Cowboys Place Kellen Moore On IR
Today, the Cowboys placed quarterback Kellen Moore on injured reserve. 
Earlier this month, Moore broke his leg, elevating Dak Prescott to the No. 2 spot on Dallas’ quarterback depth chart. Then, when Tony Romo suffered a back injury in preseason, Prescott was bumped up to the starting role. The initial prognosis on Moore was that he would miss three or four months, but Dallas has opted to shut him down instead.
Below, we have the full slate of Dallas’ moves to get down to a 75-man roster today.
Waived:
- WR Rodney Smith
- G Mike McQueen
- G Dan Buchholz
- WR Richard Mullaney
- CB Arjen Colquhoun
- LB Henoc Muamba
PUP List:
- TE James Hanna (more on Hanna)
NFI List:
- LB Jaylon Smith (full story)
The Cowboys also placed tight end James Hanna on the reserve/physically unable to perform list and waived
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/30/16
Today’s minor moves from around the NFL:
- To make for Melvin (listed below), the Dolphins have waived tight end Jake Stoneburner, the club announced. Stoneburner, who was offered a restricted free agent tender this spring, managed five receptions in 11 games for Miami last season.
- The Bills have swapped out defensive tackles, signing Casey Walker while releasing Cedric Reed, the team announced. Walker, 26, has eight career games under his belt, having seen action with the Ravens, Patriots, and most recently, the Cowboys.
- The Cowboys announced that they’ve agreed to terms with linebackers Darius Eubanks and Henoc Muamba. Dallas didn’t need to create any roster space because they’ve been given exemptions for linebacker Rolando McClain and defensive end Randy Gregory.
- The Chiefs have signed defensive back Bryce Cheek, and opened up a roster spot by waiving fellow defensive back Tre Jones, the club announced.
Earlier updates:
- Fourth-year cornerback Rashaan Melvin signed with the Dolphins, according to agent Mike McCartney (via Jenna Laine of ESPN.com, on Twitter). Melvin started two games for the Ravens in 2014 and spent 2015 with both the Ravens and Patriots, playing in eight games for the latter.
- The Cardinals swapped out wide receivers by signing Franky Okafor and waiving Rico Richardson, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com tweets. Okafor is a rookie UDFA out of Division II Southwestern Oklahoma State. Richardson has played in six games since coming into the league in 2014, all with the Titans.
- The Vikings have signed defensive tackle Claudell Louis, reports Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune (via Twitter). Chris Tomasson of TwinCities.com notes that the team considered bringing in rookie punter Taylor Symmank for their 90th roster spot, but the team ultimately opted for undrafted defensive lineman out of Fresno State.
- Meanwhile, the Ravens have used their final roster spot to sign punter Michael Palardy, tweets ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley. The former Tennessee special teamer has also spent time with the Raiders, Rams, and Panthers.
Workout Notes: 9/23/15
Teams around the NFL are bringing in players for workouts, surveying the free agent landscape for possible practice squad additions or 53-man roster players, either for the near future or down the road. Here are a few of the latest auditions from across the league, via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (all links go to Twitter):
AFC:
- Former Broncos cornerback Tony Carter had a workout with the Ravens, who have liked him for a while. Of course, up until very recently, Carter was under contract with Denver.
- In addition to Matt Huffer, whose workout was reported yesterday, offensive linemen Kevin Graf, Antonio Johnson, and Travis Bond, along with defensive ends Matt Conrath and Xzavier Dickson, were among the players who auditioned for the Broncos this week.
- We already heard that the Jets brought in multiple receivers this week for workouts, and we can add a few more names to that list: DaVaris Daniels, Titus Davis, and Josh Lenz got a look from New York.
- It was a linebacker-heavy workout group this week in Jacksonville, as the Jaguars auditioned Jeff Luc, Alex Singleton, and Jordan Tripp, in addition to Jayson DiManche, whose workout was previously reported.
- We can add tight end Nick Kasa, guard Joe Looney, wide receiver Marcus Lucas, ex-Niners tackle Sean Hooey, and former Titans tackle Byron Stingily to the list of players who tried out for the Dolphins this week. We learned yesterday that tight end Adrien Robinson also visited the team.
- The lengthy roster of players who auditioned this week for the Titans: cornerbacks Robert McClain, Robert Steeples, Shaun Prater, and Carrington Byndom; safeties Jean Fanor and Robert Lester; and wide receiver Nick Toon.
NFC:
- The Panthers brought in several defensive backs for tryouts, taking a look at Richard Crawford, Ras-I Dowling, and Tajh Hasson.
- Wide receiver Deonte Thompson turned an audition with the Bears into a practice squad spot this week, but he wasn’t the only player to work out for the team. The club also brought in wide receiver DeVier Posey, quarterback Alex Tanney, and QB Justin Worley.
- The Lions were eyeing veteran defensive backs this week, with ex-Giants safety Stevie Brown, longtime Panthers safety Charles Godfrey, and former Raiders DB Brandian Ross all coming in for auditions. The club also worked out tight end Mickey Shuler.
- Defensive tackle Deandre Coleman, cut from the Dolphins’ practice squad last week, and former Broncos defensive end Quanterus Smith both worked out for the Seahawks this week.
- After being removed from the Patriots’ injured reserve list last week, wide receiver Jonathan Krause tried out for the Eagles.
- Washington auditioned two linebackers who hit the open market within the last few weeks, bringing in ex-Bengal Nico Johnson and former Seahawk Alex Singleton. It’s been a busy week for Singleton, who also worked out for the Jaguars, as noted above.
- The Packers took a look this week at tight end Blake Annen, defensive tackle Justin Hamilton, CFL linebacker Henoc Muamba, and linebacker Josh Shirley.
Workout Notes: 9/9/15
Former Falcons center Joe Hawley is visiting the Buccaneers today, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Hawley could be a fit with Tampa Bay as he has a history with offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter from their time together in Atlanta. Hawley, 27 in October, was on his way to returning from the ACL surgery that ended his 2014 season prematurely when he was cut loose by the Falcons earlier this week.
Here are more of the latest workouts and free agent meetings (All links are from Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle via Twitter, unless noted otherwise)..
- The Vikings auditioned defensive backs Ri’Shard Anderson and C.J. Roberts, tight end Brian Leonhardt, and linebacker Jordan Tripp, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- The Cowboys tried out offensive tackle Charles Brown today, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter). Current Cowboys tackle Tyron Smith backed up Brown when both players attended USC.
- The Titans worked out safety Shaquille Richardson (link).
- Keavon Milton visited the Panthers (link). The offensive lineman spent time on the Seahawks’ taxi squad in 2014 before being promoted to the 53-man roster in December.
- Former Arena Football League wide receiver Lonnie Outlaw visited the Lions (link).
- The Buccaneers worked out linebacker Julian Stanford and linebacker Tyrell Adams (link).
- The Giants auditioned safety Shiloh Keo, linebacker Nico Johnson, cornerback Tramain Jacobs, ex-Jets wide receiver Shaq Evans, safety Durell Eskridge, and cornerback Dwight Bentley (link). The Giants also tried out Joe Looney, Nick Moody, Henoc Muamba, Quayshawn Nealy, Xavier Proctor, and Alameda Ta’amu (link).
- The Colts tried out offensive lineman Travis Bond, wide receiver Marquez Clark, linebacker Edwin Jackson, and defensive tackle Derrick Lott (link).
- The Jaguars tried out Rasheed Bailey, Matt Blanchard, and Cody Fajardo (link).
Colts Cut Duron Carter, Finalize Roster
The Colts have reached the mandated 53-man roster today, making a handful of interesting moves along the way. One notable bubble player, running back Vick Ballard, remains on the roster, but plenty of other notable players have been let go, including wide receiver Duron Carter.
Here’s the full list of transactions out of Indianapolis, per a team release:
Released:
- G David Arkin
- WR Vincent Brown
Waived:
- OLB Daniel Adongo
- QB Bryan Bennett
- WR Quan Bray
- WR Duron Carter
- CB Chance Casey
- NT Josh Chapman
- ILB Carlos Fields
- DT Montori Hughes
- T Ulrick John
- OLB Cam Johnson
- S Dewey McDonald
- TE Sean McGrath
- ILB Henoc Muamba
- G Kitt O’Brien
- CB Eric Patterson
- DT Kelcy Quarles
- TE Erik Swoope
- CB Raymon Taylor
- RB Zurlon Tipton
Placed on injured reserve:
- DT Arthur Jones
- ILB Junior Sylvestre
The Colts required 23 roster moves to get from 75 to 53 in order to accommodate one addition — linebacker Sio Moore, who was acquired in a Friday trade with the Raiders.
Colts Sign Henoc Muamba
MONDAY, 12:28pm: Muamba’s deal includes $107K in guaranteed money, according to Field Yates of ESPNBoston.com (via Twitter). As Brian McIntyre tweets, that’s the largest amount of guaranteed money included in any futures contract signed to date.
THURSDAY, 7:35pm: The Colts announced that they have signed former CFL linebacker Henoc Muamba. The first overall pick in the CFL’s 2011 draft worked out for multiple NFL teams in recent months, including the Ravens and Browns. Brian McIntyre (on Twitter) adds that Muamba also auditioned for the Broncos, Patriots, and Vikings.
Yesterday, the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers announced that they were releasing the linebacker to allow him to pursue an opportunity in the NFL. Terms of Muamba’s deal are not yet known. While I would think that the middle linebacker’s deal is a reserve/futures contract, it seems possible that he got more than the minimum salary based on the number of teams that showed interest in recent weeks.
Recently, the Chiefs landed another standout CFL import in wide receiver Weston Dressler, after he was let out of his contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Kansas City inked Dressler to a reserve/futures pact.
Extra Points: Cassel, Muamba, L.A., Patriots
Fans of Phil Simms and Jim Nantz will be pleased with the NFL’s new schedule for Thursday Night Football, which will feature eight 2014 games broadcast by CBS and eight by the NFL Network, according to an official release. All 16 games, however, will be produced by CBS and will feature Simms and Nantz on color and play-by-play respectively. Here’s more from around the NFL:
- With Matt Cassel voiding the final year on his contract with the Vikings, Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com predicts that the free agent quarterback will be seeking a salary in the neighborhood of $4-5MM this offseason.
- The CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers have released linebacker Henoc Muamba, allowing him to pursue NFL opportunities, the team announced today in a press release (hat tip to Pro Football Talk). The first overall pick in the CFL’s 2011 draft, Muamba has reportedly worked out for multiple NFL teams in recent months, including the Ravens, Colts, and Browns.
- In an interesting piece, Jack Bechta of the National Football Post draws on his extensive experience as a player agent to explain how the NFL’s free agent period really works.
- While it doesn’t sound like Los Angeles is on the verge of getting an NFL team anytime in the immediate future, Tim Newcomb of SI.com writes that there are now three potentially viable stadium locations in the area for an NFL franchise.
- Safety may not be an area of need for the Patriots in 2014, but the team should keep it in mind for the future, says Field Yates of ESPNBoston.com.
Extra Points: Packers, Muamba, Polian
Weston Hodkiewicz of the Green Bay Press-Gazette thinks that the Packers will be forced to lean heavily on a cadre of young defensive lineman that will step into starting roles next season. Defensive linemen Mike Daniels, Datone Jones, and Jerel Worthy will likely replace departing free agents B.J. Raji, Ryan Pickett, and Johnny Jolly on the defensive front of the Packers’ base 3-4 defense. Defensive line coach Mike Trgovac expects Jones and Worthy to mimic Daniels’ 2013 campaign with breakout performances next year.
A few more Monday night notes:
- Adrian Wilson is ready and excited for his 2014 comeback season with the Patriots after spending the entire 2013 season on the IR with a hamstring injury, writes Tom E. Curran of Comcast SportsNet New England.
- The Ravens tried out Canadian Football League middle linebacker Henoc Muamba earlier today, according to a report from Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun.
- Bill Polian sat down with Tom E. Curran of Comcast SportsNet New England and discussed the Patriots needs in the impending offseason. Polian thinks that the Patriots will target a receiving tight end. He also imagines Bill Belichick will pursue a more balanced offensive game plan to take pressure off of Tom Brady. In the piece, Polian also weighs in on the ongoing debate of whether Peyton Manning or Brady is a better quarterback.