South Notes: Texans, Panthers, Workouts
The South is the only divisional region not represented in this week’s Thanksgiving action, but that doesn’t mean there’s not news coming out of the divisions. Here’s the latest from around the AFC and NFC South:
- With Ryan Mallett out for the year, the Texans didn’t get much of an opportunity to see if he might be the team’s quarterback of the future. As such, the club is unlikely to count on him for 2015, and may be back to the drawing board when it comes to finding a QB. Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report examines the Texans’ “quarterback purgatory,” while John McClain of the Houston Chronicle writes that finding a big-time signal-caller should be atop the team’s offseason to-do list.
- The Panthers lost multiple offensive linemen during the offseason and have seen even more fall to injuries since the season got underway. As the team assesses its options for the rest of this year, a team source tells Jonathan Jones of the Charlotte Observer that addressing the tackle positions in either free agency or the draft will be a top priority this coming offseason.
- In addition to working out Terrance Parks, whom they signed to their practice squad, the Texans also auditioned safeties M.D. Jennings and DeJon Gomes, says Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter).
- According to Wilson (via Twitter), the Colts auditioned several pass-catchers this week, including tight end Michael Flacco and wideouts Jace Davis and Nick Williams. The club also brought in offensive lineman Kitt O’Brien for a tryout.
- The Buccaneers signed a pair of tight ends earlier this week, and took a look at at least one more before making their decision, per Wilson, who tweets that the team worked out veteran free agent Tom Crabtree.
Practice Squad Updates: Tuesday
Already today, we’ve passed along word on practice squad signings and cuts made by the Buccaneers and Lions. Here are the rest of Tuesday’s practice squad transactions from around the NFL, with the latest updates added to the list throughout the day:
- According to the NFL transaction report, the Chargers added cornerback Richard Crawford to their practice squad, according to Eric Williams of ESPN.com (on Twitter). San Diego waived Crawford from the active roster late last week.
- The Colts have signed defensive tackle Kelcy Quarles to their practice squad, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (on Twitter). Quarles, 22, was released by the Colts yesterday to make room for linebacker Victor Butler. The Colts’ practice squad is currently full, so another move should be on the way.
- Although he auditioned for the Cardinals today, running back Kapri Bibbs will return to Denver and be added to the Broncos‘ practice squad, reports Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
- Linebacker Keith Pough, who was released to make room for Josh Gordon the Browns‘ roster, has been re-signed to the club’s practice squad, replacing wide receiver L’Damian Washington, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- The Cardinals released tackle Kelvin Palmer from their practice squad today, creating an opening on the unit, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
- The Texans cut a tackle of their own, removing Chris Martin from their taxi squad, tweets Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle.
- After being released from the Falcons‘ active roster, receiver Freddie Martino cleared waivers and joined the team’s practice squad, replacing wideout Ryan Spadola, per ESPN.com’s Vaughn McClure (via Twitter).
Earlier updates:
- Former Patriots linebacker Ja’Gared Davis has signed with the Chiefs‘ practice squad, tweets Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Kansas City had been carrying nine players on its squad, so Davis fills that 10th and final spot, and no corresponding move is necessary.
- In addition to confirming the addition of wide receiver and return man Griff Whalen to their practice squad, the Colts announced today that they’ve signed Jeff Demps to the unit, releasing running back Michael Hill to make room. Demps, a former Olympic sprinter, is also listed as a running back by Indianapolis.
- You can find the up-to-date list of all 32 practice squad rosters right here.
Practice Squad Updates: Monday
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.
Colts To Sign Victor Butler
The Colts are set to sign linebacker Victor Butler, according to Mike Chappell of the Indy Star (on Twitter). To make room, Indianapolis will waive defensive tackle Kelcy Quarles.
Butler, 27, was released by the Colts less than a week ago. The former fourth round pick of the Cowboys has shown promise but he missed last year with a torn ACL while with the Saints. The pass rush specialist signed with the Cardinals in mid-September but his stay in Arizona was brief as he was released on October 1st. In his four seasons in Dallas (2009-2012), Butler totaled 11 sacks and 68 tackles.
Quarles, 22, appeared in two games for the Colts this season and registered a sack in their week three win against the Jaguars.
Minor Moves: Saturday
Here are today’s minor transactions. We’ll update the list throughout the day, with the most recent moves added to the top…
- The Seahawks have added offensive lineman Andrew McDonald to their practice squad, reports Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (via Twitter). The team released defensive lineman Jimmy Staten to make room.
- The Chiefs have placed receiver A.J. Jenkins on the injured reserve, reports Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post. The team signed former Panther and Eagle Jason Avant to replace Jenkins, who has had nine catches this season.
Earlier Updates
- The Chargers have signed offensive lineman Ryan Miller to their active roster from the practice squad, reports Michael Gehlken of the U-T San Diego (via Twitter). Chargers’ center Rich Ohrnberger is injured and might not play on Sunday. The team has waived cornerback Richard Crawford in order to make room for Miller (via Twitter).
- With Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman out this week, the Broncos have promoted running back Jeremy Stewart from the practice squad, reports Mike Klis of the Denver Post. The team waived running back Kapri Bibbs to make room for Stewart.
- The Patriots have signed Casey Walker to their practice squad, reports Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). The team waived the defensive tackle to make room for LeGarrette Blount, but were able to bring him back after Walker cleared waivers.
- With only two runnings back on the roster, the Colts have promoted Zurlon Tipton from their practice squad, reports Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star (via Twitter). To make room on the roster, the team waived receiver/returner Griff Whalen.
- The Cowboys have promoted cornerback Micah Pellerin and released defensive tackle Davon Coleman, reports ESPN.com’s Todd Archer (via Twitter). Coleman has compiled three tackles this season after joining Dallas as an undrafted free agent.
AFC Mailbags: Colts, Jags, Bengals, Jets
We took a look at ESPN’s NFC mailbags earlier this morning. Let’s now check out some notes from the AFC…
- If Mike Wells were a member of the Colts front office, he wouldn’t sign Ray Rice to a contract. The writer notes that the running back must be out of shape, and he also notes the difficulties in learning a new scheme.
- Michael DiRocco believes the Jaguars biggest offseason needs will be a pass-rusher and a linebacker. As a result, the writer targets Nebraska’s Randy Gregory and Missouri’s Shane Ray.
- Switching to the offense, DiRocco could see the Jaguars drafting a running back late in the draft. Regardless, he doesn’t think the team should part ways with Toby Gerhart, especially since Denard Robinson hasn’t proven he can be a featured back.
- A.J. McCarron is clearly the Bengals backup plan at quarterback, so he won’t be traded or released any time soon, writes Coley Harvey.
- If the Jets move on from Rex Ryan, the Jets owe it to their fans to pursue 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, opines Rich Cimini.
- Meanwhile, Cimini doesn’t believe the Jets will pursue Darrelle Revis this offseason (if the cornerback becomes a free agent). The writer believes a Revis-Rex Ryan reunion is inevitable, but not in New York.
AFC Notes: Hoyer, Woodson, Broncos, Colts
Just when we thought we were getting a clearer sense of what the playoff picture in the AFC would look like, the 7-3 Chiefs got knocked off by the 0-10 Raiders last night, clearing a path for the Broncos to reclaim the West division and opening the door for a handful of other contenders to push Kansas City for a Wild Card spot. As we look forward to seeing what other surprises this weekend’s games bring, let’s check in on the latest out of the AFC….
- It remains to be seen what kind of contract Brian Hoyer will land in the offseason when he becomes eligible for free agency, but it looks as if he’ll be in for a modest payday before then. As Jeremy Fowler and Adam Caplan of ESPN.com detail, Hoyer will earn more than $2MM in incentives if he handles 70% of the Browns‘ offensive snaps this year, which he’ll do assuming he’s not injured or benched in the next couple weeks.
- Speaking to Peter King of TheMMQB.com (Twitter links), veteran defensive back Charles Woodson said he has no regrets about re-signing with the Raiders this year and hopes to play at least one more season beyond 2014.
- With Ronnie Hillman still sidelined, don’t be surprised if the Broncos promote running back Jeremy Stewart off the practice squad this weekend, tweets Lindsay Jones of USA Today. Stewart would be the club’s No. 3 back on Sunday ahead of Kapri Bibbs.
- Elevating a running back to the active roster is also a possibility for the Colts, according to head coach Chuck Pagano, who told reporters today that Zurlon Tipton could be promoted from the practice squad (Twitter link via Mike Chappell of RTV6).
- At 2-8, the Jets have no hope of reaching the postseason this year, but there are plenty of questions that must be answered down the stretch, writes Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com. Besides the much-discussed fates of Rex Ryan and John Idzik, Cimini points to the quarterback position, free-agents-to-be, and in-season acquisition Percy Harvin as things to keep an eye on.
Colts, Cards Put In Claims For Ben Tate
A day after the Browns released Ben Tate, the Vikings were awarded the running back off waivers on Wednesday, claiming him as a de facto replacement for Adrian Peterson once it became apparent that Peterson almost certainly wouldn’t return to the field this season. However, Minnesota wasn’t the only club to submit a claim for Tate. According to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter), the Colts and Cardinals also placed claims for the former Texan.
The fact that the Colts also tried to grab Tate isn’t a surprise — the team is in need of help in the backfield after seeing Ahmad Bradshaw go down for the season on Sunday with a fractured ankle. In Bradshaw’s absence, Trent Richardson and Dan Herron are the lead backs in Indianapolis, and neither player has shown he’s capable of carrying a significant load this season.
As for the Cards, their claim is a little more surprising. A pair of beat writers reported earlier in the week that Tate was an unlikely target for Arizona, even if he made it through waivers and became a free agent. The team is currently carrying five running backs too, so depth doesn’t appear to be an issue, though Andre Ellington and Robert Hughes have both been limited in practice this week.
Ultimately, the Vikings won out on Tate due to their subpar record this season. Waiver priority is determined by reverse order of record, so the 4-6 Vikes were ahead of the 6-4 Colts in line. And both teams were well ahead of the 9-1 Cards, who could only claim a player off waivers if each of the other 31 clubs passed.
Extra Points: Peterson, Vick, Cribbs, McCown
Ahead of the Buccaneers‘ showdown with the Bears, coach Lovie Smith says that he’s focused on turning things around in Tampa Bay, not on reuniting with his old friends from Chicago, writes Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. Still, Smith has fond memories of his time with the Bears and he doesn’t harbor any ill-will towards them. “My memories of my time are in Chicago are all great. I have lifetime friends from Chicago. I don’t have many bad memories on any place I have ever been. We won a lot of games. That is what I remember. And the fans there were awesome when we were winning all those games,” said the coach. More from around the league..
- Jets quarterback Michael Vick has plenty of football left in him, writes NFL.com’s Chris Wesseling. “I would love to play again, at least get it out of my system for two more years,” Vick said, via NFL Media’s Kimberly Jones. “Because I know I got it in me.”
- If Vikings running back Adrian Peterson has learned from his mistakes, he’s sure not showing it, writes Christine Brennan of USA Today. If the goal the past week was to get back on the field as soon as possible, blowing off a meeting with the NFL commissioner was not the way to do it, no matter what the players’ union was whispering in his ear, Brennan writes. Peterson’s appeal is set to take place on December 2nd, but it sounds like a longshot to say the least.
- Josh Cribbs‘ deal with the Colts is a two-year pact, according to Mike Chappell of the Indy Star (on Twitter). The 31-year-old has made a name for himself in the NFL as a kick return specialist.
- Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune looked back at Josh McCown‘s journey from last year to this year. McCown emerged as a very capable fill-in for the Bears last season when Jay Cutler went down. Over the offseason, he joined up with the Bucs and despite some hiccups, he is coming off of a very solid road win over Washington.
South Notes: Colts, Rice, Tate, Texans
The latest from the AFC and NFC South..
- A source close to Ben Tate tells Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) that he will get claimed by a team before the Colts (at No. 21) get the chance.
- There has been some speculation that the Colts, with a need at running back now that Ahmad Bradshaw is out for the year, and a head coach in Chuck Pagano who has a history with Ray Rice, may be interested in the suspended running back if he’s reinstated. However, Ed Werder of ESPN.com reports that Indianapolis would have no interest in signing Rice as a potential replacement for Bradshaw.
- However, another prominent free agent running back could be a consideration for the Colts. The team has begun researching running back Ben Tate — including his character and potential fit in Indy’s scheme — and appear interested in possibly claiming him off waivers, a source told ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler. The Colts have to be especially mindful of whether a tailback can fit in given the complexity of their offense.
- The Falcons had Travian Robertson plucked from their taxi squad earlier today and they’re looking into replacements already. Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter) reports that Atlanta is auditioning defensive tackle Kheeston Randall today.