September 2nd, 2017 at 3:47pm CST by Zachary Links
The Colts made major news on Saturday when they shipped wide receiverPhillip Dorsett to the Patriots in exchange for quarterback Jacoby Brissett. After that, they had the daunting task of bringing their bloated preseason roster down to the 53-man max in time for the deadline. Here’s the complete rundown.
October 7th, 2016 at 4:41pm CST by Connor J. Byrne
Fresh off two straight wins to even their record at 2-2, the Bills will welcome back one of their cornerstone players in time for a road game against the Rams on Sunday. The team has activated two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Marcell Dareus, whom the NFL suspended for the season’s first four games for a substance abuse violation. In corresponding moves, the Bills have placed wide receiver Greg Salas on injured reserve with a groin issue and cut guard Terran Vaughn from their practice squad.
Dareus is now coming off his second suspension in as many years, though his ban in 2015 only lasted one game. After the league handed him his latest suspension, the 26-year-old claimed it was the result of a missed drug test. Dareus also declared he’d check into rehab. Neither of those statements proved true, however, as Tim Graham of the Buffalo News reported Wednesday that Dareus did not miss a test – he instead violated the league’s drug program multiple times dating back to his one-game suspension last year. And, in lieu of rehab, Dareus received treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to Jarrett Bell of USA Today. He also sought counsel from Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive lineman Bruce Smith, the Bills’ all-time greatest defender.
Going forward, the Bills will now hope Dareus’ off-field troubles are behind him. The club signed the ex-Alabama star and 2011 third overall pick to a massive extension 13 months ago, but Dareus then had somewhat of a disappointing season as part of an underachieving defense. Dareus posted a career-low sack total last season (two) after piling up 10.5 the previous year and a combined 28.5 from 2011-14. He could now bolster a unit that ranks fourth in the league in sacks, 14th in DVOA and 16th in total defense.
Meanwhile, although Salas missed the Bills’ wins over the past two weeks, his loss is another blow to the depth of a team that’s perilously thin at receiver. With Salas and the highly talented Sammy Watkins on IR, the Bills are left withRobert Woods, Marquise Goodwin and Walter Powell as their top three options. Salas hauled in four catches for 89 yards and a touchdown over the season’s first two weeks.
Signed: CB Lloyd Carrington (Twitter link via Master Tesfatsion of The Washington Post), CB Tye Smith (Twitter link via Master Tesfatsion of The Washington Post)
In addition, the Raiders also formally placed tight end Gabe Holmes on IR.
McCaffrey, of course, is the son of former Denver wide receiver Ed McCaffrey. Max, a Duke product, turned heads when he posted a 4.46 second 40-yard dash at his pro day earlier this year.
Here are the latest minor moves from around the NFL:
After announcing 13 undrafted free agent signings earlier this week – and another one below – the Raiders have confirmed three more additions to their roster. Wide receiver Jaydon Mickens (Washington), guard Denver Kirkland (Arkansas), and guard/center Terran Vaughn (Stephen F. Austin) are the newest Raiders, according to a team release.
Earlier updates:
The Raiders announced that they have signed undrafted rookie free agent defensive end Greg Townsend Jr. from USC, as ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez writes. Townsend’s father played for the L.A. Raiders from 1983-93 and returned to Oakland in 1997. Townsend, who dealt with injury and health issues while in school, finished out his collegiate career with 6.5 sacks and 68 tackles in 33 career games (15 starts).
Fullback Toben Opurum has had a busy week — the 25-year-old was cut by New Orleans at the start of the week, was claimed off waivers by the Broncos, and now has been waived by Denver as well, due to a failed physical, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com.
The Bears announced that they have signed undrafted free agent rookie offensive lineman Adrian Bellard (Texas State), as Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle notes (via Twitter) that Bellard received a $7K signing bonus. Meanwhile, defensive back Anthony Jefferson has been placed on waivers.
Washingtonconfirmed today that the team has cut offensive tackle Joe Gore. According to Wilson (via Twitter), Gore received a failed physical designation, so it appears that the Clemson alum – signed last week as a UDFA – suffered an injury this week.
The Colts signed free agent tackle Jeremy Vujnovich and waived linebacker Anthony Sarao, Mike Chappell of CBS4 tweets. Vujnovich has spent the last two seasons on Green Bay’s practice squad.
The 49ers waived undrafted Stanford linebacker Kevin Anderson while signing Memphis linebacker Wynton McManis, Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group tweets.
The Chargers have cut offensive lineman Michael Huey, tweets Aaron Wilson. Huey will become a free agent if he goes unclaimed on waivers.
