Texans Claim T Geron Christian
While Morgan Moses had enough service time to head to free agency, the other tackle Washington cut Thursday did not. And the Texans will add a former third-round pick as a result.
Houston submitted a successful waiver claim for Geron Christian. The fourth-year veteran will be the latest notable name to join the Texans on what is now a one-year contract. The 2018 draftee’s deal, like most of the others the Texans have authorized this offseason, expires after the 2021 season.
A Louisville alum, Christian started six games for Washington at left tackle last season. The 6-foot-6 blocker has played in 24 over the course of his career, which began in a developmental role during the end of Washington’s Trent Williams era. Pro Football Focus graded Christian 60th overall among tackles in his 263-snap 2020 season.
Injuries have interfered with Christian’s career as well. An MCL tear sidelined him as a rookie, while another knee injury limited him to six games last season. Washington moved on, drafting Samuel Cosmi in Round 2 and signing Charles Leno as its presumptive Week 1 left tackle starter.
The Texans have their left tackle position checked off, with Laremy Tunsil anchoring the rebuilding team’s offensive line. On the right side, Houston has 2019 first-round pick Tytus Howard and longtime Patriots right tackle Marcus Cannon.
Seahawks Sign CB Tre Brown, Wrap Draft Class Deals
The Seahawks and Tre Brown agreed to terms on his four-year rookie deal, according to the team. Seattle now has its 2021 draft class under contract.
Of course, this proved a simpler task than in most cases. The Seahawks made just three picks this year. That marked the fewest in the NFL and eclipsed their five-man 1997 draft — headlined by top-six picks Shawn Springs and Walter Jones — for the fewest in franchise history.
A cornerback out of Oklahoma, Brown is ticketed to begin his career on the boundary. While the Seahawks have generally preferred tall corners on the outside under their current regime, the 5-foot-10 Brown will line up there once team drills commence. Brown, whom the Seahawks selected at No. 137 overall, intercepted three passes last season and played a regular role for the past three Sooners teams.
Brown joins second-round wide receiver D’Wayne Eskridge (Western Michigan) and sixth-round tackle Stone Forsythe (Florida) in the Seahawks’ 2021 draft trio. All three are signed through 2024.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/21/21
Today’s lower round signings:
Buffalo Bills
- DB Damar Hamlin (sixth round; Pitt)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- DT Jay Tufele (fourth round; USC)
49ers Cut Marqise Lee
Well, that was fast. On Friday, the 49ers released wide receiver Marqise Lee. In a related move, they’ve signed fellow wideout Bennie Fowler to take his place on the roster. 
The one-time Jaguars notable signed with the Niners on May 17. A few short days later, he finds himself looking for work once again. Lee made a decent impression on coaches during the 49ers’ rookie minicamp practices and was hoping to stick. It appeared to be a good landing spot for him, especially since he grew up in California and played his college ball at USC.
Between 2016 and 2017, Lee averaged about 60 receptions and 776 receiving yards. He went on to land a four-year, $38MM extension from Jacksonville, but that deal was cut short. Between knee injuries and the COVID opt-out, he’s seen just six games since the end of ’17.
Fowler, meanwhile, has spent the last two years with the Giants. He wasn’t on the field much in 2020, snagging just two receptions before a season-ending shoulder injury.
Browns Sign DT Tommy Togiai
The Browns have inked fourth-round pick Tommy Togiai, per a club announcement. With the defensive tackle in the fold, the Browns now have five of their 2021 selections under contract.
Togiai, a bit undersized at 6’1″ and 300 pounds, gets to stay local after wrapping up his career at Ohio State. In his final year on campus, Togiai notched 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. Those numbers don’t jump off the page, but he was one of the nation’s top-ranked DTs coming out of high school, so he has potential to outperform his draft slot.
Some college grads are eager to gas up the car and move somewhere new. That’s not the case for Togiai, who already feels at home.
“It’s great,” Togiai said (via Dan Labbe of Cleveland.com). “I love the state of Ohio, my time at Ohio State and Columbus, and now I get to go to another city in Cleveland. I’m excited to get up there. When I first made that decision to go to Ohio State, I never knew this would happen. I’m just excited to just get back to Ohio and get back to work.”
The Browns have just three unsigned rookies left in first rounder cornerback Greg Newsome II, second-round linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and third-round wide receiver Anthony Schwartz.
Alexander Johnson Signs RFA Tender
Days after Tim Patrick signed his restricted free agent tender, the other RFA the Broncos tendered at the second-round level followed suit. Alexander Johnson signed his tender Thursday.
Like Patrick, the middle linebacker is set to earn $3.384MM on the tender. Only one restricted free agent received a first-round tender this year — Rams cornerback Darious Williams — but several commanded the second-round price. Johnson is now signed for the 2021 season. Barring an extension, he will play for the tender amount. He is due to be an unrestricted free agent in 2022.
An unusual RFA, seeing as he will turn 30 later this year, Johnson has been a starter in Denver for most of Vic Fangio‘s two-season tenure. The Broncos signed the ex-Tennessee Volunteer in 2018 but did not deploy him as a starter until October 2019. Johnson immediately impacted the team’s run defense and kept the first-string gig throughout 2020 as well. Johnson made 124 tackles and forced two fumbles last season. Pro Football Focus viewed the 255-pound defender as a top-25 off-ball linebacker in 2020.
This figures to be a notable stretch for the Broncos at linebacker. After parting ways with Brandon Marshall in 2019, the Broncos have made Johnson and Josey Jewell their primary off-ball ‘backers. Both are going into contract years. The team also drafted Ohio State’s Baron Browning in Round 3 this year, but it would make sense if either Jewell or Johnson emerged on the team’s extension radar.
Johnson’s late NFL start may well work against him regarding earning potential, but a solid 2021 season would put him in line for at least a decent medium-length deal — be it via a Broncos extension or as an unrestricted free agent next year.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/20/21
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Atlanta Falcons
- Waived: TE Jack Batho
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: DT Treyvon Hester
Cleveland Browns
- Waived: TE Logan Markway
Denver Broncos
- Waived: QB Case Cookus
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: T Timon Parris
New England Patriots
- Signed: S Adrian Colbert, LS Wes Farnsworth
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/20/21
Here are the 2021 draftees to sign their rookie contracts Thursday:
Arizona Cardinals
- CB Marco Wilson (fourth round; Florida)
- S James Wiggins (seventh round; Cincinnati)
- C Michal Menet (seventh round; Penn State)
Dallas Cowboys
- LB Jabril Cox (fourth round; LSU)
- OT Josh Ball (fourth round; Marshall)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- TE Luke Farrell (fifth round; Ohio State)
Washington Cuts Morgan Moses, Geron Christian
After attempting to trade Morgan Moses, Washington will instead send its longtime right tackle to free agency. The team is releasing its six-year right tackle starter, Sam Fortier of the Washington Post tweets. Washington is also waiving tackle Geron Christian, according to the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala (on Twitter).
Rarely a player brought up here at Pro Football Rumors, Moses signed an extension in 2017 and has gone six straight seasons without missing a game. Moses’ relative anonymity came to an end this week, with Washington making him available for trade. No takers, however, will lead to a release.
Washington added two presumptive tackle starters over the past month, drafting Samuel Cosmi in the second round and signing longtime Bears left tackle Charles Leno. The WFT will save $7.74MM by cutting Moses, who will immediately become one of the top free agents available.
Pro Football Focus graded Moses as a top-20 tackle last season. While the advanced metrics site viewed Moses as a middle-of-the-road tackle from 2017-19, the 30-year-old blocker certainly proved dependable. As Trent Williams frequently missed starts and Washington cycled through tackles after Williams’ run ended in 2019, Moses continued to suit up for games. After finishing his rookie season on IR, the former third-round pick has made 96 straight starts.
A 2018 third-round pick, Christian started eight games at left tackle with Washington. Six of those came last season. Although a Brandon Scherff extension remains a goal for the defending NFC East champions, Washington’s new regime has rebooted the team’s tackle situation.
Patriots Bring Back RB Tyler Gaffney
Tyler Gaffney resurfaced in the NFL last year, parlaying a late-summer workout into a practice squad gig with the 49ers. The former minor league baseball player, however, will return to the NFL team with which he is most associated.
The Patriots are signing the veteran running back, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Pats employed Gaffney from 2014-17, picking him up off waivers after the Panthers cut him. New England will now give the 30-year-old back another opportunity.
A former 24th-round Pittsburgh Pirates draft choice, Gaffney has seen far more game action in baseball. Yet to play in an NFL regular-season game, the Stanford alum left football for farm-system life in 2018. He split time between the Pirates’ High-A and Double-A teams that year, slashing .291/.391/.470 with the Pirates’ High-A team before struggling with the higher-level ballclub. Following that season, Gaffney made the decision to return to football for a second time.
Although Gaffney collected two Super Bowl rings during his first stint with the Pats, his most notable football contributions came at Stanford. Gaffney rushed for 1,709 yards and 21 touchdowns as a senior in 2013, a season that came after he spent 2012 in the Pirates’ minor league system. The 49ers signed Gaffney in August but released him in January.