Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC South
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC South teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Texans, Colts, Jaguars, and Titans are noted below.
Additionally, as of 11:00am today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. For the 2014 and 2015 seasons, changes were made to practice squad rules that allow teams to carry eight players instead of 10, and the eligibility requirements for those extra two spots were also loosened. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.
Here are Sunday’s AFC South transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:
Houston Texans
- Signed to practice squad:
- G Karim Barton (Twitter link via John McClain)
- WR Alan Bonner (Twitter link via McClain)
- ILB Max Bullough (Twitter link via Mark Berman)
- S Kurtis Drummond (Twitter link via McClain)
- QB Zac Dysert (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson)
- RB Kenny Hilliard (Twitter link via Wilson)
- S Corey Moore (Twitter link via McClain)
- TE Eric Tomlinson (Twitter link via Tony Pauline)
- WR Chandler Worthy (Twitter link via Wilson)
Indianapolis Colts
- Claimed off waivers:
- DT T.Y. McGill (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport)
- G Robert Myers (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson)
- Cut:
- LB Amarlo Herrera (Twitter link via Stephen Holder)
- RB Dan Herron (link)
- Signed to practice squad (via press release)
- OLB Daniel Adongo
- G David Arkin
- WR Quan Bray
- WR Duron Carter
- T Ulrick John
- S Dewey McDonald
- ILB Josh McNary
- CB Eric Patterson
- DT Jeris Pendleton
- TE Erik Swoope
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed to practice squad (via press release):
- DL Richard Ash
- TE Ben Koyack
- S Craig Loston
- OL Chris Reed
- WR Neal Sterling
- LB Todd Thomas
- DB Peyton Thompson
- WR Tony Washington
Tennessee Titans
- Claimed off waivers:
- OLB David Bass (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport)
- ILB Steven Johnson (Twitter link via Rapoport)
- Acquired via trade:
- RB Terrance West, from Browns (link)
- Cut:
- Signed to practice squad (Twitter link via Jim Wyatt):
- S Josh Aubrey
- RB David Fluellen
- G Josue Matias
- WR Tre McBride
- G Will Poehls
- WR Rico Richardson
- TE Tevin Westbrook
Titans Acquire Terrance West; Cobb To IR-DTR
3:31pm: The Titans sent a conditional 2016 seventh-rounder to the Browns in the swap, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).
3:24pm: After claiming a pair of players off waivers earlier today, the Titans have added another outside player to their roster, sending a conditional 2016 draft pick to the Browns in exchange for running back Terrance West (Twitter links via Jim Wyatt of Titans Online). In a corresponding move, the club has placed David Cobb on IR with the designation to return.
West, 24, was the Browns’ leading rusher in his rookie season last year, accumulating 673 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, on 171 carries. He joined Cleveland before the season as a third-round pick out of Northwestern.
By acquiring West, the Titans will bolster a backfield that includes another 2014 draftee, Bishop Sankey, as the presumed starter. West had slipped down the depth chart in Cleveland, where the Browns are set to open the season with Isaiah Crowell as the starter and Duke Johnson in the mix as well. The club also may add a veteran back to complement its two youngsters.
In order to create room on their roster for edge defender David Bass and inside linebacker Steven Johnson, who joined the Titans as waiver claims earlier today, Tennessee has cut linebacker Justin Staples, linebacker Jonathan Massaquoi and tight end Chase Coffman, per Wyatt (via Twitter).
Dolphins, Eagles Claim QBs Off Waivers
The Dolphins and Eagles have claimed quarterbacks off waivers today, according to reports by Ian Rapoport of NFL.com and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Per Rapoport, the Dolphins have been awarded former Cardinals signal-caller Logan Thomas, while Schefter reports that the Eagles have landed ex-Jaguars QB Stephen Morris.
Thomas, 24, was selected in the fourth round of the 2014 draft by Arizona, but was considered fairly raw coming out of Virginia Tech and didn’t really get a chance to play for the Cards last year, despite the team’s injury woes. He was usurped on the depth chart by Matt Barkley in Arizona, and he’ll join a group in Miami that includes Ryan Tannehill and Matt Moore.
As for Morris, the undrafted quarterback out of Miami spent time on the Jaguars’ practice squad in 2014. He’ll replace Tim Tebow on Philadelphia’s roster, though it’s not clear if he’ll remain on the 53-man unit, or if the Eagles will eventually try to move him over to their taxi squad.
Giants Claim Asa Jackson, Louis Nix
The Giants have been awarded a pair of defensive players on waivers, according to Jordan Raanan of NJ.com, who reports (via Twitter) that the club has claimed former Ravens cornerback Asa Jackson and ex-Texans defensive tackle Louis Nix.
Jackson, 25, saw his first stretch of extended playing time on defense last season in Baltimore, when the Ravens’ secondary was decimated by injuries. Jackson started six games and allowed a quarterback rating of 106.6 on passes thrown into his coverage, per Pro Football Focus.
As for Nix, he was selected in the third round of the 2014 draft, but never saw regular season action for the team, having spent the majority of his rookie campaign on injured reserve.
The Giants will have to cut a pair of players as part of today’s transactions to accommodate the incoming additions.
Bucs Announce Remaining Cuts, Down To 53
The Buccaneers have confirmed a number of previously-reported transactions, including the release of kicker Connor Barth and defensive end Da’Quan Bowers, and have announced the rest of their moves to get their roster down to 53 players.
Here’s the full list of Tampa Bay’s transactions that weren’t included in our story from this morning, as announced by the team in a press release.
Placed on injured reserve:
- DE Larry English
Released:
- DE Lawrence Sidbury
Waived:
- CB Jude Adjei-Barimah
- WR Kaelin Clay
- T Edawn Coughman
- DE Ryan Delaire
- WR Donteea Dye
- LB Josh Keyes
- DT Caushaud Lyons
Waived/injured:
- OL Garrett Gilkey
Vikings Reduce Roster To 53 Players
Having acquired offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles from the Chargers earlier today, the Vikings needed to remove 23 players from their active roster, as the league moved from 75-man rosters down to 53-man squads. Minnesota announced all of its moves in one go, issuing a press release that features 22 cuts, along with cornerback Jabari Price heading to the reserve/suspended list.
Here are the players cut today by the Vikings:
- T Babatunde Aiyegbusi
- DT Chigbo Anunoby
- DE B.J. Dubose
- G Isame Faciane
- C Tom Farniok
- WR Donte Foster
- WR Isaac Fruechte
- S Anthony Harris
- RB DuJuan Harris
- DT Greg Hickman
- DE Leon Mackey
- LB Michael Mauti
- LB Brian Peters
- CB Shaun Prater
- FB Blake Renaud
- CB Josh Thomas
- T Tyrus Thompson
- C Bobby Vardaro
- LB Brandon Watts
- WR Ryan Whalen
- RB Dominique Williams
- OL David Yankey
49ers Put Kendall Hunter On IR, Set Roster
Linebacker Ahmad Brooks, facing a sexual battery charge, remains on the 49ers’ roster following the team’s cuts today. As Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group tweets, general manager Trent Baalke issued a statement saying that the club is continuing to let the legal process under the league’s personal conduct policy. According to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link), the NFL has announced it has no basis for placing Brooks on the commissioner’s exempt list for now.
After announcing six cuts yesterday and then acquiring center Nick Easton from the Ravens today, the 49ers required 17 roster moves to get down to 53 players. The most notable among those 17 transactions might have been the decision to place running back Kendall Hunter on injured reserve for the second straight year. Here are the rest of the Niners’ moves, via a press release:
Cut:
- WR DiAndre Campbell
- CB Marcus Cromartie
- G/C Dillon Farrell
- RB Kendall Gaskins
- TE Xavier Grimble
- CB Leon McFadden
- LB Nick Moody
- DT Kaleb Ramsey
- OL Justin Renfrow
- DL Marcus Rush
- NT Garrison Smith
- QB Dylan Thompson
- G Andrew Tiller
- S Jermaine Whitehead
Placed on injured reserve:
- TE Rory Anderson
- RB Kendall Hunter
Reserve/suspended:
- WR Jerome Simpson
Additionally, the 49ers made a move with a player who had been removed from their active roster already, reaching an injury settlement with linebacker Desmond Bishop, per Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter links). Bishop, who had been on San Francisco’s injured reserve list, is now a free agent and is healthy enough to contribute right away if he finds a new team.
Cowboys Cut A.J. Jenkins, Down To 53 Players
The Cowboys have announced their Saturday roster moves, paring down from 75 players to 53 in preparation for the regular season. One of the players waived today by the Cowboys was former first-round wideout A.J. Jenkins, who signed with the team earlier in the offseason. With failed stops in San Francisco, Kansas City, and Dallas now under his belt, Jenkins’ NFL opportunities are likely running out.
Here are the players removed from Dallas’ active roster today, per a team release:
Waived:
- QB Dustin Vaughan
- QB Jameill Showers
- RB Gus Johnson
- RB Ben Malena
- FB Ray Agnew
- WR Clyde Gates
- WR Nick Harwell
- WR A.J. Jenkins
- T Laurence Gibson
- T John Wetzel
- C Shane McDermott
- C Ronald Patrick
- DE Ben Gardner
- DE Efe Obada
- LB Donnie Baggs
- LB Dakorey Johnson
- CB Joel Ross
- S Tim Scott
Waived/injured:
- LB Ka’Lial Glaud
- CB Rod Sweeting
Reserve/suspended:
- DE Greg Hardy
- LB Rolando McClain
Meanwhile, Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram weighs in on rumors from earlier in the day that linked running back Jonas Gray to the Cowboys. According to Williams (via Twitter), the Cowboys didn’t have interest in trading for Gray, but could be interested now that he has been cut by the Pats. The young back will become a free agent tomorrow unless he’s claimed on waivers or signs to a practice squad.
Seahawks Confirm McCray Trade, Set Roster
The Seahawks have confirmed one of their two recently-reported acquisitions, announcing that they’ve traded for safety Kelcie McCray, sending a fifth-round draft pick to the Chiefs in the swap, as we heard earlier. According to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (via Twitter), the deal for McCray is a public sign of what the team has privately told Kam Chancellor: Seattle isn’t willing to negotiate with him.
We’re still awaiting official word on Seattle’s reported agreement with running back Fred Jackson, so an additional cut will be required when that move is finalized. For now though, the Seahawks are down to 53 players. Via a team release, here’s how they got there:
Released:
- CB Will Blackmon
- TE Anthony McCoy
Waived:
- LB Tyrell Adams
- TE Rashaun Allen
- QB R.J. Archer
- DE Obum Gwacham
- S Keenan Lambert
- S Ronald Martin
- DT T.Y. McGill
- CB Douglas McNeil
- OL Keavon Milton
- S Ryan Murphy
- OL Will Pericak
- LB Eric Pinkins
- OL Terry Poole
- LB Alex Singleton
- WR Kevin Smith
- RB Rod Smith
- DE Julius Warmsley
- WR Kasen Williams
Placed on injured reserve:
- CB Mohammed Seisay
- RB Robert Turbin
Placed on reserve/non-football illness list:
- DT Jesse Williams
Texans Trim Roster To 53 Players
Warning: Hard Knocks spoilers ahead. The Texans finalized their initial regular season roster today, announcing several cuts and other transactions in order to get down from 75 players to 53. In addition to cutting defensive tackle Louis Nix, defensive tackle Brandon Deaderick, and wide receiver Damaris Johnson (as we heard yesterday), and placing quarterback Tom Savage on injured reserve (as we heard today), the club made the following moves, per a press release:
Waived:
- OLB Kourtnei Brown
- ILB Max Bullough
- S Kurtis Drummond
- T Matt Feiler
- C James Ferentz
- DE Tevita Finau
- RB Kenny Hilliard
- CB Charles James
- S Corey Moore
- WR EZ Nwachukwu
- DE Dan Pettinato
- T Joseph Treadwell
- WR Chandler Worthy
Released:
- DE Fili Moala
Waived/injured:
- OLB Lynden Trail
- OLB Tony Washington
Placed on injured reserve:
- G Chad Slade
Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweeted earlier today that the Texans were exploring trade scenarios involving cornerbacks Jumal Rolle and Charles James. James showed up on the list above as having been cut, so it’s clear Houston didn’t find a trade partner there. For now, Rolle remains on the team’s roster.
Meanwhile, another’s team’s roster casualty, veteran quarterback Matt Cassel, could be an option for Houston, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Cassel and Texans head coach Bill O’Brien were in New England at the same time, and with Savage landing on IR, Houston is in the market for an insurance policy at quarterback behind Brian Hoyer and Ryan Mallett.