Chiefs To Sign DeAndre Baker To Practice Squad
DeAndre Baker is back in the NFL. The Chiefs are set to sign the former first-round cornerback to their practice squad, as Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. 
[RELATED: Robbery Charges Against DeAndre Baker Dropped]
Earlier this week, the Broward County State Attorney’s Office dropped the armed robbery charges against Baker. He was away from football for much of 2020 and gearing up for a court battle, but he’s now in the clear, legally speaking. The NFL could still discipline Baker after an investigation from the league office. For now, he’s free to join the Chiefs’ reserve squad.
Garafolo hears that it won’t be long before Baker makes his way to the active roster, provided that everything checks out. That’s no surprise, considering Baker’s first-round pedigree. A standout at Georgia, Baker was widely regarded as the top cornerback in the class. The 5-foot-11 athlete turned in a standout 2018 season with the Bulldogs, compiling 40 tackles, two sacks, nine passes defended, and two picks.
Baker was expected to be a key part of the Giants’ secondary right off the bat. Instead, he clashed with coaches and wound up benched midway through his first pro season. Still, the talent is there, and there’s little risk for the Chiefs as they take a flyer on him.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/17/20
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Placed on IR: TE Nick Boyle, CB Terrell Bonds
- Signed from practice squad: S Geno Stone
Denver Broncos
- Released: CB Davontae Harris
Green Bay Packers
- Activated off IR: WR Allen Lazard
Houston Texans
- Activated off reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Jacob Martin
Indianapolis Colts
- Released: DT Sheldon Day
- Activated off PUP: DE Kemoko Turay
Las Vegas Raiders
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Clelin Ferrell, S Lamarcus Joyner
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed from practice squad: OL Brett Jones
New York Giants
- Signed: P Ryan Santoso
Philadelphia Eagles
- Promoted from practice squad: Michael Jacquet
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on IR: SS Johnathan Cyprien, RB JaMycal Hasty
Tennessee Titans
- Released: P Ryan Allen
Washington Football Team
- Released off IR: OL Michael Liedtke
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DL Matt Ioannidis
Jets Place CB Brian Poole On IR
The Jets’ secondary sure is getting a makeover today. Shortly after releasing starting cornerback Pierre Desir, New York has placed fellow starting corner Brian Poole on injured reserve, the team announced Tuesday.
Poole is dealing with shoulder and knee injuries although head coach Adam Gase indicated recently they weren’t overly serious. With this move, Poole will have to miss at least the next three games. Poole has been playing heavy snaps as a starter, leaving the Jets with a lot of production to replace. He entered the league as an UDFA with the Falcons in 2016, then signed a one-year, $3.5MM contract with the Jets in 2019.
He re-upped with another one-year pact worth $5MM this past offseason. In nine games so far he’s racked up 44 tackles, a sack, seven passes defended, and two interceptions. Rookie fifth-rounder Bryce Hall, just activated off the NFI list, was already going to play a bigger role with Desir gone and now he’s even more important. The Jets are going to have a very young group of corners when they take on Justin Herbert and the Chargers this week. Things could get ugly.
Rams Make Handful Of Roster Moves
The Rams made a handful of roster moves Tuesday afternoon. Los Angeles is signing kicker Matt Gay while placing offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth, safety Taylor Rapp, and kicker Kai Forbath on IR, the team announced Tuesday.
Obviously with Forbath going on injured reserve, the team needed a new kicker. They started the year with seventh-round rookie Sam Sloman as their kicker, but replaced him with Forbath after he struggled to start the year. Gay was drafted by the Bucs in the fifth-round last year, and spent 2019 as their kicker. He was waived in September following a training camp battle with veteran Ryan Succop that he lost. He then signed with the Colts’ practice squad, which the Rams just poached him off.
Whitworth of course suffered a torn MCL and PCL during Sunday’s win over the Seahawks. The injury was thought to possibly be season-ending, but head coach Sean McVay indicated recently they were hoping to get him back and that it would sideline him only 6-8 weeks. If that’s the case, then the veteran stud left tackle may be able to return and block Jared Goff‘s blindside for a playoff run. 2018 third-round pick Joseph Noteboom will take his place for the time being.
Rapp is a 2019 second-rounder who was a starter as a rookie and had once again been playing a big role on defense this season. He has an MCL sprain which McVay said will likely sideline him between 3-4 weeks. Meanwhile Forbath has a sprained ankle. Gay will apparently compete with Austin MacGinnis, currently on the practice squad, for the kicking job.
Jets Release Pierre Desir
The 0-9 Jets are making a change on defense. New York is releasing veteran cornerback Pierre Desir, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network tweets.
New York signed him to a one-year deal with a base value of around $4MM and max value of $5.5MM with incentives back in March, hoping he could be their top corner this year. Desir had been playing a near every down role, starting all but one game this season, so this is a pretty big shakeup for Gregg Williams’ defense. Obviously Desir is a vet who is set to be a free agent at the end of the year, so as his play has slipped there’s no reason for the tanking Jets not to get a look at some of their younger guys.
Desir will finish his Jets tenure with 47 tackles, eight passes defended, and three interceptions. The three picks are solid, but Desir often struggled in coverage and was pulled from games a couple of times. A fourth-round pick of the Browns back in 2014, Desir spent his first two years in Cleveland before getting cut. After brief stints with the Chargers and Seahawks, he found a home in Indianapolis.
He was with the Colts for three seasons, and was a full-time starter in 2018 and 2019. After a surprisingly strong 2018 campaign he was rewarded with a three-year, $22.5MM deal, but was cut after just one season of that. Since it’s this late in the year Desir will go on waivers, and it’ll be interesting to see if a contending team in need of secondary help decides to claim his expiring contract. Bryce Hall, a rookie sixth-round pick from Virginia who was recently activated off the NFI list, should be one of the aforementioned young guys who gets more run with the Jets moving forward.
Bengals Waive Takk McKinley
Takk McKinley‘s time with the Bengals is over before it really ever began. Cincinnati waived the defensive end after he failed his physical with the team, they announced on Tuesday.
Cincy had just claimed McKinley off waivers from the Falcons last week. He’ll now revert to waivers, where every team will again have the chance to claim him. In addition to the Bengals, the 49ers, Browns, and Raiders also submitted claims last time. The 49ers have the highest waiver priority among those teams so they’ll presumable be able to get him if they still want him, unless a previously uninterested team decides to pull the trigger.
Atlanta drafted McKinley in the first-round back in 2017, but he never lived up to that status. He had six and then seven sacks in his first two years in the league, but had only 3.5 last season. Through four games and limited playing time this season he only has one, although he’s had a very high pressure rate.
He was hoping to get traded, and accused the Falcons of turning down trade offers for him. After the trade deadline came and went he blasted the team on social media, leading to his release shortly thereafter. McKinley has plenty of talent, and at only 25 makes for a nice low-risk upside addition for teams in need of pass-rushing help. It’ll be interesting to see who jumps at the opportunity the second time around.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/17/20
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: LB Jake Carlock
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: TE Luke Wilson
Carolina Panthers
- Cut: TE Seth DeValve
Cincinnati Bengals
- Cut: OT O’Shea Dugas
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: DE Breeland Speaks
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: P Johnny Townsend
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DT Ryan Glasgow
- Cut: DE Will Clarke
New York Giants
- Signed: TE Nate Wieting
New York Jets
- Signed: TE Connor Davis
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: RB Adrian Killins
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: TE Charles Jones
- Released: LB Ray Wilborn
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on practice squad IR: DB Jared Mayden
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/16/20
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: LBs Terrance Smith, Stephone Anthony
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: QB Tommy Stevens
Denver Broncos
- Signed: TE Jordan Leggett
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: WR John Hurst, RB Derrick Gore
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: LS Rex Sunahara
New England Patriots
- Signed: QB Jake Dolegala
- Released: TE David Wells
New York Giants
- Signed: CB Quincy Wilson, OL Kenny Wiggins, RB Taquan Mizzell
Washington Football Team
- Signed: DE Jalen Jelks
The Panthers were going to land Stevens as an UDFA back in April before the Saints snagged him in the seventh-round. He was recently cut from New Orleans’ practice squad last week. Stevens is a diverse athlete who played a Taysom Hill-esque role at Penn State before transferring to Mississippi State for the 2019 college season. His signing could be an indication the Panthers are worried about Teddy Bridgewater‘s status for Sunday, but since they had previous reported interest in Stevens it could be completely unrelated.
Jets Claim Pat Elflein Off Waivers
The Jets are using their 0-9 record to their advantage. New York has claimed offensive lineman Pat Elflein off waivers from the Vikings, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.
It goes without saying, the Jets are at the top of the waiver wire. It’s rare for a player with Elflein’s recent starting experience to hit the waiver wire late in the year, and GM Joe Douglas took advantage. A 2017 third-round pick of the Vikings, Elflein started at least 13 games in each of his first three NFL seasons. He spent his first two years at center before kicking over to left guard for the 2019 campaign.
His rookie contract is set to expire at the end of the year, so he’ll be an unrestricted free agent in March. Now the Jets can take a look at him internally and potentially lock him up before he hits free agency if they like what they see. Elflein has never graded out well as a starter by most evaluators, but it’s a decent low-risk acquisition as the Jets continue to try to improve their offensive line.
The Ohio State product started Minnesota’s opener against the Packers this year, but was then placed on injured reserve with a thumb injury. He was released nearly immediately upon being activated.
Dolphins Extend DT Zach Sieler
The Dolphins have been arguably the best story in football this season, and now they’re locking up one of their diamond in the rough finds. Miami has extended defensive tackle Zach Sieler through the 2023 season, the team announced Monday.
He had previously been set to become a restricted free agent at the end of the year. A seventh-round pick of the Ravens in 2018, the Dolphins claimed him off waivers from Baltimore in December of last year. He played in a few games for Miami down the stretch, and showed enough to earn a role in 2020. The Dolphins’ defense has been one of the biggest surprises in the NFL as they’ve played at a very high level recently, and Sieler has been a big part of the turnaround.
He’s played in all nine games this season, starting three, while notching right around half of the defensive snaps. So far he has 26 tackles, four for a loss, 1.5 sacks, and eight quarterback hits. We don’t have the financial terms yet for the Ferris State D2 alum, but we’ll pass those along as soon as we get word.