NFL Workout Updates: 10/16/19
Today’s NFL workout updates, all courtesy of Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle:
Baltimore Ravens
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
- OTs Ulrick John, Brian Mihalik, Austin Pasztor; DT Justin Ellis
Jacksonville Jaguars
- CB Arrion Springs; P Shane Smith
Miami Dolphins
- CBs Adonis Alexander, Andre Chachere, Picasso Nelson
New England Patriots
- FBs George Aston, Orson Charles, Ricky Ortiz.
New Orleans Saints
- RBs Travaris Cadet, Benny Cunningham, Marcus Murphy; TEs A.J. Derby, Cole Wick
San Francisco 49ers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- RB Marcus Murphy; WRs T.J. Jones, Tommylee Lewis, Eli Rogers; P Trevor Daniel
Washington Redskins
XFL Draft Day 1 Fallout
The XFL’s two-day draft began Tuesday. In addition to certain quarterbacks being assigned to teams, several notable players went off the board in the rebooting league’s selection event.
The league divided its draft into sections. Skill-position players (and other quarterbacks) went in one portion of the draft, with offensive linemen going second and then select defenders in another section. Connor Cook was the first quarterback to go in the non-allocation portion of the draft, being selected by the Houston franchise at No. 2 overall.
Here are some recent NFL skill-position players taken:
- RB Christine Michael (No. 6 overall, St. Louis)
- WR Tommylee Lewis (No. 13, Dallas)
- WR Sammie Coates (No. 18, Houston)
- RB Cameron Artis-Payne (No. 20, Dallas)
- TE Jace Amaro (No. 26, Seattle)
- WR Keenan Reynolds (No. 39, Seattle)
- RB Matt Jones (No. 54, St. Louis)
- RB Lance Dunbar (No. 61, Dallas)
- QB Tyree Jackson (No. 65, Washington)
- RB Andre Williams (No. 66, Houston)
Here are the notable offensive linemen selected in that section of the draft:
- T Isaiah Battle (No. 2, Seattle)
- T Matt McCants (No. 3, St. Louis)
- T Kyle Murphy (No. 8, Washington)
- T Cyrus Kouandjio (No. 11, New York)
Lastly, some front-seven names of note came off in that part of this event:
- LB Ben Heeney (No. 7, New York)
- LB Hau’oli Kikaha (No. 8, Dallas)
- DT Sealver Siliga (No. 9, Dallas)
- LB Terence Garvin (No. 15, St. Louis)
- DL Tenny Palepoi (No. 30, Seattle)
- DE Jacquies Smith (No. 45, Seattle)
- LB Steven Johnson (No. 46, Seattle)
For a full team-by-team breakdown, Sporting News cataloged the first parts of this event.
NFL Workout Updates: 9/10/19
We’ve got another busy day of workouts, with many teams across the league hosting players.
Arizona Cardinals
- S Briean Boddy-Calhoun; CBs Andre Chachere, De’Vante Harris
Buffalo Bills
- QBs Keller Chryst, Taylor Heinicke; WRs Tommylee Lewis, Joe Parker, Terrance Williams; CB Marcus Sherels, WR Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi
Cleveland Browns
Detroit Lions
- DEs Jesse Aniebonam, Andrew Ankrah, Markus Jones; S Josh Jones; CB Jeff Richards
Indianapolis Colts
- RBs Bruce Anderson, Darrin Hall; S Chris Banjo; DTs Earl Mitchell, Mike Pennel
Miami Dolphins
- DB Jordan Brown; Ts Christian DiLauro, Storm Norton, Chidi Okeke; CB Deatrick Nichols
New York Giants
- CBs Derrick Baity, Picasso Nelson; LBs Reshard Cliett, LaTroy Lewis; WRs Jamal Custis, Trenton Irwin; RBs Josh Ferguson, Austin Walter; DT P.J. Johnson; DEs Carroll Phillips, Kevin Wilkins; QB Jordan Ta’amu
New York Jets
- WRs Carlton Agudosi, Amara Darboh, Krishawn Hogan, Joe Horn, DeAndre Thompkins, Jordan Veasy, Kendall Wright; TEs Stephen Anderson, Donald Parham, Ross Travis; QBs Taryn Christion, Tyree Jackson, Mike White, Ks Elliott Fry, Greg Joseph, Younghoe Koo, Tristan Vizcaino
Philadelphia Eagles
Seattle Seahawks
Tennessee Titans
Washington Redskins
Contract Details: Seahawks, Lions, Thorpe
A look at the details on recent deals from around the NFL:
- Neiko Thorpe, DB (Seahawks): One-year, $1MM. $100K signing bonus $850K base (not guaranteed) (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson).
- Tommylee Lewis, WR, (Lions): One-year, $720K base salary. $50K signing bonus. $920K cap hit (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Michael Rothstein).
- Logan Thomas, TE, (Lions): One-year, $805K base salary. $30K signing bonus. $735K cap hit.
- Andrew Donnal, OL, (Lions): One-year, $805K base salary. $15K signing bonus. $685K cap hit.
- Marcus Cooper, CB (Lions): One-year, $805K base salary. $150K guaranteed. $735K cap hit.
Lions Sign WR Tommylee Lewis
The Lions have signed wide receiver Tommylee Lewis, per a club announcement. The former Saints receiver visited the Lions late last week and, days later, they’ve inked a deal. 
Lewis was non-tendered by the Saints earlier this month, making him an unrestricted free agent. The 26-year-old has 20 career receptions, but he’s spent the majority of his three-year career on special teams. Lewis averaged 22 yards on kick returns and 9.3 yards on punt returns during his stint in New Orleans.
The Lions recently added one potential returner in Danny Amendola, and they’re also rostering Jamal Agnew, who had 40 combined returns for Detroit in 2018. We’re still awaiting terms of the deal, but it sounds like Lewis may have to compete for his place on the team.
Lewis also met with the Jets before inking his deal with Detroit.
Lions To Host RB Malcolm Brown, WR/KR Tommylee Lewis
The Lions are hosting a pair of offensive players on visits. Ben Volin of the Boston Globe reports (via Twitter) that wideout/returner Tommylee Lewis and running back Malcolm Brown will be visiting Detroit.
Brown was tendered by the Rams earlier this week. As a former undrafted free agent, the Lions wouldn’t be required to give up any compensation for signing the running back. The 25-year-old has spent his entire four-year career with the Rams organization, and he’s spent the better part of the past two seasons serving as the top backup to Todd Gurley. In 2018, Brown ran for 212 yards on 43 carries, good for a career-high 4.9-yard average. His season ended on the injured reserve, leading to the team’s signing of veteran C.J. Anderson.
In Detroit, Brown would likely slide into a depth chart that’s currently led by Kerryon Johnson, Theo Riddick, and Zach Zenner. The team has also added a pair of running backs in Kerwynn Williams and Mark Thompson.
Lewis was non-tendered by the Saints the other day. The 26-year-old does have 20 career receptions, but he’s spent the majority of his three-year career on special teams. Lewis averaged 22 yards on kick returns and 9.3 yards on punt returns during his stint in New Orleans. The Lions recently added one potential returner in Danny Amendola, and they’re also rostering Jamal Agnew, who had 40 combined returns for Detroit in 2018.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/19
Here is the latest news involving restricted free agents and exclusive-rights free agents, with updates coming throughout the day:
ERFA
Tendered:
- Bears: DE Roy Robertson-Harris, LB Isaiah Irving, OL Rashaad Coward
- Seahawks: LB Austin Calitro, LB Emmanuel Ellerbee, C Joey Hunt, RB J.D. McKissic, CB Kalan Reed
Non-tendered:
- Bears: S DeAndre Houston-Carson (via Howard Balzer on Twitter)
- Bengals: QB Brad Kaaya (via Balzer)
- Cardinals: LB Gabe Martin, DE Zach Moore, C Daniel Munyer (via Balzer)
- Chiefs: TE Alex Ellis (via Balzer)
- Colts: S Ronald Martin (via Balzer)
- Falcons: WR Marvin Hall (via Balzer)
- Giants: DT Kristjan Sokoli (via Balzer)
- Patriots: WR Cody Hollister (Twitter link via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com)
- Raiders: CB Tevin Mitchel (via Balzer)
- Rams: LB Garrett Sickels (via Balzer)
- Ravens: OT Steven Moore (via Balzer)
- Saints: DB Rickey Jefferson (per NOLA.com’s Josh Katzenstein, on Twitter)
- Seahawks: DE Ricky Ali’ifua, DB T.J. Green, RB Tre Madden, DB T.J. Mutcherson
- Steelers: T Joseph Cheek, S Malik Golden, LB Keith Kelsey, TE Jake McGee (via Balzer)
- Vikings: OT Cedrick Lang, TE Josiah Price (via Balzer)
RFA
Tendered at second-round level:
- Seahawks: T George Fant (per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times, on Twitter)
Tendered at original-round level:
- Chiefs: S Jordan Lucas
- Saints: CB Ken Crawley (Twitter link via Nick Underhill of The New Orleans Advocate)
- Seahawks: DL Quinton Jefferson (via Tom Pelissero of NFL.com, on Twitter)
Non-tendered:
- Bears: LS Patrick Scales (via Balzer)
- Bengals: TE Matt Lengel (via Balzer)
- Bills: TE Logan Thomas (via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com, on Twitter)
- Broncos: QB Kevin Hogan, LB Deiontrez Mount, WR Jordan Taylor (via Balzer)
- Browns: CB Juston Burris, TE Orson Charles (via Balzer)
- Buccaneers: TE Alan Cross, CB Javien Elliott, T Leonard Wester (via Balzer)
- Cardinals: LB Jeremy Cash, OT John Wetzel (via Balzer)
- Chiefs: LB Terrance Smith (via Balzer)
- Dolphins: WR Leonte Carroo (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald)
- 49ers: S Tyvis Powell (via Balzer)
- Jaguars: OG Chris Reed (via Balzer)
- Jets: DT Destiny Vaeao (via Balzer)
- Panthers: WR Damiere Byrd (via Balzer)
- Raiders: DE Shilique Calhoun (via Balzer)
- Redskins: WR Maurice Harris (per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com, on Twitter), RB Rob Kelley (via Balzer)
- Saints: WR Tommylee Lewis (via Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com, on Twitter)
Saints Deciding Between Ted Ginn, Josh LeRibeus For IR-Return Spot?
The Saints could make a high- or low-profile IR-return move in the coming days. Both Ted Ginn and offensive lineman Josh LeRibeus remain candidates to return from IR this season, Sean Payton said.
“Rehab is going well. It’s still an option,” Payton said of a return from one of these players (via Fox 8 Live). “Both he (Ginn) and LeRibeus, I would say are on schedule. … I’m encouraged by how both of those guys are doing.”
Only one of these players can return this season. The Saints used one of their IR-boomerang slots on wideout/specialist Tommylee Lewis.
This decision presumably hinges on how Ginn’s recovery looks, with the starting wide receiver a once-integral part of New Orleans’ aerial attack. Ginn underwent surgery in October and is eligible to return from IR this week. But with the 33-year-old deep threat having yet to practice since the IR designation, it’s unlikely he’d be ready to go for Week 15 against the Panthers — even if the Saints use the IR-return spot on him this week.
New Orleans has featured a rotating cast of Michael Thomas sidekicks this season, with rookie Tre’Quan Smith being the most frequent complementary piece deployed. Ginn caught nine passes for 123 yards in the Saints’ first two games and recorded 787 receiving yards last season.
LeRibeus filled in as a spot starter up front in three games this season. He played in 16 Saints games in 2017. The 29-year-old lineman also is recovering from an ankle injury and would seemingly be the backup plan in case Ginn cannot come back.
Saints To Activate WR Tommylee Lewis
The 9-1 Saints will soon receive more help. They are activating wide receiver Tommylee Lewis, their primary return man, from IR, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
New Orleans will waive offensive lineman Chaz Green to make room. Lewis was designated as an IR-return player earlier this month. He has not played since Week 2 due to a knee injury.
Lewis served as the Saints’ kick- and punt-return specialist from 2016-17, primarily working as a kick returner. With the Saints waiving Green, whom they recently signed, it appears they’ll be going with a six-wideout group entering their Week 12 matchup with the Falcons.
New Orleans lost Dez Bryant days after signing him but added Brandon Marshall and Keith Kirkwood and are now bringing back Lewis. So, New Orleans is now much deeper at wideout than it was two weeks ago.
A former UDFA out of Northern Illinois, Lewis caught 10 passes for 116 yards last season. The Saints have used third-string quarterback-turned-gadget dynamo Taysom Hill as their primary kick returner in Lewis’ absence. Alvin Kamara has returned the bulk of the punts.
Saints Designate WR Tommylee Lewis For Return
The Saints have designated wide receiver Tommylee Lewis to return from injured reserve, according to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (Twitter link).
Lewis was placed on injured reserve on September 19 after he suffered a knee injury. NFL rules mandate a minimum eight-week absence., so Lewis won’t be able to return to game action until Week 11. Now that he’s back at practice, the Saints have a three-week window during which they must decide to active Lewis to their 53-man roster. If he’s not activated, Lewis must remain on IR for the rest of the season.
Lewis, 26, hasn’t been much of an offensive contributor in New Orleans, as he’s recorded just 17 receptions over two seasons with the Saints. But he has been a factor on special teams, serving as one of the Saints’ primary kick and punt returners over the past two years. With Lewis (and Ted Ginn Jr.) out, New Orleans has deployed running back Alvin Kamara on punts and jack-of-all-trades Taysom Hill on kicks. On a macro level, New Orleans ranks ninth in special teams DVOA.