Jaguars Trim Roster To 75
The Jaguars have cut their roster from 90 players to 75, according to John Oehser of the team’s website:
Waived:
- TE Caleb Bluitt
- OL Malcolm Bunche
- LB P.J. Davis
- CB Charles James
- DT Tueni Lupeamanu
- WR Larry Pinkard
- OL Demetrius Rhaney
- WR Jamal Robinson
- CB Dwayne Thomas
- FB Marquez Williams (waived/injured)
Released outright (vested veterans who are not subject to waivers):
Placed on IR:
Eagles Place Sidney Jones On Reserve/NFI List, Trim Roster
The Eagles have placed rookie cornerback Sidney Jones on the reserve/NFI list, per a team announcement. Consequently, Jones won’t be eligible to practice or play during the first six weeks of the season.
Although Jones suffered a torn Achilles during his pro day in March, the Eagles still used a second-round pick on the former Washington standout. Jones looked like a first-rounder in the making after a stellar three-year Huskies career that saw him intercept eight passes. When the Eagles signed Jones, they inserted language in his contract that will pay him his full 2017 base salary even if he spends the season on the NFI list.
Along with the Jones transaction, the Eagles announced that they’ve waived 14 players to bring their roster to 70:
- LB Don Cherry
- DT Winston Craig
- WR Rashard Davis
- TE Anthony Denham
- QB Dane Evans
- LB Carlos Fields
- CB Aaron Grymes
- DE Jake Metz
- C Tyler Orlosky
- T Victor Salako
- LB Christian Tago
- WR Paul Turner (injury settlement)
- DT Gabe Wright
- TE Adam Zaruba
49ers Release Tim Hightower, Kapri Bibbs
The 49ers have released running back Tim Hightower, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com. The team also cut fellow RB Kapri Bibbs, per Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee.
Hightower signed with the 49ers in April after spending the previous two seasons serving as Mark Ingram‘s backup on the Saints. 2016 was a bounce-back season for Hightower, who appeared in all 16 games for the first time since 2010 and totaled 748 yards (548 rushing, 200 receiving) and five touchdowns (four on the ground, one through the air). Prior to that, Hightower was effectively out of the NFL from 2012-2015, which represented a notable fall from grace for someone who had been a dependable rusher for the Cardinals early in his career.
San Francisco sent the 177th pick in this year’s draft to Denver for Bibbs and a fourth-rounder in 2018 during the spring, but the ball carrier failed to make his mark in the Bay Area. Bibbs wasn’t much of a factor as a rusher as a member of the Broncos, as he only totaled 29 carries, but he was a reliable special teamer with the club.
Thanks to the cuts of Hightower and Bibbs, the 49ers are set to lean on Matt Breida, Raheem Mostert and rookie Joe Williams behind Carlos Hyde.
Bears Release Victor Cruz
The Bears have released wide receiver Victor Cruz, Josina Anderson of ESPN tweets.
This is the latest setback in the career of Cruz, a former star who has dealt with significant injury issues in recent years. Cruz suffered a knee injury during the Bears’ preseason finale on Thursday and will undergo an MRI, per Anderson (on Twitter).
A longtime Giant, Cruz played just six games from 2014-15, and while he bounced back last year to appear in all but one of Big Blue’s contests, he only one caught 39 passes and one touchdown. At his best, Cruz combined for between 73 and 86 receptions in each season from 2011-13, earning a Pro Bowl nod in 2012.
The 30-year-old Cruz joined the Bears in May on a deal worth up to $4MM. Chicago will save $1.97MM of Cruz’s $2.47MM cap hit, but it’s even thinner at receiver after losing Cameron Meredith to a season-ending injury last week. The Bears are now down to Kevin White, a 2015 first-rounder who has battled injuries during his short career, Markus Wheaton and Josh Bellamy, among others, at the position.
49ers Release Tim Barnes
The 49ers have released center Tim Barnes, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee.
Barnes, who spent the first five years of his career with the Rams, signed with the 49ers in May after encountering a tepid market in free agency. While Barnes started in all 32 of the Rams’ games over the past two seasons, Pro Football Focus ranked him as a bottom 10 center in each campaign.
For San Francisco, center Daniel Kilgore did enough during the preseason to hold off both Barnes and the also-departed Jeremy Zuttah. Barnes’ exit will clear $755K of his $775K cap hit for 2017 off the books.
Browns Release John Greco
The Browns have released guard John Greco, according to Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com.
The release of Greco concludes a long tenure in Cleveland for the 32-year-old, who was a starter for the team over the previous six seasons. Greco, who entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Rams in 2008, joined the Browns prior to the 2011 campaign and ultimately started in 66 of 85 appearances with the club. He started in all 12 of his games during an injury-shortened 2016 and ranked an impressive 18th in performance among Pro Football Focus’ 75 qualified guards.
Greco became expendable to the Browns thanks in part to the signings of guard Kevin Zeitler and center J.C. Tretter in free agency. In cutting Greco, the Browns saved his entire $3.075MM cap hit for 2017.
Browns Release Brock Osweiler
The Browns have released quarterback Brock Osweiler, Zac Jackson of The Athletic reports. Cutting Osweiler was the likely route for Cleveland after he failed to beat out second-round rookie DeShone Kizer for the team’s starting job, though the club will still have to pay the veteran his fully guaranteed $16MM salary. 
The Browns acquired Osweiler in March in an unprecedented trade with the Texans, when Houston essentially paid Cleveland a 2018 second-round pick just to take on his contract. The expectation then was that the Browns would either flip Osweiler elsewhere or cut him, and they went the latter route after they couldn’t find a taker via trade.
Now, if Osweiler signs elsewhere, he’ll likely do so for the league minimum $775K, which will give the Browns a relatively small bit of financial relief. But with the recent releases and trades of Joe Haden, Desmond Bryant and Cameron Erving, the Browns basically made back the money they’re obligated to pay Osweiler.
While Osweiler had a miserable 2016 in Houston after signing a big-money deal in free agency, he seems likely to find work as an inexpensive backup somewhere. Not only is Osweiler still fairly young (26), but the ex-Bronco brings size (6-foot-7, 240 pounds), a big arm and a second-round pedigree (2012) to the table.
DeAngelo Hall Takes Pay Cut
The Redskins have restructured DeAngelo Hall‘s salary for the second time since June, according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post. Instead of the $2.2MM Hall was scheduled to make, the safety will earn a fully guaranteed $1.1MM and have a chance at some incentives.
Prior to June, Hall was set to earn a base salary of $4.25MM with a cap number above $5MM. However, given his recent injury troubles, the Redskins don’t believe he’s worth that type of money anymore. The 33-year-old Hall appeared in just 17 of a possible 48 regular-season games over the past three campaigns. Thanks to the torn ACL he suffered last year, he’ll begin this season on the PUP list and miss the first six weeks.
Steelers Release Knile Davis
The Steelers are releasing running back Knile Davis, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
The 25-year-old Davis joined the Steelers in March after stints with the Chiefs and Packers from 2013-16. All but two of his 57 appearances came in Kansas City, where he totaled 800 yards on 245 carries (3.3 yards per rush). He was barely a factor last year with either Chiefs or Packers last year, picking up just 18 carries.
The release of Davis leaves the Steelers with Fitzgerald Toussaint, Terrell Watson and third-round pick James Conner as their backups to star Le’Veon Bell.
Extra Points: Luck, Colts, Manziel, Kaepernick, RG3
In speaking with reporters on Thursday night, Colts owner Jim Irsay indicated that Andrew Luck is unlikely to suit up for Week 1, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (Twitter link). Interestingly, Irsay also insinuated that the matter is now more in Luck’s head rather than his shoulder.
Whether it’s mental or not, it sounds like the Colts will be without their No. 1 QB when they face the Rams on Sept. 10. Meanwhile, the Rams could be without their best defensive player.
Here’s more from around the NFL:
- Johnny Manziel‘s recent audition for the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats went well enough for the team to maintain interest in the troubled quarterback. Manziel and the Tiger-Cats continue to discuss a contract, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Manziel “very much wants” to sign with the Tiger-Cats or another Canadian club, as he regards the CFL as a good avenue to return to competitive football, a source suggested to Fowler. Hamilton owns Manziel’s CFL rights, and if he decides to immigrate to that league, the Tiger-Cats would have a 10-day window to sign the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner or trade him. The 24-year-old Manziel last played in a game on Dec. 27, 2015, when he was with the Browns.
- Speaking of high-profile, out-of-work signal-callers, NFL teams are not blackballing Colin Kaepernick over his political activism, anonymous executives and a coach who spoke with Albert Breer of The MMQB insist. The general belief among the group is that both Kaepernick and Robert Griffin III would have jobs if teams believed they could truly help. There are worse QBs (particularly backups) around the league than those two, but clubs are more comfortable with how their current reserves fit their offenses than either Kaepernick or RG3 would.
- It would have been “negligent” for Pittsburgh to not look into signing cornerback Joe Haden after the Browns released him Wednesday, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert told reporters, including Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Steelers added Haden shortly after the Browns parted with the eighth-year man. While Haden’s effectiveness has faded in recent seasons, the Steelers regard him as a “capable starter” and the type of player who’s not typically available in late August, per Colbert.
Zach Links contributed to this post.