NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/22/17
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DE Alex Barrett
- Cut: DE Earl Okine
New England Patriots
- Signed: QB Taylor Heinicke, WR Riley McCarron
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: LB Ben Heeney
Chiefs Work Out Jace Amaro
The Chiefs worked out free agent tight end Jace Amaro on Thursday, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star tweets.
The 25-year-old Amaro has been on the hunt for a third NFL employer since the Titans cut him Sept. 3. Amaro, formerly with Texas Tech, entered the league as a second-round pick of the Jets in 2014 and totaled 38 receptions and two touchdowns in his rookie season. The Jets cut him prior to Week 1 last year, though, and he went on to appear in just three of the Titans’ games in 2016, catching three passes for 59 yards.
If he signs with Kansas City, Amaro would vie for a role behind star tight end Travis Kelce. Demetrius Harris is the only one of Kelce’s backups who has been a factor at all in the Chiefs’ offense this year, having hauled in two of Alex Smith‘s throws for 15 yards.
Ra’Shede Hageman Gets Six-Week Ban
The NFL has handed free agent defensive lineman Ra’Shede Hageman a six-week suspension as a result of a March 2016 domestic violence arrest, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter). Hageman faced misdemeanor charges of battery, cruelty to children, and interfering with calls for emergency assistance on the heels of his arrest, and the league began investigating him in September 2016.
Although Hageman escaped serious legal punishment, his off-field issues led the Falcons to part with him on Sept. 4. At that point, the league placed the 27-year-old on the commissioner’s exempt list as it continued its investigation.
“Really as an organization, we weren’t comfortable with where things were,” head coach Dan Quinn said after the Falcons cut Hageman (via Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com). “As you know, it’s an ongoing investigation through the league, so I won’t comment much further past that.”
Hageman was someone the Falcons had high hopes for before he forced them to move on from him. Atlanta used the 37th selection in the 2014 draft on the ex-Minnesota standout, and its coaching staff was reportedly enamored of him this past offseason. All told, Hageman appeared in 44 of the Falcons’ 48 regular-season games and combined for 15 starts during his three-year tenure with the club. The majority of his work came in 2015, when he tallied career highs in starts (11), defensive snaps (419) and tackles (27).
Pats Work Out Lamarr Houston, Philly Brown
Outside linebacker Lamarr Houston was among those to work out for the Patriots on Friday, Field Yates of ESPN reports (on Twitter). The team also auditioned a pair of wide receivers – Philly Brown and Tavarres King – as well as defensive tackle Stefan Charles, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets.
New England joins New Orleans as the second team Houston has tried out for since the Bears released him from injured reserve Sept. 6. Knee injuries, including two ACL tears, slowed Houston in recent seasons and led to his release from Chicago, which signed the ex-Raider to a five-year, $35MM contract prior to the 2014 campaign. Houston appeared in just two games last season, though he’s only two years removed from an eight-sack showing.
If Houston signs with the Patriots and returns to something resembling his past form, the 30-year-old could provide a boost to a Patriots defense in need of help. The reigning Super Bowl champions’ stop unit ranks last in DVOA through two weeks and has only totaled four sacks.
On the other side of the ball, the Pats haven’t been the picture of health this year at wideout, which could explain their interest in Brown. The 25-year-old has been available since the Bills waived him Sept. 3, and he has worked out with the Jets, Saints and Pats since then. Brown spent the first three years of his career in Carolina, where he hauled in 79 catches, 1,019 yards and seven touchdowns across 43 games (22 starts).
Latest On Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott
The Cowboys will have Ezekiel Elliott in uniform when they face the Cardinals on Monday night. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will not hold oral arguments until Monday, October 2, sports attorney Daniel Wallach has learned (Twitter link). 
The NFL was pressing the Fifth Circuit for an emergency stay in the Elliott case, essentially reversing a previous decision from a lower court. The league was hoping for a ruling sooner rather than later, but Roger Goodell & Co. will have to wait longer to see if/when they can enact the six-game suspension on the running back.
Had the league won the decision on Friday, a suspension for Monday night would have been in play. In theory, the league may have even suspended Elliott hours before kickoff with a legal victory during business hours on Monday. Now they won’t have the opportunity to bench Elliott until October, at least. At minimum, we’ll see Elliott on the field through Week 4 when the Cowboys face the Rams.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/22/17
Today’s minor moves:
- The Patriots are promoting defensive end Geneo Grissom to the active roster, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Pats have been paying Grisson handsomely by taxi squad standards – $36,716 per week – and they think rather highly of the former third-round pick. Given the way the Pats’ pass rush was depleted over the offseason, they could use his production. The 25-year-old has appeared in 26 games for the Patriots over the last two years but has yet to really make a mark.
- The Browns have promoted practice squad wide receiver Jordan Leslie in advance of Sunday’s game (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). Given Corey Coleman’s injury, Leslie should be in for some playing time. To make room, Cleveland waived wide receiver Reggie Davis.
- The Bengals have waived wide receiver Jake Kumerow from injured reserve.
PFR Glossary: Waivers
Here at Pro Football Rumors, you’ll see a number of stories posted on players being cut, waived, or released by their NFL teams. While these terms are often used interchangeably, they’re not quite synonymous. A player who is “cut” has been removed from his team’s roster, but whether he is “waived” or “released” generally depends on his NFL experience.
Between the day after the Super Bowl and the following season’s trade deadline, players with less than four years of service time – or “accrued seasons” – have to pass through waivers after they’re cut by an NFL team. The other 31 clubs around the league have a day to place a waiver claim on that player, adding him to their roster and taking on his contract. That’s why we refer to these players as having been waived, rather than released.
If a player with more than four years of service time is cut between the Super Bowl and the trade deadline, he is not subjected to the waiver process, meaning he becomes a free agent immediately, able to sign with a new team right away if he so chooses.
This isn’t the case all year round, however. Once the trade deadline passes, any player who is cut by his team must pass through waivers, regardless of how many accrued seasons are on his résumé. So if a team cuts loose a 12-year veteran in Week 10 of the coming season, that player must pass through waivers unclaimed before he’d be free to sign with a team of his choice.
Here are a few more details on the waiver process:
- If two teams place a waiver claim on the same player, he is awarded to the team with the higher priority. Waiver priority is determined by the previous season’s standings — this year, for example, the Browns have first dibs, while the Super Bowl champion Patriots have 32nd priority.
- However, the waiver priority order will change starting in Week 4. At that point, waiver priority is determined by records of the current season.
- The window to claim a player closes at the end of the NFL’s business day, which is at 3:00pm central. So if a player is waived by one team on Monday, the other 31 clubs have until Tuesday afternoon to submit a claim. Players cut on Friday clear waivers (or are awarded to a new team) on the following Monday.
- Prior to the first cutdown date in training camp, injured players with fewer than four years of service time cannot be placed on injured reserve until they pass through waivers. Teams will cut this sort of player with a waived-injured designation, allowing other teams to place a claim if they so choose. If the player goes unclaimed, his team can place him on IR or agree to an injury settlement, then fully release him from the roster.
Note: This is a PFR Glossary entry, modified from a previous post by Luke Adams. Our glossary posts explain specific rules relating to free agency, trades, or other aspects of the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. Information from Russell Street Report and SBNation.com was used in the creation of this post.
Colts Promote RB Matt Jones
Matt Jones is back on with the varsity team. The Colts have elevated Jones from the practice squad, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. To make room, guard Ian Silberman has been waived. 
Jones was once primed to be the main ball carrier in Washington, but the Redskins informed him this offseason that he would not be a real part of their plans. He pushed for a trade out of D.C. for months, but a deal never materialized. Finally, on Sept. 2, the Redskins waived him, allowing the Colts to add him to the roster. He was dropped just prior to the season opener, but was quickly re-signed to the practice squad. Now, he’s back on the 53-man roster in advance of Sunday’s game against the Browns.
There’s no word yet on whether Jones will be on the active game day roster this week. But with Marlon Mack nursing an injured shoulder and Christine Michael on IR, he’s a good bet to dress. He’s expected to slot behind Frank Gore and Robert Turbin.
Vikings’ Sam Bradford Won’t Play Sunday
Sam Bradford‘s knee could be a real problem. The Vikings quarterback is not expected to play on Sunday, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (Twitter link). 
On Friday, Bradford will get a second opinion today on his left knee from Dr. James Andrews, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. Dr. Andrews performed Bradford’s first two ACL surgeries, so he’s quite familiar with his medical history.
The Vikings’ plan was to have Bradford practice this week and see how his knee responded to treatment. He found himself pretty limited and the Vikings have been forced shelve him once again. It’s not clear what their plan is for Bradford beyond this week. What we do know is that Case Keenum will be getting the start once again in Bradford’s absence. They’ll hope for better results than what they got against the Steelers in Week 2.
Bradford was sharp in the season opener, going 27 of 32 for 346 yards and three touchdowns as the Vikings topped Saints 29-19. That’s the kind of quarterbacking the Vikings will need if they hope to make a playoff run this year.
Last year, in his first season with the Vikings, Bradford arguably had a career year. The 29-year-old (30 in November) threw for 20 touchdowns versus only six interceptions while passing for more than 3,800 yards. He also led the league in completion percentage (71.6).
Ezekiel Elliott Rumors: Friday
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has yet to rule on the Ezekiel Elliott case, and that could be good news for the running back. The league has petitioned the court with urgent language to quickly deliver a ruling, but the judge is clearly not taking those directives to heart. That doesn’t mean that things will go Elliott’s way, per se, but it could be a prelude to an Elliott victory.
Here’s the latest on Elliott and his legal battle with the NFL:
- The league still won’t rule out suspending Elliott before Monday night’s game against the Cardinals if they win in court, a league spokesman tells PFT’s Michael David Smith. Today marks the last business day of the week, but if the ruling comes down before the lights shut off, commissioner Roger Goodell may put Elliott’s six-game suspension into effect immediately. In theory, if a ruling comes down on Monday, the league could enact the suspension before kickoff. If that’s the case, Elliott will be sidelined for games against the Cardinals, Rams, Packers, 49ers, Redskins, and Chiefs. He would not be eligible to return until Nov. 12 against the Falcons.