49ers Sign WR Louis Murphy
The 49ers have signed veteran wide receiver Louis Murphy to a one-year deal, the club announced today. In order to create a roster spot, San Francisco waived/injured linebacker Jimmie Gilbert.
Murphy, a seven-year NFL veteran, has spent time with four clubs during his pro tenure, with his last stop coming in Tampa Bay. The former fourth-round pick’s best season came in 2010, when he posted 41 receptions and 609 yards for the Raiders. Health questions (a torn ACL in 2015 followed by a setback during rehab) and off-field concerns (an arrest on gun charges earlier this year) have limited Murphy’s market, but he should have a chance to compete for time in San Francisco.
While the 49ers have some intriguing options among their current receiver crop, the club lacks established players aside from Pierre Garcon and Jeremy Kerley. While Marquise Goodwin, Aldrick Robinson, Bruce Ellington, Trent Taylor, and others each have interesting attributes, Murphy is more experienced than any of them.
Gilbert, meanwhile, is expected to miss the 2017 campaign after suffering a torn ACL, as the 49ers announced earlier today. Gilbert is a rookie undrafted free agent out of Colorado.
Ravens No Longer Considering RGIII
Although the Ravens considered bringing in Robert Griffin III for a workout, the free agent quarterback is no longer on Baltimore’s radar, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com. The Ravens are still assessing other signal-callers, including Colin Kaepernick, per Hensley.
Baltimore is on the hunt for another option under center while starter Joe Flacco deals with a back injury. Head coach John Harbaugh recently labeled Flacco “day-to-day,” but the Ravens still want another quarterback on the roster, especially given the struggles of incumbent backup Ryan Mallett. Although Baltimore swapped out David Olson for Josh Woodrum earlier today, that move isn’t expected to affect the team’s search for a more established quarterback.
For Griffin, meanwhile, his dalliance with Baltimore marks the second time in the past week he’s been unfruitfully linked to a club with a quarterback need. RG3, who’s reportedly been generating “minor interest,” worked out for the Chargers last week but is unlikely to sign after Los Angeles acquired Cardale Jones from the Bills. The Seahawks also considered Griffin earlier this year, but ultimately went with Austin Davis instead.
As the Ravens continue to seek another quarterback, free agent options such as Christian Ponder, Shaun Hill, and Zach Mettenberger could potentially come into play.
Texans To Sign Marcus Gilchrist
The Texans have agreed to sign free agent safety Marcus Gilchrist to a one-year deal, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links).
Gilchrist, 28, worked out for Houston earlier this month, and the club evidently liked what it saw from the former Jet as he continues to work his way back from a torn patellar tendon. Previous reports had indicated Gilchrist was progressing in his recovery, and he’ll now give the Texans depth at a position where the team was sorely lacking.
Given his level of experience (91 appearances, 69 starts), Gilchrist figures to be tossed into the Texans’ starting lineup immediately. He’ll likely displace Corey Moore, who has only eight career starts under his belt, in replacing Quintin Demps, who signed with the Bears in the spring.
Gilchrist had been a beacon of health until suffering the patellar tendon injury last December, as he’d started 61 consecutive games without an absence. In 2016, he picked off two passes in 13 games en route a passable 53rd-place ranking among Pro Football Focus’ 90 qualified safeties.
Redskins Sign RB Kenny Hilliard
The Redskins have signed free agent running back Kenny Hilliard. To make room, fellow running back Keith Marshall has been cut with an injury designation. 
[RELATED: Safety David Bruton Retires]
Hilliard first joined the Texans as a practice squad player in 2015 and circled back to the taxi squad late in the 2016 season. He signed a futures deal to remain with the club in the winter, but he was cut in May as the team added tackle Breno Giacomini and a handful of undrafted free agents. We have yet to see him in a regular season game, but he did post four 100-yard games during his time at LSU.
The speedy Marshall suffered a knee injury during Saturday’s practice, an especially rough break considering that he missed his entire rookie season with an elbow injury. Marshall was said to be having a strong offseason and projected to be the fourth and final running back on the team’s roster.
Marshall’s injury could mean that Hilliard will slide in as the Redskins’ RB4. In theory, this may also give the Redskins an opportunity to work Matt Jones back into the game plan.
AFC North Notes: Ravens, Kaep, Browns
Ravens decision makers aren’t sure about whether to sign Colin Kaepernick, but some of the team’s most vocal veterans say they’d welcome the quarterback, as ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley writes.
“Hell yeah, if he’s going to help us win,” Suggs said. “We have no issues. Not in the locker room. Hell yeah, we want him.”
Defensive back Lardarius Webb, who is in his ninth season in Baltimore, also says that he’d like to see Kaepernick join the team and spice up the backup quarterback competition. While sponsors and fans of the Ravens might not be crazy about Kaepernick, it doesn’t sound like the players would have any issues with the QB and his political activism.
Here’s more from the AFC North:
- Browns left tackle Joe Thomas isn’t necessarily thinking about retirement, but it’s something he’ll consider after the 2017 season. “It’s hard to say [how much longer I’ll play],” Thomas said (via ESPN.com’s Tony Grossi). “I’m lucky enough to be standing here after completing 10 years in my career, which was longer than I expected to play when I was a rookie. “I’ll re-evaluate things after the season. To me, the questions become do I still love it, am I still good enough to have a spot, and am I still healthy enough. Those are always the things I ask myself and if those are all yes I’ll keep playing, and if for some reason they’re no, then I’ll stop playing.” Thomas is signed through 2018 and due to make non-guaranteed salaries in each of the next two years.
- Browns head coach Hue Jackson says safety Ed Reynolds will miss significant time with a knee injury, though he did say that it is not a torn ACL (Twitter links via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal). Reynolds currently projects as Cleveland’s starting free safety, so the Browns may want to look into signing a defensive back if he has to miss regular season games.
- Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger says he could retire after the 2017 season.
- The Bengals‘ kicking competition is starting to take shape.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/31/17
A roundup of today’s minor transactions:
- The Cardinals signed cornerback Jarell Carter and waived/injured linebacker Alani Fua (knee) and cornerback Ronald Zamort (knee). Zamort appeared to be ahead of Brandon Williams on the Cardinals’ depth chart at the time of his season-ending ACL tear.
- The Bengals waived kicker Jonathan Brown, which means the team’s kicking competition is down to Jake Elliott and Randy Bullock. To fill his roster spot, the Bengals signed safety Cedric Thompson.
- The Colts claimed former Denver tight end Henry Krieger-Coble on waivers. To make room, the Colts waived tight end Colin Jeter.
- The Eagles signed cornerback Tay Glover-Wright to a one-year contract, per a club announcement. Glover-Wright is an undrafted free agent with Utah State with just two games of NFL experience on his resume.
- Wide receiver K.J. Maye, who played in college at Minnesota, has been signed to the Patriots‘ 90-man roster.
- The 49ers announced that they’ve claimed wide receiver Tim Patrick off waivers from Baltimore and waived/injured fellow wideout B.J. Johnson.
- The Chiefs have signed free agent wide receivers Corey Washington and Rob Wheelwright, and waived wide receiver Antwan Goodley and tight end Emanuel Byrd.
- The Saints have signed former South Carolina linebacker Jonathan Walton, tweets Nick Underhill of the Advocate.
Lions OT Tony Hills Retires; Team Signs Nick Becton
Veteran tackle Tony Hills is retiring, the Lions announced. To take his place, the team has signed free agent tackle Nick Becton.
Hills, 33 in the fall, has moved around the league a bunch since being drafted by the Steelers in 2008. This offseason, the Lions signed him in the wake of Taylor Decker‘s shoulder injury. Of course, Hills was never expected to replace Decker’s production and was only being brought on board as a potential reserve.
Becton is expected to fill a similar role for Detroit. The 27-year-old met with Detroit in late March and the team apparently kept his name in mind for an occasion such as this. He has spent time with the the Chargers, Giants, Saints, and Bears, but we haven’t seen him on the field in the regular season since 2015.
Seahawks Cut Arthur Brown
The Seahawks are releasing linebacker Arthur Brown, according to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times (on Twitter). The move will create room for the newly re-signed Mike Morgan. 
[RELATED: Seahawks Bring Back Mike Morgan]
Brown held lots of promise as a second-round pick of the Ravens in 2013, but the 27-year-old hasn’t done much at the professional level. Last year, he was cut by the Ravens prior Week 1 and didn’t do much in subsequent stints with the Jaguars and Jets. He played primarily on special teams and did not register a single tackle on defense. In fact, his last official tackle came in 2013.
In other Seahawks news, we learned over the weekend that rookie defensive tackle Malik McDowell could miss the entire 2017 season.
Seahawks Sign LB Mike Morgan
The Seahawks are bringing back linebacker Mike Morgan, according to his reps at Reign Sports (on Twitter). It is expected that Morgan will join Seattle for practice on Monday. 
Morgan, 29, was technically the Seahawks’ starting strongside linebacker in 2016, but he didn’t see a ton of snaps since the team spent lots time in the nickel formation. He was also held back by injury, spending eight weeks on injured reserve with a sports hernia. All in all, Morgan played only 138 defensive snaps and posted just ten tackles.
The Seahawks project to start Cassius Marsh and K.J. Wright at the outside linebacker spots. Seattle also added a pair of free agent OLBs in David Bass and Terence Garvin. Morgan will compete for one of those backup spots, potentially unseating one of the two spring additions.
The Jaguars and Saints were the only teams known to have worked out Morgan this offseason.
Ravens Sign QB Josh Woodrum
Well, that was fast. The Ravens have released quarterback David Olson just three days after signing him. In his stead, the team has signed Josh Woodrum.
Woodrum, who spent a chunk of the offseason with Buffalo, is Liberty University’s all-time record holder for career passing yards. While Joe Flacco heals up from injury, he’ll be the team’s new No. 3 quarterback in practice behind Ryan Mallett and Dustin Vaughan. Unless he really impresses or Flacco’s injury is more severe than previously thought, his stay might not be much longer than Olson’s.
On Sunday, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti told fans that the team is carefully weighing the ramifications of signing Colin Kaepernick while also thinking about bringing in RG3 for a workout. While today’s shuffling of QBs probably won’t mean much for the team’s 53-man roster, we could see more significant changes on the QB depth chart in the coming weeks.