Broncos Promote Nathan Miller To Roster
In the wake of Wes Welker‘s four-game suspension, the Broncos have filled his active roster spot by promoting wideout Nathan Palmer to the 53-man roster. As Mike Klis of the Denver Post tweets, offensive lineman Ryan Miller has been signed to fill the opening left by Palmer on the practice squad.
Palmer, 25, spent some time on Denver’s practice squad last season, and was signed to a reserve/futures contract following the Super Bowl. After being cut as part of the team’s reduction to 53 players, he landed back on the practice squad, and now could get a shot at the active roster on Sunday. Denver still has plenty of receiving depth without Welker, so I wouldn’t expect Palmer to see the field much even if he’s active.
Giants Sign Adam Snyder
10:56am: The Giants have confirmed the signing of Snyder in a press release. As expected, Schwartz was placed on the IR-designated to return list to make room on the active roster.
10:38am: The Giants will sign veteran offensive lineman Adam Snyder to help bolster their offensive line, reports Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (via Twitter). We heard yesterday from Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports that the team was working to sign the ex-Niner.
Snyder, 32, was one of the final cuts in San Francisco, despite having started several games for the team last season. Since being selected by the 49ers in the third round of the 2005 draft, Snyder has appeared in 137 total contests, including 87 starts. All but 14 of those games (and starts) came for the Niners. The Oregon product is also capable of playing anywhere on the line, having spent time at all five positions at various times in his career.
A corresponding move will be necessary for the Giants to make the signing of Snyder official, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if it involved Geoff Schwartz. The veteran guard has a foot injury and is a candidate for the injured reserve list, with a designation to return.
Cowboys Sign Michael Sam To Practice Squad
WEDNESDAY, 10:10am: The Cowboys have officially added Sam to their practice squad, according to Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter). The team will have to remove a player from the squad to make room for Sam.
TUESDAY, 3:37pm: The Cowboys are looking into the possibility of adding free agent defensive end Michael Sam to their practice squad, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), who says the team is doing “research and due diligence” on the ex-Ram. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com adds (via Twitter) that Sam will be brought in for a physical on Wednesday, and is expected to be added to the team’s practice squad if all goes well.
Sam, who had 2.5 sacks in the preseason, was unable to earn a spot on the Rams’ deep and talented defensive line, and the club also declined to sign him to its practice squad. Dallas may be a better fit for the Missouri alum, given all the question marks in the Cowboys’ front seven. The team also currently has two openings on its practice squad, so no corresponding cut would be required.
East Notes: Dolphins, Pats, Giants, Redskins
While most teams around the NFL have set their 53-man rosters and 10-man practice squads for the season, we shouldn’t expect those clubs to just sit on their hands going forward. Many clubs have been auditioning players this week for potential spots on the active roster or practice squad, including several teams from the NFL’s two East divisions. Via Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun, who passes along the latest updates in a series of tweets, here are the latest items out of the AFC and NFC East:
- The Dolphins tried out a handful of pass-catchers, including wide receivers Lamaar Thomas, L’Damian Washington, Travis Harvey, Michael Preston, and tight ends Jake Murphy, Michael Higgins, and David Paulson. The team also brought in quarterbacks Chase Rettig and Brad Sorensen.
- Maurice Hagans (RB), Evan Rodriguez (FB/TE), Derrell Johnson (LB), Josh Kaddu (LB), Allen Reisner (TE), Weslye Saunders (TE), Kion Wilson (LB), and Martez Wilson (DE/OLB) are among the players who auditioned for the Patriots. Wilson also lists Colin Underwood among the players working out for the Pats, but I would guess that’s ex-Chargers edge defender Colton Underwood.
- A few players who worked out for the Giants this week have been previously reported, but Wilson also adds several new names: Deveron Carr (CB), Emmett Cleary (T), Patrick Edwards (WR), Dominique Hamilton (DT), Chris Harper (WR), Will Simmons (OL), Rod Sweeting (DB), Trevardo Williams (LB), and Brian Wozniak (TE).
- In addition to offensive lineman Braxston Cave and linebacker Jackson Jeffcoat, who signed to the team’s practice squad, the Redskins also tried out defensive linemen Calvin Barnett, Derrick Hopkins, Quinn Pitcock, and Ryan Robinson.
- Wide receiver Teddy Williams visited the Eagles, but the team didn’t end up signing him to its practice squad, as had been previously reported, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).
Buccaneers Re-Sign Major Wright
The Buccaneers have officially placed rookie running back Charles Sims on the injured reserve with the designation to return, clearing a roster spot to re-sign veteran safety Major Wright, according to Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter). Wright was among Tampa Bay’s final cuts when the team reduced its roster from 75 players to 53.
As the Bears’ full-time starter at strong safety last season, Wright grabbed a pair of interceptions, and racked up more than 100 tackles, but earned the dubious honor of ranking dead-last out of 86 qualified safeties, according to Pro Football Focus’ grades (subscription required). According to PFF’s data, quarterbacks completed 77.8% of their passes when throwing at Wright’s coverage, with a QB rating of 146.8.
Still, 2013 may have been an aberration for the former third-round pick. In Chicago under Lovie Smith, who is now the Bucs’ head coach, Wright’s PFF grades looked significantly better in 2011 and 2012, and at age 26, there’s still room for growth.
Minor Moves: Tuesday
Here are the latest minor transactions from around the NFL:
5:17pm:
- The Browns have cut offensive lineman Caylin Hauptmann with a failed physical designation, according to Brian McIntyre (via Twitter). That clears a roster spot for Vinston Painter, whose signing was noted below.
- The following players have been removed from their teams’ respective IR lists with injury settlements, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (all Twitter links): Ryan McKee (Chiefs), Larry Asante (Raiders), Greg Jenkins (Raiders), and Eric Ward (Titans). C.J. Davis (Seahawks) has also been removed from IR with a settlement, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.
4:44pm:
- The Jets have signed linebacker Jeremiah George and wideout Quincy Enunwa to their practice squad, the team announced today (via Twitter). New York selected the duo in the fifth and sixth rounds of this year’s draft, respectively.
4:13pm:
- The Panthers have signed former Jets wideout Stephen Hill to their practice squad, cutting linebacker D.J. Smith, the team announced today (Twitter link). According to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter), the Redskins will also interested in bringing Hill in for a workout, but Carolina offered him a deal.
- The Cardinals have added wideout Kevin Cone, defensive tackle Christian Tupou, and running back Dominique Williams to their practice squad, per Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com (via Twitter).
- Tight end Jerome Cunningham has signed with the Giants‘ practice squad, according to agent Howard Shatsky (via Twitter).
- The Chargers filled their practice squad by adding running back Marion Grice, who cleared waivers after being cut yesterday, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- The Cowboys have also filled their 10-man squad, adding offensive lineman John Wetzel and defensive back Jemea Thomas, according to Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter). Presumably, one of the 10 players on the unit will be cut tomorrow if the team intends to bring Michael Sam aboard.
- A.J. Jefferson of the Seahawks and Justice Cunningham of the Rams have both been removed from injured reserve lists with settlements, according to Caplan and Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter links).
3:28pm:
- According to Mike Klis of the Denver Post (via Twitter), the Browns are signing offensive lineman Vinston Painter off the Broncos‘ practice squad, which will open up a spot on the 10-man unit for long snapper Kevin McDermott, whose signing was noted below. Cleveland will need to make a corresponding roster move to clear room for Painter.
- The Redskins made a series of changes to their practice squad today, signing offensive lineman Braxston Cave and linebacker Jackson Jeffcoat. Linebacker Chaz Sutton and offensive lineman Tevita Stevens were cut.
- Offensive lineman Matt Patchan has been removed from the Buccaneers‘ injured reserve list with a settlement, says Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter).
1:23pm:
- A number of teams have filled their 10-man practice squads by adding a player. The Jaguars signed tight end Marcel Jensen, per John Oehser of Jaguars.com (via Twitter); the Bills signed tight end D.J. Tialavea, tweets Mike Rodak of ESPN.com; the Bengals signed wide receiver Cobi Hamilton, according to Coley Harvey of ESPN.com (via Twitter); and the Browns officially announced the signing of fullback Kiero Small, which had been previously reported by Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter).
- A pair of clubs also swapped in one player for another on their practice squads. The Dolphins signed defensive end Gerald Rivers and dropped defensive end D’Aundre Reed, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (via Twitter). And the Vikings signed offensive lineman Austin Wentworth to their squad to replace cornerback Kendall James, the team announced (via Twitter).
- The Broncos are also making an addition to their practice squad, in long snapper Kevin McDermott, according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post (via Twitter). But Denver already had a full 10-man unit, so we’ll have to wait to hear about the corresponding move.
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap and Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) provide the respective details for Ray McDonald‘s contract restructure with the 49ers and Glover Quin‘s reworked deal with the Lions.
- The Buccaneers intend to open up a roster spot by placing running back Charles Sims on their injured reserve list with the designation to return, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Teams can begin to use that IR spot as of 3:00pm central time today.
- Cornerback Bobby Felder has been removed from the Bills‘ injured reserve list after reaching a settlement with the team, tweets Joe Buscaglia of WGR 550.
Saints Re-Sign Shayne Graham
The Saints have added a new kicker to their roster, and he looks an awful lot like the one the team cut over the weekend. Per Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate (via Twitter), the Saints have re-signed Shayne Graham, just three days after releasing him.
The series of moves seemed to suggest that Graham was the player the Saints’ had in mind all along for their kicking job, and that the team wanted to wait until today to re-add him to the roster in order to move a player to the injured reserve list with a designation to return. However, the corresponding roster move for New Orleans involved waiving quarterback Ryan Griffin, as Larry Holder of the New Orleans Times-Picayune tweets.
During a two-game regular season stretch last season with New Orleans, Graham was perfect, converting both of his field goal attempts and all seven of his extra point tries. He also didn’t miss a kick in the postseason, making four field goals in the team’s Wild Card win over the Eagles.
Cowboys Sign Jack Crawford
The Cowboys have placed second-round edge defender Demarcus Lawrence on their injured reserve list with a designation to return, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). With the active roster spot vacated by Lawrence, the team signed former Raiders defensive end Jack Crawford.
Crawford, who turns 26 this weekend, saw 126 defensive snaps last year for the Raiders, and also contributed occasionally in kick and punt coverage. The Penn State product, a fifth-round pick in 2012, logged 15 tackles overall, and doesn’t figure to play a significant role for the Cowboys.
As for Lawrence, the Cowboys liked him enough that they traded their third-round selection in May’s draft to move up and snag him at 34th overall. However, he suffered a fractured foot during training camp, with the original timetable for his return estimated at up to 12 weeks. He should be able to contribute for Dallas in the second half of the 2014 season.
Chiefs Sign Kurt Coleman
4:08pm: The Chiefs have officially announced the signing of Coleman, moving linebacker Joe Mays to the injured reserve list with a designation to return, according to a team release.
9:53am: The Chiefs have reached an agreement to sign free agent safety Kurt Coleman, according to agent Blake Baratz (via Twitter). Coleman had hit the open market after being released by the Vikings over the weekend when the team went from 75 players to 53.
Coleman, 26, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Eagles, who selected him in the seventh round of the 2010 draft. Although he was the team’s starter at free safety in 2011 and 2012, he ranked 85th out of 88 total qualified safeties in ’12, according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required). Those grades may have contributed to the team reducing Coleman’s role in 2013, a season in which he played just 74 defensive snaps. However, he still played a significant role on special teams, racking up nine tackles in kick and punt coverage.
Coleman, who also visited the Jets and Colts this offseason before signing with the Vikings, will join a Chiefs secondary that includes standout strong safety Eric Berry. However, the team has some question marks at the other safety spot, with Husain Abdullah looking like the probable starter, replacing the departed Kendrick Lewis.
In order to fit Coleman on the 53-man roster, Kansas City will need to make a corresponding move.
Bears Re-Sign Kelvin Hayden
The Bears have placed wide receiver Marquess Wilson in IR with a designation to return, opening up a roster spot to bring back defensive back Kelvin Hayden, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Hayden had been one of the Bears’ last cuts over the weekend when the team trimmed its roster from 75 players to 53.
Hayden, 30, tore a hamstring last August, which landed him on injured reserve, forcing him out of action for the 2013 season. For his career, Hayden has been active for 101 games, including 49 starts, racking up 12 interceptions and 45 passes defended in parts of eight seasons. He’ll be a depth piece in Chicago’s secondary.
Wilson had been poised to assume a larger role on the Bears’ offense this year, but won’t be eligible to return until at least Week 10, since the Bears have a bye in Week 9. When he gets back, he’ll look to carve out playing time on a receiving corps that now features Santonio Holmes behind Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery.