The Raiders have officially signed defensive tackle Terrell McClain, per a club announcement. The deal marks yet another destination for the well-traveled veteran.
McClain spent 2018 with the Falcons and appeared in 13 games. He hooked on with the Cardinals this offseason but was cut at the end of August, leading him to an October cup of coffee with the Chiefs. Other clubs on his resume include the: Redskins, Cowboys, Texans, Patriots, and Panthers.
In related news, the Raiders dropped linebacker Dakota Allen, defensive lineman Kasim Edebali, and Corey Liuget. Liuget played on 46 defensive snaps this season, so it wasn’t exactly the return to prominence he was hoping for.
Liuget, a former Chargers notable, had a rough 2018 season that featured a suspension, pay cut, and a season-ending knee injury. Cut by the Chargers in February, Liguet met with the Giants, Seahawks, Jaguars, and Cardinals before landing with the Raiders in August.
In their quest to bolster their pass rush, the Jets worked out a pair of recognizable edge defenders today. Per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, Gang Green brought in Shane Ray and Nate Orchardfor visits (Twitter link).
Interestingly, both players worked out for the Bears last Tuesday, but obviously neither signed with Chicago. Ray, a former first-round pick of the Broncos, was among the Ravens’ final cuts before the regular season got underway. After posting 12 sacks in his first two seasons, Ray missed large portions of the next two years due to injury and is looking to show that he can still be an effective QB hunter.
Orchard, meanwhile, looked as if he would make the Dolphins’ roster after a strong preseason, but Miami surprisingly cut him prior to the first game of the 2019 campaign. He also worked out for the Lions after the Dolphins sent him packing.
In addition to Ray and Orchard, the Jets took a look at defensive ends Jamal Davis, Kasim Edebali, and Markus Jones, as well as OLB Chuck Harris.
The Eagles have gotten down to 53, making some notable cuts to get there. The team released guard/center Stefen Wisniewski, who they re-signed to a $1.5MM deal back in May. He had gotten $150K guaranteed, so Philly will eat that. Wisniewski had started at least six games in each of the past three seasons for the Eagles.
To help thin out their crowded running backs room, they got rid of a few well-known names. They waived Josh Adams, who rushed for 511 yards for them last year, as well as 2017 fourth-round pick Donnel Pumphrey, who has battled injuries ever since entering the league. They also cut Wendell Smallwood, who had 364 yards rushing and three touchdowns and another 230 yards and two touchdowns through the air last year.
Offensive tackle Brett Toth also failed to make the team. Toth only recently got permission from the Army to join the NFL, and he signed with the Eagles only a couple weeks ago. He seems like a prime candidate for a practice squad spot.
Aside from that, and other announced moves, the Eagles made the following roster moves over the weekend to reach the 53-player limit:
November 20th, 2018 at 3:29pm CST by Zachary Links
The Bengals placed linebacker Preston Brown on injured reserve, per a team announcement. To fill his spot, the club signed defensive end Kasim Edebali.
Brown missed the club’s Week 11 game against the Ravens with a leg injury and it turned out to be a season-ender. The 26-year-old will finish out the year with 42 tackles, two sacks, and four passes defensed in seven starts.
Brown led the league in tackles in 2017 while playing the third-most defensive snaps (1,180) of any linebacker in the NFL. Despite his success with the Bills and a near-perfect attendance record, he wound up settling for a one-year free agent deal with the Bengals in March. Brown was hoping to use that deal as a platform to a big payday in the 2019 offseason, but he’s back to square one after an underwhelming year in Cincinnati.
Edebali, a fifth-year pro, spent the first three seasons of his career with the Saints, before bouncing around between the Broncos, Lions, Rams, and the Saints once again in 2017. He has 61 career games and eight sacks to his credit.
The Bengals’ defense has not lived up to expectations this year and ranks just 27th in defensive DVOA, according to Football Outsiders. Brown wasn’t setting the world on fire before his injury, but losing him surely will not help matters.
The 5-5 Bengals will face the Browns without Brown on Sunday afternoon.
