2019 September - Pro Football Rumors

Bears Going With Eddy Pineiro At Kicker

September 1st, 2019 at 1:49pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Bears have made a decision on their Week 1 kicker. The team is officially rolling with Eddy Pineiro, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). “He deserves it,” head coach Matt Nagy said.

The Bears traded a 2021 seventh-round pick to the Raiders back in May for Pineiro, and now he’s won their competition. The Bears have cycled through kickers this offseason, leaving no stone unturned in their search to replace Cody Parkey. Parkey, of course, missed a last-second field goal in the Bears’ playoff loss to the Eagles last year that would’ve sent them on to the next round.

Pineiro beat out former AAF kicker Elliott Fry, among others, in the months-long battle. When Fry was waived a couple of weeks ago, it was reported that the Bears were still in the market for another kicker and it looked like they preferred an outside option to Pineiro, but they ultimately opted not to add anybody off the street or on waivers. Pineiro showed well in the preseason, nailing a 58-yarder, which clearly helped his cause. The Florida product signed with Oakland as an undrafted free agent last year, and spent his entire rookie season on injured reserve. He may have made the roster for now, but he’ll be on a short leash considering the intense scrutiny that any Bears kicker will be under.

Colts, Pats, Others Interested In Brian Hoyer

September 1st, 2019 at 1:37pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Brian Hoyer is already gaining significant interest on the open market. Shortly after he was released by the Patriots, we heard that the Broncos were interested. Denver has since claimed Brandon Allen off waivers from the Rams, so it’s unclear if they’re still in the market for a backup quarterback.

Even if they’re out of the running, it doesn’t sound like Hoyer will have much trouble finding a new home. The Colts are “very interested” in the journeyman, a source told Dianna Russini of ESPN (Twitter link). It looks like they’ll face some competition for his services, as Adam Caplan of Sirius XM hears that at least six teams have expressed interest in the Michigan State product (Twitter link).

The Patriots are exploring the idea of bringing Hoyer back, Jeff Howe of The Athletic tweets. He has been their backup quarterback for the past 1 1/2 seasons.

The Colts are currently without any quarterbacks behind Jacoby Brissett on the active roster, so they need to sign somebody. Andrew Luck‘s sudden retirement left them with only Phillip Walker and Chad Kelly, and Walker was just cut while Kelly is suspended for the first two games of the season.

Indy hosted Brock Osweiler for a visit this past week, and they also worked out Matt Cassel and Brandon Weeden. They should be adding a passer in the next day or two. Hoyer has bounced around the league quite a bit since entering the league as an undrafted free agent all the way back in 2009. He has at various times been the starting quarterback for the Browns, Texans, Bears, and 49ers. All told, he’s started 37 games over the past ten seasons, and spent time with seven different teams. Hoyer is always capable of playing competently in a pinch, so the Colts’ interest makes sense.

Seahawks Re-Sign Geno Smith

September 1st, 2019 at 1:30pm CST by Zachary Links

Remember that time the Seahawks were without Geno Smith on their roster? After 24 long hours, the quarterback is back in Seattle, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.

The Seahawks surprised many in the football world when they released Smith on Saturday en route to a 53-man roster. Releasing Smith, in and of itself, wouldn’t have been a big deal, but the transaction left Russell Wilson as the club’s only QB following Paxton Lynch‘s release.

As it turns out, it was all part of some clever roster maneuvering by Seattle. The Seahawks – perhaps with a wink/nod deal – were willing to risk losing Smith to another team before bringing him back on.

Panthers Release Torrey Smith

September 1st, 2019 at 12:36pm CST by Rory Parks

The paycut that Torrey Smith accepted back in May wasn’t enough to save his job in Carolina. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, the Panthers have released the veteran wideout (Twitter link).

Smith missed five games due to a knee injury in 2018 — his first and only season in Charlotte — and he appeared in 11 games in total (six starts). He was targeted just 31 times on the year, hauling in 17 of those targets for 190 yards and two touchdowns. Smith has never been a volume receiver, but he hasn’t posted more than 40 catches since 2014.

The former home run hitter, now 30, has lost a step or two over the past couple of years, and given that he never had great hands or route-running ability, losing top-end speed is especially problematic. He was squeezed out of the Panthers’ plans, but he should get another chance as a depth WR and occasional deep threat elsewhere.

He does have two Super Bowl rings, one from his 2012 season in Baltimore and another from his 2017 campaign in Philadelphia.

Jets Claim Kicker Kaare Vedvik

September 1st, 2019 at 12:06pm CST by Zachary Links

This has been quite the weekend for the Jets. On Sunday, they piled up even more transactions by claiming four players off waivers:

K Kaare Vedvik (Vikings)
WR Braxton Berrios (Patriots)
DE John Franklin, (Bears)
DB Bennett Jackson (Ravens)

The Vikings traded a fifth-round pick to acquire kicker/punter Kaare Vedvik just a few weeks ago, but dumped him on Saturday. The Jets, meanwhile, have been looking hard for kicking solutions and they appear to have found their guy with days to go before the season opener. To make room, they cut kicker Taylor Bertolet.

The Jets, naturally, will have to release more players to conform with the 53-man maximum.

Broncos Claim QB Brandon Allen

September 1st, 2019 at 11:56am CST by Zachary Links

The Broncos have claimed quarterback Brandon Allen off waivers, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). Allen was dropped by the Rams on Saturday, making him available to the league’s 31 other teams.

Allen is now set to serve as Joe Flacco‘s primary backup. Drew Lock was supposed to be the top clipboard holder, but a hand injury will keep him sidelined for a while. Kevin Hogan, an internal candidate to fill that void, was dropped over the weekend.

In addition to Allen, the Broncos have also been awarded the following players off waivers:

TE Andrew Beck (Patriots)
C Corey Levin (Titans)
WR Diontae Spencer (Steelers)

Raiders Claim QB DeShone Kizer

September 1st, 2019 at 11:50am CST by Zachary Links

The Raiders claimed quarterback DeShone Kizer off waivers from the Packers, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter).The move gives Oakland four quarterbacks as of this writing, though one of their signal callers will almost certainly be displaced to make room for the Notre Dame product.

A second-round selection in 2017, Kizer was pegged as a green talent that had high upside. Unfortunately for him, he was taken by the Browns, who proceeded to lose every game that season. At year’s end, he was shipped to Green Bay. Now, at the age of 23, he’s moving on to his third career NFL team.

The Raiders seemed set at quarterback with Derek Carr, Mike Glennon, and Nathan Peterman. Now, it looks like Peterman will be squeezed out to make room for Kizer. The Raiders would probably like to stash Peterman on the practice squad, but he’d have to clear waivers first.

Cardinals To Sign Cassius Marsh

September 1st, 2019 at 11:38am CST by Rory Parks

The Seahawks signed DE Cassius Marsh in April with the idea that he could bolster the team’s pass rush, but he became expendable after Seattle traded for Jadeveon Clowney. Now, Marsh will join the third NFC West team of his career, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports that Marsh is set to sign with the Cardinals (Twitter link).

Marsh, 27, had 5.5 sacks and 14 QB hits for the 49ers last year. The former fourth-round pick of the Seahawks will join a pass rushing rotation that also includes Terrell Suggs and Chandler Jones.

The Cardinals didn’t do much right last year, but they did compile 49 sacks, and Marsh will serve as a worthwhile complement to the front seven.

Cowboys, Ezekiel Elliott Moving Towards Deal

September 1st, 2019 at 11:37am CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys and Ezekiel Elliott are moving toward a deal, Clarence Hill of the Dallas Morning News tweets. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) also hears that serious progress has been made over the last 24 hours, though obstacles still remain.

We heard this morning that the two sides still have significant ground to cover, so it’s unclear if this is a case of actual progress in negotiations, or a case of conflicting stories.This morning’s update suggested that the two sides are simply getting back to the table after weeks of silence. Hill’s tweet, meanwhile, suggests that things are moving in a positive direction. Either way, we can say this with confidence – there’s an increased sense of urgency and optimism coming from both sides of the table.

Elliott’s guarantees appear to be the holdup at this stage. Zeke likely wants guarantees in the range of Todd Gurley‘s $45MM amount, a number that would give Dallas pause given the risk involved with RBs.

Broncos To Sign Corey Nelson

September 1st, 2019 at 11:23am CST by Zachary Links

Corey Nelson will sign with the Broncos, according to Greg Auman of The Athletic (on Twitter). It’s a homecoming for the linebacker, who played in Denver from 2014-2017.

Nelson, 27, was released by the Bucs this week as they trimmed their roster to meet the 53-man maximum. He did his finest work with the Broncos, including the 2016 season in which he tallied 61 total tackles across 16 games (six starts). And, following the 2015 season, Nelson helped the Broncos capture a Super Bowl ring.

This might not be the Broncos’ only reunion of the week – they’re also interested in signing wide receiver Demaryius Thomas.