Minor NFL Transactions: 10/28/15
With Week 8’s slate of games around the corner, NFL teams are getting their rosters ready for their upcoming contests. Here are Wednesday’s minor transactions from around the league:
- The Texans cut Mike McFarland from injured reserve with an injury settlement, Wilson tweets.
- A day after being cut by the Colts, safety and special-teamer Dewey McDonald has been claimed off waivers by the Patriots, tweets Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, adding that New England will need to open a roster spot to make it official.
Earlier updates:
- The Ravens have placed rookie receiver Darren Waller on injured reserve, ending his season, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). Offensive tackle De’Ondre Wesley has been promoted to the active roster to give the team some depth, as Eugene Monroe battles a shoulder injury.
- The Jets have also made a move to provide insurance for a banged-up offensive lineman, elevating Wesley Johnson to their active roster, according to the team (Twitter link). Veteran center Nick Mangold suffered a neck injury against the Patriots, though he may not have to miss much – if any – time.
- As expected, the Buccaneers – who will be without Louis Murphy for the rest of the season and Vincent Jackson in the short term – have promoted wide receiver Adam Humphries from their practice squad, tweets Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune.
- The Jaguars have signed linebacker Hayes Pullard from off the Browns’ practice squad, waiving linebacker James-Michael Johnson to clear a space on their roster, according to John Oehser of Jaguars.com (Twitter link).
- Having been cut from the 53-man roster on Saturday, wide receiver T.J. Graham re-signed with the Saints today, per Evan Woodbery of the Times-Picayune. Graham takes the roster spot that opened up when New Orleans waived cornerback Sammy Seamster.
Workout Notes: Giants, Dolphins, Chiefs
The Giants are working out a handful of kickers today, including Kyle Brindza, Zach Hocker, Corey Acosta, and Tom Obarski, according to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Josh Brown has been a little inconsistent on kickoffs, putting one out of bounds on Sunday, but it’s hard to imagine the team making a change, considering he’s perfect on field goals and has missed just one extra point. As Jordan Raanan of NJ.com tweets, the Giants are likely just kicking the tires on free agents.
Let’s round up a few more workout updates from around the NFL…
- Defensive linemen Jerel Worthy, Derrick Lott, Glenn Foster, and Davon Coleman worked out for the Dolphins today, says Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (Twitter link). Worthy and Foster are the most notable names of the group, having each logged a full season’s worth of regular season contests with the Packers and Saints, respectively.
- Lott was also among the players who tried out recently for the Chiefs, per Wilson (Twitter links). Running back Gus Johnson, defensive end Lawrence Okoye, and linebacker Alex Singleton also got a look from Kansas City.
- According to Wilson (via Twitter), before signing wideout Corey Washington to the practice squad, Washington also worked out receiver Marcus Lucas and tight end Connor Hamlett.
- Offensive lineman Ben Gottschalk, who spent time in the summer on the Niners’ roster, auditioned for the Buccaneers today, tweets Wilson.
- Former USC outside linebacker J.R. Tavai had a tryout with the Packers today, according to Wilson (via Twitter). Tavai signed with the Titans as an undrafted free agent in May, but was cut by the team prior to the regular season.
- The Cardinals auditioned cornerback Keith Lewis, who was cut by the Jets back in August, tweets Wilson.
- On the heels of Jason Myers missing his third PAT of the season, Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley noted that Myers’ kickoffs were also a little short, and mentioned the possibility of bringing in kickers for workouts, per Mike DiRocco of ESPN.com. According to Bradley, GM Dave Caldwell will make that call.
Gus Bradley Safe Through 2016
Things are going fairly well for Gus Bradley and the Jaguars in London today (at least score-wise), but the same can’t be said for much of Bradley’s tenure with the Jags. As Jacksonville’s head coach, Bradley sports an 8-30 record, and with his team off to a 1-5 start in 2015, there are some who believe his job could be in jeopardy.
But according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (via Kevin Patra of NFL.com), that is not the case. Rapoport says that, barring a player mutiny, Bradley will not only keep his job for the remainder of 2015–which team owner Shad Khan implied yesterday–but for all of 2016 as well. The team’s front office appreciates that Bradley inherited one of the least-talented rosters in the NFL when he took the job, and no one realistically believed that the turnaround would be completed in three seasons. Furthermore, 90% of the Jaguars’ roster is 24-years-old or younger, so the team will exhibit patience with Bradley as he attempts to get the most out of his inexperienced squad.
And it’s not as though there are no encouraging signs. The team made a concerted effort to address its offense this past offseason, and although the jury is still out on Blake Bortles, Jacksonville has a good deal of enviable young talent at the skill positions with players like Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns, Julius Thomas, and T.J. Yeldon. The team is expected to place a similar focus on the defensive side of the ball this offseason, and the success of that unit will likely be what determines Bradley’s ultimate fate in Jacksonville. After all, Bradley came to the Jags as a hot head coaching commodity and defensive guru, after leading the Seahawks’ defense to prominence in his last two seasons as Seattle’s defensive coordinator, a position he held from 2009-2012.
If the defense does not improve, Khan’s rare and much-needed patience may begin to wear thin. And no matter the age or inexperience of the roster, Bradley simply has to start winning more games. Luckily for him, it looks as though he will be given ample opportunity to do just that.
AFC Notes: Bills, Ridley, Texans, Chiefs, Jags
Despite EJ Manuel, who entered the season as the Bills‘ third-string quarterback, set to start a second straight game due to Tyrod Taylor‘s knee injury, Buffalo GM Doug Whaley does not regret trading Matt Cassel, per Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News.
“When you look at it, coming out of camp, arguably you could say (Manuel) was the No. 2. So we had an opportunity to come back with Cassel at a reduced rate and have three quarterbacks,” Whaley told Dunne. “If you look at the league, a little over half the league had three quarterbacks so it’s a luxury.”
Dunne, though, offers that Bills coaches may not have been in agreement with trading Cassel, who will make his first start for the Cowboys on Sunday, and a 2017 seventh-round pick for a 2017 fifth-rounder. The Bills reporter noted Buffalo offensive coordinator Greg Roman demurred when asked what prevented Manuel from leapfrogging Cassel on the depth chart when all three QBs were on the roster, and quarterbacks coach David Lee once referred to Cassel as “the glue of the room.”
Whaley said Manuel’s progress has been inconsistent but that the team was on board with promoting the former No. 16 overall pick to the backup spot after some internal debate.
Here are some more notes from the AFC East and the rest of the league.
- Stevan Ridley won’t make his Jets debut Sunday against the Patriots, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. It will be at least another week for the ex-Patriots running back, who is still recovering from ACL surgery. The Jets did not activate the fifth-year back off their PUP list, reports Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (Twitter link), and Gang Green will go with Chris Ivory and Zac Stacy as their top two ball-carriers.
- The Texans are lobbying to play a game in Mexico City either next season or in 2017, John McClain of the Houston Chronicle reports (on Twitter). The NFL is eyeing a game at 95,000-plus-seat Azteca Stadium as soon as next year. If the league’s unable to move the logistics along in time, four London games are likely on tap for 2016, with the NFL serious about expanding beyond the USA’s borders, reports Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk.
- Jaguars guard Brandon Linder underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum October 7 and has returned to the team’s facility for rehab, The Florida Times-Union’s Hays Carlyon reports. A Jags starting guard in each of the 18 games he’s played (three this season before injuring his shoulder) since being drafted by Jacksonville in the third round last year, Linder expects to be ready to return to action by May.
- The Chiefs worked out defensive linemen Lawrence Okoye and Derrick Lott, along with running back Gus Johnson, Pro Football Talk tweets.
AFC Notes: Pagano, Jags, Titans, Broncos
Rumors have persisted that Colts coach Chuck Pagano is fighting to keep his job. While the rumors seemingly haven’t fazed the team, the players certainly recognize their coach’s questionable job security.
“Every team has adversity,” cornerback Vontae Davis told Stephen Holder of IndyStar.com. “If the job was easy, then everybody could be a head coach. I think he’s the man for the job.”
Offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo echoed that sentiment.
“He doesn’t bring any of that in here,” he said. “I actually don’t even know what you’re talking about.”
Let’s check out some more notes from around the AFC…
- Michael DiRocco reports that Jaguars wideout Marqise Lee is one setback away from landing on the injured reserve. The second-year player has only played in two games this season, but the organization isn’t ready to just cut bate from the former second-rounder.
- With Titans running back David Cobb set to return from injury, Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com wonders if Terrance West could be the odd man out. The team swapped a conditional draft pick for the former Browns running back, but West still hasn’t appeared in enough games for that to matter.
- Peyton Manning and the Broncos are struggling offensively, finding it difficult to run the football and getting little production from their tight ends. Owen Daniels should have a chance to get healthy during the bye week and be more productive coming out of it, but if he’s not, Troy Renck of the Denver Post suggests the team seriously consider trading for Vernon Davis, Jared Cook, or Martellus Bennett.
Rob DiRe contributed to this post.
Jaguars Owner on Bradley, Caldwell, Future
The Jaguars certainly spent some money this offseason, committing more than $70MM in guaranteed money to the likes of Julius Thomas, Jared Odrick, Jermey Parnell, Davon House, Dan Skuta and Tyson Alualu.
Ownership certainly hasn’t received the production they had been anticipating, as the Jaguars have gotten off to a 1-5 start. This has led some to question the job security of head coach Gus Bradley and general manager Dave Caldwell.
Prior to his team’s game in London tomorrow, owner Shad Khan was clear that no changes are imminent, but he did acknowledge that his franchise is struggling. To see what else the owner had to say, check out some other quotes below, all via Ryan O’Halloran of Jacksonville.com…
On whether Bradley or Caldwell’s jobs are in jeopardy:
“The only sane – and the only proper thing to do [is to make no in-season changes]. It has never even crossed my mind from that viewpoint.
“Believe me, they want to have success more than any of us do. They’re highly motivated. I think they’re really disappointed we’re not having the success we should [be having]. We have to see how the season unfolds. There is more than half the season out there and then we’ll be able to see what’s been done.”
On whether the team has taken a step back from 2014:
“Life in general and football in particular, it’s not a straight line going up. We know where the starting point was and we want to see where the ending point is and what the journey has been over the last three years.”
On whether the team has enough roster talent to be competitive:
“There are a lot of pieces in place there are certainly a lot of reasons for encouragement. But eventually, the way you measure a football team, or any sports team, is by wins and losses.
“It’s very, very important that we don’t become a victim of the status quo. The performance and actions on the field is what dictate [what happens] going forward.”
South Notes: Jags, Brooks, Saints, Mariota
Through at least the 2020 season, EverBank Field will continue to host seven Jaguars regular season games annually, rather than eight, as we learned earlier today. With Jacksonville having extended its relationship with Wembley Stadium through 2020, with an option for five additional years, the Jags will play at least one home game per year overseas for the foreseeable future.
While that announcement wasn’t a surprise, it’s worth keeping an eye on the Jags’ schedule over the next few years to see if they spend even more time in the United Kingdom. The team is a good candidate to become the first to play two consecutive games in London — likely one as a home team and one as a road team. Additionally, once Tottenham’s new stadium opens in 2018, the Jags would look like a prime candidate to play games there as well, given owner Shad Khan’s fondness for the market.
Here’s more on Khan, the Jaguars, and some other teams from the NFL’s two South divisions:
- While Khan is disappointed with the Jaguars‘ 1-5 record to open the 2015 season, he said today that he still has “a huge amount of confidence” in GM Dave Caldwell and head coach Gus Bradley, writes Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union.
- Texans guard Brandon Brooks, who figures to be one of the more intriguing free agents at his position in 2016, was impressed by Marshal Yanda‘s new contract with the Ravens, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. “Not bad at all,” Brooks said. “He deserves it.” For his part, Brooks could end up seeking a similar deal this winter.
- Drew Brees is 36, and it’s time for the Saints to face reality and think about the future of the position, writes Pat Yasinskas of WalterFootball.com. Although Brees is coming off his best game of the season against Atlanta, Yasinskas rightly notes that there have been some signs that the veteran signal-caller is slowing down. If the Saints finish near the bottom of the league this year, they may have a chance to draft California quarterback Jared Goff, and that’s a pick that Yasinskas endorses.
- Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota didn’t take part in practice today, and head coach Ken Whisenhunt said that tomorrow’s practice will reveal a lot about the QB’s availability for Week 7 (Twitter links via Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com). Reports on the severity of Mariota’s injury have varied, with some suggesting he could be sidelined for multiple weeks, while others have indicated he should play this weekend.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
NFL, Jaguars Extend Wembley Stadium Deal
A little over two weeks after the NFL announced that it’s extending its international series through 2025, the league confirmed today that games will be played at London’s Wembley Stadium through at least the 2020 season. As part of the agreement, the Jaguars will continue to play at least one game a year at Wembley through 2020.
According to the NFL’s announcement, the league will also have the option to extend the current deal another five years, through 2025. The Wembley agreement will eventually overlap with the NFL’s deal with a new Tottenham stadium, which is on track to host two games per year beginning in 2018. Once that stadium opens, the league will play at least two games per season at Wembley, and another two on the Tottenham field.
Jaguars owner Shad Khan, who hinted earlier this week that an announcement of this nature was coming on Thursday, would have liked to extend his team’s deal for London games beyond 2020, but said five years “is what the NFL wanted” for now, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (Twitter link).
“Our four-year London initiative has been every bit as rewarding as we anticipated, certainly due in large part to the league’s commitment to the UK and the world class experience that Wembley Stadium has provided the Jaguars, our fans and our partners,” Khan said in a statement. “Our interest in extending our agreement to play a home game each season in London is nothing new. So, we’re very happy to make it official today. This is great news for the Jaguars and the stability of the team in Jacksonville, which has come to embrace London as our home away from home.”
When the NFL first announced the extension of its international series earlier this month, the league indicated that it would explore playing games beyond the UK, perhaps as early as next season. Per O’Halloran (via Twitter), the league is currently focused as Mexico and Germany as the top two countries that could host games within the next few years.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/21/15
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from across the league:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: CB Carrington Byndom, DT Olsen Pierre (Twitter link via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com)
Chicago Bears
- Signed: S Demontre Hurst (Twitter link via Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: RB Kapri Bibbs (via Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post)
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: TE Sean McGrath (press release), LB Amarlo Herrera (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: WR Jordan Leslie, QB Jeff Tuel (Twitter link via John Oehser of Jaguars.com)
- Cut: S Craig Loston
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: S Jonathan Dowling (Twitter link via Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald)
- Cut: RB Bronson Hill
New England Patriots
- Signed: FB Joey Iosefa (Twitter link via Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald); OL Brennan Williams (Twitter link via team)
New York Giants
- Signed: OL Adam Gettis (press release)
- Cut: T Xavier Proctor
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: G Michael Huey, T Andrew McDonald (Twitter link via Eric Williams of ESPN.com)
- Cut: QB Brad Sorensen
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: OLB Markus Pierce-Brewster (Twitter link via Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com)
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/21/15
Today’s minor NFL signings, cuts, and other moves:
- The Giants announced that they have signed cornerback Leon McFadden off the Cardinals‘ practice squad, as Michael Eisen of Giants.com writes. McFadden, 5-10 and 199 pounds, has played in 23 regular-season games with two starts for Cleveland and San Francisco. He has recorded 21 tackles (13 solo), one pass defensed and six special teams tackles.
- The Jaguars promoted running back Joe Banyard to the active roster, as John Oehser of Jaguars.com tweets.