Today’s practice squad updates:
Baltimore Ravens
Carolina Panthers
Detroit Lions
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Today’s practice squad moves:
Baltimore Ravens
Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Indianapolis Colts
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots
With Anthony Richardson sidelined with a shoulder injury, the Colts are adding some quarterback depth. Jordan Schultz reports that the Colts have signed QB Kellen Mond to the practice squad. The signing is pending a physical, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
[RELATED: Colts QB Anthony Richardson Suffers Shoulder Injury]
Mond was one of several QBs to work out for the Colts today, with NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reporting that the team also took a look at Holton Ahlers, Trace McSorley, and Anthony Brown. Ultimately, the Colts decided to go with the former Vikings third-round pick.
Mond was selected with the 66th-overall pick in the 2021 draft, and there was hope that he could eventually replace Kirk Cousins as Minnesota’s starting QB. Instead, the Texas A&M product lasted a year with the organization before getting waived prior to the 2022 campaign. He spent all of last season with the Browns and stuck around Cleveland for the 2023 preseason.
The 24-year-old will be a temporary QB3 in Indianapolis. Gardner Minshew will be the starter with Richardson sidelined, and former sixth-round pick Sam Ehlinger will serve as the QB2.
Since being diagnosed with a Grade 3 AC joint sprain, Richardson has been seeking multiple opinions before deciding his next step. That additional testing will determine whether the rookie requires a trip to injured reserve, a move that would put Minshew in position to start for at least the next four games.
The Colts weren’t done making moves today. Schultz reports that the organization has also added wide receiver Anthony Miller to the practice squad. The former second-round pick was productive through his first three seasons in the NFL, averaging 50 catches for 570 yards per season. He’s bounced around the league a bit since getting traded during the 2021 offseason, spending time with the Texans, Steelers, and 49ers.
The 49ers joined the Chiefs in placing their best defensive player on the reserve/did not report list due to a holdout and joined the other 30 teams in finalizing their 53-man roster. Some changes are expected, with veterans pledged to stay. But here is how the 49ers reached 53:
The 49ers are planning to re-sign Hyder and Bryant once they make other roster moves, Matt Barrows of The Athletic notes (subscription required). Both are vested veterans who are not subject to waivers. With Samson Ebukam and Charles Omenihu gone, Hyder figures to be a key piece as a rotational defensive end. He is with the 49ers for the third time in four seasons. After an 8.5-sack slate in 2020, Hyder signed with the Seahawks. But Seattle released him in 2021, leading the veteran back to the Bay Area.
San Francisco’s 53-man roster will include Bosa soon, and this holdout does not appear as contentious as the Chris Jones-Chiefs standoff. John Lynch has indicated the 49ers will waive Bosa’s fines for missing training camp — an option the 49ers have due to Bosa being tied to a rookie contract. While the 49ers changed defensive coordinators, bringing in Steve Wilks to replace DeMeco Ryans, D-line coach Kris Kocurek remains in place. Bosa should be able to hit the ground running once he returns, though the 49ers are running short on time here.
Gonzalez suffered a calf injury Kyle Shanahan said would keep him out a few weeks. With the veteran landing on IR, an injury settlement is likely. The 49ers used a third-round pick on Michigan kicker Jake Moody, but Barrows notes the strained quadriceps injury he suffered may keep him out of Week 1. On that note, the 49ers worked out Tristan Vizcaino and Taylor Russolino, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area notes. Robbie Gould, the 49ers’ kicker for the past six seasons, remains unsigned.
The 49ers are shorthanded at the moment with respect to their depth receivers, and an addition is being made as a result. Anthony Miller has agreed to a deal in San Francisco, reports Jordan Schultz of the Score (Twitter link). 
Miller flashed potential during his three seasons with the Bears, particularly in 2019. That year, he posted 52 catches for 656 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but he found himself being dealt to Houston ahead of the 2021 campaign. The former second-rounder soon found himself in Pittsburgh, where he made a single appearance.
A shoulder injury left Miller sidelined for the entire 2022 season, and the Steelers released him this past June. To no surprise, the former second-rounder has found himself on the open market since then as teams have looked elsewhere for complimentary pass-catching options. San Francisco’s WR depth chart is headlined by Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, but a depth spot could be available for Miller at least to start the regular season.
2022 third-rounder Danny Gray is dealing with a right SC joint sprain in his shoulder, head coach Kyle Shanahan said on the weekend (Twitter link via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner). A firm timetable for Gray’s return is not in place, but he is likely to miss time at the start of the year. He made only a single catch as a rookie despite playing 10 games, and the presence of Samuel, Ayiuk, Jauan Jennings, Ray-Ray McCloud and Ronnie Bell could leave Gray with a difficult path to signficant playing time upon his return.
It could also make it difficult for Miller, 28, to carve out a role presuming he survives final roster cuts next week. This deal will nevertheless allow him another chance to find a permanent home in the NFL, and prove that he has recovered in full from last year’s injury.
Nick Kwiatkoski‘s minicamp audition with the Steelers will lead to an agreement. The Pittsburgh-area native agreed to terms with his hometown team Tuesday, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter).
The veteran linebacker will head back to Pennsylvania after spending the 2022 season in Atlanta. Kwiatkoski joins Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts as veteran linebackers added to the Steelers’ equation this offseason. It is a one-year deal, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler (on Twitter).
This marks the third Kwiatkoski contract agreement in four years, though the West Virginia alum also agreed to multiple Raiders restructures. The Raiders signed the former Bears part-time starter to a three-year, $21MM deal in 2020, but after the team cut bait in 2022, worse terms awaited from the Falcons. But Atlanta still afforded an opportunity — on a one-year deal worth the veteran minimum. Considering this is a June addition after a minicamp tryout, Kwiatkoski’s Steelers terms are likely similar to what he received from the Falcons.
Drafted in the 2016 fourth round by the Bears a month after their Danny Trevathan and Jerrell Freeman signings, Kwiatkoski ended up moving into Chicago’s starting lineup frequently over his first two seasons. He started 13 games from 2016-17, and even after the Bears made Roquan Smith a top-10 pick in 2018, they still needed Kwiatkoski for eight starts during his 2019 contract year. He parlayed that into the Raiders accord, with the Silver and Black signing he and Cory Littleton in March 2020. Neither deal worked out, and both off-ball ‘backers were gone as the Dave Ziegler–Josh McDaniels regime took over last year.
Kwiatkoski, 30, played 12 Falcons games last season, working mostly as a special-teamer. He logged 228 special teams snaps, marking his third season with at least 200 ST plays. While Kwiatkoski has started 34 career games, he profiles as a depth piece in Pittsburgh. The Bethel Park High alum joins offseason addition Tanner Muse and 2022 seventh-round pick Mark Robinson as the Steelers’ top non-Holcomb and Roberts options. Depth could be key here, with Holcomb coming off a December foot surgery.
Additionally, the Steelers released wide receiver Anthony Miller. A former Kwiatkoski Bears teammate whom the team chose in the 2018 second round, Miller has been unable to find his NFL footing since a promising 2019 season (656 receiving yards). The Bears traded Miller to the Texans in July 2021, but Houston waived him soon after. The Jaguars and Steelers took subsequent fliers later that year, and Miller ended up sticking with Pittsburgh for a bit. But he only played in one game with the Steelers. The ex-Chicago slot suffered a shoulder injury while competing for a Steelers job in training camp last year and spent the season on IR.
Today’s reserve/futures deals:
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
12:05pm:Â Per a team announcement, the Steelers have indeed placed Miller on IR, meaning that he will not suit up in 2022.
11:04am: The Steelers’ receiving corps has taken a hit. Anthony Miller is dealing with a shoulder injury and is set to be sidelined for “several months,” putting his 2022 availability in jeopardy, reports ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler (Twitter link). 
Fowler adds that there is currently a slight chance that Miller is able to return at some point during the season, not unlike JuJu Smith-Schuster last year. However, the likelier outcome is that the 27-year-old misses the campaign in its entirety, marking a significant blow to his career and leaving the Steelers shorthanded in terms of depth at the position.
Miller signed with the Steelers last October, joining their practice squad. He made a single appearance with the team in 2021, recording a single reception. Given the presence of former Bears teammate Mitch Trubisky at quarterback, however, there was a chance he could carve out a more significant role this season. During three-plus years in Chicago, the former second-rounder totaled 134 catches for 1,564 yards and 11 touchdowns.
His inability to secure a full-time starting role made him a disappointing draft pick, though, and before the end of his rookie contract, he had been traded to the Texans. His short-lived (and relatively unproductive) tenure in Houston left him on the waiver wire, leading to the Steelers’ investment in him as a reclamation project.
With Miller out for at least a significant portion of the season, the Steelers are somewhat thin at wideout behind starters Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool and George Pickens. The team lost Smith-Schuster and James Washington in free agency. Now, with Miller out of the picture, the final roster spots will likely be decided by a combination of rookie Calvin Austin III, Cody White and Gunner Olszewski, as waiver claim Miles Boykin was recently deemed a logical cut candidate.
Here are Monday’s reserve/futures deals:
Atlanta Falcons
Buffalo Bills
New Orleans Saints
Pittsburgh Steelers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
Here are Tuesday and Wednesday’s activations from and placements on the reserve/COVID-19 lists:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
Minnesota Vikings
New Orleans Saints
New York Giants
New York Jets
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
Washington Football Team