Minor NFL Transactions: 5/27/20
Today’s minor moves:
New York Jets
- Waived: P Ian Berryman
Saints To Sign James Hurst
The Saints have agreed to sign James Hurst, according agent Jack Bechta (on Twitter). The former Ravens offensive lineman will head to New Orleans on a one-year deal. 
[RELATED: Saints DE Noah Spence Tears ACL]
The Ravens released Hurst in March, wiping his $5.25MM cap hit off of the books for 2020. In February, Hurst was hit with a four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances. Before the ban, Hurst was already on the roster bubble. After the suspension came down from the league office, his fate was pretty much sealed.
The suspension means that Hurst won’t be available for his new team in September. But, come October, Hurst could be a worthwhile reserve, one that offers starting experience at both tackle and guard. In six seasons with the Ravens, Hurst was first-string for 44 of his 90 games. He was mostly a reserve last year, but he started in all of his games between 2017 and 2018.
In New Orleans, Hurst will have the opportunity to learn from one of the league’s best O-Lines, a unit that allowed only 24 sacks in 2019. On the outside, they’ll start Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk. In the middle, they’ll deploy Andrus Peat, Erik McCoy, and rookie Cesar Ruiz, now that veteran Larry Warford is out of the picture.
Saints DE Noah Spence Tears ACL
The Saints re-signed defensive end Noah Spence in March, but the former second-round pick is likely done for the season.
New Orleans placed Spence on its reserve/non-football injury list Tuesday. This would only shelve him for the first six weeks of the season, but Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Spence suffered a torn ACL while working out independently. The Saints would have been unable to place Spence on the NFI list in a normal offseason, with Rapoport noting the injury occurred during the OTA window.
Spence does not count against the Saints’ 90-man offseason roster, having been moved to the NFI list to make room for recently added linebacker Anthony Chickillo.
Spence caught on with the Saints late last season but did not play in any games with the team. After the Buccaneers waived him following the preseason’s conclusion, Spence landed with the Redskins. He played seven games with the team, registering one sack.
A Bucs draftee in 2016, Spence has 7.5 career sacks. He recorded 5.5 of those as a rookie. He was expected to compete for a depth spot with the Saints.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/25/20
We’ll keep track of the MDW draft pick signings here:
- The Packers inked seventh-round defensive lineman Jonathan Garvin, per a club announcement. Garvin waited a long, long time on draft weekend and watched a handful of his University of Miami teammates come off the board before him at No. 242 overall. There, he became the Packers’ ninth selection, giving him a chance to reunite with old Hurricanes teammate Gerald Willis. Garvin, a 6’4″, 263-pound lineman, put himself on the radar with 60 stops, 5.5 sacks, and five pass breakups in 2018. He wasn’t as sharp last year, but the Packers still see the potential.
NFL Draft Signings: 5/22/20
Here are Friday’s draft pick agreements:
- The Browns continue check off their draft list. After agreeing to terms with two picks earlier this week, the Browns signed fifth-round selection Nick Harris. A center out of Washington, Harris profiles as depth behind J.C. Tretter. However, he could also represent a candidate for upward mobility at guard. Prior to becoming the Huskies’ starting center in 2018, Harris started 17 games at guard during his freshman and sophomore years. Cleveland employs Joel Bitonio at left guard but does not feature as much certainty on the right side.
Jets, Joe Flacco Agree To Deal
Although Joe Flacco is recovering from a neck surgery that is expected to keep him out of action for months, he agreed to terms with the Jets on Friday. The former Ravens and Broncos quarterback will sign a one-year deal, according to his agency (Twitter link).
This will add an experienced arm for a Jets team that previously featured a thin depth chart behind Sam Darnold. The Jets did re-sign David Fales and drafted James Morgan in Round 4 this offseason, but Flacco (if healthy) obviously offers a higher floor. After expressing interest in Andy Dalton, the Jets landed his longtime AFC North rival.
Flacco’s deal will be worth $1.5MM with incentives that could bring the price up to $4.5MM, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The 12th-year veteran is also expected to be ready to participate in training camp, though Schefter tweets the former Super Bowl MVP likely will not be medically cleared until September.
Talks between Flacco and the Jets transpired for weeks, according to Sirius XM Radio’s Adam Caplan (on Twitter). The Eagles also showed interest earlier this offseason but backed off after the draft, Caplan adds. Philadelphia drafted Jalen Hurts in the second round.
A Flacco deal during the COVID-19 pandemic — when teams cannot have their medical staffs examine players — certainly proves interesting. Cam Newton remains in free agency. But the former certainly represents a cheaper option. Jets GM Joe Douglas has extensive familiarity with Flacco. Douglas was with the Ravens as their northeast area scout when they drafted Flacco out of Delaware in 2008. Douglas was still with Baltimore when Flacco turned in his career-defining playoff run that secured the franchise’s second Super Bowl title four years later.
The former Division I-FCS standout is now 35 and will arrive in the Big Apple after some injury-marred seasons. After a torn ACL ended his seven-plus-year start streak in 2015, Flacco battled back trouble in 2017. Though he played 16 games that year, the Delaware alum missed time with a hip malady in 2018 and saw Lamar Jackson take his job. Flacco’s Broncos season stalled after eight starts, and Denver subsequently pivoted to Drew Lock.
Gang Green has struggled at backup quarterback for years. They went 0-6 in games Darnold did not start over the past two years, and the previous regime’s investments in Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg — who backed up Ryan Fitzpatrick and then Josh McCown — did not work out.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/21/20
Today’s 2020 NFL draft pick signings:
- The Jaguars have signed fourth-round linebacker Shaquille Quarterman, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Quarterman, whom Jacksonville selected with the draft choice it acquired from the Bears in exchange for quarterback Nick Foles, was a four-year starter at the University of Miami, and posted at least 80 tackles in all four of his seasons with the Hurricanes. In a pre-draft profile, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com praised Quarterman’s hustle and mentality, but indicated 6’0″, 235-pounder may not have the short-area quickness required to play linebacker in the NFL. The Jaguars already have Myles Jack and Joe Schobert starting at linebacker, meaning Quarterman will likely begin his pro career on special teams.
Falcons Sign LB Deone Bucannon
The Falcons have signed free agent linebacker Deone Bucannon, the club announced today.
Bucannon, 27, will return to the NFC South after spending part of his 2019 season with the Buccaneers. The former first-round pick signed a one-year, $2.5MM deal with Tampa Bay last offeason, but only appeared in five games before being cut. Bucannon’s play contributed to his release, but the Bucs also enhanced their compensatory pick selections by parting ways with the veteran linebacker.
After leaving the Buccaneers, Bucannon latched on with the Giants. He appeared in nine games down the stretch, and although he played on just eight defensive snaps, he did contribute on special teams (78 snaps). All told, Bucannon has made 57 career starts since being selected 27th overall by the Cardinals in the 2014 draft.
Atlanta lost linebacker De’Vondre Campbell in free agency, leaving Foyesade Oluokun as the most likely option to start next to Deion Jones. Bucannon, with his experience and ability to play multiple roles, should compete with Oluokun for playing time.
Saints Sign LB Anthony Chickillo
The Saints have agreed to sign free agent linebacker Anthony Chickillo to a one-year deal, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
A sixth-round pick in the 2015 draft, Chickillo had spent his entire career with Pittsburgh until being released earlier this year. After completing his rookie contract, Chickillo inked a two-year, $8MM contact with the Steelers in 2019 despite receiving free agent interest from the Patriots. Pittsburgh decided to cut bait halfway through the deal, saving $5MM in the process.
Chickillo, 27, spent most of his Steelers career as a reserve (65 games, nine starts). His most productive campaign came in 2016, when he made seven starts and played on roughly a third of Pittsburgh’s defensive snaps. Last year, Chickillo played in 11 games, racking up a half-sack and 19 total tackles.
Chickillo has spent a great deal of time on special teams duty (at least 67% playtime in each of the past four seasons), and that’s likely what he’ll do for the Saints. New Orleans is projected to start Demario Davis, Kiko Alonso, and Alex Anzalone in base sets, with Craig Robertson and rookie Zack Baun in reserve, so Chickillo isn’t even necessarily guaranteed a place on the Saints’ final roster.
Chargers Re-Sign OL Ryan Groy
The Chargers announced that they’ve re-signed offensive lineman Ryan Groy, who appeared in nine games for the club in 2019.
Groy, 29, has served mostly as a backup during his six-year NFL career, but that could prove to be a critical role on Los Angeles’ roster in 2020. Chargers center Maurkice Pouncey missed most of the 2019 campaign with a neck injury, and while he was recently medically cleared, there’s always a chance Groy could be asked to fill in at the pivot. New right guard Trai Turner, meanwhile, has missed three games in each of the past three years, so there could be ample opportunity for Groy to play.
An undrafted free agent out of Wisconsin in 2014, Groy has appeared in 65 games and made 17 starts throughout his NFL tenure. After spending his rookie campaign with the Bears, Groy played for the Bills for four years before joining the Chargers last October.