Titans Cut 12 Players
10:53am: The Titans announced the waiving of one more player on their Twitter account — linebacker Jonathan Willard. The team’s roster sits at 78.
10:50am: The Titans have released eight players in advance of tomorrow’s cutdown deadline, reports Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (and on Twitter). In addition to the following players, linebacker Colin McCarthy and offensive lineman Gabe Ikard will be removed from Tennessee’s roster after season-ending surgeries (either through an injury settlement, or by being placed on IR, in my estimation).
- Kendrick Adams, LB
- Marc Anthony, CB
- Lanier Coleman, DL
- Kevin Danser, OL
- Tyler Horn, OL
- Julian Horton, WR
- Waymon James, RB
- Micah Pellerin, CB
- Jaz Reynolds, WR
- Hakeem Smith, S
- Derel Walker, WR
Bills Release 11 Players, Roster Sits At 75
The Bills have reduced their roster to the required 75-man limit in advance of tomorrow’s 3pm deadline. The following players were released, per a press release:
- Derek Brim, S
- Dennis Dixon, QB
- Jake Dombrowski, P
- Tori Gurley, WR
- Jajuan Harley, S
- Dustin Hopkins, K
- Damien Jacobs, DT
- Macky MacPherson, C
- Chris Summers, WR
- J.J. Unga, G
- Ronnie Wingo, RB
As Mike Rodak of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter), the release of Dombrowski indicates that 38-year-old Brian Moorman has won the punting job in Buffalo. Dixon is an ex-fifth-rounder who has spent six years in the NFL.
Buccaneers Cut 13 Players
MONDAY, 9:29am: The Bucs have made another move, releasing linebacker Damaso Munoz, tweets Rick Stoud of the Tampa Bay Times. Tampa’s roster is now at 77.
SUNDAY, 3:46pm: The Buccaneers have issued their first wave of roster moves, cutting 12 players, per Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com (Twitter links):
- Jeremy Cain, LS
- Euclid Cummings, DT
- Jace Daniels, OL
- Skye Dawson, WR
- Jason Foster, OL
- Ryne Giddins, DE
- R.J. Mattes, G
- Eric Page, WR
- Tommy Streeter, WR
- Chaz Sutton, DE
- Alex Tanney, QB
- Ian Thompson, FB
With Cain, Andrew DePaola is now in line for the long-snapping job. Tanney is notable for being a “trick-shot” QB of YouTube renown. Tampa Bay still needs to make three more roster cuts before Tuesday’s 3pm CT deadline.
Texans Release Nine Players
The Texans’ roster now sits at 79 after they released the nine players this morning, according to Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston. Additionally, offensive tackle David Quessenberry, who is dealing with lymphoma, was placed on the reserve/non-football illness list.
- Joe Adams, WR
- Austin Brown, DT
- David Hunter, DT
- Alec Lemon, WR
- Terrance Lloyd, LB
- Sam Longo, G
- Junior Mertile, CB
- William Powell, RB
- Lawrence Sidbury, LB
Powell and Sidbury are the most notable names here — Powell had 59 carries for the Cardinals in 2012, while Sidbury is a former fourth-round pick with five years of NFL experience.
King’s Latest: Rams, Cardinals, Texans, Ravens
Despite his belief that the Seahawks remain the premier team in the NFL, Peter King of TheMMQB.com isn’t picking them to win the 2015 Super Bowl. Since the Patriots’ back-to-back titles a decade ago, no Super Bowl-winning team has garnered even a single playoff victory, writes King — history simply isn’t on Seattle’s side. Let’s sort through the most intriguing items from King’s column:
- Following Sam Bradford‘s season-ending injury, the Rams do have interest in Eagles backup Mark Sanchez, but they won’t sacrifice a second- or third-round pick to acquire a player who is playing on a one-year contract.
- The Rams will monitor the waiver wire for quarterback depth, but King’s sense is that they are comfortable will Shaun Hill as their starter, given that he has been learning St. Louis’ offense for five months.
- The Cardinals had strong interest in three players in May’s draft — Ryan Shazier, Zack Martin, and Calvin Pryor — who all went within five selections before Arizona’s pick at No. 20. Instead, the Cards traded back to pick No. 27, drafted Deone Bucannon, and used their extra third-round pick to select unheralded receiver prospect John Brown, who has been a preseason surprise.
- Because they had the worst record in the league last season, the Texans will have first priority on all waived players as cutdown dates approach, and general manager Rick Smith isn’t going to be shy about using that advantage. “Our roster is a living, breathing thing,” said Smith. “And if there’s a player we see out there who is better than what we have, we’re going to act.”
- King believes the Ravens, whose secondary is quite thin, will make a trade for a corner this week.
- It might be tough for the Rams to pass Michael Sam through waivers, as he’s shown much more quickness during the preseason than he did in college.
Colts Waive 11 Players
The latest team to announce its roster purge is the Colts, who have confirmed the waiving of 11 players via press release.
- Johnny Adams, CB
- Qua Cox, CB
- Andre Cureton, G
- Marcus Hall, G
- Kameron Jackson, CB
- Nu’Keese Richardon, WR
- Jonathon Sharpe, LB
- David Sims, S
- Eric Thomas, WR
- Tony Washington, WR
- Cameron White, FB
Indianapolis’ roster still contains 79 players — they’ll need to cut four more to be in compliance with tomorrow’s 75-man limit.
Chiefs Release Nine Players, Place Commings On IR
Teams still have about 31 hours to trim their rosters to 75 players, and the Chiefs are getting an early start on the process by releasing nine players this morning, the team announced in a press release. Kansas City also placed second-year safety Sanders Commings on injured reserve, ending his season.
- Deon Anthony, WR
- Jairus Campbell, DL
- Jermelle Cudjo, DT
- Weston Dressler, WR
- Otis Hudson, G
- Jerrell Jackson, WR
- Brandon Jones, CB
- Jeron McMillian, CB
- Daryl Surgent, WR
The Chiefs’ roster count sits at 78, meaning they need to make three more transactions before tomorrow’s 3pm deadline.
PFR Originals: 8/17/14 – 8/24/14
The original content produced by the PFR staff during the past week:
- In our latest Extension Candidate entries, I profiled Dolphins tight end Charles Clay and Rory Parks examined the case for Ravens receiver Torrey Smith.
- Polls last week: Rob DiRe wondered who is the best quarterback available through trade (Kirk Cousins garnered almost 50% of the vote), Luke Adams asked whether Brian Hoyer or Johnny Manziel should start for the Browns (about 60% of you said Hoyer would and should start), and Zach Links wondered which rookie WR will have the best season (Jordan Matthews took the top spot). Thanks for voting!
- We’re just weeks away from the start of the regular season, but there are still intriguing options available via free agency. Luke looked at the best remaining players on the market on both offense and defense.
- Zach rounded up the best of the football blogs in the latest edition of Pigskin Links.
- Following the NFL’s announcement that practice squads will expand from eight to ten players, Luke took a deep dive into the developmental unit, explaining which players are eligible for the squad.
- I took a look at the largest cap hits by position on offense, and tried to determine which teams have made wise investments.
Week In Review: 8/17/14 – 8/24/14
The headlines from the past week at PFR:
Signed:
- Cardinals – DT Isaac Sopoaga (link)
- Steelers – DL Brett Keisel (link)
Extended:
- 49ers – DL Glenn Dorsey: two years, $6.075MM
- Bengals – LB Vontaze Burfict: three years
- Steelers – OT Marcus Gilbert: five years, $30MM
Waived/Released:
- Lions – CB Drayton Florence (link)
- Colts – RB Phillip Tanner (link)
- Dolphins – TE Michael Egnew (link)
- Bills – DT Alan Branch (link)
- Redskins – LB Rob Jackson (link)
- Patriots – DE Will Smith, DT Tommy Kelly, LB James Anderson (link)
Traded:
- Eagles – acquired RB Kenjon Barner from the Panthers in exchange for a conditional 2015 seventh-round pick
- Colts – acquired RB David Fluellen from the Eagles in exchange for kicker Cody Parkey
- Chiefs – acquired S Kelcie McCray from the Buccaneers in exchange for G Rishaw Johnson
75-man Roster Cutdowns:
- Eagles
- Lions
- Jets, second wave
- Bears
- Packers
- Panthers
- Jaguars
- Buccaneers
- Falcons
- Redskins
- Raiders
- Broncos
Suspended:
- Chiefs – OT Donald Stephenson: four games
- Broncos – K Matt Prater: four games
Retired:
- S Nick Collins (link)
- C Kyle Cook (link)
- RB Isaac Redman (link)
Injured:
- Falcons – OT Sam Baker, torn patellar tendon: will miss 2014 season
- Cardinals – DT Darnell Dockett, torn ACL: will miss 2014 season
- Rams – QB Sam Bradford, torn ACL, will miss 2014 season; RB Isaiah Pead, torn ACL: placed on IR after clearing waivers
Extension Talks:
- Chargers, Philip Rivers to open extension talks after season (link)
- J.J. Watt, Texans progressing in extension talks (link)
- 49ers, Michael Crabtree working on extension (link)
- Chiefs, LB Justin Houston expected to play out contact (link)
Other:
- NFL expands practice squad to 10 players (link)
- Alex Boone reportedly turned down 49ers’ offer (link), but San Francisco isn’t looking to trade him (link)
- Brian Hoyer named Browns’ starting quarterback (link)
- Forbes releases franchise valuations (link)
- Binding bids for Bills franchise are due September 9 (link)
- Dan Marino hired as Dolphins special advisor (link)
McDonald on Matt Schaub’s Sore Elbow
Raiders’ quarterback Matt Schaub has some soreness in his throwing elbow which kept him out of Sunday’s practice, reports Jerry McDonald of the Oakland Tribune (via Twitter).
Dennis Allen said that the injury was not serious, and not a cause for concern. He noted that Schaub will be evaluated daily and is expected to return soon.
The short term beneficiary of this injury is rookie quarterback Derek Carr. David Carr‘s younger brother was a second-round pick, and will be getting first-team reps with Schaub sidelined for the time being (via Twitter).
Schaub brought up the soreness for the first time yesterday.
McDonald draws comparisons to the quarterback situation from last season, when Matt Flynn was set to be the starter after being brought in via a trade with the Seahawks. That was before a sore elbow held him out of practice towards the end of the preseason. Flynn would never regain a hold of his starting job, as Terrelle Pryor and Matt McGloin shuffled back and forth in and out of the lineup (via Twitter). Flynn would eventually be released, allowing him to rejoin the Packers later in the season.
If Carr impresses with the first team, it could accelerate his path to the starting job the Raiders hoped he would eventually take.