Here are today’s reserve/futures contracts:
Chicago Bears
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Green Bay Packers
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Rams
Minnesota Vikings
New Orleans Saints
A pair of USFL quarterbacks are drawing significant interest around the NFL. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 (via Twitter), Alex McGough has “multiple upcoming NFL workouts” and has “drawn interest from roughly a third of the league.” Meanwhile, De’Andre Johnson is also drawing interest from teams, including the Browns and Texans, per Wilson (on Twitter).
McGough was a 2018 seventh-round pick by the Seahawks, but he spent the majority of his rookie campaign on the practice squad. The FIU product later had stints with the Jaguars and Texans before returning to Seattle in late 2020.
The quarterback was later the sixth-overall pick in the 2022 USFL Draft. He didn’t play a whole lot during his first season in the league, but his 2023 campaign clearly helped put him back on the NFL radar. McGough won the league’s MVP and guided his Birmingham Stallions to the league championship, completing 67.4 percent of his passes for 2,105 yards, 20 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He added another 403 yards and five scores on the ground.
Johnson’s collegiate career saw him join East Mississippi’s “Last Chance U” after getting dismissed from Florida State. He later moved on to Texas Southern before going undrafted in 2020. Since then, he spent time in The Spring League before joining the USFL for the 2022 campaign. Through two season in the league, the quarterback has thrown for only 1,712 yards, but he’s added 671 rushing yards (to go along with six rushing touchdowns).
Considering the dual-threat nature of these two players, there’s a chance they’re drawing NFL interest for positions other than quarterback. The Browns don’t seem to have a major need for a quarterback; behind Deshaun Watson, they have a grouping that includes veteran Joshua Dobbs, rookie fifth-round pick Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and former third-round pick Kellen Mond. The same goes for the Falcons, who seem to have a set depth chart in Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke, and Logan Woodside.
Mackensie Alexander‘s time with the Dolphins may be short-lived. The team placed the veteran cornerback on injured reserve Tuesday.
Due to the IR placement coming before roster cutdown day, the former Vikings and Bengals cover man cannot come off the injured list four games into the season. Players carried through to the 53-man roster can do so, but IR placements at this point on the calendar prevent such transactions.
The team also waived punter Sterling Hofrichter, linebacker Deandre Johnson and safety Sheldrick Redwine. Fullback John Lovett joins Alexander in being IR-bound. Teams have until 3pm CT today to pare their rosters from 85 to 80 players.
The Dolphins signed Alexander eight days ago. An injury settlement could lead the seventh-year defender off Miami’s IR list and back into free agency at some point this year — that is, if this is not viewed as a season-ending injury. Alexander, 28, could rejoin the Dolphins post-settlement. For now, however, he is off the team’s 80-man roster.
Best known for his role as Minnesota’s slot corner, Alexander spent five months in free agency this offseason. The former second-round pick is coming off a season in which Pro Football Focus graded him as the league’s worst full-time corner. Alexander, however, has been a regular throughout his career. The Vikings made the Clemson product a key part of Mike Zimmer‘s quality defenses throughout his rookie contract during the late 2010s, and the Bengals gave him $4MM to sign in 2020.
The Dolphins signed the 28-year-old defender to a league-minimum accord, guaranteeing him $138K. The team has not seen 2020 first-rounder Noah Igbinoghene step up as a reliable slot player alongside veterans Xavien Howard and Byron Jones. Miami also did not re-sign Justin Coleman this offseason; Coleman is back in Seattle. The team did place a second-round tender on Nik Needham, however. This Alexander move could prompt the team to resume a search for corner depth. Dozens of defensive backs will become available next Tuesday, when teams trim their rosters from 80 to 53.
After only adding four rookies through the 2022 Draft, the Dolphins signed a 14-man undrafted free agent class:
Miami was able to add some potential gems for their offensive line, bringing in two four-year starters from the Big Ten and SEC in Andries and Clary. They also made sure to bring in Diesch, a two-year starter for the Sun Devils after transferring from Texas A&M, signing him with a guaranteed amount of $140,000, according the Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus.
The Dolphins also think they’ve uncovered a diamond in the rough out of northeast Texas. They signed Kohou out of Texas A&M-Commerce with a guaranteed amount of $130,000, according to Kyed.
Miami will also keep some prospects close to home. Johnson transferred from Tennessee to spend his last year of college close to home with the Hurricanes. Heatherly isn’t a Florida native, but he spent the last three years of college in Miami at Florida International.