NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/25/21
Here are today’s practice squad decisions:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: RB Nate McCrary
Denver Broncos
- Released: LB Pita Taumoepenu
Detroit Lions
- Signed: LS Beau Brinkley, P Lachlan Edwards
- Released: WR Javon McKinley, TE Jared Pinkney
New England Patriots
- Released: G Jake Eldrenkamp
Seattle Seahawks
- Released: TE Michael Jacobson
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/25/21
The weekly Saturday bunch of minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Promoted: WR Juwan Green
Baltimore Ravens
- Promoted: LB Josh Bynes, DL Reginald McKenzie, CB Kevon Seymour, T Andre Smith
Chicago Bears
- Promoted: DL Margus Hunt
Cincinnati Bengals
- Promoted: S Sean Davis
Cleveland Browns
- Promoted: TE Jordan Franks
Detroit Lions
- Promoted: K Ryan Santoso
- Placed on IR: DE Kevin Strong
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted: WR DeMichael Harris, QB Brett Hundley
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted: WR Phillip Dorsett
Las Vegas Raiders
- Promoted: RB Trey Ragas
Los Angeles Chargers
- Promoted: OLB Emeke Egbule, DL Joe Gaziano
Los Angeles Rams
- Promoted: DB Tyler Hall, RB Buddy Howell
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted: RB Ameer Abdullah, G Dakota Dozier, CB Parry Nickerson
- Waived: T Blake Brandel
New England Patriots
- Promoted: LB Jahlani Tavai
New York Giants
- Promoted: WR C.J. Board, C Jonotthan Harrison
- Placed on IR: LB Cam Brown
New York Jets
- Promoted: OL Isaiah Williams
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: DL Kevin Givens
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: DT Robert Nkemdiche, WR Cody Thompson
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Promoted: CB Rashard Robinson, TE Deon Yelder
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted: FB Tory Carter, DL Woodrow Hamilton
Richard Sherman Reunion Remains On Seahawks’ Radar
After several weeks off the grid, Richard Sherman has now been connected to three teams since his July arrest. The former All-Pro cornerback has spoken with the Buccaneers and 49ers, and Albert Breer of SI.com notes a Seahawks reunion remains on the table.
The Seahawks and Sherman had discussions this offseason, and the 10-year veteran was open to returning to the team. But nothing materialized. Sherman’s subsequent arrest, which produced five misdemeanor charges, paused his free agency bid. Although two of the five charges he is facing were said to include a “domestic violence element,” police say that Sherman never physically assaulted anyone. Momentum continues to build for Sherman to latch on with a team and play an 11th season.
Sherman, 33, is aiming toward playing this season, per Breer, who adds the Seahawks recently reached out to him. This creates an interesting in-season pursuit, with the 49ers and Sherman also engaging in dialogue recently.
While no deal is imminent between Sherman and the Bucs, the defending Super Bowl champions have done well to stock their roster with high-end veteran starters since acquiring Tom Brady. Should Sherman sign with Tampa Bay, he would make five All-Decade performers — along with Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Antonio Brown and Ndamukong Suh — to join the team in the past 18 months.
As for the Seahawks, they have been in need at corner for a while. After letting Shaquill Griffin walk in free agency, the Seahawks traded UFA addition Ahkello Witherspoon to the Steelers. Interestingly, Sherman helped steer Witherspoon, his former 49ers teammate, to Seattle. The Seahawks are using fellow ex-49er D.J. Reed and Tre Flowers as their boundary starters. The 49ers may possess a greater need, with Jason Verrett out for the year. This could set up an unusual early-season bidding war.
Seattle made Sherman a cap casualty in 2018, leading him to San Francisco. After an unremarkable 2018, Sherman re-emerged and earned second-team All-Pro acclaim while helping the 49ers to a Super Bowl. A calf injury kept Sherman out of 11 games last season, but the accomplished cover man is believed to have slimmed down to his Seahawks-years playing weight of around 195 pounds. A suspension may come down this season, or possibly be tabled until 2022, but Sherman could well be on his way to playing a key role in a loaded NFC West race.
Seahawks Add TE Jace Sternberger To PS
Unclaimed on waivers, Jace Sternberger will nevertheless receive another opportunity shortly after his Packers exit. The Seahawks are signing the young tight end to a practice squad deal, according to his agency (on Twitter).
The Packers cut the 2019 third-round pick Tuesday. He will be the second recent mid-round pick to catch on with the Seahawks’ practice squad, following ex-Raiders fourth-round linebacker Tanner Muse.
Sternberger received a two-game suspension to start the season, and Green Bay opted not to activate him ahead of Week 3. The Packers did save one of their two IR-return spots for Sternberger in 2019, when teams had just two such transactions at their disposals, but not much has materialized statistically for the Texas A&M product. Sternberger has just 12 receptions for 114 yards and a touchdown — all in 2020 — in his career.
The 6-foot-4 tight end posted a strong college season to land on the draft radar, catching 48 passes for 832 yards and 10 touchdowns in his lone season with the Aggies. Prior to transferring to College Station and earning All-America acclaim, Sternberger played at Kansas and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. He will relocate again in hopes of igniting a stalled NFL career.
The Seahawks have three tight ends — Gerald Everett, Will Dissly and second-year UDFA Tyler Mabry — on their active roster, and Colby Parkinson resides on IR rehabbing his second significant foot injury. The team tried multiple ex-college basketball players as P-squad tight ends this offseason, but neither lasted long. Sternberger does have basketball experience, perhaps appealing to the Seahawks, but none of it came in college.
Seahawks Worked Out DT Brandon Dunn
The Seahawks worked out a former Texans starter today. The team had defensive tackle Brandon Dunn in for a tryout, reports Aaron Wilson (via Twitter).
Dunn had spent the majority of his career in Houston, starting 37 games for the organization. The defensive lineman actually started a career-high 13 games in 2020, finishing with 26 tackles, three sacks, and one fumble recovery. He inked a three-year, $12MM extension with the team in February of 2020, but he ended up getting cut by the team before the end of the 2021 preseason.
Bryan Mone has been sidelined with an elbow injury, so the team could be looking for some extra reinforcement at defensive tackle. The team had to elevate Robert Nkemdiche from the practice squad for Sunday’s game against the Titans, and the fill-in ended up collecting seven tackles while playing on 41 percent of his team’s defensive snaps.
Dunn wasn’t the only player working out for the Seahawks today. Wilson tweets that defensive tackle Andrew Brown and wide receivers Lawrence Cager and Anthony Johnson also auditioned for Seattle.
Seahawks Elevate DT Robert Nkemdiche
Robert Nkemdiche is on track to play in a regular-season game for the first time since November 2019. The Seahawks elevated the veteran defensive lineman from their practice squad Saturday.
The former first-round pick ended up with the Seahawks in April, ending a lengthy stay out of football. Nkemdiche was not with a team in 2020, with the Dolphins having released him in November 2019 after just two games.
A groin injury halted Nkemdiche’s progress in training camp and forced him to miss the Seahawks’ preseason slate. The Seahawks released the Ole Miss alum on cutdown day but re-signed him on a practice squad deal soon after. Evidently, the former Cardinals interior D-lineman has recovered from the groin issue. Nkemdiche will join a Seahawks D-line that fared well in Week 1, a 28-16 road win in which the reassembled front put frequent pressure on Carson Wentz.
The Cardinals cut bait on Nkemdiche in 2019, weeks after he showed up to training camp out of shape. Nkemdiche suffered a torn ACL in 2018 but had not stood out prior to the injury. The former No. 1 recruit in college football has just six career starts and 4.5 sacks — all coming in 2018 — but may well have the opportunity to see game action again and do so on his 27th birthday.
Seahawks Place Ethan Pocic On IR
The Seahawks have placed center Ethan Pocic on the injured reserve list. His spot will be filled by the promotion of linebacker Jon Rhattigan from the 16-man practice squad.
[RELATED: Raiders Poach OL Jordan Simmons From Seahawks]
Pocic left the season opener with a knee sprain, ending his day after just 14 snaps. Kyle Fuller, his mid-game replacement, figures to start in the middle when the Seahawks face the Titans this week.
A former second-round pick, Pocic has seen action at both guard and center as a pro. He opened the 2019 season as a Seattle starter but saw a back injury derail his season. The veteran blocker bounced back in 2020 and re-upped with the team to stay in 2021.
Last year, Pocic started in 14 games at center for a career high 932 snaps. He also notched an improved 62.4 grade from Pro Football Focus, the best of his career.
Raiders Sign OL Jordan Simmons
The Raiders will sign offensive lineman Jordan Simmons off of the Seahawks’ practice squad (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). The deal should become official later today, once Simmons clears his physical.
Simmons started his career with the Raiders in 2017 as a UDFA. The USC product spent the entire year on the practice squad before being waived the following August. The Seahawks picked him up in 2018 and deployed him in six games (three starts). He missed all of ’19 due to injury, but bounced back last year for 14 games, including six starts.
Simmons will help fill in for guard Denzelle Good, who will spend the remainder of the year on IR. He’ll join John Simpson as a supporting guard, though one of the two could start if Richie Incognito‘s calf doesn’t help up in time for Week 2. Simpson might have the edge in that case, since he got the call in Week 1.
“He’s gotten a lot of experience and reps because of Richie’s injury,” offensive coordinator Greg Olson said before Monday’s contest (via ESPN.com). “So, we feel comfortable there. And again, we talked about the depth that we have in the inside and he provided us with great depth and now he provides us with a starter.”
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/15/21
We’ll keep track of today’s taxi squad moves here:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: CB Kevon Seymour, OT Andre Smith
Chicago Bears
- Signed: OL Alex Taylor
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: S Sean Davis (story)
Houston Texans
- Signed: DB Grayland Arnold
- Released: DB Antonio Phillips
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: CB Chris Wilcox
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: WR Maurice Ffrench
- Placed on IR: WR Joe Reed
Las Vegas Raiders
- Released: CB Madre Harper
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DB Jordan Miller, C Austin Reiter
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR De’Quan Hampton, TE Michael Jacobson, WR Connor Wedington
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/14/21
Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Released from IR via injury settlement: CB Donnie Lewis
Detroit Lions
- Waived: G Tommy Kraemer
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed off Bears practice squad: DT Damion Square
New Orleans Saints
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Michael Thomas; Thomas tested positive for COVID-19
- Signed: DL Montravius Adams, S Jeff Heath
- Waived: FB Adam Prentice
New York Jets
- Placed on IR: LB Blake Cashman, DB Lamarcus Joyner (story), P Braden Mann
- Signed: OL Isaiah Williams, S Jarrod Wilson
Philadelphia Eagles
- Released from IR via injury settlement: S Obi Melifonwu
San Francisco 49ers
- Promoted: CB Dontae Johnson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: LB Jon Rhattigan
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Released from IR via injury settlement: OL Earl Watford
Washington Football Team
- Promoted: LB Jared Norris