Minor NFL Transactions: 12/27/19
Here are Friday’s minor moves:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Jordan Franks, WR Trenton Irwin
- Placed on IR: CB William Jackson
Detroit Lions
- Promoted from practice squad: LB Anthony Pittman
Indianapolis Colts
- Waived: TE Ross Travis
New York Giants
- Promoted from practice squad: DT Chris Slayton
- Placed on IR: TE Rhett Ellison
San Francisco 49ers
- Promoted from practice squad: DT Kevin Givens
- Placed on IR: DT Jullian Taylor
Washington Redskins
- Promoted from practice squad: S Kenny Ladler, WR Jester Weah
- Placed on IR: CB Fabian Moreau, S Montae Nicholson
Markus Golden Triggers Incentive
One of two divisions still up for grabs, the NFC East features the Eagles and Cowboys vying for the division’s 50th championship. Here is the latest from the two contending teams, along with the Giants and Redskins.
- Markus Golden‘s value-reestablishing Giants season included another positive development for the contract-year pass rusher. A stat correction turned a Golden half-sack into a full sack, giving him 10 for the season and a $1MM incentive bonus, per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. The Giants gave Golden a one-year, $3.75MM deal this offseason. After two lost seasons, due largely to a 2017 ACL tear, Golden has his second 10-plus-sack campaign. He profiles as a Giants extension candidate and an intriguing UFA pass rusher, should he hit the market.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/25/19
Christmas edition:
Detroit Lions
- Signed: S A.J. Howard
New York Giants
- Signed: FB George Aston
- Released: P Sean Smith
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: S Tray Matthews
NFL Playoff Scenarios For Week 17
The final week of the regular season is upon us.
Here’s the official rundown of NFL playoff scenarios as we get set for Week 17:
AFC
Clinched:
Ravens – AFC North division & home-field advantage throughout AFC playoffs
Texans – AFC South division
Chiefs – AFC West division
Patriots – AFC East division
Bills – playoff berth
Chiefs clinch a first-round bye with:
Chiefs win + Patriots loss
New England clinches a first-round bye with:
Patriots win or tie OR
Chiefs loss or tie
Raiders clinch a playoff berth with:
Raiders win + Steelers loss + Titans loss + Colts win + Raiders clinch strength-of-victory tiebreaker over Steelers*
*Raiders clinch strength-of-victory tiebreaker over Steelers if ONE of the following teams win or tie:
Bears, Lions, Chargers, or Patriots
Steelers clinch a playoff berth with:
Steelers win + Titans loss or tie OR
Steelers tie + Titans loss OR
Titans loss + Colts win + Raiders loss or tie OR
Titans loss + Colts win + Steelers tie Raiders in strength-of-victory tiebreaker*
*Steelers ties Raiders in strength-of-victory tiebreaker if ALL of the following teams win:
Vikings, Packers, Chiefs, and Dolphins
Titans clinch a playoff berth with:
Titans win OR
Titans tie + Steelers loss or tie OR
Steelers loss + Colts loss or tie
NFC
Clinched:
Packers – NFC North division
Saints – NFC South division
Vikings — playoff berth
49ers — playoff berth
Seahawks — playoff berth
Cowboys clinch NFC East division with:
Cowboys win + Eagles loss
Packers clinch a first-round bye with:
Packers win OR
Saints loss OR
Packers tie + San Francisco loss OR
Packers tie + Saints tie
Packers clinch home-field advantage throughout NFC playoffs with:
Packers win + San Francisco loss or tie OR
Packers tie +San Francisco loss + Saints loss or tie
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (12-3) (at Carolina (5-10); 1:00 PM ET, FOX)
Saints clinch a first-round bye with:
Saints win + Packers loss or tie OR
Saints win + 49ers loss or tie OR
Saints tie +Packers loss OR
Saints tie + 49ers loss OR
49ers loss +Packers win or tie
Saints clinch homefield advantage throughout NFC playoffs with:
Saints win + Packers loss or tie + 49ers loss or tie OR
Saints tie + Packers loss + 49ers loss
Eagles clinch NFC East division with:
Eagles win or tie OR
Cowboys loss or tie
49ers clinch NFC West division title with:
49ers win or tie
49ers clinch a first-round bye with:
49ers win OR
49ers tie + Packers loss or tie OR
49ers tie + Saints loss or tie
49ers clinch home-field advantage throughout NFC playoffs with:
49ers win OR
49ers tie + Packers loss or tie + Saints loss or tie
Seahawks clinch NFC West division with:
Seahawks win
Seahawks clinch a first-round bye with:
Seahawks win + Packers loss
Seahawks clinch home-field advantage throughout NFC playoffs with:
Seahawks win + Packers loss + Saints loss
2020 NFL Draft Order As Of Week 17
With one week remaining in the regular season, the 2020 NFL Draft order is starting to take shape. The 1-14 Bengals have locked up the No. 1 overall pick, but the rest of the board will be dependent on the outcome of Week 17’s games.
Here’s a look at where things stand:
1. Bengals: 1-14
2. Redskins: 3-12
3. Lions: 3-11-1
4. Giants: 4-11
5. Dolphins: 4-11
6. Jaguars: 5-10
7. Chargers: 5-10
8. Panthers: 5-10
9. Cardinals: 5-9-1
10: Jets: 6-9
11. Broncos: 6-9
12. Browns: 6-9
13. Falcons 6-9
14. Raiders 7-8
15. Cowboys 7-8
16. Colts 7-8
17. Buccaneers 7-8
18. Raiders (via Bears) 7-8
19. Dolphins (via Steelers) 8-7
20. Jaguars (via Rams) 8-7
21. Eagles 8-7
22. Titans 8-7
23. Bills 10-5
24. Vikings 10-5
25. Dolphins (via Texans) 10-5
26. Chiefs 11-4
27. Seahawks 11-4
28. Packers 12-3
29. Patriots 12-3
30. Saints 12-3
31. 49ers 12-3
32. Ravens 13-2
Giants, Lions Wanted Sharif Finch
The Bengals snagged outside linebacker Sharif Finch off the waiver wire, but they weren’t the only team gunning for him. The Giants and Lions also tried to claim him, a source tells Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
The Bengals’ league-worst 1-14 record had them at the top of the pecking order, but all three teams were eyeing Finch as a young and athletic pass rusher who could be developed. The Bengals won out, giving them a prospect that can be retained and groomed on the cheap.
Finch, 24, appeared in 23 games (three starts) for the Titans between 2018 and 2019. He notched 3.5 sacks in that span – including two sacks this year – and 40 total tackles.
The former UDFA out of Temple showed promise at times, but injuries held him back in 2019. He was also a healthy scratch for some games, which was odd, given the team’s need in that area following Cameron Wake‘s season-ending injury. Finch missed time in the offseason due to a shoulder injury of his own and that might have hurt his standing in Tennessee. Now, he’ll look to turn the page and stick with the Bengals, who figure to overhaul their roster this offseason.
Golden Tate Discusses 2020 Status
- Should the Eagles pull off the upset Sunday and then defeat the Giants in their regular-season finale, they would make the playoffs. If that happens, DeSean Jackson offered a glimmer of hope he could return from IR. Weeks after undergoing groin surgery, the 33-year-old wide receiver shared a workout video of him featuring sprints and agility drills (Instagram link). If Jackson does not experience any setbacks, Adam Caplan of Sirius XM Radio tweets he is on target to play once eligible. However, Jackson not being eligible until the divisional round may make this a moot point for the 7-7 Eagles. Philadelphia has Jackson and Alshon Jeffery on IR, and Nelson Agholor may be on the wrong end of questionable after not practicing all week.
- Golden Tate‘s 2020 salary was to be guaranteed, but because of the PED suspension the Giants wideout received, he now could be a cut candidate. The 31-year-old receiver, whose $7.98MM base salary next year is no longer guaranteed, addressed this prospect this week. “There’s not 100% certainty in really anything,” Tate said, via the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy. “I definitely hope and plan to be here. I think I’ve proven to be a solid leader for our locker room. I feel like I’ve been productive, and I haven’t shown a decline. But I don’t know what people upstairs think.” Rookie fifth-rounder Darius Slayton‘s emergence will likely play a role in the team’s decision. Slayton, Sterling Shepard and Tate are all signed through at least the 2022 season.
Giants QB Daniel Jones To Start Week 16
The Giants are turning back to their rookie signal-caller. After re-inserting franchise icon Eli Manning into the starting lineup while Daniel Jones was dealing with a high-ankle sprain, New York is once again handing the reins to Jones, head coach Pat Shurmur announced on Friday.
While the team obviously wants to give Jones as much experience as it can, the No. 6 overall pick of the 2019 draft has seen a lot of action this year, and one could argue that it doesn’t make sense to risk injuring him in meaningless games. Plus, the Giants do close the season at home, so fans certainly wouldn’t mind giving Manning one more sendoff.
Jones took over the starting role in Week 3 and has gone 2-8 in the games that he has started. He has shown plenty of promise and has thrown 18 touchdown passes while posting a 61.6% completion rate, but he has also struggled with turnovers. He has thrown 11 interceptions to go along with his 18 TDs, and he has fumbled an alarming 15 times.
Manning, meanwhile, is near the end of his career, though recent reports have affirmed that he does not want to retire at the end of the season. He wants to at least compete for a starting job in 2020, and he wants to play for a team that has a chance at the postseason.
In his four games this season, the two-time Super Bowl MVP has thrown for six TDs against five interceptions and has posted a quarterback rating of 82.6. The Giants have gone 1-3 in those games, with the one win coming against the 3-11 Dolphins on Sunday.
Evan Engram To Undergo Foot Surgery
After a promising start to the season, Evan Engram is on IR after missing most of the second half of this Giants campaign. He may miss a sizable chunk of Big Blue’s offseason program too.
Engram will undergo foot surgery Friday, according to the team. The former first-round pick said he expects to be ready by training camp. This would appear to put the rest of the tight end’s offseason availability in question.
The third-year starter described his injury as not being a full Lisfranc setback but indicated the damaged ligament has not healed properly. The injury occurred during the Giants’ rematch with the Cowboys on Nov. 4. Engram finished the season with 44 catches for 467 yards and three touchdowns. Engram has missed 13 games over the past two seasons.
The offseason availability of Engram and other Giants may be more important in 2020 than it was this year. Pat Shurmur is a candidate to be fired, with the Giants now 8-22 under his watch. If that happens, the Giants will have a new offensive system to install during the offseason program.
Engram will be going through the rehab process when the Giants must decide on his fifth-year option. While the Giants should be expected to pick up what will be an affordable 2021 option, Engram will have to shed an “injury-prone” label as he pursues a major extension.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/18/19
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: CB Andre Chachere, LB Keishawn Bierria
- Promoted: LB/DE Vontarrius Dora
- Placed on IR: CB Kevin Peterson, LB Tanner Vallejo
Chicago Bears
- Placed on IR: LB Danny Trevathan
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DL Jamie Meder
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: CB Briean Boddy-Calhoun
- Placed on IR: S Rolan Milligan
New York Giants
- Promoted: S Rashaan Gaulden