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Pittsburgh Steelers News & Rumors

Workout Updates: 10/20/15

October 20th, 2015 at 1:56pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s workouts and visits from around the NFL..

Earlier today:

  • The Panthers are working out tight end/fullback James Casey today, according to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
  • The Saints tried out defensive backs Akeem Davis and Robert McClain, wide receiver T.J. Graham, guard David Arkin, and center Ryan Seymour, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter). Seymour was ultimately signed to New Orleans’ practice squad.
  • The Jets worked out cornerback Jeremy Harris on Monday, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Buster Skrine and Marcus Williams are both uncertain for this week, so Gang Green is likely looking at Harris as possible insurance.
  • The Vikings worked out former Ravens defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi on Tuesday, a source tells Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle (on Twitter).
  • The Panthers worked out former Ravens quarterback Bryn Renner according to a source who spoke with Wilson (Twitter link).
  • The Broncos are working out former Titans linebacker J.R. Tavai, according to a source who spoke with Wilson (Twitter link).
  • The Titans will try out ex-Ravens fullback Kiero Small, Wilson tweets.
  • The Ravens tried out a trio of defensive backs: Jonte Green, Sheldon Price, and Cornelius Brown, Wilson tweets.
  • The Chiefs tried out defensive back Trovon Reed, Wilson tweets.
  • The Steelers worked out tackle James Brewer, Wilson tweets.
  • Former Seahawks wide receiver Douglas McNeil is working out for the Panthers today, according to a source who spoke with Wilson (link).
  • The Broncos working out tight end Matt LaCosse today, according to a source who spoke with Wilson (link).

Steelers Put Beachum On IR, Sign Stingily

October 19th, 2015 at 2:37pm CST by Dallas Robinson

MONDAY, 2:37pm: The Steelers have officially placed Beachum on the injured reserve list, signing tackle Byron Stingily to replace him, the team announced today (via Twitter). Stingily, who was released by the Titans during the team’s cutdown to 53 players in September, worked out for the Colts, Bears, Chargers, and Dolphins in recent weeks before finding a new home in Pittsburgh.

SUNDAY, 4:26pm: The Steelers’ bad injury luck has continued, as head coach Mike Tomlin confirmed to reporters, including Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (Twitter link), that left tackle Kelvin Beachum suffered a torn ACL during today’s win over the Cardinals. Beachum will presumably be placed on injured reserve in the coming days and miss the rest of the season.

As Garafolo notes, the injury is especially devastating for Beachum as he is an impending free agent; he and the Steelers had engaged in contract negotiations earlier this year, but couldn’t come to an agreement. Obviously, hindsight is 20/20, but because Beachum did not end up signing an extension, he will now enter free agency coming off a very serious injury, with his availability for the beginning of the 2016 season up in the air.

Beachum, 26, is a late-round success story, having developed from a seventh-round draft choice into a high-quality starter at left tackle. He became the full-time starter during the 2013 season, and has played exceptionally well, stabilizing the left side of a solid Pittsburgh offensive line. Alejandro Villanueva, a former member of the U.S. Army with little professional experience, entered the game as Beachum’s replacement, but it’s unclear if he’ll be the club’s left tackle going forward.

Beachum is the second key Steelers offensive lineman to suffer a major injury this season, as center Maurkice Pouncey is also expected to miss the rest of the year after undergoing complications while rehabbing his ankle injury. It’s not just Pittsburgh’s offensive line that has fallen victim to injuries, of course, as quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has also been out for several weeks with a knee ailment.

PUP, NFI Players Soon Eligible To Practice

October 19th, 2015 at 10:30am CST by Luke Adams

Week 6 of the NFL season will come to an end after Monday night’s game between the Giants and Eagles, and when teams begin preparing for Week 7, many clubs could be welcoming injured players back to practice. Six weeks into the NFL season, players who were placed on the physically unable to perform list or the non-football injury list prior to Week 1’s games will be eligible to return to the practice field.

Of course, just because those players are able to return to practice doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be healthy enough to do so. Players on the PUP list have a five-week window to begin practicing. Once they return to practice, they have three weeks to be added to their respective teams’ active rosters. In other words, a player currently on the PUP list could return to the field for his team’s Week 7 game, or could return as late as for his team’s Week 15 contest.

The rules for NFI players are similar to those for PUP players. If a player on either reserve list doesn’t return to practice or game action in time, his 2015 season will officially be over.

Here are the players currently on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list who can begin practicing as soon as this Tuesday:

And here are the players currently on their teams’ non-football injury or illness lists, who are also eligible to begin practicing this Tuesday:

  • Arizona Cardinals: WR Damond Powell
  • Buffalo Bills: CB Leodis McKelvin
  • Cincinnati Bengals: T Cedric Ogbuehi
  • Cleveland Browns: DB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, TE Randall Telfer, RB Glenn Winston
  • Dallas Cowboys: LB Mark Nzeocha
  • Houston Texans: T David Quessenberry
  • Kansas City Chiefs: QB Tyler Bray
  • San Francisco 49ers: WR DeAndre Smelter
  • Seattle Seahawks: DT Jesse Williams

In addition to monitoring players on the PUP and NFI lists, it’s worth keeping an eye on players who have been placed on the injured reserve list with the designation to return. Teams can use this IR-DTR spot on one player per season, placing him on the injured reserve list without necessarily ruling him out for the season. As we explained in an earlier post, players given this designation can begin practicing after six weeks and can return after eight weeks.

That means that a player who was placed on IR-DTR prior to Week 1 can begin practicing on Tuesday, though he won’t be eligible to return to game action until Week 9. A player who was placed on IR-DTR after Week 1 will have to wait until next Tuesday – October 27 – to return to practice, while other IR-DTR players will have to wait until November to practice.

Here’s the list of players currently on IR-DTR who can begin practicing as soon as Tuesday:

AFC Notes: Patriots, Forsett, Steelers

October 17th, 2015 at 6:20pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Let’s take a look around the AFC, where three clubs still remain undefeated…

  • The Patriots placed cornerback Tarell Brown on injured reserve earlier today, leading Mike Reiss of ESPN.com to examine how New England will approach its secondary woes going going forward. Malcolm Butler will be joined in the starting lineup by Logan Ryan, while Justin Coleman and recent waiver claim Rashaan Melvin could also see time. But the Patriots, who have never shied away from the trade market, could also look to swing a deal to add reinforcements, opines Reiss, who points to the Buccaneers’ Alterraun Verner and the Titans’ Jason McCourty as possible targets (though the ESPN scribe allows that McCourty is unlikely to be moved). Marcus Cooper, a little-used Chiefs corner, might also be on the table, an opinion Reiss has voiced before.
  • It’s still up in the air as to whether Justin Forsett will be active for the Ravens‘ game against the 49ers, but according to Forsett, his ankle injury is looking a little better. “It’s a work in progress,” Forsett told Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com. “We’re heading in the right direction.” Baltimore promoted fellow running back Terrance Magee from its practice squad earlier today, which could be a bad sign for for Forsett’s availability.
  • After missing four games due to suspension and one additional contest due to injury, Steelers receiver Martavis Bryant is expected to return for tomorrow’s game against the Cardinals. He’ll likely act as Pittsburgh’s No. 2 pass-catcher, meaning Darrius Heyward-Bey, who has posted 17 receptions for 209 yards and two scores, will move back to the bench, per Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. But Heyward-Bey, who has been involved in more than 70% of the Steelers’ offensive plays, vows to remain active in the club’s gameplan. “My focus is whatever Coach Tomlin needs me to do,” he told Kaboly. “My job is to play every position on the field, whether it is X, Z or F. Whatever they need me to do, I will do.”

AFC Notes: Texans, Watkins, Boykin

October 16th, 2015 at 3:37pm CST by Luke Adams

With the NFL eyeing locations beyond the United Kingdom for international games in future seasons, the Texans are targeting a potential game in Mexico City in 2016, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. Of course, like most other teams that express interest in playing an international contest, Houston would prefer to be the road team in such a game.

“I believe there’s a chance,” Texans president Jamey Rootes said of playing in Mexico City. “We’ve always expressed that we have an interest in participating internationally as a road team. … We’ve made it clear that we’re most interested in doing that in Mexico. It’s an amazing opportunity for the team and the league. But it’s a league decision, and it would be on their timing.”

Let’s check out a few more odds and ends from around the AFC….

  • With Bills wideout Sammy Watkins having expressed a desire to have more passes thrown his way, Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap examines the situation in Buffalo, discussing the role that targets play in contract discussions for wide receivers.
  • The Steelers sent a fifth-round pick to Philadelphia when they acquired cornerback Brandon Boykin, but Pittsburgh seems unwilling to play Boykin, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com details. Presumably, the Steelers will want to get some value out of Boykin eventually, to warrant giving up that draft pick, but Fowler looks into why the ex-Eagle has only seen one defensive snap in the last three weeks.
  • Patriots cornerback Tarell Brown has a potentially serious foot injury and is seeking a second opinion, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. For now, Brown’s availability appears to be week to week, but if the injury is determined to be significant, he could end up on the IR list.
  • The Dolphins aren’t happy about starting the season with a 1-3 record, or having to make coaching changes, but football czar Mike Tannenbaum tells Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald that he likes the team’s roster.

Latest On Steelers C Maurkice Pouncey

October 15th, 2015 at 2:20pm CST by Zachary Links

2:20pm: Pouncey is “likely to miss [the] rest of the season,” according to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter).

1:24pm: Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey is experiencing complications from his ankle injury and is expected to undergo another operation, sources tell Rand Getlin of NFL.com (Twitter links). Pouncey was placed on IR-DTR back in September, but “there are fears that he may miss more of the season than initially anticipated,” Getlin writes.

Pouncey suffered a broken fibula during the Steelers’ third preseason game and was initially expected to miss ten games in total. Now, his projected Week 12 return appears to be in doubt. The 26-year-old graded as the league’s sixth-best center last season per Pro Football Focus (subscription required) and the Steelers have been looking forward to getting him back out on the field.

Cody Wallace has stepped in as the the Steelers’ new starting center in 2015 and is expected to do so until Pouncey is ready to return.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/13/15

October 13th, 2015 at 4:59pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor signings, cuts, and other moves from around the NFL..

  • The Dolphins released RB/KR Raheem Mostert off their roster, according to agent Brett Tessler (Twitter links). Mostert led the entire NFL in yardage this preseason while with the Eagles. If he passes through waivers, Tessler adds that he’ll be added to Miami’s taxi squad.
  • The Texans signed defensive tackle Brandon Dunn to active roster off the Bears‘ practice squad, a source tells Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). In a related move, the Texans cut wide receiver Chandler Worthy from active roster (Twitter links). If Worthy clears waivers, Houston would like to sign him to the taxi squad.
  • The Saints re-signed wide receiver Joe Morgan, as Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune tweets. To make room, the defensive backs waived defensive back Don Jones (link).
  • The Eagles (via Twitter) announced that they signed offensive lineman Tanner Hawkinson off the 49ers‘ practice squad and released center/guard Julian Vandervelde.
  • The Chiefs signed running back Darrin Reaves to their practice squad, as Adam Teicher of ESPN.com writes. The former Panthers tailback was in camp with Kansas City this past offseason.
  • The Steelers released kicker Garrett Hartley off of IR, as Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets.
  • The Lions released cornerback Chris Owens off of the IR, Caplan tweets.
  • The Cowboys waived wide receiver Vince Mayle, Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. The Washington State product was moved from the practice squad to the active roster last week to give Dallas additional depth at the position.
  • The Bears waived quarterback David Fales, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweets.
  • The Cardinals placed defensive back Chris Clemons on injured reserve, Wilson tweets.
  • The Dolphins cut Damarr Aultman, Wilson tweets.
  • The Colts cut Jalil Brown from injured reserve with an injury settlement, Wilson tweets.
  • The Seahawks waived UDFA running back Rod Smith and quarterback B.J. Daniels, Caplan tweets.
  • The Lions waived linebacker Kevin Snyder from the IR, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press tweets.

Steelers Activate Martavis Bryant

October 13th, 2015 at 3:14pm CST by Luke Adams

The Steelers have activated wide receiver Martavis Bryant to their 53-man roster, the team announced today in a press release. Bryant had missed the first four weeks of the season while serving a suspension, and Pittsburgh, armed with a roster exemption for the wideout, chose not to activate him for Week 5. Now, he’ll be eligible to play in Week 6, taking safety Ross Ventrone‘s spot on the roster.

Bryant, 23, came on strong in the second half of his rookie season in 2014, acting as a deep threat for the Steelers’ offense. For the year, the Clemson product caught 26 balls for 549 yards, an average of 21.1 yards per reception. He also hauled in eight touchdowns. Bryant had been expected to take a step forward in 2015, but a four-game ban for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy postponed his sophomore debut.

As for Ventrone, the veteran defensive back has been with the Steelers for parts of the last three seasons, providing depth in the secondary and seeing some action on special teams. He’ll be a free agent if and when he clears waivers.

Gates, Hardy, Others Return From Suspensions

October 5th, 2015 at 8:45am CST by Luke Adams

With four weeks of the NFL season now in the books, several players – and one general manager – are eligible to return from their four-game suspensions, as Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link) notes. While Yates’ list isn’t exhaustive, he includes the most notable names who will be eligible to suit up for their teams’ next games:

In most cases, teams will be given a roster exemption for their returning players, so they won’t have to immediately make room for them on the 53-man roster today. However, teams will have to create an opening on their rosters by Thursday if they intend to activate these players, and there aren’t any players on this list that look like release candidates.

The Cowboys could get the biggest boost this week, with two of their best defensive players – Hardy and McClain – set to return. McClain’s career production has been somewhat up and down, and Hardy hasn’t played since Week 1 of the 2014 season, so it’ll be interesting to see if either player is able to make an immediate impact for Dallas.

Richardson, meanwhile, could be a candidate for additional discipline — he’ll have his pre-trial hearing on street-racing charges today, but the legal process is expected to continue for about a month, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links). The NFL could step in and hand out another suspension for Richardson before his trial, but it’s more likely that the league will simply wait until after it concludes to make a decision.

As for Farmer, the Browns GM, who was suspended for texting coaches on the sideline during games last season, will be able to resume making roster decisions today, though Cleveland wasn’t exactly closed for business over the last four weeks — with interim GM Bill Kuharich at the helm, the team locked up quarterback Austin Davis to a two-year extension last week.

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