Saints Sign Mike Mohamed
The Saints have added a former Texans linebacker to their 53-man roster, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, who reports that New Orleans decided to sign Mike Mohamed after bringing him in for a workout.
Mohamed, who began his NFL career after being selected by the Broncos in the sixth round of the 2011 draft, saw his most extensive action for the Texans last season, recording 67 tackles, an interception, and six passes defended in 14 games. However, a calf injury derailed the start of Mohamed’s 2015 campaign, and ultimately resulted in Houston placing him on injured reserve, despite the fact that it wasn’t a season-ending ailment.
“I want to play this season,” Mohamed said a little over a month ago, when he landed on IR. “It won’t be here, but I want to play somewhere and get back on the field. I’m almost back from the injury, so it’s kind of frustrating to go on injured reserve, but I understand that they didn’t feel like they could wait.”
Ultimately, the Texans worked out an injury settlement with Mohamed that would allow him to sign with another team after three weeks. Now that he’s healthy, he’s headed to New Orleans, where David Hawthorne and Dannell Ellerbe are banged up. Mohamed figures to provide depth at linebacker and perhaps contribute on special teams.
Breaking Down 2015’s NFL Trades
The NFL’s trade deadline for 2015 came and went yesterday, and while the Broncos and 49ers completed a deal on Monday, no moves were finalized on Tuesday. It’s no secret that the NFL’s trade deadline isn’t as exciting as deadline day for the NBA or MLB, with most teams reluctant to try to get players acclimated to a new system or scheme halfway through the season.
Still, while no trades happened on Tuesday, teams around the league made plenty of deals over the course of the last eight months. Since the 2015 league year began back in March, NFL teams have completed a total of 69 trades, by our count (if we missed any, please let us know).
Here are a few observations on those 69 deals:
Of the NFL’s 32 teams, 31 made at least one trade, and 30 made at least two.
The Bengals, who typically don’t splash around much in free agency, also didn’t dive into the trade market in 2015, becoming the only team in the NFL not to complete at least one deal. The Packers, another team that generally stands pat in free agency, made just one trade. The NFL’s other 30 teams all made multiple deals.
Here’s a breakdown of the number of trades completed by team:
- New England Patriots: 9
- Detroit Lions: 8
- San Francisco 49ers: 8
- Houston Texans: 7
- Minnesota Vikings: 7
- New Orleans Saints: 6
- Philadelphia Eagles: 6
- Seattle Seahawks: 6
- Baltimore Ravens: 5
- Chicago Bears: 5
- Cleveland Browns: 5
- New York Jets: 5
- St. Louis Rams: 5
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5
- Carolina Panthers: 4
- Dallas Cowboys: 4
- Denver Broncos: 4
- Indianapolis Colts: 4
- Miami Dolphins: 4
- Oakland Raiders: 4
- Washington: 4
- Arizona Cardinals: 3
- Buffalo Bills: 3
- Kansas City Chiefs: 3
- Pittsburgh Steelers: 3
- Atlanta Falcons: 2
- Jacksonville Jaguars: 2
- New York Giants: 2
- San Diego Chargers: 2
- Tennessee Titans: 2
- Green Bay Packers: 1
- Cincinnati Bengals: 0
Of the 69 trades completed this year, 64 included at least one draft pick.
Draft pick compensation is crucial for getting deals done, with all but five of this year’s trades featuring at least one pick, whether it was for the 2015, 2016, 2017, or even the 2018 draft. Of those five deals that were purely player-for-player swaps, the Patriots were involved in three of them, but they didn’t play a part in the most notable one — the Eagles sending LeSean McCoy to the Bills for Kiko Alonso back in March.
Of course, many of those draft-pick trades occurred during the draft itself. By our count, 24 deals were completed during this year’s draft, with a few picks changing hands more than once over the course of the three-day event.
In total, 143 draft picks were included in this year’s 69 trades.
As noted above, a few picks have been dealt multiple times over the course of the year, and some of those picks are conditional, so they won’t all change hands. But overall, an incredible 143 draft picks were included in this year’s trades. Here’s the breakdown by draft year:
- 2015: 96
- 2016: 36
- 2017: 8
- 2018: 2
- Unspecified year: 1
And here’s the breakdown by round:
- 1st: 5
- 2nd: 12
- 3rd: 13
- 4th: 20
- 5th: 29
- 6th: 24
- 7th: 24
- Conditional: 16
Eleven trades were completed after the regular season got underway.
As I noted in the intro, in-season deals aren’t too common in the NFL, with most teams not wanting to upset chemistry, or teach a player a new system on the fly. But since the Patriots and Steelers kicked off on September 10, teams have completed 11 trades. Most notably, the Cowboys acquired Matt Cassel, the Panthers landed Jared Allen, and the Broncos traded for Vernon Davis.
Ravens Sign Joe Morgan; Steve Smith To IR
9:26am: The Ravens have now made the Morgan signing official, confirming that they’ve moved Smith to the injured reserve list to accommodate the move (Twitter link).
8:10am: After working out a few receivers this week, the Ravens are signing former Saints wideout Joe Morgan, according to Ed Werder of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The Ravens has yet to officially announce the move, but when they do, they’ll likely place Steve Smith – out for the year with a torn Achilles – on injured reserve to clear room on the roster.
With Smith sidelined for the rest of the year and first-round rookie Breshad Perriman still not close to returning, the Ravens needed to add some depth to their receiving corps, and brought in three wideouts for auditions. The biggest name of those three – Hakeem Nicks – was apparently the only player not to get a contract offer from Baltimore, with Morgan headed to the 53-man roster and Chuck Jacobs signing to the practice squad.
Morgan, 27, has spent his entire NFL career with the Saints, appearing in a total of 21 games over five seasons. While he has never been a major part of New Orleans’ offense, the Walsh product flashed some big-play ability in 2012, racking up an impressive 379 yards and three touchdowns on just 10 receptions.
Joe Flacco throws a nice deep ball, and could try to take advantage of Morgan’s speed following the Ravens’ Week 9 bye, but the ex-Saint figures to take a back seat to the in-house options in Baltimore — Kamar Aiken, Marlon Brown, Chris Givens, and Jeremy Ross are among the players who could see an uptick in targets with Smith sidelined.
NFC East Notes: Cowboys, Giants, Curry
Having waived running back Joseph Randle this week, the Cowboys parted ways with a player who had been expected to pick up a good chunk of DeMarco Murray‘s carries this season. Still, as Schuyler Dixon of The Associated Press details, Randle’s disappointing 2015 campaign isn’t making Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones second-guess the decision to let Murray walk in free agency back in March.
“That ship’s sailed,” Stephen Jones said. “We’d make that decision over, same decision, we’d make it again. We have to develop, structure a football team with the salary cap. You can’t pay a top receiver, a top quarterback, a top pass rusher, a top left tackle. You’ve got to make hard decisions.”
As the Cowboys prepare to move on with Darren McFadden and Christine Michael leading their rushing attack, let’s check in on a few more items from around the NFC East….
- With the Cowboys‘ top decision-makers insisting they have genuine interest in locking up Greg Hardy to a extension, former agent Joel Corry of CBSSports.com breaks down three possible contract structures that would somewhat limit the risk for the team.
- Like every other team in the NFL, the Giants ultimately stood pat on Tuesday as the trade deadline came and went. According to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com, that was the right call for the club, which he feels is ultimately a “rebuilding team” in the big picture. As such, it wouldn’t have made sense for New York to move future draft picks.
- Vinny Curry had his name circulated in trade rumors over the last few days, but Eagles head coach Chip Kelly said the defensive end wasn’t discussed in trade talks. As Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes, Curry is used to the trade speculation surrounding him, and was unfazed by it this week.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/3/15
Here are Tuesday’s minor signings, cuts, and other non-trade transactions from around the NFL:
- The Raiders cut wide receiver/kick returner Walter Powell, Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets.
- The Saints signed wide receiver T.J. Graham while cutting fullback Austin Johnson and safety Akeem Davis, according to Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune (Twitter links).
Earlier Updates:
- The Chargers, once again dealing with a banged-up offensive line, are re-signing veteran center J.D. Walton, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Chris Watt, who had seen some time at center, was among San Diego’s offensive linemen who left Sunday’s game against the Ravens due to an injury.
- With Keenan Allen headed to the injured reserve list, the Chargers will also be signing wide receiver Javontee Herndon, who had been on the club’s practice squad, per Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Herndon certainly won’t be counted on to emulate Allen’s production, but he’ll provide some depth for San Diego’s receiving corps.
- The Texans are signing former Chiefs sixth-round pick Eric Kush to their 53-man roster, a source tells Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). The 26-year-old interior offensive lineman will join the Houston roster in the wake of a knee injury to C/G Greg Mancz, who has been placed on IR, Wilson observes (via Twitter).
- Former Jaguars linebacker James-Michael Johnson is signing with the Lions, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. While Johnson didn’t see much action for either the Jags or Bucs this season, he earned 18 starts for the Browns and Chiefs from 2012 to 2014.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/3/15
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad moves from across the league:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: WR C.J. Goodwin (Twitter link via Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com)
- Cut: WR LaRon Byrd (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post)
Baltimore Ravens
- To be signed: Chuck Jacobs (via The Baltimore Sun)
Buffalo Bills
- Cut: RB Miguel Maysonet (Twitter link via team)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: S Ryan Murphy (link via Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post)
- Cut: DT Deandre Coleman
Houston Texans
- Cut: RB Daryl Richardson (via Wilson)
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: G Ben Heenan (Twitter link via team)
- Cut: G David Arkin
New Orleans Saints
- Cut: DB Sammy Seamster (Twitter link via Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune)
New York Giants
- Signed: TE Matt LaCosse (Twitter link via Paul Schwartz of the New York Post), S Cooper Taylor (Twitter link via Dan Graziano of ESPN.com)
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: DE Shelby Harris (Twitter link via Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle)
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: RB Dreamius Smith (Twitter link via Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune), OLB Ryan Mueller (Twitter link via Michael Gehlken of U-T San Diego)
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: CB Chris Davis (press release via team)
- Removed: DL Kaleb Ramsey (suspended four games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances)
Seattle Seahawks
- Released: TE Rashaun Allen (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Cut: LB Julian Stanford (press release via team)
Bucs Place Clinton McDonald On IR
The Buccaneers have placed defensive tackle Clinton McDonald on their injured reserve list, ending his season, the team announced today in a press release. McDonald suffered a pectoral injury last month, and won’t be able to play through it.
McDonald, who joined the Buccaneers prior to the 2014 season, has started 19 games for the team since then, recording 46 tackles and five sacks last year. In just six games this year, the 28-year-old had racked up 31 tackles for Tampa Bay.
The Buccaneers now have an opening on their 53-man roster which figures to be filled within the next 24 hours. As Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times observes (via Twitter), that open spot could be taken by tackle Demar Dotson, who is eligible to come off IR-DTR this week.
49ers Sign Pierre Thomas; Bush To IR
3:41pm: The 49ers have officially signed Thomas, moving Bush to the season-ending injured reserve list, the team announced today in a press release.
10:00am: A day after signing Shaun Draughn, the 49ers are adding another running back to their banged-up backfield. According to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (via Twitter), the 49ers are signing veteran free agent Pierre Thomas. Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com had reported earlier today that Thomas was returning to San Francisco for another visit.
Thomas, 30, saw his 2014 campaign with the Saints derailed by injuries and by an increasing workload for Mark Ingram, who received many of the carries that would have gone to Thomas in past years. Before he finished the season on injured reserve, Thomas ran for 222 yards on 45 attempts, both career-low totals. He did remain fairly involved in the passing game, however, grabbing 45 balls out of the backfield.
Thomas reportedly had a strong workout for the Texans back in August, and later auditioned for the Chiefs in the wake of Jamaal Charles‘ injury, but couldn’t find a deal with either Houston or Kansas City. The Niners hosted Thomas for a tryout a little over two weeks ago, and will now add him to a roster that has been hit hard by injuries.
With Carlos Hyde dealing with a stress fracture in his foot, Reggie Bush and rookie Mike Davis were called upon to carry the rushing load for the Niners in Week 8. However, Bush suffered a season-ending knee injury, and Davis sustained a fractured hand, leaving Kendall Gaskins as the only healthy back on the roster.
San Francisco signed Draughn yesterday to complement Gaskins, and figure to use incorporate the veteran Thomas into the mix as well, at least until Hyde and Davis are healthy enough to return.
Chargers Announce Series Of Roster Moves
The Chargers have announced a series of moves, the most notable of which was previously reported, with wide receiver Keenan Allen landing on the injured reserve list. Another key offensive contributor, running back Branden Oliver, will also head to IR, according to a team release.
Here’s the club’s full list of roster moves:
Signed:
- CB Greg Ducre (from practice squad)
- WR Javontee Herndon (from practice squad; previously reported)
- C J.D. Walton (previously reported)
Placed on injured reserve:
- WR Keenan Allen (previously reported)
- RB Branden Oliver
- OLB Tourek Williams
Trade Rumors: Cowboys, Young, McCourty
Will we see any trades finalized around the NFL today? Teams have less than an hour before this afternoon’s 3:00pm CT deadline arrives, so they’ll have to act fast to get anything done. Here are a few of the latest rumors and rumblings:
- The Cowboys won’t be making any trades today, according to owner Jerry Jones (link via Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com). Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said the team had some calls, but nothing serious developed.
- According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), the defensive end market has been the most active today, with names like Vinny Curry (Eagles), Willie Young (Bears), and Jeremy Mincey (Cowboys) generating interest. It’s not clear yet whether their respective teams will move them, however.
- Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) also mentions Young in his list of the players he’s heard mentioned the most today. La Canfora’s other names include 49ers tackle Joe Staley, Rams right end Jared Cook, Browns linebackers Paul Kruger and Barkevious Mingo, Raiders wideout Rod Streater, and Chiefs cornerback Marcus Cooper.
- Per La Canfora (via Twitter), the Jets are among the teams that have been “sniffing around” pass rushers.
- After reporting earlier that the Patriots had interest in Titans cornerback Jason McCourty, Rapoport says he’s now hearing that McCourty is no longer available (Twitter link).