Kamar Aiken

Kamar Aiken Part Of Saints’ WR Workout

We now know who the third man is. Dez Bryant and Brandon Marshall are making trips to New Orleans to work out for the Saints, and on an interestingly high-profile list that’s been steadily forming Monday night, so will Kamar Aiken.

A veteran who played in five games for the Eagles this season, Aiken will join Bryant and Marshall for this audition, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Though he’s considerably behind the other two in accomplishments, Aiken’s only in his age-29 season. Bryant, though, just turned 30. Marshall is 34.

Aiken’s known for his time with the Ravens, but he hasn’t found much success since. With the Colts last season, the slot target caught just 15 passes for 133 yards. His 2015 Ravens season produced 75 receptions, 944 yards and five touchdown grabs — all career highs.

Despite their 7-1 record and No. 7-ranked passing attack, the Saints are doing their due diligence with some recognizable pass-catchers.

Eagles Release WR Kamar Aiken

The Eagles released wide receiver Kamar Aiken, per a club announcement. Aiken’s release will make room for defensive tackle Bruce Hector, who has been promoted from the practice squad. 

Aiken is best known for his 2015 season in which he put up nearly 1,000 yards with the Ravens. The former undrafted free agent hasn’t done much lately, however. In 2017, he was in line to be the Colts’ No. 2 wide receiver, but he finished out with just 15 receptions for 133 yards.

Philadelphia originally inked Aiken to a pact this summer, but dropped him during final cutdowns. Then, prior to Week 2, he was re-signed. In five games this year (one start), Aiken had six catches and 53 yards for the Eagles.

Hector, 24, joined the Eagles as a UDFA in May. He was on the roster for four games this year before being stashed on the practice squad, and he’ll look to record his first official statistic in this go ’round.

Haloti Ngata hasn’t played since Week 4 and is questionable for this week’s game against the Panthers, so Hector will be on hand for additional depth. If Ngata can’t go, Hector could see time behind Fletcher Cox and Treyvon Hester.

Eagles Re-Sign WR Kamar Aiken

The Eagles have re-signed wide receiver Kamar Aiken, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Philadelphia originally inked Aiken to a pact this summer, but released him during final cutdowns. He didn’t garner any known interest over the past week, except from the Eagles, who worked him out on Monday.

Aiken, 29, posted a disappointing 2017 campaign: instead of running with the Colts’ second wide receiver job, Aiken managed only 155 receptions and 133 yards in 15 games (seven starts). His last meaningful production came in 2015, when the former undrafted free agent put up nearly 1,000 yards with the Ravens

Philadelphia currently has six receivers on its roster, but Alshon Jeffery is expected to be sidelined for several more weeks. Nelson Agholor, Mike Wallace, and DeAndre Carter saw most of the work in the Eagles’ season opener, while Shelton Gibson and Markus Wheaton are also on the club’s roster.

Corey Coleman To Audition For Pats, Eagles

Unattached despite being the first wide receiver taken in the 2016 draft, Corey Coleman‘s generating interest from some successful teams after both the Browns and Bills severed ties with him this summer.

Coleman’s working out for the Patriots on Monday and has a visit scheduled with the Eagles for Tuesday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter).

The former Baylor standout already worked out for the Cardinals prior to Week 1. After seeing two injury-plagued years, the Browns traded Coleman to the Bills for a conditional 2020 draft choice. The Bills didn’t see enough from Coleman to give him a spot on their 53-man roster.

New England is thin at wide receiver but received a quality performance from scrutinized 2015 first-round wideout Phillip Dorsett on Sunday. Philadelphia is without Alshon Jeffery and Mack Hollins, with the latter residing on IR. The Eagles also worked out Kamar Aiken and Breshad Perriman on Monday, per Rapoport (on Twitter). Aiken was with Philly during camp but did not make the team.

Eagles Cut Down To 53

The Eagles’ receiving corps became a bit younger on Saturday. Two veterans brought in as possible depth pieces — Markus Wheaton and Kamar Aiken — were informed they will be released.

So was potential secondary cog De’Vante Bausby and rookie UDFA running back Josh Adams, given one of this year’s largest guarantees among the undrafted contingent. Philadelphia also placed safety Chris Maragos on its Reserve/PUP list, shelving him for at least six weeks.

Here are the players the Eagles will not be including on their initial 2018 53-man roster:

Released:

Waived:

Waived with an injury designation:

Placed on Reserve/NFI list:

Placed on Reserve/PUP list

NFC East Notes: Irving, Redskins, Eagles

Cowboys defensive tackle David Irving was not present for the start of the Cowboys’ training camp on Tuesday, sources tell Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Star Telegram. Irving has been excused from team activities to address ongoing personal issues, according to those sources.

Irving, of course, has been suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. It’s not immediately clear whether Irving’s absence is tied to any substance issues and, if so, whether those issues would affect his availability for Week 5.

Here’s more from the NFC East:

  • A freak accident will sideline Redskins cornerback Joshua Holsey for the start of training camp and could potentially impact his availability for the start of the season, according to Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links). A table fell on Holsey’s foot, sources say, and he will be forced to go on the PUP or NFI list for at least the beginning of camp. Holsey, a seventh-round pick of Washington last year, appeared in 12 games as a rookie.
  • Kamar Aiken‘s deal with the Eagles is for one year and worth the veteran’s minimum, according to Zack Rosenblatt of NJ.com (on Twitter). The wide receiver didn’t do a whole lot with the Colts last year, but he showed serious potential as arookie in 2015 when he nearly eclipsed 1,000 yards for the Ravens.
  • New Giants cornerback Sam Beal is out for the 2018 season.

Eagles To Sign WR Kamar Aiken

The Eagles are signing wide receiver Kamar Aiken, according to a tweet from his agent. Aiken spent last season with the Colts, though you could be forgiven for forgetting that. 

[RELATED: Darren Sproles To Retire After 2018 Season]

Aiken had a disappointing 2017. Instead of running with the Colts’ second wide receiver job, he managed only 155 catches and 133 yards in 15 games (seven starts). His last meaningful production came in 2015, when the former undrafted free agent put up nearly 1,000 yards with the Ravens.

We haven’t heard a ton about Aiken this offseason, save for his June audition for the Jets. With the Eagles, he’ll try to make the cut behind Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor, Mike Wallace, Mack Hollins, and Markus Wheaton. He’s hardly a shoe-in for the roster, but the recent release of Marquess Wilson and Jeffery’s nagging rotator cuff injury may help his case.

Jets Audition DL Courtney Upshaw, WR Kamar Aiken

The Jets are working out defensive lineman Courtney Upshaw and wide receiver Kamar Aiken, reports Calvin Watkins of Newsday (Twitter links).

Upshaw, 28, entered the league as an outside linebacker, but has since morphed into a defensive end/tackle hybrid (the same role he’d likely play in the Jets’ 3-4 scheme). After joining the Falcons in 2016, Upshaw recorded 23 tackles, one forced fumble, and a half-sack in 13 appearances (five starts). Last year, Upshaw had nine total tackles and one sack and played on just 226 snaps. His only known interest this year came from the Eagles, who met with him in early May.

Aiken, like Upshaw, posted a disappointing 2017 campaign: instead of running with the Colts’ second wide receiver job, Aiken managed only 155 receptions and 133 yards in 15 games (seven starts). His last meaningful production came in 2015, when the former undrafted free agent put up nearly 1,000 yards with the Ravens. In New York, he’d compete for time on a crowded wideout depth chart that also includes Terrelle Pryor, Jermaine Kearse, Robby Anderson, and Quincy Enunwa.

AFC Notes: Hopkins, Big Ben, Colts, Chiefs

Both the Texans and No. 1 wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins would like to reach a long-term deal this summer, and odds are that it will happen, suggests John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Hopkins, due to make $7.9MM as a fifth-year option player this season, became all the more important to the Texans’ cause for 2017 after No. 2 receiver Will Fuller suffered a broken collarbone Wednesday. Fuller’s multi-month absence could mean even more opportunities for Hopkins, who easily led the Texans in both targets and receptions in each of the previous two seasons. Despite having to catch passes from middling or worse quarterbacks throughout his career, Hopkins has a history of terrific production. Thanks to his output thus far, the 25-year-old looks poised to become one of the NFL’s highest-paid wideouts in the coming weeks.

More from the AFC:

  • Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is keeping all options on the table beyond 2017, including retirement and playing a few more years. “I hope (to play multiple future seasons), but I’m only going to focus on this year,” Roethlisberger revealed Wednesday (via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review). Whether the 35-year-old sticks around will depend somewhat on how much of a beating his offensive line allows him to take this season. “If those guys up front are playing as well as they have been playing, getting sacked (a career-low) 17 times in (2016) — it might keep me around a little longer,” he said.
  • With 2015 first-round pick Phillip Dorsett and free agent signing Kamar Aiken, the Colts have a pair of notable receivers behind starters T.Y. Hilton and Donte Moncrief. However, the unheralded Chester Rogers has emerged as Indy’s likely No. 3 wideout, according to Kevin Bowen of the team’s website. As an undrafted rookie last year, Rogers accrued 34 targets and 19 catches in 14 games (two starts), and he averaged 14.4 yards per catch. Both Dorsett and Aiken bettered Rogers’ counting stats in 2016, but the second-year man has nonetheless turned into a “virtual 12th starter for the Colts,” writes Bowen.
  • Defensive tackle Roy Miller‘s contract with the Chiefs is a one-year, $1.4MM pact that could be worth up to $2.5MM, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The deal includes $300K in guarantees.

AFC Notes: Jets, Bengals, Raiders, Fins, Colts

Jets defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson took to Instagram in an effort to combat a recent report that he’s “terribly out of shape” (via Connor Hughes of NJ.com). “They say I’m fat and out of shape?” Wilkerson said while running on a treadmill. “Haha. Keep sleeping on me. I’m telling you.” It seems the scout who assessed Wilkerson’s conditioning was exaggerating, as photos (links here) the 27-year-old posted on Instagram earlier this month shoot down the idea that he’s in poor shape. Still, though, Wilkerson is coming off a disappointing 2016 – the first season of a five-year, $86MM contract – and could end up a cap casualty as early as next offseason if he doesn’t bounce back. Wilkerson notched 4.5 sacks last year (down from 12 in 2015) and ranked as Pro Football Focus’ 15th-worst qualified edge defender (109 qualifiers).

More from the AFC:

  • Bengals cornerback Adam Jones is no longer facing a felony charge over a January confrontation with hotel security guards, police and a nurse, reports Lisa Cornwell of the Associated Press. The felony charge resulted from Jones’ alleged “harassment of a member of the medical staff in the justice center with a bodily substance.” Specifically, Jones was accused of spitting on a nurse at the jail. If found guilty, he could have gone to jail for six to 12 months. Jones is still up against three misdemeanor charges, including assault, and the Bengals aren’t sure if they’re going to retain him.
  • One of Jones’ Bengals teammates, reserve quarterback A.J. McCarron, wouldn’t mind a trade out of Cincinnati. But Andy Dalton‘s backup isn’t going to cause problems if the Bengals don’t deal him to a starter-needy team. On the possibility of once again reporting to camp in a No. 2 role, McCarron told Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer: “It’d be tough at first. Like, because I know I’m having to go through the whole backup process again. But at the same time, that’s my job. I need to be the best backup quarterback in the league and I’m going to go there and work my [butt] off to prove that and show that I am so that they’re proud, as an organization, to sit back and say at practice if they’re watching ‘like man, I’m glad we had that guy as our backup.’ I still want to make everybody proud.” McCarron, though, expects to end up a starter sometime. “Whether it’s this year or when I’m a free agent, I think somebody’s going to take a chance on me to be a starter,” said McCarron, who’s under Bengals control for two more years.
  • Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf reached out to commissioner Roger Goodell on Wednesday night about continuing the discussion to keep the Raiders, a source tells Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (on Twitter). There has been no significant progress on that front, however. Despite Schaaf’s efforts, it appears the Raiders’ departure from Oakland is inevitable.
  • Dolphins linebacker Kiko Alonso‘s three-year extension adds an even $25MM to the $3.91MM he’ll earn in 2017, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. The $28.91MM deal includes $16MM in fully guaranteed money for Alonso, who’s now slated to remain with the Dolphins through the 2020 season.
  • Wide receiver Kamar Aiken‘s one-year pact with the Colts is worth $2.6MM – $1.5MM of which is guaranteed – and features up to $600K in per-game roster bonuses, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link).

Zach Links contributed to this post.