Cardale Jones

Raiders To Meet With Cardale Jones

The Raiders will audition quarterback Cardale Jones on Friday afternoon, according to Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The former Ohio State standout has made multiple stops in the NFL but has just one pro game under his belt. 

Jones played for the D.C. Defenders in the XFL’s short-lived reboot. His stats weren’t great – he completely just 61 of 113 throws for 674 yards and four touchdowns against seven interceptions. Previous to that, Jones spent time with the Chargers, Seahawks, and Bills.

In 2015,  Jones emerged as a superstar for the Buckeyes when quarterbacks Braxton Miller and J.T. Barrett were lost to injury. After leading Ohio State to victory over Oregon in the National Championship game, Jones went from a relative unknown to a bonafide NFL prospect. He was benched midway through the 2016 season, but many believed that big things were in store for the athletic QB when the Bills tapped him in the fourth-round of the draft. Ultimately, he only appeared in one game for Buffalo.

Even if Jones lands a deal, he may face long odds of making the final cut. The Raiders seem well set under center with Derek Carr, Marcus Mariota, and Nathan Peterman on the QB depth chart.

XFL Assigns QBs To Teams

The XFL draft gets underway on Tuesday, but the league’s eight teams already have their starting quarterbacks penciled in. Here’s the breakdown: 

[RELATED: XFL Projects $55K Salary For Players]

The rest of the 71-man rosters will be filled by the two-day draft, which will include the selection of other quarterbacks. Interestingly, Zach Mettenberger and Joe Callahan are in the draft pool, but were not in this initial group.

The XFL season will open on February 8, 2020, shortly after the Super Bowl.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/17/19

Here are Tuesday’s practice squad decisions:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Los Angeles Chargers

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Redskins

  • Signed: TE Donald Parham
  • Cut: TE Drew Belcher

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/7/19

Today’s practice squad moves:

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

Seattle Seahawks

The big name here is Jones, who now has a new home after getting cut by the Chargers. The former Ohio State star was drafted by the Bills in the fourth-round back in 2016, then traded to Los Angeles after a year. He spent last season on the practice squad, then lost out to Easton Stick in the competition to be the Chargers’ third-string passer this summer. The Seahawks had room for a developmental quarterback after waiving Paxton Lynch.

Chargers Slash Roster To 53

In addition to the Chargers’ Russell Okung announcement, they finalized their 53-man roster.

Cardale Jones did not make the team, with Los Angeles going with Tyrod Taylor and rookie Easton Stick behind Philip Rivers. The XFL has openly mentioned Jones on multiple occasions, so the former Bills and Ohio State passer could be a high-profile candidate for the upstart league.

Here are the Bolts’ Saturday cuts:

Release Candidate: Cardale Jones

In 2015, Cardale Jones emerged as a superstar for Ohio State when quarterbacks Braxton Miller and J.T. Barrett were lost to injury. After leading the Buckeyes to wins over Michigan and Wisconsin before topping Oregon in the National Championship, Jones went from a relative unknown to a bonafide NFL prospect. Although he was benched midway through the 2016 season, many still believed that big things were in store for the athletic QB when the Bills tapped him in the fourth-round of the draft. 

In 2019, Jones’ NFL career is at a crossroads. After two years with the Chargers, Jones is very much in danger of missing the 53-man cut as he sits behind star Philip Rivers and fellow ex-Bill Tyrod Taylor. The Bolts could conceivably carry three quarterbacks on the varsity squad, but they already seem well set with the far more accomplished Taylor as Rivers’ stopgap.

The evaluation is going to come in the preseason games when you’re out there against another team and you’re having to manage a lot of different things,” Chargers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt said recently. “The trend for him has been good. He’s improving. Just seeing his command in the huddle now, opposed to what it was last year, it’s much better.”

If Jones does not impress in the preseason, it’s not a given that he’ll land an NFL contract. Last year, the Bolts cut Jones on Labor Day Weekend and were able to stash him on the practice squad. This year, he’s with the Chargers on a low-cost reserve/future contract.

There’s still reason to believe in Jones, but it’s hard to see another team carrying him on the 53-man roster as he approaches his 27th birthday in September.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/16/19

Here are the latest reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2019 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ offseason 90-man rosters:

Chicago Bears

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/3/18

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:

Atlanta Falcons

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed: DE Christian LaCouture

Chicago Bears

Signed:

Cleveland Browns

Signed:

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Signed:

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Signed:

New York Giants

Oakland Raiders

San Francisco 49ers

  • Signed: OL Zack Golditch

Seattle Seahawks

Signed:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Signed:

Tennessee Titans

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC West

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC West teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Broncos, Chiefs, Chargers, and Raiders are noted below.

Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s AFC West transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Denver Broncos

Placed on injured reserve:

Re-signed:

Claimed:

Cut:

Practice squad:

Kansas City Chiefs

Claimed:

Placed on injured reserve:

Cut:

Practice squad:

Los Angeles Chargers

Claimed:

Cut:

Practice squad:

Oakland Raiders

Claimed:

Cut:

Signed to practice squad:

* = suspended

AFC West Notes: Broncos, Bolts, Washington

Paxton Lynch joins the likes of Ameer Abdullah, Breshad Perriman, Stephone Anthony and Mike Gillislee on a roster bubble, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter), and the Broncos may choose to cut ties with their disappointing 2016 first-rounder. Lynch would prefer to stay in Denver, Mike Klis of 9News tweets, despite his rocky tenure there to date. A fresh start might be best for the former Memphis prodigy, but the Broncos may elect to keep him as their No. 3 quarterback. Chad Kelly‘s performance in Denver’s Thursday-night finale could determine Lynch’s fate, with Troy Renck of Denver7 writing that a strong showing from the 2017 seventh-rounder may convince the Broncos he’s ready to be Case Keenum‘s regular-season backup rather than forcing the Broncos to acquire a veteran to serve in that role. That would seemingly free up a roster spot for Lynch as the third-stringer. It would cost the Broncos $4.9MM to cut Lynch. They already absorbed a $5.5MM dead-money hit upon releasing Menelik Watson.

Here’s the latest from the AFC West, shifting to another quarterback battle.

  • The Chargers are likely to keep just two quarterbacks, which makes sense given Philip Rivers‘ historic durability. Los Angeles’ starter has taken first-string snaps in every game since succeeding Drew Brees in 2006. As a result, Yates adds that either Cardale Jones or Geno Smith is a cut candidate. The Bolts, though, aren’t certain which one will be given his walking papers. Smith is a vested veteran and would head into free agency if released, while Jones would be subject to waivers. Neither is attached to a contract worth more than $1MM.
  • Su’a Cravens will make his Broncos debut Thursday night after missing most of August due to a knee injury, Renck notes. The former Redskins safety/linebacker has a clearer path to the Broncos’ roster, despite missing most of training camp, due to Jamal Carter‘s season-ending injury.
  • With UDFA Phillip Lindsay almost certainly having earned his way onto the team as Denver’s No. 3 running back, De’Angelo Henderson has drawn trade interest. Former Broncos tackle Tyler Polumbus, writing for The Athletic (subscription required) believes that would be the best scenario for the second-year player, noting that Denver will likely keep four backs — Devontae Booker, Royce Freeman, Lindsay and fullback Andy Janovich — on its 53-man roster. This would leave both Henderson, who likely wouldn’t pass through waivers, and seventh-round rookie David Williams, who might, off the team.
  • Although he returned a punt for a touchdown in the preseason, Isaiah McKenzie probably won’t make the Broncos, per Polumbus. The diminutive return man has fumbled several kicks in his short Broncos stay, losing another one during preseason play. Lindsay and the recent addition of Adam Jones look to have forced the second-year player off the roster.
  • The Raiders will likely waive DeAndre Washington and allow recent camp pickup Chris Warren to take his place, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com notes. Washington recently underwent arthroscopic knee surgery and is an IR candidate, per Gutierrez, who has the Raiders keeping four running backs — Marshawn Lynch, Doug Martin, Jalen Richard and Warren. Washington and Richard served as backups for Lynch and Latavius Murray the past two years. Washington averaged 5.4 yards per carry as a rookie but struggled last season (2.7 YPC).