Minor NFL Transactions: 12/17/21
Today’s minor moves:
Chicago Bears
- Placed on Reserve/COVID-19 list: QB Andy Dalton and CB Duke Shelly
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: OL Elijah Wilkinson
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: QB Kyle Lauletta, QB Jake Dolegala (story)
Dallas Cowboys
- Activated from Reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Cedrick Wilson
Detroit Lions
- Placed on Injured Reserve: TE T.J. Hockenson
Houston Texans
- Placed on Reserve/COVID-19 list: OL Justin McCray
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed to active roster: LB Malik Jefferson
Los Angeles Rams
- Placed on Reserve/COVID-19 list: G Jamil Demby, DB Grant Haley, TE Tyler Higbee, LB Justin Lawler
New Orleans Saints
- Activated from Reserve/COVID-19 List: RB Mark Ingram
New York Giants
- Promoted: DT David Moa
Washington Football Team
- Signed: QB Garrett Gilbert (story)
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DL Daniel Wise
Updated 2022 NFL Draft Order
The Chiefs (9-4) and Chargers (8-5) are getting set to kick off Week 15 in a matchup that could decide the AFC West crown. Meanwhile, more than one-quarter of the NFL’s teams have either been mathematically or effectively eliminated from playoff contention.
For non-playoff teams, the draft order will be determined by the inverted 2021 standings, plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. For playoff teams, the order is determined by their postseason outcome and regular season record. (Ex: Washington would own the No. 19 pick if they were eliminated in the Wild Card round with the worst record of the group.)
With that in mind, here’s a look at the currently projected 2022 NFL Draft Order:
1. Detroit Lions (1-11-1)
2. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-11)
3. Houston Texans (2-11)
4. New York Jets (3-10)
5. New York Giants (via Bears)
6. New York Giants (4-9)
7. New York Jets (via Seahawks)
8. Carolina Panthers (5-8)
9. Atlanta Falcons (6-7)
10. Philadelphia Eagles (via Dolphins)
11. Philadelphia Eagles (6-7)
12. Minnesota Vikings (6-7)
13. New Orleans Saints (6-7)
14. Las Vegas Raiders (6-7)
15. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6-1)
16. Denver Broncos (7-6)
17. Cincinnati Bengals (7-6)
18. Cleveland Browns (7-6)
19. Washington Football Team (6-7)*
20. Buffalo Bills (7-6)*
21. Philadelphia Eagles (via Colts)*
22. Miami Dolphins (via 49ers)*
23. Los Angeles Chargers (8-5)*
24. Detroit Lions (via Rams)*
25. Baltimore Ravens (8-5)*
26. Dallas Cowboys (9-4)*
27. Kansas City Chiefs (9-4)*
28. Arizona Cardinals (10-3)*
29. Tennessee Titans (9-4)*
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-3)*
31. New England Patriots (9-4)*
32. Green Bay Packers (10-3)*
* = Playoffs
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/15/21
Today’s taxi squad moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: TE Nick Guggemos, WR Alexander Hollins, OT Elijah Nkansah
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: DT Justin Hamilton
Denver Broncos
- Signed: S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and WR Travis Fulgham
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: C Michal Menet
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: S Will Redmond
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: C Will Clapp
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: CB Lavert Hill, OT Wyatt Miller
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: DB Josh Jones
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: CB Nate Brooks
Washington Football Team
- Signed: QB Jordan Ta’amu, DT Tyler Clark
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/15/21
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Designated for return: TE David Wells
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: LB A.J. Klein
Cleveland Browns
- Promoted: WR Ja’Marcus Bradley
- Claimed: DT Josiah Bronson (from Saints)
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted: CB Deante Burton
Green Bay Packers
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: QB Jordan Love
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted: DT Malik Jefferson
Miami Dolphins
- Claimed: LB Calvin Munson (from Patriots)
- Designated for return: RB Malcolm Brown
New England Patriots
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: G Yasir Durant
New Orleans Saints
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: WR/RB Ty Montgomery
- Designated for return: TE Adam Trautman
Philadelphia Eagles
- Designated for return: G Jack Anderson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Placed on IR: OL B.J. Finney
- Promoted: OT Joe Haeg
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: LB Tanner Muse
- Placed on IR: CB Gavin Heslop
Cowboys OT Tyron Smith To Miss Week 15
Tyron Smith won’t be on the field this Sunday when the Cowboys take on the Giants. The left tackle aggravated his ankle injury and won’t play this week, per Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). Fortunately, head coach Mike McCarthy told reporters that he doesn’t think “it’s a surgical situation” (via Gehlken) meaning Smith should be able to return to the lineup sooner than later.
Smith missed three games earlier this season while dealing with the same ankle injury, so this is probably a frustrating development for the 31-year-old. According to ESPN’s Todd Archer, the lineman has been dealing with bone spurs in his ankle. Smith has otherwise started all 10 games for the Cowboys this season.
The offensive lineman was limited to only a pair of games in 2020 while he dealt with a neck injury. The seven-time Pro Bowler hasn’t had a fully healthy season since 2015, and he went on a remarkable run of 13-game seasons between 2016 and 2019.
With Smith out of the lineup against the Giants, the Cowboys will likely turn to either Terence Steele or Ty Nsekhe at left tackle.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/13/21
Today’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Tyrel Dodson
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Cedrick Wilson
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Nahshon Wright
Denver Broncos
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: C Brett Jones
Detroit Lions
- Claimed off waivers (from Titans): S Brady Breeze
Kansas City Chiefs
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Josh Gordon
New England Patriots
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Dalton Keene
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: C Will Clapp
New York Giants
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: OT Kyle Murphy
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Kadarius Toney
New York Jets
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Justin Hardee
Philadelphia Eagles
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Jason Huntley, WR Quez Watkins
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: CB Saivion Smith
Washington Football Team
- Claimed off waivers (from Bills): G Jamil Douglas
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/11/21
Here is how teams finalized their Week 14 rosters:
Atlanta Falcons
- Activated from IR: TE Hayden Hurst
- Promoted: RB Qadree Ollison, S Shawn Williams
- Waived: RB Wayne Gallman
Baltimore Ravens
- Promoted: CB Robert Jackson, T David Sharpe
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from IR: G Jon Feliciano
- Promoted: DE Eli Ankou, DT Brandin Bryant, LB Joe Giles-Harris
Carolina Panthers
- Activated from IR: T Cameron Erving
- Promoted: RB Reggie Bonnafon, LB Frankie Luvu, OL Patrick Omameh
Chicago Bears
- Promoted: LB Charles Snowden
Cincinnati Bengals
- Promoted: LB Austin Calitro, LB Keandre Jones
Cleveland Browns
- Activated from IR: LB Jacob Phillips
- Promoted: DB Herb Miller, DB Jovante Moffatt, WR JoJo Natson
- Waived: WR Ja’Marcus Bradley
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted: TE Ian Bunting, RB JaQuan Hardy, S Darian Thompson
- Waived: DT Justin Hamilton
Denver Broncos
- Activated from IR: LB Micah Kiser, CB Michael Ojemudia
Detroit Lions
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Mark Gilbert, CB Ifeatu Melifonwu
- Promoted: CB Corey Ballentine, LB Curtis Bolton, DE Bruce Hector, CB Parnell Motley, RB Craig Reynolds, CB Nickell Robey-Coleman, RB Rodney Smith, TE Shane Zylstra
Houston Texans
- Promoted: DB Grayland Arnold, WR Phillip Dorsett, DL Chris Smith
Kansas City Chiefs
- Promoted: DB Dicaprio Bootle, DB Josh Jackson
- Placed on IR: DB Chris Lammons
Los Angeles Chargers
- Placed on IR: LB Kyler Fackrell
- Promoted: DB Ben DeLuca, LB Emeke Egbule, WR Jason Moore
Miami Dolphins
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Salvon Ahmed
New Orleans Saints
- Activated from IR: DB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson
- Promoted: G James Carpenter, LB Chase Hansen, WR Kevin White, WR Easop Winston, TE Ethan Wolf
New York Giants
- Promoted: WR Pharoh Cooper, DB Jarren Williams
New York Jets
- Activated from IR: CB Brandin Echols
- Promoted: DE Ronald Blair, TE Dan Brown, WR D.J. Montgomery, WR Vyncint Smith
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: RB Trenton Cannon, CB Emmanuel Moseley
- Promoted: WR River Cracraft, RB Brian Hill, CB Saivion Smith, S Jarrod Wilson
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: LB Edmond Robinson
Tennessee Titans
- Activated from IR: S Dane Cruikshank, WR Racey McMath
- Placed on IR: TE Tommy Hudson; this is Hudson’s second IR trip, ending his season
- Promoted: WR Cody Hollister, DL Kevin Strong
- Waived: S Brady Breeze
Washington Football Team
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Darryl Roberts, DE James Smith-Williams
- Placed on IR: G Wes Schweitzer
- Promoted: DE William Bradley-King, LB De’Jon Harris, S Jeremy Reaves, C Jon Toth
Cowboys Activate Randy Gregory, Neville Gallimore From IR
The Cowboys will have their starting defensive ends in uniform together for the first time since Week 1. Dallas moved Randy Gregory back onto its active roster Saturday.
Both Gregory and defensive tackle starter Neville Gallimore are back from IR. Gregory missed time because of a calf injury, while Gallimore has seen a more severe injury shelve him for the entire season. The second-year defensive tackle has missed all of the 2021 slate due to a dislocated elbow.
Gallimore, a 2020 third-round pick who started nine games as a rookie, returned to practice last week. Gregory’s IR-return window opened ahead of Week 14. The Cowboys will have both in uniform when they face Washington on Sunday. They will team with DeMarcus Lawrence, who returned in Week 13 after having missed 10 games, on a suddenly healthy defensive front.
Gregory has missed time for both this calf ailment and a COVID-19 contraction this season, but he has avoided more off-field trouble. The former 2015 second-rounder has been quite productive in his seven games this season. The oft-unavailable pass rusher has five sacks and 12 QB hits, setting himself up potentially for a payday in 2022. Gregory is due for free agency in March. The Cowboys are not planning to finalize any deals with their 2022 UFAs until season’s end.
Dallas being able to deploy its preferred Lawrence-Gregory defensive end duo will allow rookie dynamo Micah Parsons to spend more time at linebacker. The Cowboys’ edge unavailability has forced Parsons to play up front extensively, though the Penn State product has thrived pretty much wherever he has lined up.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/9/21
Here are Thursday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Jonathan Ward
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: P Jamie Gillan, LB Anthony Walker
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on IR: WR Noah Brown
Detroit Lions
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Bobby Price
Las Vegas Raiders
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: LS Trent Sieg
- Waived: LS Carson Tinker
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted: LB Tuf Borland, DE Kenny Willekes
New Orleans Saints
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Ty Montgomery, C Scott Quessenberry
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Promoted: OL Rashaad Coward, OL Chaz Green
Tony Pollard Uncertain For Week 14
As things currently stand, the Cowboys are unsure what their running back situation will look like for Week 14. Backup Tony Pollard has called himself a “game-time decision,” per ESPN’s Ed Werder (via Twitter). 
Pollard said he suffered a torn left plantar fascia while scoring a touchdown against the Saints in Week 13, via the Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken. The foot injury kept the third-year running back out of practice Wednesday, and Pollard said he is still feeling pain from the tear. With Ezekiel Elliott battling a knee injury, the Cowboys’ high-end backfield setup has taken a hit.
Pollard has enjoyed his best season to date, turning 107 carries into 602 yards and two touchdowns while adding 31 receptions for 259 yards along with a return touchdown. He delivered the Cowboys’ biggest offensive play during their win over the Saints, but that 58-yard dash — the Cowboys’ longest run in four years — proved somewhat costly.
Meanwhile, Elliott is improving from his knee injury, according to Mike McCarthy (via Werder, on Twitter). McCarthy expects both backs to play Sunday, when the Cowboys visit Washington.