Four Teams Tried To Claim Jamon Brown
New Giants guard Jamon Brown was a popular target on the NFL waiver wire, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The Bears, Packers, Ravens, and Titans all tried to put in a claim for him, Yates hears. Those clubs were unable to land him, however, as the Giants had top priority. 
Brown served as the Rams’ starting right guard in 2017 slate and the former third-round pick started 30 games for the team dating back to the 2015 season. However, a suspension sidetracked his run in Los Angeles. With this kind of interest from at least five different clubs, it’s a bit surprising that the Rams were unable to find a suitable trade for Brown and recoup a future seventh-round pick, at minimum.
The Ravens, in particular, could use the offensive line help. Currently, they list four offensive linemen on their injury report, as Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets: left tackle Ronnie Stanley (foot/ankle), right tackle James Hurst (back), left guard Alex Lewis (neck), and reserve guard/center Bradley Bozeman (calf).
The guard has a reasonable cap number of $1.871MM on his expiring contract, so the Giants are on the hook for less than $1MM for the rest of the year. Of course, the 1-7 Giants aren’t playing for much at this point, but Brown could help in run protection for sensational rookie Saquon Barkley and audition his way on to the 2019 roster.
Now that the trade deadline has passed, all players who are released will be subject to waivers for the rest of the season, even if they are vested veterans with more than four years of experience.
NFL Workout Updates: 10/30/18
Here’s the latest from the workout circuit. All links to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account, unless otherwise specified.
Arizona Cardinals
- OT Cornelius Lucas, OT Derek Newton, DT Will Sutton, DT Vincent Valentine
Baltimore Ravens
- LB Ejuan Price
Chicago Bears
- C Luke Bowanko, OG Adam Gettis, LB Lorenzo Mauldin, LB Aaron Wallace
Cleveland Browns
- OG David Bright
- DE Alex Barrett, LB Jonathan Freeny, CB Jalen Myrick, LB Kelvin Sheppard
Green Bay Packers
- T Andrew Nelson, LB Anthony Winbush
Jacksonville Jaguars
- TE Troy Niklas
Miami Dolphins
- DT Joey Mbu, DE Kendall Reyes, DT Sylvester Williams
New Orleans Saints
- DE Robert Ayers, DE Tank Carradine, DE Will Clarke, CB Jeremiah McKinnon, S Obi Melifonwu, DE Ifeadi Odenigbo, CB Marcus Williams
Bears OG Kyle Long To Miss 6-8 Weeks
Bears offensive lineman Kyle Long is out for at least the next month or two. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the veteran guard will miss the next six to eight weeks with a foot injury. Long suffered the injury during Sunday’s win over the Jets.
Rapoport warns that Long is still gathering more info on his injury, but the six-to-eight-week timespan is the “best estimate right now.” Rapoport also tweets that the Bears could designate Long to return from the IR once he’s eligible.
The 29-year-old has spent his entire career in Chicago, earning three Pro Bowl nods along the way. Long has naturally played a major role on an effective offensive line this season, as the Bears have only allowed 16 sacks. Despite the lack of production from Jordan Howard, the Bears also rank third in rushing yards per game.
Despite the solid performance from the offensive line, Pro Football Focus only ranked Long 30th among 74 eligible offensive guard candidates. The site still ranked him as elite when it comes to pass blocking, but his run blocking score was less than stellar. His 2018 score is also a far cry from his grades from previous seasons.
With Long out indefinitely, the Bears will presumably turn to second-round rookie James Daniels to take his spot in the starting lineup. The team could also rely on reserve linemen Bradley Sowell, Bryan Witzmann, and Rashaad Coward.
Kyle Long Suffers Serious Injury
- The Bears got a big win over the Jets, but they didn’t escape the game unscathed. Starting right guard Kyle Long “suffered what appeared to be a serious right foot injury” during the game, according to Jeff Dickerson of ESPN. Dickerson writes that Long was on crutches after the game, and it sounds like he could miss a good chunk of time. Long is a three-time Pro Bowler, and his absence would be a massive downgrade to Chicago’s offensive line. Long has been plagued by injuries throughout his career, missing six games in 2017 and eight games in 2016.
Jets Made Strong Push For Khalil Mack
On Sunday, the Jets will face off against Khalil Mack at Soldier Field. Had things gone differently, Mack could have been on their side in Chicago. The Jets were willing to part with a 2019 first-round pick, a 2020 second-round pick, and more in a trade with Oakland, but the Raiders did not engage with the Jets late in the bidding process that ended with the Bears getting the star defensive end, Manish Mehta of the Daily News writes. 
Ultimately, the Raiders traded Mack to the Bears for two first-rounders, a 2020 third-rounder, and a 2019 sixth-rounder. The Bears also received the Raiders’ 2020 second-rounder and a 2020 conditional fifth-rounder.
The Jets might have been willing to match or exceed the Bears offer. Even now, coach Todd Bowles struggles to hide his affinity for the league’s most terrifying defensive player.
“He’s more of a complete outside backer than most,” Bowles said. “There are fast ones, there are strong ones, but he can do all of the above. He can run around you. He can run over you. He can strip the ball. He can catch the ball. He can drop in coverage. He’s a more complete player than a lot of players today.”
The Jets believe that the Raiders did not want to trade Mack within the conference, which led to the Bears deal. The Raiders may have been able to get more out of the Jets, but they did limit their exposure to Mack for a long time by shipping him to the NFC. After the trade, Mack inked a massive extension with Chicago that will keep him in place through the 2024 season.
NFL Workout Updates: 10/16/18
Here’s the latest from the workout circuit. Links to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account, unless otherwise noted.
Chicago Bears
- CB Quinten Rollins (link)
Cleveland Browns
- C Jake Eldrenkamp (visit), WR Chad Hansen, WR Blake Jackson, WR Korey Robertson, WR Damore’ea Stringfellow (link)
Detroit Lions
- T Cole Gardner, G/T Austin Pasztor (link)
Indianapolis Colts
- WR K.J. Brent, WR Krishawn Hogan (link)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- TE Khari Lee, G Brandon Thomas (link)
Kansas City Chiefs
- WR Deontez Alexander, G Jeff Allen, WR J.J. Jones, WR Austin Proehl (link)
Miami Dolphins
- DE Will Clarke, DT Winston Craig, T Antonio Garcia, DE Alec James, T Dieugot Joseph, DT Lewis Neal, T Corey Robinson, DT DeShawn Williams (link)
New York Jets
- WR J.J. Jones, S Charlie Miller, RB Donnel Pumphrey, C Jon Toth, T Toby Weathersby, RB Ralph Webb (link)
Philadelphia Eagles
- LB B.J. Bello, S Ibraheim Campbell, DT Winston Craig (visit), CB Dexter McDougle, CB Quinten Rollins (Twitter links via Balzer and Sirius XM Radio’s Adam Caplan)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- LB Devante Bond (link)
Washington Redskins
- G Oday Aboushi, G J.J. Dielman, G John Jerry (link)
NFL Workout Updates: 10/12/18
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:
Chicago Bears
- P Brock Miller (link)
Houston Texans
- OT Dieugot Joseph (link)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- OT Corey Robinson; RB Thomas Rawls (link)
New England Patriots
- DE Will Clarke; QB Connor Cook; LB Kasim Edebali; WR Devin Ross; TE Shane Wimann (link)
Tennessee Titans
- LS’s Andrew East, Taybor Pepper (link)
Overall, nothing too noteworthy. The Patriots interestingly continue to work out quarterbacks, bringing in former Raiders third-rounder Connor Cook for a tryout. New England has Bryan Hoyer firmly entrenched behind Tom Brady, but also recently worked out Landry Jones.
Meanwhile, the Titans seem set to bring in a new long snapper, as the team also worked out veteran Jon Condo today.
Bears Met With Ex-Vikes Tackle
- Prior to signing Bryan Witzmann, the Bears visited with offensive lineman Willie Beavers, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Beavers was a fourth-round Vikings pick in 2016.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/8/18
Here are Monday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Waived: WR Tim White
Chicago Bears
- Signed: G Bryan Witzmann
Los Angeles Rams
- Claimed: CB Darious Williams
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: TE Anthony Firkser
- Waived: RB Dalyn Dawkins
Opinion: Bears Could Look At Lamarr Houston
- After losing Sam Acho for the season, the Bears could theoretically take a look at free agent edge rusher Lamarr Houston, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com speculates (Twitter link). The connection makes sense, as Houston spent the 2015-17 seasons in Chicago before landing with the Texans in 2018. Houston landed only five games with the Texans, and was back on the Bears’ roster for the conclusion of the 2018 campaign. The 31-year-old has drawn plenty of interest on the open market despite not yet landing a contract, as he’s worked out for the Vikings, Seahawks, Raiders, and Jets since April.