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Khaleke Hudson

Browns Add LB Khaleke Hudson Off Saints’ Practice Squad

September 10th, 2024 at 9:54pm CST by Ely Allen

Saints practice squad linebacker Khaleke Hudson is heading to Cleveland, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. Hudson will join the Browns‘ active roster after being signed from the practice squad in New Orleans. A gameday elevation this past weekend, Hudson could be one of the first players in the league to play for more than one team this season.

Hudson signed with the Saints in the offseason after playing out his rookie contract as a fifth-round pick in Washington. A solid rotation player through the first three years of his career, Hudson earned a bigger role in 2023, starting eight games for the Commanders and tallying career highs in total tackles (74), tackles for loss (5), sacks (1), quarterback hits (2), and passes defensed (2).

Despite the strong contract year that led to his deal with the Saints, Hudson didn’t end up making the initial 53-man roster, though New Orleans did retain him on the practice squad. Now, though, he’ll get a new opportunity to play in Cleveland, where Brandon Bouyer-Randle sits on injured reserve and Mohamoud Diabate and Tony Fields II take up spots on the injury report. He provides some experienced, starting depth on the defense.

Additionally, with Pro Bowl tight end David Njoku facing a potential absence due to an ankle injury, the Browns added veteran Geoff Swaim to the practice squad, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Jordan Akins sits on the roster behind Njoku, and Swaim will now add some additional experience and depth from the practice squad, if necessary.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/7/24

September 7th, 2024 at 7:42pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are all the NFL’s minor transactions for Saturday, including the gameday callups leading into the first Sunday of the 2024 season:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

With regular kicker Matt Gay listed as questionable for the season opener after hernia surgery, the Colts will call up Shrader from the practice squad as an emergency option. The 25-year-old has not made a regular season appearance in his career, but that could very well change tomorrow.

Saints Place RB Kendre Miller On IR, Reduce Squad To 53

August 27th, 2024 at 9:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here is how the Saints moved their roster down to the regular-season 53-man limit:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

Placed on IR/return designation:

Placed on reserve/PUP list:

A host of vested vets are off the Saints’ roster, and Miller will be for a stretch as well. Miller has been down with a hamstring injury for several weeks, suffering the setback minutes into the team’s initial training camp workout. This lingering into the regular season is a concerning development for both parties. Hamstring trouble limited Miller late last summer as well. The Saints still roster Jamaal Williams behind Alvin Kamara, but they used a third-round pick on Miller last year. The TCU alum logged 41 carries as a rookie, but a new OC (Klint Kubiak) is now calling the shots.

Kpassagnon sustained an Achilles tear early this offseason, and he will miss at least four games. Rookie UDFA Mason Tipton made the roster over St. Brown, while offseason pickup Will Harris secured a spot over Abram. The Saints kept Lucas Patrick and Oli Udoh over Davis and Lemieux, who had been attempting to bounce back from an injury-plagued Giants tenure.

Saints To Sign LB Khaleke Hudson

April 5th, 2024 at 12:35pm CST by Sam Robinson

APRIL 5: Hudson said (via Matthew Paras of the Times-Picayune) the Commanders did not offer him a contract, with Quinn informing him the team was eyeing a different profile amongst its linebackers. Hudson added, to little surprise, he chose to join the Saints as a result of the opportunity to see defensive playing time it will afford him.

APRIL 4: A special teams mainstay in Washington, Khaleke Hudson enjoyed his biggest opportunity on defense last season. This will lead to another opportunity.

With the Commanders retooling in Dan Quinn‘s first offseason — one that has brought many of the new HC’s former charges to Washington — Hudson will leave for a chance with the Saints. New Orleans is adding the veteran linebacker on a one-year deal, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo tweets.

This agreement comes not long after Hudson visited the Steelers. It is not known if the Steelers — who have another ex-Washington linebacker, Cole Holcomb, on their payroll — extended an offer, but Hudson will end up in the NFC South. The Saints are adding a veteran special-teamer and a player who logged eight starts in 2023.

Hudson, 26, is a Michigan alum who started just four games during his first three seasons. The former fifth-round pick played at least 77% of Washington’s ST snaps in each of those years but moved into the starting lineup in the Ron Rivera–Jack Del Rio tandem’s final season. Although this opportunity came for a team careening into last place defensively, Hudson made 74 tackles (five for loss), recorded a sack and broke up two passes.

Pro Football Focus slotted Hudson 51st overall at the position, a mid-pack placement. Following Jamin Davis‘ season-ending injury, Hudson started the Commanders’ final five games, closing with a three-TFL showing in Week 18.

The Saints gave ageless starter Demario Davis another extension last month, and they also added four-year Chiefs starter Willie Gay. With Pete Werner going into a contract year, it would seem Hudson has a backup ceiling as a Saint barring injury. But his run of ST work stands to bolster New Orleans’ third-phase options ahead of Dennis Allen‘s third season in charge.

Latest On Commanders LB Depth

June 27th, 2023 at 6:41pm CST by Ben Levine

Entering mandatory minicamp, there were some questions surrounding the Commanders’ depth at linebacker. However, the team’s answer at the position may already be on the roster. As ESPN’s John Keim writes, the Commanders’ apparent need for a LB may not be as urgent considering the emergence of Khaleke Hudson.

Hudson, a 2020 fifth-round pick, has seen time in 41 games through his first three seasons in the NFL. However, he only has four starts while playing about 85 percent of his total snaps on special teams. In total, the Michigan product has 34 tackles, two tackles for loss, and three QB hits. The defender was cut by Washington last August before catching on with the practice squad. After appearing in 13 games last season, he was signed to a one-year extension back in March.

Jamin Davis is still expected to fill in at the WLB spot, but he was sidelined during minicamp while recovering from offseason knee injury. On the other side, free agent addition Cody Barton was slated to play the MLB role, but he was playing alongside the backups while he learned the defense.

As a result, Hudson saw an increased role during minicamp, and per Keim, the linebacker’s performance impressed coaches. Even if the 25-year-old doesn’t end up starting at either of Washington’s two linebacker spots, it seems all but certain that he’ll still see an increased role on defense in 2023. Plus, as Keim notes, his development may reduce the team’s need for depth at the position. The Commanders are also rostering the likes of David Mayo, De’Jon Harris, and Milo Eifler at the position.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/12/23

March 12th, 2023 at 8:32pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves in the NFL, one day before the legal tampering period begins:

Indianapolis Colts

Washington Commanders

Lewis, 28, has played all five seasons of his career with the Colts, and his tenure there will continue in 2023. The former second-rounder is signing a one-year deal worth $2.1MM (Twitter link via Joel A. Erickson of the Indianapolis Star). Lewis had logged a career-high snap share of 62% in 2022 before suffering a season-ending injury in October, and could be in line for a significant workload again this coming season.

Hudson was set to become an RFA, but has also inked a one-year deal, per a team announcement. The 25-year-old joined Washington as a fifth-round pick in 2020, and has been a mainstay on special teams in all three of his NFL seasons to date. His role in the third phase is likely to continue in 2023, as he looks to play his way into more regular defensive duties.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/21/22

October 21st, 2022 at 5:36pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor moves from around the NFL:

Denver Broncos

Washington Commanders

Patrick is being placed on injured reserve after an awkward collision on the sideline with a member of the media led to a torn ACL. He becomes the fifth Bronco to suffer the dreaded knee injury since training camp, following wide receiver Tim Patrick, running back Javonte Williams, cornerback Ronald Darby, and running back Damarea Crockett.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/13/22

October 13th, 2022 at 5:42pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor NFL transactions:

New England Patriots

Washington Commanders

Harris was a sixth-round pick by the Patriots in this year’s draft, but he landed on the practice squad after getting cut prior to the regular season. With Damien Harris sidelined, Harris will join fellow rookie Pierre Strong behind starter Rhamondre Stevenson.

Wednesday NFL Transactions: NFC East

August 31st, 2022 at 2:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These Commanders, Cowboys, Eagles and Giants moves are noted below.

Here are Wednesday’s NFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.

Dallas Cowboys

Signed to practice squad:

New York Giants

Signed:

Released:

Claimed:

Placed on IR:

Signed to practice squad:

Philadelphia Eagles

Claimed: 

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Washington Commanders

Released:

Claimed:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

Signed to practice squad:

Commanders Move Down To 53, Keep RB Brian Robinson On Active Roster

August 30th, 2022 at 11:54am CST by Sam Robinson

Teams have until 3pm CT to trim their rosters to the regular-season 53-man limit. The Commanders have done so but did it without moving Brian Robinson off the roster.

Shot twice in the lower body Sunday, Robinson underwent surgery. Ron Rivera also expressed optimism the third-round rookie could play this season. Washington is following through on these hopes, keeping the rookie running back on its active roster. Here are the moves the Commanders made to reach the 53-man max Tuesday:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

By keeping Robinson on their active roster, the Commanders opened the door to him not only playing in 2022. The team needed to carry the Alabama product through to its 53-man roster today in order to place him on short-term IR. An IR placement today would have ended Robinson’s season.

One of the gunshot wounds Robinson sustained hit his knee, but the bullet did not seriously damage ligaments, tendons or bone, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com reports (video link). It is not a lock Robinson returns this season, per Garafolo, but the team is keeping its options open.

Robinson playing as a rookie would be obviously be a remarkable development. Prior to being shot, the Day 2 draftee had made a serious charge at the Commanders’ starting running back role. The team’s primary starter over the past two seasons, Antonio Gibson, remains on the roster, as do J.D. McKissic and Jonathan Williams. Robinson being moved to IR later this week will sideline him for at least four games — likely much longer, in this case — but allow him to return later this season, should he be cleared to do so.

The Chiefs, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter), also submitted a claim for Blanton recently, when the Rams waived him. It will be interesting to see if the young tight end generates any interest this week. Martin has generated consistent interest on the wire. The Commanders, who drafted the guard during the Bruce Allen regime, have made two waiver attempts to land him. The second one, earlier this month after the Jaguars cut Martin, was successful. It would not surprise if Martin is brought back via the practice squad — as several of Tuesday’s cuts will be — but he could also bring more interest on the wire.

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