Minor NFL Transactions: 8/28/17
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: LS Taybor Pepper
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LS Jeff Overbaugh
- Waived/injured: Patrick Scales
Cincinnati Bengals
- Waived: P Will Monday
Cleveland Browns
- Waived: OL Gabe Ikard
Denver Broncos
- Waived/injured: DL Jimmy Bean
Detroit Lions
- Released: WR Keshawn Martin, TE Tim Wright
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: LS Derek Hart, WR Colby Pearson, RB William Stanback
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: S Earl Wolff
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: LB Akeem Dent
- Waived from IR: CB Ezra Robinson
Kansas City Chiefs
- Released: LB Josh Mauga
Los Angeles Rams
- Waived: K Travis Coons
New England Patriots
- Signed: DL Michael Bart, LB Christian Kuntz, LB Nick Usher
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: LB Audie Cole
- Placed on IR: TE Clay Harbor
New York Giants
- Signed: DB Daniel Gray
- Placed on IR: OL Adam Gettis
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: DE Mehdi Abdesmad, DL Hendrick Ekpe
- Waived: RB Blake Sims
- Placed on IR: Justin Trattou
Giants’ Owa Odighizuwa Suspended
Giants defensive end Owa Odighizuwa has been suspended for the first four games of the season, according to an announcement from the league. Odighizuwa will be eligible to return for the Giants’ Oct 8 game against the Chargers. 
[RELATED: Giants Tried To Claim New Jets DE Kony Ealy]
Odighizuwa has violated the league’s PED policy, according to the league office. It’s another strange turn for Odighizuwa who hinted at retirement this offseason. After taking some time to address personal issues, Odighizuwa rejoined the team in camp this summer with an eye on playing.
So far, the 25-year-old has been running with the third-string defense and hasn’t been able to really get going. Because Odighizuwa was far from a lock to make the 53-man cut, this could wind up being the end of the line for him in New York.
Giants, Others Tried To Claim Kony Ealy
The Jets scooped up Kony Ealy after he was waived by the Patriots, but they weren’t the only team that wanted to claim him. The Giants, Redskins, Cowboys, Buccaneers, Lions, and Cardinals also put in claims on the veteran, Jane Slater of NFL Network and Kimberley A. Martin of The Buffalo News report (Twitter links). 
The Jets aren’t playing for much in 2017 and Ealy has just one year left on his deal, so one has to wonder if they could entertain trades for him. Clearly, there is a market for his services, even though he struggled in offseason practices with the Patriots.
For now, the 25-year-old profiles as a reserve behind the likes of Leonard Williams, Sheldon Richardson, Muhammad Wilkerson, and Steve McLendon. The defensive line is the Jets’ strongest unit, but it stands to reason that Ealy could make the cut when rosters go from 90 to 53 on September 2.
Prior to the trade that sent him to the Patriots this spring, Ealy had played his entire three-year career with the Panthers. The former second-round pick has started a combined 15 games over the past two years with identical stat lines in each campaign: 32 tackles and five sacks. He also added a total of five forced fumbles during that span.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/27/17
Today’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on injured reserve: LB Tank Carder (torn ACL), OL Matt McCants
- Waived/injured: S Justin Currie
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DT Derrick Lott
- Placed on IR: DT Jordan Hill
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Waived from IR: CB Charles Gaines
New England Patriots
- Waived: DE Caleb Kidder
- Waived/injured: TE Matt Lengel
New York Giants
- Claimed off waviers: CB Tay Glover-Wright
- Waived from IR: DE Evan Schwan, WR Kevin Snead
New York Jets
- Waived/injured: DT Anthony Johnson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: C Ruben Carter, WR Justin Thomas
- Waived/injured: CB Greg Ducre
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived from IR: TE Marcus Lucas
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Waived from IR: DB Maurice Fleming
Latest On Valentino Blake
Extension chatter regarding contract-year Bears defensive end Akiem Hicks has died down after some early summer rumblings, but the 27-year-old made it clear Thursday that he’d like to remain in Chicago. Hicks said on multiple occasions that “I would love to be a Bear for a long time,” per JJ Stankevitz of CSN Chicago. Back in July, in advance of his second season with the Bears, Hicks hired super agent Drew Rosenhaus as his representative. Rosenhaus has reportedly been seeking $10MM per year for Hicks on a new deal. Hicks made a case for that type of money last season when he tallied 54 tackles, seven sacks and two forced fumbles across 16 starts and 930 snaps. Barring a change, he’ll earn a $4MM base salary this season to conclude a two-year, $10MM pact.
Elsewhere around the NFC…
- Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians referred to cornerback Justin Bethel as a “failure in progress” last season, and it now looks as if the defender took that to heart. Arians announced Thursday that Bethel will start opposite Patrick Peterson come Week 1 (video link via the Arizona Republic). “He’s earned that job,” said Arians, who added that Bethel “outplayed everybody” he was competing against for the role. Bethel, 27, took a pay cut in the offseason just to remain with the Cardinals, who deleted the last year of his contract (2018) in the process. He’ll be eligible for free agency next winter as a result.
- Rams coach Sean McVay said Wednesday that running back Lance Dunbar is likely to open the season on the physically unable to perform list, according to the Associated Press. Dunbar, who has been battling knee issues, would miss the Rams’ first six games in that scenario. The Rams’ hope was that the offseason signing and former Cowboy would serve as their top complement to starter Todd Gurley for the entire year. With Dunbar unavailable for the foreseeable future, Los Angeles will choose between Malcolm Brown – a 2015 undrafted free agent who has 22 carries for 56 yards under his belt – and undrafted rookie Justin Davis to begin the year as the main backup to Gurley.
- Cornerback Valentino Blake left the Giants on Wednesday because “he’s dealing with personal issues,” coach Ben McAdoo told reporters Thursday (via Dan Duggan of NJ.com) “We’re going to give him some time and space to deal with those.” It remains unclear whether Blake will resume his career, and it’s also unknown how long the Giants will keep him on the exempt list. They’re currently using Blake’s vacated spot on safety Tim Scott, a Thursday signing.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/24/17
Today’s minor moves:
- The Steelers waived cornerback Antonio Crawford just one day after signing him. Crawford was a college teammate of Pittsburgh corner Artie Burns at the University of Miami, before transferring to West Virginia. The reasons for Crawford’s quick in-and-out are not clear, but the culprit is often a failed physical in cases like these.
- The Giants signed safety Tim Scott, who was waived by Washington last week. Scott was not on an NFL roster last year but he did start 45 of 50 games in his time at the University of North Carolina.
- The Saints waived waived wide receiver Xavier Rush and fullback John Robinson-Woodgett. Rush, a Tulane product, leaves the Saints after less than two weeks with the team. Some were surprised by his release given the way he had performed in practice. Robinson-Woodgett will try to make a late push as a reserve fullback, but he faces long odds of making the cut on September 2.
- The Cardinals waived cornerback Daniel Gray. He originally joined the team on June 6 as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Utah State.
Valentino Blake Designated As “Left Squad”
Giants cornerback Valentino Blake‘s NFL future could be in question. Blake did not participate in practice Wednesday for undisclosed reasons and was then designated as “left squad,” and the Giants were given a roster exemption as a result, per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com.
Blake dealt with a back injury earlier this summer, but he has seemingly moved past that, having played a team-high 45 snaps in the Giants’ preseason game against the Browns on Monday.
The Giants signed the 27-year-old Blake in March, after he proved to be a durable defender for the Jaguars, Steelers and Titans over the first five seasons of his career. Blake, who has appeared in 78 of 80 regular-season games since going undrafted in 2012, logged his third straight 16-game campaign last year with the Titans, though Pro Football Focus graded his performance an underwhelming 76th among 110 qualified corners.
New York will continue to boast a top corner trio of Janoris Jenkins, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Eli Apple without Blake, but he’s its most proven option behind those three. The Giants’ other corners – Michael Hunter, DaShaun Amos, Nigel Tribune and Donte Deayon – have combined to play in just two NFL games. All of that experience belongs to Hunter, who has a mere 17 defensive snaps under his belt and is now battling a concussion.
OBJ Could Miss Regular-Season Time
We already know the Cowboys-Giants Week 1 tilt will probably be without Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott, who’s likely to serve a six-game suspension to open the season. New York might not have its go-to playmaker, either, as wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. “could miss a week or two of the regular season,” a source told Jordan Raanan and Dan Graziano of ESPN.com. Beckham sprained his ankle in a preseason game against Cleveland on Monday, though the hit to the left leg he took from Browns cornerback Briean Boddy-Calhoun could have resulted in a far more serious injury.
After their NFC East showdown with the defending division champion Cowboys, the Giants take on another 2016 playoff team, the Lions, in Week 2. Those are the first of two difficult-looking games in a slate that also includes what look to be tough matchups with the Eagles, Buccaneers, Chargers, Broncos and Seahawks before the Giants’ Week 8 bye. Going without Beckham for any of those first-half contests would be a notable blow, then, though the playoff hopefuls did add to their aerial weaponry in the offseason by signing receiver Brandon Marshall and using a first-round pick on tight end Evan Engram. They also have wideout Sterling Shepard, who hauled in 65 receptions and eight touchdowns as a rookie in 2016.
Beckham, who wants to be the highest-paid player in the NFL someday, has not yet had extension negotiations with the Giants. The club has little incentive to give Beckham a raise, despite his phenomenal output over the first three years of his career, as he’s controllable at affordable prices for the next two seasons and could be a candidate for the franchise tag past that point. But, having come close to suffering a catastrophic injury, the 24-year-old is considering purchasing an insurance policy worth in excess of $100MM.
Giants Waive OL Michael Bowie
The Giants have waived left tackle Michael Bowie, according to a team announcement. Bowie is facing charges for domestic violence, but the Giants indicated that they could be open to a return, depending on how things shake out. 
“We have waived Michael Bowie,” GM Jerry Reese said in a statement. “As we have already stated, we were made aware of this situation on Saturday. The league has started to gather more information. That process will continue. The outcome of that process will determine whether there is another opportunity here for Michael.”
Bowie was reportedly involved in an argument with his girlfriend earlier this month and that dispute turned physical, police say. Bowie was said to have grabbed his girlfriend by the neck and thrown her to the ground. He also allegedly broke two televisions and punched a hole in a wall in the process. The lineman is facing charges of domestic assault and battery plus two counts of malicious injury or destruction of property.
In related moves, the Giants waived guard Corin Brooks and waived/injured wide receivers Darius Powe and Andrew Turzilli. To fill their spots on the roster, they signed wide receivers Marquis Bundy and C.J. Germany and offensive linemen Richard Levy and Matt Rotheram.
Giants Notes: Fluker, Scherer
- D.J. Fluker isn’t going to earn a starting spot along the Giants‘ offensive line, and it’s possible he won’t even make the club’s roster, opines James Kratch of NJ.com. New York signed the 26-year-old Fluker to a one-year, $3MM deal ($1.5MM guaranteed) this spring, but he’s made no push to steal Big Blue’s starting right guard job from John Jerry. The Giants aren’t giving Fluker the opportunity to compete at right tackle, so the former first-round pick could be shown the door in favor of journeyman Adam Gettis.
- D.J. Fluker isn’t going to earn a starting spot along the Giants‘ offensive line, and it’s possible he won’t even make the club’s roster, opines James Kratch of NJ.com. New York signed the 26-year-old Fluker to a one-year, $3MM deal ($1.5MM guaranteed) this spring, but he’s made no push to steal Big Blue’s starting right guard job from John Jerry. The Giants aren’t giving Fluker the opportunity to compete at right tackle, so the former first-round pick could be shown the door in favor of journeyman Adam Gettis.
- After working out for the Bears last week, undrafted rookie linebacker Michael Scherer is set to audition for the Giants today, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter link). Scherer, a Missouri product, appeared in 26 games for the Tigers from 2014-15 before a knee injury ended his senior season after seven contests in 2016. Ranked as one of the 30 best undrafted linebackers following this year’s draft, Scherer has yet to land an NFL contract.