Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC North
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC 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 for the Ravens, Bengals, Browns, and Steelers are noted below.
Additionally, as of 11:00am 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 AFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed to practice squad:
- OLB Brennen Beyer (Twitter link via Jeff Zrebiec)
- WR Jeremy Butler (press release)
- OL Kaleb Johnson (press release)
- S Nick Perry (Twitter link via Zrebiec)
- QB Bryn Renner (Twitter link via Zrebiec)
- TE Konrad Reuland (press release)
- OL De’Ondre Wesley (press release)
Cincinnati Bengals
- Removed from IR list:
- WR Onterio McCalebb
- Signed to practice squad:
- T Dan France
- CB Troy Hill
- G Trey Hopkins
- WR Jake Kumerow
- TE Matt Lengel
- LB Trevor Roach
- RB Terrell Watson
- QB Keith Wenning
- RB James Wilder Jr.
- DT DeShawn Williams
Cleveland Browns
- Claimed off waivers:
- OL Austin Pasztor (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson)
- Signed to practice squad:
- RB Shaun Draughn (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot)
- DB Kendall James (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot)
- WR Darius Jennings (Twitter link via Tony Pauline)
- OL Erle Ladson (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot)
- OL Andrew McDonald (Twitter link via Brett Tessler)
- OL Darian Miller (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot)
- LB Hayes Pullard III (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot)
- DB De’Ante Saunders (Twitter link via Mary Kay Cabot)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed:
- RB Jordan Todman
- Claimed off waivers:
- DT Caushaud Lyons
- Cut:
- LB Anthony Chickillo
- CB Doran Grant
- Signed to practice squad:
- RB Dominique Brown
- DB Jordan Dangerfield
- OL Reese Dismukes
- LB L.J. Fort
- LB Shayon Green
- DE Ethan Hemer
- OL Antonio Johnson
- WR Shakim Phillips
- TE Harold Spears
- WR Jarrod West
- OL Matt Feiler (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson)
Texans Trim Roster To 53 Players
Warning: Hard Knocks spoilers ahead. The Texans finalized their initial regular season roster today, announcing several cuts and other transactions in order to get down from 75 players to 53. In addition to cutting defensive tackle Louis Nix, defensive tackle Brandon Deaderick, and wide receiver Damaris Johnson (as we heard yesterday), and placing quarterback Tom Savage on injured reserve (as we heard today), the club made the following moves, per a press release:
Waived:
- OLB Kourtnei Brown
- ILB Max Bullough
- S Kurtis Drummond
- T Matt Feiler
- C James Ferentz
- DE Tevita Finau
- RB Kenny Hilliard
- CB Charles James
- S Corey Moore
- WR EZ Nwachukwu
- DE Dan Pettinato
- T Joseph Treadwell
- WR Chandler Worthy
Released:
- DE Fili Moala
Waived/injured:
- OLB Lynden Trail
- OLB Tony Washington
Placed on injured reserve:
- G Chad Slade
Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweeted earlier today that the Texans were exploring trade scenarios involving cornerbacks Jumal Rolle and Charles James. James showed up on the list above as having been cut, so it’s clear Houston didn’t find a trade partner there. For now, Rolle remains on the team’s roster.
Meanwhile, another’s team’s roster casualty, veteran quarterback Matt Cassel, could be an option for Houston, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Cassel and Texans head coach Bill O’Brien were in New England at the same time, and with Savage landing on IR, Houston is in the market for an insurance policy at quarterback behind Brian Hoyer and Ryan Mallett.
Texans Sign 10 To Futures Contracts
The Texans have locked up nine players to reserve/futures contracts for the 2015 season, according to Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle. Here are the players who inked new deals with the club:
- Kourtnei Brown, DE
- Jace Davis, WR
- Matt Feiler, T
- James Ferentz, C
- Charles James, CB
- Travis Labhart, WR
- Ben Malena, RB
- Uzoma Nwachukwu, WR
- Terrance Parks, S
Eight of the nine players signed by the Texans finished the season on the team’s practice squad. Labhart was the lone player who wasn’t on the taxi squad at season’s end, while two players who were a part of the unit – quarterback Ricky Stanzi and guard Alex Kupper – have yet to sign new deals.
Meanwhile, the Texans haven’t made an official announcement regarding his status, but agent David Canter tweeted that his client, defensive end Tevita Finau, has also signed a futures deal with the team, making it 10 overall signings for Houston.
Sunday Transactions: AFC South
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC South 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 AFC South transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:
Houston Texans:
- Acquired via trade: Ryan Mallett, QB (link)
- Signed: Danieal Manning, S (link)
- Claimed off waivers: Jeff Adams, T (via Mike Garafolo on Twitter), Damaris Johnson, WR (via Les Bowen on Twitter); Darryl Morris, CB (via Ian Rapoport on Twitter)
- Cut (officially announced): Chris Clemons, S (link); Case Keenum, QB (via Tania Ganguli on Twitter); Anthony McClung, WR (released with injury settlement, via Aaron Wilson on Twitter); Mike Thomas, WR (via Rapoport on Twitter); Josh Victorian, CB (via Wilson on Twitter)
- Placed on injured reserve: Will Yeatman (via James Palmer on Twitter)
- Signed to practice squad: Travis Labhart, WR (via David Nuno on Twitter); Keith Browner, DE; Max Bullough, ILB; Anthony Denham, TE; Matt Feiler, OT; James Ferentz, C; Alex Kupper OG; EZ Nwachukwu, WR; Toben Opurum, FB; Marcus Williams, CB.
Indianapolis Colts:
- Claimed off waivers: A.Q. Shipley, C (via Adam Caplan on Twitter)
- Cut: Thomas Austin, C (via Caplan on Twitter)
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Tyler Hoover, T; Andrew Jackson, ILB; Ryan Lankford, WR; Josh Lenz, WR; Jeff Mathews, QB; Dewey McDonald, S; Nnamdi Obukwelu, DT; Sheldon Price, CB; Erik Swoope, TE; Josh Walker, G
Jacksonville Jaguars:
- Claimed off waivers: Mickey Shuler, TE (via Ryan O’Halloran on Twitter)
- Cut: Marcel Jensen, TE (via Aaron Wilson on Twitter)
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Cody Booth, T; DeAndre Coleman, DT; Henry Josey, RB (via Adam Caplan on Twitter); Craig Loston, S; Stephen Morris, QB; Kerry Taylor, WR; Tony Washington, WR; Marcus Whitfield, LB. The team has also added cornerback Peyton Thompson, reports Michael DiRocco (via Twitter), although the team has not officially announced the signing.
Tennessee Titans:
- Claimed off waivers: Kris Durham, WR (via team release); T.J. Graham, WR (via Adam Caplan on Twitter); Brandon Harris, CB (via team release)
- Cut: Michael Preston, WR (via Jim Wyatt on Twitter); Steve Vallos, C (via team release); Khalid Wooten, DB (via team release); Patrick Bailey, LB (via Jim Wyatt on Twitter)
- Signed to practice squad (officially announced): Antonio Andrews, RB (via John Glennon on Twitter); Chigbo Anunoby, DL (via team release); Brandon Copeland, LB (via Wyatt on Twitter); Justin McCray, OL (via team release); Will Poehls, T (via Wyatt on Twitter); Rico Richardson, WR (via Wyatt on Twitter); Ri’Shard Anderson, CB (via Wyatt on Twitter); Dontay Moch, LB; Orson Charles, TE (via Wyatt on Twitter).
Texans Trim Roster To 53 Players
In addition to confirming the eight players reported to be roster casualties yesterday, the Texans also announced 14 more roster moves today, bringing their roster down to 53 players in advance of this afternoon’s deadline. Here are the players removed from Houston’s active roster today:
- Lacoltan Bester, WR
- Keith Browner, DE
- Max Bullough, ILB
- Anthony Denham, TE
- Mike Farrell, T
- Matt Feiler, T
- James Ferentz, C
- Bronson Irwin, G
- Alex Kupper, G
- Ricardo Mathews, NT
- Uzoma Nwachukwu, WR
- Julius Warmsley, DE
- Marcus Williams, CB
- Chris Young, ILB
The team has also removed Paul Hazel from its injured reserve list with a settlement.
Texans Announce 20 UDFA Signings
The Texans took their time in announcing their rookie free agent signings, but the team has officially done so today, revealing the names of their UDFA additions in a press release. Here’s the complete list:
- Jason Ankrah, OLB, Nebraska
- Chris Boswell, K, Rice
- Austin Brown, DL, Miami (Ohio)
- Max Bullough, ILB, Michigan State
- Chris Coyle, TE, Arizona State
- Anthony Denham, TE, Utah
- Tyrone Ezell, DL, Pittsburgh
- Matt Feiler, OT, Bloomsburg
- James Ferentz, OT, Iowa
- Kevin Forsch, G, Houston
- Sullivan Grosz, DL, Cal Poly
- Travis Labhart, WR, Texas A&M
- Terrance Lloyd, OLB, Baylor
- Chris Martin, T, Central Florida ($7.5K bonus, per Aaron Wilson)
- Chris McAllister, OLB, Baylor
- Anthony McClung, WR, Cincinnati
- Nathan Slaughter, WR, West Texas A&M
- Marcus Williams, CB, North Dakota State
- Bryan Witzmann, OT, South Dakota State
- Chris Young, ILB, Arizona State
AFC East Notes: Pats, McCarron, Jets, Bills
Let’s round up a few brief items out of the AFC East….
- Before heading to Jacksonville to meet with the Jaguars, Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron visited the Patriots yesterday, tweets Gil Brandt of NFL.com.
- Jets offensive line coach Mike Devlin is at Bloomsburg’s Pro Day to work out offensive tackle Matt Feiler and guard Brian Clarke, according to Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (via Twitter).
- We knew that wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. would be visiting the Bills today, but the team also announced that it’s hosting two other draft prospects — Cumberlands running back Terrance Cobb and Rice cornerback Phillip Gaines.
- The contract signed by punter Jake Dombrowski with the Bills is a three-year, minimum-salary pact with no bonuses, says Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Dombrowski will provide competition this summer for incumbent punter Brian Moorman.