Cardnals Sign Philip Wheeler
The Cardinals have signed linebacker Philip Wheeler to a one-year contract, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com.
Arizona is the sixth NFL team for the 32-year-old Wheeler, who entered the league as a third-round pick of the Colts back in 2008. Wheeler has since racked up 133 appearances and 66 starts, including 16 and four in those categories with the NFC-winning Falcons last season. The 6-foot-2, 245-pounder amassed 27 tackles on 339 defensive snaps along the way, and after posting those modest totals, he didn’t generate any known offseason interest prior to signing with the Cardinals.
While a healthy Cards team should be fairly deep at linebacker, they’re in need of bodies there now with Deone Bucannon and Jarvis Jones dealing with injuries. For the time being, Wheeler will provide some extra help at the position, though he’s clearly not a lock to crack their season-opening roster.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/27/17
Thursday’s minor moves:
- The Texans have claimed wide receiver Devin Street off waivers from the Jets. Houston’s already the fourth team this year for Street, who had brief stints with the Patriots and Jets after the Colts cut him in May. The three-year veteran has just 10 catches in 35 games.
- While the Jets lost Street to waivers Thursday, they claimed running back Marcus Murphy from the Saints. Two years after New Orleans used a seventh-round pick on Murphy, the club cut him Wednesday. Murphy made no offensive impact with the Saints (one carry, one reception in 16 games), but he did return 34 kicks – one of which he ran back for a touchdown – and 19 punts. To make room for Murphy, the Jets waived running back Brandon Wilds, who totaled 12 touches (10 rushes, two catches) with the team as an undrafted rookie last year.
- The Redskins have signed tight end E.J. Bibbs and waived linebacker Houston Bates. Bibbs’ only action to this point came as an undrafted rookie with the Browns in 2015, when he appeared in seven games and picked up one reception. Bates is more experienced, having collected 24 appearances with the Redskins from 2015-16. Although he didn’t make a dent on defense during that time, Bates did lead the Redskins in special teams snaps (293) last season.
- The Rams made four additions on Thursday, per Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com, signing offensive lineman Parker Collins, running back De’Mard Llorens, and linebackers Andy Mulumba and Folarin Orimolade. Mulumba is the most notable member of the group, having played 22 games with the Packers and started three from 2013-15. He
- As part of a series of moves, the Cardinals signed tight end Gerald Christian to a one-year deal and cut fellow TE Steve Wroblewski, an undrafted rookie. They also also reached injury settlements with cornerback Jumel Rolle and linebacker Tevin Floyd. Christian came into the league in 2015 as a seventh-round pick of the Cardinals, but his only game time came with Buffalo last season. He caught one pass in three contests as a Bill.
- The Patriots have signed receiver Tony Washington, who’s joining his third team since hooking on with the Colts as an undrafted free agent from Appalachian State in 2014. Washington logged six appearances with the Jaguars over the previous two seasons and caught one pass.
- The Falcons have added offensive lineman Larson Graham, an undrafted rookie from Duquesne.
- The Broncos have waived undrafted rookie O-lineman Chris Muller, tweets Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post. Muller signed with the team last month.
Broncos To Sign Stevan Ridley
The Broncos have agreed to a deal with running back Stevan Ridley, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Ridley worked out for the club on Thursday and did enough to earn a one-year contract, tweets Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post.
The addition of Ridley comes in response to the wrist injury fellow running back Devontae Booker suffered. With Booker set to miss six to eight weeks, Denver wanted a replacement to slot in behind C.J. Anderson and Jamaal Charles in its backfield.
The 28-year-old Ridley joins Charles as the Broncos’ second back with at least one 1,000-yard season under his belt, though the former hasn’t been particularly effective overall. Since a strong 2011-13 showing in New England that included a 1,263-yard, 12-touchdown season, Ridley’s output has declined substantially. He wasn’t much of a factor in 2014, his final season with the Patriots, and combined for just 10 appearances, 39 carries and 97 yards with the Jets and Falcons over the previous two years.
Thanks to his recent downturn in production, Ridley didn’t generate much offseason interest prior to reaching an agreement with the Broncos. He worked out with one of his ex-teams, the Jets, back in May, but it was radio silence otherwise.
Bills Not Interested In Colin Kaepernick
In case you were wondering, the Bills’ newfound vacancy at quarterback will not create a space for Colin Kaepernick. Bills GM Brandon Beane told reporters on Thursday that he is not interested in signing the free agent signal caller (Twitter link via Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News). 
The Bills traded quarterback Cardale Jones to the Chargers this week, positioning rookie Nathan Peterman as the QB2 and T.J. Yates as the third signal caller. Beane also tells reporters that the team will keep three QBs for the foreseeable future and that’s a good sign for the journeyman Yates.
The Bills are passing on Kaepernick, but we learned on Thursday that the Ravens are at least exploring the possibility. Baltimore coach John Harbaugh has chatted with Kaepernick throughout the summer about backing up starter Joe Flacco.
Broncos Work Out Stevan Ridley
Running back Stevan Ridley worked out for the Broncos on Thursday, Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post tweets. The audition comes in the wake of news that Devontae Booker will need minor surgery on his wrist.
Booker was unknowingly lifting weights with the injury for weeks and wound up aggravating it in training, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). . He is said to be facing a 6-8 week recovery after surgery and although the Broncos expect to have him in the lineup for Week 1, they may want to have their bases covered by adding someone like Ridley.
Ridley was hampered by injuries in 2016 and bounced around the league a bit, but it has been said that he’s now mostly healthy. His only other known audition of the offseason came when he worked out for the Jets in May.
We’re now years removed from Ridley’s 1,ooo+ yard campaign with the Patriots in 2012. It remains to be seen what he can offer in 2017.
Saints Sign OL Orlando Franklin
Orlando Franklin is now a member of the Saints. The former Chargers offensive lineman has inked a one-year deal with New Orleans, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
Franklin, 29, came to the Chargers as a free agent prior to the 2015 season, but he did not live up to his five-year, $35.5MM contract. He played in all 16 games last season – something he didn’t do in the previous year – but he also graded out as one of the seven worst qualified guards in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. In May, the Bolts cut him loose.
With a number of injuries on the offensive line – including starters Terron Armstead and Max Unger – adding depth was a major priority for the Saints. They’ve now added a veteran in Franklin, an interior lineman who also experience playing tackle from his days with the Broncos.
Franklin also met with the Jets on Tuesday, but it’s not clear whether the Jets made him an offer before his trip to New Orleans.
Steelers, Villanueva Agree To Extension
Alejandro Villanueva has himself a new deal. The Steelers offensive tackle has agreed to a fresh four-year deal with the Steelers, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
The four-year deal is worth $24MM, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), with $14MM over the first two years. It’s a big step up considering that he was slated for a $615K salary this year as an exclusive rights free agent, but it’s still a team-friendly deal on the whole when considering Villanueva’s talent level. The top ten tackles in the league are making five figures per year and Villanueva effectively added three seasons at an average of $7.8MM. Villanueva may not be a top ten talent at the position, but he’s not far off and he’s just entering his prime years. The tackle turns 29 in September.
Villanueva waited to sign his ERFA tender this offseason in hopes that he could hammer out a long-term extension with Pittsburgh instead. Even though he wasn’t eligible to reach the open market until 2018, the Steelers opted to do right by one of its most important offensive linemen while also securing him for years to come.
Since debuting in 2015, Villanueva has appeared in 32 straight games, including 26 starts. He started every Steelers game last year and was the only member of its offense to play on all 1,083 of the unit’s snaps.
Last year, he was the 24th best offensive tackle in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus.
Raiders Cut RB Taiwan Jones
The Raiders are releasing running back Taiwan Jones, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). With upwards of four years of service, Jones is a veteran and will not be subject to waivers. He will be free to sign with any club once he is formally cut loose. 
Jones, 29, started out with the Raiders as a running back after being drafted in the fourth round of the 2011 draft. The team had him switch to cornerback for a time, but he was moved back to running back for the 2015 season.
Still, he’s had only 44 carries in his six years with the club. Jones has primarily been a special teams guy for Oakland, but he even saw his return work slashed in 2016. Jones returned 26 kicks for the Raiders in 2013 and 31 kicks in 2015. Last year, he did just eight kick returns with a lackluster 14.0 yards per attempt average.
With Jones out of the picture, the Raiders appear ready to move forward with Jalen Richard, DeAndre Washington, and rookie Elijah Hood as the backups for Marshawn Lynch.
Titans To Sign Erik Walden
The Titans are signing linebacker Erik Walden, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Walden spent the previous four seasons with the rival Colts. 
Walden had 11.0 sacks last year and it’s surprising that he was on the market for this long. The 31-year-old (32 in August) has plenty of motivation to excel this year and make the rest of the league pass on signing him.
Walden met with the Titans in the spring after the Colts informed him that he wouldn’t be back. After four months of little activity – save for conversations with the Jets in June – he has circled back to Tennessee. The advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus might help to explain the lack of interest Walden has generated this offseason. Despite his 11 quarterback takedowns last year, he still graded out as one of the six worst edge defenders in the league.
The Titans will use Walden as a reserve outside linebacker behind starters Derrick Morgan and Brian Orakpo – assuming he makes the team. Kevin Dodd, Aaron Wallace, free agent addition Daren Bates, and rookies Jayon Brown and Josh Carraway are also pushing for playing time at OLB.
Walden fired agent Todd France at the tail end of March when he wasn’t getting enough bites and is now represented by Michael and Jason Katz of CSE Talent.
Rams Audition Two Quarterbacks
The Rams aren’t just looking at defensive line help today. Los Angeles is also auditioning quarterbacks Sean Renfree and Thad Lewis, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 
[RELATED: Rams Host Sean Lissemore On Visit]
The Rams recently inked veteran quarterback Dan Orlovsky to potentially serve as a third quarterback behind Jared Goff and Sean Mannion. It’s possible that Orlovsky, who turns 34 next month, hasn’t quite lived up to expectations in practice.
Lewis was medically cleared in late May, but this marks his first known visit since getting the green light from doctors. The 32-year-old was supposed to serve as a backup for the 49ers last season, but an injury took him out of action before the season opener. Lewis hasn’t seen the field since the 2013 season, which was Lewis’ best campaign to date. That year, Lewis started five games for Buffalo and completed 59.2% of his passes for 1,092 yards, four touchdowns, and three interceptions.
Renfree inked a reserve/futures deal with the Bucs in January but he was dropped in May when the team signed Ryan Fitzpatrick. His only NFL action came in 2015, when he completed three of seven passes for 11 yards and one interception.