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NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/13/26

By | at January 13, 2026 9:05 pm

Here are Tuesday’s practice squad moves from around the NFL:

Buffalo Bills

Los Angeles Rams

  • Signed: DB Alex Johnson

New England Patriots

The Patriots are the third team of the season for Sherfield, who spent time with the Broncos and Cardinals. Sherfield has never been much of a receiving threat (he combined for three catches in 12 games with Denver and Arizona), but he has been a solid special teamer since his career began in 2018. The 29-year-old posted a 51% special teams snap share in 10 games with the Broncos. After they cut him in mid-November, he played 63% of ST snaps in two contests with the Cardinals.

 

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Bills WR Tyrell Shavers Suffers Torn ACL

By | at January 13, 2026 6:52 pm

The Bills’ already thin receiving corps has taken another hit. Tyrell Shavers will miss the rest of the postseason with a torn ACL, head coach Sean McDermott announced (via Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network).

Shavers suffered his injury in the second quarter of the Bills’ win over the Jaguars in the wild-card round last Sunday, though he still played in the second half. Fellow receiver Gabe Davis also tore his ACL in the same game. Regardless of how far the Bills advance in the playoffs, neither Shavers nor Davis will take the field again until sometime next season at the earliest.

While Shavers appeared in all 17 regular-season games after earning a roster spot over the summer, he wasn’t a significant part of the Bills’ passing attack in 2025. The third-year man from San Diego State hauled in 15 receptions for 245 yards and a touchdown.

Even though he didn’t post gaudy numbers, the Bills regard Shavers as a reliable blocker and special teamer. He finished third among their receivers with a 39% offensive snap share. Shavers was also on the field for 55% of special teams snaps in the regular season.

Now preparing to face top-seeded Denver and its elite defense in the divisional round on Saturday, the Bills will scramble to cobble together a full group of receivers in the next few days. Along with Shavers and Davis, Josh Palmer is done for the year with an ankle injury. That leaves slot target Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman and Brandin Cooks as the only healthy wideouts on Buffalo’s roster, though Curtis Samuel could come off IR to rejoin the fray soon. An elbow injury has held Samuel out since Nov. 16, but the Bills opened his practice window Monday.

Barring outside acquisitions, the Bills will have to dip into their practice squad to fill out their receiving corps against the Broncos. Mecole Hardman, Kristian Wilkerson and Stephen Gosnell are their in-house options. Hardman, a three-time Super Bowl winner with the Chiefs, is easily the most established member of the trio. Wilkerson has six NFL games under his belt (three with the Patriots in 2021, three with the Raiders in 2024). Gosnell, an undrafted rookie from Virginia Tech, hasn’t played since the preseason.

The receiver position has been a sore spot for the Bills throughout the season. Although general manager Brandon Beane made attempts to improve it before the Nov. 4 trade deadline, he was unable to complete any deals. The Bills are still standing over two months later, but a worsening receiver situation will add to the difficulty of knocking off the Broncos and earning a second straight trip to the AFC Championship Game.

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Vikings Assistant Mike Pettine To Retire

By | at January 13, 2026 5:53 pm

Brian Flores or a Vikings DC successor will not have Mike Pettine around for experienced help in 2026, however. The veteran staffer is retiring, Kevin O’Connell announced Tuesday.

Pettine, 59, has coached in the NFL since 2002. He rose to a head coaching seat in 2014 (with the Browns) and has been a coordinator in a few cities. He had been on O’Connell’s Minnesota staff since 2022, working under Ed Donatell and then Flores as an assistant head coach.

Jumping from the high school level to a Ravens assistant in 2002, Pettine became a defensive coordinator in 2009. The Jets, Bills and Packers employed Pettine as a DC. He started out in that position with the Jets under Rex Ryan. Pettine played a key role in the Jets making back-to-back AFC championship game appearance, as Revis Island formed to bolster Gang Green’s defense-powered operation in Ryan’s early years. Pettine stayed on as New York’s DC for four seasons before moving to Buffalo under Doug Marrone. Following that season, the Browns concluded a slow-moving HC search by naming him their next leader.

Pettine’s first year in Cleveland (2014) brought some unexpected success. Despite Jimmy Haslam overreach leading to a Johnny Manziel first-round selection, Pettine had the Browns — who were without top receiver Josh Gordon for most of the 2014 season — at 7-4. Cleveland-area native Brian Hoyer had quarterbacked the Browns to that point, as Manziel needed extensive development before debuting. Pettine’s defense also ranked ninth that season. But Manziel received the call to start near the end of the year. The bottom fell out for the Browns, who finished 7-9, and Pettine’s 2015 season keyed a descent.

On- and off-field Manziel problems engulfed the Browns in 2015 — before the team cut the megabust. After letting Kyle Shanahan out of his OC contract following a 2014 one-off, Cleveland finished 3-13 in Pettine’s second season. The team used Manziel and free agent signing Josh McCown as their primary QBs, and ownership fired he and GM Ray Farmer. Pettine resurfaced with the Seahawks as a consultant in 2017 and with the Packers as their DC by 2018.

In charge of two Packers defenses that appeared in NFC championship games, Pettine lasted three seasons in Green Bay. Pettine’s 2019 and ’20 Green Bay defenses ranked ninth and 13th, respectively, in scoring, but NFC title game letdowns ensued. Raheem Mostert ran wild on the Packers in the 2019 conference championship round, producing the second-most playoff rushing yards in NFL history, and the Packers gave up 31 points to the Tom Brady-piloted Buccaneers a year later in a home loss.

Although the Pack intercepted three Brady passes in the second half of that game, the team did not renew his contract in 2021. He worked as a Bears assistant under Matt Nagy before trekking to Minnesota. Pettine served as outside linebackers coach with the Vikings, who had two Pro Bowl OLBs (Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel) in 2024, over the past two seasons.

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Bills Designate Ed Oliver, Curtis Samuel For Return From IR

By | at January 12, 2026 3:42 pm

The Bills are in the divisional round for the sixth straight season, defeating the Jaguars to book a trip to Denver. They could have a key reinforcement back for that game.

Ed Oliver will return to practice this week, Sean McDermott said (via the Buffalo News’ Jay Skurski). The veteran defensive tackle has been out since suffering a biceps tear in October. Oliver also underwent knee surgery recently. He is eligible for an IR activation, though the two-injury component could add a potential complication.

[RELATED: Injured Reserve Return Tracker]

Buffalo will also open Curtis Samuel‘s practice window, according to McDermott. Elbow and knee maladies sidelined Samuel in late November, but the 2024 free agency pickup has not been a key part of Buffalo’s passing attack this season. Despite the Bills needing wide receiver help pretty much since the Stefon Diggs trade, Samuel has been an afterthought.

One player who will not factor into the Bills’ receiving equation against the Broncos will be Gabe Davis, whom McDermott said (via Skurski) suffered an ACL tear against the Jaguars. Davis, whom the Jags cut shortly after the draft, rejoined the Bills on a practice squad deal before being signed to the active roster. He is on a one-year, $1.17MM deal — the veteran minimum for Davis’ service time.

Another Bills injury area to monitor: safety. The team will not have Jordan Poyer against the Broncos, with McDermott indicating the veteran defender will be out for the divisional round due to a hamstring injury. The Bills used Jordan Hancock in place of Poyer once he went down in Jacksonville, but Damar Hamlin is in the IR-return window. Hamlin has not played since early October because of a pectoral injury.

The Bills’ run defense has suffered greatly this season, ranking 28th. Oliver’s absence has obviously hurt here. The veteran defensive tackle missed time due to an ankle injury sustained in Week 1 but did not land on IR as a result. In his second game back from that issue, Oliver sustained the biceps tear. A postseason return was rumored, however. Though, that report came before a confirmed knee surgery. Oliver, 28, is attempting to finish off a three-injury season by helping in some capacity.

Oliver suffered a setback in late December, and a New Year’s Day report revealed he underwent a meniscus cleanup surgery. Oliver returning for the Broncos matchup or a possible AFC championship game date would presumably involve a reduced role, but any return would help a Buffalo defense that has withstood a number of maladies. The team played its wild-card game without recently extended linebacker Terrel Bernard and first-round cornerback Maxwell Hairston.

Prior to his injuries, Samuel caught just seven passes for 81 yards over six games. The Bills gave the ex-Panthers and Commanders wideout a three-year, $24MM deal in 2024. The contract reunited Samuel with ex-Carolina OC Joe Brady, but Samuel has been among Buffalo’s misses at receiver over the past two years. After a failed attempt to acquire Jaylen Waddle at the deadline, the Bills added Brandin Cooks and Mecole Hardman. Davis had rejoined the team, after disappointing on a $13MM-per-year deal in Jacksonville, just before the season.

Poyer came back after training camp following a year with the Dolphins. The Bills have turned to their former starter as a first-stringer once again, deploying him alongside Cole Bishop after Taylor Rapp‘s season-ending injury. Poyer, 34, is likely to retire at season’s end. While it will be interesting to see who the Bills start in Round 2, they will need to win in order for Poyer to continue his career.

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Bills Place WR Josh Palmer On IR

By | at January 10, 2026 8:25 pm

Josh Palmer‘s debut Bills season is over. The free agent wideout has been moved to injured reserve, the team announced on Saturday.

The rule for players missing a minimum of four games while on IR continues through the playoffs. As a result, any which are placed on injured reserve now are ineligible to return the rest of the way. An ankle injury will keep Palmer unavailable for the duration of Buffalo’s postseason.

Palmer played in 12 games – including Week 18 – this season. The 26-year-old Canadian was in position to handle a key role on offense with his new team upon arrival from the Chargers, but despite making eight starts he registered just 303 scoreless yards on 22 catches. Nevertheless, losing Palmer (who is under contract through 2027) will deal a blow to a Buffalo passing game which has struggled with inconsistency this year.

In a corresponding move, linebacker Baylon Spector has been signed from the practice squad to the active roster. Spector has made three appearances this season, with the most recent coming in December. The fourth-year Bill will be expected to contribute on special teams in addition to providing depth on defense.

In other roster news, the Bills have elected not to elevate kicker Matthew Wright from the practice squad. Wright was signed earlier this week as insurance with Matt Prater‘s status uncertain due to a quad injury. Based on the team’s actions today, though, Prater is in line to handle kicking duties on Sunday against the Jaguars.

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Minor NFL Transactions: 1/10/26

By | at January 10, 2026 7:37 pm

Here are Saturday’s moves around the NFL as the first day of wild-card weekend continues:

Buffalo Bills

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Sanders was limited to four games last season due to an Achilles tear. The 25-year-old then suffered a foot injury in training camp which kept him sidelined for the entire regular season in 2025. As Mike Klis of 9News notes, Sanders will not be available in the divisional round but a return deeper into the postseason will be at least a faint possibility with him now on the practice field.

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Ravens Request Interview With Joe Brady; Team Completes Klint Kubiak Interview

By | at January 9, 2026 11:58 am

The list of Ravens targets for their head coaching position has grown. Joe Brady is the latest name to emerge on that front.

[RELATED: HC Search Tracker]

Baltimore has submitted an interview request with the Bills‘ offensive coordinator, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Brady has previously been linked to the Giants, but this represents the first formal interview request in his case. With Buffalo set to play in the wild-card round, an interview cannot take place until next week.

Brady worked as an assistant with the Saints for two years before taking on the role of pass-game coordinator at LSU in 2019. His success in that capacity resulted in a return to the NFL coaching ranks and a new role along the way. Brady served as Matt Rhule‘s OC with the Panthers for two years.

Things did not go according to plan in Carolina, and prior to his own dismissal Rhule replaced Brady. The latter moved on to Buffalo, taking over as the team’s quarterbacks coach. Brady wound up replacing Ken Dorsey midway through the 2023 season, and he has overseen the Bills’ offense since then. Not for the first time in his career, though, the 36-year-old finds himself on the radar of HC-needy teams.

The Ravens moved on from John Harbaugh earlier this week, creating the team’s first head coaching vacancy since 2008. Candidates with a background on offense and defense have been connected to the opening, to no surprise. Brady is among the comparatively few staffers set to be in demand with a history of calling plays on offense.

Meanwhile, the Ravens announced on Friday that they have completed an interview with Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak. The former Vikings and Saints offensive coordinator has enjoyed a strong debut season in Seattle, one in which he has worked alongside former Ravens assistant Mike Macdonald. Todd Monken has called plays in Baltimore during each of the past three seasons, but a new head coach with a background such as Brady or Kubiak would likely handle those responsibilities in 2026.

Here is an updated look at the Ravens’ ongoing search:

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Bills, Packers On Radar For John Harbaugh?

By | at January 8, 2026 10:58 pm

When six non-Ravens HC openings existed, a report indicated seven teams reached out to John Harbaugh within minutes of his firing. Seven non-Baltimore openings are now present, with the Dolphins firing Mike McDaniel today. Another report, however, indicated as many as nine teams had contacted Harbaugh before the Miami development.

A Wednesday report indicated a push from a team playing in the wild-card round is a rumor floating out there, and Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio pinpoints two potentially interested clubs. The Bills and Packers are viewed by some around the league as teams to monitor with regards to lurking Harbaugh suitors.

Some other teams playing in the first round should not be completely disqualified from Harbaugh pursuits in the event of one-and-done playoff journeys, but Florio mentions Buffalo and Green Bay as the two being discussed the most. The Bills have employed Sean McDermott since 2017, and he has guided them to eight playoff berths. Matt LaFleur was a 2019 hire; he has missed the playoffs only one time since coming over from Tennessee.

LaFleur, though, may not be completely safe. The seventh-year Packers HC may need to win his first-round game to feel “completely” safe, per Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano, citing a feeling around the NFL on this situation. LaFleur is under contract through 2026, via the extension he signed in July 2022. New Packers president Ed Policy came out against lame-duck HCs, meaning a decision will need to be made on an extension before the 2026 season — and likely much earlier. Neither LaFleur nor GM Brian Gutekunst were extended before this season.

Green Bay successfully transitioned from Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love under LaFleur. While Love has not flashed MVP-level form like Rodgers did by his third season at the controls, the successor has accounted himself well. Love finished third in QBR this season, finishing with 23 touchdown passes and six interceptions while averaging 7.7 yards per attempt. This came as the Packers played much of the season without Christian Watson, Jayden Reed and Tucker Kraft. The fast-emerging tight end’s unavailability has hurt the team’s passing attack, and the Packers’ defense has been without Micah Parsons since Week 15. LaFleur’s bunch sunk to 9-7-1, though the team did not play starters in Week 18.

The Pack booked three straight playoff byes from 2019-21 under LaFleur, venturing to two NFC championship games in that span. LaFleur’s decision to kick a field goal down eight in the final minutes of an NFC title game loss to the Buccaneers backfired, and his team went one-and-done as the No. 1 seed a year later. Although the Packers upset the No. 2-seeded Cowboys in Love’s first playoff game and then pushed the No. 1-seeded 49ers a week later, they lost to the Eagles in Round 1 last year. Though, the Eagles stampeding through the playoffs to a Super Bowl title did not make that loss look too bad.

The Bills are in a somewhat similar situation. LaFleur actually has as many conference championship game appearances as McDermott, despite the latter leading Josh Allen-led rosters for eight of his nine seasons. The Bills lost divisional-round games in three straight years before edging the Ravens to reach the AFC championship game last season.

Buffalo’s defense has regularly underwhelmed in marquee games against Kansas City, despite the AFC East powerhouse dominating that series in the regular season, and Allen (25:4 playoff TD:INT ratio) faces the prospect of turning 30 next year without a Super Bowl berth on his resume.

Harbaugh, 63, would seemingly be a fit for both teams due to neither being in rebuilding mode. The same cannot be said for a handful of the current lot of HC-needy teams. He will not take any interviews until next week, with Florio pointing to that timetable as matching up with the potential openings that could emerge after this weekend’s games. Harbaugh’s looming presence adds intrigue to the Packers and Bills’ opening-round contests.

As for the latest team to create a coaching vacancy, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero and the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson note the Dolphins have not reached out to Harbaugh yet. It would stand to reason that it is only a matter of time before that happens, however. But the Bills and/or the Packers entering this race could throw a wrench into other, less successful teams’ HC plans.

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2026 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker

By | at January 7, 2026 9:50 pm

The Browns, Cardinals, Falcons and Raiders followed the Giants and Titans in firing head coaches, making those calls between the Week 18 conclusion and Black Monday. The Ravens then moved on from John Harbaugh after 18 seasons; two days later, the Dolphins canned Mike McDaniel. Following a wild-card loss, the Steelers and Mike Tomlin are separating after 19 years. Now, after an overtime divisional-round loss in Denver, Sean McDermott is out in Buffalo.

The 10 HC openings are tied with 1978, 1997, 2006 and 2022 for the most in one year. Here are the candidates connected to all those searches. If more teams make changes, they will be added to the list.

Updated 2-9-26 (9:40pm CT)

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans

12 comments Arizona Cardinals Atlanta Falcons Baltimore Ravens Buffalo Bills Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Denver Broncos Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars Kansas City Chiefs Las Vegas Raiders Los Angeles Chargers Los Angeles Rams Miami Dolphins Minnesota Vikings New England Patriots New York Giants PFR Originals Pittsburgh Steelers San Francisco 49ers Seattle Seahawks Tennessee Titans

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/7/26

By | at January 7, 2026 6:57 pm

Today’s practice squad moves from around the NFL:

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Los Angeles Chargers

Pittsburgh Steelers

Richardson, Christian, Lewis, Wallace, Maye, and Flowers all cleared waivers after being cut from their respective teams earlier this week. They’ll all return to those teams via new practice squad deals.

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