Dion Jordan

Jets Working Out DE Dion Jordan

A Robert SalehDion Jordan reunion could be in the cards. The Jets are working out the former top-five pick, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.

While perhaps more known for his draft status and suspension history, Jordan spent the 2020 season with the 49ers. The former Dolphins draftee played 13 games as a rotational cog on Saleh’s defensive line last season, one that featured some notable injuries on San Francisco’s defensive front.

This marks Jordan’s second workout over the past month and change. He auditioned for the Ravens in July. While unavailability has marred Jordan’s career, he has played in 32 games for three different teams — the 49ers, Raiders and Seahawks — over the past three years. Playing 36% of San Francisco’s defensive snaps last season, Jordan registered three sacks.

The Jets already made a move to address their reeling edge rusher corps, sending a sixth-round pick to the Texans for Shaq Lawson. Jordan would qualify as additional depth, but his history with Saleh would help make for a quick assimilation.

Ravens To Sign Chris Smith

Chris Smith is making another stop on his AFC North tour. The free agent defensive end has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Ravens, his agent Drew Rosenhaus announced.

Smith has previously spent time with the Bengals and Browns over the past few years. Baltimore worked out a group of pass-rushers Monday, which also included former third overall pick Dion Jordan and Shilique Calhoun, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Smith apparently won that competition. The Arkansas product originally entered the league as a fifth-round pick of the Jaguars back in 2014.

He played sparingly in Jacksonville, then was traded to Cincy before the 2017 season. He played solid in a rotational role, notching three sacks, four tackles for loss, and two passes defended. That earned him a three-year contract from the Browns, although he was cut after a season and a half.

He latched on with the Raiders last year, and bounced between their practice squad and active roster. Smith turned 29 back in February. Baltimore doesn’t have a ton at defensive end right now beyond Calais Campbell and Derek Wolfe, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Smith ends up making the team.

49ers Promote Dion Jordan

The 49ers have promoted defensive end Dion Jordan from the practice squad to the active roster, per a club announcement. Jordan will provide reinforcement up front following the Niners’ rash of injuries, which includes season-ending ACL tears for defensive end Nick Bosa and defensive lineman Solomon Thomas.

[RELATED: 49ers DE Nick Bosa Has Torn ACL, Done For Season]

Jordan’s NFL career has taken some odd turns, to say the least. After being selected No. 3 overall by the Dolphins, Jordan did little to justify his pre-draft hype. After some underwhelming seasons, missed seasons, and a number of suspensions, Jordan found his way to the Seahawks in 2017. In 2018, he showed some promise as a rotational piece, and he parlayed that into a one-year deal with the Raiders.

He hooked on with the Niners in early August, only to be dropped from the roster before the season opener. After landing on their taxi squad, Jordan now has another opportunity at redemption, by way of the injury bug.

In 2019, Jordan saw time in seven games for the Raiders. He finished out with a grand total of five tackles, two sacks, and one pass defensed. His first chance to play in 2020 will come this Sunday against the Giants at the Meadowlands.

Johnathan Cyprien, Dion Jordan Land On 49ers’ Practice Squad

A 71-game starter throughout a seven-year career, Johnathan Cyprien expressed skepticism about joining the 49ers’ practice squad recently. Kyle Shanahan expressed intrigue about the opportunity to carry up to six experienced players on his 2020 practice squad. But the 49ers made the longtime safety one of their cuts Saturday, and he changed his tune.

Cyprien, 30, agreed to join San Francisco’s practice squad. He will make $12K per week for each week he is on the 49ers’ P-squad. Were he to be promoted to the active roster, that rate would change to at least the veteran minimum.

Cyprien was a full-time Jaguars starter for four seasons, from 2013-16, and started 10 games for the 2017 Titans. He has not been a regular first-stringer since, however. He will join former Bears top-10 pick Dion Jordan and Kevin White on the 49ers’ P-squad.

San Francisco signed White recently, but he did not make the active roster. The 49ers added Jordan this offseason as well. The former No. 3 overall pick played rotational roles with the Seahawks and Raiders over the past three seasons. While suspensions have defined the defensive end’s career, he will have another chance to stay with a team — albeit in unusual fashion.

Here is the 49ers’ full practice squad:

49ers Cut Dion Jordan, Kevin White

On Saturday, the 49ers put a pair of former first-round notables on the curb. Defensive end Dion Jordan and Kevin White were dropped from the roster as a part of the club’s 20+ cuts on Saturday. 

Jordan’s NFL career has taken some odd turns, to say the least. After being selected No. 3 overall by the Dolphins, Jordan did little to justify his pre-draft hype. After some underwhelming seasons, missed seasons, and a number of suspensions, Jordan found his way to the Seahawks in 2017. In 2018, he showed some promise as a rotational piece, and he parlayed that into a one-year deal with the Raiders. He hooked on with the Niners in early August, but he didn’t get to stay for long.

White, a former No. 7 overall pick of the Bears, came out of West Virginia with tons of hype. Over the last five years, injuries have limited him to just 14 games. The Niners have been decimated by injuries at wide receiver, but they still didn’t see enough out of White’s ~1 week audition to keep him. For his career, White has 25 catches for 285 yards and zero touchdowns.

Here’s the full rundown of the 49ers’ cuts:

49ers To Sign Dion Jordan

The 49ers are expected to sign Dion Jordan, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Terms of the deal are not yet known. 

[RELATED: 49ers Meet With Ziggy Ansah]

Jordan’s NFL career has taken some odd turns, to say the least. After being selected No. 3 overall by the Dolphins, Jordan did little to justify his pre-draft hype. After some underwhelming seasons, missed seasons, and a number of suspensions, Jordan found his way to the Seahawks in 2017. In 2018, he showed some promise as a rotational piece, and he parlayed that into a one-year deal with the Raiders. Now, instead of moving to Vegas, he’ll stay in California and switch conferences.

Jordan met with the Niners on Tuesday and it didn’t take long for a deal to come together. The league has largely discouraged teams from meetings and workouts during the pandemic, so most visits in recent weeks have led to deals.

Jordan, who registered a pair of sacks in seven games last year, will slot behind Arik Armstead and Nick Bosa in SF’s edge rushing corps.

49ers Meet With Ziggy Ansah, Dion Jordan

The 49ers are taking a close look at two of their rival’s former defensive ends. Ziggy Ansah and Dion Jordan will meet with SF brass on Tuesday afternoon, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links). 

[RELATED: 49ers’ DJ Reed Out For Season]

Ansah and Jadeveon Clowney were supposed to be an edge rushing nightmare for the Seahawks last year, but things didn’t work out as planned. Clowney managed just three sacks and Ansah posted only 2.5 sacks in eleven games. Still, the potential is there – Ansah registered 12 sacks in 2017 for the Lions, and he would be a serious threat if he could regain his old form. Now another year removed from shoulder surgery, he profiles as a potential low-risk/high-reward pickup.

Jordan signed with the Raiders in November after serving a 10-game suspension for a PED violation, Playing in a rotational role, the former No. 3 overall pick earned positive reviews from Jon Gruden and, at one point, seemed ticketed to join the club in Las Vegas. Instead, he could stay in the Bay Area.

Ansah and Jordan delivered mixed results for the Seahawks, but they could provide potent support behind Niners stars Arik Armstead and Nick Bosa.

West Notes: Jacobs, Jordan, 49ers

The Raiders are not completely eliminated from playoff contention just yet, but it may be in the team’s best interests to shut down rookie RB Josh Jacobs for the final two games of the year. Jacobs, who has rushed for 1,150 yards on 4.8 yards-per-carry this year, has been battling a shoulder injury, and head coach Jon Gruden said that Jacobs had trouble getting his shoulder pads off yesterday (Twitter link via Jerry McDonald of the Bay Area News Group).

Per Gruden, Jacobs’ status for Oakland’s last two games is in doubt. The Raiders finish up their final season in the Bay Area with divisional contests against the Chargers and Broncos.

Let’s round up a few more West-related items, starting with another note from the Silver-and-Black:

  • Dion Jordan, who signed with the Raiders in November after serving a 10-game suspension for a PED violation, has performed well in his first five games with his new team. Playing in a rotational role, the No. 3 overall pick of the 2013 draft has posted two sacks and has earned positive reviews from Gruden. Jordan will be a free agent at season’s end, and Gruden said the 29-year-old is playing his way into a new contract with the Raiders (Twitter link via McDonald).
  • No surprise here, but Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area does not believe the 49ers will use the franchise tag on Arik Armstead, which means that Armstead may be plying his trade elsewhere in 2020. Maiocco also believes that the team will cut running back Jerick McKinnon and wide receiver Marquise Goodwin during the offseason.
  • Seahawks DB Quandre Diggs has been a boon to Seattle’s defense after being acquired in an October trade with the Lions, but Diggs sprained his ankle in the team’s win over the Panthers on Sunday and will likely miss next week’s matchup against the Cardinals, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. It’s still too early to predict his status for Week 17, but given the potential magnitude of that bout with San Francisco, the Seahawks will want to make sure Diggs is as healthy as possible.

Raiders To Sign Dion Jordan, Place Karl Joseph On IR

Former top-five pick Dion Jordan will resurface in Oakland. The Raiders and the veteran defensive end agreed to terms, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

Jordan will join D.J. Swearinger as late-week Raiders additions. To make room on the 53-man roster, Karl Joseph will head to IR. Joseph suffered a foot injury late in the Raiders’ Thursday win over the Chargers.

This marks yet another chance for Jordan, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2013 draft. Suspensions nearly chased the Oregon product out of the league, but he did play 12 games for the Seahawks last season. Multiple teams were interested in adding him this year. Jordan, who was banned 10 games for a violation of the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug policy, will join a Raiders team that recently lost Arden Key for the season.

Jordan missed the 2015 season because of a substance-abuse ban and was shelved for all of 2016 as well. The pass rusher has battled both bans and injuries, having never come close to justifying his draft position. Jordan did register a career-high four sacks for the 2017 Seahawks, however. He recorded 1.5 last year.

A 2016 first-round pick, Joseph has started nine games this season. The Raiders did not pick up his 2020 option, and the West Virginia product may be headed toward free agency in March. While the Raiders have not ruled out retaining him, Jon Gruden has not been shy about jettisoning Reggie McKenzie‘s first-round picks. The previous GM’s other first-rounders left when Gruden took over — Khalil Mack, Amari Cooper, Gareon Conley — have all been traded over the past 15 months.

In order to get both Swearinger and Jordan on the roster, the Raiders also waived linebacker Quentin Poling.

Dion Jordan Drawing Interest

Former No. 3 overall pick Dion Jordan is drawing interest from “a bunch” of NFL teams, agent Tareq Azim tells NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). The defensive end is said to be at 8% body fat at 273 pounds and his rep says he’s feeling great both mentally and physically. 

Jordan will be eligible to return from suspension in a few weeks, following his ban for PEDs. According to Jordan, he tested positive for Adderall after his therapeutic use exemption (TUE) expired.

I made a mistake,” Jordan told Pelissero back in May. “I feel like the person that I am, I’m ready to move forward, I’ve been ready to move forward, with this specific issue. I’ve been working really hard with myself outside of football, and I can see the progress as a young man, as Dion Jordan, I can see it. My whole lifestyle — it’s been a 180-degree change. I f–ked up, man. I can’t fix this [expletive]. It is what it is. But I know what I can’t do and what not to do compared to the mistakes I’ve made in the past.

If and when he signs, he’ll look to shed his draft bust label. Jordan was only a part-timer in his first two seasons with the Dolphins and managed just three sacks in total. Then, his 2015 season was wiped out due to a year-long suspension for diluting his drug test sample.

Jordan spent the last two seasons with the Seahawks, but it is not clear whether the Seahawks have any interest in a reunion.