Breeland Speaks

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/25/24

With roster cutdowns beginning around the league, Sunday saw a number of moves take place:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

Buffalo’s decision to cut Jones marks a blow to his efforts in finding a roster spot on a new team. Considering the latest report on his status, however, it does not come as a surprise. The Bills dealt with a number of injuries at the linebacker spot last season and Matt Milano will miss extended time in 2024 due to a biceps tear. In spite of that, the team will look elsewhere for depth options unless Jones is retained via the practice squad later this week.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/8/24

Thursday’s minor moves around the league:

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

  • Reverted to IR: CB Don Callis, WR Rory Starkey

Jacksonville Jaguars

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Signed: G Ryan Johnson
  • Placed on IR: G Silas Dzansi

Dixon exited Jacksonville’s Tuesday practice early, and head coach Doug Pederson confirmed on Thursday he has suffered a torn ACL. The former UDFA started his career with the Jaguars, making three appearances as a rookie in 2022. He resided on the team’s practice squad last season, and he could remain in the organization by reverting to IR in the event he goes unclaimed.

Speaks will take Dixon’s place as he aims to translate an effective UFL campaign into a return to NFL action. The 28-year-old earned Defensive Player of the Year honors while playing for the Michigan Panthers. He collected 9.5 sacks in the spring, and that production has landed him the chance to carve out a roster spot with Jacksonville. Speaks last played with the Chiefs in 2018.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/27/23

With the preseason over for 30 of the NFL’s 32 teams, many have begun the process of working their rosters down to the eventual 53-man rosters they will open the season with:

Indianapolis Colts

  • Waived: WR Tyler Adams, WR Kody Case, G Emil Ekiyor, TE Nick Eubanks, K Lucas Havrisik, TE Michael Jacobson, T Matthew Vanderslice
  • Released: CB Teez Tabor

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Although never quite reaching the heights of his tenure with the Bengals, Vigil has a history as a strong contributor and potential starter at linebacker. Coming off a season that saw him only play in four games for the Cardinals before getting put on injured reserve, Vigil failed to stick in New York and will need to find his next opportunity elsewhere.

Vallejo’s tenure in Minnesota lasted a short two weeks. The special teams specialist will have to keep searching for his 2023 home.

49ers To Sign DE Breeland Speaks

10:42am: To make room on their 90-man roster, the 49ers placed Anthony Averett on IR, per the San Jose Mercury News’ Cam Inman (on Twitter). A former Ravens and Raiders starter, Averett made two trips to IR during his season with Las Vegas. The 49ers have now placed two veteran cornerbacks — Averett and Terrance Mitchellon IR over the past several days.

9:51am: The 49ers have taken a few fliers on ex-high draft choices at defensive end in recent years. Their latest such effort will involve a former second-round pick who generated interest as a USFL standout.

Breeland Speaks is signing with the team, according to KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter). The former Chiefs draft choice worked out for the Broncos and Texans as well, but after a 49ers audition, he will attempt to become a depth piece in San Francisco.

While Speaks’ initial NFL run did not go as the Chiefs envisioned, he re-emerged on the radar with the Michigan Panthers. Speaks led the second-year league with nine sacks this year. He will join a 49ers roster that has seen more turnover among Nick Bosa‘s batch of D-end sidekicks. The 49ers lost Charles Omenihu and Samson Ebukam this offseason — to the Chiefs and Colts, respectively — and are currently without Bosa due to a holdout. Bosa is expected to land a monster extension soon, and the 49ers will have some new pieces in place alongside him.

The team added former No. 4 overall pick Clelin Ferrell and ex-Cowboys first-rounder Taco Charlton this offseason. This comes after well-regarded D-line coach Kris Kocurek helped the likes of Omenihu, Ebukam, Kerry Hyder and ex-Ferrell Raiders teammate Arden Key raise their values after recent free agency accords (Hyder remains with the 49ers). A Speaks reclamation project will seemingly be a longer-odds proposition, but the 49ers will kick the tires on the recent USFL success story.

Brett Veach‘s first draft choice as Chiefs GM, Speaks has not played in an NFL game since 2018. Speaks, 27, missed all of 2019 due to injury and could not make the Chiefs’ 53-man roster in 2020. The former No. 46 overall pick ended up with the Raiders, Cowboys, Giants and Bills — on practice squad agreements — through the end of the 2021 season. Speaks finished his rookie year with 1.5 sacks, starting four Chiefs games.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/27/21

Today’s taxi squad moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Kansas City Chiefs

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Washington Football Team

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/22/21

Today’s taxi squad moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns

  • Activated from COVID-19 list: WR JoJo Natson

Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit Lions

  • Placed on COVID-19 list: CB Chris Williamson

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Washington Football Team

  • Released: DE Hercules Mata’afa

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/6/21

Today’s taxi squad moves:

Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans

  • Signed: CB Cre’Von LeBlanc

Indianapolis Colts

  • Signed: QB James Morgan

New York Giants

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Wednesday NFL Transactions: NFC East

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 CowboysEaglesGiants and Washington moves are noted below.

Here are Wednesday’s NFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.

Dallas Cowboys

Signed to practice squad:

New York Giants

Placed on IR:

Signed:

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Philadelphia Eagles

Signed to practice squad:

Washington Football Team

Placed on IR:

Signed:

Signed to practice squad:

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/13/21

Today’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Claimed off waivers (from 49ers): RB Austin Walter
  • Waived: RB Pete Guerriero

Seattle Seahawks

  • Signed: S Joshua Moon, DT Walter Palmore, DE Marcus Webb, S LaDarius Wiley

Giants Sign DE Breeland Speaks To Reserve/Futures Deal

A 2018 second-round pick has inked a non-guaranteed futures contract. The Giants announced today that they’ve inked defensive end Breeland Speaks to a reserve/futures deal.

Speaks was selected by the Chiefs with the 46th-overall pick in the 2018 draft. The Ole Miss product had a solid rookie campaign, appearing in all 16 games (with four starts) while collecting 24 tackles, three tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and one forced fumble. Speaks also appeared in a pair of playoff games during his rookie season, compiling a pair of tackles.

He missed the 2019 season due to a knee injury, and while sitting on IR, he was suspended four games after violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. Speaks was reinstated late during the 2019 campaign and landed back on IR, and he ultimately won a ring after the Chiefs defeated the 49ers in Super Bowl LIV.

Speaks was waived at the end of the 2020 preseason, and he jumped around the NFL a bit during the regular season. Following a stint with the Raiders practice squad in October, the 25-year-old ended the season on the Cowboys’ taxi squad.

Speaks will sit on the Giants’ 90-man offseason roster with a non-guaranteed deal, and the pact guarantees that he won’t be scooped up by another squad. Teams are only allowed to use reserve/futures deals on players who weren’t on an active roster at the end of the 2020 regular season.