Chiefs Release De’Anthony Thomas
The Chiefs released wide receiver De’Anthony Thomas, according to a team announcement. In a related move, quarterback Kyle Shurmur was promoted to the 53-man roster. 
Thomas spent the last five years with the Chiefs, but his 2018 season was brought to a screeching halt after he broke his leg. Then, in January, an arrest for marijuana possession hurt his free agency stock. Before all of that, Thomas saw time both as a returner and receiver for KC. After some time away, he circled back to the club in August, but only managed 4.2 yards per punt return, well below his career average of 8.8 yards per attempt.
Shurmur, the son of Giants head coach Pat Shurmur, surpassed Jay Cutler as Vanderbilt’s all-time leader in passing yards and completions before leaving school. He’ll help backstop the Chiefs as they await the return of Patrick Mahomes. In the interim, KC will use Matt Moore as their starter.
Texans Meet With E.J. Gaines
The Texans will meet with cornerback E.J. Gaines on Tuesday afternoon, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears. Gaines, who has 38 starts to his credit, is finally healthy and ready to play. 
[RELATED: Texans Acquire Conley From Raiders]
Gaines returned to the Bills for a second stint in March with a one-year, $2.1MM deal, but his Buffalo return didn’t work out. In August, they were forced to place him on IR with a groin injury.
He started 11 games with the 2017 Bills and was a first-stringer in the team’s wild-card game. Gaines signed with the Browns last season but only played in six games, landing on IR there as well. For his career, the 27-year-old has made 38 career starts. The majority of those starts (25) came with the Rams.
The Texans just recently bolstered their CB group by trading a third-round choice to the Raiders for Gareon Conley. Conley is there to help fill the void left by Bradley Roby and Phillip Gaines’ injuries. The team may also be in store for and a lengthy Johnathan Joseph absence, so a vet like E.J. Gaines would be valuable.
Worth noting: The Texans also showed interest in Gaines during the 2018 offseason, before he signed with the Browns.
Cowboys’ Jerry Jones On Jason Garrett
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has repeatedly backed Jason Garrett amidst rumblings about the head coach’s job security, but no one seems to believe him. This week, Jones discussed Garrett – and Urban Meyer‘s recent comments – in interviews with Clarence E. Hill of the Star-Telegram and 105.3 The Fan. Here’s a look at the highlights:
On Garrett’s future with the team:
“I am looking for reasons. I’m looking for reasons to keep him. It’s merited here. It’s hard to get an effective coach and get it locked in with all you have to retool and redo. I’m comfortable. We have established some security apart from the won-loss. He represents the organization well on and off the field. You don’t have to wake up in the morning reading about it.”
On Garrett’s relationship with players:
“[The] head coach, right there beside him the offensive coordinator.. they’re going to get a lot of shots from time to time because we all know it doesn’t go right at all [all the time], so get ready. But ,I’ve seen him, and I’ve seen him handle it. I’ve not seen a concern, and I’ve experienced it to where key players have an issue with the coach. I haven’t seen that with Garrett.”
On Meyer saying that he would “absolutely” accept the Cowboys job, if offered:
“For Urban Meyer to say that is a compliment,” (Twitter link via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News). “Period. I really know that. The job is a great job. Now, that’s not implying that I made it that way or I don’t make it that way. It’s just the place to be.”
Eagles Meet With Datone Jones
The Eagles’ search for defensive help continues this week. Next up – a workout with free agent defensive lineman Datone Jones (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
Jones spent the offseason with the Jaguars, but was dropped before final cuts. The Colts and Raiders also took recent looks at Jones, but did not sign him. The 29-year-old is looking to get back into the NFL mix – he saw time in just eight NFL games between 2017 and 2018, a far cry from his usage early on with the Packers.
From 2013-2016, Jones made 59 appearances (seven starts) for Green Bay. He notched ten sacks in that span, though the 2013 first-round pick didn’t finish out strong on his rookie deal.
On Monday, the Eagles cut defensive tackle Akeem Spence, just one day after he saw the highest snap percentage of the season against the Cowboys. Anthony Rush, formerly of the Raiders’ taxi squad, took his place.
Falcons Trade Mohamed Sanu To Patriots
The Falcons have traded Mohamed Sanu to the Patriots in exchange for a second-round pick, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The deal gives the 7-0 Patriots even more offensive firepower and brings them a wide receiver that they’ve long coveted.
The Patriots were one of several teams looking to trade for Sanu during the draft. The Falcons brushed those clubs off, but things changed after their 37-10 loss to the Rams dropped them to 1-6 on the year. With days to go before the trade deadline, the Falcons jumped at the chance to build for 2020 and beyond.
Sanu missed out on a New Jersey homecoming when the Patriots steamrolled the Jets on Monday night, but he will get to reunite friends in New England, including former Rutgers teammates Jason McCourty and Devin McCourty. He also figures to pad the stat sheet. So far this year, Sanu has 33 catches for 313 yards and one touchdown. It stands to reason that with nine games to go on New England’s slate, he could top last year’s career high of 838 yards and find pay dirt many times over.
Speaking of pay – Sanu has two years to go on his current deal. The Pats will have him at a $7.65MM cap figure this year and a $7.9MM number in 2020, though they could theoretically release him without fiscal penalty next year.
With Sanu, the Patriots boast one of the scariest receiver groups in the NFL and enough weapons to (almost) make Tom Brady forget that Rob Gronkowski isn’t around anymore. The WR depth chart, at present:
- Julian Edelman
- Mohamed Sanu
- Josh Gordon
- Phillip Dorsett
- N’Keal Harry (may return in Week 9)
- Jakobi Meyers
- Gunner Olszewski
Meanwhile, the Falcons figure to continue their fire sale between now and next Tuesday’s deadline. They’d like to move defensive end Vic Beasley and they figure to field offers for the likes of edge rusher De’Vondre Campbell and tight end Austin Hooper.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/21/19
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted: LB Joe Giles-Harris
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted: WR Davion Davis
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed off Texans practice squad: DT Albert Huggins
Ravens Release Justin Bethel
On Monday, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh announced the release of cornerback Justin Bethel. He also called him “the best special teams player in the NFL.”
Bethel didn’t lose his job for performance reasons. Instead, Harbaugh admitted that the Ravens were releasing the veteran in order to potentially pick up a fourth-round compensatory pick.
It’s complicated. Or, as Harbaugh put it, it’s a “funky” rule that will give the Ravens some extra firepower in the draft after defensive lineman Brent Urban, who left the Ravens for the Titans in the offseason, was cut by Tennessee last week.
Because Urban did not last on the Titans’ roster until Week 10, the Ravens lost their shot at a fourth-round compensatory pick. By dropping Bethel, they resumed their place in the queue.
Bethel will now seek work elsewhere, after notching a team-high six tackles for Baltimore.
2019 NFL Cap Space, By Team
With eight days to go before the 2019 trade deadline, here’s a look at the cap space possessed by each team, via ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter):
1. Colts: $43.5M
2. Browns: $32.9M
3. Dolphins: $28M
4. Bills: $24.7M
5. Cowboys: $24M
6. Titans: $23.7
7. Chiefs: $23.1M
8. Raiders: $22.4M
9. Eagles: $22.2M
10. Texans: $21.6M
11. Lions: $18.9M
12. Bears: $17M
13. 49ers: $14.4M
14. Panthers: $14.2M
15. Bengals: $13.6M
16. Redskins: $13.5M
17. Jaguars: $10.3M
18. Broncos: $10M
19. Packers: $9.5M
20. Seahawks: $7.8M
21. Buccaneers: $6.5M
22. Jets: $6.1M
23. Rams: $4.6M
24. Cardinals: $4.1M
25. Chargers: $4.1M
26. Steelers: $3.4M
27. Patriots: $2.5M
28. Giants: $2.2M
29. Ravens: $2.1M
30. Saints: $1.9M
31. Falcons: $1.7M
32. Vikings: $623K
Eagles Cut DT Akeem Spence
Well, that didn’t last long. On Monday, the Eagles release defensive tackle Akeem Spence, less than six weeks after signing him. To take his place, the club inked fellow DT Anthony Rush off of the Raiders’ practice squad. 
[RELATED: Eagles Release Orlando Scandrick]
Spence spent training camp with the Dolphins but didn’t make the final cut, leading him to the Eagles. He saw a season-high 54 snaps in Sunday’s ugly loss to the Cowboys – those proved to be his last in Philly. At least, for now. He’s now on the open market, along with cornerback Orlando Scandrick.
Enter Rush, a 6’5″, 350-pound defensive lineman out of UAB. In his two post-JUCO years, Rush tallied 77 tackles, 20 for loss, two sacks, and a pick-six. He’ll look to impress coaches this week and make the active roster for Sunday’s game against the Bills.
Bengals Sign Anthony Zettel
The Bengals have signed defensive end Anthony Zettel, per a club announcement. Zettel takes the place of offensive lineman Cordy Glenn, who is serving a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team.
[RELATED: Bengals Suspend Glenn]
Glenn was cleared to practice last week following his concussion, but he felt the Bengals were trying to rush him back prematurely. He clashed with Bengals head coach Zac Taylor on Wednesday and, amongst other things, insisted upon his release. Glenn was fined $200K and suspended for “internal disciplinary reasons.” It remains to be seen whether he’ll be a member of the team beyond the Tuesday Oct. 29 deadline.
In the meantime, Zettel will earn at least one paycheck as the Bengals seek out their first win of the year against the 4-3 Rams.