Ravens’ J.K. Dobbins Done For Year
It’s official. On Sunday, an MRI confirmed an ACL tear for Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). The Ravens will place Dobbins on injured reserve this week to free up a roster spot, but they won’t be able to replace his production. 
This was the expected news after Dobbins was forced out of last night’s preseason matchup against Washington. Dobbins was set to play a leading role in the rushing attack along with star quarterback Lamar Jackson. Now, they’ll be leaning even more on Gus Edwards with support from third-year scat-back Justice Hill and 2020 UDFA Ty’Son Williams.
Dobbins, a first-round talent, fell to the Ravens at No. 55 overall last year. He became a central part of the offense in the second half of 2020, finishing out with 134 carries for 805 yards (6.0 ypc), and nine rushing TDs. Edwards is still a solid Plan B (5.2 career ypc), but it remains to be seen whether he can handle a double-digit carry workload.
If the Ravens go out-of-house, they could reconsider Todd Gurley. Gurley, the NFL’s 2017 Offensive Player of the Year, touched base with Baltimore back in June.
Vikings’ Irv Smith To Miss Time
Vikings tight end Irv Smith Jr. is scheduled for meniscus surgery (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). The tear, operation, and recovery will sideline him for the start of the season, at minimum. 
[RELATED: Vikings, Harrison Smith Agree To $64MM Deal]
Smith, 23, flashed serious potential last year while posting 30 catches for 365 yards and five touchdowns. The football world (and fantasy world) was awaiting a breakout year for Smith, who would have benefitted from all the attention paid to Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and the rest of Kirk Cousins‘ weapons.
Of course, all is not lost, because meniscus surgery isn’t necessary a season ender. However, it seems likely that the Vikings will be without the dynamic TE through the first six weeks of the season.
While Smith is sidelined, they’ll be counting on backup Tyler Conklin — provided that Conklin’s hamstring doesn’t keep him off the field too. Brandon Dillon, rookie Zach Davidson, and Shane Zylstra comprise the rest of the Vikes’ TE depth chart.
Texans To Trade Shaq Lawson To Jets
On Sunday, the Texans agreed to trade edge rusher Shaq Lawson to the Jets (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). In exchange, New York will send a sixth-round draft pick to Houston. 
Lawson came to Houston earlier this year in the deal that sent inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney to Miami. He turned in a solid, if unspectacular, 2020 campaign with the Dolphins. Previous to that, Lawson recorded a career-high 6.5 sacks for the Bills in 2019. For his career, Sack-a-Shaq has 20.5 sacks across five pro seasons.
The Jets will now take on Lawson and the rest of his contract. That means a paltry $1.4M in 2021 plus club control in 2022 with no guaranteed money. So, if Lawson is a bust, the Jets can drop him without penalty. And, if things work out, they can keep him for ’22 for a $8.9MM salary. It’s a savvy move for Joe Douglas & Co. — they gave up very little to fortify their defensive line in the wake of Carl Lawson‘s season-ending Achilles tear.
Lawson might not be a world-beater, but he was probably their best option after losing C. Lawson and Vinny Curry in a short span.
“It’s always easy to play the fictional game of, ‘Let’s go get somebody,’ but the reality is [it’s] few and far between in terms of what’s available,” head coach Robert Saleh said recently. “Now, obviously, Joe and his staff are working relentlessly, always trying to look at the roster and always communicating.”
Lawson has a little over two weeks to cram on his new team’s playbook. The Jets kick off the 2021 season on Sept. 12 when they face the Panthers in Carolina.
Vikings, Harrison Smith Agree To $64MM Deal
The Vikings and Harrison Smith have agreed to a four-year, $64MM extension (Twitter link via Mike Golic Jr. of ESPN Radio). With that, the All-Pro now stands as the second highest-paid safety in the league. 
Smith, 32, was previously set to enter the final season of his five-year, $51.25MM deal. It was a whopper of a deal at the time, but that AAV had him outside of the top ten among safeties in 2021. Smith, who has spent the last nine years in Minnesota, wondered whether he was headed for divorce with the only NFL team he’s ever known.
“I mean I don’t know what happens at the end of careers,” Smith said recently. “Sometimes things change. I don’t plan on that happening, but the NFL is the NFL. It’s always wild. But I’ll always consider myself a Viking no matter what.”
Now, after watching Anthony Harris‘ offseason departure, Smith has a brand new deal and a significant pay bump to boot. Still a high-end safety, Pro Football Focus has rated him in the top-15 for each of the last four years. That includes 2015 when he graded No. 1 at safety.
This’ll be Year 10, but there’s no reason to believe that Smith is slowing down. Last year, Smith matched his career high with five interceptions. Now, with a new deal, he’ll look to set even more watermarks in Minnesota.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/29/21
We will keep track of all of today’s minor moves here. Cutdown day is set for 4pm ET on Tuesday, August 31. Teams must cut their roster sizes from 80 to 53 by that time:
Philadelphia Eagles
- Cut: TE Cary Angeline, DE JaQuan Bailey, RB Elijah Holyfield, WR Marken Michel, LB Rashad Smith
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/28/21
Here are Saturday’s minor moves. Teams have until 3pm CT Tuesday to cut their rosters down to 53 players.
New York Giants
- Suspended six games (PED policy violation): OLB Ryan Anderson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Waived: TE Marcus Baugh, RB Tony Brooks-James, CB Shakur Brown, DL T.J. Carter, WR Anthony Johnson, CB Lafayette Pitts, G Malcolm Pridgeon, WR Mathew Sexton, S Lamont Wade
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: OL Nick Leverett, DL Ndamukong Suh, OL Earl Watford
Dolphins Place LB Vince Biegel On IR
To make room for Saturday trade acquisition Greg Mancz, the Dolphins are placing Vince Biegel on IR. This move will sideline the veteran linebacker for the season.
Biegel has not played in a regular-season game since the 2019 season. He suffered a torn Achilles’ tendon in August 2020. Although the Dolphins re-signed Biegel, he is no longer in their 2021 plans. The fifth-year ‘backer could resurface with another team in the event of an injury settlement removing him from Miami’s IR list, however.
The Dolphins initially acquired Biegel via trade from the Saints just before the 2019 season began. Biegel spent 2018 with New Orleans and 2017 with Green Bay. The Packers drafted the Wisconsin product in the 2017 fourth round. Despite having just three years’ worth of game experience, Biegel is already 28.
The Dolphins marked the only team to use Biegel as a starter, deploying him as a first-stringer in 10 games in 2019. Biegel made 59 tackles and registered 13 quarterback hits that season, compiling 2.5 sacks for the then-rebuilding team. The Dolphins have made a few changes to their linebacking group in the time since, however.
Vikings Waive RB Ito Smith, 2 Others
Ito Smith‘s Vikings stay will end up being short. Five days after signing the young running back, the Vikings waived him. They also waived offensive lineman Cohl Cabral and defensive tackle Zeandae Johnson.
This marks the third time a team has cut Smith this year. The Falcons waived him in April, and the Cardinals moved on from the fourth-year back earlier this month. Smith spent barely a week in Arizona. These quick exits do not bode well for the former Atlanta rotational back to land out a meaningful role in 2021. Though, teams’ backfields often change due to injury, opening the door to street free agent ball carriers.
A fourth-round pick in 2018, Smith has averaged north of 4.3 yards per carry in each of the past two seasons. He totaled 268 rushing yards on 63 attempts last year, splitting time with Todd Gurley and Brian Hill. Of the Falcons’ top three 2020 backs, only Hill has a gig (with the Titans) presently.
Teams have until 3pm Tuesday to cut their rosters from 80 to 53 players. Many of the players waived next week will be candidates to land practice squad jobs, with the NFL greenlighting a second season of 16-man P-squads. Players waived early, however, obviously stand to have less of a chance to stick around in that regard.
Colts Claim TE Kahale Warring
Kahale Warring will head back to the AFC South and be with a third team in less than a week. After the Patriots waived the young tight end, the Colts submitted a successful claim for him, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
A Texans third-round pick in 2019, Warring landed on the waiver wire after Houston cut him Monday. New England came through with a claim but jettisoned the San Diego State product soon after. The Colts attempted to claim Warring initially, and after losing out to the Pats’ waiver priority, they were awarded the third-year pass catcher this time around.
The early returns on Warring are not good. Injuries have limited the former prospect to just seven games in two seasons, and his resume includes three receptions in that span. Warring missed all of his rookie season due to injury. Warring is still just 24 and has seen a few teams show interest this week. The Saints also tried to claim Warring earlier this week. It is not yet known if New Orleans submitted a second claim like Indianapolis did. The Colts had the better waiver priority, due to finishing the 2020 season with a worse record.
Indianapolis has Jack Doyle and Mo Alie-Cox as its top two tight ends, with the team also having used a fourth-round pick on Kylen Granson this year. Warring could profile as a practice squad developmental candidate, but that would mean the Colts passing him through waivers next week.
Panthers Cut K Joey Slye, 6 Others
The Panthers are beginning to move their roster toward the 53-man limit. Shortly after the trade for Ryan Santoso, the team cut its incumbent kicker — Joey Slye — and six other players.
In addition to Carolina waiving Slye, the team cut safety Doug Middleton, tackle Martez Ivey, wide receiver Ishmael Hyman, linebacker Paddy Fisher and linebacker Jonathan Celestin. The Panthers waived running back Darius Clark with an injury designation. Of this crop, only Middleton is a vested veteran who can avoid the waiver wire.
[RELATED: Giants Trade Santoso To Panthers]
As evidenced by Matt Rhule trying 65- and 67-yard yard field goals against the Saints and Chiefs last season, Slye has one of the strongest legs in the NFL. His placement on the wire may affect another team’s kicking situation. The wire is currently determined by 2020 record, so the Jaguars and Jets will have the first crack at the young kicker.
Slye, 25, kicked for the Panthers for the past two seasons. He replaced Graham Gano in Carolina. Gano is now with the Giants, who ended up delivering the Panthers Slye’s replacement in Santoso. Slye did miss seven field goals last season, though two of them came from beyond 65 yards. The Virginia Tech product also missed seven tries (25-for-32) in 2019, when he took over for an injured Gano.
A five-year veteran, Middleton played in 10 games with the Jaguars last season as a backup. The Panthers’ roster currently sits at 71 players.