Injury Updates: Penny, Davenport, Taylor, Brown
Rashaad Penny has struggled to stay healthy during his brief NFL career, and the Seahawks running back suffered another injury on Sunday. Penny left the game early with a calf injury, and NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweets that the 25-year-old is expected to be “shut down for a few weeks” while he recovers. An IR stint could be a possibility for the running back.
Fortunately for the Seahawks, they’re rostering a handful of capable running backs behind Chris Carson, including DeeJay Dallas, Travis Homer and Alex Collins. Head coach Pete Carroll pointed to that depth when explaining why the team would be cautious during Penny’s recovery.
“He’s got a calf strain, so it’ll take us a bit to figure out what the return would be on that,” Carroll said (via the team’s website). “He ran really well when he ran the other night, so we’re going to miss him, it looks like this week, we won’t know. We’ll let you know how that goes. But Alex is ready to go, and both Homer and DeeJay, they’re ready to go too, so we’re in good shape. We had four running backs up this week, so we’re in pretty good shape at the position. Unfortunately, if it takes him a couple weeks, then we’ll figure out how to handle that.”
Penny, a 2018 first-round pick, appeared in only 13 games between the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
Some more injury notes from around the NFL:
- Saints defensive end Marcus Davenport will be sidelined while he recovers from a pectoral strain, per Rapoport on Twitter. The pass rusher is expected to miss some time but “should be back sooner rather than later.” Following a disappointing 2020 campaign, Davenport was hoping for a bounce-back season in 2021. He was already on his way, as he compiled three tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss, and one QB hit before falling to his injury.
- Texans defensive tackle Vincent Taylor suffered an ankle injury yesterday that will require surgery, according to Mark Berman of Fox26 in Houston (via Twitter). Taylor is expected to be sidelined for six weeks. Taylor signed a one-year contract with Houston this offseason, and he started Sunday’s game before suffering the injury. The 27-year-old got into a career-high 15 games for the Browns last season, finishing with 12 tackles.
- Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown exited yesterday’s loss with a calf injury, but the offensive lineman is now just considered day-to-day, according to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. Brown re-joined the Patriots this offseason after having spent the past two seasons with the Raiders.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/11/21
Here are Saturday’s practice squad moves:
Detroit Lions
- Signed: WR Javon McKinley
Seattle Seahawks
- Released: TE DeShon Williams
Washington Football Team
- Released via injury settlement: K Eddy Pineiro
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/11/21
With Week 1 games on tap for 28 teams Sunday, here is Saturday’s extensive batch of minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Placed on IR: LB Dennis Gardeck
- Promoted: LB Kylie Fitts, CB Antonio Hamilton
Cleveland Browns
- Promoted: LB Elijah Lee, K Chris Naggar
Denver Broncos
- Promoted: RB Damarea Crockett, CB Nate Hairston
Detroit Lions
- Promoted: T Will Holden, G Tommy Kraemer
Houston Texans
- Promoted: TE Antony Auclair
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted: S Sean Davis, C Joey Hunt
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Promoted: DB Brandon Rusnak, WR Devin Smith
Los Angeles Rams
- Promoted: DB Tyler Hall, LB Justin Lawler
Miami Dolphins
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: T Austin Jackson; Jackson is the first player to test positive for COVID-19 and be activated the same week, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets, with the second-year offensive lineman’s vaccinated status allowing him to return five days after landing on Miami’s coronavirus list
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: T Caleb Benenoch
New York Giants
- Promoted: WR C.J. Board
New York Jets
- Placed on IR: S Sharrod Neasman
- Promoted: S Adrian Colbert, LB Del’Shawn Phillips
San Francisco 49ers
- Released from IR via injury settlement: T Shon Coleman
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: LB Jon Rhattigan
Washington Football Team
- Promoted: LB Jared Norris
Seahawks Restructure Quandre Diggs’ Deal
The Seahawks have revised Quandre Diggs’ contract (Twitter link via Field Yates of ESPN.com). Now, the safety will have $100K in per game roster bonuses converted into salary with $5.05MM of his salary switched to a signing bonus. 
[RELATED: Seahawks, Duane Brown Reach Agreement]
Diggs refused to practice with the team for a short while in an effort to secure a new contract. He likely didn’t get everything he wanted here, but it was enough to bring him back to the fold along with standout tackle Duane Brown. Diggs’ new deal will now include a void year for salary cap purposes. Meanwhile, the safety will also get additional injury protection in his platform year.
Diggs is entering his platform year, and we heard back in July that the 28-year-old DB was seeking a new deal. No reports on negotiations between the two sides have surfaced, and Henderson says its unclear if the Seahawks want to give Diggs a new contract at this point. The club is taking a similar stance with respect to Brown, though the ‘Hawks are now said to be exploring some sort of compromise that allows Brown to increase his 2021 compensation without adding years onto his existing deal.
Diggs, 28, came to the Seattle in a pre-deadline deal with the Detroit in 2019. He quickly proved his worth, collecting three interceptions in five games that year. Last year, he enjoyed perfect attendance with five INTs and 64 tackles en route to his ever career Pro Bowl nod. For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus assigned him a middling 63.1 overall grade, good for 52nd out of 94 qualified players.
Even after the revision, Diggs is still playing on a $6.2MM AAV deal. That puts him just 19th among all safeties, but he could double that figure with a strong showing this year.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/8/21
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DT Reginald McKenzie
- Released: S Jordan Richards
Houston Texans
- Released: LB Hardy Nickerson
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: LB Nate Gerry
- Released: OL Corbin Kaufusi
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: TE DeShon Williams
Contract Restructures: Graham, Nassib, Ryan
With the start of Week 1 quickly approaching, NFL front offices are still finding ways to open some cap space. A handful of players restructured their contracts today, and we’ve compiled some of the notable transactions below:
- TE Jimmy Graham, Bears: Converted $5.825MM of salary into signing bonus, opening $4.66MM in cap space while also adding four voidable years to contract (via ESPN’s Field Yates on Twitter). The veteran inked a two-year, $16MM deal with the Bears prior to last season, and he finished his first season in Chicago with 50 receptions for 456 yards and eight touchdowns.
- DE Carl Nassib, Raiders: Converted $2.51MM of salary into a signing bonus, opening $2.008MM in cap space (via ESPN’s Field Yates on Twitter). Nassib inked a three-year, $25MM deal (including $16.75MM guaranteed) with the Raiders last offseason. The 28-year-old got into 14 games (five starts) during his first season in Las Vegas, finishing with 28 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and nine QB hits.
- DB Logan Ryan, Giants: Converted “most of the base salary” into signing bonus (per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport on Twitter). The veteran was set to earn around $5.5MM this upcoming season. After inking a one-year deal with the Giants last offseason, Ryan signed a three-year, $31MM extension (with $20MM guaranteed) in December. After switching from cornerback to safety, Ryan finished his first season in New York with 94 tackles, three forced fumbles, nine passes defended, and one interception.
- OT Duane Brown, Seahawks: Converted $7MM of base salary into signing bonus, saving the team $3.5MM in cap space. After skipping training camp in pursuit of an extension, we learned earlier today that the veteran lineman got an extra year tacked onto his contract. Indeed, as veteran reporter John Clayton points out, Brown got an extra year “with an injury protection benefit for 2022.”
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/7/21
We’ve compiled today’s practice squad moves below:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: RB Qadree Ollison
- Released: C Sam Jones
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: CB John Brannon
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LB Josh Woods
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: QB Jake Browning
- Released: P Drue Chrisman
Denver Broncos
- Signed: CB Saivion Smith
Houston Texans
- Signed: CB Cre’Von LeBlanc
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: OT Bobby Hart
New York Giants
- Signed: WR C.J. Board, OT Korey Cunningham
- Released: DB Jordyn Peters, G Kenny Wiggins
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: DE Henry Mondeaux, LB Delontae Scott, WR Tyler Vaughns
- Moved to IR: WR Rico Bussey
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: CB Gavin Heslop
- Released: TE Mark Vital
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: K Jose Borregales
Washington Football Team
- Signed: OT Evin Ksiezarczyk
- Released: C Jon Toth
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/7/21
We’ll keep track of the latest minor moves here:
Carolina Panthers
- Promoted: C Sam Tecklenburg
Cincinnati Bengals
- Released from IR with injury settlement: LB Vince Biegel
Indianapolis Colts
- Released: DT Antwaun Woods
New York Giants
- Re-signed: S Nate Ebner
- Released: WR C.J. Board
- Waived with injury settlement: WR Austin Mack
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed off Broncos practice squad: CB Mac McCain
Tennessee Titans
- Waived: LB Justin March-Lillard
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: WR Penny Hart, TE Tyler Mabry
- Placed on IR: CB Tre Brown, TE Colby Parkinson, S Nigel Warrior
Seahawks To Add Tanner Muse To P-Squad
Former Raiders linebacker Tanner Muse cleared waivers and selected a new home shortly after. The Seahawks are signing the former third-round pick to their practice squad, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
Caught in a sudden roster crunch, after the Raiders both traded for Denzel Perryman and signed K.J. Wright, Muse will receive another opportunity in Wright’s old stomping grounds. The Raiders did make an attempt to keep Muse via practice squad invite, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore (on Twitter), but the young defender opted for Seattle’s offer.
This stands to be Muse’s first healthy NFL season. He missed all of his rookie year due to a toe injury. One of a few Raiders draft picks from Clemson, Muse intercepted four passes during his senior season with the Tigers and saw regular time for the ACC powerhouse’s previous two outfits.
After playing safety at Clemson, Muse moved to linebacker this offseason. While the Raiders previously had injury-created openings for linebackers during their preseason slate, ex-Gus Bradley charges Perryman and Wright filled them. Acquired during Paul Guenther‘s defensive coordinator stay, Muse ended up being jettisoned to create roster space.
The Seahawks only kept four linebackers on their active roster, giving Muse a potential early chance to contribute as a backup. Cody Barton resides as Seattle’s fourth linebacker, behind starters Bobby Wagner, Jordyn Brooks and Darrell Taylor. Teams have until Saturday afternoon to set their active 53-man for the week.
Seahawks To Sign CB John Reid To Active Roster
It’s been a rollercoaster of a couple weeks for John Reid, but he’s back on a 53-man roster. The Seahawks have signed the cornerback from their practice squad to their active roster, his agency announced on Twitter.
A Penn State product, Reid was a fourth-round pick of the Texans just last year. He appeared in 13 games for Houston as a rookie and started one, but was traded to Seattle for a 2022 seventh-rounder toward the end of training camp. Just a week after trading for him the Seahawks waived him, quickly adding him back on the practice squad.
Now after a week on the practice squad, he’s back on the active roster. Seattle had a lot of turnover at cornerback this offseason, most notably letting Shaquill Griffin walk in free agency. The same day they waived Reid, they also traded for former Eagles and Jags corner Sidney Jones.
They also drafted Tre Brown out of Oklahoma in the fourth-round, and now have a pretty young group of cornerbacks. It wouldn’t be surprising if Reid gets a crack at some point.