NFC East Notes: Giants, Gregory, Fitzpatrick
Jabrill Peppers‘ torn ACL will keep him sidelined for the rest of the 2021 campaign, and considering his expiring contract, there’s a chance his stint with the Giants has effectively come to an end. However, head coach Joe Judge kept the door open when speaking with reporters on Wednesday.
“Look, this guy is in a contract year, it’s something I’ve talked to him about directly,” Judge said (h/t to Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com). “He’s a guy that I value a lot in this program. I’d love to have this guy going forward, I’ve told him that directly. He’s been a very good leader for us. You can talk about him being local, that the Giants mean something to him. I think that’s very important. He’s a guy that loves football, he loves this organization, he loves this area. Those are things we talk about building as cornerstones and pillars of this program and he’s a very important part of our program.”
The safety started five of his six games this season, compiling 29 tackles and one sack. Considering Peppers’ contract status, his reduced playing time, and continued trade rumblings, there was a chance the veteran would be traded prior to his injury. The ACL injury certainly changed things, and Peppers could pursue a comeback with his current team.
More notes out of the NFC East…
- With the Giants sitting at 2-5, it wouldn’t be a surprise if several Giants veterans end up hitting the trade block. Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv explored which players could be on the move, with tight end Evan Engram, cornerback James Bradberry, guard Will Hernandez, tight end Kyle Rudolph, and offensive tackle Nate Solder earning spots on the list. Vacchiano even goes as far as to list running back Saquon Barkley as a potential trade candidate, but he can’t envision the Giants receiving a haul that would convince them to bail on the former second-overall pick.
- Randy Gregory has dealt with his fair share of suspensions, but the former Cowboys second-round pick followed an impressive 2020 campaign with an even better start to the 2021 season. In five games (four starts), Gregory has collected four sacks. The 28-year-old will hit free agency following the 2021 season, but David Moore, Calvin Watkins, and Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News all believe that the defensive end will be back next season. Moore notes that the team wouldn’t have held on to Gregory for all these years if they didn’t plan on a long-term pact, while Watkins cautions that the franchise tag could prove to be a risky move considering Gregory’s limited track record.
- There was once some hope that Ryan Fitzpatrick would be back by now, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport writes that Washington Football Team will have to wait a bit longer. The 38-year-old is still weeks away from returning, with Week 10 being the earliest possible return for the starting quarterback. Fitzpatrick suffered a hip subluxation back in September, forcing Taylor Heinicke into the lineup.
Latest On 49ers RB Jeff Wilson
The 49ers have started three running backs through six weeks, and the organization is hoping they’ll be adding another option at the position before long. 49ers general manager John Lynch told reporters that running back Jeff Wilson should be back from a knee injury before the end of the season.
“It’s not in the next couple weeks, but kind of beyond that,” Lynch said (via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area on Twitter). “He’s doing really well. He’s had some real positive breakthroughs in the last couple of weeks in his recovery.”
Matt Barrows of The Athletic writes that Wilson is only a few weeks away from practicing, with the organization targeting a late-November return.
Wilson had a breakout campaign in 2020, finishing with 733 yards from scrimmage and 10 touchdowns in 12 games (three starts). The running back landed on injured reserve prior to the 2021 season, and his timeline has since been pushed back a bit. Per Maiocco (on Twitter), Wilson was initially expected to return around midseason, but now it sounds like he’s eyeing a late-season return.
Raheem Mostert, Trey Sermon, and Elijah Mitchell have all seen stints as the 49ers starting running back this season, and none of those players have been in uniform for all six games. Mitchell currently leads the running back corps with 63 carries.
Texans Work Out Two Running Backs
After trading off one running back yesterday, the Texans are eyeing some free agents at the position. According to Aaron Wilson (via Twitter), Houston auditioned Jaylen Samuels and Darius Jackson.
[RELATED: Texans Trading RB Mark Ingram To Saints]
Samuels was a fifth-round pick by the Steelers back in 2018, and he saw time in 42 games through three seasons with the organization. However, after collecting 935 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns through his first two years in the NFL, he was limited to only 74 yards on 18 touches in 2020. The 25-year-old was cut by the Steelers at the end of the preseason and later landed on their practice squad, but he was released yesterday.
Jackson has bounced around the league since being selected in the sixth round of the 2016 draft. He’s had three stints with the Cowboys, two stints with the Colts, and cameos with the Browns, Packers, Buccaneers, Raiders, and Texans. The 27-year-old spent the 2021 preseason with Las Vegas and Houston. In total, he’s seen time in four games, getting six touches for 16 yards.
The Texans traded veteran Mark Ingram to the Saints yesterday, although the team still has plenty of depth at the position. At the moment, the team is rostering David Johnson, Rex Burkhead, Phillip Lindsay, and Scottie Phillips.
This Date In Transactions History: Dolphins Trade Kenyan Drake To Cardinals
The Dolphins were looking to clear their roster in 2019, and that led to one of the more notable trades that took place around that season’s deadline. On October 28, 2019, the Dolphins traded running back Kenyan Drake to the Cardinals for a conditional sixth-round pick.
Drake had spent his first three-plus seasons in Miami, including a 2018 campaign where he collected 1,012 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns in a part-time role. However, the 2019 iteration of the Dolphins had no hopes of contending, and the organization traded off pieces as they looked towards 2020 and beyond. So, on this date two years ago, they sent their starting running back to Arizona.
The Cardinals didn’t give up a whole lot to acquire Drake, and they needed some reinforcement at the position with both David Johnson and Chase Edmonds struggling with injuries. Drake ended up having a solid eight-game stint for the organization, collecting 814 yards from scrimmage and eight touchdowns. Still, the move didn’t do much to help the team’s record, as Arizona finished at 5-10-1.
The organization ended up placing the transitional tag on their acquisition following the 2019 season, and Drake eventually signed a one-year, $8.48MM tender. During his lone full season in Arizona, the running back finished with a career-high 10 touchdowns to go along with 1,092 yards from scrimmage. Drake moved on to the Raiders prior to the 2021 season (via a two-year, $14.5MM deal), and the Cardinals pivoted to James Conner in a rushing attack that also includes Edmonds and quarterback Kyler Murray.
While the Dolphins did everything in their power to clear their 2019 roster of any talent, the team still only finished with the fifth-worst record in the NFL. As a result, the team missed out on LSU superstar Joe Burrow and had to settle for Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa. Further, the front office made a curious move with the draft pick they acquired from Arizona. That conditional sixth-rounder ended up improving to a fifth-round pick, and the Dolphins proceeded to…trade the pick for running back Matt Breida, who’s only a year younger than Drake.
Each team had different intentions when making the selection, but neither team ended up with their desired outcome. Hindsight is always 20/20, but both teams may have been better off avoiding this trade altogether (although it’s tough to be overly critical of the Cardinals for ditching a late-rounder or the Dolphins for essentially swapping Drake for Breida).
Cardinals DE J.J. Watt Likely To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery
THURSDAY: Hopes Watt could somehow return late in a potential Cardinals playoff run now sound unrealistic. Watt suffered the following injuries in the second half of the Cardinals’ win over the Texans: a torn labrum, torn bicep, torn rotator cuff and a dislocated shoulder, Rapoport tweets. While still not ruling Watt out for a possible Cardinals playoff run, Rapoport adds the 11th-year vet will undergo surgery next week (video link).
Watt somehow finished the Cards’ Week 7 win but will likely be out of the picture for the unbeaten team the rest of the way. Although Watt beat his timetable to recover from a torn pec in 2019, returning for the Texans’ two playoff games that season, this latest run of injury misfortune figures to sideline the future Hall of Famer well into the offseason.
WEDNESDAY: It sounds like J.J. Watt‘s shoulder injury will likely cost him the rest of the season. The Cardinals pass rusher is likely to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
Watt injured his shoulder during Sunday’s win over the Texans, but there was hope that the veteran would only miss weeks, not months. Instead, Watt’s upcoming surgery will likely sideline him for the rest of the 2021 campaign. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter), the recovery time is expected to take at least three months, which would bring us to late in the postseason. That slightly leaves the door open for a Watt return (especially considering his past ability to recover quickly), but no one should be hanging their hat on that scenario. Per Schefter, the surgery has yet to be scheduled.
Watt’s stint with the Texans ended this offseason, and he proceeded to ink a two-year, $28MM deal with the Cardinals. So far, that investment has been worth it for the team, as Watt has played a major role in guiding Arizona to a 7-0 record and a top-five defense. Through seven games, the 32-year-old has collected 16 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, five tackles for loss, and six QB hits. Despite his injury, he managed to finish Sunday’s win, but he was limited to a season-low 30 snaps on defense.
Injuries have consistently been an issue for the all-time great. Injuries in 2016 and ’17 interrupted Watt’s stratospheric pace, and although the three-time Defensive Player of the Year returned to an All-Pro level in 2018, the former Texans superstar missed a chunk of the 2019 season as well. Since 2016, Watt has missed a total of 32 regular season games, and we’ll be able to pencil in another 10 missed games for 2021.
While there really isn’t a silver lining, at least the Cardinals can rest a bit easier knowing they’ll be getting some reinforcement on their defensive line this week. Arizona will have Chandler Jones on the field after he spent the past two weeks on their reserve/COVID-19 list.
HC Robert Saleh: Jets Aren’t Planning “Fire Sale”
When the Jets were struggling last year, general manager Joe Douglas was quick to sell off veterans for future picks. While the 2021 version of the team sits at only 1-5, it doesn’t sound like the Jets are planning on selling again this year. While head coach Robert Saleh wasn’t around last season, he told reporters today that he isn’t anticipating a fire sale, per Connor Hughes of The Athletic (via Twitter).
“If it’s something that will help us, great,” Saleh said (via Al Iannazzone of Newsday.com). “If it’s not, great. We’ll stay pat. Forcing things is not Joe’s forte. He’s very deliberate. He communicates with us all the time. I love the way he goes about his business. I love his process. I’m with Joe.”
The Jets have the youngest roster in the NFL, so it’s not like the team has a surplus of veterans that they could sell off for future pieces. Last year, the team traded the likes of Steve McLendon, Avery Williamson, and Jordan Willis, but we’re unlikely to see a repeat in 2021.
“If it’s something that’s going to help us awesome,” Saleh said. “But I also know we’re not looking for a fire sale either.”
While Marcus Maye previously made sense as a trade candidate (considering the contentious negotiations this summer), the safety said that he hasn’t requested a trade out of New York. Following Zach Wilson‘s injury, the Jets actually made a move to add to their roster earlier this week when they acquired Joe Flacco from the Eagles.
Panthers Add WRs Willie Snead, Devin Smith To Practice Squad
The Panthers added a pair of wideouts to their practice squad today. Carolina signed Devin Smith (per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport on Twitter) and Willie Snead (per ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Twitter).
Smith, a second-round pick by the Jets in 2015, proved to be a disappointment during his time in New York, as he collected only 10 receptions for 135 yards and one touchdown in 14 games (three starts) through two years with the team. To be fair, a torn ACL derailed his rookie campaign, and another ACL tear in 2017 forced him to miss the entire season. The receiver was ultimately waived by the team in 2018 and ended up sitting out that entire season, as well.
He got another chance in 2019 with the Cowboys, finishing with five receptions for 113 yards and one touchdown in four games (two starts). He was released by Dallas prior to last season, and he spent most of the 2020 campaign on the Texans and Patriots practice squad. New England held on to him for much of the 2021 offseason, and he later caught on with the Jaguars before getting released earlier this month.
Snead logged only 8% of the Raiders offensive snaps through seven games, and he asked for and was granted his release yesterday. The 29-year-old was still a usable player as recently as 2020, when he finished with 432 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns in 13 games (eight starts) with the Ravens. Prior to this three-year stint in Baltimore, Snead spent the first three seasons of his career with the Saints, including 2015 and 2016 campaigns where he averaged 939.5 receiving yards per season.
There’s a good chance we see at least one of these players in uniform on Sunday, as Panthers wideouts Alex Erickson (concussion), Terrace Marshall Jr. (concussion), and Brandon Zylstra (hamstring) are all dealing with their own ailments.
Per Aaron Wilson (on Twitter), the Panthers also added defensive end Austin Larkin to their practice squad. The former undrafted free agent spent much of the 2020 season and 2021 preseason with Carolina.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/27/21
Today’s practice squad moves:
Denver Broncos
- Signed: OL Shaq Calhoun, RB Damarea Crockett, ILB Curtis Robinson, LB Barrington Wade
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: QB Jake Dolegala
New England Patriots
- Signed: DB De’Vante Bausby
New York Giants
- Signed: WR David Sills
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: DT Chris Slayton
- Released: RB Jaylen Samuels
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: C Brad Lundblade
- Released: QB Danny Etling
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: RB Dontrell Hilliard
Washington Football Team
- Signed: LB Anthony Hines III
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/27/21
All of today’s minor transactions in one place:
Carolina Panthers
- Designated for return: S Juston Burris
Chicago Bears
- Designated for return: OT Larry Borom
Detroit Lions
- Signed to active roster: OL Tommy Kraemer
Houston Texans
- Designated for return: QB Tyrod Taylor (story)
New England Patriots
- Signed: LB Calvin Munson (off Dolphins practice squad)
- Signed to active roster: OL James Ferentz
New Orleans Saints
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Ken Crawley, WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey
New York Jets
- Designated for return: LB Jarrad Davis, P Braden Mann, DE Kyle Phillips
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Activated from IR: RB Anthony McFarland
- Placed on IR: DT Carlos Davis
San Francisco 49ers
- Designated for return: DT Kevin Givens
Latest On Texans WR Brandin Cooks
With a 1-6 record, the Texans have started to deal off some veterans…and it sounds like one of their locker room leaders is unhappy about the direction of the squad. Following tonight’s trade that sent Mark Ingram to New Orleans, Texans wideout Brandin Cooks took to Twitter to show his displeasure.
[RELATED: Texans Trading RB Mark Ingram To Saints]
“This is bulls***,” Cooks said. “Such a joke.”
This obviously isn’t a great look for an organization that considers Cooks to be both a leader and a foundational piece (per ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Twitter). From Cooks’ perspective, the frustration makes some sense; per Aaron Wilson (on Twitter), Cooks and Ingram are “very close friends.”
The Texans have moved on from their starting RB, they’re expected to trade franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson, and they recently put defensive leader Zach Cunningham on the trading block. While the front office apparently has future plans for Cooks, there’s no denying that he’s one of the organization’s best trade chips (especially considering he’s only owed $1.5MM for the rest of the season, per ESPN’s Field Yates on Twitter). Earlier today, the 28-year-old had a much more measured response when asked about potentially being traded (via Wilson on Twitter).
“At the end of the day, guys know it’s a business,” said Cooks. “We go to do the best we can. All that type of stuff takes care of itself. It’s a decision that’s out of your control.”
Despite the uncertainty at the quarterback position, Cooks has still put up solid numbers in 2021. Through the first seven games, the veteran wideout has hauled in 45 receptions for 502 yards (albeit with only one touchdown).