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Darin Drakeford

NFC Notes: Eagles, Peterson, Willis, Draft

April 2nd, 2015 at 10:49am CST by Luke Adams

Wide receiver figures to be a primary area of focus for the Eagles in the draft, and according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, UCF’s Breshad Perriman is paying a visit to the team today. It’s one of 18 pre-draft visits or private workouts Perriman has on his schedule in advance of the draft — the young wideout has had private workouts for the Giants and Texans, and recently visited the Ravens.

In addition to bringing in Perriman, the Eagles are also taking a look at USC’s Nelson Agholor, with Chip Kelly in Tampa today to work out a player he recruited back in his Oregon days (Twitter link via Kevin O’Donnell of WTVT Fox13).. Philadelphia has previously been linked to Agholor, so it looks like that interest is very genuine.

Here’s more out of the NFC:

  • Former agent Joel Corry of CBSSports.com takes an extended, in-depth look at Adrian Peterson‘s situation in Minnesota, suggesting that if the Vikings were to trade the veteran running back, they probably shouldn’t expect more than a second-round pick in return. Corry also identifies seven potential trade partners for the Vikes, with clubs like the Falcons and Chargers joining oft-mentioned suitors such as the Cowboys and Cardinals.
  • Speaking to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle, Corry says he’d be surprised if the 49ers don’t attempt to recoup a portion of Patrick Willis‘ signing bonus, following the linebacker’s retirement. In Corry’s view, the team could probably recover a minimum of $3.54MM from Willis. Chris Borland, who also retired this offseason, previously indicated he’d be returning three-quarters of his signing bonus to the Niners.
  • Linebacker Darin Drakeford, who participated in last month’s veterans combine, is working out today for the Buccaneers, a league source tells Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link).
  • The Lions continue to examine speedy receiving prospects, bringing in UAB’s J.J. Nelson today for a pre-draft visit, writes Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com.

Practice Squad Updates: Monday

December 22nd, 2014 at 7:24pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad news here..

  • The Chiefs cut former Maryland linebacker Darin Drakeford from their practice squad injured list, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (on Twitter). The linebacker was originally cut by the Falcons in August and he signed with Kansas City in October.
  • The Browns signed defensive tackle Christian Tupou to their practice squad, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Cleveland dropped Tupou from their taxi squad earlier this month.
  • Washington signed wide receiver Colin Lockett to their practice squad, according to Zac Boyer of The Washington Times (on Twitter). Lockett, an undrafted rookie out of SDSU, was on the Bengals’ practice squad through Week 7. His recent audition with the Lions didn’t bring about a deal, but he has landed in D.C.

Practice Squad Updates: Monday

November 24th, 2014 at 7:30pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here..

  • The Chiefs have placed Darin Drakeford on the practice squad-injured list, tweets Aaron Wilson. The linebacker was originally cut by the Falcons in August, and he signed with Kansas City in October.
  • The Colts have re-signed wideout Griff Whalen to their practice squad, tweets Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. The 24-year-old was waived this past weekend to make room for Zurlon Tipton.

Earlier updates:

  • The Packers have signed offensive tackle Justin Renfrow to their practice squad, tweets ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. To make room, they released guard Rishaw Johnson, who was signed to the practice squad last week. Renfrow, a former standout for the Miami Hurricanes, briefly spent time with the Cardinals.
  • The Chiefs are planning to sign defensive lineman Nick Williams off of the Steelers’ practice squad, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Kansas City has their eye on the 2013 seventh rounder all year, Rapoport adds. Williams, 24, spent last year on injured reserve. He’s now the second defensive lineman to be plucked from the Steelers’ practice squad this month. The Cardinals signed defensive end Josh Mauro off of the Steelers’ taxi squad two weeks ago.
  • To fill the space left by Williams’ departure, the Steelers have signed defensive end Joe Kruger to their practice squad, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com.

Minor Moves: Thursday

October 23rd, 2014 at 2:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Since Thursday is typically a quieter day for transactions during the NFL season, we’ll round up today’s minor 53-man roster and practice squad moves right here, rather than splitting them into separate posts. Here’s the latest:

  • The Broncos announced today (via Twitter) that they’ve released safety John Boyett from their practice squad following his arrest earlier this week on a misdemeanor third-degree assault charge.

Earlier updates:

  • The Chiefs have signed linebacker Darin Drakeford to their practice squad, according to Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). Paylor adds that Drakeford takes the practice squad spot vacated by linebacker Orie Lemon, who has signed to the Buccaneers‘ 53-man roster. Tampa Bay had an opening on its roster after Da’Quan Bowers was moved to the reserve/suspended list for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
  • After clearing waivers, tight end Rashaun Allen has returned to the Seahawks, signing to the club’s practice squad, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.

Falcons Cut 10 Players

August 24th, 2014 at 4:16pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Falcons have slimmed their roster all the way down to the 75-man limit by cutting 10 players, the team announced in a press release:

  • Theo Agnew, DE
  • Brenden Daley, LB
  • Darin Drakeford, LB
  • Devonta Glover-Wright, S
  • Tyrell Johnson, S
  • Julian Jones, WR
  • Jeff Matthews, QB
  • Walker May, LB
  • Jerome Smith, RB
  • Tramaine Thompson, WR
  • Brian Wozniak, TE

Of the 12, only Johnson, a former second-round pick of the Vikings, was released rather than waived, as he has accrued more than four years of service time.

Minor Moves: Saturday

August 9th, 2014 at 9:00pm CST by Matt Feminis

You can find Saturday’s minor transactions from around the NFL below, with the latest moves added to the top of the page throughout the afternoon and evening….

  • The Falcons have signed linebacker Darin Drakeford, according to the team’s official Twitter account. The team waived kicker Sergio Castillo to make room for the signing.
  • The Cowboys will place running back Ben Malena on the waived/injured list, reports Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com (via Twitter). The team then signed running back D.J. Adams, according to Calvin Watkins of ESPNDallas.com (via Twitter). The Cowboys also released punter Cody Mandell and will look to sign a kicker to replace him, reports Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter).
  • The Redskins have signed safety Da’Mon Cromartie-Smith, reports Mike Jones of the Washington Post (via Twitter). Smith is the younger brother of former fullback Terrelle Smith and is cousins with both the Cardinals’ corner Antonio Cromartie and Giants’ corner Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. The team waived cornerback Peyton Thompson to make room for Smith, reports Tarik El-Bashir of CSNWashington.com (via Twitter).
  • The Bengals have announced that they have signed quarterback Tyler Wilson, according to the team’s official Twitter account. Wilson was recently waived by the Titans, reports Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer (via Twitter).

Earlier Updates:

  • The Chargers announced they have signed linebacker Victor Aiyewa to replace Alvin Scioneaux, who suffered a torn ACL. Aiyewa, 25, saw limited action in five games for the Packers last season. Scioneaux, an undrafted free agent from Wofford, will be placed on IR if he clears waivers.
  • The 49ers have waived injured receiver Chuck Jacobs (ACL), and signed receiver Lance Lewis (Twitter link). Lewis went undrafted out of East Carolina in 2012. He appeared in three games for the Redskins last year, and was released by the Cowboys in May.
  • The Chiefs waived Dezman Moses, a third-year linebacker, and replaced him with linebacker Devan Walker, a Southeast Louisiana product who was waived with an injury settlement by the Chargers before last season (Twitter link).

Rob DiRe contributed to this post.

AFC East Notes: Jets, Bills, Jackson, Vick

August 1st, 2014 at 10:55am CST by Zachary Links

Jets offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg wants to see quarterback Geno Smith simplify things, writes George Willis of the New York Post. “He’s to the point where on occasion, he’s double looking off [defenders] and these kinds of fancy things and we just got a little too fancy [Wednesday],” Mornhinweg said today. “It’s just that simple. We were just trying to do too much and too fancy.” Here’s more from the AFC East..

  • There is no guaranteed money in Fred Jackson‘s one-year extension with the Bills, tweets Mike Rodak of The Buffalo News. Jackson and the Bills agreed to a deal that is worth $2.6MM, with up to $1MM in additional incentives for the 2015 season. Despite turning 33 this past winter, Jackson had one of his best seasons in 2013, compiling 1,277 total yards from scrimmage and setting a career high with 10 total touchdowns.
  • The Jets are trying out former Maryland linebacker Darin Drakeford today, a source tells Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). Drakeford has been in camp with the Colts and Chiefs since going undrafted in 2013.
  • Michael Vick is 34 and currently penciled in as Smith’s backup, but he says he’s far from finished in the NFL, telling Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News that he wants to play until he’s 40. The Jets veteran has played down any talk of a quarterback competition this offseason and says that he’s ready to mentor Smith, but he also says that he’ll be ready when and if he’s called upon.