Falcons To Sign Riley Patterson Off Browns’ Practice Squad, Place Younghoe Koo On IR
Riley Patterson‘s travels continue. Having already been with six teams since December 2023, the young kicker continues to be asked back to previous destinations. That will occur once again Wednesday.
The Falcons are placing longtime kicker Younghoe Koo on IR, and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports the team is bringing back Patterson, who will be signed off the Browns’ practice squad. Kevin Stefanski said Patterson, who kicked for Cleveland in Week 15, was departing due to being poached. He now has a chance to kick for a third team this season.
Patterson’s path since last December has gone through Detroit, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Washington, New York, Atlanta, back to Cleveland and now back to Atlanta. The Falcons had brought him in as Koo insurance, as the Pro Bowler had struggled at points this season. Patterson was elevated to join Koo on Atlanta’s active roster for a game earlier this month. Barely two weeks later, he is back in Atlanta.
The Lions dropped Patterson after giving Michael Badgley the job following a prolonged practice competition last December. That led the 25-year-old specialist to Cleveland to fill in for an injured Dustin Hopkins. The Jaguars, who employed Patterson in 2022 before trading him to the Lions, signed him to a reserve/futures contract but waived him this summer. The Commanders then waived Patterson upon trading for Cade York. Patterson kicked in one game for the Jets and one for the Browns this season.
For hardcore NFL transaction buffs keeping track at home, Patterson has now secured a second stint on a fourth NFL team. Prior to the two Browns stays, he had yo-yoed back to Detroit and Jacksonville. The Memphis alum has not attempted a field goal this season, going 4-for-4 on PATs. With the Lions last year, he went 15-for-17 but still lost his job to Badgley.
Since a rocky start to his career, Koo has enjoyed more stability. He has been the Falcons’ kicker since 2019. Although he is one of the NFL’s highest-paid specialists, Koo has made just 73.5% of his kicks this season. That brought rumblings of a Falcons switch. Atlanta stuck with its All-Pro option but will now sideline him for the rest of the regular season and a wild-card game, should the 7-7 team advance to the playoffs.
Commanders DT Jonathan Allen To Return To Practice
Jonathan Allen had suffered a pectoral injury that was slated to end his season, but last week brought a positive development on this front. An Allen return became possible; a few days later, the Commanders will see their longest-tenured defender back at work.
Washington will have Allen at practice today, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, marking the start of his 21-day activation window. The eighth-year defensive tackle has been out since suffering the pectoral injury in Week 6. Allen only suffering a partially torn pec, as opposed to the initially feared full tear, will allow for this return.
This season marks a rarity for Allen, whose only playoff berth came as part of a 7-9 2020 team. Washington potentially going through another rebuild brought hesitation from Allen, who then landed in trade rumors. The Commanders held onto the former first-round pick this offseason and appear close to again pairing him with longtime teammate (in Washington and at Alabama) Daron Payne.
The Commanders, who sit 9-5 after holding off the Saints, have Allen on what now looks like a team-friendly contract. The team paid the quality D-tackle in 2021, authorizing a four-year, $72MM deal. That contract runs through next season. Unlike Payne, Washington made Allen a priority before his contract year. Payne, however, benefited from playing out his by then being franchise-tagged and signed to a then-top-market pact (four years, $90MM). He and Allen are poised to reform one of the NFL’s top DT duos.
Allen, 29, has produced at least six sacks in four seasons. He was productive before and during the Montez Sweat–Chase Young era, doing well to help Washington compensate for the latter’s long-running injury hiatus. Allen reached a career-high nine sacks and 30 QB hits in 2021, making the Pro Bowl that season and again in 2022. Payne, 27, joined him that year but has only totaled seven QB hits (to go with four sacks) this season. Allen had already reached six hits (two sacks) before his injury.
Retooling around several new arrivals, the Commanders have seen Dante Fowler (8.5 sacks) and Frankie Luvu (eight) spearhead their pass rush. Allen and Payne arrived during Bruce Allen‘s time running the team, with the Dan Quinn-Adam Peters duo the third regime to stop by during the DTs’ tenure. It will certainly stand to help the Commanders’ chances to make the playoffs once Allen returns; barring a setback, that figures to come soon.
Cards Open Matt Prater’s Practice Window
Matt Prater‘s age-40 season stalled months ago. The Cardinals placed the veteran kicker on IR, and it later became known he underwent surgery to repair a meniscus tear.
The team had not given up on Prater coming back before season’s end, and he will have a shot to help a playoff push. Prater is back at Cardinals practice, being designated to return from IR. Prater has been out since Week 4.
Chad Ryland has served as the Cards’ kicker since, having made 22 of 26 field goals and all 18 of his extra point tries. Prater is, however, one of this era’s best kickers. He has been a full-time kicker since the 2007 season. The former Broncos and Lions specialist has been with the Cardinals since 2021.
On his second Cardinals contract, Prater is moving toward free agency. He resides as the NFL’s oldest kicker presently, being a few months older than fellow 40-year-old Nick Folk, and sits among the few 40-somethings still in the league. This season, Prater was 6 of 6 on field goals and 10-for-10 on PATs. This included a 57-yard make prior to the IR stint.
Prater tore the meniscus in his plant leg. Formerly holding the NFL record for the longest field goal (64 yards as a Bronco in 2013), Prater has set and matched the Cardinals’ mark — via 62-yarders in 2021 and ’23. It would surprise if the Cards stayed with Ryland for much longer, but Prater will need to prove he is healthy while in his IR-return window.
Eagles Designate Bryce Huff For Return
The Eagles generated interesting defensive end news Tuesday, with a Brandon Graham return in a Super Bowl appearance now on the radar. Through a shorter-term lens, the 12-2 team is close to having another key piece back.
Bryce Huff is returning to practice; the Eagles have started his 21-day activation clock. Philadelphia lost Huff in November, as a wrist surgery shut him down. The free agency addition has not yet clicked with his new team, but with Graham out for an extended period, any help will be appreciated from a surging team.
[RELATED: Injured Reserve Return Tracker]
Although recent information has pegged the Jets as more interested in keeping Huff than initial reports suggested, the Eagles came in with a strong offer (three years, $51.1MM) early during the legal tampering period. Philly effectively swapped out Haason Reddick for Huff, trading the former to the Jets weeks later. Thus far, neither team has seen much in the way of production from the edge rushers. Reddick has a half-sack in seven games; Huff has 2.5 in 10.
Used as a pass rush specialist in New York, Huff had seen the Eagles reduce his workload before he hit IR. While Huff has yet to eclipse a 54% snap rate in an Eagles game, he logged only 32 defensive snaps over his most recent three games. The fifth-year pass rusher will need to do far more to justify the payday, but with Graham out, a door will be open to more work following this wrist procedure.
Huff finished with a Jets-high 10 sacks last season, helping Robert Saleh‘s third Gang Green defense to a third-place finish in yardage. The Eagles have shown tremendous improvement under Vic Fangio, having recovered from a disastrous 2023 finish on defense. After cratering during last season’s second half, Philly’s defense leads the NFL in points and yardage allowed. Huff will rejoin Josh Sweat and Nolan Smith on the edge for the Eagles, who have managed this remarkable rebound without rivaling the kind of sack production they generated in 2022. Smith’s 3.5 sacks sit second on the team — behind Sweat’s eight.
Philly will need to make it work with Huff, who has $16.75MM in guaranteed base salary on tap in 2025. If Huff’s slow start can be largely traced to this injury, the former Joe Douglas UDFA find could be an interesting wild card as the Eagles make a push to claim the NFC’s No. 1 seed for the second time in three years.
Texans Activate G Kenyon Green From IR
The Texans recently made some changes on their offensive front, moving Tytus Howard back to left guard and inserting rookie Blake Fisher into the lineup at right tackle. Kenyon Green‘s injury was among the drivers for that reconfiguration.
Green, however, is now back on the 53-man roster. The Texans activated the former No. 15 overall pick Wednesday, ending his 21-day ramp-up period. Houston now only has one injury activation remaining until the regular season ends. The team would pick up two more in the playoffs, however, offering more flexibility than last year, when the Texans burned through their eight activations during the regular season.
More significantly through a long-term lens, Green has not justified the team’s 2022 investment. The Texans used the first of their Deshaun Watson-obtained picks to trade down for Green, the top guard chosen in 2022. But the Texas A&M alum has struggled with injuries and performance as a pro. Although Green reclaimed the Texans’ LG job out of training camp, it will be interesting to see how the team uses him moving forward.
Pro Football Focus slots Green as the NFL’s worst guard regular this season, placing him 76th by a notable margin. This is in line with how the advanced metrics website viewed Green’s rookie season, as it also ranking him last that year. The former SEC standout then missed all of 2023 due to a shoulder injury. He sustained another shoulder setback in November, leading to the most recent IR placement.
While Green rehabbed and slimmed down a bit in time for an offseason push to win his job back, he has encountered tough sledding upon return. The Texans presumably want Howard to settle at a position, and they did draft Fisher in this year’s second round. This could point to strong consideration being given to moving Howard inside. The configuration the team used in Week 15 also included backup center Jarrett Patterson, as Juice Scruggs is out. The 2023 second-round pick is not on IR, however, as Houston keeps its options open down the stretch.
Falcons To Bench Kirk Cousins, Start Michael Penix In Week 16
The Falcons are expected to bench veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins in favor of rookie Michael Penix for their Week 16 matchup with the Giants, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris released a statement confirming the switch under center: “After review we have made the decision Michael Penix will be the Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback moving forward. This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.”
Cousins has struggled in recent weeks, throwing nine interceptions and just one touchdown since Week 10. That culminated in another rough game against the Raiders on Monday Night Football in Week 15 in which the veteran signal-caller completed just 11 of his 17 passing attempts for 112 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Reporters then asked Morris about Cousins’ level of play after Monday night’s game.
“He’s got to play better,” Morris said, via ProFootball Talk’s Mike Florio. “We’ve got to find a way to get him to play better.”
Morris was then asked about the possibility of replacing Cousins with Penix, the eighth overall pick in this past April’s draft. Morris’ answer fueled speculation that he was considering such a move: “We’ve got everybody on our roster for a reason, right?…Those things will always be discussed. That’s just the nature of the beast in football. It’s just so heavily talked about at the quarterback position because there’s only one guy out there.”
The same questions resurfaced during Morris’ Tuesday presser. His non-answer hinted that his staff was already thinking about benching Cousins. This marks the second time in three years the Falcons have benched their starting quarterback in December. Their decision to park Marcus Mariota late in his first season with the team effectively led the former No. 2 overall pick away. The team’s ensuing Desmond Ridder plan failing keyed the Cousins-Penix offseason.
“We still have to go through that process,” Morris said (via Josh Kendall of The Athletic). “All those things will happen over the course of the week. We didn’t play well enough at the quarterback position.”
Now, Penix will make his first NFL start at a crucial time for the 7-7 Falcons. They trail the Buccaneers by one game in the NFC South and are two games back of the Commanders for the NFC’s last wild card spot. Atlanta’s front office drew criticism for using a top-10 pick on Penix just a month after signing Cousins to a four-year, $180MM contract in free agency, but the gamble might pay off if the rookie can lead the team to the playoffs.
Penix has only thrown five passes across two garbage-time appearances this season, but he has been “doing well behind the scenes,” according to Pro Football Network’s Adam Caplan. The former Washington Husky led the NCAA with 4,903 passing yards (and 11 interceptions) in his last season, earning the Maxwell Award and a second-place finish for the Heisman Trophy. Penix will be the sixth of 11 quarterbacks selected in the 2024 draft to start at least one game as a rookie.
The Falcons drafted Penix as the future of their franchise, but he will be taking over for Cousins far earlier than expected. Cousins’ contract included fully guaranteed salaries in 2024 and 2025, indicating that he would have at least two years as the team’s starter. Arthur Blank had said the team did not necessarily plan to draft Penix at No. 8, but the team’s football ops department viewed Penix as too good to pass up — despite the standout college passer not being mocked that high for the most part — at that point of the draft.
Cousins expressed shock, joining most of the football-following population, when the Falcons pulled the trigger and drafted Penix eighth overall. The Falcons were later docked a fifth-round pick for tampering in signing the former Washington and Minnesota starter. Months later, his future in Atlanta is in doubt.
The Falcons will have to navigate Cousins’ sizable contract if they want to move on from him this offseason. Cutting him outright before June 1 would force the team to absorb the remaining $65MM of Cousins’ guaranteed money as a dead cap hit in 2025, per OverTheCap. That would be the largest single-season dead cap hit in NFL history, surpassing the $53MM the Broncos took on this year after cutting Russell Wilson.
A post-June 1 release would allow the Falcons to spread out the dead money with $40MM in 2025 and $25MM in 2026. A trade, even for minimal draft compensation, would be the most efficient option; the Falcons could transfer Cousins’ $27.5MM fully guaranteed base salary in 2025 to the acquiring team while accepting the remaining $37.5MM of his prorated signing bonus as a dead cap hit.
Mike Vrabel Jets’ Preferred HC Candidate?
The Jets are one of three teams with a head coaching vacancy at this point, and other openings will no doubt be in place once the regular season ends. When the hiring season opens, Mike Vrabel will be among the top names to watch. 
[RELATED: Bill Belichick Contacted Jets About HC Gig]
The former Titans head coach is currently finishing out the 2024 season in his Browns post, but he could very well be on the move soon. Vrabel will “probably” be the most sought-after coach during the offseason, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer writes. Breer adds each of the three teams currently known to be in need of a new coach (Jets, Saints and Bears) have Vrabel on their radar, which comes as no surprise. New York in particular could emerge as a strong suitor.
Vrabel’s name has come up more often than that of any other HC candidate with respect to the Jets’ opening, Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post reports. New York will have competition for the 49-year-old if his market proves to be as strong as it is expected to be. As La Canfora notes, however, the fact that the Jets have a general manager interview lined up with Jon Robinson is an indication Vrabel is high on the team’s list of preferred candidates. Vrabel and Robinson worked together in Tennessee, and reuniting that pairing would represent a feasible move on New York’s part.
The Jets are using The 33rd Team as part of the ongoing general manager and head coaching searches, a process which has seen Mike Tannenbaum and Rick Spielman take point. Their input will be key in informing the organization’s ultimate decision on both fronts, so connections to the candidates for each post are important to monitor. In that regard, Vrabel is a candidate to watch closely.
“Rick Spielman loves Mike Vrabel,” an anonymous executive told La Canfora. “He’s always loved Vrabel. That’s the guy they want.” A GM concurred that Vrabel (meeting the criteria of an experienced NFL head coach) is the Jets’ preferred option.
The Titans made the postseason during three of Vrabel’s first four seasons at the helm, including a trip to the AFC title game in 2019. Over his final two years, though, the team went 13-21 and Tennessee cleaned house by resetting on the sidelines and in the front office. Vrabel’s stock has not taken a hit, given the fact he has been floated as a candidate for the Bears and – should they make a change this winter – the Patriots.
The Browns made a new commitment to Kevin Stefanski with an offseason extension, and owner Jimmy Haslam recently confirmed an organizational reset is not being considered. If Vrabel is to land another head coaching opportunity this offseason, it will therefore come with an outside organization. The Jets will no doubt continue to be linked to him over the coming weeks.
Titans Bench QB Will Levis For Week 16
10:02pm: Tennessee’s Levis plan is at least on hold; a quarterback switch will happen this week. Levis will head to the bench for Week 16, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes. It would stand to reason Rudolph is moving up the depth chart; he is the only other QB on the Titans’ 53-man roster. It will indeed be Rudolph in Week 16, Callahan confirmed, doing so while indicating he was not ready to make post-2024 proclamations regarding Levis.
Still, this could mark a significant change for the Titans, who had themed their offseason around adding pieces to maximize Levis. The 2023 second-round pick has not taken a noticeable step forward, and the team will sit him down — perhaps to close out the season. If a three-game benching commences, it would certainly be worth monitoring if the Titans will be aggressive to add a starter-caliber option in 2025. Given the events of this season, such a push seems likely.
8:57am: The Titans have remained steadfast in their support of Will Levis this season, but that stance may shift over the waning stages of the season. Head coach Brian Callahan said (via ESPN’s Turron Davenport) the team is contemplating a change under center. 
Levis entered the 2024 campaign as Tennessee’s undisputed starter, and a central storyline for the team was his development during first full season atop the depth chart. Callahan’s first head coaching gig likewise came with the mandate of guiding the 25-year-old while the organization evaluated his potential as a franchise passer. Levis dealt with an AC joint sprain in October, but before and after that injury he has not lived up to expectations.
The 2023 second-round pick has struggled with turnovers throughout the campaign, and that trend continued on Sunday. During the third quarter of the Titans’ Week 15 loss, Levis was benched after throwing three interceptions. That brought his total on the season to 12 (matching his number of touchdown passes) in 11 games. Mason Rudolph finished the contest, and Callahan’s comments leave the door open to Rudolph starting in Week 16. The former Steeler made three starts while Levis was sidelined earlier in the year.
The team made it clear at that time, however, that Levis would reclaim the No. 1 spot when he was healthy. Indeed, the Penn State and Kentucky product took over in Week 10 and has started every contest since. If the Titans were to make a change, though, it would represent a strong signal Levis will be replaced atop the depth chart by a new passer this offseason. Sitting at 3-11 on the year, the Titans are in contention to land the top pick in April’s draft, something which would give them the opportunity to reset under center.
Rudolph saw his lengthy tenure with Pittsburgh come to an end this offseason, and he took a one-year deal with Tennessee. A run of starts would provide him with the opportunity to boost his 2025 free agent stock; it would also, of course, point further to Levis’ run as a QB1 option coming to an end. Two more years remain on his rookie contract, but it very much remains to be seen how the Titans will proceed at the position during that span.
Teddy Bridgewater Eyeing NFL Comeback
Teddy Bridgewater retired from the NFL after the 2023 season, but he revealed that he is interested with signing with a team this season (via NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport).
After retirement, Bridgewater took the head coaching job at Miami Northwestern Senior High School and led his alma mater to a state championship in his first season.
But the former first-round pick has kept an eye on the NFL, saying on NFL Network that he “might be signing with a team” in the coming weeks before returning to Miami Northwestern in February.
Bridgewater explained that his team knew of his plan, saying “We wanted to win a state championship, and then Coach goes back to the league, see what happens, and then come back in February and continue coaching high school football.”
Bridgewater didn’t name any interested teams when asked, so no signing appears imminent.
“Right now, I’m enjoying this state championship,” he said with a smile.
Bridgewater was the 32nd overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft and earned a starting job with the Vikings as a rookie. He led the team to an 11-5 record in 2015, earning Pro Bowl honors along the way. He suffered a brutal knee injury during training camp in 2016, resulting in a 19-month recovery period with one final appearance for Minnesota in Week 15 of the 2017 season.
The Vikings let Bridgewater walk in free agency, which began several years of moving from team to team. He first signed with the Jets, who traded him to the Saints. Bridgewater stayed in New Orleans for two seasons before stints with the Panthers, Broncos, Dolphins, and Lions.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/17/24
Here are the latest practice squad updates from around the NFL:
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: WR Jalen Virgil, OL Will Clapp
- Released: DE Kameron Cline, DT Branson Deen
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: LB Joe Giles-Harris, S Jaylen Key
Cleveland Browns
- Released: TE Cameron Latu
Detroit Lions
- Signed: CB Stantly Thomas-Oliver
- Released: DE Isaiah Thomas
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: TE Albert Okwuegbunam
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: LB Kalen DeLoach
Las Vegas Raiders
- Released: TE Cole Fotheringham
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: WR Isaiah McKenzie, QB Skylar Thompson
New England Patriots
- Released: G Liam Fornadel
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Released: LB Adetokunbo Ogundeji
- Signed: OT John Leglue
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: OT Austen Pleasants, LB Chandler Wooten
- Placed on practice squad IR: TE Mason Pline
Seattle Seahawks
- Released: DE DeVere Levelston
Washington Commanders
- Signed: TE Tyree Jackson
- Placed on practice squad IR: WR/R Kazmeir Allen