Dolphins’ Albert Wilson Opts Out
The Dolphins are down another wide receiver. One day after Allen Hurns opted out of the 2020 season, teammate Albert Wilson has made the same call.
[RELATED: 2020 NFL Opt Out Tracker]
“It was a very tough choice,” said Wilson in a statement (Twitter link). “I will stand by my teammates and brothers to support them 100% throughout the season and will be counting the days until I can join them again.”
Wilson joined the Dolphins on a three-year, $24MM deal in 2018. He got off to a good start with his new team, catching 26 passes for 391 yards and four touchdowns in seven games. Two of those touchdown grabs were from at least 70 yards out, and he even threw a 52-yard TD pass. Unfortunately, he was derailed by a serious hip injury in October of that year. He returned in 2019, but couldn’t reprise that performance – he finished out with 43 catches for just 351 yards in 13 games, averaging out to 8.2 yards per catch.
This year, Wilson agreed to drop his base salary to $3MM, plus $1MM in incentives. Now, that deal will be pushed into next year.
49ers’ Travis Benjamin Opts Out
49ers wide receiver Travis Benjamin will opt out of the 2020 season. Benjamin joined the Niners on a one-year deal earlier this year, but he’ll have to wait until 2021 to make his SF debut.
[RELATED: 2020 NFL Opt Out Tracker]
“First, I would like to thank the 49ers organization for their continued support,” Benjamin wrote in a statement. “After much consideration and discussion with my family I have decided to opt out of the 2020 NFL season as I feel this is the best decision for my family. I will continue to support my teammates and many friends around the league this season. As we continue to navigate this pandemic I wish that everyone stays safe.”
The defending NFC champs lost Emmanuel Sanders in free agency and picked up Benjamin to help soften the blow. Previously, Benjamin split his eight-year NFL career with the Browns and the Chargers. He missed most of the 2019 season and missed four games in 2018 – by the time he returns next year, he’ll have missed 31 games across three seasons.
The 49ers’ wide receiver group is led by Deebo Samuel, Kendrick Bourne, rookie Brandon Aiyuk, and slot receiver Trent Taylor. However, they’ll likely be without Samuel for a bit while he recovers from a foot fracture.
As of this writing, more than 55 players have opted out of the 2020 season, as shown in our tracker. Players have until 4pm ET/3pm CT today to make the call.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/4/20
Here are today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Waived: CB Rojesterman Farris, DE Austin Larkin, DE Bryson Young
Baltimore Ravens
- Waived/injured: TE Jacob Breeland
Buffalo Bills
- Waived: LB Mike Bell
Carolina Panthers
- Claimed off waivers: RB Trenton Cannon (Jets)
Miami Dolphins
- Waived: CB Cordrea Tankersley
Philadelphia Eagles
- Claimed off waivers: TE Caleb Wilson (Washington)
- Placed on active/PUP: G Brandon Brooks
Raiders Waive P.J. Hall After Trade To Vikings Falls Through
TUESDAY, 4:23pm CT: Hall has indeed been waived, per today’s transactions wire.
TUESDAY, 3:57pm CT: Hold the phone. The trade was nullified after Hall failed his physical with Minnesota. He’ll now revert to the Raiders, who are expected to waive him.
MONDAY, 2:59pm CT: The Raiders are trading defensive tackle P.J. Hall to the Vikings, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. In exchange, the Vikings will send a conditional seventh-round choice to the Raiders.
Hall was supposed to be waived before the end of the business day. Instead, the Vikings swooped in with a trade offer. Instead of crossing their fingers and waiting to see if Hall slipped on the waiver wire, they pulled off a deal. The pick will only change hands if Hall is on the roster for a certain number of games, so it’s essentially a low-cost, no-risk pickup for the Vikes.
Hall, a 2018 second-round pick, was pushed out of the starting lineup by the addition of Maliek Collins. Then, he lost his spot on the team, despite his reasonable rookie contract.
Hall started in 12 of his 16 games last year, finishing out with 26 tackles and 1.5 sacks from the interior. The Vikings will assume the remainder of his contract and have him under club control through 2021.
Cardinals’ Marcus Gilbert Opts Out
Add Marcus Gilbert to the growing list of opt outs. The Cardinals tackle has decided against playing in 2020, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. 
The Cardinals acquired Gilbert from the Steelers via trade in 2019, with the intention of installing him as their starting right tackle. Unfortunately, a knee injury forced Gilbert to injured reserve in early September. Gilbert has yet to play a down for the Cardinals, and his next opportunity to suit up won’t come until 2021. The veteran lineman appeared in just 12 total games from 2017-18 and he hasn’t played a full 16-game slate since 2015.
With Gilbert off the roster, the Cardinals could turn to Justin Murray or third-round rookie Josh Jones as their new first-string RT. Whoever wins that competition will play opposite of D.J. Humphries on the front line.
As of this writing, Gilbert is the 52nd player to opt out. NFL players have until Thursday afternoon to make the call, after which point the decision is irrevocable.
Dolphins’ Allen Hurns Opts Out
Dolphins wide receiver Allen Hurns announced that he will opt out of the 2020 season (Twitter link). Hurns is the first Dolphins player to make the call, but he’s far from the first NFL player to do so. 
[RELATED: 2020 NFL Opt Out Tracker]
Hurns joined the Dolphins last summer and quickly earned an extension. In November, the Dolphins inked him to a two-year, $8MM deal with $3.27MM in guaranteed cash. Hurns was set to build off of his 32 grabs for 416 yards and two touchdowns, but that’ll have to wait until next year.
The remainder of Hurns’ deal will toll, meaning that he’ll be under club control through the 2022 season. Meanwhile, the Dolphins will move forward with Preston Williams, Isaiah Ford, Jakeem Grant, Gary Jennings, and Mack Hollins vying for time behind DeVante Parker and Albert Wilson.
The decision deadline has been set for Thursday afternoon. Already, roughly 50 NFL players have decided against playing.
Bills To Cut Spencer Long
The Bills are cutting offensive lineman Spencer Long, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. With the release, the Bills will drop the final two years on his original three-year deal.
The move comes as a bit of a surprise. The Bills exercised their 2020 option on Long’s deal back in March and he could have been a fill-in for Jon Feliciano at right guard. Instead, they’ll save $2.4MM by dropping him and carry $700K in dead money.
Long saw time in 14 games for the Bills last year. Before that, Long made a total of 44 starts for the [Washington Football Team] and the Jets between 2014 and 2018. With the ability to play multiple spots on the interior line, it stands to reason that he’ll find work before the start of the season.
In the meantime, the Bills will deploy new pickup Brian Winters in Long’s place. Winters, another ex-Jet, served as the Jets’ starting right guard from 2013-2019.
49ers’ D.J. Reed Out For Season
D.J. Reed won’t have to wrestle his opt out decision between now and Thursday. Unfortunately, his torn pectoral muscle has made the call for him. The Niners have waived Reed with a non-football injury designation, per Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area (via Twitter). Assuming Reed clears waivers, which he is almost certain to do, he will revert to San Francisco’s reserve/NFI list and will miss the season.
[RELATED: 49ers To Sign Jordan Reed]
Reed, 23, has appeared in 31 games for the Niners over the last two seasons. His playing time dipped in 2019, but, at minimum, he was set to serve as a versatile reserve in the secondary and a valuable special teams player.
Kwon Alexander suffered a torn pectoral muscle last year and miraculously returned to practice two months later. That’s not the typical timetable, of course, so it’s not a surprise to hear that Reed is done for the season. 49ers GM John Lynch considered keeping Reed on the roster, but it wasn’t feasible for the team to tie up a spot for several months.
By parking Reed for the year, the Niners will clear a roster spot for tight end Jordan Reed, who agreed to join the club on Monday. As Maiocco reports, the club also waived CB Chris Edwards.
Saints Sign WR Bennie Fowler
Bennie Fowler has found a new home. SiriusXM’s Adam Caplan reports (via Twitter) that the veteran wideout has signed with the Saints.
The Michigan State product spent the first four seasons of his career with the Broncos, and while he averaged 15 games per season between 2015 and 2017, he didn’t put up big numbers. His best season came in 2017, when he hauled in 29 receptions for 350 receiving yards and three scores.
The 29-year-old has bounced around the NFL a bit since that time. He signed with the Bears prior to the 2018 campaign, but he was cut at the end of the preseason. His subsequent stint with the Patriots lasted less than a week, but Fowler eventually found a new home with the Giants. In two-ish seasons with New York, the wideout averaged 19.5 receptions and 196 receiving yards per years.
Fowler is now joining one of the NFL’s top offenses in New Orleans. While the top of the Saints depth chart is highlighted by Michael Thomas and newcomer Emmanuel Sanders, Fowler could emerge from a grouping that includes the likes of Tre’Quan Smith, Deonte Harris, Austin Carr, and Lil’Jordan Humphrey.
Bills Sign OL Brian Winters
It didn’t take long for Brian Winters to find a new gig. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the veteran offensive lineman has signed with the Bills. He’ll receive a one-year deal worth $3MM, including $2MM guaranteed.
Winters joins Buffalo after getting surprisingly cut by the rival Jets yesterday. The veteran had been the Jets’ starting right guard since 2013, but it was clear that Greg Van Roten had the inside track at the starting job. In an act of good faith, the Jets let go of Winters so he could find a starting gig elsewhere (as ESPN’s Rich Cimini passed along yesterday). Of course, the move also cleared more than $7MM on the Jets’ books.
Winters will have a good chance to start in Buffalo, especially following news that Jon Feliciano has been sidelined with a pectoral tear. Winters was limited to only nine games last season after suffering a shoulder injury, but he averaged 14.5 games per season between 2015 and 2018. While Buffalo could turn to the likes of Spencer Long or Daryl Williams to fill in for Feliciano, Winters’ experience and dependability will likely earn him the bulk of playing time.
Feliciano suffered a torn pectoral muscle and underwent surgery Friday, the team announced. Feliciano started in all 17 Bills games for the Bills last season. The former fourth-round pick will be a free agent in 2021.
Rapoport notes that Winters had a number of suitors, but the Bills moved quickly to sign the 29-year-old.