NFL Workout Updates: 11/30/17
Here are the latest workout and visit updates, courtesy of veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer unless otherwise noted.
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Green Bay Packers
- TE Devon Cajuste (visit), LB Ahmad Thomas (visit)
Kansas City Chiefs
- TE Anthony Firkser, Henry Krieger-Coble (link)
Miami Dolphins
- RB Russell Hansbrough, RB Kalif Phillips, RB Brandon Radcliff (link)
New Orleans Saints
- TE Alex Ellis, TE Darion Griswold, TE Henry Krieger-Coble, TE Robert Tonyan (link)
Oakland Raiders
- WR Seantavius Jones, WR Francis Owusu, WR Tevaun Smith (link)
San Francisco 49ers
- T Reid Fragel, CB Senquez Golson, K Garrett Hartley, CB Michael Hunter (visit), CB Keith Lewis, LB Boseko Lokombo, LB John Lotulelei, CB J.R. Nelson, TE Luke Papilion, RB Jhurell Pressley, RB Khiry Robinson, CB Channing Stribling RB Jahad Thomas, WR Javon Williams, TE Travis Wilson, CB Lou Young (Twitter links via Balzer)
Giants Audition OL Orlando Franklin
The Giants auditioned or met with a host of free agents today, according to Field Yates and Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com (Twitter links), and the club specifically focused on the offensive line. Here’s the entire list:
Workouts
- OL Orlando Franklin
- OL Nick Becton
- OL Connor Bozick
- OL Laurence Gibson
- OL Victor Salako
- LB P.J. Dawson
- DB Darryl Morris
Visits
- OL Cyrus Kouandjio
- OL Reid Fragel
Franklin, 29, has already been released twice this calendar year, first by the Chargers — who employed Franklin for the past two seasons — and then by the Saints, with whom Franklin lasted less than a week. A knee injury reportedly led to New Orleans cutting ties, and though there was some thought that Franklin could re-sign with the Saints, a new deal never came to fruition.
A guard by trade, Franklin has also played tackle (the area of most need on the Giants’ roster), but it’s not clear that he’d be an improvement over Ereck Flowers or Bobby Hart. To be sure, Flowers and Hart have struggled mightily this season, but Franklin graded as one of the seven worst guards in the NFL a year ago, per Pro Football Focus. As far as reserves go, however, New York could do worse, as Franklin boasts 89 starts worth of pro experience.
Kouandjio offers several intriguing traits, as well, and chief among them is his youth, as he’s still only 24 years old. The former second-round pick was waived by the Bills earlier this year following an odd off-field incident, and then failed to beat out draft bust Greg Robinson for the Lions’ fill-in left tackle job. He’s only started 12 games in three NFL seasons.
NFL Workout Updates: 10/3/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:
Arizona Cardinals
- OTs Javarius Leamon and Storm Norton; LB Carl Bradford (link)
Baltimore Ravens
- QB Stephen Morris (link via Tom Pelissero of NFL.com); TEs Evan Baylis and Henry Krieger-Coble; CBs Dante Blackmon (link); DB Bennett Jackson (link via Dan Duggan of NJ.com)
Buffalo Bills
- RBs Jalen Simmons and Brandon Wilds (link)
Cleveland Browns
- RBs Josh Rounds and Kelvin Taylor; TEs Evan Baylis, Alex Ellis, Anthony Firkser, and Henry Krieger-Coble (link)
Houston Texans
- RBs Kapri Bibbs and Troymaine Pope; LBs Josh Forrest and Michael Mauti; DBs Charlie Miller, Ed Reynolds, and Andrew Williamson (link)
Indianapolis Colts
- TE Gabe Holmes; OL Anthony Fabiano, Gino Gradkowski, G Cole Toner (link)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- QB Sefo Liufau; WRs Dres Anderson and Nelson Spruce; DT Woodrow Hamilton (link)
Los Angeles Rams
- P Brock Miller (link)
Miami Dolphins
- WRs Jordan Payton and Jordan Williams; OLs Willie Beavers and Jake Rodgers (link)
New Orleans Saints
- TEs Jim Dray, Gavin Escobar, and Brian Parker; OL Andrew Gardner; DT John Hughes (link)
New York Jets
- WR Tavarres King; DT Ed Stinson; S Mykkele Thompson (link)
San Francisco 49ers
- TE Cooper Helfet (link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- DBs Jordan Dangerfield and Harold Jones-Quartey (link)
Tennessee Titans
- WRs Chris Harper, Anthony Nash, Tim Patrick, and Keenan Reynolds (link)
Washington Redskins
- QB Garrett Grayson (link via Pelissero); WRs Amba Etta-Tawo, Kalif Raymond, and Nelson Spruce; OTs Reid Fragel, Javarius Leamon, and Victor Salako (link)
Vikings’ 53-Man Roster Set
The Vikings made their mandatory cuts to pare their roster down to the 53-man ceiling. Here are the rearrangements Minnesota made to set its regular-season roster.
Cut:
- G Willie Beavers
- WR Mortiz Böhringer
- G Alex Boone (story)
- DT Dylan Bradley
- CB Sam Brown
- TE Kyle Carter
- DT Jarrod Clements
- OL T.J. Clemmings (story)
- LB Noor Davis
- T Reid Fragel
- WR Isaac Fruechte
- QB Taylor Heinicke (waived/injured)
- RB Bronson Hill
- WR Cayleb Jones
- G Zac Kerin
- K Marshall Koehn
- LB Elijah Lee
- QB Mitch Leidner
- DE Sam McCaskill
- RB Terrell Newby
- DE Ifeadi Odenigbo
- CB Jabari Price
- TE Josiah Price
- CB Horace Richardson
- CB Tre Roberson
- LB Edmond Robinson
- WR R.J. Shelton (waived/injured)
- T Austin Shepherd
- CB Terrell Sinkfield
- DT Will Sutton (story)
- P Taylor Symmank
- G Freddie Tagaloa
- S Jack Tocho
- TE Nick Truesdell
Placed on IR:
- DL Datone Jones (story)
Placed on Reserve/PUP list:
- QB Teddy Bridgewater (story)
Placed on Reserve/NFI list:
Placed on Reserve/Suspended list:
- WR Michael Floyd (story)
NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/3/17
Here are Tuesday’s reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2017 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ offseason 90-man rosters.
Arizona Cardinals
- LB Cap Capi
- WR Marvin Hall
- WR Chris Hubert
- G Kaleb Johnson
- OL Daniel Munyer
- RB Elijhaa Penny
- CB Ronald Zamort
Carolina Panthers
- FB Darrel Young
Dallas Cowboys
Kansas City Chiefs
- OT Isaiah Battle
Minnesota Vikings
- OT Reid Fragel
- P Taylor Symmank
San Diego Chargers
- OL Brett Boyko
- CB Randall Evans
- CB Mike Lee
- LB Chris McCain
- S Adrian McDonald
- TE Jake McGee
Tennessee Titans
- OLB Reshard Cliett
- TE Tim Semisch
NFL Workout Updates: 11/22/16
Tuesday is workout day in the NFL, and today was no different. Due to the sheer volume of today’s auditions, we’ll split up the reports by conference:
NFC
- The Bears worked out four offensive lineman today, according to ESPN’s Brad Biggs (via Twitter): Reid Fragel, Jeff Linkenbach, Dillon Farrell, and Dallas Thomas. Biggs tweets that the team also worked out defensive end Lawrence Okoye, who is a former British track and field athlete.
- The Buccaneers auditioned cornerback D’Joun Smith, Cody Riggs and Duke Thomas, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter). The team also worked out wideouts Corey Washington and Myles White. Riggs and White were ultimately signed to the practice squad.
- The Falcons worked out former Tennessee defensive end Ropati Pitoitua, Caplan tweets.
- The Lions worked out quarterbacks Keith Wenning and Logan Thomas along with wide receivers Dres Anderson, Tyler Murphy, and Andrew Turzilli, as Justin Rogers of The Detroit News tweets. Anderson has since signed with Chicago’s practice squad.
- The Packers were busy today, according to Caplan (via Twitter). The team auditioned receiver B.J. Daniels, cornerback Darryl Morris, and linebackers Derrick Mathews, Beniquez Brown, Dwayne Norman and Darnell Sankey.
- The Panthers worked out guard Josh LeRibeus and former Patriots center Ryan Wendell, tweets Caplan.
AFC
- As Clark Harris recovers from an injury, the Bengals worked out long snappers John DePalma, Ryan DiSalvo, Thomas Gafford, and Tyler Ott, according to Caplan (via Twitter). The team ended up signing Ott to the practice squad.
- The Dolphins worked out offensive tackles Jesse Davis and Marquis Lucas, tweets Caplan.
- The Jaguars worked out a trio of tight ends in Justin Perillo, E.J. Bibbs, and Orson Charles, tweets Caplan. Bibbs ultimately landed on the team’s practice squad. The Jaguars also worked out linebacker Earl Okine.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
NFL Workout Updates: 10/10/16
Well, this is a new one: The Steelers worked out Spanish rugby sevens player Inaki Villanueva, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link), who adds that Villanueva will attempt to make the NFL as a tight end. Villanueva, 25 this week, was part of the Spanish rugby team that competed at the 2016 Summer Olmypics.
Here’s more on today’s tryouts and visits:
- The Patriots worked out wide receiver Donteea Dye, fullback Austin Johnson, and tight end Gannon Sinclair today, a source tells Doug Kyed of NESN. Per Kyed, the trio was likely auditioning for a spot on New England’s practice squad, which currently only has nine members.
- Jake Long wasn’t the only offensive lineman to audition for the Vikings today, as Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link) reports that Minnesota also took a look at Garrett Reynolds and Reid Fragel.
- The Redskins worked out defensive tackles Jermelle Cudjo, A.J. Francis, and Joey Mbu today, per Caplan (Twitter link). Washington met with fellow DTs Terrance Knighton (link) and Phil Taylor (link) today as well, but won’t be signing either one at this time, according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post (Twitter link).
- Although the Cowboys tried out defensive backs Rashaad Reynolds, Leon McFadden, and Richard Crawford today, the club won’t be signing any of them, tweets Todd Archer of ESPN.com.
- The Cardinals auditioned linebackers Dwayne Norman and Jayson DiManche, as well as safeties Keenan Lambert and Dezmen Southward on Monday, reports Caplan (Twitter link).
- The Eagles worked out linebackers Eric Pinkins, Lamar Louis, and James Burgess, Caplan tweets.
Workout Notes: Jets, Browns, Saints, Colts
Tuesday’s workouts from around the NFL:
- The Jets auditioned former Tampa Bay and Notre Dame safety Elijah Shumate, according to a source who spoke with Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle (on Twitter), and outside linebacker Ivan McLennan (Twitter link via Darryl Slater of NJ.com). They also tried out wide receiver Mario Alford and safety Shamiel Gary, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN (Twitter link).
- Veteran guard Mackenzy Bernadeau worked out for the Browns, as Caplan tweets.
- The Saints took a look at tackles Robert Crisp and Reid Fragel, according to a source who spoke with Nick Underhill of The Advocate (on Twitter).
- Outside linebacker Andy Mulumba and cornerback Corey Tindal worked out for the Colts, Caplan tweets.
- The Packers auditioned linebacker Brandon Chubb, per Caplan (Twitter link).
- The Titans tried out ex-Green Bay running back Brandon Burks and former Navy fullback Chris Swain today, Tom Pelissero of USA Today tweets.
- The Buccaneers worked out linebacker Lenny Jones and defensive end Ryan Russell, according to Caplan (Twitter link).
- The Seahawks auditioned running back Kerwynn Williams, outside linebacker Cam Johnson, and cornerbacks Blidi Wreh-Wilson and Demetrius McCray, Caplan tweets.
Chiefs Release Jamell Fleming, Others
6:43pm: In addition to the previously mentioned players, the Chiefs have released safety Jamell Fleming, tweets Paylor. Fleming, whom the Cardinals selected in the third round of the 2012 draft, joined the Chiefs in 2014 and appeared in 23 games in his two seasons in Kansas City. Fleming took the field for all of the Chiefs’ contests in 2015 and picked up 21 tackles.
5:06pm: The Chiefs are cutting safety Jeron Johnson, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). Johnson is the latest to go today as KC works down to a 53-man roster.
After serving as a backup DB and a special-teamer for several years in Seattle, Johnson signed with Washington last year and appeared poised to get the opportunity to play more. However, things didn’t work out in D.C., and Johnson was cut by them this offseason.
Here is the updated list of cuts made by the Chiefs today:
- S Jamell Fleming
- S Jeron Johnson
- CB Deveron Carr (via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star click for Twitter links)
- WR Da’Ron Brown
- LB Andy Mulumba
- OT Reid Fragel
With the exception of Mulumba and Johnson, each player signed a reserve/futures contract with the Chiefs in January. Mulumba inked a one-year deal with the club in April after spending the first three years of his career in Green Bay. The 26-year-old was delayed in signing anywhere because of citizenship issues, as detailed at the time by of USA Today. The native of the Democratic Republic of Congo is a Canadian citizen and had been working to attain U.S. citizenship and residency, but he had to return to Canada after his work visa expired. Mulumba met with the Chiefs on a visitor visa before signing with them.
Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/18/16
Here are today’s reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL:
Green Bay Packers
- Carl Bradford, LB (Twitter link via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com)
- William Campbell, DT
- Mitchell Henry, TE
- Jamel Johnson, WR
- Christian Ringo, DT
- Jeremy Vujnovich, T
- Ed Williams, WR
Kansas City Chiefs
- Tyrell Adams, LB (Twitter link via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star)
- Da’Ron Brown, WR (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
- Reid Fragel, T
- Laurence Gibson, T
- Mike Liedtke, G
- Darrin Reaves, RB
- Jimmy Staten, DE
- Ross Travis, TE
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Jordan Dangerfield, S (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
- Matt Feiler, T
- B.J. Finney, C
- Isaiah Frey, CB (Twitter link via Dov Kleiman of RantSports)
- Xavier Grimble, TE
- Rajion Neal, RB (Twitter link via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com)
- Shakim Phillips, WR
- Abou Toure, RB
Seattle Seahawks
- Brandon Cottom, FB (Twitter links via Dov Kleiman of RantSports)
- George Farmer, CB
- DeShon Foxx, WR
- Antwan Goodley, WR
- Justin Hamilton, DT
- Stanley Jean-Baptiste, CB
- Douglas McNeil, WR
- Drew Nowak, C
- Will Pericak, C
- Trovon Reed, DB
- Robert Smith, S
- DeAngelo Tyson, DE