NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/1/18
Today’s practice squad updates:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: QB Kyle Allen
- Released: S Dezmen Southward
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: WR Reggie Davis
Detroit Lions
- Signed: TE Jerome Cunningham
- Placed on injured list: LB Garret Dooley
Green Bay Packers
- Released: FB Joe Kerridge
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: T Antonio Garcia
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: WR Victor Bolden, DB Greg Mabin
- Released: WR Aaron Burbridge
Washington Redskins
- Signed: DB Jason Thompson
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/1/18
Today’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted from practice squad: S Treston Decoud
Oakland Raiders
- Claimed off waivers: T David Sharpe
Cowboys Fire OL Coach Paul Alexander
After the Cowboys’ slow start, there was speculation about the job security of Jason Garrett. Garrett remains in charge, but one of his top lieutenants is no longer with the team. On Monday afternoon, the Cowboys sacked offensive line coach Paul Alexander, according to a team announcement.
Alexander spent 27 season with the Bengals before becoming the Cowboys’ OL coach this year. Less than halfway into the year, he’s out of a job.
The Cowboys gave Alexander the keys to one of the league’s most talented offensive lines, but the unit took a major hit when Travis Frederick was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. Without Frederick, the offensive line has been inconsistent and unable to provide adequate pocket protection for quarterback Dak Prescott. Apparently, the Cowboys believe that Alexander’s direction and blocking schemes are at least partly to blame for the front five’s struggles.
Already, Prescott has been sacked 23 times, which is tied for fifth-most in the NFL. Last year, he was sacked 32 times all year and was brought down in the backfield just 25 times as a rookie in 2016.
Marc Colombo, who has served as the team’s assistant offensive line coach since 2016, will serve as the team’s primary offensive line coach. If Colombo can’t get the O-Line back on track, more heads could roll in Dallas.
Cowboys Inquire About Cooper's Past Prior To Trade
- Before executing the trade for Amari Cooper, the Cowboys conducted extensive background checks into him, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Dallas reached out to many people who knew Cooper in the past, including his college coach Nick Saban, and “the people who knew Cooper spoke glowingly about him”, sources told Schefter. The Cowboys made a heavy investment in Cooper, sending a first round pick to Oakland, so it makes sense why they’d do their due diligence.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/28/18
Today’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on injured reserve: CB C.J. Goodwin
Cowboys Heavily Pursued Watkins
- The Cowboys had been looking for a number one receiver for a while before trading for Amari Cooper, Cowboys VP Stephen Jones said, per Jon Machota of Dallas News (Twitter link). Jones revealed the team heavily pursued Sammy Watkins in free agency but missed out. Since then, they didn’t find a possibility they liked until Cooper became available.
Cowboys Meet With Obi Melifonwu
Former Raiders cornerback Obi Melifonwu will meet with the Cowboys on Thursday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. And, in addition to Melifonwu, the Cowboys will also meet with veteran defensive back Teddy Williams, according to ESPN.com’s Todd Archer (on Twitter). 
If Melifonwu signs, he’ll rejoin former Raiders teammate Amari Cooper, as well as former UConn teammate Byron Jones. He’ll also enter the building with lower expectations than last year when he entered the league as a second-round pick of the Raiders.
As a rookie, a hip issue kept Melifonwu off of the field. This summer, he was stuck in the trainer’s room again, and Jon Gruden lost patience with his recovery. Melifonwu had a great career at UConn and showed serious athleticism in pre-draft workouts, so the potential is still there for him to do big things at the NFL level.
Williams signed his first NFL contract with the Cowboys in 2010. Back then, Williams was an raw track athlete who was only starting to put his full focus on football. Years later, he has proven himself as a quality special teams player. If signed, Williams can handle special teams duties and take C.J. Goodwin‘s spot on the cornerback depth chart.
Cowboys Injury Notes: Gregory, Goodwin, Martin, Swaim
- After having dealt with discomfort through the early part of the season, Cowboys defensive end Randy Gregory underwent arthroscopic surgery on his knee today, reports ESPN’s Todd Archer (via Twitter). Fortunately, the 25-year-old is expected to be ready for his team’s next game against the Titans on November 5th. Gregory has compiled 10 tackles and one sack in six games this season. Meanwhile, Archer notes that right guard Zack Martin and tight end Geoff Swaim suffered sprained MCL’s this weekend, and there’s optimism that the pair will be back following the bye week.
- Cowboys C.J. Goodwin broke his forearm during Sunday’s loss to the Redskins and will miss the rest of the season, reports ProFootballTalk.com (via Twitter). The 28-year-old journeyman has collected a single tackle in two games this season. The Cowboys could be seeking some cornerback reinforcement for the bench behind Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis.
[SOURCE LINK]
Fallout From Raiders’ Trade Of Amari Cooper
After looking at the Amari Cooper trade from the Cowboys’ perspective, let’s take a look at things from the Raiders’ side:
- Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie insists that Cooper’s contract situation, or the fact that he is represented by the same agent as Khalil Mack agent (Joel Segal) had nothing to do with his desire to make a deal (Twitter link via Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area).
- McKenzie said the trade “was an opportunity I couldn’t pass on, to get a first-round pick. … I love Amari but I just felt it came down to getting the pick,” (Twitter link via Vic Tafur of The Athletic).
- The Raiders are now in a full rebuild mode, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) doesn’t think they’re done yet. Safety Karl Joseph is another first-rounder who could be available, giving the Raiders a chance to add even more to their 2019 draft haul. As Rapoport understands it, quarterback Derek Carr and cornerback Gareon Conley are unlikely to be dealt, but many other players could be had for the right price.
- Head coach Jon Gruden did not immediately address the trade with his team (Twitter link via Michael Gehlken of the Review-Journal). Some players saw Cooper pulled off of the practice field on Monday but didn’t know why until they checked their phones in the locker room.
Fallout From Cowboys’ Trade For Amari Cooper
On Monday, the Cowboys pulled off a blockbuster trade by acquiring multiple-time Pro Bowler Amari Cooper from the Raiders. Many were surprised to hear that the Cowboys gave up a first-round pick for the wide receiver, but the Cowboys had their reasons for splurging. Here’s a look at the fallout from the Cooper deal from the Cowboys’ perspective:
- Before the trade, the Cowboys were committed to taking a wide receiver high in the 2019 draft, likely in the first round (Twitter link via Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports.) By dealing for Cooper instead, the Cowboys believe they have secured a star wide receiver who is already proven and can contribute right away.
- Cooper knows he doesn’t have the leverage to land the sizable extension he will eventually seek, and the Cowboys were sold on the deal upon learning that he was OK with holding off on extension talks (Twitter link via Robinson). Cooper, who hasn’t done a whole lot in his last 20 games, is willing to play through his 2019 fifth-year option, which will pay $13.9MM.
- Gil Brandt of NFL.com (on Twitter) doesn’t have any wide receivers in his top 25 for the 2019 draft. Therefore, if the Cowboys drafted around No. 20, they’d be reaching for a wide receiver less capable than Cooper and wouldn’t have him for the second half of this season. The Cowboys had a similar evaluation of things, Clarence Hill of the Star Telegram tweets.
- “[Cooper is] a younger veteran receiver – only 24 tears old – who can do lot of things in our offense and we don’t have to wait for him to learn how to play in NFL,” said a high-ranking Cowboys source (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Chris Mortensen).
- In giving up a first-round pick for Cooper, the Cowboys are further casting their lot with Dak Prescott as their quarterback of the future, Todd Archer of ESPN.com tweets. His reasoning is that the Cowboys would have had to use a first-round pick in order to be in the QB market in next year’s draft.