Falcons Place CB Kendall Sheffield On IR
Kendall Sheffield is heading to the IR. The Falcons placed the cornerback on injured reserve today, according to Aaron Wilson (via Twitter).
Sheffield was a fourth-round pick by Atlanta in 2019, and he proceeded to start 20 of his 29 games through his first two seasons in the NFL. That included a 2020 campaign where the defensive back compiled 51 tackles, one forced fumble, and three passes defended in 13 games (nine starts).
The 25-year-old had been dealing with an undisclosed injury for weeks, and he finished the preseason without getting a snap. Now, he’ll be sidelined for at least the next three weeks, but it’s uncertain if he’ll have his starting gig when he returns. AJ Terrell, Fabian Moreau, and Isaiah Oliver are currently expected to lead the depth chart at cornerback.
With Sheffield sidelined, Chris Williamson could be an option to get promoted from the practice squad.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/8/21
We’ve compiled today’s minor NFL transactions below:
Atlanta Falcons
- Released from IR with injury settlement: P Dom Maggio
Buffalo Bills
- Released from IR with injury settlement: DT Treyvon Hester
Los Angeles Chargers
- Released from IR with injury settlement: LS Cole Mazza
Tennessee Titans
- Activated from Reserve/COVID-19 list: G Nate Davis, C Ben Jones
Ravens Sign RB Trenton Cannon, Waive RB Justice Hill
Following a season-ending Achilles tear, Justice Hill will be available on the waiver wire. The Ravens waived the third-year running back with an injury designation Wednesday.
While Hill is technically on the wire, he is expected to stay with the Ravens. The former fourth-round pick would revert to Baltimore’s injured reserve if unclaimed. This development is often a precursor to an injury settlement taking place, removing the player from IR, but it sounds like the Ravens are preparing to carry Hill on their injured list this season. Two years remain on Hill’s rookie deal.
Baltimore moved Hill off its roster and added another back in his place. Trenton Cannon agreed to terms with the Ravens and is now on the team’s active roster. The Panthers waived Cannon last week, having claimed Royce Freeman — a player the Ravens attempted to claim. Baltimore’s active-roster running back contingent now consists of Gus Edwards, Ty’Son Williams and Cannon.
A sixth-round Jets pick in 2018, Cannon wound up with the Panthers last year and contributed mostly as a kick returner. Cannon also played 40% of the Panthers’ special teams snaps last season. Despite Christian McCaffrey‘s injury, Cannon took just 10 handoffs in 14 games with Carolina. He logged 38 carries as a Jets rookie.
The Cannon move comes a day after the Ravens added Le’Veon Bell to their practice squad. Bell makes more sense as a Baltimore backfield contributor this season, with Hill and J.K. Dobbins out, but Cannon as of now occupies the team’s No. 3 tailback slot.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/8/21
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DT Reginald McKenzie
- Released: S Jordan Richards
Houston Texans
- Released: LB Hardy Nickerson
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: LB Nate Gerry
- Released: OL Corbin Kaufusi
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: TE DeShon Williams
Davante Adams: ‘No Chance’ For Packers Extension Before Season
Things have changed since Davante Adams‘ contract last came up. Aaron Rodgers ended his holdout and reported to training camp on time. But the reigning MVP’s future is fuzzy beyond 2021. So is his top wide receiver’s.
The Packers and Adams still appear to be at a stalemate. The sides broke off talks in July, but Adams was open to restarting them. However, he and the Packers remain far apart on an extension. Adams said Wednesday there is “no chance” of a deal coming to pass before the start of the season, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com tweets.
This situation compares to the Steelers’ T.J. Watt talks, with an old-school franchise not giving in on guarantees. The Packers are not willing to give Adams any guaranteed money beyond his signing bonus, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein (on Twitter). While Green Bay was able to keep Aaron Jones this spring, with the running back’s $13MM signing bonus doubling as the deal’s only fully guaranteed money, Adams plays a more valuable position that has a longer shelf life. The Packers are dug in here, per Silverstein, leading to an impasse.
Adams wants a deal that makes him the NFL’s highest-paid wideout. With DeAndre Hopkins‘ outlier $27MM-per-year deal currently occupying that space, it is difficult to imagine Green Bay going there. The Packers could have Jordan Love‘s rookie contract to build around, but some Rodgers dead money would remain on Green Bay’s cap in 2022 — in the event of a trade — going into the third year of Love’s team-friendly deal.
A four-time Pro Bowler going into his age-28 season, Adams would make sense on a Hopkins-type medium-length extension. But the sides are not there yet. Green Bay’s top target will go forward with a contract year.
No deal being finalized before the season would not kill an arrangement to keep Adams in Wisconsin long-term. The Packers signed him to his current deal late in the 2017 season and have the franchise tag to deploy should this situation head to that point of the calendar. While the Packers have not used their tag since 2010, Adams could be worthy of a short-term fix — especially if Rodgers remains in the picture for 2022.
Colts’ Eric Fisher Returns To Practice; Week 1 In Play
The Colts signed Eric Fisher knowing he might not be ready to resume his career until October, and the Pro Bowl left tackle’s recent placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list further complicated his comeback. But a return could still commence Sunday.
Fisher is off Indianapolis’ coronavirus list and practicing Wednesday in a limited capacity, marking his first practice as a Colt. The team did not place Fisher on its reserve/PUP list, despite the ninth-year veteran spending the preseason on Indy’s active/PUP list. A PUP designation to start the regular season would have meant a six-game absence. The way it’s going, Fisher stands to beat that timetable by a wide margin.
“I look at him and think, man, he looks ready to go, but he hasn’t done anything in 10 days. We’re going to figure that out over the next couple of days,” Frank Reich said (via the Indianapolis Star’s Joel Erickson) of Fisher’s status. “… I think what I want to be guilty of, is, ‘Let’s push it. We can pull him back. Let’s try to get him ready now; let’s try to get him ready to play this week.’ Maybe that’s not realistic, but let’s try, and we can always pull him back.”
This would be a boon for a Colts team that has sustained injuries on its offensive front. Quenton Nelson recovered from foot surgery but is currently battling a back injury. And potential Fisher stopgap Sam Tevi is out for the season. The Colts have Julie’n Davenport and guard/tackle Matt Pryor as starting options in the even Fisher is not ready for Sunday’s Seahawks tilt.
Fisher, 30, suffered a torn Achilles in the AFC championship game, setting the Chiefs on course for a disastrous blocking effort in Super Bowl LV. While core-muscle surgery interfered with his 2019 season, Fisher has otherwise stayed healthy throughout his career. The former No. 1 overall pick started every game at left tackle for Kansas City from 2014-18.
Texans Place K Ka’imi Fairbairn On IR
The Texans’ Joey Slye insurance addition will end up being necessary immediately. Ka’imi Fairbairn will land on IR to start the season, Sports Talk 790’s Aaron Wilson tweets.
A pulled groin will sideline Fairbairn for at least three weeks, putting Slye in position to begin the season as Houston’s kicker. The Texans worked out the former Panthers specialist Tuesday and signed him to their practice squad.
These will be Fairbairn’s first missed games since he began his Texans tenure in 2017. The Hawaii alum has been one of the NFL’s better kickers over the past four seasons, and his performance led Houston to greenlight an extension in 2020. Fairbairn, 27, has made at least 80% of his field goal tries in each of his four NFL seasons. Fairbairn, who is set to earn a $3.45MM base salary this season, is signed through 2023.
Slye cleared the 80% barrier as a rookie, barley, and would have done so last season. But the Panthers trotted him out for 65- and 67-yard attempts during games against the Saints and Chiefs, respectively. Carolina cut Slye last month, turning to trade acquisition Ryan Santoso. But Slye will land on his feet to start the season.
Raiders Host RB Kerryon Johnson
The Raiders are apparently serious about looking for veteran running back help. We heard yesterday that Las Vegas brought in free agent rusher D’Onta Foreman, and he apparently wasn’t the only one.
The Raiders also hosted Kerryon Johnson yesterday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network tweets. It’s the first we’ve heard of Johnson since he was cut by the Eagles with an injury settlement back on August 26th. The 43rd overall pick of the 2018 draft by the Lions, Johnson’s stock has dropped sharply the past couple years. He shined as a rookie, carrying the ball 118 times for 641 yards (5.4 YPC) in 10 games while adding 32 catches.
He was Detroit’s starter in 2019, but missed eight games due to injury. After undergoing knee surgery he quickly fell out of favor with the team, and was buried behind D’Andre Swift on the depth chart. He played in all 16 games in 2020, but got only 52 carries. Waived back in May, he was promptly claimed off waivers by Philly.
He then got hurt in camp with the Eagles, and found himself cut once again. Johnson only turned 24 in June, so he shouldn’t be out of chances by now. The Raiders are a bit thin in their backfield with Jalen Richard on injured reserve, which explains their interest.
Cam Newton Planning Announcement Friday, Isn’t Retiring
Cam Newton is apparently planning some sort of big announcement later this week, but don’t expect him to hang up his cleats. In a video posted to Instagram, the free agent quarterback made a cryptic tease.
Newton said he’d have a video posting this Friday, in which “I have a lot of things that I need to get off my chest.” He specifically made a point to note that he isn’t walking away from the game. “This is not a retirement speech, and I have a lot of football still in me,” he says in the brief video.
Presumably, Newton is planning to reveal some details about what led to his sudden and surprising release from the Patriots last week. New England elected to make rookie Mac Jones their starter, showing Newton to the exit. There was speculation that Newton’s vaccination status may have had something to do with his release, so perhaps he’s looking to clear the air on that.
Since he sounds pretty firm on his intention to play in the NFL again, don’t expect him to say anything too explosive that will burn bridges. Since his release we haven’t heard of much known interest, only that neither the Cowboys nor Washington are likely to pursue the former MVP.
No matter what, his Friday reveal should be entertaining if nothing else…
Vikings Extend Brian O’Neill For Five Years, $92.5MM
On the eve of the regular season, the Vikings are locking up a key piece. Minnesota has agreed to an extension with offensive tackle Brian O’Neill, the team announced on Wednesday.
It’s a five-year deal worth a whopping $92.5MM, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. That’s an average annual value of $18.5MM. He’s still pretty young, so it’s not too surprising to see O’Neill getting top-of-the-market right tackle money. With this new pact, he’s now the second-highest-paid right tackle in the league.
The deal includes $53.4MM in total guarantees and $22.6MM guaranteed at signing, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). The total guarantees place O’Neill in the top three at right tackle, but the true guarantee does not. Six right tackles are signed to deals that include more than $24MM guaranteed. O’Neill will collect $40MM through the second year of this extension.
O’Neill, a second-round pick back in 2018, had previously been set to enter the final year of his rookie deal and become a free agent at the end of the season. The Pittsburgh product had his best year last season and earned pretty strong marks from Pro Football Focus, grading out as their 24th-best overall tackle.
O’Neill became a starter a little over a month into his rookie season and has held onto his job ever since. He started all 16 games last year and won’t turn 26 until next week.
The team drafted Christian Darrisaw in the first round out of Virginia Tech to start opposite O’Neill on Kirk Cousins‘ blindside. But as Darrisaw continues to struggle to recover from core muscle surgery, it looks like Rashod Hill will be starting the season across from O’Neill.