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Minor NFL Transactions: 10/21/23

October 21st, 2023 at 8:30pm CST by Adam La Rose

Here are the minor moves made around the league in advance of the Week 7 slate of Sunday games:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos 

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

  • Restored to active roster (from suspension exemption): DE Charles Omenihu

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Giants 

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Commanders

Dulcich already had one IR stint this season due to an aggravation of last year’s hamstring injury. The 2022 third-rounder has appeared in only two contests so far this season, and in the most recent one he suffered yet another setback. As a result, he will once again be shut down for at least four weeks.

The Giants’ decision to again promote DeVito points to starter Daniel Jones missing another game. Indeed, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports Jones is considered a “longshot” to play tomorrow against the Commanders. It will in all likelihood be Tyrod Taylor under center for New York in Week 7 while Jones continues to recover from his neck injury.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/19/23

October 19th, 2023 at 5:47pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor transactions:

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

The Chiefs moved on from Montrell Washington to make room for old friend Mecole Hardman. The former fifth-round pick was serving as Kansas City’s primary punt returner in 2023, returning eight punts for 61 yards. While he’s been limited to special teams duties in 2023, Washington got into 78 offensive snaps with the Broncos in 2022.

Giants Did Not Submit Offer To Re-Sign Evan Engram In 2022

October 19th, 2023 at 10:54am CST by Sam Robinson

Tight ends did not factor prominently into the Giants’ surprising 2022 run to the divisional round. While the team’s pass-catching group doubled as one of the NFL’s worst, no Giants tight end topped 275 receiving yards last year. This led to the Darren Waller trade.

Prior to sending the Raiders a third-round pick for the former Pro Bowler, the Giants finished out a five-year relationship with Evan Engram. The 2017 first-round pick went through an up-and-down tenure in New York, eventually relocating to Jacksonville after a mediocre contract year.

Although the Giants hired a new GM-HC tandem last year, the Joe Schoen–Brian Daboll regime has not been hesitant to pay players acquired by previous front offices. Daniel Jones re-signed in March, and subsequent offseason extensions for Dexter Lawrence and Andrew Thomas commenced. The team re-signed Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard as well. But the Giants cut off their Engram partnership after five seasons, letting him hit the market and sign a one-year, $9MM Jaguars deal. This came after the Giants did not make an offer to retain the talented but inconsistent tight end, per Michael DiRocco and Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com.

A “prove it” deal made sense for Engram, who trudged through his worst season in 2021. Engram’s 408-yard season worked out to just 27.2 per game — by far a career-low mark. Then again, the Giants’ 2021 season was not exactly teeming with skill-position success. The team fired OC Jason Garrett midseason and promoted Freddie Kitchens, and when Jones went down with a neck injury, the Mike Glennon–Jake Fromm duo struggled to the point Joe Judge — viewed late that season as a fairly safe bet to stay for a third year — ended up on the chopping block.

Engram did eclipse 650 yards in two of his first four seasons, posting one of this century’s best rookie-year tight end yardage totals in 2017 (722) and making the Pro Bowl in 2020. The ’20 showing came after the Giants picked up the Ole Miss product’s fifth-year option. His Jaguars contract year brought a return to that form.

Indicating he expected to receive more interest than he ended up drawing, Engram said only four teams contacted him in free agency. With the Jaguars needing to offer $9MM — more than 2022 franchise tag recipients Dalton Schultz and Mike Gesicki received this offseason — it was clear at least one other team expressed reasonable confidence Engram could recover. After setting a Jaguars single-season tight end yardage record (766), Engram posted 12 receptions for 124 yards in the playoffs. This production led to the Jags tagging Engram and extending him on a three-year, $41.25MM deal. Engram entered the season as the NFL’s seventh-highest-paid tight end; through six games, the seventh-year pass catcher has 36 receptions for 301 yards.

After their successful 2022 slate, the Giants traded the No. 100 overall pick — the selection they received for Kadarius Toney before the 2022 deadline — for Waller. The ex-Raiders star is two years older than Engram, at 31, and has battled injuries in recent years. Despite a nagging groin issue, Waller has suited up for each Giants game. He has 28 catches for 282 yards in what has been a disappointing season for New York’s offense, which has seen injury trouble prevent a true evaluation of Jones or his skill crew. The Giants restructured Waller’s contract upon acquiring him, adding a $7.1MM dead-money charge were the team to move on in 2024.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/18/23

October 18th, 2023 at 7:39pm CST by Ely Allen

Minor transactions from around the league today:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Denver Broncos

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

New York Giants

Seattle Seahawks

The Giants are dealing with an unprecedented epidemic at offensive tackle right now as their injury report starts to read like a phone book. Already missing starter Andrew Thomas and primary backup Matt Peart, New York went into Sunday night’s game with Evan Neal and Joshua Ezeudu bookending the line. Pugh had recently been brought in to help address the team’s depth at guard, but when Ezeudu exited the game with a toe injury, and was subsequently placed on injured reserve, Pugh kicked out and played the rest of the game at tackle with the first-team offense. Pugh will now serve as depth at tackle, as will Philips, who started his career in Baltimore as a guard before proving his versatility for the Ravens and Giants. He started five games for New York last year.

QB Updates: Tannehill, Lawrence, Garoppolo

October 16th, 2023 at 9:57pm CST by Ely Allen

Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who left Tottenham Hotspur Stadium yesterday on crutches, has reportedly suffered a high ankle sprain on his right leg, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. This type of injury routinely requires a decent amount of recovery time, putting his status for the team’s next game in doubt, but with a bye week between now and then, it’s not a guarantee that he will be unavailable the next time Tennessee takes the field.

Head coach Mike Vrabel relayed to the media that this injury looks similar to Tannehill’s injury last year, going on to specify that he was referencing the first ankle injury Tannehill suffered earlier in the season and not the one later on that would require surgery, per ESPN’s Turron Davenport. Terry McCormick of TitansInsider.com reported further comments from Vrabel stating that, if healthy, Tannehill would still be the team’s starting quarterback.

Here are a few other injury updates to passers in the AFC:

  • On a short week, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence‘s status for this week’s Thursday Night Football trip to New Orleans is in question. According to Ian Rapoport, after he injured his knee in last week’s win over the Colts, MRIs revealed a slight knee sprain that could threaten Lawrence’s availability. Lawrence wouldn’t normally need to practice much in a short week anyway, but while nursing a knee sprain, they’ll likely only test his knee out to determine his status for this week’s contest. Backup quarterback C.J. Beathard would step in if Lawrence isn’t able to go.
  • After sending quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to the hospital mid-game yesterday, the Raiders received “better than expected news” after a flurry of tests, per Rapoport. They sought out the hospital’s assistance with their superior equipment as they evaluated Garoppolo for injuries to his ribs and back and ruled out any internal injuries. While not ruling it out completely, Rapoport claimed it would be “a challenge” for Garoppolo to play this week. If he’s unable to go, either Brian Hoyer or fourth-round pick Aidan O’Connell would get the start in Chicago. Hoyer sealed the victory in relief of Garoppolo over their former team yesterday, while O’Connell got the start in the Raiders’ Week 4 loss to the Chargers.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/16/23

October 16th, 2023 at 6:36pm CST by Ely Allen

Practice squad moves from today:

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Philadelphia Eagles

Washington Commanders

Jaguars Activate DE Dawuane Smoot From PUP

October 14th, 2023 at 12:50pm CST by Ben Levine

After suffering an Achilles injury late during the 2022 season, Dawuane Smoot is ready to make his return to the field. The Jaguars announced that they’ve activated the defensive end from the physically unable to perform list. To make room on the roster, the Jaguars placed cornerback Christian Braswell on injured reserve.

While it took a few years for him to find his place on defense, Smoot has emerged as one of the Jaguars’ most consistent pass-rushers in recent years. The former third-round pick collected 22.5 sacks for Jacksonville between 2019 and 2022, including a 2021 campaign where he started a career-high 10 games en route to 36 tackles, six sacks, and 16 QB hits.

He continued his production in 2022, finishing with five sacks, six tackles for loss, and 12 QB hits. He suffered a torn Achilles last December, an injury that proved to be poor timing since Smoot was finishing up a two-year, $10MM deal he signed with the organization in 2021. It took the 28-year-old until July to re-sign with the Jaguars, and he was placed on PUP to begin the 2023 campaign. Smoot returned to practice earlier this month.

Josh Allen and Travon Walker are manning the edge spots, meaning Smoot will compete with K’Lavon Chaisson for any leftover pass-rush reps. For what it’s worth, coach Doug Pederson said this week that he doesn’t expect Smoot to be on a snap count when he returns to the field.

“He brings a veteran leadership and presence out there,” Pederson said (h/t Adam Stites of JagsWire). “You can play him in base defense, you can play him in nickel in pass rush situations. There’s his production that comes from being inside and all of that on third down and stuff.

“I don’t think you want to put him on a pitch count, but I think you have to monitor, and you don’t want to get his rep count too high. But at the same time, you want to let him get comfortable with the game and see how he is doing throughout the course of three hours or so that you’re out there.”

Smoot will be taking the roster spot held by Braswell, a rookie sixth-round pick. The Rutgers product appeared in each of Jacksonville’s first three games this season, but he’ll now be sidelined for at least the next four games while he recovers from a hamstring injury.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/7/23

October 7th, 2023 at 6:46pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are the day’s minor transactions heading into Week 5:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

  • Elevated: WR Xavier Malone

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Jags Designate Dawuane Smoot For Return

October 4th, 2023 at 10:07am CST by Sam Robinson

During their London trip, the Jaguars could have multiple linemen back. In addition to seeing left tackle Cam Robinson reinstated from his four-game PED suspension, Jacksonville is opening Dawuane Smoot‘s practice window.

The Jags announced Smoot will begin practicing Wednesday. The recently re-signed edge rusher landed on the reserve/PUP list to start the season. Smoot sustained an Achilles tear in Week 16 of last season.

Smoot is playing on his third Jaguars contract. The team had re-signed the former third-round pick in 2021 and had seen steady play amid a woeful period. Smoot registered between five and six sacks in each of his past four seasons. He combined for 29 QB hits from 2020-21 and added 12 last season to go with his five sacks. The Achilles tear crushed Smoot’s market, but shortly after the Ravens arranged a free agency meeting, the Illinois alum opted to return to the Jags on a one-year, $3.5MM deal.

The team circled back to Smoot in July, adding him months after losing Arden Key in free agency. Key signed with the Titans, creating a void behind starters Josh Allen and Travon Walker. Smoot, 28, will be expected to re-emerge as a key backup. The Jags are down multiple front-seven pieces, with defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton still on IR.

Week 5 represents the first week for players on the PUP, IR and NFI lists to return. Wednesday’s designation for return starts Smoot’s activation clock. The Jaguars now have three weeks to move the seventh-year defender back onto their 53-man roster. Failure to do so in a 21-day period would send Smoot to season-ending IR.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/2/23

October 2nd, 2023 at 6:37pm CST by Adam La Rose

Monday’s minor moves around the league:

Arizona Cardinals

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

As part of the new terms regarding the NFL’s gambling policy, players hit with six-game bans for gambling on non-NFL events while at team facilities have seen their suspensions reduced. As a result, Williams and Petit-Frere will be able to return as early as Week 5. Tom Pelissero of NFL Network notes that each player will receive a one-week roster exemption, after which they will need to be activated.

The same holds true of Robinson, who was suspended for the season’s opening month due to a PED violation. That ban cost the 27-year-old over $3.5MM in salary and voided the remaining guarantees in his deal, which runs through 2024. The Jaguars have had an up-and-down start to the season on offense, but the unit has fared well in pass protection so far with only eight sacks allowed. Still, Robinson’s return to the blindside will be welcomed in Jacksonville.

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