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
Eagles Expected To Sign Jordan Howard
Shortly after the Dolphins cut Jordan Howard, the veteran running back secured an Eagles visit. Howard is meeting with Eagles brass Thursday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
This will lead to an agreement. Howard is expected to sign with the Eagles on a practice squad agreement, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). Should he navigate COVID-19 protocols, he will be eligible to practice with the Eagles next week. Given Howard’s history with the team, he should not have an issue reacclimating.
Howard landed an ultimately unsuccessful (for the Dolphins) two-year deal based somewhat on his 2019 performance as an Eagle. The Eagles acquired Howard from the Bears last year and used him as a starter. The fifth-year back, however, has experienced a brutally ineffective 2020.
Howard’s Dolphins stay ended with a 1.2 yards-per-carry average (33 yards on 28 totes). The Dolphins made him a healthy scratch at one point and moved on in the form of a Monday cut. As expected, no team claimed Howard’s contract.
The Eagles have a recent history of circling back to running backs. They signed Jay Ajayi a year after an injury ended his first Eagles tenure and re-signed Corey Clement after non-tendering him as a restricted free agent this year. Clement is currently on Philly’s reserve/COVID-19 list.
Howard surpassed 1,100 rushing yards in his first two Bears seasons but was less effective in Matt Nagy‘s scheme in 2018, prompting the Bears to trade him in the ’19 offseason. With the Eagles, Howard bounced back by averaging 4.4 yards per carry and rushing for six touchdowns in 10 games.
J.J. Arcega-Whiteside Tests Positive For COVID-19
J.J. Arcega-Whiteside will be away from the Eagles for a while after testing positive for COVID-19, Geoff Mosher and Adam Caplan of InsidetheBirds.com report (via Twitter).
Because of contact tracing, the Eagles also placed Vinny Curry, Corey Clement and wide receiver Deontay Burnett on their reserve/COVID-19 list Thursday.
Clement and Curry landed on the list because they came in contact with someone who contracted the coronavirus, but NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport notes their placements on the list did not stem from Arcega-Whiteside’s positive test (Twitter link). Curry and Clement have continued to test negative, and ESPN.com’s Tim McManus indicates (via Twitter) each player landed on the virus list because they were close contacts of two different individuals.
While Arcega-Whiteside is guaranteed to miss Sunday’s game, his affected teammates’ respective statuses will come down to when their last contact with an infected person occurred. Players who land on the reserve/COVID list must isolate for five days, but players have been placed on a COVID list on a Thursday and returned to play the following Sunday. Kyle Van Noy did so last week.
Holdovers from the Eagles’ Super Bowl LII-winning team, Curry and Clement serve as key rotational players for Philadelphia. Arcega-Whiteside has not been able to break through despite his second-round pedigree. He has just 12 career catches, including two this season for an again-injury-ravaged Eagles receiving corps.
Cardinals Move Jordan Phillips To IR
More trouble for Arizona’s defensive line. The Cardinals placed big-ticket free agency addition Jordan Phillips on IR on Thursday. He will join Corey Peters as D-linemen on the Cards’ injured list.
Phillips is battling a hamstring injury that caused him to miss Week 9. He will be out until Week 14 because of Thursday’s transaction, and the Cards are certainly set to be thin on their defensive front against the Seahawks. Peters is out for the season.
The Cards promoted defensive lineman Michael Dogbe from their practice squad but are still down Peters, Phillips and Zach Allen up front. Five Cards D-linemen in total are on IR. Considering Chandler Jones is also out, the Cardinals are down most of the players they intended to have rush quarterbacks at the season’s outset. They have turned to former off-ball linebacker Haason Reddick as an edge player as a result, and the team reacquired Markus Golden from the Giants to help out.
Phillips signed a three-year, $30MM deal to come over from Buffalo in March. He has not quite flashed his contract-year form, registering two sacks and three QB hits this season. In 2019, Phillips posted a Bills-best 9.5 sacks and 16 QB hits.
The Cardinals also promoted D.J. Foster. The veteran running back has seen action as a practice squad promotion a few times this season. Tight end Evan Baylis and linebacker Reggie Walker will rise to the active roster as well.
Seahawks To Place Quinton Dunbar On IR
The Seahawks will go a second straight game without one of their cornerback starters Thursday night, and Quinton Dunbar‘s injury-related absence will be extended to at least four weeks.
Dunbar will go on Seattle’s IR list, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). The offseason trade acquisition is battling a knee injury — one that shelved him for the Seahawks’ Week 10 loss to the Rams.
Seattle will promote Snacks Harrison and running back Bo Scarbrough from its practice squad. Chris Carson is not expected to play against the Cardinals tonight, and Scarbrough stands to provide depth for a backfield that has not been at full strength in weeks. Technically, Seattle’s running back stable has been incomplete all season due to Rashaad Penny‘s absence.
Dunbar has started all six games he’s played with his new team. The Seahawks sent Washington a fifth-round pick for the sixth-year veteran. Pro Football Focus has not viewed the 2019 standout’s play as particularly strong this season, ranking him 106th among full-time corners. Seattle’s defense enters Week 11 last in yards allowed; its pass defense has been the primary culprit.
The 28-year-old defender was in talks with the Bruce Allen-led Washington front office about an extension, but the Ron Rivera regime traded him to Seattle. His current deal expires at season’s end. Dunbar broke through as a full-time starter last season, intercepting four passes and grading as one of the NFL’s top defenders (per PFF), but could use a strong stretch run to impact potential Seahawks extension talks or a 2021 free agency bid.
This will be Harrison’s second time in a Seahawks game uniform. The team waited several weeks before activating the former All-Pro nose tackle, and Harrison played 19 defensive snaps against the Rams. He should be ticketed for another part-time role tonight.
Washington Places Geron Christian On IR
The Washington Football Team has placed tackle Geron Christian on injured reserve, per a club announcement. Christian, who has been out for the past three weeks with a knee injury, will miss at least another three weeks, per the league’s new modified IR rules. 
[RELATED: Giants, Washington Have COVID-19 Positives]
Up until the injury, Christian started all six of his games and played on every snap. Unfortunately, this isn’t his first trip to the IR. Two years and one week ago today, Christian was shut down with a torn MCL. At that time, the 2018 [Washington Football Team] had a record of 6-3. This time around, they’re 2-7, so they might take some extra caution before clearing Christian to retake the field.
Without Christian, Washington has installed Cornelius Lucas as the starting left tackle. However, his status is murky for this week after an ankle injury forced him to the sidelines against the Lions. With that, Morgan Moses may start on the left side against the Bengals with David Sharpe serving as the starting right tackle.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/18/20
Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: DE Jonathan Wynn
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: CB Trajan Bandy, CB Donnie Lewis
Houston Texans
- Signed: WR Artavis Scott
Las Vegas Raiders
- Placed on practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: DL David Irving
Los Angeles Rams
- Placed on practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: TE Kendall Blanton, DB Jake Gervase, WR J.J. Koski
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: WR Andre Patton
New England Patriots
- Signed: DT Nick Thurman
- Activated from practice squad IR: TE Jake Burt
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
Cardinals’ Corey Peters Done For Year
Cardinals defensive tackle Corey Peters will miss the rest of the year, per a club announcement. Peters has started nearly every game for the Cardinals over the past five years. Now, he’ll focus on 2021 as he rehabs from a torn patellar tendon. 
Recuperating from a knee injury is never easy, but it might be especially challenging for Peters at the age of 32. Also, on a personal level, the timing is less than ideal. The veteran is in the final season of his three-year, $12MM deal with the Cardinals and he won’t be negotiating from a position of strength as he seeks his next contract.
Peters, who will turn 33 over the summer, has started 121 games over the course of his ten-year career. The first half of his NFL journey was spent with the Falcons where he enjoyed some solid seasons, including a 2013 season in which he notched five sacks from the interior. A team captain, Peters has been a rock against the run for Arizona ever since joining the team in 2016.
The Cardinals — sans Peters — will take on the Seahawks in Seattle this week.