Minor NFL Transactions: 12/9/19
Today’s minor moves:
Chicago Bears
- Promoted: LB Devante Bond
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: OL Adam Pankey
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed off Patriots practice squad: Tyler Gauthier
Los Angeles Chargers
- Waived: DB Tevaughn Campbell
New York Jets
- Promoted: WR Jeff Smith
- Placed on IR: CB Kyron Brown
Bears’ Roquan Smith Done For Season
DEC. 9: It is indeed a torn pec for Smith, head coach Matt Nagy confirmed. Smith will head to IR, and his season is over. Nagy hopes to have Smith back in time for April’s offseason program.
DEC. 6: The Bears fear that linebacker Roquan Smith tore his pec in Thursday night’s win over the Cowboys, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter) hears. If the MRI confirms, it would likely knock Smith out for the remainder of the season.
Smith has been playing some of his best football as of late, including a Week 13 performance against the Lions that included 16 tackles and two sacks. If the season is over for Smith, he’ll finish out 2019 with 100 total tackles, the aforementioned two sacks (as an off-ball linebacker), and 701 snaps (85% to date).
As the No. 8 overall pick in the 2018 draft, Smith has two full years left on his rookie deal. After that, the Bears will have the option of keeping Smith for 2022, his fifth NFL season.
After last night’s win over Dallas, the Bears are 7-6 with a puncher’s chance at the playoffs. Their next game against the Packers will be hugely important – a win keeps their slim NFC North chances (currently 5%) alive. A loss, on the other hand, would more or less seal the division for Green Bay and end Chicago’s season. From the sound of it, they’ll be without Smith for the pivotal Week 15 matchup.
Bears Designate Akiem Hicks For Return
The Bears have designated Akiem Hicks for return from injured reserve, per a club announcement. Per league rules, the move will allow the defensive tackle to return sometime after the Bears’ Thursday night game against the Cowboys.
Hicks suited up and practiced on Sunday, for the first time since early October. The veteran hasn’t been on the field since suffering an elbow injury in London against the Raiders.
The Pro Bowl defensive tackle is a key cog in Chicago’s elite defense. Last year, he notched 7.5 sacks, a strong follow-up to his career high of 8.5 quarterback takedowns in 2017.
Hicks signed a four year, $48MM extension with the Bears in September of 2017, a deal that included $22MM fully guaranteed at signing. Next year, he’s slated to count for an $11.8MM cap hit, but the Bears could also cut him to save $8.8MM against $3MM in dead money.
At 6-6, the Bears are fighting to hold on to their paper-thin playoff hopes. At minimum, Hicks can solidify his place on the roster with a strong finish to the year. He’ll turn 31 in November of 2020, a year in which he’s slated to count for nearly 6% of the team’s total cap room.
Allen Robinson Expects Extension Talks
Allen Robinson sounds confident the he and the Bears will discuss an extension at some point. The sixth-year wide receiver has enjoyed his best season since 2015, averaging 70.8 yards per game and having become the Bears’ most reliable skill-position player. The 27-year-old wideout sounds willing to wait, however. He is signed through the 2020 season.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/30/19
Here are Saturday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Promoted from practice squad: G Parker Ehinger
- Waived: C Jake Brendel
Chicago Bears
- Signed off Broncos’ practice squad: OL Corey Levin
- Signed off Raiders’ practice squad: TE Eric Saubert
- Placed on IR: DB Sherrick McManis, TE Adam Shaheen
Miami Dolphins
- Promoted from practice squad: S Montre Hartage
- Waived: CB Xavier Crawford
New York Giants
- Promoted from practice squad: LS Colin Holba
- Placed on IR: LS Zak DeOssie
Washington Redskins
- Promoted from practice squad: LB Chris Odom
- Waived: LB Carroll Phillips
Injury Notes: Redmond, Moore, McManis, Mack
The Bengals season of bad luck just continues getting worse. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com, the team fears offensive lineman Alex Redmond suffered a torn biceps during warmups for yesterday’s game. If true, the already depleted Cincinnati offensive line will have to move forward with another man down.
Signed as an undrafted free agent in 2016, Redmond worked his way onto the Bengals roster and eventually earned a starting spot along the team’s front. In 2018, Redmond started 15 games for Cincinnati and was expected to be the team’s starting right guard entering the season. A four game suspension for violating the league’s PEDs policy and a series of injuries, however, have limited him to just two starts on the year.
Here’s some more injury notes from around the league:
- Defensive end Damontre Moore suffered a fractured forearm in the 49ers dominating 37-8 victory over the Packers on Sunday Night, according to Matt Maioco of NBC Sports Bay Area. Head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters that Moore’s season was over and that the team would add defensive lineman Jeremiah Valoaga from the practice squad to take his roster spot. Moore was one of a handful of players in the now defunct Alliance of American Football (AAF) signed by NFL teams after the AAF season concluded. The 49ers originally released Moore at the start of the season, but signed him a couple weeks ago to deal with injuries along their defensive line. He accrued five tackles, one quarterback hit, and a forced fumble over two games prior to his injury.
- Bears brass fear defensive back and special teams ace Sherrick McManis suffered a season ending groin injury in Sunday’s victory over the Giants, according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune. McManis has appeared in 131 games over a ten-year career as one of the better special teams players in football. Last season, the Bears relied on McManis for rotational depth in their secondary as well. It appears the team will need to find a replacement for the versatile veteran.
- Colts head coach Frank Reich revealed that running back Marlon Mack will not play this week, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. The news does not come as a surprise. Mack suffered a fractured right hand in Indianapolis’ Week 11 victory over the Jaguars and was expected to miss several weeks of action. Mack had been one of the Colts most dynamic weapons. The South Florida alum was averaging 4.5 yards per carry and recorded 938 yards from scrimmage over the team’s first ten games.
Bears' Bobby Massie To Miss Time
- The Bears will be without their right tackle for a bit. Bobby Massie suffered a high ankle sprain against the Giants and will miss a few weeks, Rapoport tweets. This is Massie’s fourth season as Chicago’s starting right tackle; he re-signed this offseason on a four-year extension. Massie has only missed two games in his Bears tenure.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/21/19
Today’s practice squad updates:
Chicago Bears
- Signed: DE Dewayne Hendrix
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: S A.J. Howard
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: RB John Kelly
New England Patriots
- Signed: DE Tashawn Bower
New York Jets
- Signed: OL Ryan Crozier
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: C J.C. Hassenauer
- Released: TE Kevin Rader
Washington Redskins
- Signed: LB Chris Odom, DL Jojo Wicker
Nagy Does Not Intend To Bench Trubisky
- Mitchell Trubisky was a full participant at Bears practice Wednesday, despite being removed from Sunday night’s game with a hip injury. Matt Nagy said he does not intend to bench his starter and plans to play him this week against the Giants. “We want him to be out there this week as the starter,” Nagy said, via J.J. Stankevitz of NBC Sports Chicago. “I’m hoping that’s the case. … These types of injuries, you get to a point where they are literally day to day and it becomes about where you’re at with the pain and how we manage that.”
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/20/19
Here are Wednesday’s minor moves:
Chicago Bears
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Jesper Horsted
Cleveland Browns
- Promoted from practice squad: S J.T. Hassell
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed off Colts’ practice squad: CB Deante Burton
- Placed on IR: CB Anthony Brown
Miami Dolphins
- Activated from IR: LB Andrew Van Ginkel
- Promoted from practice squad: DT Gerald Willis