NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/24/20
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Arizona Cardinals
- Released: LB Stephone Anthony, T Rick Leonard, RB Khalfani Muhammad
Carolina Panthers
- Released: K Taylor Bertolet
Houston Texans
- Signed: C Cohl Cabral
- Released: DE Kendal Futrell
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: S Doug Middleton
Kansas City Chiefs
- Released: S Lavert Hill
New York Giants
- Signed: TE Nakia Griffin-Stewart
- Released: WR Corey Coleman
New York Jets
- Signed: QB Mike White
Philadelphia Eagles
- Released: RB Adrian Killins
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed LB/LS Christian Kuntz
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: S Kai Nacua, WR Shawn Poindexter
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: K Sam Sloman
- Released: P Ryan Allen, K Giorgio Tavecchio
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/24/20
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Arizona Cardinals
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: S Deionte Thompson
Baltimore Ravens
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: OLB Pernell McPhee
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Josh Norman
Chicago Bears
- Waived: DT Anthony Rush
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Joe Jackson
Denver Broncos
- Activated from IR: RB LeVante Bellamy
- Waived: T Jake Rodgers
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed off Cardinals’ practice squad: LB Reggie Gilbert
- Promoted: RB Nathan Cottrell
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: K Chase McLaughlin
- Placed on IR: CB D.J. Hayden, S Daniel Thomas
Kansas City Chiefs
- Placed on IR: WR Byron Pringle
Los Angeles Rams
- Claimed off waivers from Patriots: DE Derek Rivers
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: LB Chase Hansen
New York Jets
- Promoted: RB Josh Adams
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Vance McDonald
- Promoted: TE Kevin Rader
Tennessee Titans
- Placed on IR: T Ty Sambrailo
- Waived: P Trevor Daniel, CB Greg Mabin
The Jets’ addition of Adams makes a lot of sense after rookie running back La’Mical Perine suffered a high ankle sprain that is expected to sideline him for at least a couple games. A 2018 UDFA out of Notre Dame, Adams played a significant role with the Eagles as a rookie, when he started five of 14 games and carries the ball 120 times for 511 yards and three touchdowns. Despite the reasonably productive first season, he was waived at final cuts last year.
Titans Worked Out K Sam Sloman
- The Titans recently auditioned kicker Sam Sloman, per the league’s transaction wire. The rookie seventh-rounder began the season as the Rams starting kicker, connecting on eight of his 11 field goal attempts and 18 of his 21 extra point tries. However, the organization ultimately replaced him with veteran Kai Forbath, leading to the rookie’s release.
Titans’ Jayon Brown Out For Season
We’ve unfortunately got word of another season-ending injury to pass along. The Titans won an overtime thriller over the Ravens to snap out of their slump, but they weren’t able to escape unscathed.
Linebacker Jayon Brown suffered a dislocated and fractured elbow and will miss the rest of the season as a result, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). It’s a devastating blow for a Tennessee defense that has already struggled this year. The inside backer has been the team’s leading tackler in 2020. A fifth-round pick in 2017, Brown became a starter during his second year in the league when he had 97 tackles, six sacks, and six passes defended.
He had played almost every single snap this year, so it’s hard to overstate how big of a loss this is. Starting cornerback Adoree’ Jackson is still hurt, and they just placed edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney on injured reserve. They’re going to be significantly shorthanded on defense as they enter a pivotal division game in Week 12 against the Colts which could determine who wins the AFC South.
Brown, a UCLA product, should be ready well in advance of the 2021 season, but this certainly wasn’t the end to the rookie contract he was hoping for. He’ll now be an unrestricted free agent in March, and while this hopefully won’t hurt his market too much, it certainly won’t help. Either way, the 25-year-old should be in for a big raise this offseason.
Titans Place Jadeveon Clowney On IR
Jadeveon Clowney‘s bid at a long-term free agency deal did not go as expected this offseason, and his latest contract year has not unfolded especially well.
The Titans placed their big-ticket free agent pass rusher on IR Saturday. They had ruled Clowney out of Sunday’s game against the Ravens because of a knee injury, but he will now be out until at least Week 14.
Clowney missed Tennessee’s Week 8 tilt but returned to play in the team’s past two games. The former No. 1 overall pick, who signed a one-year deal worth $13MM in August, remains without a sack. He has not recorded a sack since November 2019, illustrating a Titans pass-rushing plan gone awry. The team cut free agency addition Vic Beasley earlier this month. Beasley joined Clowney in failing to register a sack as a Titan.
Although Clowney dealt with extensive knee trouble with the Texans — highlighted by microfracture surgery — he rebounded to make three Pro Bowls. But over the past two seasons, the well-rounded pass rusher’s stock has dropped thanks in large part to multiple injuries. Clowney considered meniscus surgery earlier this month but opted to return to Tennessee’s lineup. In light of Saturday’s news, it seems that operation has not been fully ruled out.
Clowney underwent surgery ahead of his 2018 season with Houston and missed time because of a core muscle injury with Seattle last year. However, this IR stay will result in Clowney entering Week 14 having missed at least five games. The 27-year-old defender has not been sidelined for that many contests since his 2014 rookie season. This will make Clowney’s pursuit of an elusive long-term deal more difficult.
The Titans promoted linebackers William Compton and Tuzar Skipper, along with cornerback Greg Mabin, and placed corner Kareem Orr on IR.
Titans To Add QB DeShone Kizer To Practice Squad
The Titans had an open spot on their practice squad after losing Trevor Siemian to the Saints, so they’ve replaced the quarterback with another. NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports (via Twitter) that Tennessee will be adding DeShone Kizer to their practice squad.
As a rookie, Kizer started 15 games for the Browns, throwing 11 touchdowns and running for five scores. While the second-rounder showed some exciting flashes on the field, he was also incapable of leading Cleveland to a win, as he went 0-15 and tossed 22 interceptions.
Kizer hasn’t really been able to get a steady gig since that time. He got into three games as the Packers backup in 2018, and he later lingered with the Raiders for about a year. This year, he’s had workouts with the Titans, Lions, and Bears, and one of those auditions eventually turned into a job (albeit three months later).
The Titans are only rostering a pair of quarterbacks, with Logan Woodside currently serving as the backup to Ryan Tannehill. If one of those two were to get injured, Kizer could see himself back on an NFL active roster.
Saints Sign QB Trevor Siemian
With Drew Brees going on the injured reserve, the Saints have brought in a veteran option to fill his roster spot. NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports (via Twitter) that New Orleans has signed quarterback Trevor Siemian from the Titans practice squad.
The 28-year-old is joining a backup grouping that includes Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill. Despite the starting experience of the former, it’s sound like the Saints will turn to the latter this weekend against the Falcons. Siemian will temporarily serve as extra depth until Brees is eligible to return from IR; the 41-year-old passer is believed to have fractured at least five ribs and punctured a lung, and his placement on injured reserve indicates that he’ll be out until at least Week 14.
Siemian, a 2015 seventh-round pick, started 24 games for the Broncos between 2016 and 2017, going 13-11 while completing 59.3-percent of his passes for 5,689 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 24 interceptions. He started a game for the Jets in 2019, but he suffered a season-ending leg injury in that same contest.
He joined the Titans this past offseason, and there was an expectation that he’d be the backup to starter Ryan Tannehill. Instead, he was released by the team prior to the season, and he subsequently landed on Tennessee’s practice squad.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/19/20
Here are Thursday’s practice squad moves:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Cyril Grayson
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: P Ryan Allen
Washington Football Team
- Signed: RB Javon Leake
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/19/20
Here are the most recent NFL minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Tyler Kroft, S Dean Marlowe, CB Levi Wallace
Chicago Bears
- Placed on IR: WR/PR Dwayne Harris
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: T Jack Conklin, K Cody Parkey
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Placed on IR: CB C.J. Henderson
Kansas City Chiefs
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: T Eric Fisher, T Mitchell Schwartz
Minnesota Vikings
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: FB C.J. Ham
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: C Hroniss Grasu, LB Joe Walker
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted: CB Jayson Stanley
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted: P Trevor Daniel
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/18/20
Here are Wednesday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Claimed off waivers from Broncos: CB Davontae Harris
Chicago Bears
- Claimed off waivers from Texans: WR DeAndre Carter
Cincinnati Bengals
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Freedom Akinmoladun
- Removed from reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Trae Waynes; Waynes remains on IR
Dallas Cowboys
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: DL Tyrone Crawford, QB Andy Dalton
Denver Broncos
- Waived via left-squad designation: LB Nigel Bradham
Miami Dolphins
- Promoted: WR Antonio Callaway, DT Benito Jones
New York Giants
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: P Riley Dixon, LS Casey Kreiter
New York Jets
- Activated from IR: LB Patrick Onwuasor
Philadelphia Eagles
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: S Marcus Epps
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DT Javon Kinlaw
Seattle Seahawks
- Activated from IR: OL Phil Haynes
- Placed on IR: CB Neiko Thorpe
Tennessee Titans
- Activated from IR: RB Senorise Perry