Free Agent S John Johnson Suspended
Rashee Rice isn’t the only one receiving suspension news today. Though he’s not currently signed to an NFL roster, former Rams safety John Johnson was levied a three-week suspension to start the 2025 NFL season, according to Tom Pelissero.
A former third-round pick out of Boston College, Johnson began his career with the Rams in 2017. Over the course of his rookie contract, Johnson started 48 of 54 game appearances, intercepting eight passes, including four as a full-time starter in his sophomore campaign. He earned a three-year, $33.75MM contract in Cleveland as a free agent but was released from the team after two years for cap reasons.
He landed back with the team that drafted him in 2023, coming off the bench for most of the year before starting the final seven games of the season. On a second one-year contract with Los Angeles last year, Johnson appeared in only two games before suffering a hairline fracture to his scapula and missing the remainder of the year.
The report from Pelissero is a succinct one and doesn’t give any context for the suspension. Considering the fact that he’s not currently on a team, there aren’t many sources who could know the reason for the punishment. Regardless, if Johnson lands with a team before the start of the season, he won’t be able to play for the first three contests to open the year.
Dolphins Bring Back Kendall Lamm; Austin Jackson Returns To Practice
The Dolphins will see a familiar face return to the roster as they are signing offensive lineman Kendall Lamm, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The move comes a day after Lamm was released by the Eagles in final roster cuts. 
A 10-year veteran of the NFL, Lamm has paved his way to a lengthy career with a reputation as a reliable swing tackle. Though, the 33-year-old has started games in every season of his career, only once has he started double-digit games in a season. Lamm has spent his career coming in as an extra blocker and filling in on the line when there are injuries. He’s played in 119 games in his career, starting 44.
Following a year in which Lamm started seven games for Miami, the Eagles opted to bring Lamm to Philadelphia in an attempt to replace their departing swing tackle, Fred Johnson. All-in-all the team considered four other players alongside Lamm to replace Johnson. In the end, Philly sent a 2026 seventh-round pick to Jacksonville in exchange for Johnson, and Lamm got cut, as a result.
Like Johnson, though, Lamm returns to a familiar situation, but he may just be coming in as insurance. When healthy, the Dolphins will be starting Patrick Paul and Austin Jackson as the bookend tackles of the offensive line. Jackson, though, is coming of season-ending knee surgery from November.
The team has long maintained that Jackson would be good to go for the start of the season, but the sixth-year tackle didn’t return to practice until today, per C. Isaiah Smalls II of the Miami Herald. He had been expected to return much earlier than this, but Jackson experienced a setback in his recovery when got “stepped on.” According to Barry Jackson, also of the Herald, the 26-year-old told reporters that he will “no doubt” be ready for Week 1.
Jackson is clearly eager to return to the field, but the team might be a bit more cautious with his return. Either way, with Lamm back in the fold, the Dolphins will have a strong replacement option should Jackson not be able to play.
Raiders Place QB Aidan O’Connell On IR
The Raiders have announced the placement of injured quarterback Aidan O’Connell on injured reserve today. The transaction comes a day after many thought it would. 
Each NFL team is allotted two players that it can place on injured reserve before the roster cut deadline with a designation to return, allowing them to be activated to the 53-man roster four weeks after the start of the regular season. Any other players placed on IR before the deadline will remain on IR for the entire year.
When news came out two days before the deadline that O’Connell was expected to miss six to eight weeks with a fractured wrist, it was expected that he would be one of the two for Las Vegas. It came as a bit of a shock when the team only placed one player — safety Lonnie Johnson — on IR with a designation to return, keeping an injured O’Connell on the 53-man roster and giving the team one less spot with which they could have held on to a borderline player.
Instead, it appears they wanted to reserve a spot on the 53-man roster for a player outside the building. None of the players they waived appear to have been claimed elsewhere, so all are available if the team wanted to bring them back. The team chose, instead, to claim linebacker Brennan Jackson, who was waived yesterday by the Rams; the team also did an add-drop of two linemen. Still, the Raiders knew O’Connell was headed to IR, so when they claimed a new player, it was an easy transaction to bring them on and move O’Connell off.
Texans Announce Final Roster Moves To Get To 53
The Texans cut some big names on their way down to an initial 53-man roster. Here’s a look at all the moves they made:
Released:
- T Trent Brown (story)
- TE Harrison Bryant
- CB Myles Bryant
- WR Quintez Cephus
- LS Blake Ferguson
- FB Jakob Johnson
- CB Arthur Maulet (story)
- T Conor McDermott
- S Jalen Mills
- LB Nick Niemann (story)
- CB D’Angelo Ross
- DE Casey Toohill
Waived:
- CB Damon Arnette
- DE Solomon Byrd
- C Eli Cox
- G LaDarius Henderson
- WR Daniel Jackson
- RB Jawhar Jordan
- TE Luke Lachey
- DT Haggai Ndubuisi
- LB K.C. Ossai
- WR Cornell Powell
- QB Kedon Slovis
- T Jaylon Thomas
- LB Jackson Woodard
- S Russ Yeast
Placed on IR (designated for return):
Placed on IR:
- TE Irv Smith Jr.
- WR Juwann Winfree
Placed on reserve/NFI:
- CB Alijah Huzzie
- RB Joe Mixon (story)
Placed on reserve/PUP:
- DE Denico Autry
- WR Tank Dell
- DT Kurt Hinish
Placed on commissioner exempt/reserve/PUP:
- S Jimmie Ward (story)
The Texans took some flyers on some discarded veterans this offseason and, ultimately, decided to throw a lot of them right back in the pond. We’ve already gone into detail on Brown, Maulet, and Niemann, but it’s a bit shocking to the trade return for John Metchie get released after a little over a week. Houston even attached a fifth-round pick to Metchie to make the deal happen and received Bryant and a sixth-rounder in exchange. Now, all they have from that deal is a sixth-round pick.
Mills, like Brown, saw his 2024 season ruined by injuries, something not uncommon in Mills’ career. The Texans took a good look at him this offseason, but even with Ward’s ongoing issues, Mills will not debut for his fourth NFL team. Meanwhile, Cephus and Arnette continue to struggle on their way back to playing in an NFL game, while on the injury front, Smith joins fellow tight end Brevin Jordan on season-ending injured reserve.
Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 identifies both the rookie tight end Lachey (seventh round) and the undrafted rookie linebacker Ossai as players that the team will make a priority to bring back on the practice squad.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/26/25
Amongst a busy day of roster moves, here are some minor transactions outside of final roster cuts:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from active/PUP list: G Will Hernandez
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: S Sam Franklin
- Activated from active/PUP list: C Sedrick Van Pran-Granger
Green Bay Packers
- Extended: LS Matt Orzech
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Activated from active/PUP list: WR Chris Godwin, T Tristan Wirfs
Arizona, Buffalo, and Tampa Bay all made decisions to pull players off the active/physically unable to perform list in order to avoid them missing the first four games of the season. They may not be quite ready to start in Week 1, but their teams at least have confidence that they won’t be out for a month.
Franklin wasn’t a free agent for long. The former Panthers safety just finished out camp in Denver and was told that he didn’t make the Broncos’ initial 53-man roster. Hours later, he apparently came to an agreement with Buffalo and will head there to start his 2025 campaign.
Orzech has been the Packers long snapper for the past two years after similarly short stints with the Rams and Jaguars. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Green Bay gave him his first long-term deal. The 30-year-old will be under a three-year, $4.8MM deal that will make him the third highest-paid long snapper in the league.
Jaguars Work Roster Down To 53
Here are the transactions that set the initial 53-man roster for the Jaguars’ new rookie head coach/general manager duo in 2025:
Released:
- OL Tremayne Anchrum
- WR Trenton Irwin
- TE Quintin Morris
- S Daniel Thomas
- QB John Wolford
Waived:
- TE Shawn Bowman
- WR Chandler Brayboy
- WR Cam Camper
- DT James Carpenter
- OL Jerome Carvin
- DE Myles Cole
- LB Branson Combs
- TE John Copenhaver
- DE Ethan Downs
- OL Javon Foster
- RB Kevin Harris
- QB Seth Henigan
- TE Patrick Herbert
- RB Ja’Quinden Jackson
- DT Jordan Jefferson
- DT Tyler Lacy
- WR Darius Lassiter
- T Ricky Lee
- CB Keni-H Lovely
- CB Jabbar Muhammed
- LB Chad Muma
- CB De’Antre Prince
- DT Keivie Rose
- S Cam’Ron Silmon-Craig
- WR Dorian Singer
- CB Doneiko Slaughter
- CB Aydan White
- OL Sal Wormley
Waived/injured:
- WR Eli Pancol
Placed on IR (designated for return):
- LB Jalen McLeod
Placed on IR:
The placement of Ransaw on injured reserve is definitely a shock. The third-round rookie out of Tulane switched from cornerback to safety in Jacksonville and was in a crowded group of defenders vying for a roster spot. Even though Ransaw was working through a lower-body injury throughout training camp, he was still expected to make the 53-man roster. Instead, his rookie season is over before it got a chance to begin. His placement on IR also didn’t end up helping Thomas or Silmon-Craig, who were both in that group pushing for the active roster.
Sixth-round pick McLeod also found his way to an injured list, but unlike Ransaw, McLeod will be able to return at some point into the season, after missing at least four games. He’s also dealing with a nondescript lower-body injury.
This cut day was a rough one for the 2024 NFL Draft class in Jacksonville. Cole, Foster, Jefferson, and Prince were all taken in last year’s class and have been waived before their sophomore campaigns. Muma and Lacy are other recent draft picks that new general manager James Gladstone didn’t keep around.
Dolphins Set 53-Man Roster, Begin Search For Kicker
The Dolphins got their roster down to 53 players this afternoon and, in the process, officially placed kicker Jason Sanders on IR. Here are the rest of the team’s moves:
Released:
- CB Cornell Armstrong
- LB Quinton Bell
- RB Mike Boone
- TE Pharaoh Brown
- T Jackson Carman
- CB Cameron Dantzler
- DT Matt Dickerson
- CB Mike Hilton
- TE Chris Myarick
- CB Kendall Sheffield
Waived:
- CB BJ Adams
- WR Andrew Armstrong
- T Mason Brooks
- T Braeden Daniels
- WR Erik Ezukanma
- T Ryan Hayes
- WR AJ Henning
- DT Alex Huntley
- LB Dequan Jackson
- LB Mohamed Kamara
- T Jalen McKenzie
- LB Derrick McLendon
- S Patrick McMorris
- LB Grayson Murphy
- G Josh Priebe
- CB Ethan Robinson
- TE Hayden Rucci
- S John Saunders Jr.
- RB Aaron Shampklin
- DT Ben Stille
- LB Channing Tindall
- WR Theo Wease Jr.
- G Addison West
Waived/injured:
Waived (with injury settlement):
Placed on IR (designated for return):
Placed on reserve/PUP:
In four seasons with the team, Eichenberg has started at every position on the offensive line. The Dolphins will miss his versatility while he’s out, but head coach Mike McDaniel confirmed recently that Eichenberg’s injury is not a season-ending one.
Sanders’ hip injury landed him on injured reserve, meaning Miami will be without him for at least the first month of the season. To deal with his absence, the Dolphins hosted four veteran kickers — Zane Gonzalez, Greg Joseph, Riley Patterson, and Eddy Pineiro — for tryouts today, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Besides that, there weren’t many surprises in the cuts today. Tindall had been a core special teamer for each of his first three years in Miami but may have to find his way to the field through the practice squad. According to Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network, Murphy had a really strong summer with the team and should be back on the practice squad, as long as he clears waivers.
Cardinals Trim Roster To 53
The Cardinals announced the following roster moves to get down to their initial 53-man roster:
Released:
- LS Aaron Brewer
- RB Michael Carter
- T Jake Curhan
- RB DeeJay Dallas
- TE Josiah Deguara
- WR Simi Fehoko
- CB Darren Hall
- G Nick Leverett
- G Royce Newman
- LB Mykal Walker
Waived:
- DT Kyon Barrs
- LB Elliott Brown
- T Jeremiah Byers
- DE Anthony Goodlow
- WR Bryson Green
- C Sincere Haynesworth
- CB Jaylon Jones
- WR Tejhaun Palmer
- S Jammie Robinson
- DT Elijah Simmons
Placed on IR (designated to return):
- DT Walter Nolen (story)
- LB BJ Ojulari
- DT Bilal Nichols
First-round defensive tackle Nolen will miss at least the first four weeks of his rookie year. The Ole Miss product is dealing with a calf injury that forced him to miss most of training camp. Another d-lineman, Barrs will hit waivers but stands a good chance at landing on the practice squad if he clears.
The Cards made some surprise decisions in the running backs rooms, disposing of veterans like Carter and Dallas in favor of Zonovan Knight, who hasn’t appeared in a game since 2023. One of the veterans could end up back on the practice squad, as could wide receiver/special teamer Fehoko.
Russell suffered a concussion in training and will now miss the entire 2025 season on injured reserve. Jones and Conner, though, will be eligible to return after, at least, a four-week absence. The two linemen are dealing with knee injuries but may be able to bolster the line later in the year.
Titans RB Tyjae Spears Lands On IR As Team Gets To 53
Year 2 under Brian Callahan and Year 1 under Mike Borgonzi can now get underway as the Titans made the following transactions to get their initial roster down to 53 players:
Released:
- C Brenden Jaimes
- LB Blake Lynch
- CB Amani Oruwariye
- WR James Proche
- QB Trevor Siemian
- DE Carlos Watkins
Waived:
- LB Brian Asamoah
- S Kendell Brooks
- TE Drake Dabney
- T Jaelyn Duncan
- OLB Ali Gaye
- DT Cam Horsley
- RB Jermar Jefferson
- WR Mason Kinsey
- RB Jordan Mims
- TE Thomas Odukoya
- DT Isaiah Raikes
- WR Xavier Restrepo
- OL Andrew Rupcich
- TE Josh Whyle
Placed on IR (designated for return):
- RB Tyjae Spears
As expected, the team’s RB2 will open the year on injured reserve. Spears suffered a high ankle sprain two weeks ago, and the injury will now keep him from playing in the first four weeks of the season.
The absence hurts a run offense that would’ve featured Tony Pollard with a good dose of Spears, as well. Rookie quarterbacks often benefit from strong rushing attacks, so Pollard will have a bit more pressure on his shoulders to help the offense succeed. There was some thought that the team may hold on to an extra running back if Spears went on IR, but both Jefferson and Mims head to waivers with hopes of coming back to the practice squad.
With Siemian getting cut, Brandon Allen, once again, is the last man standing as the primary backup to Cam Ward. With only two passers making it on the active roster, Siemien stands a strong chance at landing on the p-squad, per beat writer Paul Kuharsky.
Siemien joins six other vested veterans in becoming free agents. Jaimes, Oruwariye, Proche, and Watkins all signed veteran minimum deals in an effort to make the team but will now head back to free agency. Proche, in particular, was a close cut to make the team. Per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Tennessee could try to bring him back on the practice squad, but he’s just as likely to get a contract offer to play elsewhere.
Lastly, Ward’s favorite target last year in Coral Gables, Restrepo, didn’t join him on the initial 53-man roster. Like those mentioned above, Restrepo is another candidate to be retained on the practice squad, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Patriots Actively Shopping S Kyle Dugger
Patriots safety Kyle Dugger lived up to his second-round draft status very early in his New England career. As a result, the team signed him to a four-year, $58MM extension in 2024. Despite that commitment, the Patriots are actively shopping the safety out for a trade, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. We knew the team was open to trading him, but actively shopping him is an escalation. 
Coming out of Division II Lenoir-Rhyne, it said a lot that the Patriots were willing to make Dugger the second safety selected in the 2020 NFL Draft as the fifth pick of the second round. With Duron Harmon getting traded in the offseason and Patrick Chung opting out of the season due to COVID-19, Dugger was named the primary backup to starting safeties Adrian Phillips and Devin McCourty as a rookie.
By Year 2, Dugger was a full-time starter, breaking onto the scene with four interceptions and 100 return yards. He followed that up with a career year in which he nabbed three interceptions, returning two for touchdowns in 2022. That year, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded him as the 11th-best safety in the NFL.
PFF fell out of love with him after that season, though. In 2023, he had another productive season, intercepting two more passes and racking up 109 tackles, including a team-leading 71 solo tackles. That year, PFF graded him as the 68th-best safety in the NFL out of 95 players graded at the position. 2024 saw a year of decline for Dugger. Missing four games and seeing decreased production, Dugger graded as PFF’s 95th-best safety out of 98 players graded last year.
Per Rapoport, the new staff views Dugger much differently than the staff that extended him last April. As a result, Dugger has been seen playing deep into preseason games — when most starters and veterans have been safely removed from play — and had been taking second-team reps in training camp. The work with the second-team defense was due in part to his recovery from a tightrope surgery done to repair a high ankle sprain, but Dugger is reportedly fully healthy yet still, seemingly, on his way out.
When news broke that the Patriots were gauging trade interest for Dugger and outside linebacker Anfernee Jennings, the replies seemed to indicate that Jennings was drawing interest while Dugger’s new contract served as an obstacle for moving him, per Jeff Howe of The Athletic. It’s no wonder, considering how much impact the contract has on his ability to be cut.
If the Patriots were able to trade Dugger, they would be left with only $4.5MM in dead money and open up $10.76MM in cap space. If they can’t find a trade partner, though, it will be interesting to see if they cut him instead. Cutting Dugger would result in $14.25MM of dead money while only opening up $1.01MM of cap space. It’s hard to picture the team releasing the veteran in a move that would financially hamstring them that much.
So, it appears, they’ll continue to shop him out. They may have to find ways to make the trade more enticing by including draft picks or paying some bonuses to Dugger before the trade so that the receiving team is only responsible for base salary. Regardless, it feels as if Dugger may not have a place in New England as the staff actively works to shop him out.