NFC Notes: Cassel, Brent, Packers, Garrard
Even after the Vikings traded back into the first round of May’s draft to select Louisville product Teddy Bridgewater, the prevailing wisdom was that Matt Cassel would be the Week 1 starter at quarterback in Minnesota. Per Jay Glazer of Fox Sports 1 (Twitter link), that notion has held, as head coach Mike Zimmer has informed the Vikings’ players that Cassel will indeed open the season as the team’s No. 1 QB.
Zimmer himself confirmed the news to reporters, including Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press (on Twitter), saying that Cassel was the favorite in the competition from the start. “Matt did not do anything to lose the job this preseason,” said Zimmer. “I think he’s played great. The team has a lot of confidence in him.” Through three preseason games, Cassel has completed 26 of 39 passes for 367 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception, while Bridgewater has completed 26 of 40 pass attempts for 266 yards, four scores, and no picks.
On a macro level, this news means that no rookie quarterback will be his team’s Week 1 starter (unless Matt Schaub‘s injury lingers and David Carr is forced to take the reins for the Raiders). Chad Henne was chosen to start over Blake Bortles in Jacksonville, and Johnny Manziel lost out out Brian Hoyer in Cleveland. Still, I’d be surprised if two or three (or perhaps all four) of said rookies aren’t starting games by season’s end.
More notes from the NFC:
- While Cowboys owner Jerry Jones appears ready to save a roster spot for Josh Brent, the defensive tackle likely won’t require an active roster spot when the NFL reinstates him. According to Ed Werder of ESPN.com, the league is expected to suspend Brent if and when he’s reinstated. “He’s not just going to walk back onto the field,” a source tells Werder.
- Even after B.J. Raji‘s season-ending biceps injury, Green Bay has enough depth along the defensive line that it won’t be signing ex-Packer Ryan Pickett, writes Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
- Unhappy with incumbent Alex Henery, the Eagles had been scouting teams with a surplus of kickers, tweets Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Berman points to Dustin Hopkins, released by the Bills this morning, as one option for the Birds.
- It’s unclear if he was simply being humorous, but David Garrard lobbied the Rams (via Twitter) to give him a call following Sam Bradford‘s season-ending injury. Garrard is 36 and has dealt with numerous injuries in the last few years — it’s highly doubtful St. Louis would be interested.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Cowboys Release Martez Wilson, J.C. Copeland
The Cowboys began the process of whittling their roster down to the 75-man requirement by cutting two players — defensive end Martez Wilson and fullback J.C. Copeland (press release via DallasCowboys.com).
Wilson is the bigger name of the two —- a third-round pick by the Saints in 2011, Wilson also spent time with the Raiders before joining the Cowboys. He has 38 career games under his belt, and he’s registered five sacks. Copeland, meanwhile, was a 2014 undrafted free agent out of LSU; he apparently lost out to fellow FB Tyler Cutts, who has been receiving more practice snaps.
By our count, the Cowboys’ roster now sits at 88, meaning they will need to let 13 more players go before 3pm tomorrow.
Redskins Release 10 Players
12:50pm: In addition to Gettis, the Redskins announced (via Twitter) that they have cut CB Bryan Shepherd.
MONDAY, 12:43pm: The Redskins have also cut offensive lineman Adam Gettis, reports Zac Boyer of the Washington Times.
SUNDAY, 4:27pm: In addition to linebacker Rob Jackson, the Redskins have released eight more players, the team announced on Twitter:
- Stephen Campbell, DB
- Cody Hoffman, WR
- Jeremy Kimbrough, LB
- Rashad Lawrence, WR
- Ross Madison, S
- Jake McDonough, DE
- Adrian Robinson, LB
- Jeremy Towns, DE
Washington will need to release another four players by 3pm on Tuesday in order to be in compliance with the league’s 75-man roster limit.
Pats Release Will Smith And Tommy Kelly
MONDAY, 12:37pm: In addition confirming the releases below, the Patriots have announced the release of TE Justin Jones via press release.
SUNDAY, 4:53PM: As other NFL teams part ways with a slew of young, inexperienced players as Tuesday’s 3pm cutdown date approaches, the Patriots have taken a different tack, releasing veteran defensive lineman Will Smith and Tommy Kelly, reports Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Per Schefter, New England has also cut linebacker James Anderson.
The Pats added Smith, 32, on a one-year deal ($65K bonus) in May, after the veteran had spent his entire 10-year career with the Saints. I noted at the time of his signing that landing in New England’s versatile defensive scheme might be an ideal landing spot for Smith, who had noted he was open to playing in either a 3-4 or 4-3 front. However, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets that Smith was not fitting in as a 3-4 defensive end, noting that he hadn’t received the opportunity to rush from the edge.
Kelly, 33, joined the Patriots on a two-year deal prior to last season after spending the prior nine years in Oakland. He tore his ACL in Week 8, and spent the remainder of the season on IR. Kelly restructured his contract in March, turning some of his base salary into incentive-based and roster bonus pay, so his release doesn’t come as a total surprise. In fact, back in July, Reiss had predicted the Pats would eventually cut Kelly.
Anderson, 30, started 16 games for the Bears last season, but remained on the free agent market until New England signed him in June. Anderson had been working mostly as a coverage linebacker — Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded him as the sixth-best 4-3 OLB in terms of pass coverage last season. As Reiss writes (Twitter link), the Pats were probably looking for more special teams ability out of their reserve linebacker position.
According to Brian McIntyre (Twitter links), the Patriots will save $3.565MM in cash this season by releasing the three players. Smith and Anderson were each due a $50K bonus if they were on New England’s Week 1 roster, while Kelly was entitled to $800K in per game active roster bonuses.
Ravens’ Roster Now At 75 Following Moves
The Ravens’ roster count now sits at 75 in advance of tomorrow’s 3pm cutdown deadline. Baltimore has waived the following players, per a press release:
- Omar Brown, S
- Shaun Capas, FB (waived-injured)
- Nick DiMarco, LB
- Richie Leone, P
- David Mims, OT
- Marrio Norman, CB
- Deji Olaytoye, CB
- Austin Spitler, LB
- LaQuan Williams, WR
- Brent Van Sloten, OT (waived-injured)
- Mike Willie, WR
- Cierre Wood, RB
Additionally, the Ravens have placed DE Kapron Lewis-Moore, G Will Rackley, and DE Brent Urban on injured reserve, ending their respective seasons.
Cardinals Release Jay Feely, Max Starks, 11 Others
12:13pm: In addition to Feely, the Cardinals have cut 12 other players, trimming their roster to the required 75-man limit, per a press release:
- Keenan Clayton, LB
- JoJo Dickson, LB
- Tom Draheim, C
- Reggie Dunn, WR
- Derrell Johnson, LB
- Orhian Johnson, S
- Ryan Lindley, QB
- Kevin Ozier, WR
- Justin Renfrow, DT
- Max Starks, OT
- Brandon Sermons, CB
- Damien Thigpen, RB
Starks is 10-year veteran who has spent most of his career with the Steelers, while Lindley started four games for the Cards in 2012.
11:35am: The Cardinals have released veteran kicker Jay Feely, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Feely, a 13-year veteran, had been with Arizona since 2010.
Feely, 38, thanked the franchise on Twitter: “It’s been an honor to play for the [Cardinals and owner] Michael Bidwill, thank you for your leadership and friendship. AZ will still be home!” The former Michigan Wolverine has lived a kicker’s nomadic life, spending time with the Falcons, Giants, Dolphins, Chiefs, and Jets. For his career, Feely has converted 82.7% of his field goals (329-for-398).
The Cardinals save $635K against the cap with this move, but money probably wasn’t Arizona’s prime motivation. 23-year-old Chandler Cantanzaro, the only other PK on the Cards’ roster, will presumably become the starting kicker. He was an undrafted free agent out of Clemson.
It’s just my speculation, but I wonder if the Broncos would be interested in bringing Feely aboard. Matt Prater was recently suspended for the first four games of the season, and Feely could add some stability to the kicking position until Prater is ready to return.
Lions Cut Six Players
The Lions are the latest team announce their roster machinations in advance of tomorrow’s cutdown deadline. The following players have been released, per Tim Twentyman of Lions.com (via Twitter):
- Chad Abram, FB
- Drew Butler, P
- James Franklin, QB
- Jonte Green, CB
- Aaron Hester, CB
- Giorgio Tavecchio, K
Twentyman also tweets that S DeJon Gomes has been placed on injured reserve. With Tavecchio’s release, Nate Freese has won Detriot’s kicking competition.
Browns Cut Anthony Armstrong, 13 More Players
The Browns have terminated the contract of veteran wide receiver Anthony Armstrong, the team announced in a press release. Armstrong, 31, was signed in March — the fact that he couldn’t make a depleted WR corps in Cleveland doesn’t bode well for his NFL future. The Browns also waived 13 players, meaning their roster count sits at 76:
- Royce Adams, DB
- Edwin Baker, RB
- Randall Harris, OL
- T.J. Heath, DB
- Cam Henderson, DL
- Jonathan Krause, WR
- Ryan Lee, OL
- Caleb McSurdy, LB
- Keavon Milton, OL
- Keith Pough, LB
- Tim Smith, WR
- Jeremiah Warren, OL
- Martell Webb, TE
Vikings Trim Roster, Cut Derek Cox, 13 Others
10:58am: The Vikings have announced the release of several more players via press release. Minnesota’s roster sits at 76, so they need to make one more cut.
- Pierce Burton, OT
- Andy Cruse, WR
- Erik Lora, WR
- Kheeston Randall, DT
- Tyler Scott, DE
- Jake Snyder, DE
- Ty Walker, WR
10:04am: The Vikings have made several roster moves this morning, releasing the following players, per Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 (Twitter links):
- Brandan Bishop, S
- Derek Cox, CB
- Kamar Jorden, WR
- Kevin Murphy, OT
- Mistral Raymond, S
- Kory Sperry, TE
- Robert Steeples, CB
Cox is the headliner here — a former third-round pick who spent four seasons with the Jaguars, Cox played in San Diego last year before signing a one-year deal with Minnesota in March. Per Wolfson, Raymond was released with an injury settlement.
Titans Cut 12 Players
10:53am: The Titans announced the waiving of one more player on their Twitter account — linebacker Jonathan Willard. The team’s roster sits at 78.
10:50am: The Titans have released eight players in advance of tomorrow’s cutdown deadline, reports Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (and on Twitter). In addition to the following players, linebacker Colin McCarthy and offensive lineman Gabe Ikard will be removed from Tennessee’s roster after season-ending surgeries (either through an injury settlement, or by being placed on IR, in my estimation).
- Kendrick Adams, LB
- Marc Anthony, CB
- Lanier Coleman, DL
- Kevin Danser, OL
- Tyler Horn, OL
- Julian Horton, WR
- Waymon James, RB
- Micah Pellerin, CB
- Jaz Reynolds, WR
- Hakeem Smith, S
- Derel Walker, WR