HEADLINES

Deon Simon

AFC Rumors: Dolphins, Steelers, Jets

July 14th, 2017 at 6:41pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Dolphins released cornerback Brent Grimes in March 2016, which his wife, Miko Grimes, took credit for at the time and again in an interview this week with Jack Dickey of SI.com. “People say I got him cut with my mouth,” said Miko Grimes. “Duh! That was the goal!” While Miko Grimes has taken to Twitter in the past to make anti-Semitic comments about Dolphins brass and attack quarterback Ryan Tannehill, her obnoxious behavior did not spur Brent Grimes’ release, reports Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Rather, the Dolphins cut the now-Buccaneer “because of his size, his age, and the magnitude of his contract,” writes Florio, who adds that they first tried to trade him.

More from a couple other AFC cities:

  • If the Steelers and franchise-tagged running back Le’Veon Bell are going to reach a multiyear agreement by Monday’s 4 p.m. ET deadline, it probably won’t come until the 11th hour, according to Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. There hasn’t been any movement toward a deal Friday, per Fittipaldo, so it continues to look as if Bell will play the season for $12.12MM.
  • There could still be major changes to the Jets’ defensive line by Week 1, suggests Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. The Jets have shopped Sheldon Richardson in recent months, and if a team comes along this summer willing to trade a third-round pick for him, Gang Green should take it, opines Cimini. Steve McLendon, one of Richardson’s prominent line mates, also might not be a lock to remain a Jet into the regular season. New York would like to see second-year nose tackle Deon Simon emerge this summer, and if that happens, it may make McLendon expendable, notes Cimini.
  • Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said earlier this summer that receiver Martavis Bryant will have to “win back everybody’s trust” as he returns from a yearlong suspension. Bryant took exception to that, telling Dan Graziano of ESPN.com on Thursday that he and Roethlisberger “should have a man-to-man. Because some of the things he put out there about me, I kind of didn’t agree with how he did it.” Nevertheless, Bryant added that “everything’s great” between him and the QB at the moment.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/5/16

January 5th, 2016 at 5:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are today’s reserve/futures contract signings from around the league. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2016 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ 90-man rosters.

Arizona Cardinals

  • Taylor Boggs, C (Twitter link via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com)
  • Valerian Ume-Ezeoke, C
  • Mike Reilly, OLB
  • Tyrequek Zimmerman, S

Baltimore Ravens

  • Jerod Johnson, QB (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)

Cincinnati Bengals

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

  • Burton Pierce, OT
  • Ben Heenan, G
  • Edwin Jackson, LB
  • Kitt O’Brien, G
  • Dezmen Southward, DB
  • Joshua Stangby. WR

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Oakland Raiders

  • Garrett Gilbert, QB (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle)
  • Giorgio Tavecchio, K

San Diego Chargers

San Francisco 49ers

  • Corey Acosta, K (link via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle)

St. Louis Rams

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/1/15

October 1st, 2015 at 3:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are the practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL for the first day of October:

Cleveland Browns

Kansas City Chiefs

New England Patriots

New York Jets

  • Signed: DL Deon Simon (Twitter link via Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News)

San Diego Chargers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/30/15

September 30th, 2015 at 6:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Wednesday’s minor signings, cuts, and other transactions from across the NFL:

  • The Patriots released linebacker Dekoda Watson, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets. The veteran played primarily on special teams in the last two games.

Earlier Updates:

  • It was a busy day for the Texans, who overhauled their linebacker corps in an effort to improve the club’s special teams play. According to a press release, the Texans promoted ILB Max Bullough from their own practice squad, signed ILB Brian Peters from the Vikings’ practice squad, and signed OLB Kourtnei Brown from the Bucs’ practice squad. As Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets, the club placed linebackers Mike Mohamed and Carlos Thompson on injured reserve.
  • The Jets have parted ways with one of their draft picks from this past May, waiving seventh-round defensive tackle Deon Simon today, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Simon, 25, has yet to see any action in a regular season NFL game.
  • Having cut running back Mike James earlier in the week, the Buccaneers had an open roster spot, and used that opening to promote tackle Reid Fragel from their practice squad, according to a team release. Fragel initially survived Tampa Bay’s cutdown to 53 players, but was dropped and signed to the practice squad after the Bucs claimed several players off waivers.
  • The Steelers made a change to their defense today, announcing that they’ve cut defensive end Caushaud Lyons, promoting linebacker Anthony Chickillo to their active roster to replace him.

Draft Pick Signings: Thursday

May 7th, 2015 at 4:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Over the course of the next few weeks, as the league’s 32 teams lock up their draft picks, we’ll dedicate individual posts to first- and second-round picks reaching agreements with their respective clubs. Already today, for instance, we’ve passed along word of Trae Waynes signing with the Vikings and Nelson Agholor reaching a deal with the Eagles.

However, given the lack of drama involved in rookie contract negotiations under the new CBA, news on players who were selected in the third round or later will be relegated to round-up posts. Here are Thursday’s mid- to late-round picks who signed their deals, with any additional updates added to the top of the page throughout the day:

4:52pm:

  • In addition to confirming the signing of Deon Simon (noted below), the Jets also announced the signings of third-round outside linebacker Lorenzo Mauldin and fourth-round quarterback Bryce Petty, per a team release.
  • The Vikings are gradually agreeing to terms with nearly their entire draft class over the course of the day. Chris Tomasson (Twitter links) has updates on two more, reporting that fifth-round tight end MyCole Pruitt, fifth-round wideout Stefon Diggs, and seventh-round offensive lineman Austin Shepherd have all reached deals with the club.
  • The Ravens have signed fifth-round guard Robert Myers and sixth-round wide receiver Darren Waller, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links).
  • The Seahawks have signed fifth-round cornerback Tye Smith, tweets Terry Blount of ESPN.com.

3:50pm:

  • The Vikings have officially added three more draftees to the roster, agreeing to terms with sixth-round defensive lineman B.J. Dubose and seventh-round linebacker Edmond Robinson, according to reports from Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune and Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter links). In addition to those late-rounders, fourth-round offensive lineman T.J. Clemmings has signed his deal, tweets agent Mike McCartney.
  • Sixth-round lineman Kristjan Sokoli has signed his four-year rookie deal with the Seahawks, tweets agent Brett Tessler. A defensive lineman at Buffalo, Sokoli will be moving over to the offensive line in Seattle.
  • Jets seventh-round defensive tackle Deon Simon and Patriots seventh-round defensive end Xzavier Dickson have signed their rookie deals, according to tweets from their respective agencies. Simon will get a signing bonus in the neighborhood of $73K, while Dickson’s bonus will be worth about $53K.

2:43pm:

  • Sixth-round offensive lineman Tyrus Thompson has agreed to terms with the Vikings and will officially sign when he arrives at the team’s facility, tweets Darren Wolfson of KSTP. Thompson is the second Vikes draftee to reach a deal with the club.
  • Another Packers draftee has agreed to terms with the team, per Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Post-Gazette, who tweets that the club has struck a deal with sixth-rounder fullback Aaron Ripkowski. Ripkowski was the first of three players selected by the Packers in the sixth round, and is also the first one to reach an agreement with the team.
  • The Browns have signed sixth-round tight end Randall Telfer, tweets Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. Telfer will receive a signing bonus of just under $118K.

1:48pm:

  • The Packers have agreed to terms on four-year rookie contracts with fifth-round quarterback Brett Hundley and fourth-round linebacker Jake Ryan, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter links). Green Bay is expected to lock up most or all of the rest of its late-round picks by the end of the day, writes Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.
  • The Ravens have agreed to contract terms with fourth-round defensive back Tray Walker, reports Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (Twitter link). The final player selected in the fourth round, as a supplemental pick, Walker will count for about $521K against the cap in 2015.
  • Seventh-round center Austin Reiter has agreed to terms on his rookie contract with Washington, tweets John Keim of ESPN.com. Reiter will receive a signing bonus worth just under $75K.

Draft Notes: Eagles, Fowler, 49ers, Parker

April 7th, 2015 at 4:28pm CST by Luke Adams

The Eagles have signed three cornerbacks within the last month, adding E.J. Biggers today to go along with Byron Maxwell and Walter Thurmond, but the team continues to consider options at the position with the draft approaching. As Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com outlines, the team hosted LSU cornerback Jalen Collins, a potential scheme fit, on a pre-draft visit today.

Here are a few more draft-related updates from around the NFL:

  • Although he thinks he’ll probably end up in Jacksonville with the No. 3 overall pick, Dante Fowler Jr. is meeting with a couple NFC teams in the top 10, according to Albert Breer of the NFL Network, who tweets that the Florida pass rusher will visit the Buccaneers and Falcons this weekend.
  • The 49ers are meeting with Louisville receiver DeVante Parker, who is expected to be one of the first wideouts to come off the board, writes Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee.
  • UTC pass rusher Davis Tull, a former wide receiver, has pre-draft visits lined up with the Saints and Falcons, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
  • Over at The National Football Post, Aaron Wilson passes along updates on a pair of prospects, writing that Northwestern quarterback Trevor Siemian has visited the Broncos and is working out for the Bears, while Bowling Green linebacker Gabe Martin is visiting the Cowboys today.
  • Per Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (Twitter link), the Cowboys “love” Damarious Randall, and consider the Arizona State alum the best safety in this year’s draft class.
  • Rutgers tight end Tyler Kroft has had individual workouts with the Eagles, Jaguars, and Buccaneers, and is scheduled to visit the Bears and Broncos this week, says Dan Duggan of NJ.com.
  • The Patriots had a private workout with Northwestern State defensive tackle Deon Simon last week, a league source tells Christopher Price of WEEI.com.