NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/21/15
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from across the league:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: CB Carrington Byndom, DT Olsen Pierre (Twitter link via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com)
Chicago Bears
- Signed: S Demontre Hurst (Twitter link via Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: RB Kapri Bibbs (via Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post)
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: TE Sean McGrath (press release), LB Amarlo Herrera (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: WR Jordan Leslie, QB Jeff Tuel (Twitter link via John Oehser of Jaguars.com)
- Cut: S Craig Loston
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: S Jonathan Dowling (Twitter link via Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald)
- Cut: RB Bronson Hill
New England Patriots
- Signed: FB Joey Iosefa (Twitter link via Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald); OL Brennan Williams (Twitter link via team)
New York Giants
- Signed: OL Adam Gettis (press release)
- Cut: T Xavier Proctor
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: G Michael Huey, T Andrew McDonald (Twitter link via Eric Williams of ESPN.com)
- Cut: QB Brad Sorensen
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: OLB Markus Pierce-Brewster (Twitter link via Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com)
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/21/15
Today’s minor NFL signings, cuts, and other moves:
- The Giants announced that they have signed cornerback Leon McFadden off the Cardinals‘ practice squad, as Michael Eisen of Giants.com writes. McFadden, 5-10 and 199 pounds, has played in 23 regular-season games with two starts for Cleveland and San Francisco. He has recorded 21 tackles (13 solo), one pass defensed and six special teams tackles.
- The Jaguars promoted running back Joe Banyard to the active roster, as John Oehser of Jaguars.com tweets.
NFC Notes: Kilgore, Carroll, Thompson, Fells
49ers center Daniel Kilgore suffered a broken left leg in a loss against the Broncos one year ago, but his 2015 debut doesn’t appear to be imminent, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. When asked if he could sit out the 2015 season, Kilgore didn’t rule out that scenario.
“I wouldn’t suspect that, but there’s always that possibility,” Kilgore said. “A year ago, I wouldn’t have said I would be in this situation. So you always have that possibility.”
Let’s round up a few more odds and ends from around the NFC….
- Joining a chorus of NFL head coaches who have had to shoot down college rumors in recent weeks, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said that a return to USC is “not happening,” as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes.
- Good news for the Panthers: Shaq Thompson appeared to suffer a serious injury on Sunday, but a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) that it turned out to only be a sprained MCL for the rookie linebacker.
- Cardinals tight end Darren Fells may miss two or three weeks with a sprained shoulder, a source tells ESPN.com’s Josh Weinfuss (on Twitter). Fells had an MRI on Monday morning to better assess the damage.
- As we detailed yesterday, the Buccaneers have two players now eligible to begin practicing, and the club announced today that both Demar Dotson (IR-DTR) and Akeem Spence (PUP) will rejoin their teammates on the practice field beginning Tuesday. Tampa Bay will have a three-week window to activate the duo.
- Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com feels that Bears receiver Alshon Jeffery is worthy of a long-term investment. Jeffery’s performance in Detroit – eight receptions for 147 yards and one touchdown – reinforced his importance to the team in the view of Dickerson, who says Chicago should not let the wideout reach the open market next spring. Dickerson doesn’t view Jeffery as an elite receiver, but he does feel that he is in the next tier, along with guys such as T.Y. Hilton, Mike Wallace, Vincent Jackson and Jeremy Maclin. I’d agree with that assessment, though Jeffery has to stay healthy in order to justify that type of money.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/20/15
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:
Arizona Cardinals
- Cut: DE Lawrence Okoye (Twitter link via Mike Jurecki of Fox Sports 910)
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DE Nordly Capi, CB Sheldon Price (Twitter link via Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun)
- Cut: RB Akeem Hunt
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: WR Titus Davis (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post)
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: Brian Leonhardt (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post)
- Cut: Ty Zimmerman
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: LB Darius Eubanks, NT Casey Walker (Twitter links via Wilson)
- Cut: RB Gus Johnson (Twitter link via Wilson)
Detroit Lions
- Signed: RB Marion Grice, WR Ryan Spadola (Twitter links via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press and Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com)
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: QB Matt Blanchard (Twitter link via Mike Chappell of IndySportsCentral.com
- Cut: QB Alex Tanney (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
Houston Texans
- Signed: LB/DE Steven Means (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
- Cut: RB Daryl Richardson (Twitter link via Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: S Craig Loston, WR Rasheed Bailey (Twitter link via John Oehser of Jacksonville.com)
- Cut: QB Jeff Tuel (Twitter link via Oehser)
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: LB Josh Keyes, WR Fred Williams (Twitter links via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star and Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
- Cut: WR Kenny Cook
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: CB Trovon Reed (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: OL Ryan Seymour (Twitter link via Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate)
- Moved to PS-IR: OL Cyril Lemon (Twitter link via Evan Woodbery of the Times-Picayune)
New York Giants
- Signed: TE Jerome Cunningham (Twitter link via his Howard Shatsky)
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: DL Chuka Ndulue (Twitter link via Eric Williams of ESPN)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: CB Keon Lyn, CB Dax Swanson, T Martin Wallace (press release)
- Cut: DT Derrick Lott
Washington
- Signed: RB Mack Brown (Twitter link via Mike Jones of the Washington Post)
- Cut: LB Nico Johnson (Twitter link via Jones)
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/19/15
Today’s minor NFL signings, cuts, and other moves..
- The Saints will sign center Ryan Seymour, agent Justin Turner tells Wilson (on Twitter).
- The Dolphins promoted tight end Brandon Williams from the taxi squad, Wilson tweets. In a related move, the Dolphins waived safety Jonathan Dowling (via Jenna Laine of FOX Sports 1 on Twitter).
Earlier updates:
- The Texans claimed cornerback and Hard Knocks fan favorite Charles James off waivers, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). In a related move, safety Lonnie Ballentine will be placed on IR. The Texans wanted to sign James to their p-squad this year but he chose the Ravens’ p-squad instead (link).
- The Broncos re-signed veteran blocking tight end Richard Gordon and waived running back Kapri Bibbs, as Mike Klis of 9NEWS writes. On Saturday, the Broncos released Gordon but told him to stay in town because they would re-sign him on Monday.
- The Bills are signing Jordan Mills from the Lions practice squad, a source tells Mike Florio of PFT (on Twitter). Buffalo signed the tackle to their taxi squad in mid-September.
- The Chargers announced that they have waived guard-tackle Michael Ola. The offensive lineman can be re-signed to the practice squad on Tuesday if he clears waivers.
- The Cardinals removed Chris Clemons from injured reserve with an injury settlement, Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.
- The Giants cut tight end Jerome Cunningham, Wilson tweets. In a related move, the Giants promoted cornerback Brandon McGee to the active roster from the taxi squad, Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch tweets.
- The Bears waived safety Demontre Hurst and promoted cornerback Bryce Callahan from the taxi squad, as Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweets.
PUP, NFI Players Soon Eligible To Practice
Week 6 of the NFL season will come to an end after Monday night’s game between the Giants and Eagles, and when teams begin preparing for Week 7, many clubs could be welcoming injured players back to practice. Six weeks into the NFL season, players who were placed on the physically unable to perform list or the non-football injury list prior to Week 1’s games will be eligible to return to the practice field.
Of course, just because those players are able to return to practice doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be healthy enough to do so. Players on the PUP list have a five-week window to begin practicing. Once they return to practice, they have three weeks to be added to their respective teams’ active rosters. In other words, a player currently on the PUP list could return to the field for his team’s Week 7 game, or could return as late as for his team’s Week 15 contest.
The rules for NFI players are similar to those for PUP players. If a player on either reserve list doesn’t return to practice or game action in time, his 2015 season will officially be over.
Here are the players currently on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list who can begin practicing as soon as this Tuesday:
- Atlanta Falcons: T Lamar Holmes
- Baltimore Ravens: TE Dennis Pitta
- Buffalo Bills: CB Cam Thomas
- Chicago Bears: WR Kevin White
- Cincinnati Bengals: LB Vontaze Burfict, LB Sean Porter
- Dallas Cowboys: OL Chaz Green
- Minnesota Vikings: CB Josh Robinson
- New England Patriots: LB Dane Fletcher, DT Chris Jones, WR Brandon LaFell
- New York Giants: T Will Beatty
- New York Jets: RB Stevan Ridley
- Pittsburgh Steelers: T Mike Adams
- San Francisco 49ers: C/G Daniel Kilgore
- Seattle Seahawks: CB Jeremy Lane, WR Paul Richardson
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: DT Akeem Spence
And here are the players currently on their teams’ non-football injury or illness lists, who are also eligible to begin practicing this Tuesday:
- Arizona Cardinals: WR Damond Powell
- Buffalo Bills: CB Leodis McKelvin
- Cincinnati Bengals: T Cedric Ogbuehi
- Cleveland Browns: DB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, TE Randall Telfer, RB Glenn Winston
- Dallas Cowboys: LB Mark Nzeocha
- Houston Texans: T David Quessenberry
- Kansas City Chiefs: QB Tyler Bray
- San Francisco 49ers: WR DeAndre Smelter
- Seattle Seahawks: DT Jesse Williams
In addition to monitoring players on the PUP and NFI lists, it’s worth keeping an eye on players who have been placed on the injured reserve list with the designation to return. Teams can use this IR-DTR spot on one player per season, placing him on the injured reserve list without necessarily ruling him out for the season. As we explained in an earlier post, players given this designation can begin practicing after six weeks and can return after eight weeks.
That means that a player who was placed on IR-DTR prior to Week 1 can begin practicing on Tuesday, though he won’t be eligible to return to game action until Week 9. A player who was placed on IR-DTR after Week 1 will have to wait until next Tuesday – October 27 – to return to practice, while other IR-DTR players will have to wait until November to practice.
Here’s the list of players currently on IR-DTR who can begin practicing as soon as Tuesday:
- Baltimore Ravens: DE Brent Urban
- Cleveland Browns: CB Charles Gaines
- Detroit Lions: CB Alex Carter
- Miami Dolphins: RB Jay Ajayi
- Minnesota Vikings: C John Sullivan
- New England Patriots: C Bryan Stork
- New York Jets: CB Dee Milliner
- Pittsburgh Steelers: C Maurkice Pouncey
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: T Demar Dotson
- Tennessee Titans: RB David Cobb
Extra Points: Palmer, Lions, Raiders
Let’s close out Saturday night by taking one final look around the NFL…
- The Lions are still sorting our their right tackle situation, as neither LaAdrian Waddle nor Cornelius Lucas has emerged as a solid starting option, writes Justin Rogers of MLive.com. Lucas started the first three games of the season while Waddle recovered from an injury; Waddle took the lead during Week 4, but the two rotated in something of a platoon during Week 5. The club hasn’t announced the plan for tomorrow’s contest, but the lack of continuity can only be seen as a detriment for the winless Lions.
- Carson Palmer is playing some of the best football of his career, and Chris Wesseling of NFL.com looks at how much Palmer has meant to the Cardinals — enough, in fact, to warrant general manager Steve Keim labeling Palmer as a “godsend” to the organization. Arizona ranks third in Football Outsiders’ offensive DVOA metric, while Palmer is tied for first with 13 touchdown passes.
- Despite rumors to the contrary, the Raiders will not sign a two-year lease to remain in Oakland, a team source tells Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). Additionally, the concept of signing a short-term agreement doesn’t make much sense, per Cole.
Workout Updates: 10/16/15
We’ve passed along a few of the more notable updates from the last few days on workouts and free agent visits, including the Giants trying out wide receivers like Terrelle Pryor and the Cowboys bringing in running back LaMike James. However, there are plenty more tryout updates from this week to round up, and we’ve got them all below. All links point to the Twitter account of Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post, unless otherwise indicated.
Arizona Cardinals
- Sean Baker, S (link)
Dallas Cowboys
- Kenrick Ellis, DT (link)
- Darius Eubanks, LB
- Zaviar Gooden, LB
- Chuka Ndulue, DT
- Isaiah Pead, RB
- Casey Walker, DL
- Jerel Worthy, DL (link)
Detroit Lions
- David Arkin, OL (link)
- Connor Hamlett, TE
- Eric Herman, G
- Eric Hipolito
- Rich Ohrnberger, C
Indianapolis Colts
- Michael Palardy, P (Twitter link via Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star)
- Byron Stingily, T (link)
- Colton Underwood, LB
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Marion Grice, RB (link)
Kansas City Chiefs
- George Atkinson III, RB (link)
- Bryce Brown, RB
- Bronson Hill, RB
- Brandon McGee, DB
- Steven Means, LB (link)
- Isaiah Pead, RB
- Greg Scruggs, DE
- Quanterus Smith, DE
Miami Dolphins
- Devin Gardner, WR (link)
- Josh Harper, WR
New England Patriots
- Bill Bentley, DB (link)
- Matt Daniels, DB
New Orleans Saints
- Vaughn Martin, DT (link)
- Matt Shaughnessy, OLB
- Quanterus Smith, DE
- Kevin Vickerson, DT
New York Giants
- Devin Gardner, WR (link)
- Bryn Renner, QB
- Mike Williams, WR (link)
New York Jets
- Jordan Dewalt-Ondijo, LB (link)
Philadelphia Eagles
- Steven Means, DE (link)
San Francisco 49ers
- Martin Wallace, T (link)
Tennessee Titans
- Josh Keyes, LB (link)
- Michael McAdoo, OLB (link)
- Markus Pierce-Brewster, LB
- Mike Reilly, LB
- Julian Stanford, LB
- Jeff Tarpinian, LB
NFC West Notes: Coleman, Davis, Rams
Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman was arrested this week for his alleged involvement in a hit-and-run incident, and has been suspended by Seattle as the investigation plays out. According to Coleman’s attorney, Stephen Hayne, he’s looking into whether a concussion may have played a role in why Coleman left the scene, adding that the fact that the fullback is legally deaf may have caused police to believe he was inebriated (link via Travis Pittman of KING 5 News).
“He was clearly not in his right mind after the accident, and that would probably be due to a concussion, but that’s speculation as well. We don’t know,” Hayne said. “But his walking away from the accident is absolutely out of character for who he is and how he would normally respond to a situation like that.”
As we wait to see how the investigation into the incident plays out, let’s round up a few more notes from out of the NFC West….
- A trade involving 49ers tight end Vernon Davis isn’t currently viewed as likely, but it’s possible that will change if a contending team loses a tight end due to an injury within the next couple weeks, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. If San Francisco decides to explore a potential Davis trade, the team would have until November 3 to get something done.
- St. Louis city comptroller Darlene Green said this week that she has concerns about the city’s new Rams stadium proposal, which could create a roadblock for the plan, according to a CBS St. Louis report. “They need my approval,” Green said. “They need my approval and my signature to move forward, and if there’s parameters that have been disregarded – like if there’s any tax increase – I can’t abide by that. That would jeopardize the city’s credit and I would have to say no.”
- The Cardinals‘ newest pass rusher, Dwight Freeney, admits to Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report that playing football “becomes really addictive,” and he decided to sign continue his career with Arizona because he couldn’t “turn off” his desire to keep playing. The former Colt and Charger added that he believes he’s in “great shape” and still has plenty left in the tank.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/14/15
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: S Durell Eskridge (Twitter link via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com)
Chicago Bears
- Signed: QB David Fales (Twitter link via Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune)
Houston Texans
- Cut: WR Alan Bonner (Twitter link via John McClain of the Houston Chronicle)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: RB Joe Banyard (Twitter link)
- Cut: S Craig Loston
Miami Dolphins
- Cut: WR Damarr Aultman (Twitter link via Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald)
New York Jets
- Signed: TE Wes Saxton (press release)
- Cut: WR Titus Davis
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: S Adrian Phillips (Twitter link via U-T San Diego’s Michael Gehlken)
- Cut: WR Donatella Luckett