Michael Jackson

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/3/20

Here are Thursday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the day:

Atlanta Falcons

  • Released from IR via injury settlement: TE Khari Lee

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Lions Trade Michael Jackson To Patriots

The Lions have agreed to trade Michael Jackson to the Patriots, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. In exchange, the Pats will send an undisclosed 2022 draft pick to Detroit.

[RELATED: Filling The Voids Left By Patriots Opt Outs]

Jackson was initially set to be released, along with former first-round pick Joshua Garnett and others. Instead, the Patriots have made a low-cost move to leapfrog the rest of the waiver wire.

Jackson will give the Pats some additional secondary depth to consider after safety Patrick Chung exercised his right to opt out of the 2020 season. As far as the first-string goes, the Patriots can probably stand pat with Adrian Phillips and second-round rookie Kyle Duggar can slot in opposite Devin McCourty. The Pats still have holes to fill at tackle and linebacker, but they also have more than $33MM in cap space thanks to their league-high eight opt-outs.

Jackson, 23, entered the league as a fifth-round pick of the Cowboys. The University of Miami product has suited up for just one game in his pro career.

Lions Cut Joshua Garnett

The Lions released former first-round pick Joshua Garnett on Sunday morning, per a club announcement. The Lions also dropped defensive back Michael Jackson, linebacker Christian Sam, defensive end Jonathan Wynn, and wide receivers Travis Fulgham and Chris Lacy to reach the 80-man limit for single squad practices. 

The 49ers took Garnett No. 28 overall in 2016, but he never lived up to his pre-draft hype. The Stanford product started in 11 of his 15 games as a rookie, but failed to impress. Then, knee surgery wiped out his 2017 season and he played in just seven games as a reserve in 2018. The Niners cut him before 2019, and his ensuing workout tour didn’t result in a contract. The Lions picked Garnett up in February, but they’ve put him back on the free agent pile as the season draws near.

The Lions’ O-line was not particularly good at run-blocking or pass protection in 2019 and earned below-average DVOA marks in both categories. On the plus side, Russell Bodine was Detroit’s only offensive line opt-out, so they might be able to stand pat with their current group of linemen.

More Minor NFL Transactions: 10/30/19

Today’s minor moves:

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

  • Claimed off waivers (Giants): LB Tae Davis

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Promoted from practice squad: CB Tevaughn Campbell

Miami Dolphins

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Redskins

Cowboys Get Down To 53

The Cowboys have made their cuts to get down to 53 players. Nothing too surprising on this list, although there is at least one interesting takeaway. The Cowboys cut three running backs, leaving Alfred Morris and Tony Pollard as the only two currently with the team. That’s a strong indicator that the team is expecting Ezekiel Elliott back before Week 1.

Receiver Devin Smith also made the roster as their final receiver, which is a nice feel-good story. Drafted by the Jets 37th overall back in 2015, multiple ACL tears derailed his promising career. Smith has had brutal injury luck and hasn’t appeared in a game since 2016, so this is nice to see.

Waived:

OL Jake Campos

CB Donovan Olumba

LB Kyle Quiero

LS Drew Scott

Waived/InjuredL

TE Codey McElroy

CB Tyvis Powell

S Jameill Showers

Reserve/PUP:

Reserve/Injured

DE Jalen Jelks

WR Jon’Vea Johnson

Cowboys Sign Most Of Draft Class

The Cowboys have most of their draft signings out of the way. Everyone in Dallas’ draft class has agreed to, or signed, their rookie deals, according to David Moore of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter), save for third-round guard Connor McGovern.

The following Cowboys rookies are now in the fold:

Hill, a 6’2″, 315 pound defensive tackle, left UCF on a sour note and openly complained about his lack of playing time in the team’s Fiesta Bowl loss to LSU. Throughout the year, Hill clashed with coaches and started only once in the team’s eleven regular season games. Still, the Cowboys see big potential in this supersized lineman.

Pollard, meanwhile, offers upside as a runner and as a receiver. Last year, he saw 78 carries out of the backfield and averaged 7.1 yards per try. He also caught 39 passes for 458 yards, showing that he is a multi-talented threat.