Darius Kilgo

Texans Cut WR Braxton Miller

The Texans cut a boatload of players on Friday, allowing them to inch closer to the 53-man max. Here’s the rundown, with all links going to Twitter unless noted otherwise:

Miller is the biggest name of the bunch, but his release does not come as a huge surprise. The former third-round pick out of Ohio State has posted a grand total of 34 catches for 261 yards and two scores over the last two years, and he failed to really stand out in the preseason.

Will Fuller, Bruce Ellington and fourth-round pick Keke Coutee seem likely to make the cut behind star receiver DeAndre Hopkins, and it remains to be seen whether Houston will carry five or six receivers in total.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/31/18

Here are the latest reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2018 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ offseason 90-man rosters:

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

NFL Workout Updates: 9/13/17

Today’s workout updates, with nearly all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account:

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Tennessee Titans

Washington Redskins

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/5/17

Today’s practice squad transactions:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed: CB Tony McRae, C Matt Skura

Buffalo Bills

  • Signed: LB Eric Lee
  • Released: S B.T. Sanders, CB Marcus Sayles

Carolina Panthers

  • Signed: FB Alex Armah

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans

  • Signed: LB LaTroy Lewis

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Signed: CB Raysean Pringle

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

  • Signed: TE Johnny Mundt, CB Kevin Peterson
  • Released: OL Michael Dunn, DL Louis Trinca-Pasat

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

  • Signed: CB Kenneth Durden

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC East

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC East teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the BillsDolphinsPatriots, and Jets are noted below.

Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s AFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Buffalo Bills

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Patriots Reach 53-Man Max

The Patriots made a massive amount of cuts on Saturday to reach the 53-man limit. Most of the cuts were expected, but there were a few surprises in the bunch.

Released:

Waived:

Karras was widely projected to be the team’s top backup on the interior line, so his release comes as a surprise. The 24-year-old was drafted by the Pats in the sixth round of the 2016 draft and played in all 16 regular season games last year. He also appeared in all three playoff games as a reserve.

O’Shaughnessy, acquired via trade in April, was competing for the third tight end spot. The 6-foot-4, 245-pounder has played in 23 NFL games with six starts.

Patriots Sign Nine To Reserve/Futures Contracts

Patriots coach Bill Belichick started a “no days off!” chant during today’s victory parade, and that sentiment was confirmed hours later when the team announced that they had signed the majority of their practice squad to reserve/futures contracts (via Patriots.com):

Rob Housler (Vertical)The team also inked tight end Rob Housler to a contract. The team didn’t sign fullback Glenn Gronkowski or wideout DeAndrew White, although that could change in the coming days or weeks.

Housler is probably the most notable name on the list, as the tight end has five NFL seasons under his belt. The former third-round pick was actually a staple in the Cardinals lineup from 2011 through 2014, averaging nearly 14 games a season. The tight end was especially productive in 2012 and 2013, combining for 84 receptions, 871 yards, and one touchdown in 28 games. Since then, the tight end bounced between the Bears and Browns before sitting out the entire 2016 campaign.

Otherwise, Kilgo has the most experience having played in 18 games for the Broncos between 2015 and 2016. Douglas (16 games, six starts), Barker (five games), Hamilton (three games), and Bates (one game) have also seen the field for at least one NFL game. Both Gaffney and Lucien proved to be intriguing prospects for the Patriots during this past preseason.

AFC Notes: Colts, Patriots, Petty

There are plenty of pundits who expect the Colts to part ways with at least one of head coach Chuck Pagano and GM Ryan Grigson at season’s end, but owner Jim Irsay has downplayed the notion of major changes, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Irsay said, “I would say it would be unlikely for any changes to occur, honestly. It’s unlikely, but look, we’ll see when we sit down and thoroughly vet the season.” One reason for Irsay’s hesitation is the fact that the first five year’s of the Pagano/Andrew Luck regime has gone better than the first five years of Peyton Manning‘s career in Indianapolis.

Now for more from the AFC:

  • DT Darius Kilgo may be on the Patriots‘ practice squad, but the Pats are not paying him that way. According to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe in a series of Twitter links, New England is paying Kilgo $30,882 per week, which gives him the same compensation he would have received under his original contract (the practice squad minimum is $6,900 per week). The team also guaranteed him $92,647, the equivalent of three weeks pay. As Volin observes, the team is attempting to “do right” by Kilgo, who was claimed off waivers from the Broncos when it looked like Alan Branch would be suspended, but who was cut and re-signed to the practice squad when Branch won his appeal.
  • The Patriots have until Wednesday to activate quarterback Jacoby Brissett to their active roster, or he will revert to injured reserve and be lost for the season. Mike Reiss of ESPN.com believes the Patriots do plan to activate Brissett but that they are waiting until the last possible moment to do so because they do not have an obvious corresponding roster move to make. We had previously heard that the team was expected to activate Brissett on Friday.
  • Cyrus Jones has had a disappointing rookie year for the Patriots, but the second-round selection out of Alabama is not going anywhere, as Volin writes in a separate piece. Jones, who was coveted for his return skills, has been a disaster as a return man this season, and he hasn’t fared much better as a corner. But even if he does not get much playing time the rest of the season, Jones will get the chance to right the ship in 2017.
  • Jets quarterback Bryce Petty was knocked out of last night’s loss to Miami, and initial reports suggested that he had the wind knocked out him. Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports that Petty will have a CT scan on Monday to determine if he has a punctured lung.
  • The injury that landed Jaguars TE Julius Thomas on IR was a fractured tailbone, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). The Jags could save $4.7MM against the cap if they were to cut Thomas, who has disappointed since Jacksonville made him the highest-paid tight end in the game last March.
  • One reason for the Raiders‘ success this season is the fact that they have done such a good job at getting contributions from undrafted free agents. As Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com observes, Oakland started the season with four undrafted free agents on the 53-man roster, and now have seven on the active roster. That list includes players like Jalen Richard, Johnny Holton, and Marquette King.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/8/16

Here are today’s minor moves.

  • The Jets are promoting safety Doug Middleton from the practice squad. Gang Green signed Middleton, an Appalachian State product, as a UDFA this spring and signed him to their practice squad in September. The rookie safety has yet to play in an NFL game.
  • The Patriots waived defensive tackle Darius Kilgo, Doug Kyed of NESN reports (on Twitter). Kilgo’s cut opened the door for the Patriots to add wideout Griff Whalen earlier today. New England claimed Kilgo off waivers from the Broncos, who selected him in the sixth round in 2015. Kilgo became a superfluous commodity after Alan Branch won his suspension last week. Kilgo did not play in a game for the Patriots after suiting up for nine in each of the past two season for the Broncos.