Andre Roberts

Giants Notes: Gano, Jackson, Ryan, Workouts

Graham Gano is underway in his fourth Giants campaign. His play so far this season (3-for-5 on field goal tries) has not lived up to his previous success, but past performances led to an extension before the campaign began.

Further details on the 36-year-old’s deal are in, courtesy of The Athletic’s Dan Duggan. Gano received a $5MM signing bonus, and his base salaries this season ($1.25MM) and next ($3.1MM) are guaranteed in full. He will also see a $2MM roster bonus in 2024, which is guaranteed at signing. Gano’s cap hit fell to $4.3MM in 2023, meaning it created a bit of breathing space for this season. His cap charges will rise to $7.2MM in 2024, then $5.8MM and $5.7MM the two years after that. The team is banking on continued high-level play deep into Gano’s career given their latest investment in him.

Here are some other Giants notes:

  • Cornerback Adoree’ Jackson has seen plenty of time in the slot this season, following through on the Giants’ plans of moving him inside to allow rookies Deonte Banks and Tre Hawkins to log starting roles on the perimeter right away. That alignment was foreshadowed in the summer, but it was not something thought of exclusively in 2023. The Giants first considered playing Jackson as their nickel corner last year, as detailed by Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post, but that plan had to be scrapped due to his knee injury. The 28-year-old’s play on the inside will go a long way in determining his free agent value in the spring, since he is playing out the final year of his contract.
  • A resolution has emerged in the Logan Ryan injury grievance, which was filed last April. The veteran defensive back contested the $3MM which was guaranteed for injury in his 2022 compensation should have been paid out owing to his postseason finger surgery. He ultimately received $2.7MM of that total, Duggan notes. The Giants carried a cap charge of $1.2MM last season with the case remaining unresolved at the time; they will be on the hook for $1.5MM in 2023.
  • New York hosted a group of wideouts on free agent visits recently, and return specialist Andre Roberts was among them, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The 35-year-old spent last season in Carolina, making three appearances. His limited time has no doubt hindered the three-time Pro Bowler’s ability to find a new home for what would be a 13th season played in the NFL. Fifth-round rookie Eric Gray has handled both kick and punt return duties for the Giants so far, recording 16 yards on his lone kick return and eight yards per runback on punts.
  • In addition to Roberts, the Giants brought in James Proche for an audition, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. The former sixth-rounder was among the Ravens’ final roster cuts after spending his first three seasons with the team. Proche found himself as the odd man out of Baltimore’s new-look receiving corps, leaving him in search of a new opportunity. He has also worked out for the Jets, but as is the case with his Giants visit, that endeavor has yet to produce a contract offer.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/31/22

Today’s roster moves heading into gameday:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

  • Promoted from practice squad: G Kyle Hinton, DL T.J. Smith

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Commanders

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/20/22

Today’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

  • Signed off Chiefs practice squad: LB Elijah Lee
  • Designated for return: RB Khalil Herbert (story)
  • Released: CB Justin Layne

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Commanders

Caleb Huntley suffered a season-ending Achilles injury this past weekend, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). The injury is expected to require surgery. The Falcons RB made his NFL this season and has collected 369 yards from scrimmage.

While Russell Wilson is expected to start for the Broncos on Christmas, the Broncos still decided to promote a third QB to the roster in Jarrett Guarantano. According to Troy Renck of Denver7 (on Twitter), there was enough interest from other teams (including the Cardinals) for the Broncos to decide to promote the rookie. The UDFA out of Washington State had his first professional gig with the Cardinals before catching on with the Broncos.

Panthers Move Andre Roberts To IR

Andre Roberts‘ 13th NFL season will be delayed. The Panthers moved the veteran return specialist to their IR list Tuesday.

Signed as a free agent this offseason, Roberts was available for three returns in his Carolina debut. But a PCL sprain will halt his season, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. Although Roberts would be eligible to return after four games, he is likely looking at a longer absence.

The former Cardinals third-round pick has become a return-man hired gun as his career has progressed. The Panthers are Roberts’ ninth team. He has moved from the Cardinals to Washington to the Lions to the Falcons to the Jets to the Bills to the Texans to the Chargers to his current team.

Roberts, 34, has made a considerable impact as a special-teamer over the past several years, having been named to three Pro Bowl squads and having been named a first- or second-team All-Pro three times as well. That attracted free agency interest. Carolina added Roberts on a one-year, $1.75MM deal this offseason.

Roberts led the league in kick-return yardage (1,010) last season and notched his sixth career return score. Shortly after signing with the Chargers during the 2021 campaign, Roberts returned a kick for a touchdown. He has three punt-return TDs and three kick-return scores as a pro. All of those plays have come since the 2015 season. The Panthers used Roberts in both return spots Sunday.

Panthers Sign Andre Roberts

The Panthers have found their new return specialist. Former Pro Bowler Andre Roberts is signing with the Panthers, reports Adam Caplan (on Twitter).

Roberts is inking a one-year, $1.75MM deal. The contract contains $900K in guaranteed money.

Despite the 2021 campaign being Roberts’ 12th NFL season, the veteran still put forth one of his best professional seasons. Roberts split the season between the Texans and Chargers, finishing with a league-leading 1,010 kick return yards. Roberts also added 20 punt returns en route to a second-team All-Pro nod. Per Caplan, the Chargers were interested in bringing Roberts back, but the organization wasn’t willing to offer much in guaranteed money. Roberts also generated interest from the Eagles before signing with Carolina.

Roberts has earned three Pro Bowl appearances and three All-Pro nods throughout his career, thanks in part to six special teams touchdowns. He’s also been relatively productive on offense, including a 2012 season where he had 759 receiving yards and five touchdowns. However, in the past five seasons, Roberts had only collected 223 total yards from scrimmage.

The Panthers relied on Alex Erickson as their primary punt returner last season, while veteran RB Ameer Abdullah got the bulk of the kick returns. Erickson is still on the roster, but Abdullah has since joined the Raiders.

Eagles Eyeing Andre Roberts

The Eagles are eyeing some reinforcement on special teams. According to Geoff Mosher and Adam Caplan of the Inside The Birds podcast, the Eagles have interest in special teams ace Andre Roberts.

Despite the 2021 campaign being Roberts’ 12th NFL season, the veteran still put forth one of his best professional seasons. Roberts split the season between the Texans and Chargers, finishing with a league-leading 1,010 kick return yards. Roberts also added 20 punt returns en route to a second-team All-Pro nod. Per Caplan, the Chargers were interested in bringing Roberts back, but the organization wasn’t willing to offer much in guaranteed money.

Roberts has earned three Pro Bowl appearances and three All-Pro recognitions throughout his career, thanks in part to six special teams touchdowns. He’s also been relatively productive on offense, including a 2012 season where he had 759 receiving yards and five touchdowns. However, in the past five seasons, Roberts had only collected 223 total yards from scrimmage.

Jalen Reagor was the primary punt returner for the Eagles last season, but the team leaned on a committee for kick returns. Each of Reagor, Kenneth Gainwell, and Quez Watkins had at least eight kick returns, with the trio combining for 530 return yards.

 

NFL COVID List Updates: 12/20/21

A long list of players were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. We listed the players who landed on the list today, as well as those who were activated off the list:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE John Franklin-Myers, DB Sharrod Neasman

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Chargers To Sign WR Andre Roberts

The Chargers have agreed to sign Andre Roberts (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). The Texans dropped the former Pro Bowler on Monday, but he already has a new home in the AFC.

Roberts is listed as a receiver, but most of his recent work has come in the return game. He led the NFL with 1,174 kick return yards while with the Jets in 2018, and he followed that up with two impressive campaigns with the Bills. In each of those seasons — 2018, 2019, and 2020 — Roberts earned Pro Bowl honors.

The 33-year-old is well traveled at this point, having also played for the Cardinals, WFT, Lions, and Falcons. So far this year, he has taken eight punt returns for 33 yards and 18 kicks for 386 yards.

In other Chargers news, Bryan Bulaga isn’t expected to return from injured reserve anytime soon. The veteran right tackle underwent core muscle surgery last week, which could shelve him until 2022.

Texans To Cut Andre Roberts

The Texans continue to clear veterans from their roster, and Andre Roberts is the next player to earn their walking papers. The former Pro Bowler will be released by the Texans, reports Aaron Wilson (via Twitter).

[RELATED: Texans To Release DE Whitney Mercilus]

Roberts joined the Texans on a two-year deal this past offseason. He’s seen time in all six games but has barely seen time on offense, collecting a single reception on 26 snaps. However, he’s continued to play a major role in the return game, returning eight punts for 33 yards and 18 kicks for 386 yards.

Roberts has established himself as a journeyman, but that hasn’t stopped him from earning Pro Bowl nods each season between 2018 and 2020. He led the NFL with 1,174 kick return yards with the Jets in 2018, and he followed that up with two impressive campaigns with the Bills. Roberts has also played with the Cardinals, Washington, Lions, and Falcons.

Houston continues to look at younger options as the pivot toward the future, meaning the 33-year-old Roberts was no longer in the team’s plans. Now, the veteran will have a chance to catch on with a contender that could use some special teams reinforcement.

Texans To Sign KR/PR Andre Roberts

We’ve seen some offensive and defensive players get some nice money so far on this first day of free agency, why not a special teamer? Return specialist Andre Roberts will be signing with the Texans, Adam Caplan of Sirius XM NFL Radio tweets.

It’s a two-year deal worth just a hair under $6MM, with $3MM of that being guaranteed, Dianna Russini of ESPN.com tweets. Not too shabby for a “receiver” who hasn’t really played on offense in years. A third-round pick of the Cardinals all the way back in 2010, Roberts had some initial success as a pass-catcher in the desert but quickly carved out a career as a returner.

He’s made three straight Pro Bowls for his special teams prowess, and was a second-team All-Pro for the Bills this past year. In 2020 for Buffalo he returned 32 kicks for 961 yards, good for an impressive 30.0 yard average which led the NFL. In 2018 he led the league in punt return average for the Jets, averaging 14.1 yards on 23 returns.

He turned 33 in January, but didn’t show any signs of slowing down this past season.