Jets Release CB Tae Hayes
JUNE 24: Hayes’ Jets tenure has come to an end. The team announced on Monday he has been released.
JUNE 23: Since entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2019, cornerback Tae Hayes has been a journeyman as a depth piece in the NFL. The challenge of staying on NFL rosters will get a bit more difficult for Hayes after he was reportedly arrested this morning for marijuana possession, per Charean Williams of NBC Sports.
Coming undrafted out of Appalachian State, Hayes signed first with the Jaguars. He has since spent time with the Dolphins, Vikings, Cardinals, Panthers, Birmingham Stallions (USFL), Panthers again, Patriots, Lions, Ravens, and Jets. After his first two stops, Hayes has failed to stay in a single place for more than five months. In fact, his stints in Detroit and Baltimore each lasted less than a month, with both stints spanning from August 4 to September 12 last year.
Anywhere Hayes has gone, he’s functioned as a depth piece for the defense, either appearing in minimal snaps and special teams or playing as an emergency option. In his career, he’s appeared in games for six of the above teams, tallying 14 game appearances, 18 total tackles, two passes defensed, and a fumble recovery.
The arrest occurred in Hayes’ home state of Alabama just before four o’clock in the morning. He was released a little over an hour later after posting a $300 bond. The Jets released a statement saying that they are aware of the incident, but they are refraining from comment since it’s a pending legal matter.
Latest On Titans’ RG, RT Position Battles
The Titans and new offensive line coach Bill Callahan have quite a few familiar faces to work with in 2024, but there could be some big changes along the offensive line. A couple of position battles have developed in the early days of the offseason, according to Titans senior writer/editor Jim Wyatt. 
The team utilized Daniel Brunskill and Dillon Radunz mostly at right guard and right tackle, respectively, last year, but neither player seems to be solid in their job security. Brunskill has lost his starting job before in San Francisco. After earning a starting job partway through his rookie season, Brunskill started two more years for the 49ers. In 2022, Brunskill found himself coming off the bench in favor of then-rookie Spencer Burford. He started 14 games for the Titans last year. Radunz finally earned his opportunity to start at right tackle last year after failing to win the job his first two seasons and being forced to work as a backup guard.
Radunz’s tenure as the starting right tackle may already be coming to an end, though, as Wyatt sees Nicholas Petit-Frere taking back the job in 2024. Petit-Frere started his rookie season at right tackle for the team in 2022, but a combination of a suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy and a stint on injured reserve restricted him to only three games last season. Wyatt predicts that, given a healthy recovery, Petit-Frere will reclaim his starting job and push Radunz back to guard-duty.
Wyatt sees free agent addition Saahdiq Charles as the biggest threat to Brunskill’s job. Despite being limited in how much offensive linemen can do in organized team activities, Charles has reportedly had a very good spring. Charles comes from Washington where he started 10 of 11 game appearances at left guard last year after only starting eight games in his first three years combined. He’s looked the part enough in Tennessee to convince Wyatt that a change could be in effect.
It’s still a competition, though, and Wyatt notes that Charles will have to beat out Brunskill, and potentially Radunz should he get pushed back inside, for the job. He notes that the right tackle position will be a battle, as well, and though Petit-Frere and Radunz will get first looks, Leroy Watson, Jaelyn Duncan, and the newly acquired Geron Christian will all be in the mix, as well.
The rest of the line seems set. Peter Skoronski is reportedly likely to stay inside at left guard, the team drafted Alabama’s JC Latham in the first round to start at left tackle, and they signed Lloyd Cushenberry to start at center. While battles are set to ensue, the expectation is that some combination of two of Charles, Petit-Frere, Radunz, and Brunskill will be alongside them on the right side of the line in 2024.
Vikings Waiting For 2022 Draft Class To Step Up
2022 was the first draft in Minnesota for general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. While there have been some success stories like fourth-round cornerback Akayleb Evans becoming a starter in Year 2 and fifth-round running back Ty Chandler serving as a decent RB2 in his sophomore campaign, the class has overall been a bit of a disappointment. 
We already commented on Kevin Seifert of ESPN’s stance that former first-round safety Lewis Cine could be on the roster bubble, but Seifert didn’t stop there, claiming that the other three picks in the first three rounds could run into similar difficulties this offseason.
This statement expands to the later picks of the draft class, as well, though it obviously doesn’t pertain to Evans and Chandler. Worth mentioning, though, is former sixth-round offensive tackle Vederian Lowe, who was traded to the Patriots for a seventh-round pick and went on to start eight games in New England last year, and fifth-round pass rusher Esezi Otomewo, who was waived after a year with the team.
Of the remaining players in the class, LSU second-round offensive guard Ed Ingram has been the most impactful player. Ingram became an instant, full-time starter as a rookie and has only missed two games in his time with the team. That being said, head coach Kevin O’Connell seemed to indicate recently that both starting guard spots are being fought for in a three-way competition between Ingram, backup tackle Blake Brandel, and Dalton Risner.
The battle could be a result of underwhelming performance from the second-rounder. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Ingram graded out as the 57th-best guard in the league out of 77 graded players his rookie year. Though he improved to the 38th-ranked guard in 2023, his overall score that determines those rankings only rose from 57.0 to 59.5. For reference, the top players at the position graded out in the 80s. Ingram could certainly win one of the two available starting jobs over Brandel and Risner, but the fact that, going into his third year, Ingram’s in danger of losing his job as the incumbent starter points to relative disappointment.
Taken 17 picks before Ingram, former Clemson cornerback Andrew Booth has also failed to play up to his second-round draft stock. Booth was already playing behind the starters, Evans and Byron Murphy, last year, but he is in danger of continuing to tumble down the depth chart as free agent addition Shaquill Griffin comes in with far more starting experience and fourth-round rookie Khyree Jackson could have more goodwill to win a roster spot in his first year with the team.
Third-round linebacker Brian Asamoah has likewise failed to crack the rotation in his first two years out of Oklahoma. He’s not likely to earn any starting time in 2024 as he’s been consistently working behind Ivan Pace and Blake Cashman so far this offseason. The free agent addition of veteran Kamu Grugier-Hill will likely take away any snaps as the primary backup at the position, as well.
Seventh-round pick Nick Muse was maybe not expected to do much as a late-round tight end, but he’s only been on the field for two offensive snaps in his career and missed all but two games last year. He may not see much room for improvement in 2024 as he’s been buried on a depth chart that now includes T.J. Hockenson, Josh Oliver, Robert Tonyan, and Johnny Mundt.
Lastly, sixth-round receiver Jalen Nailor was also mentioned by Seifert but on a slightly more positive note. Seifert claims that the coaching staff really wants to see Nailor make an impact and possibly earn the WR3 role this offseason. That role was vacated as K.J. Osborn departed for New England in free agency, and the Vikings didn’t really do much to replace Osborn after he left. With Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison leading the receiving corps, Nailor has an opportunity to step up into a crucial role.
Nailor’s early career has been hampered by injury. He missed seven games early in the season last year before sitting out the final four contests, as well. But coaches have pegged him as a “slippery target that defenders have trouble tracking” during his limited time in games and practice. While the coaches are hoping that he’ll force their hand, he’ll be competing with Brandon Powell, who was the fourth receiver on the team after coming over from the Rams last year, and Trent Sherfield, who has been an inconsistent contributor over his six years in the league.
So, Adofo-Mensah’s first draft did not produce the desired results in 2022, and while he did a little better by nailing Addison in the first round last year, the rest of the 2023 class has yet to make their impact. He’ll hope to continue hitting on first-rounders with quarterback J.J. McCarthy and pass rusher Dallas Turner this year, and he’ll hope that late-round picks like Jackson and kicker Will Reichard show their impacts, as well. Entering a bit of a rebuild post–Kirk Cousins, the team’s success will depend partially on how well Adofo-Mensah can build the team moving forward.
Lions One Of Few To View Sione Vaki As RB
During the 2024 NFL Draft process, the Lions quite literally saw something in Sione Vaki that no other team did. In terms of both value and use, the Lions were one of the only teams to view Vaki the way they did, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. As a result, the rookie out of Utah will start his NFL career as a running back, as opposed to the safety role he played throughout his collegiate career. 
Vaki was able to declare for the NFL draft after only two years of college football due to the fact that, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Vaki participated in a three-year mission after high school. After graduating from Liberty HS (CA) in 2019, he signed with the Utes, officially becoming a member of the team’s 2021 signing class following his mission.
As a true freshman in 2022, Vaki started five of 14 game appearances as a safety on Utah’s defense, tallying 41 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and three passes defensed. In 2023, injuries in the Ute’s running backs room led the team to utilize Vaki on both sides of the ball.
While starting all 12 games at safety, Vaki also saw significant time at running back and running the wildcat formation on offense. In addition to improving on his defensive marks with 51 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, three passes defensed, and an interception, Vaki averaged 7.5 yards per rush on 42 attempts for 317 yards and two touchdowns. If that wasn’t enough, he displayed impressive receiving abilities, catching 11 passes for 203 yards and three more scores. With all of his offensive production, Vaki still led the team in defensive snaps played. He earned two first-team All-PAC-12 distinctions: one as a safety and one in the all-purpose position.
Because most of his experience came on the defensive side of the ball, Vaki was mainly viewed as a safety prospect in the draft process. He projected as a strong safety due to his aggressiveness and toughness, but a lack of fluidity and instincts in coverage posed a threat to his value on defense, marking him as a likely sixth-round pick or later.
Detroit disagreed with this assessment and appears to have been the only team to do so. Not only did the Lions draft Vaki with the intention that he would play running back in Detroit, but they even traded up for the versatile Ute, taking him near the end of the fourth round. With a safety and a running back taken in the two picks following Vaki, it’s hard to say whether the trade up was intending to prevent another team from drafting him, but Vaki was taken shortly after a fourth-round run that saw five running backs taken in the span of ten picks.
Regardless of his intended drafted position, Vaki was the tenth player taken at either position, getting selected after nine other running backs and nine other safeties. Vaki won’t likely be a candidate to push David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs for offensive snaps at running back as a rookie, but because of his defensive experience, he vastly increases his odds of making the roster as a crucial special teamer. With the safety position thinned out following the departures of C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Tracy Walker, Vaki may be available on that side of the ball in a pinch, as well. For now, though, Vaki resides on the Lions’ roster as a running back.
NFL Contract Details: Slayton, Fornadel, Bates, Hand
Here are some details on recent contracts reached around the NFL:
- Darius Slayton, WR (Giants): Two years, $12MM. We already covered the Giants’ new contract with Slayton containing added incentives and its impact on the team’s salary cap. Thanks to Dan Duggan of The Athletic, we finally have details on what those incentives will be. Like his incentives from the 2023 season, Slayton’s incentives will fall under the three main receiving categories: receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Each category is broken into three non-cumulative tiers; if Slayton reaches the second or third tier, he will only receive the money for those tiers, not adding them to the lower tiers. Slayton will receive $100K for reaching 51 receptions, $300K for 60 receptions, and $600K for 70; he will get $100K for reaching 771 receiving yards, $300K for 875 yards, and $600K for 1,000; finally, he can get $100K for reaching six touchdowns, $300K for eight scores, and $600K for 10. While these incentives were in place last year, the update increased each second tier by $50K and each third tier by $100K. The team also added a $350K incentive based on whether or not Slayton makes the Pro Bowl. Should Slayton hit every top incentive, he has the opportunity to earn an additional $2.15MM.
- Liam Fornadel, G (Patriots): Three years, $2.83MM. Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 reports the above details for Fornadel’s contract. One of the XFL’s recent additions to the NFL, Fornadel’s deal is worth quite a bit more than some of his former XFL peers’.
- Jake Bates, K (Lions): Two years, $1.98MM. According to Wilson, Bates NFL deal includes a total guaranteed amount of $150K with $100K of that amount consisting of his signing bonus and the other $50K being guaranteed in his first-year base salary of $795K. His second-year base salary will be worth $960K.
- Harrison Hand, CB (Falcons): One year, $1.06MM. Hand will get the minimum, per Wilson, with no guarantees, bonuses, or incentives reported as of right now.
Lions S Brian Branch To Have Bigger Role On Defense
Coming out of Alabama, Brian Branch was broadcasted as one of the top safeties available in the 2023 draft class, which became realized as he was the top safety off the board in the second round last year. During his rookie season in Detroit, though, Branch saw very little time at safety, something that is likely to change in 2024, according to Lions senior writer Tim Twentyman. 
Though Branch wasn’t playing in his assumed role as a rookie, he was still a very significant factor on the defense in 2023. In nine starts over 15 games played, Branch racked up 74 tackles, 13 passes defensed, and three interceptions (one returned for a touchdown) working almost exclusively as a nickel cornerback. Those rookie efforts earned him a ranking as the 14th-best cornerback in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), and the second-best pure slot corner behind New York’s Michael Carter II; Kansas City’s Trent McDuffie and Seattle’s Devon Witherspoon also saw significant time in the slot but played a decent amount on the outside, as well.
The safety spots in Detroit last year were manned by Kerby Joseph on one side and Tracy Walker and Ifeatu Melifonwu, who split time on the other side in 2023 after an injury held C.J. Gardner-Johnson out of 14 contests. With Gardner-Johnson back in Philadelphia and Walker being released back in February, a door has opened for Branch to get more work at a thinner safety position. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn reportedly prefers his nickelbacks to have experience at safety due to the physical demands of the slot in today’s game anyway.
We haven’t seen evidence of this newly expanded role for Branch yet this offseason in minicamp or organized team activities. A minor surgical cleanup procedure on the young defensive back’s ankle has held him out of early activities this offseason, per Justin Rogers of The Detroit News.
Once he returns to the field in camp, though, it will be interesting to see just how much the Lions intend to cross-train Branch on the defense this offseason. Branch should likely get an opportunity to start alongside Joseph at safety. Should the Lions prefer to utilize him in last year’s nickelback role at all, Melifonwu should be able to rotate in as an additional defensive back to cover the back end. While Detroit is still a bit thin at safety, Branch’s versatility should provide some potential solutions in 2024.
Ravens G Ben Cleveland Seeing Time At Tackle
We’ve covered the situation surrounding the Ravens’ offensive line position battles in depth already, but with three starting positions alongside center Tyler Linderbaum and left tackle Ronnie Stanley completely open for competition, the updates are sure to continue rolling in. Our most recent update highlights a disappointing development for a perceived favorite to take a starting job. 
According to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, three of the players competing for starting roles this offseason saw time at both guard and tackle during the team’s organized team activities. Daniel Faalele, newcomer Josh Jones, and Ben Cleveland are the three big men who have shuffled around on the line this spring.
Faalele is a massive human (listed at 6-foot-8, 380 pounds) who has one start in 32 game appearances over his first two years in the league. He has struggled to be effective as a backup tackle, sometimes filling in for the oft-injured Stanley. Moving Faalele inside could make an intimidating run defense even more formidable. Jones was brought in especially because of his versatility on the line, so his shuffling around is no surprise. If Jones doesn’t earn a starting job, he could be another valuable sixth man like the Ravens already have in Patrick Mekari.
Hearing that Cleveland is working outside of his natural guard position is not a great sign. A massive human in his own right (6-foot-6, 370 pounds), the former third-round pick out of Georgia has started seven of 37 game appearances in his three years with the Ravens but has never displayed a true starting ability.
While some viewed him as an early favorite to fill one of the open starting jobs at guard in 2024, Zrebiec now reports that Cleveland’s stock is trending down after he failed to get the first-team snaps that other candidates for the starting jobs got in OTAs. Seemingly falling behind Andrew Vorhees, Malaesala Aumavae-Laula, Jones, Mekari, and potentially even Faalele, Cleveland is now getting shifted out for looks at tackle.
Heading into the final year of his rookie contract, if Cleveland is going to make an impact, it’s now or never. If Cleveland can’t find a way to contribute in 2024, it’s going to be difficult to justify re-signing the former SEC standout. Decision-makers in Baltimore insist that Cleveland is still in the mix for the guard jobs, and perhaps they’re just trying different methods of motivation to pump Cleveland up for training camp, but trying him out at tackle sends an interesting message.
At tackle, Cleveland won’t likely be in contention for the starting job over second-round selection Roger Rosengarten out of Washington. Even if Rosengarten fails to earn the starting job, Mekari and Jones both have ample starting experience over Cleveland. Cleveland will need to utilize the next two and a half months to prove he’s worthy of not only a pivotal role this year but also a second contract in the future.
Ravens’ Malik Cunningham Standing Out In Move To WR
In late May, we were made aware that the Ravens had officially changed the position of Malik Cunningham on their roster from quarterback to wide receiver. A long-time admirer of starting quarterback Lamar Jackson, Cunningham initially held the same headstrong attitude towards a position conversion that Jackson once held. According to Ravens editorial director Ryan Mink, Cunningham has changed his mindset, opting to buy in and embrace his new role with the team. 
Over his first year in the league, Cunningham has had no shortage of appropriate mentors for his situation. Despite neither player being an active Patriot at the same time as Cunningham, the undrafted quarterback out of Louisville was able to speak with former Patriots wide receivers Julian Edelman and Jakobi Meyers, who both made the conversion from quarterback to receiver at some point in their careers. Reportedly, both veterans told Cunningham that the quarterback instincts don’t abandon you once you switch positions.
Then, late into his rookie season, Cunningham found himself getting signed off New England’s practice squad to join his former Louisville predecessor in Baltimore, joining a backup group that included Tyler Huntley and Josh Johnson. Before the draft, though, the team came to Cunningham and asked him if he would make a full-time change to wide receiver. This move likely influenced the team’s decisions to draft a quarterback in the sixth round and only draft one wide receiver.
Cunningham took time to consider the decision, initially disappointed to once again be asked to move from quarterback. When he had departed from New England, several teammates had sent messages of support to Cunningham encouraging him to continue pursuing his goals of playing quarterback in the NFL. After careful deliberation, Cunningham gave his reply: “I’m all in.”
Cunningham was able to put aside his initial disappointment and focus on what he can do to help the team. He was immediately thrust into the battle for the reserve wide receiver spots and, per Mink, has been a standout at organized team activities and minicamp. Much like Edelman and Meyers told him, his quarterback instincts have helped him to see the field in a different way.
As a dynamic playmaker with the ball in his hands, Cunningham has the potential to become a surprise contributor for the Ravens in 2024. After swallowing his pride and buying in to the team’s vision for his role on the offense, Cunningham has put himself in the best position to snatch a roster spot to open the season.
Steelers Sign WR Jacob Copeland, Claim DT
It may not be the veteran contributor that Steelers fans would prefer to see, but the team added some depth today at the wide receiver position, signing Jacob Copeland, according to Steelers.com writer Teresa Varley. Aaron Williams of KPRC 2 adds that the team was also awarded defensive tackle Willington Previlon off of waivers after he was waived from Atlanta.
Copeland went undrafted a year ago after a five-year playing career at Florida and Maryland. Copeland originally signed with the Gators as a consensus top-100 recruit in the nation. He spent his first three years in Gainesville buried on the depth chart under names like Kadarius Toney and Kyle Pitts but proved to be an effective deep threat, averaging 18.9 yards per reception in his redshirt sophomore season with 435 yards and three touchdowns on only 23 receptions.
With Toney and Pitts (and quarterback Kyle Trask) gone in 2021, Copeland finally got to lead the room, tying for the team-lead in receptions (41) and receiving touchdowns (4) while leading the school with 642 receiving yards. Copeland made the decision to transfer for his redshirt senior season, opting to join the Terrapins in College Park. At Maryland, Copeland failed to make the same impact on the offense, finishing fourth on the team with 376 receiving yards to go along with 26 catches and two touchdowns, though he did lead the team with 14.5 yards per reception.
After signing initially with the Titans as an undrafted free agent, Copeland has spent short stints of time with the Vikings, Steelers, and Chiefs. He’ll now return for a second try with Pittsburgh.
Previlon has been floating around the NFL a little longer than Copeland after going undrafted in 2020. The former Rutgers big man was disruptive for the Scarlet Knights, totaling three sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss in his final two collegiate seasons. He’s bounced around since then, spending time with the Packers, Buccaneers, Cowboys, and Falcons before getting claimed by Pittsburgh.
NFL Issues New Rules For IR Activations
Here at Pro Football Rumors, our main focus is on transactions. We are sure to note any time a player is placed on injured reserve, and not only do we make sure to cover any activations from IR, but we also track the number activations each team uses in accordance with the IR activation rules. In 2024, those rules will be slightly different, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
The main spirit of the rules will remain the same. Throughout the regular season and postseason, each NFL squad will have the ability to designate a player on its IR for return. Over the course of the regular season, each team will be able to make such a designation eight times.
Once placed on IR, a player will be forced to miss four games before they are eligible to return to the active roster. Once designated to return from IR, that player will have a 21-day window during which they can practice with their team before ultimately being activated from IR. If, by the end of the 21-day practice window, that team makes the decision not to return the player to the active roster, that player will be forced to remain on IR for the remainder of the season. If a player returns from IR in the season and gets hurt again, they are able to be designated for return once more but only twice in a single season. Both designations count against the team’s restricted count for the season.
There are two main changes with the rule: one pertaining to the start of the season and one pertaining to the postseason. Before the new rule, any player placed on IR before the start of the regular season would not be eligible to return later in the season. In order to be eligible for return, a player injured before the season began would need to spend one day after final roster cuts on the 53-man roster before then being placed on IR. The new rule stipulates that, on the final day of roster cuts, teams can now designate two players on its preseason IR list for return. Those two players will count against the team’s allotted eight for the regular season, but teams will now have two extra spots on the 53-man roster to hold on to fringe players who otherwise would become free agents before potentially signing to the practice squad.
The postseason rule change sees each team granted two additional designations in the postseason. If a team has utilized all eight of their designations from the regular season, they will be granted two more in the postseason; if a team has utilized zero designations throughout the regular season, they will now have 10 usable designations in the postseason. This allows teams to be a bit more judicious in how they will utilize their remaining designations late in the season if they are on track to make the playoffs.
While the postseason rule change is grabbing more headlines, the preseason designation allowance is, perhaps, far more impactful. In the end, only 14 playoff teams will be able to utilize the postseason rule, allowing for 28 additional players to return in the final month of the season, assuming every team utilizes all of its remaining designations and the recovery of key athletes just happens to align with that timeline.
With the new preseason rule, teams will no longer have to reserve space on their initial 53-man rosters for players who cannot play but could return later in the season. Or, at least, they won’t have to reserve two spots on the initial 53-man roster for those players. If every team decides to utilize this new rule, that would mean 64 players would get roster spots who otherwise would not have made the final roster with the rules from 2023. And teams will now have two players apiece whom they will not have to give up to the waiver wire and free agency at the end of August.