Xavier McKinney Activated From IR
DECEMBER 31: It only took two days into the 21-day practice window for the Giants to activate McKinney. McKinney should resume his starting role next to Love, sending Pinnock back to the bench after five weeks of substitute responsibilities. It’s unclear, though, whether or not McKinney will also resume his signal-calling duties on defense for New York, duties Love took over when McKinney was placed on IR.
To make room for McKinney on the active roster, the Giants waived wide receiver David Sills. Sills has started five games this year at wideout for New York but only contributed 11 catches for 106 yards in nine total games. In addition to those corresponding roster moves, the Giants promoted tight end Chris Myarick and cornerback Zyon Gilbert from the practice squad as standard gameday elevations for tomorrow’s matchup against the Colts.
DECEMBER 29: Xavier McKinney may make a late-season return for the Giants, after all. The young safety will return to practice Thursday, Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post tweets.
The Giants have been without McKinney since their Week 9 bye, during which the starter suffered a broken hand in an ATV accident. McKinney is not expected to play against the Colts this week, but the Giants will get a look to see if he can contribute in Week 18 and/or in the playoffs. In designating McKinney to return from the reserve/NFI list, the Giants will have three weeks to activate him.
A 2020 second-round pick out of Alabama, McKinney has dealt with injuries during his first and third NFL seasons. He missed most of his rookie year because of a broken foot suffered that August. The ATV accident this year has sidelined him for the Giants’ past seven games. With the team being without top cornerback Adoree’ Jackson for much of that span, the Giants’ secondary has faced tall tasks weekly.
Jason Pinnock is expected to remain the starter alongside Julian Love against the Colts. If the Giants beat the Colts, they are assured of a playoff berth — which would be the franchise’s first in six years. Brian Daboll did not guarantee McKinney would miss this matchup, but it sounds like Week 18 is a better bet for a return to action. McKinney’s accident occurred in Mexico. He had pins removed from his fingers earlier this month but will wear a contraption (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Dan Duggan) upon returning.
McKinney has made 28 career starts, breaking through last season with a five-interception campaign. Pro Football Focus has not viewed his 2022 work on that level, slotting him 74th among safeties — behind Pinnock — but the former No. 36 overall pick remains a key part of a Giants secondary that already looked thin before this season’s run of injuries. The team rostered Jabrill Peppers and Logan Ryan alongside McKinney over the past two years; both are now elsewhere.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/31/22
Today’s roster moves heading into gameday:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed to active roster: WR Andre Baccellia
- Promoted from practice squad: LS Hunter Bradley, S Josh Thomas
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed to active roster: S Micah Abernathy
- Activated from IR: OL Matt Hennessy
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Josh Ali
- Placed on IR: T Chuma Edoga, S Jovante Moffatt
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed to active roster: QB Anthony Brown
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Andy Isabella, DT Rayshad Nichols
Carolina Panthers
- Activated from IR: WR Andre Roberts
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Josh Norman, C Sam Tecklenburg
Chicago Bears
- Promoted from practice squad: LB DeMarquis Gates, CB Greg Stroman
Detroit Lions
- Promoted from practice squad: S Brady Breeze
Green Bay Packers
- Promoted from practice squad: K Ramiz Ahmed, RB Tyler Goodson
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Keke Coutee, LB Segun Olubi
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted from practice squad: T Coy Cronk
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed to active roster: QB Chase Garbers
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Ike Brown, T Sebastian Gutierrez
Los Angeles Rams
- Activated from IR: T Chandler Brewer
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Jared Pinkney
- Waived: G Bobby Evans
Miami Dolphins
- Signed to active roster: T Kendall Lamm
- Promoted from practice squad: DT Josiah Bronson, LB Brennan Scarlett
- Placed on IR: DT Justin Zimmer
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted from practice squad: G Kyle Hinton, DL T.J. Smith
New England Patriots
- Signed to active roster: CB Tae Hayes
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Quandre Mosely, TE Matt Sokol
- Placed on IR: CB Jack Jones
New Orleans Saints
- Promoted from practice squad: G Josh Andrews, WR Keith Kirkwood
New York Jets
- Activated from IR: T Cedric Ogbuehi
- Promoted from practice squad: QB Chris Streveler
- Placed on IR: WR Jeff Smith
Philadelphia Eagles
- Promoted from practice squad: P Brett Kern
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Promoted from practice squad: DT Renell Wren
San Francisco 49ers
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Tay Martin, DL Kemoko Turay
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed to active roster: LB Vi Jones
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Cade Johnson, TE Tyler Mabry
- Placed on IR: WR Marquise Goodwin
Washington Commanders
- Signed to active roster: DT David Bada
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Troy Apke, RB Jaret Patterson
- Waived: DT Daniel Wise
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/31/22
Only practice squad move heading into the New Year:
Detroit Lions
- Placed on practice squad IR: T Obinna Eze
Browns Place LB Jordan Kunaszyk On IR
The Browns are down another linebacker. The team announced that they’ve placed linebacker Jordan Kunaszyk on injured reserve, ending the player’s season.
Kunaszyk suffered a hand injury during Cleveland’s loss to the Saints last week. He’ll now join fellow linebackers Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Jacob Phillips, Sione Takitaki, and Anthony Walker Jr. on injured reserve.
After spending the previous two seasons with Washington, Kunaszyk joined the Browns this past offseason. He was among the team’s final roster cuts, but after earning a spot on the practice squad, he quickly found a role for himself on the 53-man roster. The 26-year-old ultimately got into 15 games (two starts) for the Browns, compiling 22 tackles and one forced fumble.
To take the open roster spot, the Browns signed linebacker Tae Davis from the practice squad to the active roster. Davis was promoted for each of Cleveland’s past three games, collecting four tackles over that span. The former UDFA started his career with the Giants, including a rookie campaign where he had 33 tackles.
The Browns made two additional moves as they prepare for tomorrow’s game against the Commanders, promoting running back John Kelly Jr. and defensive tackle Roderick Perry II from the practice squad.
Colts Place DE Yannick Ngakoue On IR
Yannick Ngakoue‘s season has come to an end. Mike Chappell of FOX59/CBS4 Sports in Indy reports (via Twitter) that the Colts have placed the defensive end on injured reserve.
Per Zak Keefer of The Athletic (on Twitter), Ngakoue suffered a throat injury during Monday’s loss to the Chargers. The defensive lineman practiced this week, but after feeling some pain, he met with the team doctor. It was ultimately determined the player will have to undergo a “procedure.”
Ngakoue has bounced around the NFL in recent years, spending time with the Jaguars, Vikings, Ravens, Raiders, and Colts since the 2019 season. He was traded from Las Vegas to Indy this past offseason for cornerback Rock Ya-Sin and proceeded to start all 15 of his appearances for his new team. The 27-year-old finished his season with 9.5 sacks and 16 QB hits. Despite the solid numbers, Pro Football Focus only ranked Ngakoue 109th among 121 qualifying edge defenders. The defensive end is set to hit free agency following this season.
Kwity Paye and Dayo Odeyingbo soak up plenty of DE snaps in Indy, but someone like Ben Banogu or Khalid Kareem could see more snaps with Ngakoue out of the lineup. The Colts also signed defense end Kameron Cline to the active roster today (per the team’s Twitter).
Eagles Activate CB Avonte Maddox From IR
Out since Week 9, Avonte Maddox is on his way back for the Eagles. The NFC-leading team designated the fifth-year cornerback for return from IR on Wednesday.
Maddox sustained an ankle injury against the Texans last month but now has a three-week span to return to the Eagles’ 53-man roster. After activating defensive end Janarius Robinson on Tuesday, the Eagles have four injury activations remaining. Robert Quinn stands to account for one of those; Maddox is on track to claim another spot.
Tied to a three-year, $22.5MM contract agreed to in November 2021, Maddox is now the Eagles’ longest-tenured defensive back. Drafted in the fourth round by a Super Bowl-winning team with an experienced secondary, Maddox carved out a role for himself over the course of his rookie contract and now joins Darius Slay and James Bradberry as corners tied to veteran deals. Those pacts pair with C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps‘ rookie accords.
Maddox, 26, returning this week would mean he would rejoin the league’s No. 1-ranked pass defense. While the Eagles have gotten by against the pass without the 26-year-old slot patroller, his return will benefit the 12-1 team. Pro Football Focus graded Maddox’s early-season work well, placing him just inside the top 40 at corner. In six games this season, Maddox was seeing action at a career-high rate. He logged 81% of the snaps during the six games he played this season. Maddox has been a constant for the Eagles since debuting, having played between 65% and 75% of Philly’s defensive snaps from 2018-21.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/30/22
Friday’s minor moves around the league:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Placed on IR: RT La’El Collins (story)
Tennessee Titans
- Waived: OLB Sam Okuayinonu, CB John Reid
Broncos Place TE Greg Dulcich On IR
The Broncos’ thoroughly underwhelming passing offense will be shorthanded to close out the season. Tight end Greg Dulcich has been placed on IR, per a team announcement. 
The move officially ends his rookie campaign, one which was cut short by a lingering hamstring issue. The injury required an IR stint to begin the campaign, and delayed his NFL debut until Week 6; he re-aggravated it during the team’s disastrous Christmas Day loss to the Rams, which marked the final straw for head coach Nathaniel Hackett‘s tenure. In the 10 contests he played this year, the UCLA product had established himself as Denver’s top option at the position, logging a 75% snap share.
Dulcich quickly became one of Russell Wilson‘s preferred pass-catching options, receiving eight or more targets on four occasions this season. The third-rounder will end the year with a total of 33 receptions, 411 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Considering the fact that that total comes with seven missed games and within the league’s lowest-scoring offense, there will be plenty of optimism surrounding Dulcich moving forward.
His selection in this year’s draft came, of course, after 2019 first-rounder Noah Fant was included in the package Denver sent Seattle for Wilson. The latter move led to expectations for Albert Okwuegbunam to take on a more prominent pass-catching role. However, the 24-year-old has made only six appearances (and no starts) in 2022, and recorded just seven scoreless catches. That does not bode well for his prospects in 2023, the final year of his rookie contract.
Dulcich was one of only two Broncos players to record multiple touchdown catches during this lost season. The other – wideout Jerry Jeudy – is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against the Chiefs. The latter is expected to be available, though, interim HC Jerry Rosburg said. With Dulcich sidelined, Denver will turn to Okwuegbunam and the likes of Eric Saubert, Eric Tomlinson and Andrew Beck at the tight end position for the next two weeks.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/30/22
Today’s taxi squad moves:
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: WR Calvin Jackson Jr.
- Waived (injury designation): WR DaeSean Hamilton
Commanders Place LB Jon Bostic On IR
It looks like Jon Bostic will finish a second straight season on IR. The Commanders moved the veteran linebacker to their injured list Friday, sidelining him for four games.
A pectoral injury will sideline Bostic, who has played in all 15 Washington games this season. It is unknown if Bostic suffered a significant pec injury, like he did last season. His previous such issue cost him 13 games in 2021.
This further depletes a Washington linebacking corps that is already without Cole Holcomb, the team’s top tackler last season. The contract-year defender has been out since Week 7 and has undergone foot surgery. Holcomb’s 446 snaps are still the second-most among Washington linebackers, behind only Jamin Davis‘ total. Bostic, who signed a one-year deal for the league minimum to return to D.C., has been on the field for 263 defensive plays this season.
The Commanders have used the 10th-year defender as a part-time starter; Bostic has started in five of the team’s past seven games and has totaled 25 tackles this season. Bostic, 31, has been with the team for the past four seasons. He made his way back to Washington late this summer, after his training camp agreement with the Saints did not lead to a spot on New Orleans’ 53-man roster.
Having seen game action for five teams since being a second-round Bears draftee in 2013, Bostic has made Washington his primary NFL stop. The ex-Florida Gator has started 40 games for Washington over the past four seasons. Washington also signed linebacker De’Jon Harris from its practice squad and signed cornerback Troy Apke to its taxi squad.