Anthony Johnson (WR)

Wednesday NFL Transactions: NFC South

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These BuccaneersFalconsPanthers and Saints moves are noted below.

Atlanta Falcons

Signed:

Claimed:

Waived:

  • OL Josh Miles

Signed to practice squad: 

Carolina Panthers

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

New Orleans Saints

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Patriots Work Out Four Running Backs

With James White sidelined indefinitely, the Patriots are eyeing some free agent running backs. The team worked out Ito Smith, Ryquell Armstead, Dontrell Hilliard, and Artavis Pierce today, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).

[RELATED: Patriots’ James White Out Indefinitely]

Smith has the most experience among the four, seeing time in 35 games in three seasons with the Falcons. This included a 2020 campaign where he finished with 343 yards from scrimmage and one touchdown. The 26-year-old caught on with the Vikings this offseason but was let go before the regular season.

Armstead got into 16 games as a rookie with the Jaguars in 2019, finishing with 252 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns. He sat out the 2020 season while dealing with issues from COVID-19, and after getting claimed by the Giants in May, he was waived by his new team in June. Pierce, a 2020 undrafted free agent out of Oregon State, saw time in five games with the Bears last season, rushing for 34 yards and one touchdown on six carries. Hilliard, 26, saw time in 30 games for the Browns in two-plus seasons with the organization.

White suffered a hip injury during Sunday’s loss to the Saints, and the veteran will be sidelined for the foreseeable future. The team is already rostering four other RBs in Damien Harris, J.J. Taylor, rookie Rhamondre Stevenson, and special teamer Brandon Bolden.

The Patriots didn’t only audition running backs today. The team also took a look at defensive backs D.J. Daniel and Stephen Denmark and wideout Anthony Johnson.

Seahawks Worked Out DT Brandon Dunn

The Seahawks worked out a former Texans starter today. The team had defensive tackle Brandon Dunn in for a tryout, reports Aaron Wilson (via Twitter).

Dunn had spent the majority of his career in Houston, starting 37 games for the organization. The defensive lineman actually started a career-high 13 games in 2020, finishing with 26 tackles, three sacks, and one fumble recovery. He inked a three-year, $12MM extension with the team in February of 2020, but he ended up getting cut by the team before the end of the 2021 preseason.

Bryan Mone has been sidelined with an elbow injury, so the team could be looking for some extra reinforcement at defensive tackle. The team had to elevate Robert Nkemdiche from the practice squad for Sunday’s game against the Titans, and the fill-in ended up collecting seven tackles while playing on 41 percent of his team’s defensive snaps.

Dunn wasn’t the only player working out for the Seahawks today. Wilson tweets that defensive tackle Andrew Brown and wide receivers Lawrence Cager and Anthony Johnson also auditioned for Seattle.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/27/20

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

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/9/20

The latest reserve/futures signings from around the NFL:

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

NFL Workout Updates: 9/7/19

We’ve got another big batch of workouts, all courtesy of veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (on Twitter).

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Texans could be looking for specialist help, as they worked out a pair of punters and a longsnapper. Boddy-Calhoun, who worked out for the Vikings, is probably the biggest name on this list. He started at least seven games for the Browns each of the past three seasons, but was released by Houston at final cuts.

Buccaneers Sign 16 UDFAs

The Buccaneers officially signed the following 16 UDFAs on Friday:

As the Bucs’ press release notes, history suggests that these players will have decent odds of making the final cut. Wide receiver Adam Humphries, running back Peyton Barber, and tight ends Cameron Brate and Antony Auclair all came to Tampa as UDFAs. In every year since 2008, at least one undrafted rookie has made the Buccaneers’ Week 1 roster.

That may be doubly true for defensive tackle Zack Bailey, who received a ~$23K signing bonus, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter).