFL cornerback C.J. Spillman has been sentenced to five years in prison for sexual assault, reports FOX 4 News in Texas (via Twitter). Spillman, 30, played with the Chargers, 49ers and Cowboys from 2009-14.

Ben Levine contributed to this post.