Titans Cut Roster Down To 53
Starting right tackle Jack Conklin will return to the Titans’ active roster after missing training camp due to his ACL tear in Tennessee’s second-round playoff game. He will be taken off the PUP list, pointing to an early-season return rather than a six-week absence.
Many other Titans will have to head elsewhere. Tennessee announced its cuts, trimming the roster from 90 to 53 players. Here is the full list of cuts:
- WR Deontay Burnett
- DB Trey Caldwell
- LB Josh Carraway
- TE Jerome Cunningham
- RB Dalyn Dawkins
- QB Luke Falk
- DB Rico Gafford
- DB Demontre Hurst
- OL Nico Falah
- OL Laurence Gibson
- DE David King
- DE Francis Kallon
- LB Jeff Knox
- DB Josh Kalu
- DL Du’Vonta Lampkin
- OL Tyler Marz
- LB Nyles Morgan
- OL Elijah Nkansah
- DE Tobenna Okeke
- DT Mike Ramsay
- TE Tim Semisch
- WR Brandon Shippen
- LB Robert Spillane
- G Xavier Su’a-Filo
- DB Steven Terrell
- DB Jason Thompson
- RB Lenard Tillery
- WR Jordan Veasy
- RB Akrum Wadley
- DL Julius Warmsley
- LB Tony Washington
- S Damon Webb
- OL Cody Wichmann
- WR Nick Williams
- TE Ethan Wolf
Placed on IR:
- P Austin Barnard
- WR Devin Ross
Titans Release Several Players
Rather than releasing 30+ players on Saturday morning, the Titans got ahead of the game on Friday by making some early cuts. The following players have been dropped from the 90-man roster (all links go to Twitter, unless noted otherwise):
- CB Trey Caldwell (via McCormick)
- DB Rico Gafford (via McCormick)
- DB Demontre Hurst (via Tom Pelissero of NFL.com)
- DE Francis Kallon (via McCormick)
- DE David King (via Adam Caplan of SiriusXM)
- DL Johnny Maxey (via McCormick) (waived/injured)
- DL Mike Ramsay (via Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com)
- DB Steven Terrell (via McCormick)
- RB Lenard Tillery (via McCormick)
- WR Jordan Veasy (via McCormick)
King was an exclusive rights free agent this offseason and was retained on a one-year deal for the league minimum. Last season marked his most successful campaign to date as he played on a quarter of the club’s defensive snaps and 16% of the Titans’ special teams snaps.
The Titans wrapped their preseason on Thursday night with a 13-3 loss to the Vikings. The Titans went 0-4 in exhibition games, but that’s rarely an indicator of regular season success.
Per league rules, the Titans must trim their way down to a 53-man roster by Saturday afternoon. They’ll get there by releasing more players and placing others on injured reserve.
Titans Re-Sign DL David King
The Titans have agreed to re-sign defensive lineman David King, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). King had been slated to become an exclusive rights free agent, but he’s now inked a new one-year deal.
Because he was an ERFA, King had no negotiating rights. He’ll earn the minimum salary as he returns to Tennessee for the upcoming campaign.
King, 28, was a seventh-round pick in 2013, and last season marked his most successful campaign to date. Tennessee picked up King just prior to the start of the 2017 campaign, and he went on to play roughly a quarter of the club’s defensive snaps and 16% of the Titans’ special teams snaps.
Titans To Acquire David King From Chiefs
The Titans are acquiring defensive end David King from the Chiefs, Adam Caplan of ESPN tweets. Kansas City will receive a conditional 2018 seventh-round pick, Tennessee announced.
Tennessee will be the fifth organization for the 27-year-old King, who entered the NFL as a seventh-round pick of the Eagles in 2013. King never saw any regular-season action in Philadelphia or Cincinnati, where he had a stint from 2013-14. He debuted in 2014 as a member of the Seahawks, with whom he appeared in seven games over two seasons. The rest of his on-field experience (three games) came in Kansas City over the previous two years. Thus far, King has picked up four tackles and 1.5 sacks in 10 games.
With his new club, King will join a Titans defensive end contingent that includes DaQuan Jones, Austin Johnson and Angelo Blackson, among others. At best, he’ll serve as depth behind those three.
Minor NFL Transactions: 1/17/17
Today’s minor moves:
Promotion
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed to active roster: DL Joe Vellano
- Placed on IR (story): DE Adrian Clayborn
Practice Squad
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: CB Bene Benwikere
- Cut: CB Keith Baxter
Reserve/Futures Contracts
Atlanta Falcons
Dallas Cowboys
- TE Rico Gathers
- WR Andy Jones
Kansas City Chiefs
- T Joseph Cheek
- G Jordan Devey
- DB Jimmy Hall
- DT Cory Johnson
- WR Seantavius Jones
- DE David King
- LB Earl Okine
- QB Joel Stave
New Orleans Saints
- WR Rashad Lawrence
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/30/16
The Bengals have placed offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi on injured reserve and promoted running back Tra Carson from the practice squad to take his roster spot, per Geoff Hobson of the team’s website. Ogbuehi has a partial tear of his right rotator cuff, but it’s unlikely to prevent him from participating in the Bengals’ offseason activities. Nevertheless, it ends an injury-marred year for the 2015 first-round pick, who has also dealt with a sports hernia and a toe ailment in 2016. Ogbuehi did start in 12 of 14 appearances after only serving as a reserve last year, but the Bengals demoted him from right tackle to the bench in Week 13 before moving him to left tackle last Saturday. He’ll end 2016 ranked just 65th in overall performance among Pro Football Focus’ 74 qualifying tackles.
- The Eagles have promoted running back Terrell Watson from the practice squad, reports ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). The former Azusa Pacific standout joined the organization in late December after having spent time with the Browns and Broncos. The 23-year-old is expected to see some work in short-yardage situations this weekend.
- The Ravens have claimed wide receiver Vince Mayle off waivers from the Cowboys and placed linebacker Zach Orr on injured reserve, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com was among those to report. Mayle hasn’t been a factor as a wideout, having gone parts of two NFL seasons without a catch, but did get 94 special teams snaps in Dallas this season before it cut him Thursday. Orr, meanwhile, had already been declared out for the Ravens’ season finale against Cincinnati because of a neck issue. He piled up 132 tackles (47 more than any other Raven) and three interceptions this season.
- The Cowboys have promoted offensive lineman Ryan Seymour from the practice squad, reports Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter). The former seventh-round pick last made an NFL appearance in 2014, when he played 11 games (three starts) for the Browns.
- The Chiefs have activated linebacker Justin March-Lillard off IR and waived defensive lineman David King, per Adam Teicher of ESPN.com. Kansas City designated March-Lillard to return Dec. 21, which came at running back Jamaal Charles‘ expense. Before March-Lillard broke his hand in October, he started in all five appearances and amassed 22 tackles. King picked up three appearances with the Chiefs (two this year, one last season), but he didn’t record a tackle.
Ben Levine contributed to this post.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/18/16
The latest minor moves from around the NFL:
- The Lions have added CB Adairius Barnes back to the practice squad and have cut LB Brandon Chubb. according to Justin Rogers of the Detroit News (via Twitter).
- The Chiefs have promoted DL David King to the active roster to take the place of LB Derrick Johnson, who was placed on IR yesterday (Twitter link via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star).
- The Cowboys announced that they’ve promoted defensive lineman Zach Moore to the active roster to fill the roster spot vacated by IR-bound offensive lineman Chaz Green.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/16/16
Wednesday’s practice squad changes:
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: WR Marcus Leak (Twitter link via Mike Chappell of FOX59)
- Cut: G Adam Redmond
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: DL David King
- Cut: DL Earl Okine
New England Patriots
- Signed: FB Glenn Gronkowski
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR Kenny Lawler (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times)
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/14/16
Here are today’s minor moves.
- To make room for defensive end Jarvis Jenkins, the Chiefs have waived defensive lineman David King, reports ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). The four-year veteran has only made two appearances for Kansas City over the past two seasons.
- The Chargers should be getting healthier over the next few weeks with the return of linebackers Denzel Perryman and Jatavis Brown. As a result, the team has waived linebacker Deon King, reports Michael Gehlken of San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). The team has promoted offensive tackle Tyreek Burwell from the practice squad to take King’s roster spot.
Chiefs Sign Knile Davis
Knile Davis is back in Kansas City, as the team announced (via Twitter) that they’ve signed the veteran running back. The team also promoted defensive end David King to the active roster. To make room, the team placed offensive guard Parker Ehinger on the injured reserve and waived offensive lineman Jordan Devey.
It’s been a tumultuous two weeks for Davis. The 25-year-old was traded to the Packers in mid-October, but he only got five carries in two games before being waived last week. The running back was claimed by the Jets the next day, but he barely lasted three hours as the team opted to sign free agent running C.J. Spiller. In six games this season, Davis has compiled only three yards on six carries, and he’s added another four receptions for 18 yards. The former third-rounder had his best season in 2014, when he ran for 463 yards and six touchdowns. With Jamaal Charles out for the season and Spencer Ware sidelined with a concussion, the team will have to rely on Davis, Charcandrick West, and Bishop Sankey to lead their running game.
King, a seventh-round pick in 2013, has eight NFL appearances under his belt. The 26-year-old has collected four tackles and 1.5 sacks, and he’ll likely compete with Kendall Reyes and Dadi Nicolas for snaps on the defensive line.
We learned earlier this week that Ehinger, a fourth-round rookie, would miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. The Cincinnati product ultimately started four games for the Chiefs. Meanwhile, Devey made one appearance for Kansas City this season. By cutting the former undrafted free agent, the Chiefs will be rolling with only Jah Reid and Bryan Witzmann as their back-up lineman.