Minor Moves: Tuesday
Here are today’s minor moves..
- The Redskins are planning on using the short term IR designation for Barry Cofield, which coach Jay Gruden mentioned was a possibility, according to Chris Russell of ESPN 980 (on Twitter). The Redskins have since made the move official. The Redskins promoted safety Akeem Davis to the 53-man roster to fill Cofield’s roster spot, according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post (on Twitter). The Redskins also added tight end Je’Ron Hamm and wide receiver Marvin McNutt to fill the void of their taxi squad cuts from earlier today, Jones tweets.
- The Ravens re-signed Fitzgerald Toussaint to practice squad after he cleared waivers, according to Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). Toussaint was let go to make room for defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi.
- The Patriots announced that they have signed defensive end Cam Henderson to the practice squad and released quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson from the practice squad to make room. Henderson, 24, originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent out of UCF with the Falcons in April of 2013, He has since had stints with the Falcons’ and Browns’ practice squads. Bethel-Thompson, 26, is a Sacramento State product who has been with the Dolphins (2011), Vikings (2012-2013) and 49ers (2013).
- The Panthers waived former Rutgers tight end and one-time quarterback D.C. Jefferson from injured reserve, less than a week after he was suspended four games for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, according to Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer (on Twitter).
- The Titans have reached an injury settlement with defensive lineman Antonio Johnson and have released him, tweets Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com.
- The Seahawks re-signed wide receiver Phil Bates to the practice squad and released linebacker Allen Bradford, according to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (on Twitter).
- The Saints waived Ty Nsekhe from the injured reserve today, according to Kat Terrell of The Times-Picayune (on Twitter).
- Former Bills defensive end Jacquies Smith was claimed by the Buccaneers, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (on Twitter). Smith was let go yesterday by Buffalo.
- The Titans have signed tight end Brett Brackett to the practice squad and released TE Orson Charles, according to McCormick (on Twitter).
- Evan Mathis has been sent to the IR by the Eagles but is designated to return, according to Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter). He’ll be eligible to face the Panthers on November 10th.
South Notes: Colts, Saints, Newton, Titans
With Robert Mathis now sidelined for the season with a torn Achilles, the Colts will have to turn to other players to jump-start their pass rush, and head coach Chuck Pagano says the team will consider all its options. However, as Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star writes, the Colts are in a tough spot when it comes to adding outside help. The free agent list is very thin when it comes to pass rushers, and Indianapolis would prefer not to give up future draft picks to acquire a player via trade. In Holder’s view, the club may have to rely on its in-house options to attempt to fill Mathis’ shoes.
Here’s more from around the NFL’s two South divisions:
- ESPN.com’s Mike Triplett passes along a report from colleague Field Yates, who says the Saints auditioned a handful of players on Monday, including running backs Michael Ford, Edwin Baker, and Tauren Poole, and tight ends Michael Egnew and David Paulson (Twitter link).
- There wasn’t necessarily any urgency for the Panthers to restructure Charles Johnson‘s contract, but the team did so anyway, clearing more than $5MM from its 2014 cap. David Newton of ESPN.com wonders if the move might be a precursor to locking up Cam Newton to a contract extension sooner rather than later.
- Tight end Michael Flacco, whose brother Joe Flacco quarterbacks the Ravens, is working out for the Titans today, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
Minor Moves: Monday
With the season’s first Sunday in the books, a handful of teams are shuffling their rosters in preparation for next week’s games. Here are the latest minor transactions from around the NFL, with the latest moves added to the top of the page throughout the day:
- The Bears have added receiver Greg Herd to the practice squad, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Herd spent time with the team during training camp before he was cut on August 23.
- The Seahawks have signed cornerback Josh Thomas to take the place of the injured Jeremy Lane, reports ESPN’s Terry Blount (via Twitter). They’ve also made some changes to their practice squad, adding guard Nate Isles and safety Terrance Parks in place of guard David Arkin and safety Josh Aubrey, the club announced today (Twitter link).
- With Dave Zastudil being bothered by a groin injury, the Cardinals have signed punter Drew Butler, according to Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com (via Twitter).
- Defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi has been claimed off waivers by the Ravens, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Bilukidi was cut over the weekend by the Bengals.
- When the Bengals cut Bilukidi, they signed Onterio McCalebb to their active roster, but he lasted just two days — he has been waived, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer, who adds (via Twitter) that the club has also terminated wide receiver Cobi Hamilton from the exempt list of the practice squad.
- To make room for Bilukidi, the Ravens waived running back Fitz Toussaint, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- The Broncos have cut long snapper Kevin McDermott from their practice squad, tweets Mike Klis of the Denver Post. His spot will be taken by tight end Dominique Davis, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter).
- Tight end Emmanuel Ogbuehi has been replaced on the Browns‘ practice squad by defensive lineman Calvin Barnett, says Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- The Bears have signed safety Ahmad Dixon from the Vikings‘ practice squad, cutting cornerback Demontre Hurst to open up a spot on their roster, the team announced today (via Twitter). Dixon was drafted by the Cowboys but was waived by Dallas during preseason roster cutdowns.
- Offensive tackle Andrew McDonald is also making the move from one team’s practice squad to another club’s 53-man roster, according to agent Brett Tessler, who tweets that his client has a deal with the Seahawks. McDonald had previously been one of the 10 players on the Panthers‘ practice squad.
- The Bills have cut defensive end Jacquies Smith to make room for Nigel Bradham, who is returning this week from his one-game suspension, tweets ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak.
- The Seahawks have placed cornerback Jeremy Lane, who is suffering from a groin injury, on their injured reserve list with the designation to return, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
- Defensive back Jamarca Sanford, who had been on the Vikings‘ injured reserve list, has been released with a settlement, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link).
- The Chiefs have signed wideout Armon Binns to their practice squad and removed cornerback DeMarcus Van Dyke from their IR with an injury settlement, per Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links).
Panthers Rework Charles Johnson’s Contract
The Panthers have created some cap space by once again restructuring the contract of defensive end Charles Johnson, according to Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. Person reports that the move creates $5.2MM in 2014 cap space for the team.
Johnson, 28, had been slated to earn a base salary of $8.75MM this season, but that figure has now been reduced to just $950K. The difference of $7.8MM has been converted to a signing bonus that will prorate over the final three years of the deal, for an average of $2.6MM per year.
While the restructure makes Johnson’s 2014 cap number – which dips from $16.42MM to $11.22MM – more palatable, it increases his cap hit for next year from $17.42MM to $20.02MM. It’s hard to imagine, given the cap constraints Carolina is already facing, that the team could keep Johnson at that figure, so another restructure or even a cut might be in the cards.
It’ll be an interesting situation to keep an eye on, since the Panthers will also have to make a decision on their other defensive end, Greg Hardy, who is playing the 2014 season under the franchise tag. Prior to the restructure of Johnson’s contract, he and Hardy had two of the top five largest 2014 cap hits in the NFL for defensive ends.
Minor Moves: Saturday
As most of the team’s prepare for their season-debut tomorrow, some minor moves are likely to be made. We’ll keep track of the day’s transactions right here, with the most recent moves being added to the top:
- Defensive lineman Garrison Smith has been dropped from the Dolphins‘ practice squad in order to make room for the previously-reported addition of Brandian Ross, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- Wilson also clarifies (via Twitter) that Quinton Pointer‘s release from the Buccaneers, which is noted below, was an injury waiver.
Earlier updates:
- The Buccaneers are expected to add receiver Solomon Patton to the 53-man roster, reports Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter). The team released cornerback Quinton Pointer and former University of Florida receiver Louis Murphy to make room for Patton and Dixon.
- The Seahawks have waived wide receiver Phil Bates, reports Terry Blount of ESPN (via Twitter). Blount believes this will open room on the roster for a cornerback.
- The Chargers have waived Vincent Brown after reaching an injury settlement, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN (via Twitter). Brown will be eligible to be claimed on Monday at 4 P.M. ET.
- The Dolphins have re-signed safety Brandian Ross to their practice squad, reports Caplan (via Twitter).
- The Eagles have released receiver Arrelious Benn from IR with an injury settlement, reports Caplan (via Twitter).
- The Ravens have promoted running back Fitz Toussaint from the practice squad to the active roster, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Toussaint will replace the recently released Derek Cox.
- The Patriots have added defensive lineman Kelcy Quarles to their practice squad, according to the team’s official website. They released tight end Allen Reisner to make room.
- Buccaneers cornerback Brandon Dixon, a sixth-round pick by the Jets this past year, will be activated from the practice squad, tweets CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora.
- The Bengals have waived defensive end Christo Bilukidi, reports ESPN.com’s Coley Harvey (via Twitter). The team signed cornerback Onterio McCalebb off the practice squad.
- Brandon Barden, a tight end who previously spent time with the Titans, was removed from the Jaguars injured reserve with an injury settlement, reports Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun (via Twitter).
- Cornerback Damond Smith was removed from the Chiefs injured reserve with an injury settlement, tweets Wilson.
- Panthers tight end D.C. Jefferson was placed on the team’s reserve/suspended list, tweets Wilson. Jefferson was previously on the team’s injured reserve list.
NFC Links: Sam, Scandrick, Hill
The Vikings finished the 2013 season as the second-worst pass defense in the league. Injuries to Xavier Rhodes and Harrison Smith certainly didn’t help, and the healthy, matured group is expected to take a big step forward in 2014… even with their daunting schedule, which includes games against Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Matt Ryan, Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford in consecutive weeks.
“That’s okay, you want to play the best,” Rhodes said (via Mark Craig of the Star Tribune). “To me, staying healthy is the key. Last year, DBs were going down left and right. We have the weapons. We just need to be healthier.”
Head coach Mike Zimmer has been seeing improvements from his secondary, and he’s thrilled with the presence of veteran defensive coordinator Jerry Gray:
“I’m pretty involved with the defensive backs, so I step in there quite a bit and I tell him exactly what I want because that’s kind of my baby,” Zimmer said. “By about the third day, Jerry was saying things to the players before I could say it. And it was the exact same thing I was going to say, so that made me feel really good.”
Let’s check out some more rumblings from the NFC…
- Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com predicts that it will be at least a month until the Cowboys would potentially promote Michael Sam to the active roster.
- There have been plenty of rumors over the past couple of days that recently-suspended Orlando Scandrick could be reinstated if the NFL and the players’ association agree to a new drug policy. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones isn’t counting on Scandrick to be available on opening day, however. “I’m not planning on it, let’s put it like that,” Jones said on KRLD-FM/105.3 (via Drew Davison of the Star-Telegram). “The quicker we can get him back, the better our team would be because he arguably did have … a great training camp.”
- Since it will take him at least a couple of weeks to learn the playbook, Stephen Hill likely won’t be on the Panthers active roster any time soon, writes ESPN.com’s David Newton. The writer believes that Hill ultimately will make the team, writing that organizations “don’t keep second-round picks on the practice squad.”
NFC Notes: Bulaga, Winston, Rams, Panthers
The Packers’ offensive line didn’t fare too well after right tackle Bryan Bulaga went down last night, and Green Bay’s front five will be without the 2010 first-rounder for a while longer. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Twitter), Bulaga has suffered a torn MCL. While the Packers are lucky Bulaga didn’t re-tear his ACL, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com tweets that the 25-year-old will miss two-to-four weeks while recovering from the injury. Derek Sherrod, whom Pro Football Focus (subscription required) handed a -6.4 grade on just 42 snaps in last night’s contest, will fill in at RT.
Meanwhile, Demovsky adds (on Twitter) that while Green Bay might consider adding free agent tackle Eric Winston, there’s “nothing concrete” on that front as of yet. Winston, 30, signed with the Seahawks on July 29 but was released just a month later.
Let’s look at some more news items from the NFC:
- The Rams tried out veteran linebackers Pat Angerer and Kelvin Sheppard today, according to Field Yates of ESPN (Twitter link). Angerer spent most of his career with the Colts before latching on with the Falcons for the summer, while Sheppard was cut by Indianapolis last week.
- Panthers tight end D.C. Jefferson, a second-year player out of Rutgers, has been suspended four games for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, writes Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. Jefferson is currently on Carolina’s injured reserve after being waived-injured late last month.
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap breaks down the details of Junior Galette‘s extension with the Saints, which includes a roster bonus and escalators which come into play if Galette notches 12 sacks in 2014. Fitzgerald also notes that New Orleans will likely have to restructure the pass-rusher’s deal as soon as next offseason due to its cap management woes.
- Most teams carry only one fullback and some don’t even bother to have one at all. So why do the Vikings have two in Jerome Felton and Zach Line? “In college, no one has them anymore. They don’t have any fullbacks in college football,” coach Mike Zimmer said, according to Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune. “So typically you’re taking a tight end — if they have those. There’s hardly any blocking tight ends anymore. So you’re taking them and making them fullbacks or taking linebackers and making them fullbacks. When you find one, if you have a fullback offense, you keep them.”
Zach Links contributed to this post.
NFC Notes: Tate, Ellington, Boone
New Lions receiver Golden Tate is enjoying the offense in Detroit, writes Robert Klemko of the MMQB. “The offense is kind of a feel offense. You feel your way around. Obviously there are rules and depths, but at the end of the day you’ve got to play football and just be an athlete…Coach Lombardi’s thing is to just put guys in different places and let them make plays. In Seattle we might have thrown 15-20 times a game so it made it hard to get off there. I prefer what we have in Detroit,” Tate said.
- Good news for Cardinals fans: the first prognosis on running back Andre Ellington‘s foot injury is that it’s a muscle injury, tweets Jay Glazer of FOX Sports. The team is still waiting on MRI results and a diagnosis from a foot specialist, however. If Ellington is sidelined, Jonathan Dwyer will presumably take the starting role with Stepfan Taylor and Robert Hughes in support.
- During last night’s pregame show, NBC’s Cris Collinsworth said that Julius Peppers was prepared to return to the Panthers before Packers came along with an offer he couldn’t refuse, writes Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk. “He was getting ready to go to Carolina, thinking he’d just go home and finish his career there,” Collinsworth said. “Then the Green Bay Packers called and said, ‘How’d you like to be a stand-up, 3-4 outside linebacker?’ And he said, ‘I’ve been waiting my whole life to do that.’” Retaining Peppers became quite the longshot for Carolina once Green Bay offered up a three-year, $26MM deal.
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap has the specifics on Alex Boone‘s new deal with the 49ers. The total contract value is $6MM over two years with another $2MM available in incentives. Those incentives are tied to being selected to the Pro Bowl and named first team All-NFL.
Minor Moves: Tuesday
Here are the latest minor transactions from around the NFL:
5:17pm:
- The Browns have cut offensive lineman Caylin Hauptmann with a failed physical designation, according to Brian McIntyre (via Twitter). That clears a roster spot for Vinston Painter, whose signing was noted below.
- The following players have been removed from their teams’ respective IR lists with injury settlements, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (all Twitter links): Ryan McKee (Chiefs), Larry Asante (Raiders), Greg Jenkins (Raiders), and Eric Ward (Titans). C.J. Davis (Seahawks) has also been removed from IR with a settlement, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.
4:44pm:
- The Jets have signed linebacker Jeremiah George and wideout Quincy Enunwa to their practice squad, the team announced today (via Twitter). New York selected the duo in the fifth and sixth rounds of this year’s draft, respectively.
4:13pm:
- The Panthers have signed former Jets wideout Stephen Hill to their practice squad, cutting linebacker D.J. Smith, the team announced today (Twitter link). According to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter), the Redskins will also interested in bringing Hill in for a workout, but Carolina offered him a deal.
- The Cardinals have added wideout Kevin Cone, defensive tackle Christian Tupou, and running back Dominique Williams to their practice squad, per Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com (via Twitter).
- Tight end Jerome Cunningham has signed with the Giants‘ practice squad, according to agent Howard Shatsky (via Twitter).
- The Chargers filled their practice squad by adding running back Marion Grice, who cleared waivers after being cut yesterday, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- The Cowboys have also filled their 10-man squad, adding offensive lineman John Wetzel and defensive back Jemea Thomas, according to Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter). Presumably, one of the 10 players on the unit will be cut tomorrow if the team intends to bring Michael Sam aboard.
- A.J. Jefferson of the Seahawks and Justice Cunningham of the Rams have both been removed from injured reserve lists with settlements, according to Caplan and Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter links).
3:28pm:
- According to Mike Klis of the Denver Post (via Twitter), the Browns are signing offensive lineman Vinston Painter off the Broncos‘ practice squad, which will open up a spot on the 10-man unit for long snapper Kevin McDermott, whose signing was noted below. Cleveland will need to make a corresponding roster move to clear room for Painter.
- The Redskins made a series of changes to their practice squad today, signing offensive lineman Braxston Cave and linebacker Jackson Jeffcoat. Linebacker Chaz Sutton and offensive lineman Tevita Stevens were cut.
- Offensive lineman Matt Patchan has been removed from the Buccaneers‘ injured reserve list with a settlement, says Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter).
1:23pm:
- A number of teams have filled their 10-man practice squads by adding a player. The Jaguars signed tight end Marcel Jensen, per John Oehser of Jaguars.com (via Twitter); the Bills signed tight end D.J. Tialavea, tweets Mike Rodak of ESPN.com; the Bengals signed wide receiver Cobi Hamilton, according to Coley Harvey of ESPN.com (via Twitter); and the Browns officially announced the signing of fullback Kiero Small, which had been previously reported by Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter).
- A pair of clubs also swapped in one player for another on their practice squads. The Dolphins signed defensive end Gerald Rivers and dropped defensive end D’Aundre Reed, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (via Twitter). And the Vikings signed offensive lineman Austin Wentworth to their squad to replace cornerback Kendall James, the team announced (via Twitter).
- The Broncos are also making an addition to their practice squad, in long snapper Kevin McDermott, according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post (via Twitter). But Denver already had a full 10-man unit, so we’ll have to wait to hear about the corresponding move.
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap and Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) provide the respective details for Ray McDonald‘s contract restructure with the 49ers and Glover Quin‘s reworked deal with the Lions.
- The Buccaneers intend to open up a roster spot by placing running back Charles Sims on their injured reserve list with the designation to return, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Teams can begin to use that IR spot as of 3:00pm central time today.
- Cornerback Bobby Felder has been removed from the Bills‘ injured reserve list after reaching a settlement with the team, tweets Joe Buscaglia of WGR 550.
Stephen Hill Works Out For Panthers
After being cut this weekend by the Jets, wide receiver Stephen Hill worked out today for the Panthers, as first reported by ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). Carolina also took a look at ex-Eagles wideout Kadron Boone today, per Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post. However, according to head coach Ron Rivera, the team doesn’t intend to sign either player at this point (link via Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer).
Hill, a former second-round pick, spent an underwhelming two years with the Jets, catching just 45 passes since being selected 43rd overall in 2012. However, he’s still just 23 years old, so he figures to draw interest from other clubs that still believe he has some upside.
The Panthers make some sense as a suitor for Hill, considering the team lost a handful of wideouts in the offseason, and is heading into the season with a group headed by rookie Kelvin Benjamin and veterans Jerricho Cotchery and Jason Avant. For now, it seems Carolina will stick with that group, though the team could readdress the position at some point.