Larnel Coleman

Colts Work Out WR Sammy Watkins

Sammy Watkins didn’t generate much interest this offseason, but the veteran has earned a midseason workout. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the veteran wide receiver auditioned for the Colts today.

Watson got into 12 games with the Packers and Ravens during the 2022 season, finishing with a career-low 16 catches for 325 yards. Despite having just turned 30 in June, it was quiet for Watkins throughout the offseason, with the wideout attending zero reported workouts.

While he’s years removed from his 1,000-yard season with the Bills, the former first-round pick has still topped 300 receiving yards in each of his NFL seasons. He spent a full year in Baltimore in 2021, collecting 394 yards, and he topped 400 yards receiving in each of his three seasons with the Chiefs (including a 2019 campaign where had 673 receiving yards). As Joel A. Erickson of the Indianapolis Star points out, Watkins generated interest from the Colts during the 2021 offseason, but the team ended up re-signing T.Y. Hilton.

As Rapoport notes, the Colts were in the market for a wide receiver at the deadline. Further, rookie Josh Downs left yesterday’s win thanks to a lingering knee injury, and it’s uncertain if he’ll be able to suit up against the Patriots this weekend.

Watkins wasn’t the only player who worked out for the Colts ahead of their trip to Germany. Per Erickson, the team also hosted wideout Ethan Fernea, offensive tackle Larnel Coleman, and guard Lachavious Simmons.

Panthers Cut QB Jake Luton, 10 Others

The Panthers have a few more days until they need to reduce their roster to 53 players, but the front office has already started the process. The team announced that they’ve waived the following 11 player:

While none of these cuts are particularly surprising, there are still some notable players in the bunch. As NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweets, the Panthers may be starting the process early and trying to tempt another squad to make a waiver claim, which would improve Carolina’s spot in the rankings.

Considering his position, Luton is one of the bigger names on the list. The quarterback hasn’t seen the field for a regular season game since he was winless in three starts with the Jaguars in 2020, but he’s still had backup gigs over the past few years, with the QB having also spent time with the Seahawks, Dolphins, and Saints. The former sixth-round pick joined the Panthers back in July.

Wright will surely find himself in the kicker rolodex once teams get hit with injuries. He was the Jaguars’ (mostly) full-time kicker in 2021, connecting on 87.5 percent of his field goal attempts and 86.7 percent of his extra point tries. He split the 2022 campaign between the Chiefs and Steelers, converting 15 of his 18 FGAs and all 15 of his XPAs.

Earlier today, head coach Frank Reich told reporters that the organization was going to have some difficult decisions to make before Tuesday’s roster deadline. As of today, the Panthers still have to cut 26 players.

“Literally every position has battles in place, not just for the roster, but you know, play time, who’s starting, how we’re looking at things,” Reich said (via the team’s website). “But the good news is they’re hard decisions, right? Because we feel good about the guys we have on our roster.”

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/25/22

Today’s minor transactions:

Carolina Panthers

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/23/22

Here are today’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

New England Patriots

  • Promoted from practice squad: DT Bill Murray

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/29/22

Today’s minor moves around the NFL:

Baltimore Ravens

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/24/22

Lots of moves leading into gameday. Remember that players promoted from the practice squad for games will revert back to the practice squad after:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/17/22

Today’s minor moves around the league, including practice squad elevations for tomorrow’s action:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

  • Promoted from practice squad: CB Daryl WorleyWR Raleigh Webb

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

New York Jets

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/1/22

Today’s practice squad moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

  • Signed: TE Anthony Firkser, TE Tucker Fisk, CB Ka’Dar Hollman

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

  • Signed: WR Lynn Bowden Jr.

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Signed: LB Davion Taylor

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Dolphins Move Down To 53

A few hours ahead of the 3pm CT deadline, the Dolphins slashed their roster to 53 players. Here are the roster moves Miami made to comply with the NFL’s 53-man maximum:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

The team also waived wideouts Preston Williams and Lynn Bowden and moved Byron Jones to the reserve/PUP list, after making a handful of roster moves Monday. Sony Michel is also off the team’s roster.

Miami’s batch of Tuesday moves leave both Myles Gaskin and Salvon Ahmed on the team’s 53-man roster. Both were viewed as cut candidates after the additions of Michel, Chase Edmonds and Raheem Mostert. But Mostert has been one of the NFL’s most injury-prone players over the past two seasons. It makes sense the Dolphins’ staff is carrying four backs.

Kindley’s exit is also notable. The Dolphins used the 2020 fourth-round pick as a 13-game starter during his rookie season. Last year, however, the team kept the Georgia product mostly on the bench. Kindley made two starts in 2021. Since Kindley’s arrival, the Dolphins have used a second-round pick on Liam Eichenberg and signed Connor Williams. Robert Hunt remains in place as the team’s right guard. Still, with O-linemen in demand at this time of year, it will be interesting to see if a team claims him. Two years remain on Kindley’s rookie contract.

Dolphins Set Initial 53-Man Roster

The Dolphins have joined the club of teams to officially get down to 53 players on cutdown day. Here’s the list of of players from Miami that will be looking for new homes in the coming days:

Placed on season-ending IR:

Released:

Waived:

There are some reasonably big names on this list, including LeBlanc and Harvey-Clemons among the vested veterans getting outright released. LeBlanc played a sizable role in the Eagles’ secondary last season, and started nine games for the Bears as a rookie back in 2016. Harvey-Clemons was a decent-sized part of Washington’s defense in 2018, but his role was reduced in 2019 before he opted out of the 2020 seasons.

You’ll likely recognize some of the waiver cuts as well, including Griffin. The brother of star cornerback Shaquill Griffin, the linebacker was attempting to make the team after a few years with the Seahawks. Laird started four games for the Dolphins in 2019 and received 62 carries that year, but he was mainly a special teams guy last season.