Minor NFL Transactions: 12/6/25
Here are the minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations for the Week 14 Sunday slate:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed to active roster: LB Channing Tindall
- Elevated: WR Jalen Brooks, WR Trent Sherfield
- Placed on IR: WR Greg Dortch
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed to active roster: WR Deven Thompkins
- Elevated: CB C.J. Henderson
- Placed on IR: S DeMarcco Hellams
Baltimore Ravens
- Elevated: S Sanoussi Kane, DT Josh Tupou
Buffalo Bills
- Elevated: DE Morgan Fox, LB Baylon Spector
Chicago Bears
- Signed to active roster: OL Jordan McFadden
- Elevated: LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin
- Waived: LB Carl Jones Jr.
Cleveland Browns
- Elevated: DE K.J. Henry
Denver Broncos
- Signed to active roster: TE Marcedes Lewis
- Elevated: LB Jordan Turner
- Waived: LB Garret Wallow
Houston Texans
- Elevated: CB Alijah Huzzie, DT Haggai Ndubuisi
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed to active roster: S Mike Edwards
- Elevated: G C.J. Hanson
- Placed on IR: S Christian Roland-Wallace
Las Vegas Raiders
- Elevated: WR Shedrick Jackson, WR DJ Turner
Miami Dolphins
- Elevated: OL Kion Smith
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed to active roster: QB John Wolford
- Elevated: CB Dwight McGlothern Jr., DT Taki Taimani
New Orleans Saints
- Elevated: WR Kevin Austin, K Charlie Smyth
New York Jets
- Signed to active roster: QB Brady Cook, CB Jordan Clark
- Elevated: CB Tre Brown, CB Nik Needham
- Placed on IR: CB Jarvis Brownlee, LB Marcelino McCrary-Ball
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Elevated: T Dylan Cook, WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling
Seattle Seahawks
- Elevated: RB Velus Jones
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Elevated: S Marcus Banks
Washington Commanders
- Elevated: DE DeMarcus Walker
Dort becomes Arizona’s 26th placement on injures reserve this year. The Cardinals’ receiving corps has been stretched thin with Marvin Harrison Jr. out with a heel injury and Zay Jones on injured reserve with an injured Achilles tendon.
Earning more and more responsibility over the course of his sophomore campaign, former undrafted free agent Roland-Wallace will unfortunately head to IR after starting in the Chiefs’ two most recent contests. As a roaming safety, he’s been functioning lately as a nickelback alongside the versatile pair of starting safeties behind him.
With Bosa set to miss this weekend’s game with a hamstring injury, Fox has been called up from the practice squad in Buffalo to help bolster a thin group of defensive ends.
Smyth gets the call again this week as the primary placekicker in New Orleans. He’ll be kicking in his second straight game following the team’s dismissal of Blake Grupe.
For Spector in Buffalo, this will be his third elevation this season, meaning the Bills will need to sign him to the active roster in order for him to appear in another game in 2025. The same is true of Turner in Denver, Hanson in Kansas City, and Banks in Tampa Bay. On the other side of that, Tindall in Arizona, Lewis in Jacksonville, and Cook in New York were all signed to 53-man rosters today after they used up their three allotted practice squad elevations.
Falcons Reduce Roster To 53
Here are the Falcons’ Tuesday moves which brought the team’s roster to 53 ahead of the cutdown deadline:
Released:
- CB Dane Cruikshank
- T Julien Davenport
- DE Demone Harris
- CB Kevin King
Waived:
- WR Chris Blair
- CB Natrone Brooke
- RB Spencer Brown
- WR Dylan Drummond
- LB Milo Eifler (injury designation)
- DT Prince Emili
- TE John FitzPatrick
- WR O.J. Hiliare
- CB Anthony Johnson
- DT Zion Logue
- DT LaCale London
- WR Jesse Matthews
- LB Kenny Oginni
- CB Jayden Price
- OL Andrew Stueber
- S Tre Tarpley
- CB Josh Thompson (injury designation)
- DT Tommy Togiai
- RB Carlos Washington
- OL Barry Wesley
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.
Falcons S DeMarcco Hellams Suffers Ankle Injury
DeMarcco Hellams‘ efforts to secure a starting spot on defense in 2024 have come to a halt. The second-year safety is set to miss “significant time” due to an ankle injury, head coach Raheem Morris said (via team reporter Tori McElhaney). 
Hellams was selected in the seventh round of last year’s draft after pick No. 224 was included in the Bryan Edwards trade. He logged a special teams role right away during his rookie campaign, but as the season progressed he also took on defensive responsibilities. The 24-year-old ultimately made four starts late in the year, surpassing former second-rounder Richie Grant on the depth chart.
In all, Hellams totaled 40 tackles and did not allow a touchdown in coverage last season. That level of play – coupled with his third phase role – had him in line to compete for a full-time defensive spot or at least a key rotational workload in 2024. Now, his attention will turn to recovery and minimizing the time he misses during the regular season.
Today’s news means Grant will regain his starting spot in time for Week 1. That was already the way things appeared to be headed, as noted by ESPN’s Marc Raimondi, based on training camp performances. The 26-year-old took on first-team duties in 2022, racking up 123 tackles and seven pass deflections. Grant once again filled the statsheet last season (103 stops, three sacks), but he surrendered six touchdowns and a 126.6 passer rating in coverage. Those struggles led to Hellams seeing additional snaps late in the campaign, but Grant will no longer have competition for the time being.
The latter is entering the final year of his rookie contract, so a strong showing would help his market value on a second Falcons deal or one sending him to a new team. Atlanta already has one major financial commitment on the books in the form of Jessie Bates, but for 2024 Grant and Hellams constitute cost-effective starting options. The team’s depth at the safety spot will be limited for a stretch at the start of the year, though.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/10/23
Teams are moving quickly on inking their Day 3 draftees to their four-year rookie deals, with this process involving a slot system that does not feature many complications for late-round players. Here are the latest such agreements to commence:
Atlanta Falcons
- S DeMarcco Hellams (seventh round, Alabama)
Buffalo Bills
- LB Dorian Williams (third round, Tulane)
- WR Justin Shorter (fifth round, Florida)
Carolina Panthers
- OLB D.J. Johnson (third round, Oregon)
Detroit Lions
- WR Antoine Green (seventh round, North Carolina)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- FB Derek Parish, (seventh round, Houston)
New England Patriots
- P Bryce Baringer (sixth round, Michigan State)
- WR Demario Douglas (sixth round, Liberty)
San Francisco 49ers
- K Jake Moody (third round, Michigan)
- CB Darrell Luter Jr. (fifth round, South Alabama)
Washington Commanders
- DE Andre Jones Jr. (seventh round, Louisiana)
Johnson transferred back to the west coast after a freshman year at Miami (FL). He established himself as one of the most versatile players in the country while in Eugene, contributing for the Ducks on defense as an edge rusher and on offense as a tight end. Carolina drafted him for his defensive potential.
Moody is the expected replacement for Robbie Gould, who departed in free agency this spring after six years with San Francisco. Likewise, New England moved on from punter Jake Bailey after a couple of internal disagreements. Baringer is expected to take over for the one-time All-Pro punter.