Seahawks Waive RB Alex Collins
The Seahawks have started to clear up their crowded running back corps. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (via Twitter), the organization has waived second-year back Alex Collins.
The Seahawks selected the Arkansas product in the fifth round of the 2016 draft, and he proceeded to appear in 11 games as a rookie. Collins finished the season with 125 rushing yards and one touchdown on 31 carries, and he added another 11 receptions for 84 yards. The 23-year-old also saw some action in the postseason, finishing with 55 all-purpose yards. We heard earlier this week that the Seahawks were shopping Collins.
The Seahawks still have to trim down their running back depth behind starter Thomas Rawls. Eddie Lacy and C.J. Prosise seem like locks to make the roster, but the team is rostering another four running backs in Chris Carson, Mike Davis, J.D. McKissic, and Tre Madden.
Chargers To Release Dwight Lowery
The Chargers will release veteran safety Dwight Lowery, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Lowery had been competing with Tre Boston for the Los Angeles’ starting safety job opposite Jahleel Addae, and appears to have lost the battle. The Chargers also invested draft picks in their secondary, as they added both Desmond King and Rayshawn Jenkins this spring.
The 31-year-old Lowery started all 16 games for the Chargers a season ago, racking up 60 tackles and one interception in the process. He had two years left on his contract, and Los Angeles will incur $500K in dead money in each of the next two seasons as a result of Lowery’s release.
Chiefs Release S Steven Terrell
The Chiefs have released safety Steven Terrell, according to Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). The 26-year-old signed with the organization back in July.
The former undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M got an extended look from Kansas City during the preseason, and he ultimately compiled 17 tackles in four games. However, the organization was already eyeing a logjam at safety, and Terrell was seemingly the odd man out. The organization is now rostering three safeties behind starters Ron Parker and Eric Berry, including Daniel Sorensen, Eric Murray, and Leon McQuay III.
Terrell had spent the past three seasons in Seattle, and he had a bit of a breakout in 2016. After having appeared in 16 games between 2014 and 2015, the safety appeared in 16 games (five starts) in 2016, finishing with a career-high in tackles (27). Terrell has also spent time with the Jaguars and Texans.
Bengals Trade Bene Benwikere To Cowboys
Bene Benwikere will find himself on a fifth team in the past 11 months after the Bengals and Cowboys agreed to a trade. Dallas will acquire the fourth-year cornerback for a late-round pick, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The Bengals signed Benwikere on a league-minimum deal in February. The former Panthers contributor hasn’t played in a game since Carolina cut him after a rough outing against the Falcons early last season.
Benwikere spent time as a UFA after stints with the Dolphins and Packers last season. The former Carolina starter received interest when on waivers last season, but the Cowboys were not one of the teams who put in a claim for the corner. Benwikere started 14 games with the Panthers from 2014-16 but was not part of their Super Bowl 50 effort, suffering an injury late in the 2015 season.
The Cowboys drafted three corners — Chidobe Awuzie, Jourdan Lewis and Marquez White — and signed Nolan Carroll. Benwikere could provide some experience as a reserve to a Dallas roster that lost Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne in free agency.
Titans To Place Tajae Sharpe On IR
The Titans’ revamped receiving corps may not include second-year talent Tajae Sharpe. The team will place Sharpe on IR, according to Jason Wolfe of the Tennesseean.
A 10-game starter for the Titans last season, Sharpe suffered a stress fracture in his foot this offseason and underwent surgery. Although he returned to play in two Tennessee preseason games after spending much of the exhibition slate on the PUP list, Sharpe re-aggravated the injury and will spend time on IR.
Because he was placed on injured reserve before initial rosters were set, Sharpe isn’t eligible to return later this year. The 2016 fifth-round pick caught 41 passes for 522 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie but saw the team add Corey Davis, Taywan Taylor and Eric Decker this offseason to make his role uncertain.
Bears Place RB Ka’Deem Carey On IR
The Bears will place running back Ka’Deem Carey on injured reserve, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Because he’s being shifted to IR before making Chicago’s initial 53-man roster, Carey isn’t a candidate to return later this year.
Carey, a fourth-round pick in 2014, has appeared in 36 games over three season with the Bears, but has only made one career starter. Last season, the 24-year-old averaged 3.9 yards per carry on 32 touches. While he won’t play for Chicago in 2017, it’s possible Carey agrees to an injury settlement and becomes a free agent.
The Bears are set at running back without Carey, as starer Jordan Howard is backed up by Jeremy Langford and rookie Tarik Cohen.
Steelers Trade Sammie Coates To Browns
Joe Haden won’t be the only AFC North player to see his old team when the Steelers and Browns convene in Cleveland come Week 1. Sammie Coates will be a part of the Browns in that contest after the Steelers traded him to Cleveland on Saturday, the team announced.
The Steelers shipped the wide receiver to the Browns in exchange for a 2018 sixth-round selection. Cleveland will also receive Pittsburgh’s 2019 seventh-round pick.
Coates was jockeying for position among a crowded Pittsburgh receiving corps, one that again has the services of Martavis Bryant. He, second-rounder JuJu Smith-Schuster and Eli Rogers comprise the Steelers’ top Antonio Brown complements.
Coates will see his tenure in western Pennsylvania conclude early after two underwhelming seasons.
The 6-foot-2 deep threat mostly observed as a rookie behind a Brown-, Bryant-, and Markus Wheaton-fronted Steelers receiving attack. But last season with Bryant suspended and Wheaton mostly sidelined, Bryant played in 14 games and started five. However, after a midseason spurt of productivity, the former Auburn talent struggled due partially to a broken finger. The 24-year-old Coates finished his Steelers run with just 22 receptions.
He figures to receive a better chance to play in Cleveland. The Browns have an opening behind Kenny Britt and Corey Coleman. Their five-wideout draft class of 2016 hasn’t produced a surefire second contributor behind Coleman, so Coates figures to compete with the Browns’ incumbents for work off the bench.
Cowboys Release S Robert Blanton
Robert Blanton joined the Cowboys earlier this offseason, but he didn’t even make it to the regular season. According to ESPN’s Field Yates (via Twitter), the organization has released the safety.
Blanton signed with Dallas earlier this offseason following a single season in Buffalo, where he compiled 35 tackles in 10 games (two starts). The 2012 fifth-round pick spent the first four seasons of his career in Minnesota, where he served mostly as a backup defensive back. His best season came in 2014, when he compiled 106 tackles and one interception.
Roster Resource expected the 27-year-old to start at strong safety alongside Byron Jones. Following the release of Blanton, the Cowboys will now lean on one of Xavier Woods, Jeff Heath, and Kavon Frazier to fill that role.
Redskins Could Cut TE Derek Carrier
One way or another, Derek Carrier‘s time with the Redskins is drawing to a close today. If the Redskins cannot find a trade for him by this afternoon’s roster deadline they’ll release him outright, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 
Carrier has been slowed by injuries ever since coming to the Redskins in 2015. He suffered a torn ACL during the 2015 season and his recovery extended into 2016. He has appeared in 20 games for Washington, but he has only 19 receptions to his name during that time.
If a team trades for Carrier, they’ll be taking on a $1MM cap charge for 2017. A trade doesn’t seem terribly likely, but two teams are at least discussing a swap with Washington today.
Patriots To Acquire DB Johnson Bademosi
The Patriots have agreed to acquire defensive back Johnson Bademosi from the Lions, tweets Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Detroit will pick up New England’s 2019 sixth-round pick, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Badedmosi, 27, started the first three games of his career in 2016, as he’s been mostly a reserve and special teamer through five NFL seasons. In 2016, Bademosi played on roughly a quarter of Detroit’s defensive snaps but saw action on more than half the club’s special teams plays. He’s entering the final season of a two-year deal and will make $1.3MM in base salary in 2017.
The Patriots are typically field one of the league’s best special teams units, so Bademosi will fit in nicely. Last year, New England ranked eighth in special teams DVOA. The Patriots had interest in signing Bademosi before he landed with the Lions last year, tweets Michael Lomardi of the Ringer.