HEADLINES

Anthony Johnson (Virginia)

Falcons Reduce Roster To 53

August 27th, 2024 at 4:40pm CST by Adam La Rose

Here are the Falcons’ Tuesday moves which brought the team’s roster to 53 ahead of the cutdown deadline:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR (designated for return):

Taylor Heinicke was widely believed to be on the trade block, and it would have come as little surprise if the veteran passer had been released. Atlanta signed Kirk Cousins in free agency and drafted Michael Penix Jr. eighth overall in April. Those two are set to handle starting and backup duties in 2024 (and beyond, if things go according to plan), which suggested Heinicke was expendable. Instead, he will prepare for a second season with the Falcons.

King’s efforts to return to regular NFL action included a contract with the Falcons in March. The former Packers corner sat out the 2022 season while rehabbing multiple injuries. Last year, an Achilles tear forced him to miss another campaign. He was unable to carve out a roster spot in Atlanta, but as a vested veteran he will immediately hit free agency without needing to pass through waivers.

A number of recent draftees are included in the list of players being waived. As a former UDFA, Blair does not meet that criteria but his inclusion is a surprise. The 26-year-old was a standout in the preseason, and ESPN’s Marc Raimondi notes Atlanta is interested is retaining him via the practice squad. The same will no doubt be true of Logue, a sixth-round pick in this year’s draft.

Teams are allowed to designate two players to return from IR without naming them to the 53-man roster. A number of teams have taken advantage of that new rule today, and in Atlanta’s case it means Hellams will not occupy a spot for the time being. The earliest he can be activated is Week 5.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/15/24

May 15th, 2024 at 8:16pm CST by Ely Allen

Wednesday’s minor NFL moves:

Atlanta Falcons:

Denver Broncos

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Signed: Ty Summers
  • Waived with injury designation: WR Wayne Ruby

Minnesota Vikings

Lynch sat on the free agent market for quite some time, but his patience pays off. He’ll return to Minnesota for his fourth season with the team. He’s started three games for the Vikings in 28 game appearances over the last two years.

Allen, a part of Denver’s 13-man undrafted free agent class, sees a short tenure with the Broncos come to an end. Once again, he’ll be free to sign with anyone else in the NFL who may have interest.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/9/23

October 9th, 2023 at 7:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Monday’s practice squad moves:

Los Angeles Chargers

New Orleans Saints

  • Placed on practice squad injured list: WR Shaquan Davis
  • Released: CB Anthony Johnson

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Wednesday NFL Transactions: NFC South

August 30th, 2023 at 4:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers and Saints moves are noted below.

Atlanta Falcons

Signed:

Claimed:

Waived:

  • OL Josh Miles

Signed to practice squad: 

Carolina Panthers

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

New Orleans Saints

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Saints Officially Set 53-Man Roster

August 29th, 2023 at 7:48pm CST by Ely Allen

The Saints welcomed back some old faces and said goodbye to others on their way towards setting their initial 53-man roster. Here are the moves the team made in their efforts to select the team they will open the season with:

Released:

Waived:

The veteran tight end James will have to continue his recent tour of the NFL. He, Holtz, and Krull fell victim to the reunion of New Orleans and former All-Pro Jimmy Graham.

On defense, Smith failed to make the roster after starting 11 games for the Giants last year. Roby is another player who was initially expected to contribute, but will have to pack up his locker.

With the emergence of rookie third-round pick Kendre Miller and the eventual return of Alvin Kamara, keeping Williams in the running backs room just wasn’t worth the roster spot.

On special teams, the third-year punter Gillikin lost the punting battle with undrafted rookie signee out of Miami (FL) Lou Hedley. The viral, jacked, tatted-up, Australian, 30-year-old rookie punter makes his first NFL roster as part of the Saints’ new-look special teams group.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/18/23

July 18th, 2023 at 7:35pm CST by Ben Levine

As teams welcomed in rookies for camp this week, they began to reorganize their rosters. Today’s minor moves:

Miami Dolphins

  • Placed on NFI: CB Ethan Bonner
  • Placed on IR: LB Zeke Vandenburgh

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

San Francisco 49ers

Vandenburgh, an undrafted rookie out of Illinois State, suffered an injury while training this offseason, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (on Twitter). His placement on IR means he won’t be able to play for the Dolphins in 2023, but he could work his way onto the field with another squad. Bonner, meanwhile, is dealing with a minor illness and should be good to go later this week.

Miller, a third-round pick by the Saints, is still recovering from a meniscus injury that kept him off the field for TCU’s National Championship game. The Saints were always planning to ease in the running back during training camp, and it sounds like he’s still expected to be a full-go by the time the regular season comes around.

Saints Announce 11-Man UDFA Class

April 30th, 2023 at 12:39pm CST by Rory Parks

The Saints have announced an 11-man UDFA class after drafting seven players over the course of the last three days. Here are the undrafted talents who will begin their pursuit of an NFL job with New Orleans:

Two of the above players, Davis and Orji, received guarantees in excess of $200K, as Greg Auman of FOX Sports tweets.

Davis has the size (6-5, 217 lbs.) and length that could allow him to find success in the pros, and he showed off serious big-play ability at the collegiate level, averaging roughly 20.4 yards per catch over four years at South Carolina State. That included 45 catches for 934 yards and 11 TDs in 2022.

That production, however, came against FCS competition. While the size of Davis’ guarantee indicates he was a priority signing, there are elements of his game — like his issue with drops — that he will need to clean up in order to have a shot at cracking the roster.

Orji, meanwhile, was a three-year starter for the SEC’s Commodores, as well as a team captain. Despite averaging nearly 100 total tackles and 10 tackles for loss over the past two seasons, he also missed a lot of tackles and does not have the speed that would make him an elite defender in today’s NFL. Still, there was a chance that he would hear his name called on Day 3 of the draft, and he should have a decent chance of sticking as a backup defender or special teamer.