Bryn Renner

Steelers Trim Roster To 53

The Steelers have reduced their roster to the league-mandated 53 players.

The following players have been cut:

As Fowler observes, the Steelers’ recent wave of offensive lineman cuts could be good news for B.J. Finney, who came into today firmly on the roster bubble. Feiler, like Feeney, is a practice squad candidate.

Hooks, an Ole Miss product, was signed by the Packers as a UDFA following the 2015 draft, but Green Bay cut him last August as part of the 75-man cutdown. He caught on with the Steelers in February, and at least made it to the final cutdown day, so that qualifies as progress.

Ahmed was part of the Falcons’ crop of UDFAs this year but was waived by Atlanta last month. The Temple product made the switch from defensive lineman to offensive lineman during his junior year, and he started 12 of 13 games at left guard for the feel-good Owls last year.

Rory Parks contributed to this post

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/20/16

Here are today’s minor moves:

  • With the Teddy Bridgewater sidelined by a minor shoulder issue, Shaun Hill taking a “veteran’s day” off practice, and Taylor Heinecke out for the time being with a foot injury, the Vikings were in need of another camp arm, and they’ve added one today. The club agreed to terms with Brad Sorensen, who was waived by the Chargers earlier this year, and cut running back Kevin Monangai, according to Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press.
  • The Falcons announced that they’ve waived kicker Nick Rose, clearing a roster spot after signing veterans Shayne Graham and Sergio Brown earlier today.

Earlier updates:

  • The Browns signed running back Jahwan Edwards, Nate Ulrich of Ohio.com reports. A second-year UDFA out of Ball State, Edwards spent time on the Dolphins, Falcons and Jaguars’ practice squads last season. Miami waived him just after the 2016 draft.
  • Down Bruce Gradkowski to injury, the Steelers signed Bryn Renner, the team announced. The Steelers also added guard Antoine Everett, cut Christian Powell and waived/injured center Valerian Ume-Ezeoke. Renner spent two months with the Chargers earlier this year, but the Bolts’ claim of Zach Mettenberger resulted in the former North Carolina UDFA being jettisoned. The 26-year-old Renner spent much of 2015 with the Ravens, spending the offseason in Baltimore and, after being cut, catching on with the team’s practice squad in December.

Chargers Claim Zach Mettenberger, Waive Bryn Renner

4:02pm: The Chargers waived Renner in order to make room for Mettenberger, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link).

3:16pm: The Chargers have claimed Zach Mettenberger off waivers from the Titans, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The quarterback was with offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt last year in Tennessee. "<strong

As of this writing, the Chargers have three quarterbacks under contract behind Philip Rivers: Kellen Clemens, Bryn Renner, and rookie Mike Bercovici. Bercovici, an undrafted rookie out of Arizona State, could be the odd man out now that Mettenberger has arrived. In the longer-term, Mettenberger have to compete in order to make the roster in San Diego and displace Renner or Clemens.

Mettenberger was once viewed as the Titans’ potential signal caller of the future, but that was before Marcus Mariota came into the picture. When the Titans used the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft to tab the Oregon standout, Mettenberger’s future in Tennessee became murky. Now, he’ll try and forge a different path in San Diego.

Mettenberger, 24, was a sixth-round pick of the Titans in the 2014 draft. In his rookie season, Mettenberger saw time in seven games (six starts) and threw for eight touchdowns with seven interceptions. Not long ago, Mettenberger probably would have fetched a lower-round draft pick in a trade. However, the Titans likely shopped the QB around in recent days without finding a taker.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/30/16

Here are the latest minor signings, cuts, and other transactions from around the NFL:

  • The Bills have officially re-signed offensive tackle Jordan Mills, the club confirmed in a press release. Mills had been a restricted free agent, having received a low-end $1.671MM tender from Buffalo — he has now formally signed that tender.
  • The Chargers are signing former UNC quarterback Bryn Renner after working him out along with some other signal-callers today, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Renner has spent time with Denver, Baltimore, and Tennessee, though his stints with those clubs came primarily during training camp or as a practice-squad player.
  • The Colts announced today in a press release that they’ve signed free agent tight end Mike McFarland and waived offensive tackle Pierce Burton. McFarland joined the Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2015, but was placed on injured reserve before the end of the 2015 preseason.
  • Mike Chappell of Fox59/CBS4 tweets that the Colts have also waived cornerback Josh Mitchell, who spent the 2015 season on the injured reserve list. Mitchell signed with Indianapolis as an undrafted free agent out of Nebraska last May, but he landed on IR later that month.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/22/15

Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL, with new moves added to the list throughout the day:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Minnesota Vikings

  • Signed: LB Alex Singleton (Twitter link via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press)

New York Jets

San Diego Chargers

Seattle Seahawks

  • Signed: WR Deshon Foxx, WR Antwan Goodley (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times)
  • Cut: DT Justin Hamilton

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Ravens Announce Several Roster Moves

In addition to formally confirming the signing of quarterback Ryan Mallett, the Ravens have announced several other roster moves today, removing three players from their 53-man roster and filling those openings by signing Mallett and promoting two practice squad players.

Here’s the full breakdown of the Ravens’ transactions:

Signed:

  • QB Ryan Mallett

Promoted from practice squad:

Waived:

Placed on injured reserve:

With Renner cut, the Ravens are back down to three quarterbacks – Mallett, Matt Schaub, and Jimmy Clausen – on their active roster. I would expect the team to attempt to re-add Renner to its practice squad if he clears waivers.

Canty, meanwhile, is perhaps the most notable veteran featured in today’s moves, and he technically remains under contract with the Ravens for the 2016 season. However, ’16 is an option year for the veteran defensive end, whose 2015 season is over due to a torn pectoral. Baltimore could decide to cut him before the end of the ’15 league year, avoiding paying him a $2MM base salary and a $150K roster bonus for next season.

Ravens Sign Ryan Mallett

10:51am: The Ravens have officially signed Mallett, the team announced (via Twitter).

8:30am: Per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link), the Ravens are expected to cut Renner to make room on the roster for Mallett.

TUESDAY, 7:39am: According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), Mallett’s deal with the Ravens keeps him under contract for 2016. If Baltimore hangs onto him through the offseason, Mallett can earn up to about $2.5MM next year.

MONDAY, 2:26pm: The Ravens are set to sign quarterback Ryan Mallett, per Dianna Marie Russini of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Mallett was released on Oct. 28 by the Texans, days after he missed a team flight for a road trip against the Dolphins.

The Ravens lost starting quarterback Joe Flacco to a season-ending knee injury and injuries to Matt Schaub led them all the way down to Jimmy Clausen. Mallett will likely be No. 3 on the depth chart behind Clausen and Bryn Renner, but we’ll have to wait for word from head coach John Harbaugh to find out for certain.

A 2011 third-round pick of the Patriots, Mallett started six games in Houston over the last two years but slowly found his way into Bill O’Brien‘s doghouse. Mallett completed 53.1 percent of his throws this year for 770 yards, three touchdowns, and four interceptions for a 63.6 passer rating.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/12/15

Here are Saturday’s minor moves from around the league.

  • Sixth-round rookie Raiders linebacker Neiron Ball will move to IR, and the team signed defensive tackle Leon Orr to replace him, CSNBayArea.com reports. Ball started two games for the Raiders. Orr signed in Oakland as a rookie UDFA in May.
  • In a corresponding transaction with Eugene Monroe being placed on IR, the Ravens added quarterback Bryn Renner to their active roster, Clifton Brown of CSNMidAtlantic.com tweets. Renner represents insurance in case Matt Schaub, who is questionable with a chest injury, sits out Sunday and forces backup Jimmy Clausen into the lineup.
  • The Patriots signed linebacker Eric Martin from their practice squad and to fill that spot on the 10-man unit added running back Trey Williams, ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss tweets. Reiss notes Martin’s addition could be a reaction to the Eagles’ blocked punt in their upset win over the Patriots in Week 13. Martin worked out for the Texans last week.
  • To fill Damontre Moore‘s roster spot after the defensive end’s Giants tenure concluded Friday, the team claimed defensive end Stansly Maponga off the Falcons‘ practice squad, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). A Falcons fifth-round pick in 2013, Maponga played in 12 games in both the 2013 and 2014 seasons but hasn’t suited up for a game this year. The 24-year-old TCU alum recovered two fumbles last season.
  • The Titans signed linebacker J.R. Tavai off their practice squad and placed fellow backer Yannik Cudjoe-Virgil on IR to make room on the roster, Jim Wyatt of Titansonline.com reports (via Twitter). Cudjoe-Virgil suffered a torn patellar tendon in practice on Thursday.
  • The 49ers elevated tight end Brian Leonhardt to their active roster, tweets Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. The 25-year-old’s spent his NFL career in the Bay Area, playing in 12 games for the Raiders in 2014 after residing in Oakland in 2013 as well. A Division II product, Leonhardt has not seen any game action in San Francisco this season.
  • The Ravens re-signed rookie safety Nick Perry to their practice squad, Jeff Zreibec of the Baltimore Sun reports (on Twitter). An Alabama product, Perry hasn’t played in a game this season.

AFC North Notes: Whitner, Pryor, Ravens, Bengals

Between a league-worst record and the mishandling of Johnny Manziel, Browns head coach Mike Pettine is definitely a candidate to be replaced this offseason in Cleveland. At least one veteran doesn’t want to see that happen, in Donte Whitner, who believes the staff deserves another year to right the ship, writes Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon-Journal.

“Sometimes it’s not greener on the other side. Sometimes you have to stick it out to get to where you want to get to,” Whitner said. “Who’s to say we couldn’t come out next season with the same coaching staff being in the third year in the system and run off a streak like the Carolina Panthers?”

Here are some more notes from around the AFC North:

  • Former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor will make his first appearance this season at wide receiver for the Browns this Sunday against the 49ers, writes Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.“Terrelle looks good, I don’t know if he’s ready to take on a full role, but there’s a chance that there will be some involvement in the plan there,” said Pettine. “He’s just got to play (to get some experience). The credit to him, he came back in great shape, came back in really, really good shape and retained a lot of what we’re doing. You say, ‘Hey, it’s going to be sooner than later.’ More than likely, it’s going to be sooner.”
  • Matt Schaub hasn’t been ruled out of the Ravens’ game against the Seahawks this weekend, but signs are pointing to him not being able to play, writes Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The team has already promoted quarterback Bryn Renner to the active roster, and Jimmy Clausen is expected to start.
  • The Bengals will leave cornerback Adam Jones inactive this week, according to Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer (via Twitter). The corners on the roster will be Leon Hall, Josh Shaw, Dre Kirkpatrick, and Troy Hill this week.

Ravens Place Eugene Monroe On IR

The Ravens are sending left tackle Eugene Monroe to IR with a shoulder injury that will cost him the rest of the season, writes Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Monroe had ranked as the 23rd-best left tackle in the NFL this year, according to Pro Football Focus. However, he has played in only six of the team’s first 12 games, and only finished three of those starts while dealing with injuries. Unfortunately, while the Ravens nightmare season carries on, Monroe’s has ended.

Monroe’s career in Baltimore could also come to an end. He has only played in 17 out of 34 games since signing a five-year extension after the 2013 season. The team could consider cutting him, although they would assume $6.6MM in dead money on their cap next year.

The team has also cut offensive lineman Kaleb Johnson, opening up a second roster spot for the team (via Twitter). The team has added quarterback Bryn Renner and wide receiver Chris Matthews to the active roster.