Saints Work Out Two Tackles
- The Saints took a look at tackles Robert Crisp and Reid Fragel, according to a source who spoke with Nick Underhill of The Advocate (on Twitter).
Coby Fleener Disappointing In New Orleans
- The Saints aren’t thrilled with big-money tight end Coby Fleener‘s early season production, writes Christopher Dabe of NOLA.com. Quarterback Drew Brees has targeted Fleener 12 times in two games, but the former Colt has caught just three passes for 35 yards. “I think there’s been moments and yet it hasn’t been as consistent as we’d like yet,” head coach Sean Payton said Monday. Fleener, 27, combined for 183 receptions and 17 touchdowns over his first four seasons, leading the Saints to sign him to a five-year, $36MM deal in free agency.
Teope: Too Early To Write Off Paul Kruger
- The Saints‘ defensive line couldn’t get any kind of pass rush going against the Raiders in Week 1 and one reader asked Herbie Teope of The Times-Picayune if Paul Kruger can be fairly labeled as a bust signing. Kruger can’t be written off as a bad addition, nor can he be blamed for the lack of pressure on Derek Carr, Teope contends. While Kruger was in on 53 percent of the team’s defensive plays on Sunday, he was restricted somewhat by the team’s defensive game plan along with the rest of the front seven. Carr’s mobility kept the Saints from getting too aggressive, but Teope expects to see a much different plan of action against Eli Manning and the Giants in Week 2. Earlier this month, the Saints signed Kruger to a three-year deal that can be voided after one year. The deal comes with a $2.1MM signing bonus and base salaries of $900K, $1MM, and $1MM.
Saints, Ryker Matthews Reach Injury Settlement
- The Saints have waived offensive tackle Ryker Matthews from IR with an injury settlement, tweets Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate. Matthews, who signed with the Saints this year as an undrafted free agent from BYU, landed on IR on Aug. 1 with a knee injury.
PFR’s Impact Rookies Series
All summer long, longtime scouting consultant Dave-Te Thomas of The NFL Draft Report has been breaking down the draft class of every team in the league and identifying the players that can immediately make a difference. The Impact Rookies series, which wrapped up today with a look at the Seahawks, provides unique insight to this year’s NFL freshman class from a veteran guru who worked closely with several teams around the league leading up to the draft.
Here is the full rundown of the Impact Rookies series:
AFC East
AFC North
AFC South
AFC West
NFC East
NFC North
NFC South
NFC West
Saints Work Out Olympian
- The Saints worked out return man Jeff Henderson on Wednesday, according to Howard Balzer (Twitter link). Henderson, who tried to a earn a spot with the Chiefs in May, won a gold medal in the long jump at this year’s Olympics.
Saints Audition Khalif Barnes
For the second time since last week, the Saints tried out free agent offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Wednesday, according to Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate.
The Saints are familiar with Barnes, having employed the 34-year-old briefly toward the end of the preseason before releasing him as part of their final cuts on Sept. 3. New Orleans head coach Sean Payton said after the club cut Barnes that he wasn’t in football shape, per Underhill, so it’s possible it will bring the tackle/guard in as depth if it feels his conditioning is now up to par.
“I think (well) considering this is a player that really hasn’t been in an offseason plan,” Payton said. “He is overweight right now, he’s big and that will be a process of him gradually cutting his weight down, but to sign him early in the week and play 20 something snaps, we wanted to make sure we didn’t give him too many snaps and risk any type of injury for a player that really hadn’t had the training camp and offseason program. I think he handled it pretty well.”
Barnes, who went in the second round of the 2005 draft, racked up a combined 151 appearances and 117 starts as a member of the Jaguars and Raiders over his first 11 NFL seasons. Barnes suited up for 14 of the Raiders’ games last year, but he made a career-worst one start.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Payton On Cutting C.J. Spiller
- Coach Sean Payton said the Saints waited to release running back C.J. Spiller because they were looking for a potential trade partner, Mike Triplett of ESPN.com tweets. New Orleans couldn’t wait any longer, however, after cornerback Delvin Breaux went down with an injury and the team needed a roster spot.
C.J. Spiller Discusses Release
Former Saints running back C.J. Spiller told ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson that he was surprised by his release earlier today, but he insisted that he was leaving the organization on good terms.
- Following the release of Spiller, the Saints now have $40MM of dead money on their 2016 salary cap, tweets ESPN’s Field Yates. Meanwhile, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com notes that Spiller’s contract included offset language, so the team “will get credit for the first $1.6 million he earns in 2016 salary elsewhere.”
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/13/16
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: RB Blake Sims (link via Matt Zenitz of AL.com)
- Cut: RB Gus Johnson (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: WR Marquis Bundy (via team announcement)
- Cut: WR Chris Hubert (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
Chicago Bears
- Signed: RB/KR Raheem Mostert (Twitter link via agent Brett Tessler)
- Cut: RB Senorise Perry (Twitter link via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune), OL Laurence Gibson (Twitter link via Biggs)
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: CB Sammy Seamster (Twitter link via Todd Archer of ESPN.com)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: LB Reshard Cliett (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Cut: LB Kyle Kragen (Twitter link via Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post)
Indianapolis Colts:
- Signed: CB Tay Glover-Wright (Twitter link via Wilson), S Lee Hightower (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Cut: DT Kelcy Quarles, OL Adam Redmond (Twitter link via Wilson)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Cut: WR Shaq Evans (Twitter link via Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com)
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: CB Tre Roberson, CB Julian Wilson (via team announcement)
- Cut: OT Carter Bykowski, S Shamiel Gary (via team announcement)
New England Patriots
- Cut: DB Mike Hilton (Twitter link via Doug Kyed of NESN.com)
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: CB Taveze Calhoun (Twitter link via Joel A. Erickson of The Advocate), TE Jake Stoneburner (Twitter link via Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com)
- Cut: FB Austin Johnson (Twitter link via Nick Underhill of The Times-Picayune), DE Bobby Richardson (Twitter link via Erickson)
New York Giants
- Signed: LB Deontae Skinner
- Cut: QB Logan Thomas (Twitter link via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY)
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: OT Takoby Cofield (Twitter link via reps at Precision Sports)
- Cut: LB Jason Fanaika (Twitter link via Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com)
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: QB Aaron Murray (via team announcement)
- Cut: WR Marcus Johnson, TE M.J. McFarland (injury settlement, Twitter link via Wilson)
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: DE Tylor Harris (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle), QB Jake Heaps (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times), OL Michael Ola (Twitter link via Condotta)
- Cut: WR Kasen Williams (Twitter link via Condotta), DT Justin Hamilton (Twitter link via Condotta) and WE Rodney Smith (Twitter link via Condotta)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: LB Cameron Lynch (Twitter link via Roy Cummings of WFLA News Channel 8), DT Rodney Coe (Twitter link via Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times)
- Cut: RB Russell Hansbrough (Twitter link via Auman)
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: QB Alex Tanney (Twitter link via Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com)
- Cut: OL Ronald Patrick
Washington Redskins
- Cut: OL Nila Kasitati (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s John Keim)