2017 September - Pro Football Rumors

Redskins Claim OL T.J. Clemmings

September 3rd, 2017 at 11:49am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Redskins have claimed offensive lineman T.J. Clemmings off waivers from the Vikings, tweets Tom Pelissero of NFL.com.

Clemmings, 25, has started 30 games for Minnesota since being selected in the fourth round of the 2015 draft. However, he’s consistently graded as one of the worst offensive linemen in the NFL, earning poor marks at both guard and tackle.

Washington’s starting offensive line is set, but Clemmings will give the club a reserve option behind tackles Trent Williams and Morgan Moses and guards Brandon Scherff and Shawn Lauvao.

Jets Claim Will Tye

September 3rd, 2017 at 11:15am CST by Rory Parks

The Jets have claimed former Giants tight end Will Tye, according to ESPN’s Field Yates (via Twitter).

Tye, 27, had started 17 games for the Giants over the past two seasons. Since entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 2015, Tye has averaged 45 receptions, 430 yards, and two touchdowns per year.

After drafting Evan Engram in the first round of this year’s draft, Big Blue did not have as much need for Tye. Gang Green, on the other hand, could use some tight end depth, especially while Austin Seferian-Jenkins serves a two-game suspension to open the season. ASJ has had a nice offseason, and the Jets do have a promising rookie, Jordan Leggett, waiting in the wings, but adding another reliable option at the tight end position makes plenty of sense.

Chargers To Place Denzel Perryman On IR

September 3rd, 2017 at 10:08am CST by Rory Parks

The Chargers will place linebacker Denzel Perryman on IR tomorrow, as GM Tom Telesco told the team’s official website (video link). The team hopes to bring Perryman back later in the year.

Telesco said, “He just had surgery last week so it’s slow right now, but the plan with him is that he’d come back at some point during the year.”

Perryman suffered an ankle injury during a preseason contest last month, and he was required to undergo surgery as a result. Perryman has been no stranger to injuries throughout his two-year career, as pectoral, shoulder, hamstring, and knee issues have sidelined him since he entered the league as a second-round draft pick in 2015. He’s been relatively effective when on the field, however, especially against the run. Last year, the 23-year-old Perryman started 11 games and played on 45% of the Chargers’ defensive snaps, racking up 71 tackles, two sacks, and grading as the league’s No. 43 linebacker in the process, per Pro Football Focus.

Perryman will be forced to miss the first eight weeks of the regular season as a result of being placed on IR, though he can begin practicing with the club after Week 6. Los Angeles has the depth to withstand a Perryman absence, especially given that he was only expected to be a two-down player thanks to his lack of coverage abilities.

Korey Toomer is expected to start in Perryman’s stead.

Su’a Cravens Reverses Retirement Decision

September 3rd, 2017 at 10:00am CST by Dallas Robinson

Redskins safety Su’a Cravens informed the club on Saturday that he intended to retire, but has reversed his decision (for now) after a meeting with Washington decision-makers, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Cravens will be placed on NFI list which will rule him out for at least a month while the team helps him to alleviate some “issues,” per Schefter (Twitter link) and Mike Jones of The Washington Post (Twitter link).

Cravens, 22, has contemplated retirement before, tweets Mike Jones of the Washington Post, and while details are slim as to the reasons behind Cravens’ decision, injury issues could be one possibility. Cravens is now required to wear glasses full-time following a concussion in 2016, and brain injuries have caused young players to hang up their cleats in the past. A torn biceps ended Cravens’ season last year, meanwhile, and he’s currently recovering from knee surgery. However, it’s “more than a physical thing” that’s led Cravens to mull retirement, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link).

With veteran DeAngelo Hall starting the season on the physically unable to perform list, Washington has a vacancy at safety opposite D.J. Swearinger. Other defensive backs on the Redskins’ roster include Stefan McClure, Montae Nicholson, and DeShazor Everett.

Cravens, a second-round draft pick in 2016, appeared in 11 games and made three starts during his rookie campaign while playing both defensive back and linebacker. He’d been expected to shift to safety full-time for the 2017 season.

Giants Release CB Valentino Blake

September 3rd, 2017 at 9:51am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Giants have released cornerback Valentino Blake, according to Ralph Vacchiano of SNY (Twitter link).

New York designated Blake as “left squad” at the end of last month after the veteran defensive back left the team for a personal reason. Because the Giants had a roster exemption for Blake, the club’s roster count isn’t affected by its decision to part ways, per Vacchiano. It’s unclear if Blake has interest in continuing his NFL career elsewhere.

The Giants signed the 27-year-old Blake in March, after he proved to be a durable defender for the Jaguars, Steelers and Titans over the first five seasons of his career. Blake, who has appeared in 78 of 80 regular-season games since going undrafted in 2012, logged his third straight 16-game campaign last year with the Titans, though Pro Football Focus graded his performance an underwhelming 76th among 110 qualified corners.

With Blake out of the picture, the Giants picked up extra cornerback depth on Saturday, acquiring Ross Cockrell from the Steelers in exchange for a conditional 2018 draft pick.

Coughlin: Jaguars Never Interested In Kaepernick

September 3rd, 2017 at 9:34am CST by Rory Parks

When the Jaguars opened up their quarterback competition in August (only to close it again one week later), there was some speculation that Jacksonville could look into signing free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick. That speculation was fueled in part by club owner Shad Khan, who said that he would “absolutely” be okay with his team signing Kaepernick if his football people recommended him.

That never happened, and when Blake Bortles was named the starting quarterback last week, the Kaepernick-to-Jacksonville chatter, such as it was, died down. But unless Bortles flashes some hitherto unsuspected ability, the Jaguars will still have a glaring need at the quarterback position. Indeed, the club has enough talent that it could conceivably make a playoff push in a shaky AFC South if it can get consistent QB play, and some believe that Kaepernick would represent enough of an upgrade to get the Jags back to the postseason.

However, executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin has emphatically quashed the Kaepernick discussion. When asked if he ever considered Kaepernick, Coughlin said, “No, I didn’t. We did the study and the research and we weren’t interested.” When asked for his reasoning, Coughlin said, “No, I’m not explaining it. I just said what it is” (Twitter link via Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union).

Of course, this will be construed in some segments as an unenlightened decision to decline adding a player that might improve the club because that player took advantage of his freedom of expression and alienated a large portion of the NFL’s fanbase in the process. And maybe that segment would be right. But Coughlin is an intelligent football man, and as Kaepernick is a system quarterback whose salary demands and current commitment to football are largely unknown, it is fair to think that Coughlin’s decision was football-driven.

Saints OT Terron Armstead Avoids PUP List

September 3rd, 2017 at 9:12am CST by Dallas Robinson

Lost in the shuffle of Saturday’s roster cutdown madness was left tackle Terron Armstead‘s inclusion on the Saints’ initial 53-man roster. Armstead suffered a torn labrum in June and was facing a four-to-six month recovery timeline, but New Orleans didn’t place him on the physically unable to perform list, which would have required a minimum six-game absence to begin the season.

Armstead is still expected to miss several games, according to Mike Triplett of ESPN.com, but he clearly won’t be sidelined for as many as six contests (or else New Orleans simply would have kept him on PUP). Head coach Sean Payton hinted last week that Armstead was ahead of schedule, and allowed that the veteran blindside protector might sneak onto the Saints’ active roster.

New Orleans will roll with first-round rookie Ryan Ramczyk at left tackle until Armstead is able to return to the field. Health has never been a strong point for Armstead, who’s missed 14 games over the the past three seasons. But when he’s right, Armstead has consistently ranked as a top-15 NFL left tackle per Pro Football Focus, which gave him an excellent 90.6 overall grade in 2015.

Alex Boone Would Be Interested In Dolphins

September 3rd, 2017 at 8:54am CST by Rory Parks

Alex Boone, who was surprisingly released by the Vikings yesterday, would be interested in playing for the Dolphins, according to Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post. A 14-game starter for Minnesota in 2016, Boone ranked as the NFL’s No. 37 guard among 75 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus, which assigned him high marks for his pass blocking but poor scores in the run game.

But Boone would represent a significant upgrade for Miami, which is looking to stay afloat in the AFC East and get back to the playoffs for the second consecutive season. The Dolphins’ projected starting left guard, Ted Larsen, will miss at least the first eight weeks of the season with a biceps injury, and if they do not sign Boone, a player like Jesse Davis or Anthony Steen would fill in at left guard.

Boone, 30, might not be the same player he was during his peak years as a 49er, but he is still a quality starting option. Just last spring, he was one of Minnesota’s most prized free agent additions, signing a four-year, $26.8MM deal ($10MM guaranteed) with the Vikings.

As Schad writes, Miami’s offensive line coach, Chris Foerster, was the 49ers’ offensive line coach in 2009, Boone’s first year in San Francisco, and 2015, Boone’s final year in the Bay Area. Perhaps that connection will help the two sides reach a deal, assuming the Dolphins are interested in acquiring Boone.

Free Agent CB Sam Shields Suspended

September 3rd, 2017 at 8:36am CST by Dallas Robinson

Free agent cornerback Sam Shields has been suspended for the first two games of the 2017 season, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Shields hasn’t received any known interest since being released by the Packers in February, and this suspension certainly won’t help matters. The 29-year-old Shields can serve the ban as a free agent, but health issues might dissuade clubs from signing him even after his penalty concludes. A concussion limited Shields to one game in 2016, but despite suffering two major brain injuries in a nine-month span, Shields reportedly has no plans to retire.

A former undrafted free agent, Shields spent seven years with Green Bay, starting 62 games and racking up 18 interceptions during that span. He’s now part of a free agent cornerback cadre that includes Darrelle Revis, Leodis McKelvin, and Ron Brooks.

Buccaneers To Sign T.J. Ward

September 3rd, 2017 at 8:15am CST by Rory Parks

The Buccaneers will sign the newly-released T.J. Ward, as James Palmer of NFL.com tweets. It’s a one-year, $4MM deal that includes a maximum value of $5MM, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Ward started 41 games over three seasons in Denver after inking a four-year deal with the club prior to the 2014 season. Last season, he made 14 appearances, totaling one interception and one sack while ranking as the NFL’s No. 48 safety, per Pro Football Focus. Ward’s 75.9 grade was the worst mark of his career, and the Broncos felt it was better to move on and get a little salary cap relief in the process.

Per Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link), Ward drew interest from seven teams and had serious talks with three. According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Steelers had some degree of interest, but they were not serious contenders for his services.

Tampa Bay has already done a fair amount of tinkering at the safety position this offseason. The Bucs re-signed Chris Conte, signed free agent J.J. Wilcox from the Cowboys, and drafted Justin Evans in the second round. But signing Ward will help solidify the defensive backfield, and as Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times writes, Ward will push either Conte or Keith Tandy to the bench, and Wilcox and Evans will see their potential playing time take a hit as a result.

John Spytek, the Bucs’ director of player personnel and GM Jason Licht‘s right-hand man, was Cleveland’s director of college scouting when the Browns drafted Ward in 2010, and he spent two years as a scout with the Broncos when Ward played in Denver. That connection almost certainly played a role in Ward’s decision, along with the fact that Tampa Bay is a potential playoff team.