HEADLINES

Month: September 2022

49ers Waive RB Trey Sermon

September 1st, 2022 at 12:38pm CST by Adam La Rose

SEPTEMBER 1: Should Sermon clear waivers, the 49ers plan to offer him a practice squad spot, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. With claims on the second-year back to be known soon, Sermon’s next stop should be determined Thursday.

AUGUST 31: San Francisco turned heads when selecting Trey Sermon as high as they did last season. Today, his 49ers tenure as taken another notable turn as the team is waiving him (Twitter link via ESPN’s Field Yates). 

The Oklahoma and Ohio State product only topped 1,000 scrimmage yards once in his four-year college career. However, his 870 rushing yards (on an average of 7.5 per carry) with the Buckeyes in 2020 helped boost his draft stock. The 49ers selected him in the third round – having traded up to do so – adding another back to Kyle Shanahan‘s well-known committee system.

As a rookie, the 23-year-old started just two of the nine games he played in. He turned 41 carries into 167 yards and one touchdown, hardly the production which would be expected of such a highly-drafted back. The presence of Jeff Wilson and Elijah Mitchell left him with plenty of competition for touches in both the short- and long-term.

That became especially true when the 49ers took another third-round back this past April, drafting Tyrion Davis-Price. His addition spoke to the regard in which Sermon was held by the front office, although recent remarks from general manager John Lynch suggested that this move was unlikely.

“He worked incredibly hard and had a tremendous offseason,” Lynch said of Sermon last week (Twitter link via PFF’s Doug Kyed). “[It] hasn’t showed up in the games, but throughout training camp [he] has been one of our best players.”

Yates’ colleague Adam Schefter tweets that the 49ers waived Sermon to accommodate the arrival of former Browns guard Blake Hence, whom they claimed earlier today. Whether Sermon is able to return to San Francisco’s practice squad, or gets claimed by a team likely to have a larger workload to offer him will be worth watching.

Panthers Still Eyeing Edge Rushers

September 1st, 2022 at 11:43am CST by Sam Robinson

Despite Haason Reddick‘s quality one-season stay and Temple affiliation, the Panthers did not bring him back this year. Reddick signed a three-year, $45MM deal with the Eagles. Matt Rhule‘s team has been on the lookout at the position since.

No notable addition has taken place since Reddick returned to Philadelphia, but GM Scott Fitterer said Thursday (via The Athletic’s Joe Person, on Twitter) the team still hopes to add an edge player. At this point, the options are slim.

The Panthers hosted Carlos Dunlap but did not sign him. The Chiefs ended up doing so. Trey Flowers signed with the Dolphins days ago. Carolina has been connected to this edge need since before Jadeveon Clowney recommitted to Cleveland and before Melvin Ingram and Justin Houston signed their respective deals (with Miami and Baltimore).

Standing down for the past several months would suggest a certain level of confidence in third-year defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos, a second-round pick who has not previously worked as a regular starter. Gross-Matos started seven games as a rookie and two last season; he has six career sacks and 10 QB hits. The Penn State alum — chosen 38th overall in 2020 — registered 17 combined sacks in his final two college campaigns.

Carolina did add street free agent Matt Ioannidis, an inside rusher from Washington, and Fitterer said second-year defensive tackle Daviyon Nixon can also help out on the edge. The team re-signed four-year veteran Marquis Haynes (seven sacks between 2020 and 2021) and kept linebacker Frankie Luvu, who has been mentioned as a player who will contribute outside as well. Absent a Gross-Matos progression to a reliable starter, plenty will be on Brian Burns‘ shoulders this season. Aided by Burns’ presence, Reddick led the 2021 Panthers with 11 sacks.

Jason Pierre-Paul remains unsigned. The former Giants and Buccaneers standout is the top available edge left. Everson Griffen said months ago he was not prepared to retire ahead of what would be his age-35 season. Lower-profile names like Takk McKinley and Benson Mayowa are also available. Fitterer was in Seattle for all of Mayowa’s first Seahawks stint and was there when the team reacquired him in 2020. That said, Mayowa’s production tailed off last season — a one-sack year for the 31-year-old rusher.

Panthers To Place Sam Darnold On IR

September 1st, 2022 at 11:19am CST by Sam Robinson

Not long after losing a quarterback competition to Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold suffered a high ankle sprain. He is expected to be out up to six weeks. He will be off the Panthers’ active roster for much of that stretch.

Carolina is placing Darnold on IR, Joe Person of The Athletic tweets. Darnold will be sidelined for the team’s first four games. Following that, he is expected to re-emerge as Mayfield’s primary backup. This move opens up a roster spot for kicker Eddy Pineiro, who agreed to terms with the Panthers on Wednesday.

For now, P.J. Walker will play that role. The Panthers are not planning to pursue an upgrade on their backup of the past two seasons, according to Person (subscription required). While Walker was staring at the prospect of being cut earlier in camp, when the Panthers had Darnold and Matt Corral healthy, injuries have worked in the former XFL 2.0 standout’s favor. Corral underwent surgery to repair his Lisfranc injury this week, per GM Scott Fitterer. The rookie third-rounder is on season-ending IR.

This represents another bad break for Darnold, who suffered a significant shoulder injury last season. That malady prompted the Panthers to reunite with Cam Newton. This year, the team traded a conditional fifth-round pick for Mayfield, who had beaten out Darnold before his latest injury. Darnold, however, remains attached to a higher salary than Carolina’s new starter, who took a pay cut off his fifth-year option salary to facilitate a trade from Cleveland.

Darnold, 25, will go through a fifth straight season missing at least three games. He will be down at least four this year — in terms of suiting up; he may not participate in other games — but the ex-Jets starter also battled shoulder trouble in 2020, contracted mononucleosis in 2019 and suffered a foot sprain as a rookie. The former USC star entered this season having missed 10 career games.

Broncos To Sign CB Darius Phillips

September 1st, 2022 at 10:47am CST by Sam Robinson

Although the Broncos’ top three cornerbacks are healthy, the player expected to be their primary backup (Michael Ojemudia) is on IR after an elbow dislocation. The team brought in a reinforcement Thursday.

Denver is adding veteran Darius Phillips, Mike Klis of 9News tweets. This is an active-roster addition, and Klis adds the team is making room on its 53-man unit by waiving cornerback Essang Bassey.

A former Bengals fifth-round pick, Phillips spent training camp with the Raiders after a March signing. Las Vegas, which removed a corner from its equation by trading Trayvon Mullen on Tuesday, did not see enough from Phillips to retain him. But the fifth-year defender did work as a part-time starter for the Bengals two years ago and saw extensive action as the team’s punt returner last season.

Phillips, 27, logged 593 defensive snaps in 2020 and graded as a top-20 cornerback (per Pro Football Focus). That lofty spot does not match the 5-foot-10 cover man’s profile, and rather than giving Phillips more run as a starter last season, the Bengals signed Chidobe Awuzie, Mike Hilton and Eli Apple. Phillips also intercepted four passes in 2019, despite playing just 109 defensive snaps (mostly working as a backup).

The Broncos are set to use Patrick Surtain II, Ronald Darby and slot K’Waun Williams as their top three corners, but Ojemudia is out for at least four games. This will be the second straight year Ojemudia — a 2020 third-round pick — has started a season on IR. He missed most of last season due to a hamstring injury. Ojemudia’s injury left Denver vulnerable on the outside, and Klis adds the expectation will be Phillips fills that void (Twitter link).

The team used a fourth-round pick on a corner Damarri Mathis this year. He and Phillips are currently the only backups at the position on the Broncos’ 53-man roster.

Titans To Sign WR Josh Gordon To Practice Squad

September 1st, 2022 at 9:47am CST by Sam Robinson

Josh Gordon‘s Titans visit will move him out of free agency. The veteran wide receiver will land on Tennessee’s practice squad, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

This will be Gordon’s fifth team. After being with the Chiefs last season and throughout this offseason, Gordon did not make Kansas City’s 53-man roster Tuesday. Despite being well off the pace he set early in his Browns days, the 31-year-old wideout did not fade from the NFL radar.

The Titans have more questions at wide receiver this year compared to during A.J. Brown‘s tenure, having made a post-ACL tear Robert Woods and raw first-rounder Treylon Burks their top pieces at the position this year. The team has a few lesser-known options ready to contribute, and Gordon will attempt to join that group at some point.

Tennessee will be Gordon’s fifth NFL employer. He has moved from the Browns to the Patriots to the Seahawks to his Chiefs deal over the past four years, with an early-season trade out of Cleveland beginning this journey.

Gordon’s historic stretch of suspensions sidetracked a promising career, with the Browns finally ending their lengthy partnership with the mercurial talent in September 2018. But Gordon could not finish seasons with the Patriots or Seahawks in 2018 or ’19, seeing off-field issues intervening. No such trouble followed him to Kansas City, but his production with the Chiefs left much to be desired. He caught five passes for the Chiefs in 2021 and did not suit up for any of K.C.’s playoff games.

Best known for the brigade of bans that came his way for substance-abuse issues, Gordon has shown elite talent at points during his career. The most notable instance came in 2013, when the supplemental draftee — despite a Cleveland QB situation that had Brandon Weeden starting many games that season — earned first-team All-Pro acclaim for a 1,646-yard performance. Gordon began that season on a two-game suspension, limiting him to 14 contests. His 117.6 receiving yards per game from that year remain the third-best mark in a season over the past 60 years — behind only Wes Chandler‘s 1982 strike-season mark (129.0, in nine games) and Calvin Johnson‘s record-setting 2012 slate (122.8).

Gordon, however, was suspended 10 games in 2014, effectively killing that momentum. By the time he resurfaced late in the 2017 season, that form was gone. Gordon did, however, contribute to the 2018 Patriots’ Super Bowl-winning team (40 catches, 720 yards, three TDs). Though, he was not with the Pats as they finished that season, with more off-field issues intervening. Gordon showed flashes as a Seahawk in 2019 but did not play in 2020, with yet another suspension keeping him away. The version the Chiefs received last year could not carve out a role. The veteran pass catcher will try and bounce back in Nashville.

Browns Add Josh Rosen To Practice Squad

September 1st, 2022 at 9:20am CST by Sam Robinson

The Browns made multiple roster moves at quarterback this week, the most notable being the waiver claim of 2021 third-round pick Kellen Mond. Temporarily off Cleveland’s roster, Josh Rosen is still in the team’s plans.

After not being on the Browns’ 53-man roster Tuesday, the former top-10 pick is back with the team on a practice squad deal. Rosen, who signed with the Browns just before training camp, will be in position as the franchise’s de facto QB4 — behind Jacoby Brissett, Joshua Dobbs and Mond. Deshaun Watson‘s 11-game suspension began Tuesday.

For the time being, the carousel that has sent Rosen to six teams since the 2019 draft is stopping. But the UCLA product’s career has obviously not unfolded as most expected. Rosen spent one season with the Cardinals, was traded to the Dolphins a day after Arizona’s Kyler Murray pick and has since been with the Buccaneers, 49ers and Falcons.

Rosen, 25, has only thrown 11 regular-season passes since the Dolphins cut bait after the 2019 season, all coming for last season’s Falcons squad. The Browns also added defensive lineman Isaac Rochell to their taxi squad Thursday.

Despite Kevin Stefanski returning for his third season, the Browns’ four quarterbacks are all new. The team dealt the farm for Watson in March and made the Case Keenum-for-Brissett switch soon after. Dobbs signed with the team in April. The former Steelers backup beat out Rosen for the third-string job during the preseason. The Vikings bailed on Mond after just one season, and although they were planning to keep developing him via a spot on their 16-man practice squad, the Browns’ claim nixed those plans.

Commanders Place RB Brian Robinson On Reserve/NFI List

September 1st, 2022 at 9:07am CST by Sam Robinson

The Commanders’ 53-man roster included Brian Robinson on Tuesday, but the rookie running back is now off the squad. The team moved the third-round pick to its reserve/NFI list Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

Robinson had put together a strong preseason, but he suffered two gunshot wounds in a robbery attempt Sunday. The injuries were non-life-threatening, and Robinson has already undergone surgery. Ron Rivera opened the door to the Alabama product playing this season, and this roster move will give Robinson time to recover as he attempts to do so.

This roster designation will keep Robinson out until at least Week 5. While it would be surprising if a player who was shot twice in late August was ready to return to football in early October, Rapoport adds the scenario is not completely off the table. That said, no timeline is in place for Robinson just yet.

Washington drafted Robinson 98th overall, and despite rostering Antonio Gibson, the team was coming around to the prospect of the rookie as its starter. Sunday’s scary scene changes those plans. The Commanders have Gibson, veteran J.D. McKissic and journeyman Jonathan Williams on their 53-man roster at running back.