Minor Moves: Thursday
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here..
- Quarterback Tyler Wilson and wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin passed through waivers unclaimed, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Baldwin, soon-to-be 25, was waived by the Lions with a failed physical designation yesterday. Wilson, selected in the fourth round of the 2013 draft by the Raiders, was waived-injured by the Titans.
- With three tight ends unavailable to practice today, the Jaguars addressed the position by signing Fendi Onobun and waiving injured rookie Reggie Jordan, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union. Onobun, who played one game for Jacksonville in 2011, was one of three tight ends who worked out for the Jaguars after their walk-through. Jordan, an undrafted free agent from Missouri Western, was injured in practice earlier this week.
- The Raiders announced on Twitter that they have inked free agent kicker Kevin Goessling and waived punter/kicker Michael Palardy to make space. Like longtime Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski, Palardy is a lefty, and played as both a kicker and punter at the University of Tennessee before going undrafted last month. He won’t have an opportunity to follow in his footsteps, however.
Minor Moves: Wednesday
We’ll round up Wednesday’s minor transactions from around the NFL in this space, with the latest moves added to the top of the list throughout the day:
- The Raiders announced that they have signed journeyman safety Larry Asante and waived/injured fellow safety Shelton Johnson. Asante joins the Raiders following stops with the Browns, Buccaneers, and Colts. For his career, the 6’0″, 210-pounder has played in 17 games and totaled 12 tackles (nine solo), one interception, one pass defensed, and one forced fumble. He played in five games last season for the Colts, seeing time primarily on special teams.
- Saints defensive tackle Tyrone Ezell and linebacker Marcus Thompson have cleared waivers, tweets Larry Holder of The Times-Picayune.
- Former BYU linebacker Spencer Hadley has signed with the Raiders, according to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle, who tweets that the club has waived-injured linebacker Marshall McFadden to make room on the roster.
- Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link) passes along a couple new roster updates, reporting that the Cowboys have waived undrafted rookies Dashaun Phillips and Joe Windsor to make room for their defensive back signings (noted below). According to Wilson, the Lions also cut Cody Wilson from their IR with an injury settlement.
Earlier updates:
- The Vikings have cut undrafted tight end A.C. Leonard, who left practice last week with a headache, according to Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
- Just a day after signing him, the Seahawks have waived defensive back Trey Wolfe, replacing him with DB Michael Dobson, according to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (via Twitter). Dobson participated in the club’s rookie minicamp in the spring.
- In order to make room for new signee James Shaw, whose deal was reported yesterday, the Steelers have waived-injured wide receiver Danny Coale, tweets Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune Review.
- Another signing reported yesterday, the Titans‘ addition of defensive lineman Lanier Coleman, was finalized today, with Tennessee also agreeing to terms with tight end Chase Coffman, per Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. To clear two spots on the roster for the new players, the Titans waived-injured tight end Dorin Dickerson and cut quarterback Tyler Wilson (Twitter links). Wilson was selected in the fourth round of the 2013 draft by the Raiders, and was signed by the Titans off Oakland’s practice squad last season.
- The Cowboys have added a pair of defensive backs to their roster to bolster a secondary that has been hit hard by injuries in training camp, signing Korey Lindsey and Johnny Thomas, tweets Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Clarence Hill of the Star-Telegram had indicated yesterday that Dallas was eyeing those two free agents. The club will need to cut two players to make room for Lindsey and Thomas.
Minor Moves: Tuesday
Here are the NFL’s minor transactions for Tuesday, with the latest moves added to the top of the page throughout the afternoon and evening:
- The Bears waived linebacker Conor O’Neill to make room for the addition of Greg Herd, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
- The Browns reached an injury settlement with James Oboh, Wilson tweets.
- The Broncos waived defensive end Hall Davis with a left squad designation, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Denver signed Davis to a reserve/futures contract in February.
- The Vikings waived Lestar Jean from injured reserve, tweets Wilson. The wideout has ten career receptions for 186 yards and one touchdown.
- Running back Kendall Hunter will spend the season on the 49ers’ injured reserve list after he cleared waivers on Tuesday, writes Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.
- The Dolphins announced that they have signed kicker Danny Hrapmann and waived linebacker Ryan Rau, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Hrapmann was one of at least three kickers Miami auditioned recently.
- The Bears added wide receiver Greg Herd today, according to Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter). Chicago must make a corresponding roster move for Herd, who had short stints with the Cowboys and Seahawks after entering the NFL in 2013.
Earlier updates:
- The Colts agreed to sign former Eagles outside linebacker Phillip Hunt, a source tells Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). To make room for Hunt, the Colts dropped wide receiver Nu’Keese Richardson, who signed with the club just two days ago.
- The Browns announced that they have signed tight end Martell Webb, linebacker Keith Pough, and wide receiver Tim Smith, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. Originally signed by Philadelphia as an undrafted free agent in 2011, Webb has spent time on the practice squads of the Jets (2011), Bucs (2011), Colts (2012), Titans (2012), and Lions (2013).
- The Browns waived defensive back Darwin Cook, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (via Twitter).
- The Titans will sign Lanier Coleman, a defensive lineman who has spent time with the Jets and Packers, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. Tennessee has a full 90-man roster, so the team will need to cut someone to make it official.
- The Saints have signed former second-round tight end Richard Quinn, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter). In a separate tweet, Mike Triplett of ESPN.com adds a few more Saints moves courtesy of Yates: New Orleans also signed wideout Tobais Palmer, waiving receiver Steve Hull (injured designation), defensive tackle Tyrone Ezell, and linebacker Marcus Thompson.
- As first reported by NFL Draft Diamonds, the Browns have reached a deal to sign tight end Kyle Auffray, writes Mike Wilkering of Pro Football Talk. Cleveland entered the day with four open roster spots, so there’s plenty of room for Auffray, who spent some time with the Patriots in the spring.
- The Buccaneers completed a series of roster moves today, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed defensive ends Ryne Giddins and James Ruffin, and waived-injured linebacker Jeremy Grable and safety Mycal Swaim.
- The Steelers are set to sign wide receiver James Shaw, who previously played for the Arena League’s Pittsburgh Power, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Pittsburgh has a full 90-man roster, so the club will need to make a corresponding roster move to make room for the latest signee.
- Jermaine Cunningham, who tore his Achilles tendon during training camp, has been waived-injured by the Jets, who signed offensive lineman Bruce Campbell to fill Cunningham’s roster spot, per Rich Cimini of ESPN New York (Twitter link). Campbell attended the team’s minicamp back in June on a tryout basis.
- Armed with an open spot on their 90-man roster, the Broncos have signed former Browns defensive end Brian Sanford, as Mike Klis of the Denver Post details. Sanford, who turns 27 next month, has been active for 13 career regular-season contests for Cleveland and Oakland.
- The Seahawks have waived-injured safety Dion Bailey and signed defensive back Trey Wolfe to replace him, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.
AFC South Notes: Richardson, Moncrief, Foster
Trent Richardson is coming off a miserable season after the Colts traded a first-round pick to acquire him early last season, but he is committed to making more of an impact in 2013, writes Stephen Holder of the Indy Star. He wants to contribute as a three-down back, improve his pass protection, and has a goal in his mind in terms of rushing yards. He would not give out the number but admitted that it was higher than 1,000 yards,
Here are some other notes from around the AFC South:
- A surprise from the Colts‘ depth chart was rookie receiver Donte Moncrief being listed as the teams starting kick returner, writes Mike Wells of ESPN.com.
“We want to win,” said head coach Chuck Pagano. “If he gives us the best opportunity to win as a kick returner as well as the receiver, then we are going to put him out there.” - The Titans had a joint practice with the Falcons today, and rookie offensive tackle Taylor Lewan got his first taste against defensive lineman from an opponent. Lewan held his own, writes John Glennon of the Tennesseean, but drew one flag for holding. He is currently battling with Michael Oher to be the team’s starting right tackle.
- Texans‘ running back Arian Foster struggled with injuries in 2013, that caused him to consider leaving the game of football. He admitted so in an interview with ESPN’s Hannah Storm. Tania Ganguli, who covers the Texans for the Worldwide Leader, transcribed this part of the interview.
Extra Points: Abraham, Casey, Jags, Bucs
Some assorted to notes to close out this Friday evening:
- Cardinals linebacker John Abraham, who was arrested for DUI last month, has issued a statement through the team’s website. He says, in part, that he is “taking the necessary steps to handle [his] personal business.” A previous report indicated that Abraham was set to join Arizona’s training camp next week.
- Titans defensive lineman Jurrell Casey is coming off of a career season and is seeking a contract that reflects that, writes Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean. While he says that he doesn’t want to cause any headaches, Casey is earning just $1.43MM this season and knows that the top performers at his position are earning more than five times that number.
- The Jaguars are working out former Florida State wide receiver Kenny Shaw today, tweets Mark Long of the Associated Press. The Browns cut Shaw, a UDFA, last last month when they signed Rutgers product Jamaal Westerman.
- The Buccaneers will pair new tight end additions Brandon Myers and Austin Seferian-Jenkins with holdovers Tim Wright and Luke Stocker to form a solid position group, writes Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times, who notes that Jenkins and Wright have the capacity to line up wide.
- The Texans’ newly-implemented 3-4 defense, lead by coordinator Romeo Crennel, is starting to round into form, according to Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Extra Points: Jets, Peterson, Lynch, Gruden
Rex Ryan‘s Jets take a lot of heat but they have every right to be loud and express themselves, opines Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Ryan’s Jets were at their best with the volume turned up to ear-splitting levels from 2009-2011 with trash talk coming from Bart Scott and Antonio Cromartie. While those two are gone, it’s clear that the swagger is back in East Rutherford, New Jersey. More out of the AFC and NFC East..
- Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk has the full details of Patrick Peterson‘s extension with the Cardinals. Last night, Peterson became the first 2011 first-round pick to ink a contract extension, two years away from reaching free agency. Cowboys offensive tackle Tyron Smith became the second member of the 2011 class to ink an extension earlier today.
- Peterson told Alex Flanagan of the NFL Network (Twitter links) that becoming the league’s highest-paid cornerback was a point of emphasis during negotiations and went so far as to say it was “very important” to have that title. The total new money in the five-year extension works out to $70.05MM, which is no coincidence. The extra $50K allows the Cardinals CB to edge out Seahawks star Richard Sherman as the highest paid corner in terms of average annual value.
- In a piece for the National Football Post, former NFL agent Joel Corry offers up some solutions to Marshawn Lynch‘s holdout with the Seahawks. One of Corry’s ideas would be for Seattle to convert this year’s $500K rushing yards incentive into 2014 base salary, if not the entire $1MM in incentives for both years. The conversion would use $1 million of Seattle’s $7.55MM of existing salary cap room and if they wanted to spread out the cap hit over two years, the $1MM could be a signing bonus instead.
- New Redskins coach Jay Gruden says the zone read option will remain a part of the playbook but how often it’ll be utilized remains to be seen, writes Tarik El-Bashir of CSNWashington.com.
- Chiefs defensive back Ron Parker has overcome some long odds to reach the top spot on the team’s depth chart at his position, writes Vahe Gregorian of the Kansas City Star. The 26-year-old has been cut by three different NFL teams but has finally found a home in KC.
- Albert Breer of NFL Network (on Twitter) hears that the big reason why the Titans didn’t pick up Jake Locker‘s option was the injury risk involved. Tennessee didn’t want to make a significant guarantee to the quarterback based on the last two years.
AFC Links: Browns, Ravens, Titans, Broncos
Fourth-year guard Jason Pinkston has been absent from Browns training camp, and no one in the organization will say why. The 26-year-old played sparingly in 2013 but was expected to stick around for at least one more season. The guard was set to make about $1.4MM in 2014, but based on the quotes from those in the organization, money doesn’t seem to be the issue.
“Pinkston’s unavailable to practice and, due to his circumstances, I cannot comment on it any further,” coach Mike Pettine said, per NFL Media’s Aditi Kinkhabwala (via NFL.com’s Mark Sessler). “I want to give you more, but just given the circumstances, I can’t. That’s where we are with Jason.”
General manager Ray Farmer didn’t add much:
“I think coach addressed it the best way we could … right now there’s really no comment from our prospective, and when there is time to make a comment then that comment will be made.”
Finally, Pinkston weighed in on Twitter:
“I can assure you I’m in no legal trouble & retiring hasn’t came up. As far as my situation I’ll leave it to them to explain.”
While we try to figure out what’s going on in Cleveland, let’s take a look at some more notes from around the AFC…
- Former San Jose State cornerback Brandon Driver tried out for the Ravens on Sunday, tweets Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun. The workout went well, but Driver was not immediately signed to a deal.
- A year ago on Sunday, Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta fractured and dislocated his right hip in practice. After a year of recovery, the veteran believes he’s back to 100 percent. “I feel good,” Pitta said (via Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun). “I’m out here not thinking about it. It’s not giving me an issue at all. I feel 100 percent. I’m encouraged with where I’m at.”
- Titans safety Daimion Stafford made the majority of his impact as a rookie on special teams, but Terry McCormick 247Sports.com writes that the player will now be looking to make an impact on defense. “I just try to build every day. That’s our big message,” Stafford said. “That’s what I’m looking to do every day. I’m always trying to get better, whether it’s on special teams or moving up into a bigger role on defense.”
- Kyle Rudolph‘s new deal with the Vikings will likely affect the negotiations between the Broncos and tight end Julius Thomas, tweets Joel Corry of The National Football Post.
Minor Moves: Pats, 49ers, Titans, Panthers
Here are a few of today’s minor transactions from around the NFL:
- The Rams have added defensive end Kourtnei Brown, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). Brown will replace wideout Jamaine Sherman, who was waived/injured.
- Just five days after signing him, the Patriots have parted ways with tight end Nate Byham, per Brian McIntyre (Twitter link).
- After having been waived by the Redskins earlier this week, long snapper Kyle Nelson has caught on with the 49ers, tweets Jayson Braddock of RotoExperts.com.
- The Titans have cut tight end Adam Schiltz and used the newly-freed roster spot to sign guard Kevin Danser, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (via Twitter).
- The Panthers have waived UDFA defensive tackle Shaq Rowell, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
Earlier updates:
- Armed with an open roster spot, the Cardinals have signed former Utah wideout Reggie Dunn, making him their 90th man, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. Dunn went undrafted in 2013, but spent some time on the Packers’ practice squad last season.
- A pair of wide receivers signed contracts with the Vikings today, with Andy Cruse and Ty Walker coming aboard, according to a team release. To make room for the new additions, the Vikings have cut former Browns wideout Josh Cooper and tackle Matt Hall.
- The Bills have signed cornerback Bobby Felder and waived defensive tackle Colby Way, the club announced today in a press release. Felder has spent time on the practice squads of the Vikings and Buccaneers.
Extra Points: Texans, Casey, Browns, Chargers
Let’s check in on a few Thursday odds and ends from around the NFL….
- James Palmer of CSN Houston (Twitter link) continues to hear that talks between Andre Johnson and the Texans are moving in the right direction, though he’s not sure if they’ll be productive enough to ensure that the receiver reports for training camp tomorrow.
- According to Titans general manager Ruston Webster, negotiations on a contract extension for Jurrell Casey are ongoing, and the GM expects the two sides to reach an agreement (Twitter link via Jonathan Hutton of 104.5 The Zone).
- Browns head coach Mike Pettine confirmed to Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com that if the Browns had kept the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s draft, they would have used it to draft Sammy Watkins, which GM Ray Farmer hinted at back in May.
- Field Yates of ESPNBoston.com (Twitter link) has the breakdown on Danny Woodhead‘s new contract with the Chargers, which is worth $7.25MM, including a $3MM signing bonus.
- In an interesting piece for CBSSports.com, former agent Joel Corry explains the process of holding out, including the penalties incurred by the player, the leverage in a given situation, and how often a holdout is successful.
- Bill Barnwell counted down the 50 NFL players with the most trade value in a two-part feature for Grantland. Actually, make that 49 players and one head coach.
Taylor Lewan, Titans Agree To Terms
The last of this year’s 256 draftees who remained unsigned has agreed to terms with his NFL team, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean, who reports (via Twitter) that the Titans have reached an agreement with offensive tackle Taylor Lewan. With training camps opening around the NFL this week, 2014’s entire draft class is now under contract.
Lewan, who turned 23 this week, was the 11th overall pick in May’s draft, and the third tackle to come off the board after Greg Robinson and Jake Matthews. As Jason Fitzgerald’s figures at OverTheCap.com show, Lewan will have an overall four-year value of about $11.485MM on his rookie contract, including a signing bonus worth around $6.673MM. The deal will also include a fifth-year option for 2018.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk suggested a few weeks ago that the delay on Lewan’s signing may have been a result of the Michigan alum looking to replace his fully-guaranteed base salaries with roster bonuses paid out during training camp. Last year’s 11th overall pick (D.J. Fluker) didn’t receive these bonuses in his deal, but Lewan’s teammate, 2013’s No. 10 pick Chance Warmack, did get them. Considering Lewan is viewed as the Titans’ left tackle of the future, making him a more essential piece on the offensive line than Warmack, he had a reasonable case for those roster bonuses, though it’s not clear yet if he received them.
While Lewan may play left tackle down the line for the Titans, his short-term position is less clear, considering the team still has Michael Roos in place on the left side, and signed Michael Oher to man right tackle.