Dolphins Place CB Jalen Ramsey, RB Jeff Wilson On IR
Jalen Ramsey is not set to make his Dolphins debut for months. With the All-Pro cornerback in the team’s plans for 2023, he needed to be placed on the 53-man roster before an IR move could commence. The latter transaction will take place Thursday morning.
Ramsey is now on IR, and running back Jeff Wilson joins him. The latter sustained a finger injury recently. The Dolphins also placed offensive lineman Robert Jones on IR and signed cornerback Justin Bethel. Wilson must miss at least four games because of this designation. Mike McDaniel said a midsection issue also led to Wilson landing on IR; the second-year coach added he “wouldn’t be surprised” if Wilson returns this season, via the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson. That comment does not make it sound like Wilson is a lock to come back when first eligible.
Thursday’s moves give the Dolphins three potential IR-return players. Ramsey’s knee injury required surgery, a procedure that is expected to sideline the trade acquisition until at least December. Teams can bring up to eight players off IR per season, with the NFL reintroducing a limit on such moves last year.
Wilson will begin a second season on an injured list in three years. He opened the 2021 campaign on the 49ers’ reserve/PUP list due to an offseason foot injury. Formerly playing for McDaniel in San Francisco, Wilson reunited with the former 49ers run-game coordinator via a deadline-day trade last year. The veteran running back joined fellow ex-49er Raheem Mostert in re-signing with the Dolphins this offseason. Both stayed on one-year deals. The Dolphins also reupped Myles Gaskin in March, but after a release Tuesday, the fifth-year back signed with the Vikings.
Miami kept five halfbacks on its active roster. Wilson’s injury looks to have factored into that decision. Mostert, third-round pick Devon Achane, Salvon Ahmed and rookie UDFA Chris Brooks comprise the Dolphins’ group of available backs to start the season. Wilson, 27, hit the ground running in Miami last year. He averaged 4.7 yards per carry, gaining 368 and totaling three touchdowns in eight games with the Dolphins.
This injury opens the door for an early-season Achane workload, though the Texas A&M product is also dealing with an injury. Achane is not a lock to start the season on time, per McDaniel (via Jackson). Despite only coming into the draft with four selections, Miami used one on a running back. The Dolphins have also scoured the trade market and free agency for available standouts. After being connected to Dalvin Cook for months, the team went back and forth in negotiations with the Colts on Jonathan Taylor. Although no deal commenced — due in part to the Dolphins viewing the Colts’ ask as exorbitant, as one Indianapolis proposal included Jaylen Waddle — the parties can reconnect in talks ahead of the October 31 trade deadline.
Bethel, 33, re-signed with the Dolphins in March and was among the veterans the team released on cutdown day. Miami continues to have the ace special-teamer in its plans, however.
Jaguars Place DT DaVon Hamilton On IR, Sign DL Angelo Blackson
Two of the Jaguars’ pass rushers will be out of the mix to start the season. In addition to Dawuane Smoot staying on the PUP list, the Jags will be without DaVon Hamilton, who landed on IR on Thursday.
Jacksonville shifted Hamilton and offensive lineman Cooper Hodges to IR, sidelining each for at least four games to start the year, and signed veteran D-lineman Angelo Blackson and O-lineman Blake Hance.
A back issue sidelined Hamilton late in training camp. The Jaguars had given the former third-round pick a lucrative extension — three years, $34.5MM — this offseason. But both he and Smoot, who re-signed late this summer, will make delayed debuts for the defending AFC South champions. Neither can return until at least Week 5.
Hamilton moved into the Jags’ starting lineup on a full-time basis last season, starting 14 games. Pro Football Focus rated Hamilton as a top-30 interior D-lineman in 2022, but his status will be worth monitoring ahead of his fourth NFL slate. The Jags announced recently Hamilton’s back trouble is a “non-football-related medical issue.” Doug Pederson said recently Hamilton does not have a return timetable. The Jaguars guaranteed the Ohio State alum $20MM at signing.
While teams often use post-cutdown-day IR moves to bring back veterans who went through training camp with the squad, the Jags are adding Blackson, who went to camp with the Ravens. Baltimore released the interior D-lineman on cutdown day, doing so after signing him in the offseason. Blackson, 30, is going into his ninth NFL season.
The Jaguars move Blackson closer to an AFC South career sweep. The former Titans draftee spent two seasons in Tennessee and three in Houston earlier in his career. Blackson migrated to Arizona and then Chicago, playing the past two seasons with the Bears. With Hamilton out indefinitely, the Jags have some insurance in Blackson, who has made 42 career starts. The eight-year veteran finished the 2021 season with 2.5 sacks and nine quarterback hits. In 15 games last year, Blackson did not register a sack and tallied one QB hit.
Commanders Place DT Phidarian Mathis, DE Efe Obada On IR
Phidarian Mathis will end up missing 20 of his first 21 NFL games. After going down in Week 1 of last season, the former second-round pick is back on IR. Washington also moved fellow defensive lineman Efe Obada to IR.
The third defensive tackle out of Alabama on Washington’s active roster, Mathis missed all of his rookie season due to a knee injury that required surgery. That is not behind this injury designation. Mathis returned to the field during the Commanders’ preseason slate but sustained a calf injury.
This designation will sideline Mathis and Obada for the season’s first four games. In 2022, the NFL reintroduced a limit on how many players could return from injured reserve in a season. After teams could bring an unlimited number of players off IR during the 2020 and ’21 seasons, they are now capped at eight such activations. Mathis and Obada are now part of that roster math for the NFC East franchise.
Washington’s Mathis pick — at No. 47 overall — pointed to Daron Payne moving on in 2023. But Mathis went down in Week 1 of last season, playing only three defensive snaps before the knee injury. Mathis came into his rookie year behind fellow Alabama D-tackle alums Payne and Jonathan Allen, and Payne used his contract year to score a monster payday — four years, $90MM — after receiving the franchise tag. The Commanders now have all three ex-Crimson Tide interior D-linemen signed for at least three more seasons. But Mathis’ career remains on pause.
Obada, 31, is dealing with a patella tendon injury, Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post tweets. He re-signed with the Commanders on a one-year, $2MM deal this offseason. The former Panthers and Bills edge defender is positioned to play behind the other two ex-first-rounders on a loaded Commanders D-line — Montez Sweat and Chase Young — but his season will start late as well. Obada caught on with Washington last year and registered four sacks. He joins Shaka Toney, whom the NFL handed a full-season gambling suspension, as auxiliary pass rushers out of the mix in Washington to start this season.
These transactions will allow for the re-signings of interior O-lineman Tyler Larsen and defensive tackle Abdullah Anderson. Both players were bumped off Washington’s roster when the team cut down to 53 on Tuesday. Larsen, who has made 11 starts for Washington over the past two years, had re-signed earlier this offseason. As a vested veteran, he passed through waivers and waited for the team to sort through some roster gymnastics. With Mathis and Obada off the roster, Washington will bring back the recently cut veterans.
Titans To Sign OLB Trevis Gipson
Before the Bears decided to waive Trevis Gipson, the young pass rusher came up in trade discussions. But he went unclaimed on waivers. After passing through to free agency, Gipson will have a new home.
The Titans are signing the fourth-year edge defender, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. Gipson spent three seasons with the Bears, joining the team as a fifth-round pick back in 2020.
Tennessee, which lost pass rusher DeMarcus Walker to Chicago in free agency, has Harold Landry coming back from a full-season absence stemming from a late-summer ACL tear. After releasing Bud Dupree, the Titans have Arden Key in place as their top complementary outside linebacker. Rashad Weaver is going into his third NFL season, and rookie UDFA Caleb Murphy rounded out Tennessee’s OLB group when the team set its initial 53-man roster. Gipson, 26, will join this quartet.
Making 19 starts over the past two seasons, Gipson produced 10 sacks in that span. Khalil Mack‘s foot injury in 2021 opened the door for Gipson to be the Bears’ top Robert Quinn complementary piece. As Quinn broke Richard Dent’s single-season franchise sack record that season, Gipson tallied seven sacks and forced five fumbles. This helped Sean Desai‘s defense rank sixth in yards allowed. In Year 1 as a defensive end in Matt Eberflus‘ scheme, Gipson’s numbers dipped. The Bears, who traded Mack in March 2022 and then dealt Quinn before the deadline, received just three sacks from Gipson in his age-25 season.
But Gipson totaled a career-best 11 QB hits in 2022. In Tennessee, the 6-foot-4 defender will return to a 3-4 scheme — under DC Shane Bowen — and will be given a chance to carve out a role as a backup in the again-Landry-led OLB corps. The Titans’ roster now sits at 53 players.
Packers Engaged In Jonathan Taylor Trade Talks With Colts
Set to run back their Aaron Jones–AJ Dillon tandem for a fourth season, the Packers have their 2023 backfield in place. But questions exist regarding Green Bay’s running back group beyond this year.
On that note, the Packers look to be one of the teams interested in Jonathan Taylor. They talked Taylor with the Colts before the AFC South team’s Tuesday deadline, Stephen Holder of ESPN.com reports. While as many as six teams were said to have expressed interest in Taylor, Holder notes the Packers joined the Dolphins in discussing the disgruntled All-Pro with the Colts.
The Packers component in these talks figures to remain relevant, as the Colts have until the Oct. 31 trade deadline to move Taylor. The former rushing champion remains on Indianapolis’ PUP list, with his reserve/PUP designation mandating he miss the season’s first four games. Taylor can return to practice after Week 2, however, which would open the door to trade talks picking back up in the near future.
Jones and the Packers huddled up on a reworked contract in February, a move that marked the first major transaction in a tough offseason for running backs. The deal gave Jones more 2023 guarantees but also came with a $5MM pay slash. The four-year, $48MM deal Jones signed before free agency in 2021 runs through 2024. The Packers could still designate Jones a post-June 1 cut next year, incurring less than $6MM in dead money to do so. Jones’ adjustment still makes a 2024 divorce somewhat prohibitive, but the Packers did just approach a dead-money record by taking on $40MM by trading Aaron Rodgers.
Dillon is going into the final season of his rookie contract. The former second-round pick has indicated he would like to stay in Green Bay, and next year’s free agent class looks set to top this year’s buyer’s market. Dillon is on track to join a number of high-end RBs on next year’s market, barring extensions agreed to before the tampering period. Taylor would represent a preemptive strike for the Packers, who would seemingly need to part ways with both their current backs in 2024 if they were to complete a trade-and-extend scenario involving the Wisconsin alum.
While Taylor is a New Jersey native, he starred at Wisconsin before going to the Colts in the 2020 second round. The Packers will not have Rodgers’ top-market contract on their payroll in 2024, being set to shed the contract off their cap sheet after this season. But the team will also need to make a call on Jordan Love, who signed a half-measure extension (two years, $13.5MM) that prevented the team from having to exercise a fully guaranteed fifth-year option on a player with little experience. Taylor would stand to fit better on a team with a rookie-QB contract, but the Packers have a unique signal-caller salary situation post-Rodgers.
The Dolphins, meanwhile, discussed “several” potential deals with the Colts, Holder adds. None are believed to have involved a first-round pick. Indianapolis asked for a first-rounder or a package of picks matching that value. Taylor still wants to be traded, and Holder adds interest remains. The Dolphins look to have viewed the Colts’ Tuesday deadline as fairly loose, and their extensive interest in running backs this offseason points to a reengagement at some point.
Indy’s asking price will need to come down in order for the Dolphins to bite. The Colts targeted Jaylen Waddle in their Taylor talks, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports. The AFC South club wanted the former top-10 wideout draftee and then some, per Jackson, who adds the Dolphins discussed packages involving players and picks. Suffice to say, Miami did not view Indianapolis’ ask as reasonable. The Colts made multiple counterproposals over the span of a week, per Jackson and Holder.
The Dolphins traded up from No. 12 to No. 6 for Waddle, who has become one of the NFL’s best young wideouts. With receivers dwarfing running backs on the salary spectrum, it is understandable the Dolphins did not want to engage on Waddle. The Alabama-developed speedster teamed with Tyreek Hill to form one of the top receiving duos in recent NFL history last season. Waddle posted 1,356 yards (an NFL-high 18.1 per catch) and eight touchdowns in his second season.
The prospect of a team giving up high-level draft assets and authorizing a near-top-market extension for Taylor — in a year in which RB value cratered — has led this situation to its current place. With Taylor eligible to practice in less than a month, the market could heat up again.
Offseason In Review: Buffalo Bills
The preseason favorites last season endured major injury problems and saw a frightening scene alter their playoff route. Rather than earning a first-round bye, the Bills saw the Damar Hamlin sequence lead to a postponement-turned-cancellation and a No. 2 seed. Buffalo’s poor showing as the second seed exposed some foundational cracks, and the team spent the offseason attempting to repair the damage. While the injuries to Josh Allen and Von Miller represented the top deterrents last season, the Bills went to work on both lines to better prepare themselves for another Super Bowl push.
Free agency additions:
- Connor McGovern, G: Three years, $22.35MM ($9.9MM guaranteed)
- Leonard Floyd, DE: One year, $7MM ($7MM guaranteed)
- Deonte Harty, WR: Two years, $9.5MM ($4.75MM guaranteed)
- David Edwards, G: One year, $1.77MM ($1.72MM guaranteed)
- Taylor Rapp, S: One year, $1.77MM ($1.65MM guaranteed)
- Poona Ford, DT: One year, $2.25MM ($1.5MM guaranteed)
- Damien Harris, RB: One year, $1.77MM ($1MM guaranteed)
- Latavius Murray, RB: One year, $1.32MM ($803K guaranteed)
- Trent Sherfield, WR: One year, $1.77MM ($750K guaranteed)
- Kyle Allen, QB: One year, $1.23MM ($350K guaranteed)
In terms of outside investments, McGovern became the top priority. Agreeing to his contract on Day 1 of the legal tampering period, McGovern parlayed one full-time Cowboys starter season into a midlevel AFC East accord. The Cowboys’ 2022 left guard starter will replace Rodger Saffold, who became a Bills one-and-done. In ranking Buffalo’s offensive line 23rd overall, Pro Football Focus viewed the aging Saffold as one of the weak links.
McGovern, 25, does not bring an extensive track record to Buffalo. His backup, Edwards, has a longer run of starts. Although McGovern secured more than Cowboys LG predecessor Connor Williams, his AAV trailed a few 2022 guard pickups. Rather than pay up for the likes of James Daniels, Austin Corbett or Alex Cappa last year, the Bills rode with Saffold, whom PFF assigned a bottom-six guard grade. PFF also ranked McGovern outside the top 60, positing some questions. But the younger of the NFL’s blocking Connor McGoverns generated a market. Rather than go bigger for Ben Powers or Nate Davis, the Bills identified the ex-Cowboys third-rounder as an affordable solution.
The Bills have Edwards positioned as McGovern’s backup. Likely an upgrade on 2022 backup Greg Van Roten, Edwards started 45 games for the Rams. PFF viewed the former fifth-round pick as a top-30 guard in 2020 and 2021; Edwards started all 21 games for the Super Bowl LVI-bound Rams that season. Concussion trouble limited Edwards to four games last year, though Rams injuries piling up led them to prioritize other players’ returns from IR. The other Rams guard starter from Super Bowl LVI — Austin Corbett — fetched $8.75MM per year from the Panthers, but Edwards’ market cratered. The 26-year-old vet profiles as an interesting backup option for the Bills.
Buffalo also has Los Angeles’ two outside linebacker starters from that Super Bowl win, and Floyd should serve multiple purposes. Miller will begin the season on the reserve/PUP list; Floyd will insure the Bills’ edge rush, which Miller’s 2022 ACL tear left vulnerable. Proving he had solid NFL pass-rushing chops after an unremarkable Bears tenure, Floyd ripped off 29 sacks in three Rams seasons and added four more in the playoffs. Undoubtedly aided by Aaron Donald, Floyd still totaled four of his nine sacks last season in the five games the all-time great missed.
The Bills began talking terms with Floyd before the draft, and they ended up setting the veteran edge rusher market. Floyd’s deal preceded Frank Clark‘s, which laid the groundwork for the likes of Yannick Ngakoue, Justin Houston and Jadeveon Clowney to find homes. Buffalo rolling out a Miller-Floyd duo will take some pressure off Gregory Rousseau and A.J. Epenesa. While the Bills will still want to keep Rousseau as a regular cog when Miller returns, the Super Bowl contender wanted more firepower. With Miller now having suffered two ACL tears as a pro, high-end insurance makes sense. With the Rams ditching his four-year, $64MM contract two seasons in, Floyd will attempt to use the Bills to score a final notable payday.
This could be a menacing pass rush once Miller returns, with the Bills having targeted Floyd regardless of the future Hall of Famer’s health. It took the Bills a full year — Thanksgiving 2021 to Thanksgiving 2022 — to feel comfortable redeploying Tre’Davious White. ACL tears are not created equal, and Miller expressed confidence in an early return. With the 13th-year edge rusher much older than the ace cornerback, however, the Bills will need Floyd early. The Rams unleashed a fearsome edge duo two years ago; the Bills will hope it is at full strength by the stretch run.
The Patriots’ lead weapon during that run-crazed Monday night in Buffalo two seasons ago, Harris landed near the bottom of this year’s deep RB1 market. With some of the NFL’s best running backs seeing their pay reduced (or contracts jettisoned), Harris stood little chance in finding much of a market. Supplanted by Rhamondre Stevenson last season, Harris will attempt to complement James Cook. While Harris did rush for 15 touchdowns, the Pats rarely involved him in the passing game. That role generally leads New England to move on after one contract, and the Bills added a between-the-tackles backup.
A 2022 second-rounder who averaged 5.7 yards per carry last season, Cook is expected to be the leading man post-Devin Singletary. The Bills gave the Georgia alum just 89 rookie-year carries. He maxed out at 113 in a season with the Bulldogs. While Cook is on track to play a big role in Buffalo’s passing attack, he does not bring Jahmyr Gibbs-like college numbers in this era, having never eclipsed 300 receiving yards in a season. How Cook transitions to this bigger Year 2 role will be a key storyline in a stacked AFC East, which now includes both the Cook brothers. The Bills were briefly linked to Dalvin Cook, but he was more closely tied to the division’s other three clubs.
Re-signings:
- Jordan Poyer, S: Two years, $12.5MM ($6.24MM guaranteed)
- Tyler Matakevich, LB: One year, $2.5MM ($2.5MM guaranteed)
- Sam Martin, P: Three years, $6MM ($2.37MM guaranteed)
- Tyrel Dodson, LB: One year, $2MM ($2MM guaranteed)
- Jordan Phillips, DT: One year, $3MM ($1.22MM guaranteed)
- Shaq Lawson, DE: One year, $1.32MM ($453K guaranteed)
- A.J. Klein, LB: One year, $1.32MM ($100K guaranteed)
A Poyer-or-Tremaine Edmunds retention scenario emerged for the Bills, who did manage to keep one of their defensive staples-turned-UFAs. Poyer hit the market but still ended up back in Buffalo. Set to run it back with Micah Hyde to keep the NFL’s longest-running safety tandem in place, Poyer is now 32. But a lucrative non-Jessie Bates safety market did not materialize, giving the Bills a chance to retain Poyer — after it looked like there was a real chance he would head elsewhere.
Hyde’s September neck injury represented a harbinger of what lie ahead for an injury-hounded Bills squad, and it put plenty on Poyer’s plate. The veteran delivered, intercepting four passes — his fourth Bills season with at least four picks — and earning Pro Bowl honors despite missing five games himself. This is Poyer’s third Bills contract. Despite the cap growth since Poyer inked his second Bills deal (two years, $19.5MM) back in 2019, no non-Bates safety securing a deal north of $8MM per year limited Poyer on the open market.
Poyer and Hyde, also 32, represent one of this century’s top safety duos. Assembled in Sean McDermott‘s first offseason as HC (but weeks before Brandon Beane replaced Doug Whaley as GM), the pair joined as low-middle-class free agents and has been instrumental in the franchise’s rise from obscurity to three-time reigning AFC East champions. The Bills have not held talks for a third Hyde contract, ahead of a platform year, but the latter is healthy going into his seventh year with the team.
With Hamlin on the cusp of turning his remarkable recovery into regular-season action, the Bills have a deep safety corps that now includes Rapp, who started 48 games with the Rams. With Rapp, Floyd and Edwards joining Miller (a year after the Saffold signing), the Bills have done well to catch some of Sean McVay‘s leftovers.
Notable losses:
- Cole Beasley, WR
- Jamison Crowder, WR
- Tremaine Edmunds, LB
- Bobby Hart, T
- Jaquan Johnson, S
- Taiwan Jones, RB
- Case Keenum, QB
- Isaiah McKenzie, WR (released)
- Rodger Saffold, G
- Brandon Shell, T (retired)
- Devin Singletary, RB
- Tommy Sweeney, TE
- Greg Van Roten, G
The Bills effectively made their Milano-or-Edmunds choice two years ago, giving the older linebacker a four-year, $44MM deal that generated some head-turns at the time. Milano opted not to test free agency in 2021, agreeing to terms with the Bills on what was viewed at the time as a team-friendly contract. That still might be the case, but the ILB market did not heat up much this year. Only two off-ball ‘backers signed eight-figure-per-year accords during the 2023 free agency period.
Edmunds proved an outlier. His market exploded, with no ILB’s AAV coming within $7MM of what the Bears authorized. Chicago gave Edmunds a four-year, $72MM pact that included $41.8MM guaranteed at signing — the position’s third-highest number. With Allen extended and Diggs, Miller and Dion Dawkins on big-money deals, it was unrealistic for the Bills to pay two off-ball ‘backers upper-crust money.
Franchise-tagging Edmunds was not a realistic option. The tag’s formula grouping all linebackers together has led to 3-4 OLBs raising the price to the second-highest tag number — behind only quarterbacks. This will break up McDermott’s second long-running LB partnership; the seventh-year Bills HC mentored Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis for five seasons as well.
PFF graded Edmunds outside the top 50 at the position in 2020 and ’21 but slotted the former first-rounder in the top five last season. Edmunds earned the top ILB coverage mark from the advanced metrics website as well. The Bills have held a competition to replace Edmunds throughout the offseason, but the Terrel Bernard–Tyrel Dodson–A.J. Klein troika will have a difficult time producing Edmunds-level work. Although the Bills held talks with Edmunds, keeping him was essentially non-starter for the Bills this offseason.
Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC West
Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These Broncos, Chargers, Chiefs and Raiders moves are noted below.
Denver Broncos
Claimed:
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- RB Tyler Badie, WR Michael Bandy, QB Ben DiNucci, WR Phillip Dorsett (story), CB Art Green, OLB Marcus Haynes, T Demontrey Jacobs, S Devon Key, DL PJ Mustipher, DT Haggai Chisom Ndubusi, G William Sherman, WR David Sills
Kansas City Chiefs
Claimed:
- DB Darius Rush
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- CB Ekow Boye-Doe, S Deon Bush, TE Matt Bushman, LB Cole Christiansen, DT Matt Dickerson, T Chukwuebuka Godrick, DE Truman Jones, T Darrian Kinnard, QB Chris Oladokun, RB La’Mical Perine, WR Cornell Powell, RB Deneric Prince, C Austin Reiter, DT Danny Shelton, CB Reese Taylor, DT Chris Williams
Las Vegas Raiders
Placed on IR:
- WR Chris Lacy
Claimed:
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- DE David Agoha, DL Matthew Butler, G McClendon Curtis, TE Cole Fotheringham, S Jaydon Grant, CB Tyler Hall, LB Kana’i Mauga, RB Sincere McCormick, G Netane Muti, DE Isaac Rochell, WR Devin Ross, TE John Samuel Shenker, CB Sam Webb, WR Antoine Wesley
Los Angeles Chargers
Claimed:
- LB Tanner Muse
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- OLB Brevin Allen, T Zack Bailey, WR Terrell Bynum, DL Jerrod Clark, DL Christian Covington, WR Keelan Doss, QB Max Duggan, OLB Andrew Farmer, CB Matt Hankins, TE Hunter Kampmoyer, DL C.J. Okoye, OL Austen Pleasants
Reverted to IR:
- WR Darrius Shepherd, CB Amechi Uzodinma, LB Blake Lynch, WR Milton Wright
Released from IR via injury settlement:
Texans To Retain LB Cory Littleton, RB Mike Boone
AUGUST 30: While Kirksey has a deal lined up to join the Bills’ taxi squad, the same is not true of Littleton. The latter is remaining in Houston on the team’s 53-man roster, Wilson reports. Littleton has re-signed with the same terms he originally agreed to; that will allow him to max out his 2023 earnings at $2.7MM.
The same release-and-re-sign move has been employed with running back Mike Boone, Wilson adds. Boone will carry on under the terms of the two-year, $3.1MM pact he signed this offseason.
AUGUST 29: Multiple veteran linebackers are receiving their walking papers from the Texans this week. Following the Christian Kirksey cut, the Texans are releasing Cory Littleton, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 tweets.
Littleton joined Denzel Perryman in signing with the team in March. Even without Kirksey, the Texans’ roster includes a number of notable linebackers. Christian Harris, a 2022 third-round pick, joins veterans Blake Cashman and Neville Hewitt. The latter, a special-teamer, re-signed this offseason. The team also drafted Alabama’s Henry To’oTo’o in the fifth round.
Big on midlevel veteran additions and short-term contracts under GM Nick Caserio, Houston added Littleton on a one-year, $2.2MM deal. The former Rams, Raiders and Panthers defender received $600K guaranteed, representing the dead money set to come from this release. The Texans are retooling on defense once again, returning to a 4-3 scheme under HC DeMeco Ryans. This has led to some offseason adjustments.
Perryman and Cashman are listed as starters in Houston, Wilson adds. Littleton, 29, has been unable to stick around with a team since his productive Rams tenure ended. Still in their all-in mode when Littleton’s free agency year transpired, the Rams let the starting linebacker walk in 2019. While the Raiders gave Littleton a nice contract (three years, $35.25MM), they restructured it a few times and shed it from their payroll — via a post-June 1 cut — last year. Littleton caught on with the Panthers but only started seven of the 15 games he played last season.
Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC East
Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These Bills, Dolphins, Jets and Patriots moves are noted below.
Buffalo Bills
Signed:
Claimed:
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- DT Eli Ankou, WR Marcell Ateman, CB Kyron Brown, DE Kameron Cline, DL Richard Gouraige, CB Ja’Marcus Ingram, WR Andy Isabella, OL Kevin Jarvis, RB Ty Johnson, OL Greg Mancz, WR Tyrell Shavers, WR Bryan Thompson, DT Kendall Vickers, TE Joel Wilson
Placed on IR:
- LB Baylon Spector, WR Justin Shorter
Miami Dolphins
Signed:
- TE Tyler Kroft, CB Parry Nickerson
Claimed:
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- CB Ethan Bonner, DE Randy Charlton, TE Tanner Conner, LB Cameron Goode, DT Da’Shawn Hand, LB Alexander Johnson, WR Braylon Sanders, OL Alama Uluave
New England Patriots
Claimed:
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- S Joshuah Bledsoe, TE Pharaoh Brown, QB Malik Cunningham (story), OL James Ferentz, LB Joe Giles-Harris, RB Kevin Harris, RB Ty Montgomery, LB Calvin Munson, OLB Ronnie Perkins, WR Thyrick Pitts, OL Kody Russey, TE Matt Sokol, OL Andrew Stueber, P Corliss Waitman, QB Bailey Zappe (story)
New York Jets
Signed:
Claimed:
Waived:
Signed to practice squad:
- QB Tim Boyle, TE Zack Kuntz, OL Adam Pankey, DL Tanzel Smart, DL Marquiss Spencer, LB Samuel Eguavoen, LB Caleb Johnson, S Trey Dean, CB Craig James, CB Nehemiah Shelton
Placed on IR:
- T Carter Warren, TE Kenny Yeboah
Colts Re-Sign WR Isaiah McKenzie, Place TE Jelani Woods On IR
5:23pm: McKenzie’s release has proven to be a paper transaction. The Colts announced he has been re-signed, so his time with the team will continue. To open a roster spot to make the McKenzie reunion possible, second-year tight end Jelani Woods was placed on IR. The latter – who has been named by some as a breakout candidate for 2023 – will thus be sidelined for at least the first four weeks of the season.
1:50pm: Making three waiver claims Wednesday, the Colts needed to clear roster space. Isaiah McKenzie will be one of the players moved off Indianapolis’ 53-man squad.
The Colts claimed tackle Ryan Hayes (from the Dolphins), defensive end Isaiah Land (from the Cowboys) and guard Josh Sills (from the Eagles). D-tackle McTelvin Agim and offensive lineman Carter O’Donnell join McKenzie in being cut to make room.
This is the second time a team has cut McKenzie this year. The Colts gave the 5-foot-8 slot receiver a one-year deal worth $1.32MM. The only dead money that will come via this release will be the $403K guarantee Indy authorized. The Colts picked up McKenzie not long after the Bills dropped him this offseason.
As a result of this release, the Colts have just three wide receivers — Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce, third-round rookie Josh Downs — on their active roster. Indy also moved on from veterans Amari Rodgers, James Washington and Breshad Perriman this week. Though, Rodgers and former seventh-round pick Mike Strachan are back on the practice squad. The Colts will need to make some adjustments before Week 1, as teams do not go with three-wideout gameday configurations.
Downs is on track to work in the slot alongside Pittman and Pierce, while the Bills picked up Deonte Harty from the Saints shortly after cutting McKenzie. The Bills had given McKenzie a two-year, $4.4MM deal in 2022, keeping his Buffalo resurgence going. McKenzie scored 15 touchdowns with the Bills, including five in 2021, and posted a career-high 423 receiving yards last season. Despite the Bills also using him as a gadget weapon, they did not opt to keep the 28-year-old playmaker around after an inconsistent receiving campaign.