Minor NFL Transactions: 3/21/22
Today’s minor NFL transactions:
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: OL Greg Mancz
Cincinnati Bengals
- Re-signed (two-year deal): WR Stanley Morgan
Denver Broncos
- Signed: S J.R. Reed
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: K Ryan Santoso
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: LB Micah Kiser
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: P JK Scott
Miami Dolphins
- Re-signed: S Sheldrick Redwine
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: S A.J. Moore
- Released: G Corey Levin
Rams To Trade WR Robert Woods To Titans
With the recent addition of Allen Robinson, the hopes of brings back Odell Beckham Jr., and the emergence of Cooper Kupp as an elite receiver in the NFL, Robert Woods became a bit superfluous in the Rams’ wide receiver room. Well, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Los Angeles will be trading the veteran receiver to the Titans in exchange for a 2023 sixth-round pick. 
Woods is a true professional who is well-rounded in his game. With decent speed, Woods can break down a defense with sharp route-running, will make defenders miss after the catch, and can catch most anything thrown in his direction. He’s an unselfish teammate and a dedicated blocker.
Woods started off in Buffalo after getting drafted in the second round out of USC. He returned to Southern California as a free agent and quickly became the Rams’ number one receiver. Woods was on a three-year stretch from 2018-2020, playing the best football of his career. In 2020, he fell 64 yards short of three-straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons, totaling 3,289 yards over that span. In 2021, despite the emergence of teammates Kupp and Van Jefferson, Woods was once again on track to top 1,000 yards receiving, averaging 61.8 yards per game nine games into the season.
Unfortunately, Woods’ 2021 season was cut short when he suffered a torn ACL in a November practice. Luckily for the Rams, the day before Woods’ injury, they had signed Beckham, who was able to make up for the production lost due to Woods’ absence.
The recovery from a major injury, combined with the fact that Woods turns 30 next month, likely factors into the price the Rams were able to receive in return. Another factor is likely that Woods’ cap hit was set to balloon over the next few years of his contract, barring a restructured deal. That responsibility will now be passed on to the Titans to make Woods’ cap hit more manageable.
The Titans released receiver Julio Jones after a one-and-done season, leaving a top returning trio of A.J. Brown, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, and Chester Rogers. They addressed the lackluster passing attack by signing former Falcons’ and Browns’ tight end Austin Hooper and the addition of Woods will give the Titans three strong weapons in the passing game.
Titans Re-Sign RB Dontrell Hilliard
D’Onta Foreman parlayed his stint with the Titans into a deal with the Panthers, but fellow running back Dontrell Hilliard will be sticking around Tennessee. The Titans announced that they’ve re-signed the running back.
[RELATED: Panthers To Sign RB D’Onta Foreman]
The Titans had plenty of carries to go around while Derrick Henry was out of the lineup. While Foreman ended up getting the bulk of the yards, Hilliard was the one who got the bulk of the starts. Hilliard got into eight games (five starts) for Tennessee last season, finishing with 350 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 56 carries. He also added another 19 receptions for 87 yards.
Hilliard, a 2018 undrafted free agent out of Tulane, spent the first two-plus seasons of his career with the Browns, seeing time in 30 games. He was claimed off waivers by the Texans in 2020 and got into two games with them.
Henry should be good to go for the 2022 campaign, and Hilliard is currently penciled in to be his main backup. The Titans are also rostering Trenton Cannon, and the front office will surely add more RBs before training camp.
Titans Re-Sign K Randy Bullock
The Titans re-signed a pair of players last night, and we’ve learned of another player who will be sticking around Tennessee. Kicker Randy Bullock announced on Twitter that he’ll be re-signing with the Titans. Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com passed along the news (on Twitter).
[RELATED: Titans Re-Sign CB Skrine, RB Wilkins]
Bullock joined the Titans practice squad last September, and he ended up getting the big-league call when Tennessee moved on from Michael Badgley. Bullock saw time in the next 16 games for the Titans, connecting on 26 of his 31 field goal tries and 42 of his 45 extra point attempts. The 32-year-old also added a field goal and extra point in the playoffs.
The kicker has spent time with seven different teams during his 10 years in the NFL. He had a four-year stint with the Bengals between 2017 and 2020, but his final year in Cincy also saw him convert a career-low 83.9 percent of his field goal attempts. Bullock has also spent time with the Texans, Jets, Giants, and Steelers. He caught on with the Lions last offseason but was released before final cuts.
Last night, the Titans agreed to re-sign cornerback Buster Skrine and running back Jordan Wilkins.
Titans To Sign Austin Hooper
Austin Hooper has reportedly found his new home. The veteran tight end is signing a one-year, $6MM contract, reports NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). 
[RELATED: Browns To Release Hooper]
Hooper, 27, started his career in Atlanta. He played four seasons there, earning Pro Bowls nods in 2018 and 2019. He posted a combined total of 146 catches, 1,447 yards and 10 touchdowns during that time. That production made him a highly sought-after commodity in free agency.
Hooper signed a four-year, $42MM deal with the Browns, making him the highest-paid TE in league history at the time. In two seasons in Cleveland, he played (and started) in 29 contests. Over that stretch, he posted 84 receptions for 780 yards and seven touchdowns. That certainly wasn’t the production the team had been expecting, which partially opened the door to a parting of ways.
More signs pointed to a departure when the team placed the franchise tag on fellow TE David Njoku. The latter has been with the Browns since being drafted in the first round by them in 2017. While he also hasn’t emerged as one of the league’s elite seam-stretchers (with a career-high of 639 receiving yards), Njoku represents a better fit in the Browns’ run-heavy offense. Keeping Hooper at a cap hit of over $13MM with Njoku still in the fold was never financially viable.
In Tennessee, Hooper will join an offense short on pass catchers. The team struggled to replace Jonnu Smith, who departed last offseason in free agency. Given that, as well as the release of Julio Jones, there should be plenty of targets available for the Stanford product. With Hooper off the market, the top remaining TEs include the likes of Rob Gronkowski, Gerald Everett and Blake Jarwin.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/16/22
Today’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Re-signed: WR Brandon Zylstra
Cincinnati Bengals
- Re-signed: LS Clark Harris
Houston Texans
- Acquired via trade (from Jets): LB Blake Cashman
- Signed: TE Scott Quessenberry
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Re-signed: OL Will Richardson
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: FB Jakob Johnson
Minnesota Vikings
- Re-signed: P Jordan Berry
- Signed: TE Johnny Mundt, OL Austin Schlottmann
New York Giants
- Re-signed: LS Casey Kreiter
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DT Hassan Ridgeway
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: RB Trenton Cannon
Titans To Release Julio Jones
The Titans will make Julio Jones a one-and-done in Tennessee. The future Hall of Fame wide receiver will be released, Dianna Russini and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com report (on Twitter).
Tennessee traded a second-round pick for Jones last year, but the longtime Atlanta star could not shake the hamstring trouble that plagued him during his final Falcons season. If the Titans do not designate Jones as a post-June 1 cut, they will take on more than $13MM in dead money. The Titans are, in fact, using the June 1 designation Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. This will save the team more than $9MM this year.
While this will make Jones a first-time free agent, he is not hitting the market with momentum. The All-Decade wideout ripped off a record-setting stretch from 2014-19, surpassing 1,390 yards in each season and making six straight Pro Bowls. But injury absences began to pile up in 2020. That proved to be a bad sign for the Titans, who could only get 10 games out of the high-level trade acquisition.
Jones caught just 31 passes for 434 yards — both career-low marks; even Jones’ five-game 2013 season produced better numbers — and saw his hamstring injury keep leading to missed time. Tennessee’s Jones-A.J. Brown tandem did not come to fruition, with Brown also struggling on the health front. But Brown will be due a big payday soon. Jones’ Falcons-constructed contract will no longer be part of the Titans’ equation at that point.
Having turned 33 this offseason, Jones may attract some interest. Draft classmate A.J. Green managed to land a reasonable Cardinals deal despite an injury-marred ending to his Bengals run. Any Jones contract figures to be a fairly low-cost deal, however. He signed a $22MM-per-year extension with the Falcons in 2019; two years remained on that pact prior to Wednesday’s move.
NFL Announces Compensatory Picks For 2022 Draft
The NFL has awarded compensatory draft picks for teams in the 2022 draft. These picks are awarded to the teams that suffered the most significant free agent losses during the 2021 offseason.
This year, the NFL awarded 39 comp picks. The comp pick formula assigns picks to franchises who suffered the largest net losses, so teams that signed multiple free agents have a lesser chance of receiving picks.
This year’s formula also includes the changes made last year, when teams began receiving third-round comp picks due to the hiring of minority head coaches and general managers. Seven such picks were awarded this year. The 49ers landed two additional third-rounders this year, obtaining the extra selections for the Jets’ 2021 Robert Saleh hire and the Dolphins hiring Mike McDaniel this year. Miami’s McDaniel hire will give San Francisco another third-rounder in 2023.
The Chiefs obtained a third-rounder for the Bears’ Ryan Poles GM hire, while the Browns landed a third because of the Vikings’ Kwesi Adofo-Mensah GM hire. The Ravens collected their second third-round for the Texans’ 2021 David Culley hire; Culley has since been fired. The Saints and Rams obtained one apiece after seeing the Falcons and Lions hire minority execs Terry Fontenot and Brad Holmes as GMs in 2021. New Orleans and Detroit also landed thirds because of players given high-value contacts last year (Trey Hendrickson and Kenny Golladay, respectively).
Here is the full list of 2022 compensatory selections:
By round:
Round 3: Lions (No. 97 overall), Saints (98), Browns (99)*, Ravens (100)*, Saints (101)*, 49ers (102)*, Chiefs (103)*, Rams (104)*, 49ers (105)*
Round 4: Steelers (No. 138), Ravens (139), Packers (140), Ravens (141), Rams (142), Titans (143)
Round 5: Cowboys (No. 176), Lions (177), Cowboys (178), Colts (179)
Round 6: Rams (No. 211), Rams (212), Falcons (213), Chargers (214), Cardinals (215), Colts (216), Lions (217), Rams (218), Titans (219), 49ers (220), 49ers (221)
Round 7: Chargers (No. 254), Chargers (255), Cardinals (256), Cardinals (257), Packers (258), Chiefs (259), Chargers (260), Buccaneers (261), 49ers (262)
By team:
San Francisco 49ers (5)
Los Angeles Rams (5)
Los Angeles Chargers (4)
Arizona Cardinals (3)
Baltimore Ravens (3)
Detroit Lions (3)
Dallas Cowboys (2)
Green Bay Packers (2)
Indianapolis Colts (2)
Kansas City Chiefs (2)
New Orleans Saints (2)
Tennessee Titans (2)
Atlanta Falcons (1)
Cleveland Browns (1)
Pittsburgh Steelers (1)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1)
* = special compensatory selection
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/15/22
We’ll keep tabs on today’s minor moves here:
Carolina Panthers
- Re-signed: S Sean Chandler
Chicago Bears
- Re-signed: LS Patrick Scales
Dallas Cowboys
- Re-signed: TE Jeremy Sprinkle
Houston Texans
- Signed: LB Ogbonnia Okoronkwo
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Extended: WR Terry Godwin
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: CB Darius Phillips
Miami Dolphins
- Re-signed: LB Duke Riley, LB Elandon Roberts
Philadelphia Eagles
- Re-signed: DB Andre Chachere, WR Greg Ward
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: S A.J. Moore
Titans To Release Janoris Jenkins
The cost-cutting moves continue in Nashville. The team has released cornerback Janoris Jenkins, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The move saves the team just over $6.9MM in cap space.
The 33-year-old signed with the Titans one year ago, as they re-vamped their secondary. He represented a veteran starter to help offset the losses of Malcolm Butler and Adoree’ Jackson, but his stay in Tennessee was short lived. In 14 games (including 13 starts), he registered 54 tackles, one interception and six pass deflections.
A second round pick in 2012, ‘Jackrabbit’ established himself as a quality starter early in his time with the Rams. He then moved on to the Giants, where he earned his only Pro Bowl nod, along with being named second-team All Pro. In 2019, New York traded him to the Saints but one year later, he found himself in the same position he is in today.
From an analytical standpoint, the veteran’s 2021 season was on par with his recent history. With a PFF grade of 65.4, he remains a solid cover man whom plenty of teams will likely be interested in. While his passing rating allowed (100.2) this year shows he may not be the high-end starter he once was, he will rank among the better options at the position on the open market.