NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/27/18
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad decisions:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: WR Jalen Tolliver
- Cut: Vincent Valentine
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DB Bennett Jackson
- Cut: RB Mark Thompson
Denver Broncos
- Signed: DL Caushaud Lyons, TE Tim Semisch, T Dan Skipper
- Placed on PS-IR: OT Andreas Knappe
New York Giants
- Signed: TE Hakeem Valles
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: CB Jalen Myrick
- Released from PS-IR: DE Jonathan Wynn
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: LB Tyrell Adams, WR Max McCaffrey
Broncos’ Jeff Heuerman, Shaquil Barrett Suffer Injuries
The Broncos have climbed back into the AFC wild card race after consecutive wins, but their most recent victory saw key contributors go down.
Both Jeff Heuerman and Shaquil Barrett suffered injuries during the Broncos’ 24-17 win over the Steelers, and in the tight end’s case, that will mean an IR trip. Heuerman has broken ribs and a bruised lung and is out for the rest of the season, Mike Klis of 9News reports (on Twitter). Vance Joseph confirmed Heuerman, whom Klis notes broke three ribs, is done for the year.
Barrett, used as an off-the-bench pass rusher, will be out for a few weeks because of a hip flexor issue, Klis adds.
While the Broncos have a deep group of edge defenders, they are now quite thin at tight end. Jake Butt is already on IR. Matt LaCosse, who scored his first touchdown Sunday, will be the next man up. Klis adds (via Twitter) the Broncos are expected to promote Temarrick Hemingway from their practice squad.
A fourth-year tight end out of Ohio State, Heuerman’s delivered his best season since arriving in Denver as a third-round pick. Injuries and inconsistency previously ailed Heuerman, but he’d become a steady option for Case Keenum since the trade of Demaryius Thomas. Heuerman caught 18 passes over the past three games and has 281 receiving yards this season. This, though, will be a tough blow for his value. A free agent-to-be, Heuerman only has 49 career catches for 564 yards and four touchdowns in four seasons.
The Broncos hope Barrett, also a contract-year player, will miss only two games, Troy Renck of Denver7 tweets. He was one of this year’s top restricted free agents, and the Broncos applied as second-round tender to their 2014 UDFA find. A plus run defender in a high-end pass-rushing group, Barrett has three sacks this season. Denver still has 2015 first-round pick Shane Ray as a key second-string edge rusher, and UDFA Jeff Holland resides on its practice squad.
Latest On Broncos Ownership Situation
The drama surrounding ownership of the Broncos continues to escalate. Last month we broke down the latest in the situation, and it’s taken several new turns since then. Owner Pat Bowlen has been unable to manage the team for a while now as he suffers from Alzheimer’s, and last month his brother Bill Bowlen filed a lawsuit against the trust that controls the team, seeking to have the trust dissolved. Now the trust, which has placed CEO Joe Ellis in charge for the past few years, is responding by filing a motion asking that the case be moved to an arbitration process to be ruled on by the NFL, according to Troy Renck of TheDenverChannel.com.
There’s been a battle brewing within the Bowlen family for a while now, but it had been playing out mostly behind the scenes until recently, when it spilled out into the press. A few months back one of Pat’s daughters, Beth Bowlen Wallace, went public with her desire to eventually take control of the team. The trust, which was set up to eventually decide who would take over the team as Pat’s health declined, pushed back on Wallace’s statements, and has said they don’t believe she is ready to run the team. Another one of Pat’s daughters, the 28-year-old Brittany Bowlen, has also confirmed she wants to own the Broncos and she is reportedly the preferred candidate of team and league executives.
The trust, and Ellis, have been accused of dragging their feet intentionally in order to keep themselves in power, a claim they’ve strongly denied. The lawsuit alleges just that, and Bill also claims that his brother was incapacitated at the time the trust was created in 2009 and that it should be deemed invalid.
The trust’s motion includes an affidavit from one of Pat Bowlen’s lawyers at the time, Richard Robinson, who writes that Pat “understood his affairs including Broncos’ succession plan” in 2009, according to Mike Klis of 9News (Twitter link). Klis writes that Robinson will be the “star” witness in the case, because the “crux of Bill Bowlen’s lawsuit is [Pat] was incapacitated in 2006.”
Renck writes that Bill’s legal team now has 21 days to respond to the motion to move this to NFL arbitration, so we should have more updates soon. Bill will almost certainly oppose the move, as the league office is unlikely to be sympathetic to his arguments in arbitration. Bill and Beth Bowlen Wallace have the same attorneys, and are working together to gain control of the team. It’s a very complex and tangled situation, and it’s anyone’s guess what will end up happening with the team. Ellis has been in control since July of 2014, and there’s no end in sight to the saga.
AFC Rumors: Sanders, Slauson, Ravens, Jets
Following in the footsteps of Plaxico Burress, Emmanuel Sanders has thrived after leaving the Steelers. Pittsburgh’s permitted many of its wideout finds to depart over the years, prioritizing only long-term partnerships with Hines Ward and Antonio Brown this century. In advance of the latest Broncos-Steelers game, Sanders said (via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Chris Adamski) Mike Tomlin told him prior to 2014 free agency the Steelers “didn’t have the money to pay me.” Denver added Sanders to a $5MM-per-year accord then extended him two years later.
The Steelers have let Sanders, Mike Wallace, Santonio Holmes, Martavis Bryant and Antwaan Randle-El go either after the wideouts’ rookie deals expired or, in Bryant’s case, trading him away. But Pittsburgh continues to find wideout talent, with JuJu Smith-Schuster being the latest such discovery. After an injury-plagued 2017, Sanders (763 receiving yards) is on pace for his fourth 1,000-yard season in five years with the Broncos. He’s signed through 2019. Despite a $10.15MM base salary next year, the 31-year-old pass-catcher may be in line to play out his contract. The Broncos traded Demaryius Thomas, with Courtland Sutton waiting in the wings, but don’t have an obvious Sanders replacement lined up just yet.
Here’s the latest from the AFC on this NFC-only Thanksgiving:
- It doesn’t sound like Matt Slauson has immediate retirement plans, despite suffering a scary back injury, Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star notes. The first-year Colts lineman has contributed plenty to the cause despite being sidelined for much of this year, with Keefer noting he’s helped Indianapolis’ younger linemen. The Colts haven’t allowed Andrew Luck to be sacked in 214 straight pass attempts; that’s the longest since the Redskins kept Mark Rypien upright for 252 straight pass plays during the franchise’s 1991 Super Bowl season. Slauson continues to work out with teammates but is 32 and only signed through 2018.
- Both Joe Flacco and Alex Collins missed the Ravens‘ Thanksgiving practice, per Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Sun. Flacco has not practiced since suffering the hip injury that has him sidelined. He’s expected to miss at least one more week, giving Lamar Jackson another audition opportunity. Collins played last week but has dealt with a foot injury throughout the season, per Shaffer.
- Signs continue to point to Josh McCown receiving another Jets start. Sam Darnold did not participate in team drills Thursday, missing a second straight day of such work, according to the Associated Press. The rookie starter suited up Wednesday for the first time since straining his right foot but did not throw a pass in individual drills. McCown appears to be in line to face the Patriots, with Todd Bowles indicating (via the New York Post’s George Willis) the team will err on the side of caution. So, unless Darnold makes some significant strides by Friday, he’ll likely rest for at least one more week.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/21/18
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad decisions:
Denver Broncos
- Signed: CB Linden Stephens
Detroit Lions
- Signed: CB Andre Chachere
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: Arthur Maulet
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: CB Arrion Springs
Broncos Promote Brendan Langley
The Broncos promoted cornerback Brendan Langley from the practice squad on Wednesday. The 2017 third-round pick did not make the team’s initial cut this year, but he may finally be on the verge of making his 2018 debut. 
Langley, a converted wide receiver out of Georgia, did not make the 53-man roster in September even after the Broncos parted ways with Aqib Talib. The arrival of Adam Jones had something to do with that, but a spot opened up for the youngster when Pacman was cut loose this week.
Langley didn’t have the best camp or preseason in Denver. In four preseason games, Langley allowed five catches off of seven targets and his covered man averaged 15 yards per reception in that admittedly small sample. On the plus side, he did show some skills on special teams, and he has apparently impressed the Broncos in practice.
The 4-6 Broncos are fighting to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, but they’re also evaluating players for next year’s roster. This could be Langley’s chance to make a strong impression on team brass and punch his ticket for next year’s squad.
NFL Workout Updates: 11/20/18
Here’s the latest from the workout circuit (all via SiriusXM’s Adam Caplan on Twitter):
Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns
Denver Broncos
- OL Don Barclay, OT Isaiah Battle, OL Austin Pasztor
Broncos Release Adam Jones
The Broncos have released cornerback Adam Jones. The veteran disclosed the news himself on social media and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link) has confirmed the transaction. 
“Well ,Denver it was good,” Jones wrote on Instagram. “Thanks for the opportunity!!!! On to the next.”
Jones, 35, hooked on with the Broncos late in the preseason. At the time, the Broncos saw him as a strong No. 4 cornerback and punt returner, but he hasn’t quite lived up to expectations. He’s done after seven games and ten punt returns for just 25 yards in total.
The Bengals declined Jones’ 2018 option earlier this year and he didn’t draw a ton of interest afterwards. Despite his past accomplishments, Jones was limited to just nine games with the Bengals in 2017 and didn’t fare particularly well on 299 defensive snaps. Pro Football Focus assigned Jones the worst mark (47.1) of his entire career, framing him more as a punt returner than a reliable corner.
Given his age and dropoff in performance, this could be the end of the line for Jones in the NFL.
Broncos To Sign OT Cyrus Kouandjio
The Broncos have agreed to sign offensive tackle Cyrus Kouandjio, as Mike Klis of 9News tweets. Kouandjio was with the Broncos last year and started their final game at right tackle, so the team is familiar with what he has to offer. 
Kouandjio worked out alongside several other offensive lineman on Tuesday and looked sharper than the rest of the pack. He’ll bolster the offensive line after the loss of Max Garcia, who is done for the year with a torn ACL.
Denver’s offensive line has been decimated by injury this year and the loss of Garcia was just the latest blow. Before that, guard Ronald Leary went down with a Achilles tear in mid-October and starting center Matt Paradis suffered a fractured fibula in early November.
Kouandjio showed some promise with the Bills, but he was waived in 2017 after an odd off-field incident in which he was found partially undressed in a field near the scene of a car accident. The former second-round pick now has an opportunity to showcase himself ahead of free agency in the spring and restore his stock.
Gary Kubiak Remains Open To Offensive Coordinator Position
Broncos senior personnel adviser Gary Kubiak, who led the team to the Super Bowl 50 title as head coach, could soon be returning to someone’s sidelines as an offensive coordinator, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Kubiak last served as an OC with the Ravens in 2014 — which was, incidentally, the last time the Ravens made the playoffs — and he guided Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco to a career year that season.
Following his brief but successful stint in Baltimore, which came on the heels of an eight-year head coaching tenure in Houston, Kubiak returned to Denver to accept the Broncos’ head coaching position, which he described as his dream job. But after two years as sideline general, health issues forced Kubiak into an executive role. He was actually rumored to be a viable OC candidate last offseason, but Broncos GM John Elway expanded Kubiak’s front office responsibilities, and given that Kubiak was already under contract through 2018, any other team interested in his services would have needed to pony up a draft pick to land him.
But come 2019, that will no longer be the case, and Kubiak has already expressed interest in becoming an offensive coordinator again. He remains one of the most respected offensive minds in the game, and he will surely garner plenty of attention during this offseason’s coaching carousel.
Given his health concerns, Kubiak will almost certainly not be interested in an HC job, as Troy Renck of Denver 7 ABC tweets. Renck says that Kubiak will listen if teams approach him with an OC offer, and that he will be sorely missed if he leaves the Denver front office.