Chargers Claim WR Jeremy Butler
The Chargers announced today that they’ve claimed wide receiver Jeremy Butler off waivers from the Jets. In order to create a roster spot, San Diego has waived fellow pass-catcher Isaiah Burse.
[RELATED: San Diego Chargers Depth Chart]
Reports last week indicated that the Chargers were open to adding a wide receiver to their roster, and while the club still may be willing to engage in trade talks, they’ve brought Butler aboard without sacrificing assets. Of course, Butler clearly isn’t a superb offensive weapon and will likely spend most of his time on special teams, but he gives San Diego some depth while it awaits the results of tests on Travis Benjamin‘s PCL injury (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com).
Butler, 25, joined the Jets this offseason following two seasons with the Ravens. The former undrafted free agent has yet to see the field in 2016, but he was relatively productive in Baltimore last season. Butler appeared in eight games in 2015, collecting 31 catches for 363 yards.
Burse, who was just promoted from the practice squad over the weekend, has 13 games of NFL experience under his belt — he played in one contest with the Chargers last season, and spent 12 games on Denver’s roster the year prior. He’s never caught an NFL pass, and has mostly contributed as a special teams player. Burse was the Broncos’ primary punt returner in 2014, averaging 7.3 yards per return on 29 chances.
Chargers Open To Trading For Wide Receiver
The Chargers are “actively scouting” the NFL and are open to dealing for wide receiver help, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. However, the club is unwilling to trade a first- or second-round pick, and an agreement appears unlikely.
RELATED: Chargers Promote WR Isaiah Burse]
San Diego was hit hard at the wide receiver position even before the season’s first week had come to a close. Keenan Allen, who agreed to a contract extension over the offseason, tore his ACL during Week 1 and is done for the year, while Stevie Johnson never played a snap after injuring his meniscus during the summer. Running back Danny Woodhead, meanwhile, had been a key factor in the Chargers’ passing attack, but also suffered a torn ACL in September.
The remaining options on the roster have stepped up in the absence of Allen, Johnson, and Woodhead, and second-year receiver Tyrell Williams has especially excelled thus far, posting 31 receptions and 526 yards through seven games. But as Acee notes, Williams has already played 12 times the snaps he saw during his rookie campaign, and is in danger of being overworked. Additionally, both he and fellow pass-catcher Travis Benjamin are battling knee injuries, while rookie tight end Hunter Henry recently suffered a concussion.
Even if the Chargers are willing to part with a mid-round pick, however, a deal is unlikely to come together, especially given that San Diego doesn’t have much cap space. With less than $2MM available, the Chargers wouldn’t be able to afford high-priced options such as Alshon Jeffery or Torrey Smith that could be available in advance of Tuesday’s trade deadline. Within his article, Acee tosses out the Jaguars’ Marqise Lee and the Panthers’ Corey Brown as potential targets, but those names appear speculative.
Chargers Promote WR Isaiah Burse
The Chargers announced today that they’ve promoted wide receiver Isaiah Burse from the practice squad in advance of Sunday’s game against the Broncos. Cornerback Pierre Desir has been waived in a corresponding move.
[RELATED: San Diego Chargers Depth Chart]
Before the addition of Burse, San Diego had only four wide receivers on its depth chart, with Tyrell Williams, Travis Benjamin, Dontrelle Inman, and Griff Whalen making up the club’s pass-catching unit. Two of those receivers are listed as questionable for Sunday’s contest, as both Williams and Benjamin are battling knee injuries. However, both players appear “on track” to play in Week 8, according to Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com.
Burse, 24, has 13 games of NFL experience under his belt — he played in one contest with the Chargers last season, and spent 12 games on Denver’s roster the year prior. He’s never caught an NFL pass, and has mostly contributed as a special teams player. Burse was the Broncos’ primary punt returner in 2014, averaging 7.3 yards per return on 29 chances.
Desir, 26, was waived by the Chargers last Saturday before being brought back into the fold the following Monday. He’s appeared in five games for San Diego this season, but has played on only 22 defensive snaps — he’s managed another 37 on special teams. With Desir out of the picture, the Chargers will head into their divisional matchup with Brandon Flowers, Casey Hayward, Craig Mager, Steve Williams, and Trevor Williams in the defensive backfield.
Practice Squad Updates: 10/26/16
Here are today’s practice squad moves.
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: OT Martin Wallace
Chicago Bears
- Signed: CB Jacoby Glenn
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: DB Darius Hillary, RB Terrence Magee, DL Gabe Wright
- Cut: RB Terrell Watson
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: C Jacob Flores
New England Patriots
- Cut: G Chase Farris
New York Jets
- Signed: C Kyle Friend, LB Reshard Cliett
- Cut: WR Myles White
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: CB Trovon Reed
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: QB Joel Stave
Chargers Audition Three
- The Chargers auditioned linebackers Beniquez Brown and James Burgess and cornerback Trovon Reed, tweets Balzer.
Chargers Place Caraun Reid On IR
- The Chargers have placed defensive lineman Caraun Reid on injured reserve and re-signed cornerback Pierre Desir, the club announced. As Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets, Reid is the 16th player San Diego has placed on IR, tops in the league.
Caraun Reid Tears ACL
- Chargers defensive end Caraun Reid tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the team’s 33-30 win over the Falcons on Sunday, per Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Amazingly, Reid is already the fifth Charger to suffer a torn ACL this season, joining receiver Keenan Allen, running back Danny Woodhead, inside linebacker Nick Dzubnar and cornerback Jason Verrett. The highlight of Reid’s season was a fumble recovery that he returned 61 yards for a touchdown in Week 3.
Chargers To Re-Sign Pierre Desir
- The Chargers will re-sign cornerback Pierre Desir, tweets Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The club waived Desir on Saturday.
Chargers Waive Pierre Desir
After claiming third-year cornerback Pierre Desir on waivers before the season started, the Chargers reverted the reserve corner back to the waiver wire, Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports (on Twitter).
The Chargers promoted edge player Chris Landrum from their practice squad, per Gehlken (on Twitter). Landrum will be filling in for the injured Jerry Attaochu.
Desir was one of three players the Bolts claimed via waivers before the season, joining Andre Williams and Caraun Reid. Only Reid now remains on the active roster after San Diego passed Williams through waivers and back onto its practice squad earlier this season. The Bolts are now carrying five corners on their 53-man roster.
A former standout in two Division II secondaries — Washburn (Kan.) and Lindenwood (Mo.) — the 26-year-old Desir may be looking for a third NFL team. The Browns, who selected the 6-foot-1 corner in the fourth round in 2014, cut Desir as they slashed their roster to 53 players before the season. Desir has played in five games for the Chargers in 2016. He started six for the Browns in 2015, making 36 tackles and deflecting five passes.
Landrum went undrafted but holds Division I-FCS Jacksonville State’s career records for sacks and tackles for loss.
NFL Owners Pushing For CBA Extension
The NFL’s collective bargaining agreement doesn’t expire until 2020, but the league’s owners are already seeking an extension. They have approached the NFL Players Association about lengthening the deal several times in recent months, sources told ESPN’s Dan Graziano. While nothing has come of those attempts yet, the owners plan to initiate discussions again soon.
Potential stadiums in Las Vegas and San Diego are among the reasons the league is pushing for a CBA extension, per Graziano, who writes that the owners want to secure funding for new facilities in those cities.
CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reported in late September that the league wanted the Raiders to avoid moving to Las Vegas, but owner Mark Davis’ relocation dreams have continued inching closer to reality since. In the latest development, the Nevada Assembly signed off Friday on $750MM in contributions from the state toward a proposed $1.9 billion stadium for the Raiders.
The Chargers, meanwhile, will have to decide by Jan. 15 whether to head to Los Angeles, though a new stadium in San Diego would keep that from happening. There hasn’t been much progress in San Diego, and La Canfora reported last month that the Chargers appear likely to join the Rams in LA.
Based on Graziano’s report, NFL owners are seemingly on board with Vegas, whose stadium project would include $500MM in funding from Davis. Nearly half of that ($200MM) would come from an NFL loan. One problem for the league is that it has already exhausted the stadium credits in the current CBA, which the owners and players agreed to in July 2011 after a four-month lockout. Now, in order for an extension to happen, the players might require the owners to make “significant concessions,” according to Graziano. It’s unclear which issues would lead the players back to the negotiating table early, however.