HEADLINES

Month: October 2020

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/27/20

October 27th, 2020 at 6:16pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Buffalo Bills

  • Promoted: LB Andre Smith
  • Released from reserve/retired list: DB Isiah Brown

Denver Broncos

Minnesota Vikings

New York Giants

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/27/20

October 27th, 2020 at 5:40pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We’ll keep track of the practice squad moves from the past day here:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Released: T Jared Hilbers

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

  • Signed: K Austin MacGinnis

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Panthers Release CB Eli Apple

October 27th, 2020 at 5:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

Eli Apple‘s hamstring trouble only allowed him to play in two games with the Panthers. They released the former top-10 pick Tuesday.

Apple began the season on IR and aggravated the hamstring malady upon debuting in Week 4. After making his second return in Week 7 against the Saints, the ex-New Orleans corner left Carolina’s Tuesday practice because of a hamstring strain, David Newton of ESPN.com tweets.

While Apple would be entitled to an injury settlement, the Panthers are cutting the cord and turning their outside coverage effort over to younger talent. Carolina has third-year corner Donte Jackson, fourth-year man Corn Elder and former Eagle Rasul Douglas at this position. All three have graded as top-25 corners, in the view of Pro Football Focus, through seven games. The Panthers also drafted Troy Pride in Round 4 and Stantley Thomas-Oliver III in Round 7 this year. Douglas, however, resides on the team’s reserve/COVID-19 list.

Apple played just 28 defensive snaps with the Panthers — all against the Saints on Sunday — and just 34 overall. This marks another setback for the 2016 No. 10 overall pick. Apple has bounced from the Giants to the Saints to the Raiders to the Panthers and back to free agency. In May, the Panthers signed him to a one-year deal after his previous Raiders pact — a one-year, $6MM contract agreed to on the first day of free agency — fell through.

The Ohio State alum is still just 25, however, and started 15 games for the Saints last season. He will almost certainly receive another opportunity.

Trevor Lawrence No Longer Certain To Declare For 2021 Draft

October 27th, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

The most coveted quarterback prospect since at least Andrew Luck, Trevor Lawrence may be having second thoughts about leaving school early and becoming the 2021 No. 1 overall pick. At least, he wants to now keep his options open.

Lawrence said before the start of his junior season he would leave Clemson after the 2020 slate and enter the 2021 draft. Now? That is not a certainty.

“My mindset has been that I’m going to move on, but who knows? There’s a lot of things that could happen,” Lawrence said Tuesday during his media session. “… We’ll just have to see how things unfold. There’s a lot of factors in that. But honestly, just really playing this year. Putting everything I have into it. Not really focusing on next year whether I leave or stay. Obviously, I have the option to do either one.”

This will be interpreted as the 6-foot-6 quarterback feeling uneasy about the prospect of playing for the Jets, who are 0-7. The Jets drafted Sam Darnold third overall in 2018 and have seen him regress this season. The franchise did not get it right with Mark Sanchez at No. 5 overall in 2009 either. And a return to school after being expected to declare and go No. 1 to the Jets would not be unprecedented. Peyton Manning returned to Tennessee in 1997, when the Jets held the No. 1 pick. They then traded down and did not draft a first-round quarterback until Chad Pennington in 2000.

However, there are six one-win teams — the Giants, Falcons, Vikings, Jaguars, Texans and Bengals — who have also emerged in the early portion of the #TankforTrevor pursuit. Of those, only the Bengals and Texans boast QB situations that would point to them trading the pick. While the Lawrence race is far from over, it certainly is notable the quarterback has backtracked from being a surefire entrant in the 2021 draft.

Cowboys Trade Everson Griffen To Lions

October 27th, 2020 at 3:54pm CST by Sam Robinson

Shortly after Everson Griffen trade rumors emerged, the veteran defensive end is on the move. He will return to the NFC North.

The Cowboys are trading Griffen to the Lions for a draft choice, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Griffen spent 10 seasons with the Vikings and will now be headed to Detroit to help the 3-3 team’s pass rush. The Lions will send the Cowboys a conditional sixth-rounder for Griffen, Rapoport adds (on Twitter). The pick would top out as a 2021 fifth, per ESPN.com’s Todd Archer.

Griffen signed a one-year, $6MM deal with the Cowboys during training camp. But Dallas’ defense, despite featuring several veterans, has experienced consistent struggles this season. One of the 2010s’ best pass rushers, Griffen will head to a Lions team that just placed the younger of its two pass-rushing Okwaras, Julian, on IR. The Lions will be responsible for nearly $2MM of Griffen’s base salary.

With the Vikings from 2010-19, Griffen accumulated 77 sacks. He did so after spending the 2010-13 seasons as a backup. The ex-Viking cog registered 2.5 sacks in seven games as a Cowboy this season.

Griffen, 32, will need to pass six days’ worth of coronavirus tests before practicing with his new team. This will stand in the way of a 17-game season for the acclaimed edge defender. The Lions have already had their bye week, meaning Griffen’s first game with the team would be against the Vikings next week.

Although the Lions gave Trey Flowers a lucrative deal last year, they rank 28th with only eight sacks this season. Flowers and veteran Romeo Okwara have combined for six of those. Griffen finished with eight sacks and 24 QB hits for the Vikings last season and took his time choosing his next team in free agency. The Cowboys, however, will deal away one of their veteran defenders after a 2-5 start. The team recently redeployed Randy Gregory after his latest suspension ended, and Aldon Smith has produced for the Cowboys despite being out of the NFL for nearly five years.

Eric Reid Declines Washington Practice Squad Offer

October 27th, 2020 at 3:46pm CST by Sam Robinson

Washington may have to look elsewhere to help fill the void created by Landon Collins‘ season-ending injury. A Ron Rivera–Eric Reid reunion is on hold for the time being.

The free agent safety said, via Rob Maadi of the Associated Press, he declined an offer to join Washington’s practice squad (Twitter link). A report earlier Tuesday indicated Washington was considering adding Reid.

Several veteran players who would have looked strange on practice squads prior to this unusual season have signed such agreements this year, only to make belated appearances on 53-man rosters. Reid may be eyeing a more direct path back to action.

A seven-year veteran who played most of the past two seasons with the Panthers, Reid has experience with in-season signings as well. The Panthers signed him to their active roster in 2018, and the former 49ers first-round pick started 13 games that season. Carolina then gave the outspoken safety an extension, but upon changing coaching staffs this offseason, the Panthers released Reid.

Washington is shorthanded at safety, however. The team gave Collins a then-record $14MM-per-year deal in 2019. That changed a safety market that curiously cratered in 2018, when Reid and multiple other proven starters struggled to land jobs throughout the offseason. Troy Apke and backups Deshazor Everett and Kamren Curl — a rookie seventh-rounder — reside as the other safeties on Washington’s active roster.

Washington is making a move at safety, however, albeit a lower-profile transaction. The team is promoting Jeremy Reaves from its practice squad.

Bills Activate G Jon Feliciano From IR

October 27th, 2020 at 3:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Bills are set to have one of their 2019 starting offensive linemen back. Despite suffering a torn pectoral muscle in late July, Jon Feliciano is back on Buffalo’s active roster.

Feliciano will come off IR, per the Bills on Tuesday, and return to the team’s 53-man roster. The Bills waived linebacker Deon Lacey to make room.

A former Raiders backup, Feliciano helped the Bills make a significant improvement up front in 2019. He started 16 games for the playoff-bound squad. Feliciano, a 2015 fourth-round pick who signed a two-year deal with the Bills in 2019, returned to practice earlier this month.

Returning to game action after three months would represent a solid recovery pace after a torn pec. This would also be a bonus for a Bills team that is already somewhat deep up front.

However, this year’s team ranks 29th in rushing after seven games. Last year’s Bills finished eighth on the ground. This season, the Bills have used 2019 second-round pick Cody Ford and ex-Jet Brian Winters at guard. Despite Buffalo’s 5-2 record, Football Outsiders grades its offensive line 30th in adjusted line yards.

Rams Release K Sam Sloman

October 27th, 2020 at 2:10pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Sam Sloman‘s time as the Rams’ kicker has come to an end after seven games. Los Angeles is cutting the rookie, the team announced Tuesday.

The Rams signed veteran Kai Forbath last week after Sloman struggled out of the gates, but the rookie got one more shot to prove himself on Monday Night Football last night. Low kicks have been an issue for him all season as he’s gotten several blocked, and a blocked 48-yarder against the Bears likely sealed his fate.

The Rams drafted Sloman in the seventh-round this past April to replace Greg Zuerlein, who had been their kicker for the previous eight seasons before signing with Dallas this offseason. The Miami of Ohio product will finish his first NFL stint having gone 8/11 on field goals with a long of only 42 while missing three of his 21 extra point attempts.

The kicking game has been an issue all season long, and the Rams probably wish they had Zuerlein back right about now. Forbath has plenty of experience and looked pretty good with the Cowboys down the stretch last season, so hopefully he’ll provide some more stability at the position.

Washington Considering Signing Eric Reid

October 27th, 2020 at 12:29pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Eric Reid could be back in the league before too long. The veteran safety has been a free agent since he was released back in March, and we haven’t heard of much known interest.

Now in the wake of Landon Collins‘ season-ending Achilles injury, Washington is considering signing Reid, a source told John Keim of ESPN.com. He signed a three-year extension back with the Panthers back in February of 2019, but once Carolina changed regimes and cleaned house he was sent packing. He had to wait a while the last time he was a free agent too, sitting out until September when the Panthers finally came calling.

Of course, many believe that Reid’s relationship with Colin Kaepernick and role in national anthem protests have hampered his market. Washington’s interest would make a lot of sense due to the presence of Ron Rivera, who coached Reid in Carolina and has always spoken highly of him. Texans safety Justin Reid lobbied for Houston to sign his brother, but other than that it’s been pretty quiet.

Keim notes that Rivera essentially foreshadowed this situation last month when he said “We’re in a fortunate position where we have Landon Collins. A guy like Eric Reid wouldn’t fit us here. But if we didn’t [have Collins], believe me, I’d call him. [Reid] has the ability to play in this league and hopefully, if somebody needs a strong safety, he’s a guy they would call.”

That being said, it’s far from a done deal, as Keim notes the team is considering all options. Still only 28, Reid should have plenty left in the tank physically. He started all 16 games for the Panthers last year, notching 130 tackles, six passes defended, and four sacks as he was often used as a blitzer. We’ll keep you posted as soon as we hear more on the situation.

Ravens Sign Dez Bryant To Practice Squad

October 27th, 2020 at 11:01am CST by Zachary Links

It’s official. Dez Bryant is back in the NFL — this time, with the Ravens’ practice squad (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). This was the anticipated news following the wide receiver’s workout with the team late last week. 

The former Cowboys All-Pro first auditioned for the Ravens over the summer, marking his first showing since he suffered an Achilles tear in 2018. The Ravens’ interest in Bryant goes back much further than that, however. Bryant famously rejected their three-year, $21MM offer after his divorce from Dallas. Then, he lingered in free agency for several months before signing a far less lucrative one-year deal with the Saints. That, unfortunately, didn’t last long – Bryant’s season ended on the practice field before he could suit up for New Orleans in live action.

Bryant, now in his age-32 season, has not played since the 2017 campaign. Before all of that, he posted at least 1,200 yards in three seasons for Dallas (2012-2014) and earned three Pro Bowl trips (2013, 2014, 2016). His 2014 showing – 88 catches for 1,320 yards and a league-leading 16 touchdowns – earned him a five-year, $70MM extension.

A quick promotion could lead to Bryant’s debut this Sunday against the Steelers. Otherwise, he’ll be at the ready for the 5-1 Ravens.

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