Panthers Cut Stevie Brown
Well, that was fast. The Panthers have released safety Stevie Brown just days after signing him, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. 
A former member of the Giants, Brown was brought in to provide additional depth at safety, though he went without an NFL gig in 2015. Brown, a seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2010, posted a career year in 2012 as a member of the Giants as he hauled in an eye-popping eight interceptions. However, he failed to register a pick in each of his other three seasons – one apiece with the Giants, Raiders and Colts. Brown signed with the Chiefs in early April but he became an early roster casualty when he was dropped recently. Now, he’s been dropped by the Panthers before could even take his coat off.
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Panthers To Sign Stevie Brown
The Panthers have agreed to sign safety Stevie Brown, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Carolina auditioned Brown earlier this month and finally circled back to him with a contract offer. 
Brown was without an NFL gig in 2015, despite his past success. A seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2010, Brown posted a career year in 2012 as a member of the Giants as he hauled in an eye-popping eight interceptions. However, he failed to register a pick in each of his other three seasons – one apiece with the Giants, Raiders and Colts. Brown signed with the Chiefs in early April but he became an early roster casualty when he was dropped recently. Now, he’ll help support Tre Boston at safety in Carolina along with Major Wright
The Panthers also auditioned Donte Whitner, but they did not sign him.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Panthers To Work Out Stevie Brown
Donte Whitner isn’t the only safety the Panthers are working out. Stevie Brown, who was released by the Chiefs earlier this week, will join him, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
[RELATED: Donte Whitner To Visit Panthers]
Brown was without an NFL gig in 2015, despite his past success. A seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2010, Brown posted a career year in 2012 as a member of the Giants as he hauled in an eye-popping eight interceptions. However, he failed to register a pick in each of his other three seasons – one apiece with the Giants, Raiders and Colts. Brown signed with the Chiefs in early April but he became an early roster casualty when he was dropped on Wednesday.
While Whitner could conceivably leapfrog Tre Boston as the Panthers’ starter at free safety, someone line Brown is probably being looked at for a supporting role. Boston only partook in 20 percent of Carolina’s defensive snaps last season, so it makes sense to put some additional experience behind him.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Chiefs Release Mike Williams, Stevie Brown
The Chiefs have released wide receiver Mike Williams and safety Stevie Brown, according to Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star (Twitter links).
Kansas City was the third NFL employer for the 29-year-old Williams, who signed with the club in April. He entered the league with the Buccaneers as a fourth-rounder from Syracuse in 2010. After four years in Tampa Bay, which signed him to a long-term deal in 2013 before quickly moving on over off-the-field issues, Williams joined his hometown Bills for a short-lived run in 2014.
Williams, who sat out last season, has accrued 223 receptions and 26 touchdowns in 63 career games (52 starts). The 6-foot-2, 204-pounder racked up 60-plus catches and between 771 and 996 yards in each of his first three seasons, but he has since combined for just 30 receptions.
Brown, like Williams, was out of football in 2015 despite experiencing past success. A seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2010, Brown posted a career year in 2012 as a member of the Giants, with whom he intercepted eight passes. However, he failed to register a pick in each of his other three seasons – one apiece with the Giants, Raiders and Colts. Brown signed with the Chiefs in early April, and he clearly didn’t do enough during his short stint with the club to merit a roster spot.
Despite the respective departures of Williams and Brown, the Chiefs still have no shortage of wideouts and safeties battling for jobs, as Roster Resource shows.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Chiefs Sign Stevie Brown
After having added a pair of defenders yesterday, the Chiefs have made another move to help solidify their defense. According to Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star, the team has signed safety Stevie Brown. The player’s agent was the first to report the news via Twitter.
The 28-year-old didn’t play a single snap last season after being cut by the Giants in early September. The 2010 seventh-round pick ultimately played two full seasons with New York, starting a total of 19 games. His 2012 campaign was easily the best of his career, as Brown compiled 76 tackles, 11 passes defended, and eight interceptions. That season saw him lead the NFL in interception return yards, and he earned a pair of NFC Defensive Play of the Week awards. The Michigan product has also spent time in the Raiders, Colts, Panthers, and Texans organization.
As Paylor notes, the Chiefs have had success inking defensive backs to “one-year, prove-it deals”, including Quintin Demps, Kurt Coleman, and Tyvon Branch.
The team signed safety Jimmy Wilson to a one-year deal yesterday, and they also added linebacker Andy Mulumba.
Workout Notes: 12/8/15
There were a plethora of workouts around the NFL today. Here they are:
- The Broncos worked out 17 players, all defenders. The full list comes courtesy of Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio:
- DB Stevie Brown
- LB Deron Bruce
- DB Deveron Carr
- DB Chris Clemons
- DT Davon Coleman
- LB Henry Coley
- LB Aaron Davis
- DE Ray Drew
- LB Adrian Hubbard
- DT Kamal Johnson
- DB Antoine Lewis
- DB B.J. Lowery
- DB Mike McMillan
- DB Jeromy Miles
- LB Kevin Snyder
- DB Schon Thomas
- DB Tyrequek Zimmerman
- In addition to receiver Danario Alexander, the Bears worked out quarterback Zac Dysert, wideouts Issac Blakeney, Miles Gooch, Jeremy Kelley and J.J. Worton, and running back Trey Millard (Twitter links via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune).
- The Texans worked out linebackers Eric Martin and Tony Washington, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter).
- The Colts auditioned wideout DeAndre Carter, defensive tackle Ricky Lumpkin, and running back LaDarius Perkins and Daryl Richardson, Wilson tweets.
- The Jaguars worked out linebackers Jo-Lonn Dunbar, Mike Mohamed and Sean Porter, and running backs Jerome Smith and Jahwan Edwards (Twitter links via Wilson and Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union)
- The Packers worked out running backs Bronson HIll and Ross Scheuerman (Twitter link via Wilson).
- The Jets tried out linebacker Glenn Carson, offensive tackle Sean Hickey, tight end Marcel Jensen, guard Cole Manhardt and defensive back Robert Nelson, ESPN’s Rich Cimini reports (on Twitter).
- The Giants worked out long snappers Andrew East and Tyler Ott before signing Danny Aiken, per Howard Balzer (Twitter link).
Workout Notes: Raiders, Colts, Packers
Today’s workouts from around the league:
- The Raiders worked out linebacker Emmanuel Acho, safety Stevie Brown, safety Chris Clemons, defensive back Chris Hackett, defensive end/outside linebacker Adrian Hubbard, and linebacker Colton Underwood, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter).
- The Colts worked out tight end Cameron Clear, cornerbacks Jeremy Harris and Corey White, and safety Chris Hackett last week, Wilson tweets.
- The Packers worked out wide receiver Ify Umodu, quarterback Matt Behrendt, cornerback Brandon McGee, wide receiver Denarius Moore, and wide receiver Larry Pinkard, Wilson tweets.
- The Bengals worked out defensive backs Brandon Ghee, Robert McClain, and Corey White, Wilson tweets.
- The Chiefs worked out linebackers Thomas Keiser and Andy Studebaker, Wilson tweets.
- The Lions worked out former Falcons linebacker Joplo Bartu, Wilson tweets.
- The Broncos worked out offensive lineman Isaiah Shelton last week, Wilson tweets.
- The Browns worked out safety Sean Baker and linebacker Colton Underwood last week, Wilson tweets.
- The Jets auditioned linebacker Ryan Mueller last week, Wilson tweets.
- Washington worked out defensive back Al Louis-Jean, Wilson tweets.
- The Jaguars worked out defensive back Brandon McGee, according to Wilson (on Twitter).
West Notes: Jenkins, 49ers, Chargers
After suggesting earlier in the season that he’d likely play out the final year of his rookie contract without a new extension in place, Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins confirmed as much this week, according to Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com. As Jenkins explains, once the team’s bye week passed without an agreement, he made the decision to shelve contract discussions.
“They knew what was going on,” Jenkins said. “I told them anything after the bye week, I ain’t listening, I don’t want to hear it. I want to focus on football. The bye week is gone, so I just want to play football.”
As Jenkins continues to improve his free agent stock with an impressive season, let’s check out a few more notes from around the NFL’s West divisions….
- Following up on an earlier report about a heated players-only meeting, Kyle McLorg of BayAreaSportsGuy.com identified 49ers tight end Vernon Davis as the player who called out quarterback Colin Kaepernick during that meeting, while offensive tackle Joe Staley stepped up to defend the QB.
- The 49ers have failed Kaepernick more than he has failed the team, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, who points out that other teams have performed well despite getting subpar quarterback play. Barrows also notes that the Niners haven’t made good on the promise they made to Kaepernick when he signed his deal, about using their cap flexibility to lock up key players to extensions.
- The Chargers took a look at a pair of free agent safeties this week, working out former Giants safety Stevie Brown, along with Brandian Ross, per Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (Twitter link).
- Speaking to Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com, NFL executive Eric Grubman confirmed that the league feels the city of San Diego has made some progress on a stadium proposal. Whether or not that progress is enough to save the Chargers remains to be seen — as Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets, the league’s Los Angeles committee will meet on November 11-12 in New York to discuss relocation, and we’re moving closer and closer to possible resolution.
Workout Notes: 9/23/15
Teams around the NFL are bringing in players for workouts, surveying the free agent landscape for possible practice squad additions or 53-man roster players, either for the near future or down the road. Here are a few of the latest auditions from across the league, via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (all links go to Twitter):
AFC:
- Former Broncos cornerback Tony Carter had a workout with the Ravens, who have liked him for a while. Of course, up until very recently, Carter was under contract with Denver.
- In addition to Matt Huffer, whose workout was reported yesterday, offensive linemen Kevin Graf, Antonio Johnson, and Travis Bond, along with defensive ends Matt Conrath and Xzavier Dickson, were among the players who auditioned for the Broncos this week.
- We already heard that the Jets brought in multiple receivers this week for workouts, and we can add a few more names to that list: DaVaris Daniels, Titus Davis, and Josh Lenz got a look from New York.
- It was a linebacker-heavy workout group this week in Jacksonville, as the Jaguars auditioned Jeff Luc, Alex Singleton, and Jordan Tripp, in addition to Jayson DiManche, whose workout was previously reported.
- We can add tight end Nick Kasa, guard Joe Looney, wide receiver Marcus Lucas, ex-Niners tackle Sean Hooey, and former Titans tackle Byron Stingily to the list of players who tried out for the Dolphins this week. We learned yesterday that tight end Adrien Robinson also visited the team.
- The lengthy roster of players who auditioned this week for the Titans: cornerbacks Robert McClain, Robert Steeples, Shaun Prater, and Carrington Byndom; safeties Jean Fanor and Robert Lester; and wide receiver Nick Toon.
NFC:
- The Panthers brought in several defensive backs for tryouts, taking a look at Richard Crawford, Ras-I Dowling, and Tajh Hasson.
- Wide receiver Deonte Thompson turned an audition with the Bears into a practice squad spot this week, but he wasn’t the only player to work out for the team. The club also brought in wide receiver DeVier Posey, quarterback Alex Tanney, and QB Justin Worley.
- The Lions were eyeing veteran defensive backs this week, with ex-Giants safety Stevie Brown, longtime Panthers safety Charles Godfrey, and former Raiders DB Brandian Ross all coming in for auditions. The club also worked out tight end Mickey Shuler.
- Defensive tackle Deandre Coleman, cut from the Dolphins’ practice squad last week, and former Broncos defensive end Quanterus Smith both worked out for the Seahawks this week.
- After being removed from the Patriots’ injured reserve list last week, wide receiver Jonathan Krause tried out for the Eagles.
- Washington auditioned two linebackers who hit the open market within the last few weeks, bringing in ex-Bengal Nico Johnson and former Seahawk Alex Singleton. It’s been a busy week for Singleton, who also worked out for the Jaguars, as noted above.
- The Packers took a look this week at tight end Blake Annen, defensive tackle Justin Hamilton, CFL linebacker Henoc Muamba, and linebacker Josh Shirley.
Extra Points: Pats, Cofield, Raiders, Solomon
Another DeflateGate loose end was tied off earlier today, when the NFL announced that Patriots employees John Jastremski and Jim McNally have been reinstated from their suspensions. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links) notes, the NFL said the Pats “satisfied the league’s requirements” for the staffers’ returns, but Jastremski is prohibited from handling footballs and McNally is barred from handling equipment going forward.
Here’s more from around the NFL:
- Defensive tackle Barry Cofield, viewed by many NFL people as the best defensive free agent available, will likely sign with a contending team in October when he recovers from hip surgery, says Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link). Cole cites the Colts and Packers as a couple teams that would interest Cofield and that may have a need on the defensive line.
- The Raiders did not come close to signing safety Stevie Brown this week even though there’s a clear need at the position, Bill Williamson of ESPN.com writes.
- Browns outside linebacker Scott Solomon will miss four to six weeks with an ankle injury suffered early in the season opener, a source told ESPN’s Adam Caplan. The Browns had high hopes for Solomon, who made his mark after being signed to the practice squad in November. Cleveland will likely add an outside linebacker to replenish its depth.
- Eric Grubman, the NFL’s point man on Los Angeles, said this week that San Diego and St. Louis reps won’t get the opportunity to make presentations on their stadium plans at the league’s October owner meetings, according to Bernie Wilson of The Associated Press. Grubman suggested that another time and place would allow for a more in-depth presentation, since there’s already a “full agenda” for next month’s meetings.
- As Howard Belzer of The SportsXchange tweets, many NFL team owners want to have serious discussions at those October meetings about Roger Goodell’s disciplinary power, which is one reason why there isn’t room for stadium presentations. Steelers president Art Rooney II indicated this week that “informal discussions” on that issue have already begun, per Mark Maske of the Washington Post.
Zach Links contributed to this post.