Minor NFL Transactions: 8/6/24
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: EDGE Marquis Haynes, CB Delonte Hood
Baltimore Ravens
- Activated from NFI: LB Adisa Isaac
Buffalo Bills
- Released from IR: DL David Ugwoegbu
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: DE Marcus Haynes, LB Landon Honeycutt
- Waived: WR Jalen Camp, OT Chukwuma Okorafor
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: LB Darius Harris, DT Albert Huggins, LB Nick Vigil
- Waived: LB Byron Vaughns
- Placed on IR: DE Sam Williams
- Placed on reserve/did not report: WR CeeDee Lamb (story)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: LB Alec Mock
- Waived/injured: LB Ronnie Perkins
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: DE Zach Morton
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: WR Dax Milne
- Waived/injured: DT Tomari Fox
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: QB Luis Perez
- Waived: LB Savion Jackson
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: OL Matt Kaskey, OL Alec Lindstrom
- Waived: TE Neal Johnson, DB Kenny Logan Jr.
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: LB Mike Rose
- Waived/injured: OT Chandler Brewer
New York Giants
- Reverted to IR: RB Jashaun Corbin
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: WR Malik Turner
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: LB Jamie Sheriff
- Waived/injured: LB Josh Onujiogu
Washington Commanders
- Signed: OL J.C. Hassenauer
- Waived: TE Armani Rogers
- Waived/injured: T Alex Akingbulu
CeeDee Lamb isn’t usually mentioned in this type of post, but the transaction involving the wideout was simply procedural. As ESPN’s Todd Archer notes, placing Lamb on the reserve/did not report list opens up a roster spot for the Cowboys, something that was necessary after the team signed three players today. This move doesn’t impact negotiations, and Lamb can be activated once he returns to practice. Lamb continues to holdout while he waits for a new deal, but the front office is working hard to get him back in the building.
Justin Herbert‘s recent foot injury necessitated some extra depth at the position. The team ended up opting for Luis Perez, who led the UFL last season in completions (225), passing yards (2,309), and touchdowns (18). Perez will soak up some temporary snaps alongside Easton Stick, Max Duggan, and UDFA Casey Bauman.
Cowboys Eyeing DE Help
With Sam Williams lost for the season thanks to a torn ACL and MCL, the Cowboys are doing their due diligence on potential replacements. According to David Moore of the Dallas Morning News, the team has been “reviewing the tape” on available veteran defensive ends. However, Moore cautions that the team hasn’t lined up any visits/workouts.
[RELATED: Cowboys’ Sam Williams Tears ACL]
While Williams was once buried in the positional pecking order, the Cowboys were going to lean on their depth following the losses of Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler this offseason. Dallas is fortunate that they still have plenty of talent on the edge; Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence will continue to lead the depth chart, and the organization also used a second-round pick on Western Michigan’s Marshawn Kneeland.
Beyond that trio, the options are less than inspiring for new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer. 2023 fourth-round pick Viliami Fehoko Jr. is the team’s most significant recent draft investment of the bunch, but any of the back-of-the-depth-chart options (including key special teamer Chauncey Golston, 2023 UDFAs Durrell Johnson and Tyrus Wheat, and 2024 UDFA Byron Vaughns) could step into any leftover snaps. There’s a good chance the Cowboys will be patient and evaluate this grouping before pouncing on any free agent options.
Plus, the free agent market has been pretty much picked through. Yannick Ngakoue likely represents the best option at the position, with the likes of Carl Lawson, Markus Golden, and Shaq Lawson also sitting unsigned. The Cowboys will also have more options at their disposal as rival squads trim down their rosters, so there probably isn’t any urgency to find a Williams replacement right now. Stephen Jones basically acknowledged as much when discussing the position with Moore.
“We’ll just see,” Jones said. “It depends on the guy. Everybody is pouring over the tape and seeing if there is anything. But we’re very pleased with what Kneeland has done so far.
“If the right guy is there, we’ll pull the trigger. If not, we’ll kind of keep playing along, see how our guys do and go from there.”
As for Williams, Moore notes that the defender will undergo surgery in August to repair his torn ACL and partially torn MCL. The earlier we’ll see Williams on the field will likely be a month or two into the 2025 campaign.
Cowboys Expected To Sign 12-Man UDFA Class
The Cowboys were able to address some big needs in the 2024 NFL Draft, adding to both the offensive and defensive fronts with an eight-man draft class. Thanks to 12 undrafted free agents expected to sign with Dallas on Thursday, the Cowboys anticipate heading into the summer with a rookie class of 20 players. Here are the undrafted additions:
- Corey Crooms, WR (Minnesota)
- Denzel Daxon, DT (Illinois)
- Josh DeBerry, S (Texas A&M)
- Alec Holler, TE (UCF)
- Cam Johnson, WR (Northwestern)
- Emany Johnson, S (Nevada)
- Jason Johnson, LB (UCF)
- Brock Mogensen, LB (South Dakota)
- Nathaniel Peat, RB (Missouri)
- Brevyn Spann-Ford, TE (Minnesota)
- Byron Vaughns, DE (Baylor)
- Julius Wood, S (East Carolina)
On offense, Peat brings some serious speed to the table. After three years at Stanford and a season at Missouri, the son of two college track athletes posted a 4.37-second 40-yard dash at his pro day.
Two receivers join on offense, as well. Johnson finally found the best place for his production with the Wildcats after four years at Vanderbilt and one at Arizona State, catching for 715 yards and six touchdowns in Evanston. Crooms transferred to Minnesota after two impressive years at Western Michigan, in which he combined for 1,582 yards and 11 touchdowns, but he failed to match that production with the Golden Gophers.
Croom’s teammate, Spann-Ford, comes out of free agency as one of the top run-blocking tight ends in the draft class. The Cowboys had to spend a bit to ink him, promising a $20K signing bonus and fully guaranteeing his base salary of $225K, per Aaron Williams of KPRC 2. He didn’t add much to the receiving game in Minneapolis, though. Neither did Holler in Orlando, but he did have some circus catches here and there to go along with his strong blocking profile.
Some productive players could contribute on defense, as well. Vaughns didn’t get a chance to shine at Texas but showed how disruptive he could be at Utah State and Baylor, combining for 27.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks in three seasons at the two schools. At linebacker, Johnson was a tackling machine, recording three straight 100-plus-tackle seasons at Eastern Illinois in 2021 and UCF the past two years. He was one of the top undrafted linebacker options following the draft. Mogensen contributed back-to-back 100-plus-tackle seasons himself for the Coyotes.
The team also adds three capable safety options. DeBerry was one of the top secondary players in the ACC at Boston College before transferring to College Station. Johnson spent six years at Nevada but only got to start in 2023 for the Wolf Pack. He made the most of the opportunity with 99 tackles, three picks, and four passes defensed. Lastly, Wood was a menace for the Pirates in two years as a starter, delivering bone-crunching hits and showing a strong nose for the football at East Carolina.