Kendall Reyes

NFL Workout Updates: 10/30/18

Here’s the latest from the workout circuit. All links to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account, unless otherwise specified.

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

NFL Workout Updates: 10/1/18

Today’s tryouts:

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Chicago Bears

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

 

Lions Work Out DT Chris Baker

The Lions worked out defensive tackles Chris Baker, Jay Bromley, and Kendall Reyes on Wednesday, according to Adam Caplan of SiriusXM (Twitter link).

Cincinnati inked Baker to a one-year, $2.45MM deal in March in the hopes that he’d become its starting nose tackle opposite All-Pro three-technique Geno Atkins. However, Baker struggled during the preseason, often getting defeated in both the run and pass game, and was severely outplayed by third-year pro Andrew Billings. The Bengals released Baker just prior to final cutdowns, and he hasn’t drawn any other known interest thus far.

Baker, 30, spent the 2017 campaign with the Buccaneers after signing a three-year pact last March. Although he’d played like of the league’s better interior defenders from 2015-16, Baker struggled in 2017, grading as just the No. 96 defensive tackle among 122 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus, and was subsequently released after only a single season in Tampa Bay.

Detroit attempted to fortify its interior defensive line this offseason after losing veteran Haloti Ngata by adding several free agents of their own. Defensive tackles Ricky Jean-Francois and Sylvester Williams were each inked to contracts, while versatile lineman Da’Shawn Hand was brought in via the draft.

Jets Officially Cut 18 Players

The Jets’ roster is now at 71 players after the club announced 18 cuts today. Like all NFL teams, New York will need to reduce to 53 players by Saturday afternoon. Several of the following transactions were reported earlier today, but we’ll list them here as well:

Waived:

Released:

Jets Release Kevin Minter

The Jets are cleaning house in advance of Saturday’s roster deadline. On Friday, Gang Green released the following players (via Manish Mehta of the Daily NewsRalph Vacchiano of SNY, and Darryl Slater of NJ.com.):

Minter is one of the bigger names in the bunch and one of the biggest surprises. Minter seemed likely to make the team as an inside linebacker, but evidently didn’t do enough to win the job. Minter‘s signed a one-year, $880K deal with the Jets in April, but the team won’t be on the hook for much more than his $90K signing bonus.

Bass had 3.5 sacks in 13 games for the Jets last season and did well according to the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus, but summer injuries ultimately cost him a place on the team for the fall.

The Jets will have the opportunity to add some of these players to their practice squad if they pass through waivers, but the team is unlikely to extend the invite to James, according to Slater.

Jets To Add Kendall Reyes

Kendall Reyes has not seen any NFL action since being released during the 2016 season, but the veteran defensive lineman will resurface with the Jets.

The Jets made the decision to sign Reyes on Friday, Field Yates of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). To make room on their 90-man roster, the Jets waived defensive end Shaneil Jenkins with an injury designation, per ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini (via Twitter).

Jenkins sat out Friday’s practice, which will lead to another Reyes opportunity. New York added Jenkins last week.

A former second-round Chargers pick in 2012, the 28-year-old Reyes last played for the Redskins in 2016. However, his last notable work came with 10 games for the 2016 Chiefs, with whom Reyes suited up for 10 games that season. He started three seasons for the Bolts from 2013-15 but hasn’t been able to parlay his years as a San Diego first-unit player into being much of a factor elsewhere.

NFC Workout Notes: Seahawks, Bucs, Lions

We rounded up the latest workout news from the AFC earlier. Now for the NFC (courtesy of ESPN’s Adam Caplan, unless otherwise noted):

  • Before he signed with the Kansas City on Tuesday, defensive end Kendall Reyes visited the Seahawks (Twitter link). He spent just under two weeks on the open market after the Redskins released him Oct. 5.
  • Tight ends Mitchell Henry, Casey Pierce and Eric Wallace tried out for the Buccaneers (Twitter link). Wallace played college basketball at Ohio State and DePaul, and then spent three years playing Australian Rules Football. He was previously with the Panthers, who will work him out Wednesday, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times.
  • Defensive back Jeremiah McKinnon worked out for the Panthers on Tuesday, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.
  • Former LSU linebacker Lamar Louis recently visited the Saints, according to Nick Underhill of The Advocate (on Twitter).
  • The Lions took a look at linebackers Brandon Chubb, Raphael Kirby and Reggie Northrup (Twitter link). Chubb impressed the team enough to earn a place on its practice squad.
  • Defensive backs Charles Gaines and Demetrius McCray worked out for the Rams last week, per Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter).

Chiefs Make Several Roster Moves

The Chiefs have made a series of roster moves in advance of their game against the Saints this Sunday, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star reports. The club has signed four players – defensive linemen Kendall Reyes and Rakeem Nunez-Roches, linebacker Ramik Wilson and cornerback Terrance Mitchell – to its active roster. Additionally, the Chiefs have waived defensive lineman Nick Williams, and placed both defensive end Allen Bailey and linebacker Justin March-Lillard on injured reserve (links to Twitter).

Kendall Reyes

Of the four newest Chiefs, Reyes is the most notable. A second-round pick in 2012, Reyes was a starter on San Diego’s defensive line from 2013-2015. Reyes then joined the Redskins on a one-year, $2.5MM deal during the offseason. He cracked their roster to begin the year, but the team cut him earlier this month after a groin injury limited him. In total, the 27-year-old has racked up 66 appearances, 50 starts and 13.5 sacks in his NFL career.

Both Wilson and Nunez-Roches were member of the Chiefs’ 2015 draft class who are now returning to their roster (the former had been on their practice squad). Kansas City selected Wilson in the fourth round, and the ex-Georgia Bulldog appeared in 11 games, made two starts and amassed 13 tackles in his rookie year.

Nunez-Roches, formerly of Southern Miss, went in Round 6. He saw action in seven games last year and remained with the Chiefs at the outset of this season, but they cut him after Week 1. Notably, Nunez-Roches is the first Belizean-born player in league history.

Mitchell landed with the Cowboys in the seventh round of the 2014 draft and will now join his fifth organization. He debuted last season and garnered eight appearances with the Cowboys and Bears, also adding an interception.

Williams, 26, went to Pittsburgh in the seventh round of the 2013 draft, but he didn’t suit up until the next season as a member of the Chiefs. He picked up 21 appearances with KC before the club cut him.

Allen Bailey (Vertical)

Not to be lost in the shuffle are the long-term injuries to Bailey and March-Lillard, both of whom started the Chiefs’ first five games of the season.

Bailey, a sixth-year man, has started in all 31 of his appearances dating back to 2014. He was on the field for 54.9 percent of the Chiefs’ defensive snaps before going on IR with a shoulder injury, but Pro Football Focus ranks his overall performance just 93rd among 117 qualifying interior D-linemen through five weeks.

Having played in 49.9 of their defensive snaps, the Chiefs have also relied a fair amount on March-Lillard. In his first pro action, the 2015 undrafted free agent from Akron has accrued 22 tackles. PFF rates his output 49th among 85 LBs.

NFL Workout Updates: 10/11/16

We’ll keep track of the day’s auditions here:

  • The Buccaneers will work out defensive end Chris McCain on Wednesday, reports Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). McCain, who was traded from Miami to New Orleans during the offseason before ultimately being waived, has appeared in 19 games over the past two seasons.
  • After being released by the Redskins last week, veteran defensive end Kendall Reyes landed a workout with the Texans, who are still trying to replace J.J. Watt, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Houston also tried out defensive lineman Lars Koht, per Kaplan.
  • The Dolphins worked out cornerbacks Darrin Walls and Blidi Wreh-Wilson before signing Chimdi Chekwa, tweets Caplan, who adds that Miami also auditioned offensive tackle David Foucault. The Dolphins also worked out linebacker Trevor Reilly, according to Howard Balzer (Twitter link).
  • Former Buffalo outside linebacker Randell Johnson is visiting the Jets today, as Alex Marvez of the Sporting News tweets. New York also worked out tight end Mitchell Henry, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link).
  • The Seahawks worked out defensive end Malliciah Goodman on Monday, reports Rand Getlin (on Twitter). Goodman played for Atlanta in his first three NFL seasons. Seattle also took a look at tight end Alex Bayer, defensive end Josh Boyd, cornerback Trae Elston, safety Jordan Lomax, and visited with safety Elijah Shumate, per Balzer (Twitter link).
  • The Panthers auditioned offensive tackles Michael Bowie and Pearce Slater, as well as cornerbacks Randall Evans, Tyler Patmon, and Kevin Short, tweets Balzer. Cleveland placed Bowie on the retired list earlier this year, but he’s apparently had a change of heart.
  • Offensive tackle Pierce Burton worked out for the Colts today, according to Balzer (Twitter link).

Redskins Cut DE Kendall Reyes

The Redskins have cut defensive lineman Kendall Reyes, a person familiar with the situation tells Mike Jones of The Washington Post (on Twitter). Reyes joined the Redskins as a free agent this offseason but the team was not happy with his play in the offseason or in the first month of the regular season. Reyes’ one-year, $2.5MM deal included $1MM fully guaranteed, so the Redskins will be on the hook for a good chunk of money."<strong

Reyes was dealing with a groin injury through the first month of the season and missed Week 2 against the Cowboys and Week 3 against the Giants as a result. He returned to action on Sunday against the Browns, but coaches weren’t thrilled with how he looked. With Reyes gone, the Redskins are left with Chris Baker, Ziggy Hood, Ricky Jean-Francois, Cullen Jenkins, Matt Ioannidis, and Anthony Lanier on the defensive line.

Reyes, a second-round pick in 2012, was a starter on San Diego’s defensive line from 2013-2015. The 27-year-old racked up 10.5 sacks during his first two years in the league, but his numbers have been more modest in recent seasons. In 2015, Reyes picked up a pair of sacks to go along with 32 tackles and his first career interception.

While the Chargers leaned on Reyes heavily during his four years with the club, Pro Football Focus wasn’t particularly fond of his performance last season. PFF ranked the Connecticut product 120th out of 123 qualified interior defenders, assigning him the third-worst grade as a run defender among those players.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.