NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/20/20
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from practice squad IR: RB D.J. Foster, TE Justin Johnson
- Signed: T Rick Leonard
- Released: S Kentrell Brice, CB Jalen Davis, S T.J. Ward
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: S Shyheim Carter, LB Pita Taumoepenu
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: CB Josh Hawkins, DT Mike Panasiuk, DE Greg Roberts, RB Mike Warren
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: CB Prince Smith
Detroit Lions
- Cut: WR Joe Webb
Green Bay Packers
- Released: WR Kalija Lipscomb
Houston Texans
- Signed: WR Damion Ratley
- Released: DT Ryan Glasgow
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: LB Emmanuel Smith
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: LB Jonas Griffith
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: DB Mazzi Wilkins, DT Kobe Smith
- Released: S D’Cota Dixon
Tennessee Titans
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Breon Borders
- Signed: TE Parker Hesse
- Released: CB Greg Mabin, DB Maurice Smith
Dolphins To Start Tua Tagovailoa
It’s Tua time. The Dolphins will start rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa ahead of Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 8 against the Rams, per a club announcement. 
The Dolphins brought Tagovailoa in against the Jets on Sunday, giving him some reps heading into their bye week. At 3-3, this wasn’t necessarily a slam-dunk decision by the team. Fitzpatrick has them in playoff contention, but they’re also looking ahead to the future, which figures to be led by the Alabama star.
The Dolphins tapped Tagovailoa with the No. 5 overall pick, despite concerns over his surgically-repaired hip and other injuries. Even though his 2019 season was wiped out, many say that he has the greatest upside of any QB from the 2020 class. Tagovailoa easily could have been the No. 1 overall pick, if not for his career-threatening injury and Joe Burrow’s absolutely absurd final season at LSU. As a fully healthy sophomore in 2018, Tagovailoa dazzled as he threw for almost 4,000 yards and 43 touchdowns with only six interceptions. In that year, he was the runner-up for the Heisman trophy behind Kyler Murray, the eventual No. 1 overall pick.
Now, he’s totally healthy, and he’ll be in total command of the Dolphins’ offense moving forward.
Washington’s Joshua Garnett Retires From NFL
Joshua Garnett is calling it a career, per an announcement from the Washington Football Team. Still only 26, Garnett will turn his attention non-football endeavors. 
The Niners took Garnett No. 28 overall in 2016, but he never lived up to his pre-draft hype as a high-end offensive lineman. The Stanford product started in 11 of his 15 games as a rookie, but failed to impress. Then, knee surgery wiped out his 2017 season and he played in just seven games as a reserve in 2018. The Niners cut him before 2019, and his ensuing workout tour didn’t result in a contract. The Lions picked Garnett up in February and dropped him a few months later, leading him to an August deal with the WFT.
Garnett played in just 22 games between 2016 and 2019. With Washington, he suited up for three, giving him a grand career total of 25 games. He also earned upwards of $9MM over the course of his NFL career, giving him plenty of options off the field. We here at PFR wish Garnett the best in retirement.
Bengals’ John Ross Requests Trade
After playing just one snap on Sunday, Bengals wide receiver John Ross is seeking a fresh start. This week, agent Brad Cicala went to the team officials to request a trade, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears. 
Ross was a healthy scratch for much of the season leading up to Sunday’s game. The Bengals didn’t make any promises after talking to his agent, but they’ve got a couple of weeks to explore options before the Nov. 3 deadline.
Ross, the former No. 9 overall pick in the draft, has yet to turn his speed into pro success. Health has played a big part in Ross’ struggles – due to various injuries and his inability to impress then-head coach Marvin Lewis, Ross played in just one game as a rookie. Though he started ten games in 2018, he managed only 21 catches for 210 yards, a disappointment in terms of both overall output and yards-per-catch average. Then, after a hot start to 2019, he missed another eight games due to injury.
In three pro seasons-and-change, Ross has played a grand total of 26 games. At times, when healthy and on the field, he’s dazzled. Ross looked like a monster in the making after is Week 1 performance against the Seahawks last year, going off for seven catches, 158 yards, and two scores. In Week 2 against the 49ers, he topped 100 yards once again, and he did it with just four receptions. After that, Ross missed all of October and November due to injury and did not post another 100-yard game.
Bengals’ Geno Atkins Frustrated With Role
Geno Atkins and Carlos Dunlap, are frustrated with their roles, according to sources who spoke with Tyler Dragon of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Once pillars of the Bengals’ defensive line, both players have been effectively relegated to third-down roles this year.
The Bengals started Xavier Williams and defensive end Amani Bledsoe over both veterans in the team’s Week 6 loss to the Colts. Atkins saw just 18 snaps while Dunlap was in for 28 defensive plays. Atkins, who is coming off of his eighth-career Pro Bowl nod, is understandably miffed. Dunlap – with two Pro Bowl selections to his credit – has been vocal about his feelings for the last few weeks.
With just a couple of weeks to go before the trade deadline, it’s a situation to monitor. The Bengals are reluctant to move their one-time defensive stars, sources tell Dragon, but that could change quickly. If they don’t trade either player by Nov. 3, the Bengals could move to release them in the offseason. Dropping Atkins would save the team $9.6MM while a Dunlap release would put $11.25MM back on the books.
The Bengals – who are now 1-4-1 after dropping two straight – will look to get back in the win column on Sunday against the Browns.
Torn ACL For Titans’ Taylor Lewan
On Monday morning, Taylor Lewan‘s worst fears were confirmed. The Titans tackle has been formally diagnosed with a torn ACL (Twitter link via Lewan). 
[RELATED: Titans Activate Jeffery Simmons From Reserve/COVID-19 List]
“I can’t wait to watch my guys crush it, I’m going to be the biggest Titans fan each and every Sunday,” Lewan wrote. “We are doing something special here and this small set back doesn’t change a thing!”
It’s a bad blow for the Titans, who advanced to 5-0 with their overtime win against the Texans. They managed to pull out the W without Lewan at left tackle, but it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing. Shortly after Ty Sambrailo took over, he allowed J.J. Watt to blow past him and surrendered a sack.
Lewan, a three-time Pro Bowler, stands as one of the NFL’s better left tackles. He’s also a locker room leader for the Titans. Last year, he earned an 80.2 grade from Pro Football Focus, slotting him as the No. 11 tackle in the league. That score was good for fifth among left tackles and his run-blocking grade was the best of any LT. He’s been consistently strong, too, routinely earning top 10 scores for pass and run blocking throughout his career.
If the Titans don’t want to move forward with Sambrailo as their LT, they could bump first-round pick Isaiah Wilson to the starting cast. After being cleared from the COVID-19 list, the Georgia standout could debut as soon as Sunday against the Steelers.
2020 NFL Cap Space, By Team
As shown by Le’Veon Bell‘s recent deal with the Chiefs, big name free agents can come available at any point throughout the season. His contract wasn’t particularly pricey, but teams like to keep cash on hand during the year, especially when mulling potential trades before the deadline. Excess cap room can also be rolled over from year-to-year and give clubs the opportunity to lock up their most valuable players with extensions.
Here are the most recent figures for each team, via Over The Cap:
- Cleveland Browns – $33.1MM
- New York Jets – $27.9MM
- Dallas Cowboys — $23.9MM
- Washington Football Team – $23.6MM
- Jacksonville Jaguars– $22.9MM
- New England Patriots – $22.9MM
- Denver Broncos – $19.7MM
- Detroit Lions – $17MM
- Philadelphia Eagles– $18MM
- Miami Dolphins – $15.8MM
- Indianapolis Colts – $10.4MM
- Pittsburgh Steelers – $9.6MM
- Cincinnati Bengals– $9MM
- Baltimore Ravens – $9MM
- Arizona Cardinals– $8.9MM
- Chicago Bears – $8.4MM
- Tennessee Titans – $8.3MM
- Houston Texans – $8.1MM
- Los Angeles Chargers — $8MM
- New Orleans Saints – $8MM
- Green Bay Packers – $7.7MM
- New York Giants – $7.2MM
- Los Angeles Rams – $7MM
- Las Vegas Raiders – $6.3MM
- Carolina Panthers – $6.2MM
- Kansas City Chiefs – $5.8MM
- Buffalo Bills – $5MM
- San Francisco 49ers – $4MM
- Seattle Seahawks – $4MM
- Atlanta Falcons – $2MM
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $1.4MM
- Minnesota Vikings – $158K
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/19/20
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DT Albert Huggins
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: CB Nate Meadors
New England Patriots
- Signed: WR Mason Kinsey
- Cut: WR Devin Ross
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: DE Shareef Miller
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: CB Mazzi Wilkins
Poll: Will The Jets Fire Adam Gase Before The End Of The Year?
After Sunday’s 24-0 loss to the Dolphins, the Jets have dropped to 0-6. There’s no denying that the hot seat is getting rather warm for head coach Adam Gase. At this point, his firing seems inevitable, even though he’s only in Year Two of his Gang Green tenure. 
For a while, we’ve heard that the Jets plan to keep Gase through the end of the year. But, after their dreadful offensive performance on Sunday, keeping Gase might be hard to justify. Things aren’t going to get much easier from here, either. The Bills, Chiefs, and Patriots are coming up, a stretch that could easily put them at 0-9 before their bye week.
Ownership planned to stick things out with Gase, largely out of concern for Sam Darnold, who is still only 23 and in his third pro season. The Jets may also be concerned about how they’re perceived by coaching candidates early next year – a quick hook for a second-year head coach isn’t necessarily a good look, especially given their track record for turmoil.
Gase has hardly had a competitive roster to work with since he was hired in January of 2019 and injuries have also taken their toll on the team. Still, it doesn’t seem like Gase has command over the locker room. His feud with Le’Veon Bell didn’t do the Jets any favors, either. Last week, the Jets released Bell outright, less than two years after signing him to a whopping four-year, $52.5MM deal. Granted, Gase didn’t want him, and current GM Joe Douglas probably wasn’t a big fan, either. But, Sunday’s game showed that Bell’s attitude was not the Jets’ only limiting factor this year.
Will Gase make it to January? Vote in PFR’s latest poll (link for app users) and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
Torn ACL For Titans’ Taylor Lewan?
The Titans fear that tackle Taylor Lewan has suffered a torn ACL, according to Jay Glazer of FOX Sports. Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com (on Twitter) has also confirmed the news, though Lewan won’t officially know the diagnosis until he undergoes an MRI. 
Lewan went down in the third quarter of the Titans’ win over the Texans on Sunday. The Titans replaced him with Ty Sambrailo and went on to win 42-36, keeping their undefeated record in tact. Sambrailo allowed J.J. Watt to blow past him and gave up a sack – a sign that they could be in trouble without their three-time Pro Bowl left tackle.
Lewan, the No. 11 overall pick in the 2014 draft, started in at least 15 games between 2015 and 2018, earning Pro Bowl nods in every year from ’16 through ’18. Despite last year’s suspension, the 29-year-old has blossomed into one of the league’s better tackles.
Sambrailo figures to take over, but the Titans could also consider moving tackle Dennis Kelly over to the left side. First-round pick Isaiah Wilson, who was shelved on the NFL’s Reserve/COVID-19 list, could also be an option as he returned to practice earlier this week.