Vikings’ Irv Smith Jr. Done For Year?
Bad news for the Vikings. Irv Smith‘s knee injury will likely shelve him for the entire season, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). 
Smith is looking at a 4-5 month timetable for recovery. Even in a best case scenario, that would effectively rule the tight end out for the regular season. A postseason return remains possible, in theory, but that’s a long way away. For now, Smith will have to focus on rehab while the Vikings plan to be without him for 2021.
Smith, 23, flashed serious potential last year while posting 30 catches for 365 yards and five touchdowns. The football world (and fantasy world) was awaiting a breakout year for Smith, who would have benefitted from all the attention paid to Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and the rest of Kirk Cousins‘ weapons.
Instead, the Vikings will lean more on Tyler Conklin, who is dealing with a hamstring injury. Brandon Dillon stands as the only other tight end on the roster after rookie Zach Davidson and Shane Zylstra were waived on Tuesday. It stands to reason that one of those two players will be re-signed to the 53-man roster once Smith is placed on injured reserve. Alternatively, the Vikings could scour the waiver wire for an out-of-house alternative.
Buccaneers, Mike Evans Rework Contract
The Buccaneers and wide receiver Mike Evans have agreed to a restructured contract (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Greg Auman). The deal will be finalized on Thursday to free up $8.94MM in cap room for the defending champs. Word of the move was first reported by Joey Knight and Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times
Evans was initially slated to earn $16.637MM this year. Now, a big chunk of that will be reclassified as a bonus to give the Buccaneers some much-needed space. After recent moves, the Bucs had less than $200K to work with. Now, they can afford to add veterans where necessary.
Evans’ base salary of $12.25MM will shift to a veteran minimum $1.075MM base salary with a $11.18 million in bonus (Twitter link via Auman). The bonus will be prorated over multiple years, lowering his cap number by $8.94MM, if they add three void years. If they add just one more void year, they’ll still shave off $7.45MM.
The star receiver has reworked his contract multiple times already to accommodate the team. He even volunteered to take a pay cut back in February, in order to keep the band together. Through sheer cap magic, the Buccaneers didn’t have to take him up on his offer — they retained tight end Rob Gronkowski, wide receivers Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown, inside linebacker Lavonte David, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, edge rusher Shaquil Barrett for another big run.
Evans, who just turned 28, finished last year with 70 catches for 1,006 yards and 13 touchdowns. For his career, Evans has a per-16-games average of 80/1,248/9.
Dolphins, Jakeem Grant Shorten Contract
Jakeem Grant survived the Dolphins’ final round of cuts after agreeing to a reworked deal. The receiver’s new contract isn’t just cheaper — it’s also shorter (via Adam H. Beasley of Pro Football Network). 
Grant was set to be under club control for two more seasons. Now, he’s got just one more year to go, so he’ll be a free agent in the spring of 2022. The revised pact leaves him with a one-year deal that could be worth up to $3MM via incentives.
Grant registered 36 receptions for 373 yards and one touchdown through 14 games last year. Then, a high-ankle sprain in December cut his season short. Before he was placed on IR, Grant stood as the league leader in punt return yards (330) and per-return average (11.4). He also added to his highlight reel with a punt return for a TD against the the Rams in November —a difference-maker in their 28-17 win.
Without the revision, it’s likely that Grant would have missed the cut. Instead, roster hopefuls Kai Locksley, Kirk Merritt, and Malcolm Perry got their pink slips. Grant will slot in as the ‘Fins WR 4/5, alongside Will Fuller, DeVante Parker, rookie first-rounder Jaylen Waddle, and veteran Albert Wilson.
Ravens Restructure Ronnie Stanley’s Deal
The Ravens have restructured Ronnie Stanley‘s contract, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The new deal will see $6.51MM of Stanley’s base salary converted into a signing bonus, freeing up $5.208MM in room for the Ravens.
Stanley signed a $99MM extension just before suffering a severe season-ending ankle injury. While subsequent deals for David Bakhtiari and Trent Williams bumped Stanley’s $19.75MM AAV to fourth among left tackles, he remains one of the NFL’s best at the position. And, at 27, Stanley figures to have several good years ahead.
Stanley was outstanding in 2019, his last healthy year, earning First-Team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors. Without him, the Ravens will turn to 2018 third-rounder Orlando Brown Jr., who had a tremendous year of his own. Brown, of course, is now with the Chiefs, leaving Stanley to man the left side with Alejandro Villanueva on the right side.
The sixth-year pro was forced to have a second ankle surgery earlier this year, but he’s been able to practice for the last three weeks. Stanley should be good to go for the Ravens’ Week 1 outing Sept. 13. But, if the Ravens need to patch up the roster elsewhere, Stanley’s restructure will give them the flexibility to do it.
Eagles Cut 20+ Players, Down To 53
The Eagles are ready to fly into Week 1. On Tuesday, they made a series of moves to get down to the 53-man roster max. Here’s the full rundown:
Released
- S Andrew Adams
- T Le’Raven Clark
- RB Jordan Howard
- DT Hassan Ridgeway
- TE Richard Rodgers
- CB Kevon Seymour
Waived
- S Grayland Arnold
- G/T Kayode Awosika
- WR Travis Fulgham
- WR John Hightower
- RB Jason Huntley
- CB Michael Jacquet
- CB Craig James
- DE Matt Leo
- G Sua Opeta
- WR Andre Patton
- C/G Ross Pierschbacher
- S Elijah Riley
- LB JaCoby Stevens
- DT Raequan Williams
Placed on IR
Placed on Reserve/COVID List
- DT T.Y. McGill
The Birds also freed up a spot earlier today by trading offensive lineman Matt Pryor (and a 2022 seventh-round pick) to the Colts for a sixth-round choice.
The release of wide receiver Travis Fulgham was one of today’s more notable moves. Fulgham played a big role for the Eagles last year as the team was decimated by WR injuries. However, they didn’t see enough this summer to keep him on the 53-man roster. With Fulgham gone, the Eagles are left with J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, Jalen Reagor, DeVonta Smith, Greg Ward, and Quez Watkins as their Week 1 receivers.
Colts Down To 53
The Colts have reached the 53-man limit. On Tuesday, Indy formally:
Waived
- WR Tarik Black
- LB Curtis Bolton
- DT Andrew Brown
- CB Anthony Chesley
- DT Kameron Cline
- S Shawn Davis
- G Jake Eldrenkamp
- TE Farrod Green
- WR DeMichael Harris
- CB Holton Hill
- RB Deon Jackson
- LB Malik Jefferson
- LB Isaiah Kaufusi
- RB Benny LeMay
- OT Carter O’Donnell
- WR Tyler Vaughns
- TE Kahale Warring
Released
- S Ibraheim Campbell
- S Sean Davis
- OT Will Holden
- QB Brett Hundley
- C Joey Hunt
Waived/Injured
- TE Jordan Thomas
- TE Andrew Vollert
Placed on Reserve/NFI
- DE Dayo Odeyingbo
Hundley’s release signals that the Colts aren’t all that concernedabout Carson Wentz‘s foot, or his vaccination status. The move comes even after sixth-round rookie Sam Ehlinger suffered a knee injury that will sideline him for a good chunk of time. The real takeaway is that they’re comfortable with 2020 fourth-round pick Jacob Eason, — he’s now the only other healthy quarterback behind Wentz on the initial roster.
Lions Down To 53
The Lions have their 53-man roster in place. On Tuesday, the Lions officially cut:
Released
Waived
- LB Tavante Beckett
- LB Rashod Berry
- S Jalen Elliott
- DT Bruce Hector
- G Tommy Kraemer
- TE Alize Mack
- WR Javon McKinley
- RB Dedrick Mills
- T Darrin Paulo
- RB Craig Reynolds
- WR Sage Surratt
- LB Jahlani Tavai
- TE Brock Wright
Placed on Reserve/Suspended
The Lions will carry three quarterbacks for now in Jard Goff, Tim Boyle, and David Blough. Boyle is currently dealing with an injured thumb, which will keep him sidelined for two months. But, in order to hang on to him and dress him ASAP, they’ll have to carry him on their initial 53-man roster. Fortunately, Goff has proven largely durable during his five-year career. He did not miss a start due to injury until late last season, when a thumb surgery sidelined him.
Bengals Down To 53
The Bengals are in the books. With less than an hour before the deadline, the Bengals announced a series of roster cuts to take them down to 53. Here’s the full rundown:
Placed on Reserve/Non-Football Injury list:
- OT Hakeem Adeniji (pectoral)
- DE Wyatt Hubert (pectoral)
Placed on Reserve/Injured list:
- DE Joseph Ossai (Knee)
Released:
- DT Mike Daniels
- TE Mason Schreck
- DE Noah Spence
- WR Trent Taylor
Waived:
- LB Joe Bachie
- DE Amani Bledsoe
- CB Tony Brown
- P Drue Chrisman
- S Trayvon Henderson
- LB Keandre Jones
- G Michael Jordan
- DT Kahlil McKenzie
- TE Thaddeus Moss
- HB Jacques Patrick
- CB Antonio Phillips
- CB Winston Rose
- K Austin Seibert
- QB Kyle Shurmur
- G Keaton Sutherland
- OT Gunnar Vogel
- WR Scotty Washington
- HB Pooka Williams Jr.
- HB Trayveon Williams
- DT Renell Wren
For now, this leaves the Bengals with seven wide receivers on the roster: Ja’Marr Chase, Tyler Boyd, Mike Thomas, Auden Tate, Stanley Morgan Jr., Tee Higgins, and Trenton Irwin. Meanwhile, they’re down a couple starters from last year in Michael Jordan and Mike Daniels.
WFT Down To 53-Man Roster
The Washington Football Team has its 53-man roster in place. Today, they waived/released:
- RB Peyton Barber
- WR Antonio Gandy-Golden
- QB Steven Montez
- G Beau Benzschawel
- DE William Bradley-King
- WR Tony Brown
- C Keith Ismael
- CB Danny Johnson
- LB Jordan Kunaszyk
- DT Devaroe Lawrence
- S Cole Luke
- G Wes Martin
- LB David Mayo
- CB Jimmy Moreland
- LB Jared Norris
- S Jeremy Reaves
- DE Bunmi Rotimi
- OT David Sharpe
- OT David Steinmetz
- CB Linden Stephens
- C Jon Toth
- LB Joe Walker
- RB Jonathan Williams
- TE Caleb Wilson
- DT Daniel Wise
- DT Gabe Wright
- WR Isaiah Wright
The release of Montez leaves three QBs on WFT’s roster — Ryan Fitzpatrick, Taylor Heinicke, and Kyle Allen. Barber — among their previously reported cuts — will exit a group that still includes Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic, and UDFA Jaret Patterson.
Ravens Waive K Jake Verity
The Ravens have waived kicker Jake Verity (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). Verity probably won’t be out of work for long, given his solid work in the preseason.
Verity, of course, was blocked by Justin Tucker. There are at least a few teams who would probably prefer him to their current options, though the Ravens were unable to turn the UDFA into a future draft choice. On the flipside — interested clubs already knew that there was zero room for Verity on Baltimore’s Week 1 roster. So, instead of giving up a pick, those teams probably decided to wait until today’s deadline.
Defensive end Chris Smith will also be among the Ravens’ cuts today. They’ll have to complete their trimming soon — the 53-man deadline comes at 4pm ET/3pm CT.