NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/11/19
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad decisions:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: CB Andre Chachere, TE Darrell Daniels
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: RB Darius Jackson
Houston Texans
- Signed: DB Cornell Armstrong
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: RB Bruce Anderson
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: TE Stephen Anderson, DB Tevaughn Campbell, WR Anthony Johnson
- Cut: LB Curtis Akins, DB Kemon Hall
- Placed on practice squad IR: WR Artavis Scott
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: WR T.J. Rahming
- Cut: LB Christian Sam
New England Patriots
- Signed: CB Nate Brooks
- Cut: OL Colby Gossett
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: TE Alex Ellis
Jerry Jones Says Dak Prescott Extension Is ‘Imminent’
Everything continues to point toward Dak Prescott getting his long-awaited extension from the Cowboys any day now. Speaking to the media after Dallas’ season-opening win over the Giants, owner Jerry Jones hinted that an agreement is right around the corner.
Jones said after the game that an extension is “imminent,” according to Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com. “What’s imminent? Well, days. Days. Or something like that.” In our most recent update earlier this morning, Prescott insisted he wasn’t concerned about talks and everything seemed to be progressing nicely. Jones’ comments today are the latest indicator of that. Prescott had one of the best games of his career against New York, throwing for 405 yards on only 32 attempts while tossing four touchdowns.
Performances like that are sure to embolden Prescott’s representatives, who are likely seeking record money. Jared Goff just got the largest guarantee in NFL history from the Rams, and Prescott could be seeking to eclipse that. The Mississippi State product is set to be a free agent at the end of the year, but there hasn’t ever been much panic since the Cowboys could control him through the franchise tag if worst came to worst.
Dallas has been locking up players left and right, and Prescott could be the final domino to fall this season if talks continue to stay stalled between the team and Amari Cooper. If Prescott is going to keep playing like he did in Week 1, it’s definitely in Jones’ best interest to get something done quickly before the price gets even higher.
NFC Notes: Inactives, Peterson, Evans, Jones
Adrian Peterson will not suit up vs. the Eagles today, as Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com report. Redskins coach Jay Gruden has made it clear that Derrius Guice will be the starter and handle most of the rushing work.
Some of Peterson’s teammates aren’t happy that he’s a healthy scratch, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The future Hall-of-Famer is regarded by some as the best back on the team and many members of the Redskins believed that come week 1, the question would be how many carries Guice would be taking away from Peterson and not whether Peterson would be suiting up.
Washington gave Peterson a $1.5MM signing bonus and another $1MM to re-sign with the club this offseason. No word if the team has plans to trade or release him.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- TE Jordan Reed is among the other inactives for the Redskins, John Keim of ESPN.com tweets. QB Colt McCoy will also not suit up.
- Mike Evans and Devin White will both play for the Buccaneers today, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The pair were listed as questionable heading into the contest will illnesses.
- CB Byron Jones won’t start for the Cowboys today, Schefter adds in a separate tweet. Jones will play, but he’ll be limited as he is still recovering from offseason hip surgery.
- RT Marcus Gilbert will not play for the Cardinals today, as Darren Urban relays on the team’s website. Gilbert is nursing a knee injury.
Latest On Negotiations Between Dak Prescott, Cowboys
Dak Prescott and the Cowboys are not expected to have a deal completed before the team plays its week 1 game against the Giants later today.
Prescott isn’t rushing to sign a new contract, as he’ll instead wait to receive what he deems as a fair one. The quarterback isn’t too worried about the potential risk for injury, as he has loss of value and disability insurance policies that are valued at over $50MM, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Prescott also has several multi-year endorsements.
“Obviously I want to see it done,” Prescott previously said. “To put a time frame on it, I think I’ve said this before, I’m not going to do that. At this point my focus is all on the Giants and the Giants defense and what this team needs to do to win the game. And next week it will roll to the next opponent. I don’t want to blur my mind or distract myself any with thinking about those talks or thinking about what’s going on when I’ve got enough on my plate to handle. So I’m just focused on the Giants and I’ve got people to take care of [the contract].”
The team would like to get a deal done before the game, though they’ll continue negotiations through the season if they can’t accomplish that goal. Should Prescott and the Cowboys not come to a deal before the offseason, the franchise tag would be a possibility for the quarterback. The two sides are undergoing negotiations this morning, as David Moore of the Dallas Morning News tweets.
Cowboys Release RB Alfred Morris
Ezekiel Elliott is back on the Cowboys active roster, but it cost one of his fellow running backs a job. NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports (via Twitter) that Dallas has released veteran running back Alfred Morris.
Morris had three-straight 1,000-yard seasons to start his career with the Redskins before struggling mightily during the 2015 campaign. He ended up catching on with the Cowboys prior to the 2016 season, and he quickly became one of the most dependable backups in the game. The veteran appeared in 28 games (five starts) during his two years in Dallas, including a 2017 campaign where he finished with 547 rushing yards and one touchdown on 115 carries.
That performance ended up earning him a one-year deal with the 49ers, where he was briefly thrust to the top of the depth chart following the season-ending injury to Jerick McKinnon. Morris saw his yards-per-carry average drop below four during his stint in San Francisco, and he finished last season with 428 rushing yards and two scores in 12 games (one start).
With Elliott holding out, the Cowboys re-signed Morris back in July. However, it was clear that Morris didn’t have a clear-cut role on the team, and this was before Elliott inked his recent extension. Ultimately, the organization decided to roll with rookie Tony Pollard and former undrafted free agent Jordan Chunn behind their All-Pro starter.
Cowboys To Continue Dak Prescott Talks Into Season
The Cowboys are holding out hope for a weekend extension agreement with Dak Prescott. It would be perhaps the biggest step in this franchise’s complex offseason, which has now included deals with DeMarcus Lawrence, Jaylon Smith, La’el Collins and Ezekiel Elliott.
The team would like a Dak deal to be finalized by their Week 1 afternoon kickoff, but Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said during an interview with 105.3 The Fan the sides will continue negotiations into the season if no deal can be struck before Dallas’ Sunday opener.
“I’d say the dialogue has been good, and we’re still holding out hope we can figure out how to come up with a deal by the game on Sunday,” Jones said (via Pro Football Talk’s Charean Williams). “We’re open for business. I know sometimes the players don’t care to (negotiate in-season). But we can obviously juggle that and do that. We would be fine with doing that. It’s really up to the player and their representatives to determine what their deadlines are and their timelines.”
Smith, Collins and Elliott followed the Cowboys’ trend of summer extensions. Dallas bastions Tyron Smith, Travis Frederick and Sean Lee signed their deals in July or August. Zack Martin signed his last June. The organization is willing to make an exception for Prescott, who still wants a near-future extension.
Prescott and Amari Cooper represent the holdups in this productive Cowboys negotiation stretch, and the Cooper talks have not progressed. The fifth-year wideout said he would not mind playing out a contract year. Multiple reports pegged Prescott as turning down a $30MM-plus-AAV offer, illustrating the fourth-year passer’s refusal to rush into an agreement. Carson Wentz and Jared Goff‘s agreements will only stand to raise Prescott’s asking price. Not much has come out on a possible Byron Jones extension. But the Cowboys will clearly keep working on Prescott’s deal, even after their Week 1 game against the Giants — if need be.
NFC East Notes: Cowboys, Eli, Eagles
Let’s take a look at the latest from the NFC East, starting with the Cowboys’ contract situation. The team has now extended four high-profile players over the past several months and remains at work on at least two other deals.
- Cowboys VP Stephen Jones was adamant that new contracts with Jaylon Smith and La’el Collins were not done to try to put some pressure on Ezekiel Elliott, Dak Prescott or Amari Cooper. “We’d consider other agreements right now and it wouldn’t affect what we’re doing with Dak, Amari or anyone else,” Jones said (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Jon Machota). The Cowboys now have Smith, Collins, Elliott and DeMarcus Lawrence signed long-term; they are still working on re-ups for Prescott and Cooper.
- On his “Hail to the Podcast” podcast with Erin Hawksworth, former Redskins defensive back DeAngelo Hall said that Trent Williams could make his return “sooner (rather) than later.” Despite his holdout, GM Bruce Allen recently confirmed that the disgruntled Pro Bowler will not be traded and that he does not see him retiring.
- According to Ralph Vacchiano of SNY, Giants officials have privately told him that Eli Manning will remain the starting quarterback as long as they are in the playoff race. Moreover, sources also told Vacchiano that Pat Shurmur will have a significant say in the matter. “It’s Shurmur’s call,” one team source said. “Let’s just see how it goes. When and if it’s time, we’ll all know.” Manning confirmed this past summer that he is not rushing into retirement.
- Eagles linebacker Nigel Bradham was thought to be AWOL after missing the team’s preseason finale against the Jets, and the team was “livid” at his absence, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane. However, Bradham said he was “under the weather” and needed to communicate better with team officials. Bradham signed a five-year, $40MM deal in 2018 and has been a key contributor to the defense since coming over from the Bills in 2016.
Cowboys Notes: Elliott, Prescott, Cooper
With the Cowboys having extended running back Ezekiel Elliott, focus now turns to quarterback Dak Prescott and wideout Amari Cooper. The Cowboys are hopeful that they can complete deals by Sunday’s season opener, although executive vice president Stephen Jones seemed a bit more cautious in his optimism.
“Don’t ever say never,” Jones said (via ESPN’s Todd Archer). “The season doesn’t start until Sunday. We still got three or four days here. Obviously we’ve ended up signing a few players we didn’t necessarily know we were going to sign, but at the same time, I certainly felt optimistic that we can get these guys. Whether it’s by the start of the season or if it goes over that, it does. That was our goal. Sometimes you don’t get it quite done on the exact timing that you had hoped, but obviously the ultimate goal is to get them signed.”
Prescott also expressed some hope that a deal would get done, but he also acknowledged that his entire focus is on this weekend’s contest against the Giants.
“Obviously I want to see it done,” Prescott said. “To put a time frame on it, I think I’ve said this before, I’m not going to do that. At this point my focus is all on the Giants and the Giants defense and what this team needs to do to win the game. And next week it will roll to the next opponent. I don’t want to blur my mind or distract myself any with thinking about those talks or thinking about what’s going on when I’ve got enough on my plate to handle. So I’m just focused on the Giants and I’ve got people to take care of [the contract].”
Let’s check out some more notes out of Dallas…
- As David Moore of the Dallas News points out, the Cowboys have handed out more than $300MM ($185.5MM guaranteed) to four players over the past five months: Elliott, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, linebacker Jaylon Smith, and offensive lineman La’el Collins. Now, the front office has to fit Prescott and Cooper into their budget, but Moore sounds confident that the organization will get the duo signed thanks to Jerry Jones’ willingness to take risks. Ultimately, the owner doesn’t want a repeat of last season, and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to optimize the 2019 squad.
- The Cowboys were granted a roster exemption for Elliott that will expire on September 16th, tweets NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. This means the team doesn’t have to make room for the running back on the active roster until that date, although they can still carry only 46 players on game day.
- Rapoport also tweets that the Cowboys aren’t concerned about Elliott’s preseason absence. The 24-year-old already has 868 career carries, an indicator that he’s plenty familiar with the offense. Ultimately, the team was confident that whenever the running back showed up, he’d be ready to go.
- ESPN’s Mike Tannenbaum observes (on Twitter) that the Cowboys only gave Elliott a $7.5MM signing bonus, which is a far cry from Todd Gurley‘s $21MM signing bonus. That means the rest of the running back’s $42.55MM can be voided if he’s hit with another suspension. Ultimately, the Cowboys got protection in case of any off-field issues, but they also are willing to pay Elliott as long as he stays out of trouble. Meanwhile, Albert Breer of TheMMQB tweets that the Cowboys effectively gave Elliott a fully-guaranteed deal through four years, which is pretty unprecedented for the position.
NFL Cap Space By Team For 2019
With hours to go before the start of the 2019 NFL season, here’s a rundown of how much cap room each NFL team has (via ESPN.com’s Field Yates, on Twitter):
- Indianapolis Colts – $42.1MM
- Cleveland Browns – $32.7MM
- Miami Dolphins – $31.9MM
- Houston Texans – $29.5MM
- Buffalo Bills – $24.8MM
- Tennessee Titans – $24.1MM
- Dallas Cowboys – $22.3MM
- Detroit Lions – $19.2MM
- San Francisco 49ers – $18.7MM
- Chicago Bears – $17.3MM
- Carolina Panthers – $16.6MM
- Washington Redskins – $15.9MM
- Philadelphia Eagles – $14.8MM
- Cincinnati Bengals – $13.3MM
- Kansas City Chiefs – $12.4MM
- Oakland Raiders – $12MM
- Denver Broncos – $11.2MM
- Green Bay Packers – $10.8MM
- Los Angeles Chargers – $10.2MM
- Jacksonville Jaguars – $9.5MM
- New York Jets – $9.3MM
- Seattle Seahawks – $8.6MM
- Baltimore Ravens – $8.2MM
- Pittsburgh Steelers – $6.3MM
- New England Patriots – $4.9MM
- Arizona Cardinals – $2.7MM
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $1.2MM
- Minnesota Vikings – $1.2MM
- Los Angeles Rams – $852K
- New Orleans Saints – $604K
- Atlanta Falcons – $493K
- New York Giants – $457K
Cowboys, Amari Cooper In Stalemate?
The Cowboys, at long last, got a deal done with Ezekiel Elliott. Meanwhile, there hasn’t been much progress for star teammate Amari Cooper. 
“There haven’t been a lot of negotiations with Amari (Cooper), period,”Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said (via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News). “And I’m not free to be able to share why. I think at some point we’ll start that. I don’t know what their parameters will be.”
Cooper, to date, has been saying and doing all of the right things. The wide receiver says that he wants to stay in Dallas and is also willing to play out the 2019 season in an effort to (re-) prove that he is worthy of a top-dollar deal.
Meanwhile, after getting the greenlight to play in Week 1, Cooper could be primed for a monster season. Cooper is willing to wait, and the Cowboys should have plenty of incentive to jumpstart talks.
For now, both sides are playing the waiting game. It might not be an ideal situation, but it’s far preferable to the one that Cooper’s former club finds itself in with his replacement, Antonio Brown.