NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/18/23
Today’s only practice squad transactions:
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: OL Brent Laing
New England Patriots
- Signed: CB William Hooper, RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn
Hooper, an undrafted rookie out of Northwestern State, originally signed with the Packers after a rookie minicamp invitation. When he failed to make the initial 53-man roster in Green Bay, the Patriots swooped in, signing the young defensive back in mid-September. Two weeks later, Hooper was a free agent again, not signing with another team until late-November when he joined the Cardinals’ practice squad. After Arizona released him about a week ago, Hooper will rejoin the Patriots as a member of the practice squad, once again.
Chiefs Place WR Skyy Moore On IR
The Chiefs snapped a two-game losing skid on Sunday, but the team’s pass-catching corps will be shorthanded through the remainder of the regular season. Wideout Skyy Moore has been placed on injured reserve due to a knee injury, per a team announcement. 
As a result of the move, Moore is now guaranteed to miss at least the next four weeks. Kansas City will need to reach the divisional round of the playoffs to have the second-year pass-catcher available at the earliest point he will be eligible to return. Moore’s absence will leave the defending champions shorthanded at the receiver position, one which has been a sore spot during the year.
Kanas City has struggled to establish a consistent No. 2 option in the passing game to complement tight end Travis Kelce. Moore is one of many recent draft investments made at the position aimed at rectifying that, having been selected in the second round last April. He occupied a rotational role as a rookie, but his workload has increased significantly in Year 2 with a 53% snap share.
Moore has not managed to carve out a substantial role in the team’s offense, however, having drawn more than five targets only once this season. The Western Michigan product recorded 70 yards and a touchdown in Week 2, but he has not posted more than 42 yards in a game or found the end zone since then. Overall, he has made 21 catches for 244 yards, making him one of several players to have posted middling numbers for Kansas City.
The team still sits fifth in the league in passing yards per game, though, due in large part to Kelce’s continued high-end play. Second-round rookie Rashee Rice has also come on strong as of late, totaling 334 yards and three touchdowns on 32 receptions over the past four game. With Moore out of the picture for the time being, the Kelce-Rice pairing will be leaned on more heavily as Kansas City continues to push for the top seed in the AFC.
Yesterday’s win improved the Chiefs’ record to 9-5, putting them one game behind the Dolphins and two behind the Ravens for the conference’s only bye during the wild-card round. As things stand, Kansas City would need to at least begin the postseason without Moore in the lineup, however. The team currently has six IR activations remaining.
Texans Claim DT Teair Tart Off Waivers
Teair Tart saw his time with the Titans come to an end last week, but he will remain in the AFC South. The veteran defensive tackle has been claimed off waivers by the Texans, per the transactions wire. 
Tart was playing on a $4.3MM RFA tender this season, having established himself as a key member of Tennessee’s defensive interior. Tension with the team resulted in his dismissal, however, leaving teams around the league free to add him by putting in a claim. Houston sat around the middle of the waiver priority with a record of 8-6, meaning many other clubs elected to pass on him.
Tart, 26, joined the Titans as a UDFA and he has played all 45 of his career games with the franchise. Due to reach free agency this offseason, though, he will now have the opportunity to boost his stock late in 2023. Tennessee – a team which, in the absence of Tart and fellow D-lineman Jeffery Simmons – allowed 148 yards on the ground yesterday in an overtime loss to Houston. That game eliminated the Titans from playoff contention, but the Texans are still in the mix for both the AFC South title and a wild-card berth.
Houston has posted middling numbers in both total and scoring defense so far this season, but the unit has held up well against the run. The Texans have allowed an average of 93.5 yards per game on the ground, which ranks sixth in the NFL. Houston held Derrick Henry and the Titans to just 66 rushing yards yesterday, showcasing the team’s strength up front without Tart in the lineup. His addition will provide a starting-caliber option up front, though.
The Florida International alum has posted 21 tackles and one sack this season, one in which he has missed time due to injuries. Tart generated a strong PFF evaluation last year en route to earning a raise through the RFA tender, but his 2023 grade (57.6) falls in line with his other NFL campaigns. Improving on that figure late in the season could help his market in the offseason while also boosting the Texans’ defensive front.
Chargers To Sign Will Grier Off Patriots’ Practice Squad, Waive Max Duggan
In the wake of losing Justin Herbert for the season, the Chargers are set to make alterations to their quarterback depth chart. Easton Stick is in place as the starter, but a new backup option has arrived. 
Los Angeles is signing Will Grier off the Patriots’ practice squad, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. In a corresponding move, he reports, the Chargers are waiving rookie Max Duggan. The latter will be retained via the practice squad if he goes unclaimed.
Grier was let go by the Cowboys during roster cutdowns, which led to a brief stint on the Bengals’ taxi squad. Jake Browning won out the competition for Cincinnati’s backup role, however, which led Grier to New England as one of several experiments under center. While New England has struggled to find consistency at the QB spot, the 28-year-old has not seen the field this season. The Patriots did not see Grier or undrafted rookie Malik Cunningham as viable starting options, and both are now out of the organization.
Grier was one of many backup/third-string passers to be waived by the Patriots earlier in the year, and he will now join the Chargers in search of potential playing time. The West Virginia product has seen regular season action only twice in his career, during his rookie campaign with the Panthers in 2019. He will look to play his way into a deal with Los Angeles or another interested team this offseason by undertaking a late-season change of scenery.
Duggan enjoyed an impressive final season in college, leading TCU to the national title game last season. His performance with the Horned Frogs only led him to be drafted in the seventh round, however, and the 22-year-old was waived during roster cutdowns. He has remained in the Chargers’ organization since, and that will remain the case presuming no teams put in a claim for him.
Stick threw three touchdowns but also had one interception and a pair of fumbles in the Chargers’ primetime blowout loss to the Raiders in his first career start. That game marked the end of head coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco‘s tenures, and it has now prompted a new face being brought in at the QB spot.
Matt Patricia Replaces Sean Desai As Eagles’ Defensive Play-Caller
The Eagles are in the midst of a two-game losing streak that has put their chances of winning the NFC East, to say nothing of securing the conference’s No. 1 seed, in serious jeopardy. Philadelphia has surrendered at least 33 points in each of its last three games, and as it seeks to right the ship, it is making a major change on the defensive side of the ball.
Per Jay Glazer of Fox Sports, senior defensive assistant Matt Patricia has replaced Sean Desai as defensive coordinator, which includes assuming Desai’s play-calling duties (though Desai will remain with the Eagles in a different capacity). As Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports, a team source has confirmed the move, but Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, among others, says that Desai will retain the formal title of defensive coordinator. Rapoport adds that Desai will head to the coaches’ booth while Patricia will man the sidelines, and all reporters are in agreement that Patricia will take over as defensive play-caller.
Patricia’s lengthy stint as the Patriots’ defensive coordinator from 2012-17 preceded a forgettable tenure as the Lions’ head coach from 2018-20. He rejoined the Pats the following year and was curiously chosen to serve as New England’s offensive play-caller in 2022, a decision that was criticized at the time and that only got worse from there. This offseason, he was a candidate to join Sean Payton‘s first Broncos staff as defensive coordinator, though he eventually wound up in Philadelphia after Denver went in a different direction.
According to Rapoport, as relayed by Kevin Patra of NFL.com, Patricia has served as a consultant for all three phases of the Eagles’ operation this year despite his official title of senior defensive assistant, and he has earned the respect of the players. By contrast, Brooks Kubena of The Athletic reported just yesterday that safety Kevin Byard had persuaded Desai to allow the secondary to handle its own scouting report of the Seahawks, the club’s upcoming opponent.
Desai was the Bears’ defensive coordinator in 2021, and Chicago finished that season sixth in terms of total defense, though it’s points-per-game and defensive DVOA rankings were not as impressive. When head coach Matt Nagy was let go at the end of the 2021 season, his defensive-minded replacement, Matt Eberflus, elected not to retain Desai, who subsequently became associate head coach and defensive assistant for the Seahawks.
Still, Desai’s one season of relative success as defensive coordinator and his long track record as a defensive assistant at the collegiate and NFL levels made him a popular DC target in the 2023 hiring cycle, and he took interviews with five different clubs. He ultimately chose the Eagles and became the replacement for Jonathan Gannon, who left Philadelphia to take the Cardinals’ head coaching gig.
Unfortunately for Desai, the Eagles presently rank in the bottom-10 in terms of both total defense and points-per-game after finishing in the top-10 in both categories in 2022 (Philadelphia actually surrendered the second-fewest yards per game in 2022). While none of Patricia’s Detroit defenses were successful, and while Bill Belichick had a major role in the quality New England defenses that Patricia coordinated, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni clearly felt a change was in order.
And Sirianni is no stranger to such a move (although he did tell reporters at the beginning of this week that no coaching changes were on the horizon, as McLane observes). During Sirianni’s first season as Philadelphia’s HC in 2021, he ceded offensive play-calling duties to then-offensive coordinator Shane Steichen, which triggered dramatic improvements from quarterback Jalen Hurts and the offense as a whole.
Patricia will have a chance to engineer a similar turnaround beginning tomorrow night, when the Eagles take on a Seattle club that may be without QB1 Geno Smith. Philadelphia faces the Giants twice and the Cardinals to close out the season, and those teams have fielded two of the league’s worst offenses in 2023.
Steelers Release LB Tariq Carpenter Following Arrest
The Steelers woes at linebacker this year will now extend to the practice squad as Tariq Carpenter has been released from the 16-man roster. According to Brooke Pryor of ESPN, Carpenter’s departure is a result of his arrest earlier today for a simple assault charge.
Carpenter was originally drafted to Green Bay in the seventh round of the 2022 draft as a safety out of Georgia Tech. As a rookie, Carpenter appeared in 14 games after missing the Packers’ first three. While near the end of the year, Carpenter found a few snaps on defense, he was almost exclusively utilized on special teams. He failed to make the 53-man roster in Green Bay this year and, three days later, signed with the Steelers’ practice squad unit.
This year, Pittsburgh has seen a litany of issues stack up at the linebacker position. They currently have three off-ball linebackers on injured reserve in Kwon Alexander, Chapelle Russell, and Cole Holcomb. The team liked Carpenter as a linebacker and, for three games in the middle of the year, called him up as a standard gameday elevation for depth. During the three games in which he made an appearance, Carpenter only appeared on special teams.
The Steelers recently signed Blake Martinez, who had recently come out of an early retirement, off of the Panthers’ practice squad and have been relying more on practice squad linebacker Kyron Johnson lately, so it seems that Carpenter’s absence won’t cause too much of an issue. Still, in a year with so much attrition at the inside linebacker position, any loss of depth is a hit.
Packers Activate CB Eric Stokes
Eric Stokes has continued to miss game action after returning to practice, but that could change tomorrow. The Packers announced on Saturday that the former first-round corner has been activated from injured reserve. 
Stokes returned to practice late last month, opening his 21-day activation window. He would have reverted to season-ending IR in the event he was not brought back into the fold within that timeframe. Instead, Green Bay will now have a former starter available for just the second time this season in time for Week 15.
The Georgia alum saw his first-team role disappear in 2023 with Rasul Douglas being used on the perimeter. The latter was dealt to the Bills at the trade deadline, however, clearing a path for Stokes to reclaim a starting spot. He logged only four special teams snaps in his lone action of the season so far (Week 7), so it will be worth watching how large of a workload he is given upon his return to action.
Fellow corner Jaire Alexander has been out for more than one month, so Stokes’ return will be a welcomed sight. Injuries have been a concern for Stokes during his relatively brief Green Bay tenure, and a healthy finish to the campaign would be signficant. The 24-year-old required foot and knee surgeries this offseason, and his most recent absence was caused by a hamstring injury. Stokes struggled last season after an encouraging rookie campaign, so his ability to rebound down the stretch in 2023 will be a key storyline to watch.
The Packers need to make a decision on Stokes’ fifth-year option this spring. Picking up the 2025 option would lock him into a salary of $11.28MM for that season, a costly figure given his play to date and the CB investment (four years, $84MM) already made in Alexander last offseason. For the time being, however, Green Bay will look to use Stokes to boost a defense which already ranks top-10 against the pass.
Sitting at 6-7 on the year, the team is in play for an NFC wild-card spot. Green Bay’s push for a postseason berth at the start of the Jordan Love era will depend in large part on the play of the first-year starting quarterback, of course, but Stokes could have a notable role to play as well. The Packers have six IR activations remaining.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/16/23
Today’s minor transactions and standard gameday elevations for the Sunday slate of games:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from IR: G Elijah Wilkinson
Atlanta Falcons
- Placed on IR: DT Kentavius Street
Baltimore Ravens
- Elevated: OLB Jeremiah Moon
Carolina Panthers
- Elevated: G Gabe Jackson, OL J.D. DiRenzo
Chicago Bears
- Signed to active roster: LB DeMarquis Gates
Cleveland Browns
- Elevated: S Tanner McCalister, LB Charlie Thomas III
Dallas Cowboys
- Elevated: DT Carl Davis, RB Malik Davis
Denver Broncos
- Elevated: NT Tyler Lancaster, QB Ben DiNucci
Detroit Lions
- Elevated: K Michael Badgley, DE Bruce Irvin
Green Bay Packers
- Elevated: RB Kenyan Drake, WR Bo Melton
Houston Texans
- Activated from IR: K Ka’imi Fairbairn
- Elevated: WR Steven Sims, LB Garret Wallow
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed to active roster: S Deon Bush
- Elevated: NT Mike Pennel, RB Deneric Prince
- Waived: LB Darius Harris
Los Angeles Rams
- Elevated: WR Tyler Johnson
Miami Dolphins
- Elevated: CB Ethan Bonner, RB Darrynton Evans
New England Patriots
- Elevated: RB Kevin Harris
New Orleans Saints
- Elevated: WR Marquez Callaway, T Cameron Erving
New York Giants
- Waived: S Bobby McCain
New York Jets
- Signed to active roster: OL Xavier Newman
- Elevated: DE Jalyn Holmes, LB Marcelino McCrary-Ball
- Placed on IR: LB Zaire Barnes
San Francisco 49ers
- Elevated: DT T.Y. McGill, RB Jeremy McNichols
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Elevated: S Richard LeCounte, CB Derrek Pitts
Tennessee Titans
- Elevated: DL Marlon Davidson, LB JoJo Domann
Washington Commanders
- Elevated: RB Jonathan Williams
Wilkinson returned to practice this week, and will be eligible to return to the lineup on Sunday given today’s activation. The addition of a starter up front will be welcomed by the Cardinals by giving them stability at the left guard spot in particular and by providing an upgrade in protection ahead of a matchup against the stout 49ers defensive front in general. The Cardinals now have four IR activations remaining.
Street was acquired from the Eagles at the trade deadline after he failed to find playing time this season. The 27-year-old has started all five of his appearances in Atlanta, however, racking up 14 tackles (including four for a loss) and one sack. Those numbers will help his free agent market this offseason, but a pectoral injury will sideline him for at least four weeks. If the Falcons fall short of the postseason, therefore, Street will not return in 2023.
McCain was a full-time starter with the Commanders over the past two seasons, but his release led to a one-year Giants agreement. The former fifth-rounder has 87 starts to his name, but he has been unable to carve out a role in New York’s secondary, playing only 19 defensive snaps. McCain has logged a 50% snap share on special teams, however, so his absence in the third phase will be notable if he is claimed off waivers or signed as a free agent by an interested team.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/16/23
Saturday’s lone taxi squad move:
Denver Broncos
- Signed: OLB Ronnie Perkins
Perkins was waived earlier in the week despite the fact that fellow edge rusher Nik Bonitto had already been ruled out. The move seemed to mark an end to Perkins’ tenure in Denver, which began after his Patriots exit earlier in the season. Instead, the former second-rounder (who made eight tackles in five games with the Broncos) will remain in the organization for the time being.
Titans Waive DL Teair Tart
DECEMBER 16: The move is now official, per a team announcement. Tart will hit the waiver wire instead of seeing his RFA contract expire at the end of the season. It will be interesting to see how much interest is shown in him (either via teams putting in a claim or pursing him as a free agent). To fill Tart’s spot, Tennessee promoted wideout Mason Kinsey to the 53-man roster. The latter has played five games across his three seasons in the NFL, all with the Titans.
DECEMBER 15: Tension between the Titans and Teair Tart will result in an unceremonious exit. The veteran defensive lineman has been ruled out for Week 15 due to personal (rather than injury-related) reasons.
Veteran Titans beat writer Paul Kuharsky first reported Tennessee was set to move on from Tart after “season-long issues reached a breaking point.” Indeed, ESPN’s Turron Davenport confirms Tart has played his last game with the franchise. The 26-year-old will now head to waivers in a move which creates no dead money charge.
Tart joined the Titans as a UDFA in 2020, and he played sparingly during his rookie season. Since then, however, he has established himself as a key member of Tennessee’s defensive line rotation. The 26-year-old logged a snap share of 47% in the 2021 and ’22 seasons. His level of play in the latter campaign earned him a second-round RFA tender, and signing it locked him into a $4.3MM salary.
After Tart set new career highs in several categories last year, expectations were high for a follow-up and a resultant boost in free agent value. As Kuharsky notes, however, the Florida International alum’s conditioning and effort level have been a sore spot during the campaign. With his contract status looming over his immediate future, Tart has racked up 21 tackles (including eight for a loss) along with one sack while seeing an identical snap share to the past two seasons. Those figures have resulted in a PFF grade of 57.6, a stark regression from his career-best evaluation in 2022.
While the Titans’ run defense suffered in the games Tart missed, his absence was not as impactful as expected given his previous performances. Between that fact, and the team’s status as presumed sellers ahead of the trade deadline, Tart was floated as a trade candidate. No takers emerged on that front, but interested parties can now add him by putting in a claim. If he passes through waivers, Tart will be a free agent.
Today’s news leaves Tennessee without both Tart and All-Pro Jeffery Simmons along the defensive interior; the latter is set to miss a second straight game due to injury. Kyle Peko, meanwhile, is out for the season. Especially given the decision to move on from Tart, yesterday’s additions of Quinton Bohanna and Keondre Coburn to provide healthy bodies along the D-line make sense.
While the latter two are set to make their Titans debuts this week, Tart will turn his attention to his next chapter. A rebound in terms of performance with his next team, should he latch onto an active roster to close out the year, will set him up for free agency for the first time in his career.