Monday’s taxi squad moves:
Denver Broncos:
Jacksonville Jaguars
Los Angeles Rams
New York Jets
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Here are today’s minor moves and callups for Week 12’s Sunday slate:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Cleveland Browns
Denver Broncos
Indianapolis Colts
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
New York Giants
Pittsburgh Steelers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
NOVEMBER 21: Derrick Brooks, the jointly-appointed hearing officer overseeing Jackson’s appeal, has upheld the ban. Jackson will be forced to sit out four games, the NFL announced on Tuesday. As a result of the decision, the veteran will miss a total of six games this season for illegal hits; this latest suspension will cost him nearly $559K in forfeited salary. The disciplinary issues will no doubt hurt Jackson’s market this offseason, as he is a pending free agent.
NOVEMBER 20: Kareem Jackson has been slapped with his second suspension of the season. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that the Broncos safety has been suspended four games “for repeated violations of the player safety rules.”
In the NFL’s release (h/t NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport), NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan cited a play from yesterday’s game where Jackson made illegal contact with Vikings quarterback Joshua Dobbs. Specifically, the league issued a suspension for violation of Rule 12, Section 2, Article 10 which states that “it is a foul if a player lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent.”
“Illegal acts that are flagrant and jeopardize the safety of players will not be tolerated,” Runyan wrote in a letter to Jackson. “The League will continue to stress enforcement of the rules that prohibit using your helmet to make forcible contact with your opponent.”
Following Denver’s Week 7 matchup with the Packers, Jackson was hit with a four-game ban for violating the league’s unnecessary roughness rules. Following an appeal, that suspension was knocked down to two games. The 35-year-old was just activated from the reserve/suspension list last week. Jackson was also tossed from Denver’s Week 2 game (and later fined) for a flagrant foul.
Jackson will be allowed to appeal his latest suspension. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the safety will indeed by appealing the punishment. If he does indeed sit four games, he’ll be eligible to return to the active roster in Week 16.
After spending the first nine seasons of his career with the Texans, Jackson joined the Broncos prior to the 2019 campaign. He started all 61 of his appearances through his first four seasons in Denver, and he’s started each of his eight appearances this year. The veteran has collected 51 tackles and two interceptions in 2023, and he had nine tackles in his return from suspension this past weekend.
This week’s callups and minor moves heading into Sunday:
Arizona Cardinals
Carolina Panthers:
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Rams
New York Giants
New York Jets
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
Washington Commanders
Evans had been called up from the practice squad three times by the Cowboys, meaning he needed to be added to the 53-man roster this week to continue suiting up. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports “several teams” attempted to poach the veteran off the taxi squad, but his decision to remain with Dallas has culminated in today’s move. Evans has logged 74 combined defensive and special teams snaps with the Cowboys so far, recording three tackles.
James was out of the lineup for one game after being designated for return, but he will be eligible to suit up for the upcoming Super Bowl rematch against the Eagles. Mentioned as a trade candidate earlier this year, he will be able to add depth to a WR corps which has underperformed to date, and add to his single catch recorded in his two Kansas City games at the start of the campaign.
Here are Thursday’s practice squad moves:
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Kansas City Chiefs
Los Angeles Rams
New Orleans Saints
The Cowboys are Davis’ third team this year. Going to camp with the Patriots, Davis did not make the team. The veteran nose tackle had seen action with New England over the past three seasons. The Seahawks added Davis, 31, to their practice squad in September but released him five weeks later. The former Ravens starter and Colts, Browns and Jaguars contributor has 19 career starts. Davis played 216 defensive snaps last season.
Today’s practice squad transactions:
Baltimore Ravens
Carolina Panthers
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Los Angeles Chargers
Minnesota Vikings
New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Today’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Rams
New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
Following a spree of illegal hits, Kareem Jackson was hit with a four-game ban back in October. That suspension ended up getting knocked down to two games, and following that absence, the defensive back has returned to the active roster. While Justin Simmons has long resided as the Broncos’ top safety, Pro Football Focus has graded Jackson as a top-20 player at the position this season.
Halapoulivaati Vaitai suffered a back injury that will require a stint on injured reserve, although there’s a chance the veteran lineman ends up having to miss the rest of the season. After starting all 25 of his appearances for the Lions between 2020 and 2021, Vaitai has started three of his six games in 2022.
Hunter Long was a third-round pick by the Dolphins in 2021 but only lasted two seasons in Miami, hauling in a single eight-yard catch. He was part of the Rams’ offseason trade return for Jalen Ramsey but hasn’t appeared in a game this season. The tight end landed on IR in early September with a thigh injury.
Following their walk-off win over the Bills, the Broncos may have made the right decision in standing pat at the trade deadline. The team has gone from 1-5 to 4-5 in Sean Payton‘s first season, now residing in a glut of AFC teams vying for wild-card spots. While offers came in for Jerry Jeudy, teams also explored Patrick Surtain.
Leading up to the deadline, the Broncos had made it fairly clear they were not looking to move Surtain. They are believed to have set the price of two first-rounders to even begin discussions, but ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter notes seven teams still contacted the Broncos regarding the All-Pro cornerback’s availability. Three of those made offers.
None of the proposals moved the needle, with Schefter adding the Broncos did not consider trading their top player. Surtain is off to a strong start, joining Dallas’ Micah Parsons and San Francisco safety Talanoa Hufanga as the only first-team All-Pros from the 2021 draft class. Surtain, 23, staying on his current course will call for an easy fifth-year option decision by May and put him on track for a record-setting extension.
It took two first-rounders for the Jaguars to trade Jalen Ramsey in 2019, his fourth season. But Ramsey had aimed to be moved; no speedbumps have occurred during Surtain’s time in Denver. The second-generation corner can be kept on his rookie contract, once the fifth-year option becomes official, until 2025. Payton’s team kept Marshon Lattimore on his rookie deal through his 2021 option year; Surtain on this contract represents one of the most valuable commodities in the game.
Surtain also has some pre-Denver ties to both the Broncos’ current power brokers. Broncos GM George Paton was a Dolphins exec during part of Patrick Surtain Sr.‘s tenure in Miami, and the Saints attempted to trade up for the Alabama prospect in 2021. The younger Surtain went to the Broncos at No. 9 overall that year.
Some around the Broncos’ organization view Surtain as the most talented corner they have come across, Schefter adds. The 2022 All-Pro most recently displayed his coverage prowess against Stefon Diggs on Monday night. The Broncos have enjoyed talented corners for most of this century. Chris Harris collected three All-Pro nods and is on the short list for top slot corners in NFL history, while Aqib Talib was 4-for-4 in Pro Bowls as a Bronco. Although it is early, Surtain’s career arc is closer to Hall of Famer Champ Bailey‘s. The Broncos rostered the first-ballot Hall of Famer for 10 seasons, but they did not acquire the perennial Pro Bowler until his sixth year — via the 2004 Bailey-Clinton Portis swap.
While contract talks or a potential franchise tag situation down the line could change this relationship, it should be expected Surtain’s rookie deal will turn into a mega-extension at some point in the mid-2020s.
Additionally, Schefter said Monday night the Broncos received an offer of third- and fifth-round picks for Jeudy. The team had held out for a first-rounder this offseason, and although Darius Slay went for this picks package years ago, the Broncos have Jeudy signed through 2024. Interest cooled in the Alabama alum, who has been inconsistent this season. But the Broncos still received a reasonable offer for a player without a 1,000-yard season on his resume. They could certainly revisit trade talks next year, considering how frequently Jeudy’s name has come up in trade rumors. For now, they will move forward with the former first-round pick.
Today’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
Denver Broncos
Green Bay Packers
New England Patriots
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers
JaMycal Hasty was waived by the Jaguars this past weekend following a year-plus with the organization. The running back had 320 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns during his first season in Jacksonville but was limited to only three games and zero touches this year. He’ll be hard pressed to carve out a role in New England with Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott leading the depth chart.
Having won two straight games, reasons for optimism are emerging for the Broncos entering the second half of the season. Much of any future success on offense in particular will no doubt depend on the running game, with Javonte Williams at the heart of the rushing attack. 
The 2021 second-rounder flashed considerable potential as a rookie, posting 903 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground. That raised expectations for Year 2, but Williams was limited to only four games due to an ACL tear. Recovery from the injury has been a months-long process, but by now he has returned to full strength.
“Yeah, my confidence is definitely at 100%,” Williams said, via the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson, when asked about the status of his knee in light of a recent uptick in production “I feel like I can do anything I was doing my rookie year and I feel like everything is good.”
The 23-year-old has rushed for at least 52 yards four times this season, including each of the past three games. That includes eclipsing the 80-yard mark in wins over the Packers and Chiefs; in the latter contest, Williams added his first touchdown of the season in the passing game. With the Broncos finding success in the ground attack recently, Williams will be a key player to watch down the stretch for Denver.
The 3-5 outfit has been at the center of considerable criticism for new head coach Sean Payton given expectations for the former Super Bowl winner and the presumption his arrival would help bring about a rebound from quarterback Russell Wilson. The latter has performed better than his disastrous debut campaign in the Mile High City last year, but the rushing attack has been a source of success. The Broncos entered Week 10 in 11th in the league with an average of 117 yards per game on the ground.
Undrafted rookie Jaleel McLaughlin has established himself as a capable depth running back (7.1 yards per carry, 333 scrimmage yards) but Williams should be in line for a large workload over the rest of the season. The declaration that his knee is back to its pre-injury form is a welcomed one given his importance to any potential Broncos playoff push.