Minor Moves: Sunday
We will keep tabs on today’s minor transactions right here:
- The Falcons have waived TE Kyle Miller, according to the team’s official Twitter account.
Lions Notes: Wright, Mayhew, Swanson
As this weekend’s draft dust continues to settle, let’s take a look at a few draft-related notes out of Detroit:
- The Lions ultimately drafted DT Gabe Wright in yesterday’s fourth round after trading a 2016 third-round pick to the Eagles to move up to the 113th-overall selection. As Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com tweets, one of the reasons they were comfortable in doing that was because they knew that they would likely be getting a fairly high compensatory selection in 2016’s draft as a result of losing Ndamukong Suh in free agency.
- Last season’s injuries played a major role in the Lions’ draft strategy this year, writes Carlos Monarrez of The Detroit Free Press. The team went through four right tackles and lost their top two nickel corners after Week 2, so GM Martin Mayhew drafted durable offensive linemen Laken Tomlinson and Corey Robinson. Detroit also added Stanford corner Alex Carter in the third round and Texas nickel corner Quandre Diggs in the sixth.
- Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com points out that, for the first time in his seven-draft tenure as Lions GM, Mayhew did not select a wide receiver. “There were a couple of times during the draft when a receiver’s name was up there,” Mayhew said. “But there was somebody else who was more of a reason to go in a different direction.”
- After hinting for the past few months that they wanted to shift to a more run-oriented offense, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com says the Lions took a definitive step in that direction this weekend by drafting a mauling guard (Tomlinson), a tailback (Ameer Abdullah), and even a fullback (Michael Burton).
- The Lions drafted Travis Swanson in the third round last year with intentions of having him take over for Dominic Raiola at center this season. But as Dave Birkett of The Detroit Free Press writes, Detroit, which has spent four high-round draft picks on offensive linemen in the last three years, is not willing to commit to Swanson as its starting center just yet. He was penciled into the starting lineup until Thursday night, when the Lions acquired veteran interior blocker Manny Ramirez in a trade with Denver.
Eagles To Sign 16 Undrafted Free Agents
Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer provides a list of the 16 undrafted free agents that have agreed to sign with the Eagles (Twitter links):
- Rasheed Bailey, WR, Delaware Valley University
- Brett Boyko, OG, UNLV ($10K bonus, plus $10K guaranteed salary, per Aaron Wilson)
- Malcom Bunche, OG, UCLA
- Mike Coccia, C, New Hampshire
- Devante Davis, WR, UNLV
- Jordan Dewalt-Ondijo, LB, Duke
- Andrew Gleichert, TE, Michigan State
- John Harris, WR, Texas
- Cole Manhart, OG, Nebraska (Kearney) ($5K bonus, plus $10K guaranteed salary, per Wilson)
- B.J. McBryde, DE, UConn ($5K bonus, per Wilson)
- Raheem Mostert, RB/KR, Purdue
- Travis Raciti, DE, San Jose State ($7.5K bonus, plus $10K guaranteed salary, per Wilson)
- Denzel Rice, DB, Coastal Carolina
- Kip Smith, P, Oklahoma State
- Eric Tomlinson, TE, UTEP
- Justin Tukes, TE, UCF
Texans, 16 UDFAs Reach Deals
The Texans have agreed to terms with 16 undrafted free agents, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26. Here they are:
- Ivory Brandon, DT, Alabama
- Jake Cotton, OG, Nebraska
- Kurtis Drummond, S, Michigan State ($5K bonus, per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press).
- Will Johnson, P, Texas State
- Kendall Lamm, OT, Appalachian State
- Khari Lee, TE, Bowie State
- Mike McFarland, TE, South Florida
- Cam McLeod, DE, Ohio State
- Greg Mancz, C, Toledo
- Dan Pettinato, DE, Arizona State
- James Rouse, DE, Marshall
- Chad Slade, OG, Auburn
- Carlos Thompson, OLB, Mississippi
- Lynden Trail, OLB, Norfolk State
- Tony Washington, OLB, Oregon
- Chandler Worthy, WR, Troy
AFC Notes: Wilkerson, Geno, Collins, Browns
With newly drafted defensive lineman Leonard Williams in the fold, Muhammad Wilkerson‘s time with the Jets could be running out, writes Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Despite being one of the Jets’ best players, Wilkerson is without a contract beyond next season and, per Mehta, the team isn’t eager to give him a new deal. Mehta argues that it doesn’t make financial sense to dole out big bucks to Wilkerson, especially with fellow lineman Sheldon Richardson under team control through 2017 and cornerback Darrelle Revis signed to a long-term mega-deal.
While the Jets might not be able to go forward with all three as anchors of their defense, Mehta believes they could slap the franchise tag on Wilkerson next offseason and trade him for a first-round pick. For now, rookie Jets coach Todd Bowles will enjoy having Wilkerson as a key cog in what should be a dominant D-line, but it doesn’t seem as if the four-year veteran will be a part of it beyond the 2015 campaign.
Here’s more on the Jets and some of their fellow AFC teams:
- Despite adding Ryan Fitzpatrick via trade and Bryce Petty via the draft, the Jets will enter training camp with Geno Smith atop the quarterback depth chart, Fitzpatrick as his main backup, and Petty and Matt Simms fighting for third-string duties, Bowles tells Brian Costello of the New York Post (Twitter link).
- The Chargers did “as much as work as [they] could” in researching La’el Collins, but they simply couldn’t take the risk due to lack of information, general manager Tom Telesco tells Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union Tribune (via Twitter). Broncos GM John Elway said the same thing (Twitter link via Lindsay Jones of USA Today), and I imagine nearly every team’s front office felt the same way.
- The Browns didn’t end up drafting a quarterback, but GM Ray Farmer says that wasn’t by design. Farmer adds that the club’s grades simply didn’t match up with availability (Twitter link via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal).
Connor Byrne contributed to this post.
Steelers Reach Agreements With 12 UDFAs
The Steelers have agreed to deals with 12 undrafted free agents, writes Mike Wilkening of Pro Football Talk. Here are the names:
- Cameron Clear, TE, Texas A&M
- Nigel Crawford-Kinney, DT, Saint Augustine
- Dominique Davis, DE, Liberty
- Miles Dieffenbach, OG, Penn State
- Reese Dismukes, OG, Auburn
- B.J. Finney, C, Kansas State
- Tyler Murphy, QB/WR, Boston College ($4,500 bonus, per Aaron Wilson)
- Brandon Prate, DE, Illinois State ($1k bonus, per Wilson)
- Collin Rahrig, OG, Indiana
- Eli Rogers, WR, Louisville
- Ross Scheuerman, RB, Lafayette
- Kevin Whimpey, OT, Utah State
Seahawks Agree To Terms With 12 UDFAs
The Seahawks have reached agreements with 12 undrafted free agents, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter links here). The full list:
- Nate Boyer, LS, Texas
- Jesse Davis, OT, Idaho
- Austin Hill, WR, Arizona
- Keenan Lambert, SS, Norfolk State ($10k bonus, per Aaron Wilson)
- Ronald Martin, SS, LSU
- Quayshawn Nealy, LB, Georgia Tech
- Thomas Rawls, RB, Central Michigan
- Trovon Reed, CB, Auburn
- Alex Singleton, LB, Montana State
- Tory Slater, DE, West Georgia
- Rod Smith, RB, Ohio State
- Triston Wade, FS, Texas-San Antonio
Broncos Add Nine Undrafted Free Agents
The Broncos have agreed to terms with nine undrafted free agents, six of whom are linemen. Here’s the full list, courtesy of ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter):
- Zaire Anderson, LB, Nebraska
- Kalon Davis, OL, Clemson
- Dillon Day, OL, Mississippi State
- Matt Miller, WR, Boise State
- Chuka Ndulue, NT, Oklahoma
- Connor Rains, OL, Wyoming
- Kyle Roberts, OL, Nevada
- Jordan Taylor, WR, Rice
- Josh Watson, DL, Clemson
Chargers Agree To Terms With 21 UDFAs
The Chargers have agreed to terms with 21 undrafted free agents. The list comes courtesy of Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter):
- Ikechi “Chi Chi” Araguzo, ILB, Northwestern
- Manuel “Manny” Asprilla, CB, Boston College
- Ben Beckwith, OG, Mississippi State
- Cameron Botticelli, DE, Minnesota
- Tyreek Burwell, OT, Cincinnati
- Cameron Clemmons, OT, Western Kentucky
- Titus Davis, WR, Central Michigan
- Nick Dzubnar, ILB, Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo
- Jahwan Edwards, RB, Ball State
- Eric Frohnapfel, TE, Marshall
- Curtis Grant, ILB, Ohio State
- Brock Hekking, OLB, Nevada
- Gordon Hill, S, Sacred Heart
- Josh Lambo, K, Texas A&M ($5k bonus, per Aaron Wilson)
- Johnny Lowdermilk, S, Iowa
- Ryan Mueller, OLB, Kansas State
- Brian Parker, TE, Albany ($7k bonus, per Wilson)
- Dreamius Smith, RB, West Virginia
- Cole Stoudt, QB, Clemson ($2k bonus, per Wilson)
- Tyrell Williams, WR, Western Oregon
- Demetrious Wilson, WR, Arkansas
NFC Notes: Eagles, Robinson, Cards, Vikes
Though the draft is over, the Eagles want to add more players, according to head coach Chip Kelly, who says the club want to bring in more offensive lineman and a tight end to replace James Casey (Twitter link via Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com). Philadelphia could look to add UDFAs and/or veteran free agents in the coming weeks.
Let’s look at some more notes from the NFC:
- Offensive tackle Corey Robinson says the Ravens, Dolphins, and Washington all called him with interest in signing him as a UDFA before he was chosen by the Lions, according to Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- Cardinals GM Steve Keim said he traded up for defensive lineman Rodney Gunter because he thought another team would take Gunter soon, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. That mystery team’s GM later confirmed to Keim that he would have selected Gunter had he been available, adds Urban.
- Guard Joe Berger was the only free agent whom the Vikings had interest in retaining, Vikes GM Rick Speilman tells Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link). Berger did end up being the only Minnesota FA to stick around, inking a two-year deal. (The Vikings also re-signed defensive tackle Tom Johnson and long snapper Cullen Loeffler, but both technically signed before the start of free agency).
- The 49ers drafted Blake Bell as a tight end, but the club thinks the former college quarterback could serve as an emergency QB in the NFL, per Matt Barrows of the San Francisco Bee (Twitter link), who adds that the presence of Bell could affect San Francisco’s roster construction.