Minor NFL Transactions: 12/11/21
Here is how teams finalized their Week 14 rosters:
Atlanta Falcons
- Activated from IR: TE Hayden Hurst
- Promoted: RB Qadree Ollison, S Shawn Williams
- Waived: RB Wayne Gallman
Baltimore Ravens
- Promoted: CB Robert Jackson, T David Sharpe
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from IR: G Jon Feliciano
- Promoted: DE Eli Ankou, DT Brandin Bryant, LB Joe Giles-Harris
Carolina Panthers
- Activated from IR: T Cameron Erving
- Promoted: RB Reggie Bonnafon, LB Frankie Luvu, OL Patrick Omameh
Chicago Bears
- Promoted: LB Charles Snowden
Cincinnati Bengals
- Promoted: LB Austin Calitro, LB Keandre Jones
Cleveland Browns
- Activated from IR: LB Jacob Phillips
- Promoted: DB Herb Miller, DB Jovante Moffatt, WR JoJo Natson
- Waived: WR Ja’Marcus Bradley
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted: TE Ian Bunting, RB JaQuan Hardy, S Darian Thompson
- Waived: DT Justin Hamilton
Denver Broncos
- Activated from IR: LB Micah Kiser, CB Michael Ojemudia
Detroit Lions
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Mark Gilbert, CB Ifeatu Melifonwu
- Promoted: CB Corey Ballentine, LB Curtis Bolton, DE Bruce Hector, CB Parnell Motley, RB Craig Reynolds, CB Nickell Robey-Coleman, RB Rodney Smith, TE Shane Zylstra
Houston Texans
- Promoted: DB Grayland Arnold, WR Phillip Dorsett, DL Chris Smith
Kansas City Chiefs
- Promoted: DB Dicaprio Bootle, DB Josh Jackson
- Placed on IR: DB Chris Lammons
Los Angeles Chargers
- Placed on IR: LB Kyler Fackrell
- Promoted: DB Ben DeLuca, LB Emeke Egbule, WR Jason Moore
Miami Dolphins
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Salvon Ahmed
New Orleans Saints
- Activated from IR: DB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson
- Promoted: G James Carpenter, LB Chase Hansen, WR Kevin White, WR Easop Winston, TE Ethan Wolf
New York Giants
- Promoted: WR Pharoh Cooper, DB Jarren Williams
New York Jets
- Activated from IR: CB Brandin Echols
- Promoted: DE Ronald Blair, TE Dan Brown, WR D.J. Montgomery, WR Vyncint Smith
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: RB Trenton Cannon, CB Emmanuel Moseley
- Promoted: WR River Cracraft, RB Brian Hill, CB Saivion Smith, S Jarrod Wilson
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: LB Edmond Robinson
Tennessee Titans
- Activated from IR: S Dane Cruikshank, WR Racey McMath
- Placed on IR: TE Tommy Hudson; this is Hudson’s second IR trip, ending his season
- Promoted: WR Cody Hollister, DL Kevin Strong
- Waived: S Brady Breeze
Washington Football Team
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Darryl Roberts, DE James Smith-Williams
- Placed on IR: G Wes Schweitzer
- Promoted: DE William Bradley-King, LB De’Jon Harris, S Jeremy Reaves, C Jon Toth
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/10/21
Here are Friday’s minor moves:
Denver Broncos
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Mike Boone, S P.J. Locke
Detroit Lions
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: S Tracy Walker, RB Jamaal Williams
Green Bay Packers
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: LB De’Vondre Campbell
Kansas City Chiefs
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Joe Fortson
Miami Dolphins
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Myles Gaskin
New York Jets
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Jeff Smith
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: CB Gavin Heslop
- Placed on IR: S Jamal Adams (story)
Washington Football Team
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Khaleke Hudson
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/8/21
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: TE Parker Hesse
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: RB Ito Smith
Houston Texans
- Signed: DB Cre’von LeBlanc
- Released: WR Damon Hazelton
Los Angeles Rams
- Released: WR JJ Koski
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: LB Will Compton
- Released: S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: OL James Carpenter, OL Jerald Hawkins
New York Giants
- Signed: WR Travis Toivonen
New York Jets
- Signed: S Elijah Benton
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: P Drue Chrisman, LS Rex Sunahara
- Released: DB Linden Stephens, WR Tyler Vaughns
San Francisco 49ers
- Released: S Tony Jefferson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: NT Niles Scott
Seahawks’ Jamal Adams Done For Season
Less than a year after undergoing surgery to repair a torn shoulder labrum, Jamal Adams is set for a similar rehab odyssey in 2022. The Seahawks safety is out for the season after his second major left shoulder injury in 11 months, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
In addition to another labrum tear, Adams sustained significant damage in that left shoulder during Seattle’s Week 13 win over San Francisco. He will undergo surgery Thursday, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times tweets, noting that the fifth-year veteran considered a non-surgical route this week before opting to go under the knife. While the high-priced defender is expected to recover fully by the start of next season, this certainly marks another blow for a Seahawks slate that has skidded off track.
Adams went down during the second quarter of the Seahawks’ 30-23 win. Fourth-year UDFA Ryan Neal replaced him and will be in line to do so again when the Seahawks face the Texans this week. Adams had not missed a game this season.
The Seahawks gave the former Jets top-10 pick a four-year, $70MM extension this summer. He has not been used to rush the passer in the same capacity he was in the recent past. After setting a safety record with 9.5 sacks in 2020, Adams will finish his second Seahawks season with zero. He did record multiple interceptions for the first time in his career, grabbing two, and made 87 tackles in 12 games this year.
Adams’ absence stands to weaken a Seahawks defense and potentially impact the Jets’ 2022 draft. The teams’ summer 2020 trade sent Seattle’s first-round picks in 2021 and ’22 to New York. While the Seahawks are not yet out of the running for a wild-card spot, their pick could end up in the top 10 for the first time since 2010.
NFC Notes: Buccaneers, Darnold, Cowboys
Imagine a loaded Buccaneers offense with…Jonathan Taylor at running back. It could have been a possibility, as the Buccaneers had their eye on the Wisconsin product during the 2020 draft, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The Bucs were armed with the No. 14 heading into that draft, and Taylor was on the “short list” of players the organization was considering with that selection. The team ended up with their preferred prospect, offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs, and they traded up to No. 13 to make sure they got the lineman. However, if Wirfs was off the board at that point in the draft, then Tampa Bay likely would have pivoted to Taylor, who didn’t hear his name come off the board until midway through the second round.
“I loved him,” Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians said recently (via Schefter). “He could do it all, and it was just a matter of time — playing behind that offensive line — that he was going to be the force that he is.”
Taylor has obviously had a standout season with the Colts, leading the league with 1,348 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns (naturally, he’s also leading the NFL with 1,684 yards from scrimmage and 18 total scores). Of course, things have worked out fine for the Buccaneers. Wirfs has started all 28 of his career games, while the duo of Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones were more than capable during Tampa Bay’s 2020 Super Bowl run.
Some more notes out of the NFC…
- Sam Darnold seems to be out of the picture in Carolina, but the Panthers still owe the quarterback $18.8MM in guaranteed money in 2022. The team already paid Denver $7MM to inherit Teddy Bridgewater, leaving the organization with $17MM in dead cap. As a result, Joseph Person of The Athletic believes Darnold will stick around as a high-priced backup vs. being involved in a salary dump. Person specifically cites a 2017 trade where the Texans attached a second-round pick to Brock Osweiler to dump his salary on Cleveland; league sources tell the reporter that “an Osweiler-type trade involving Darnold is unlikely.”
- Cowboys senior defensive assistant George Edwards is a candidate for the head coaching job at his alma mater, Duke University, reports NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (via Twitter). Edwards was a four-year player for Duke, and he served as an assistant on the Duke staff way back in 1996. He’s had a long coaching career since that time, including a recent six-year stint as the Vikings defensive coordinator. Edwards has been a senior defensive assistant with the Cowboys since 2020. Duke parted ways with David Cutcliffe last month.
- Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com recently tweeted the 10 highest salary cap hits for 2022, and the top three spots all belong to the NFC. Falcons QB Matt Ryan and his $48.7MM cap hit leads the way, following by Packers QB Aaron Rodgers at $46.1MM and Vikings QB Kirk Cousins at $45MM. Other NFC players on the list include Seahawks QB Russell Wilson (sixth, $37MM), Cowboys QB Dak Prescott (ninth, $34.5MM), and Lions QB Jared Goff (10th, $31.2MM).
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/7/21
Today’s taxi squad moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: DB Cornell Armstrong
- Released: CB Chris Williamson, OT Rick Leonard
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: RB Jacques Patrick
- Released: WR Matt Cole
Chicago Bears
- Signed: FB Ben Mason
- Released: LB Rashad Smith
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: TE Ross Travis
Denver Broncos
- Signed: WR/KR Tyrie Cleveland
Green Bay Packers
- Promoted: QB Kurt Benkert
New York Giants
- Signed: QB Clayton Thorson
New York Jets
- Signed: K Matt Amendola, WR Tarik Black
- Released: WR Keelan Doss
Seattle Seahawks
- Released: DB Elijah Benton
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: LS Garrison Sanborn
Seahawks Owner Jody Allen Concerned With Team’s Performance
The Seahawks find themselves at 3-8 and at the bottom of the NFC West, and unless they run the table, they will post a losing record for the first time in the Russell Wilson era. As Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reports, owner Jody Allen does not consider the disappointing 2021 campaign — which saw Wilson miss games for the first time in his career — as a one-year blip (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk).
Allen inherited the team from her brother, Paul Allen, who passed away in October 2018. Like Paul, Jody has largely stayed in the background and has allowed head coach Pete Carroll to function as the de facto CEO. Garafolo, though, says that Allen has recently become “very involved” in the operation, which suggests that a major shakeup could be on the way.
Of course, trade rumors swirled around Wilson last offseason, and there has been speculation that the Seahawks could end up dealing their franchise signal-caller in 2022. Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus hears that if Wilson is still anxious to leave Seattle, he may not need to force his way out, as the club may be open to swinging a trade in the coming months. After all, the team is without a 2022 first-round draft choice as a result of the July 2020 Jamal Adams trade, and trading Wilson would doubtlessly yield a bounty of draft capital.
On the other hand, this year’s class of college QBs is not considered particularly strong, and Wilson’s bottom-line statistics in 2021 are consistent with his career marks. If Allen truly does believe a dramatic change is in order, then a trade might make sense, but it will be very difficult to pull that particular trigger.
The same goes for Carroll. Now 70, Carroll is signed through the 2025 season, and he said last September that he wanted to coach well into his 70s. It’s unclear if he would want to coach through a rebuild, though if the Seahawks end up trading Wilson and can find a way to adequately replace him, there may not be much (if any) rebuild to speak of. And unless Carroll wants to step away, either because of a strained relationship with ownership or some other reason, it is still hard to imagine Allen going in a different direction.
There is obviously a great deal of uncertainty here. The real story is that Allen has apparently deviated in a significant way from her own modus operandi and that of her predecessor. What that ultimately means for the Seahawks remains to be seen, but it is at least possible that significant changes could be on the way for one of the decade’s most consistent outfits.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/4/21
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Promoted: LS Beau Brinkley, RB Tavien Feaster, LB Joe Walker, LB Tahir Whitehead, CB Jace Whittaker
- Placed on IR: S James Wiggins
Atlanta Falcons
- Activated from IR: DE Steven Means
- Promoted: RB Qadree Ollison
Baltimore Ravens
- Promoted: DB Robert Jackson, RB Nate McCrary
Carolina Panthers
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Frankie Luvu
Cincinnati Bengals
- Placed on IR: WR Auden Tate
- Promoted: G Keaton Sutherland, WR Pooka Williams, RB Trayveon Williams
Denver Broncos
- Promoted: RB Damarea Crockett
- Waived: WR Tyrie Cleveland
Detroit Lions
- Promoted: LB Tavante Beckett, LB Rashod Berry, DE Bruce Hector
Houston Texans
- Activated from IR: C Justin Britt, LB Christian Kirksey
- Promoted: S Jonathan Owens, RB Jaylen Samuels, DL Chris Smith
- Waived: CB Cre’von LeBlanc
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Activated from IR: DT Jay Tufele
Las Vegas Raiders
- Promoted: TE Matt Bushman, FB Sutton Smith, WR Dillon Stoner
Los Angeles Rams
- Promoted: WR Brandon Powell, RB Mekhi Sargent
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted: RB Jake Bargas, DB Myles Dorn, DE Kenny Willekes
- Waived: DE Eddie Yarbrough
New York Giants
- Promoted: WR Pharoh Cooper, DB Steven Parker, DB Jarren Williams
New York Jets
- Signed: K Alex Kessman
- Waived: K Matt Ammendola
- Promoted: DE Ronald Blair, TE Dan Brown, RB Austin Walter
Philadelphia Eagles
- Promoted: S Jared Mayden
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Activated from IR: DL Carlos Davis
- Promoted: OL Chaz Green
San Francisco 49ers
- Promoted: LB Tyrell Adams, WR River Cracraft, LB Justin March
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: RB Adrian Peterson (story)
Tennessee Titans
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: QB Logan Woodside
Seahawks To Promote Adrian Peterson
The Seahawks are promoting Adrian Peterson from the practice squad (Twitter link via Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com). With that, Peterson is set to play against the 49ers on Sunday afternoon. 
Peterson signed with the Seahawks’ taxi squad on Wednesday, providing insurance for Seattle’s badly battered backfield. Already without starting running back Chris Carson, the Seahawks will also be without backup Rashaad Penny for a while. Travis Homer, who has performed well in a very limited sample size, remains questionable with a calf injury. That’s left Alex Collins in the lead role — he’s registered 395 yards and two touchdowns this year off of 101 totes.
Peterson, 36, has just 27 carries for 82 yards and one touchdown so far this year, from his time with the Titans. His last full-time action came in 2020 with the Lions, when he recorded 604 yards and seven rushing touchdowns with a so-so 3.9 yards per carry average.
He might not be the player he once was, but Peterson could help the Seahawks’ struggling offense move the chains in small doses. He’ll also have a chance at history — another 367 rushing yards will put him in the 15,000-yard club for RBs.
Seahawks Sign Adrian Peterson
Adrian Peterson has added another stop to his illustrious resume. The veteran running back is signing with the Seahawks, head coach Pete Carroll told reporters (via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times on Twitter). Peterson will initially join the team’s practice squad before getting elevated to the active roster. The running back worked out for the Seahawks earlier today.
The Seahawks have dealt with injuries to the running backs corps all season long. The team already lost starting running back Chris Carson for the season, and Rashaad Penny is currently dealing with an injury of his own (although Carroll told reporters that the running back may be able to play this weekend and will avoid an IR stint for now (via Condotta)). Seattle’s struggling ground game has been led by Alex Collins, who has turned 101 carries into 395 yards and two touchdowns. The team is also rostering DeeJay Dallas and Travis Homer, and they have Josh Johnson stashed on the practice squad.
While Peterson has had a Hall of Fame-worthy career, it remains to be seen if he can provide more than any of Seattle’s current options at the position. The 36-year-old saw time in three games (two starts) for the Titans this year, collecting only 90 yards and one touchdown on 31 touches (good for 2.9 yards per touch). Peterson was waived by Tennessee in late November. Peterson’s last full-time action came in 2020 with the Lions when he notched 604 yards and seven rushing touchdowns.
He’ll have an opportunity to join the 15,000-yard club for running backs, and with 367 more rushing yards, he would pass Barry Sanders for fourth all-time. His NFL career followed a standout stint at Oklahoma, and Carroll told reporters that he tried to recruit the running back while he was at USC (via Condotta).