Workout Notes: Bengals, Titans, Giants
The Bengals signed one former Raider earlier today, reportedly adding wideout Greg Little to their roster. And according to Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link), Cincinnati recently took a look at another ex-Raider as well, working out free agent quarterback Terrelle Pryor. Here are a few more notes on workouts, visits, and auditions from around the NFL:
- With Michael Roos out for the season, the Titans are working out veteran offensive lineman Winston Justice, a source tells Jeremy Fowler of ESPN (Twitter link). Since entering the league as a second-round draft pick in 2006, Justice has had some injury problems and provided inconsistent production, but he has also logged 43 starts, primarily at right tackle.
- As the Giants try to determine how to plug the hole left by Victor Cruz‘s season-ending patella tendon tear, the team is working out free agent wideout Kevin Ogletree, says Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (TwitLonger link). Ogletree had his best season in 2012 for one of the Giants’ divisional rivals, when he grabbed 32 balls and four touchdowns for the Cowboys.
- Cornerback Lavelle Westbrooks, who was drafted in the seventh round in May by the Bengals and was subsequently cut by the team, visited the Jaguars this week, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link).
- Josh Thomas was the first cornerback to sign with the Jets in the wake of Dee Milliner‘s season-ending injury, but the team has considered other options as well. Wilson tweets that Drayton Florence, Jacob Lacey, and R.J. Stanford all auditioned for the club.
- In addition to considering Justin Jones, whose workout with the team was previously reported, the Dolphins are also taking a look at tight end Jamie Childers, writes Wilson for the National Football Post.
- Wilson also reports (Twitter links) that several players visited and/or worked out for the Buccaneers this week. That list includes fullback Lonnie Pryor, defensive end George Uko, and defensive backs Brandon Burton, Richard Crawford, Isaiah Frey, and Trevin Wade.
Bears Waive Isaiah Frey
3:30pm: In addition to confirming they’ve cut Frey, the Bears announced several more roster moves today (Twitter links). The team has promoted cornerback Al Louis-Jean from its practice squad to the 53-man roster, and has also cut defensive end David Bass from the roster. Additionally, linebackers DeDe Lattimore and Terrell Manning have joined the practice squad, while defensive tackle Roy Philon and wideout and returner Rashad Ross have been dropped from the unit.
12:56pm: The Bears have parted ways with their nickel back, placing Isaiah Frey on waivers today, reports Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The move will leave Chicago with an open spot on its 53-man roster.
Frey, 24, has been with the Bears since being selected as a sixth-round pick in 2012’s draft, shuttling between the team’s active roster and practice squad at times. After starting this year on the taxi squad, Frey received a promotion during the season’s third week, when Charles Tillman went down with a season-ending injury. Since then, he has acted as the nickel back in Chicago, appearing in 95 defensive snaps over the last three weeks.
While Frey held his own as the Bears’ regular nickel back last season, he has struggled so far this year, allowing a quarterback rating of 133.3 on passes thrown in his direction, along with a pair of touchdowns, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). I’d expect the Bears to try to bring back Frey on their practice squad, but it will be interesting to see which direction the team goes in at the nickel spot now — Sherrick McManis looks like the logical in-house candidate, assuming he’s getting close to 100% healthy.
Minor Moves: Tuesday
We’ve devoted one Tuesday post to the practice squad shuffling being done by teams today, but many clubs around the league are also tweaking their 53-man rosters. We’ll round up a handful of those transactions right here, with new moves added to the top of the list throughout the day:
- The Cardinals have cut linebacker Marcus Benard, a source tells Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Benard was added to the roster last week when John Abraham left the team, so Abraham will assume his old roster spot now that he’s returning to the club.
- The Cardinals have also signed outside linebacker Victor Butler and cut punter Drew Butler, per Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com (via Twitter).
- Linebacker Ricky Sapp has replaced fellow linebacker Jason Ankrah on the Texans‘ 53-man roster, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- In addition to the moves noted below, the Bears have also promoted defensive back Isaiah Frey to their active roster from their practice squad, and cut running back Shaun Draughn, as well as tight end Matthew Mulligan (Twitter link). The series of transactions leaves the club with 52 players on its roster.
- Former Vikings linebacker and special-teamer Larry Dean has signed with the Bills, the team announced today in a press release. To make room for Dean, Buffalo placed safety Jonathan Meeks on injured reserve with a neck injury.
- A week after placing tight end Tyler Eifert on IR with the designation to return, the Bengals have placed another tight end on injured reserve, and Alex Smith won’t be eligible to return the season (Twitter link). The team also announced that tight end Kevin Brock has been signed to take Smith’s roster spot.
- The Bears have promoted practice-squad wideout Rashad Ross to the 53-man roster, cutting receiver and returner Chris Williams to clear room, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter).
- Linebacker Dan Fox is set to be called up to the Giants‘ active roster from their practice squad, tweets Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News, suggesting that placing Jon Beason on injured reserve may end up being the corresponding move.
- The Colts announced in a press release that they’ve signed defensive tackle Kelcy Quarles off the Patriots‘ practice squad, waiving running back Dion Lewis to create roster space.
Sunday/Monday Transactions: NFC North
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four NFC North 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 are noted below.
Additionally, as of 11:00am CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. For the 2014 and 2015 seasons, changes were made to practice squad rules that allow teams to carry eight players instead of 10, and the eligibility requirements for those extra two spots were also loosened. 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 NFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:
Chicago Bears:
- Waived (officially announced): Brandon Hartson, LS
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced via Twitter): Taylor Boggs, C; Ryan Groy, G; DeDe Lattimore, LB; Al Louis-Jean, CB; Rashad Ross, KR; Josh Bellamy, WR; Brandon Dunn, DT; Isaiah Frey, CB; Terrance Mitchell, CB; Roy Philon, DT; Rashad Ross, WR
Detroit Lions:
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Rodney Austin, G; Emil Igwenagu, FB; Nate Ness, S; Andrew Peacock, WR; Xavier Proctor, DT; Mohammed Seisay, CB; Julian Stanford, LB; Jordan Thompson, TE; Michael Williams, OT; George Winn, RB
Green Bay Packers:
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Chris Banjo, S; Kevin Dorsey, WR; Garth Gerhart, C; Alex Gillett, WR; Michael Hill, RB; Adrian Hubbard, LB; Justin Perillo, TE; Luther Robinson, DE; Jeremy Vujnovich, T, Myles White, WR
Minnesota Vikings:
- Claimed off waivers: MarQueis Gray, TE (via Tom Pelissero on Twitter); Mike Harris, OT (via Pelissero on Twitter)
- Cut: Larry Dean, LB (via Darren Wolfson on Twitter); Austin Wentworth, G (via Wolfson on Twitter)
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Joe Banyard, RB; Kain Coulter, WR; Isame Faciane, DT; Chase Ford, TE; Donte Foster, WR; Kendall James, CB; Zac Kerin, C; Mike Remmers, OL; Justin Trattou, DT
Saints, Eagles, Bears Down To 75 Players
The Saints have officially announced their roster cuts down to 75 players, and many of the names – most notably linebacker Victor Butler – have previously been reported. However, three players’ releases had previously been unreported. According to the team (via Twitter), quarterback Logan Kilgore, linebacker Kevin Reddick, and defensive back Rod Sweeting are among the players who didn’t make the cut down to 75.
The Eagles, who were vanquished from last year’s playoffs by New Orleans, have also finalized their 75-man roster in advance of this afternoon’s deadline. Sheil Kapadia of PhillyMag.com tweets that offensive lineman Julian Vandervelde has been waived by the team with an injury settlement. In a series of tweets, Vandervelde thanked the organization for the opportunity.
Meanwhile, a third NFC playoff contender has also trimmed its roster down to 75 players, with the Bears announcing today (via Twitter) that offensive lineman James Brown and cornerback Isaiah Frey are the latest roster casualties in Chicago.
All three teams, as well as the NFL’s other 29, will have until Saturday afternoon to further cut their rosters down to 53 active players.
Jeffery Buoying Emery’s First Draft
Bears GM Phil Emery has been on the job two and a half years, and with a series of bold moves, has positioned the Bears as a legitimate Super Bowl contender entering the 2014 season. That’s noteworthy status given the fact Emery’s first draft class (2012) has been fruitless with the exception of rising star Alshon Jeffery.
Buried in an article about the Bears’ kick coverage units, CSN Chicago’s John Mullin notes that 2012 19th overall selection Shea McClellin, a disappointment through two NFL seasons, has been used on special teams this offseason. Unable to hold up against the run, the Bears have converted him from defensive end to linebacker, where he’s competing with John Bostic for the starting job on the strong side. Position changes and special-teams impact are things typically associated with rookies, not third-year pros, especially ones drafted as highly as McClellin. His backward career trajectory doesn’t bode well for his future in Chicago.
If McClellin can’t find a way to make an impact this season, he’ll be stamped with the bust label, which prompts a more macroscopic concern. Emery, whose background is rooted in scouting, was hired to replace Jerry Angelo, whose first-round failures still resonate with Bears fans who cringe at the memories of names such as Rex Grossman, Michael Haynes, Cedric Benson, Chris Williams and Gabe Carimi. Emery is supposed to reverse that debilitating trend, but aside from Jeffery in the second round, his 2012 draft class has failed to live up to expectations:
- First round: McClellin – “Earned” -30.6 overall grade from Pro Football Focus in 2013, and has just 6.5 sacks in 28 career games.
- Second round: Jeffery – Made the Pro Bowl in his second year, a breakout season in which he totaled 89 catches for 1,421 yards and 7 touchdowns, teaming with Brandon Marshall to form one of the most dominant receiving duos in the league.
- Third round – Brandon Hardin: Arrived an injured player and departed an injured player, never playing a game for the Bears.
- Fourth round – Evan Rodriguez: Considered a reach because of character concerns, Rodriguez was released after his rookie season (and two off-season arrests).
- Sixth round – Isaiah Frey: Has yet to make a significant contribution and faces a training camp battle to stick as the team’s fifth cornerback.
- Seventh round – Greg McCoy – Cut at the end of 2012 training camp.
In McClellin’s case, the Bears might have misevaluated his utility, as many draft scouts projected the Boise State pass rusher as a 3-4 rush rush linebacker. Nolan Nawrocki’s 2012 Draft Preview graded McClellin as a mid-round talent with tweener traits, strength deficiency and an inability to defend the run: “Functional, character football player who plays better than he tests and could warrant consideration as a stand-up, upfield 3-4 rush ‘backer. Versatility and dependability increase comfort level and could drive up draft status.”
Nawrocki’s assessment proved accurate, as McClellin ascended all the way to the 19th pick, where Emery pounced on him with 3-4 teams such as the Patriots (who took Chandler Jones 21st), Texans (who took Whitney Mercilus 26th) and Packers (who took Nick Perry 28th) lurking in subsequent picks. McClellin’s versatility was key to the selection, with the thinking at the time being if he doesn’t pan out as a defensive end, he could be a starter-caliber linebacker, be it as Brian Urlacher‘s long-term replacement in the middle, or on the outside. The time is now for McClellin to reward Emery’s confidence before Chicago’s all-too-familiar first-round failure worries are stirred up.