Minor NFL Transactions: 12/14/19
Here are Saturday’s minor moves:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Promoted from practice squad: DE Freedom Akinmoladun
- Placed on IR: DT Renell Wren
Denver Broncos
- Promoted from practice squad: DL Deyon Sizer
- Signed off Colts’ practice squad: NT Kyle Peko
- Waived: LB Ahmad Gooden
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted from practice squad: G Jake Eldrenkamp
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted from practice squad: DL Joey Ivie
- Waived: CB Kareem Orr
Redskins Place Paul Richardson On IR
Having only played one game since November 3, Paul Richardson will not return to action until 2020. The Redskins placed the sixth-year wide receiver on IR Saturday.
Washington promoted tackle Timon Parris to take Richardson’s roster spot. The former Seahawks contract-year standout has been battling a hamstring injury. After getting in two limited practices this week, Richardson did not practice Friday. The Redskins had previously declared both Richardson and fellow wideout Trey Quinn out for Week 15.
A 2018 free agent signing, Richardson has not worked out like the franchise hoped. He will fail to exceed 300 receiving yards for the fifth time in six NFL seasons, having done so only during his 2017 Seattle contract year. This season, the deep threat averaged a career-low 8.8 yards per catch, hauling in 28 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns. Richardson’s first two seasons with Washington will have included 15 missed games by year’s end.
The Redskins gave Richardson a five-year, $40MM contract last March. Should Washington opt to move on from the 27-year-old target, the franchise would only save $2.5MM while incurring $6MM in dead money. Richardson is due a non-guaranteed $6MM base salary in 2020.
Lions Place Jarrad Davis, Joe Dahl On IR
Neither Jarrad Davis nor Joe Dahl practiced this week, and the Lions will use the two starters’ roster spots to promote two healthier players.
Davis and Dahl are now on Detroit’s IR list, with the former battling knee and ankle maladies and the latter sidelined because of knee and back discomfort. The Lions promoted running back Wes Hills and tackle Dan Skipper to their 53-man roster.
This move ends Davis’ third season. Although the 24-year-old defender dodged a preseason injury scare, he did not begin this campaign until Week 3 because of a high ankle sprain. This latest setback will shelve him for Detroit’s final three games.
A 2017 first-round pick, the linebacker made 63 tackles and recorded two sacks this season. The Lions must decide on the Florida alum’s fifth-year option by May. Pro Football Focus has not been especially fond of Davis’ NFL work, but he did register 100 tackles and six sacks in 2018. He’s started all 41 games he’s played as a Lion.
Given a contract extension during training camp, Dahl became a full-time starter for the first time this season. Working as Detroit’s top left guard, Dahl started all 13 Lions games this season. Coming into 2019, the interior lineman had started just four games in three years.
Bears Activate DL Akiem Hicks
The Bears will bring back one of their top players for Week 15’s pivotal game against the Packers. Akiem Hicks is officially back on Chicago’s 53-man roster after spending eight weeks on IR.
Hicks has not played since the Bears’ Week 5 game, but the team did not place the Pro Bowl defensive end on IR until before its Week 7 contest. To make room on their 53-man roster, the Bears placed tight end Ben Braunecker on IR. Braunecker’s season will end because of a concussion.
Despite the Bears sitting at 4-6 in a high-caliber NFC playoff race in mid-November, Matt Nagy refused to shut down Hicks. The fourth-year Bear returned to practice less than two weeks ago and is set to return to his starting role — for a 7-6 Bears team — Sunday.
A former Saints third-round pick who’s emerged as one of the game’s top interior defensive linemen, Hicks was a key reason for the Bears’ defensive ascent last season. He registered at least seven sacks in each of the past three seasons, combining for 36 tackles for loss in that span as well. The 30-year-old lineman will obviously not run that streak to four but will stand to help the Bears in what is essentially a must-win game in Green Bay.
Panthers Place OL Greg Little On IR
Greg Little‘s rookie season has come to an end. ESPN’s David Newton reports (via Twitter) that the Panthers left tackle has landed on the injured reserve. Carolina activated wideout Chris Hogan from the injured reserve to take the open roster spot.
Little had a tough act to follow in college, as he replaced former first-rounder Laremy Tunsil on the Ole Miss offensive line. His performance ended up being plenty impressive, and Little was ultimately selected in the second round of this past year’s draft.
The rookie had started three of his four games this season, but he’s been in and out of the lineup due to concussions. He sat out the past two games with an ankle injury, and that’s presumably the ailment that landed him on the injured reserve.
Hogan underwent arthroscopic knee surgery earlier this season. The former Patriots and Bills wideout will rejoin a receiving corps that has seen D.J. Moore solidify himself as a high-end receiver and Curtis Samuel eclipse his previous career-high receiving total. Hogan caught just three passes for 24 yards before injuring his knee.
Cowboys Promote LB Chris Covington
Chris Covington is getting another chance on the Cowboys active roster. Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News reports (via Twitter) that the linebacker has been promoted from the practice squad. Offensive tackle Caleb Benenoch was waived in a corresponding roster move.
The 2018 sixth-round pick has spent his entire career with the Cowboys organization. He appeared in five games as a rookie, compiling one tackle. Otherwise, he was inactive for Dallas’s other 11 contests.
Covington had a standout game in the Cowboys’ preseason opener, finishing with six tackles. However, he was waived by the Cowboys at the end of August, and he subsequently caught on with their practice squad. He had a brief stint on the active roster back in September.
As Gehlken notes, Sean Lee is questionable for Sunday’s game against the Rams. The linebacker missed an entire week of practice as he recovers from a thigh and pectoral issue. If Lee is forced out of the lineup, then Gehlken opines that undrafted rookie Luke Gifford would earn the majority of snaps at Sam linebacker. Covington would most likely be on the roster for emergency depth.
Dolphins Waive Marcus Sherels
Marcus Sherels‘ tenure with the Dolphins has come to an end. Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald tweets that Miami has waived the veteran returner/defensive back. Safety Montre Hartage has been promoted from the practice squad to take the open roster spot.
Sherels spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Vikings before signing a one-year deal with the Saints this past offseason. The 32-year-old was placed on the injured reserve after the preseason, and he was released by New Orleans days later. He caught on with the Vikings for his second stint with the organization back in September, and he proceeded to appear in three games for Minnesota.
He was cut by the Vikings in early October, and he signed with the Dolphins about a month later. Sherels primarily served as a return man during his five games with Miami. He returned three kickoffs for 57 yards and six punts for 23 yards, adding a fumble along the way.
Hartage, a rookie defensive back out of Northwestern, has spent the majority of the season on Miami’s practice squad. He had a brief stint on the active roster earlier this month. Hartage had a solid preseason with the Dolphins, compiling five tackles.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/13/19
Today’s minor moves:
Denver Broncos
- Placed on IR: WR Juwann Winfree
Miami Dolphins
- Claimed: CB Tae Hayes (from Jaguars)
- Placed on IR: DT Gerald Willis
Dolphins Sign DeVante Parker To Extension
Months after DeVante Parker agreed to a through-2020 extension with the Dolphins, the breakout wideout is nearing another agreement.
The Dolphins and their top receiver are close on a deal that would keep Parker in Miami through 2023, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The Louisville alum is set to sign the contract, according to Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The team announced the agreement.
The deal will be worth more than $40MM, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports (via Twitter), adding that the agreement is believed to be high on guarantees. That would seemingly be necessary in order to convince Parker not to bet on himself in 2021 free agency. This contract will include an $8MM signing bonus, and the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson reports (via Twitter) it will be worth up to $40MM. Both Parker’s 2020 and 2021 salaries will be fully guaranteed, which represents nice security for a former first-rounder who was heading toward bust status before this season.
Despite Parker’s underwhelming first four seasons, the Dolphins’ new power structure retained him through 2020 via a two-year, $10MM agreement. The 26-year-old wideout has far outperformed expectations this season, catching 55 passes for a career-high 882 yards and six touchdowns. He’s been perhaps the top bright spot on a rebuilding Dolphins team. This comes after years of the 2015 first-round pick being a trade candidate.
Although Miami jettisoned numerous veterans this year, the team has extended multiple veterans in-season. Allen Hurns and Eric Rowe signed extensions in recent weeks, though neither deal was in Parker’s price range. This pact would place Parker among the middle class at wide receiver. Twenty-four receivers earn at least $10MM annually, and the Dolphins will now employ one of them.
Cardinals Cut Terrell Suggs
The Cardinals released Terrell Suggs, head coach Kliff Kingsbury announced. The 37-year-old Suggs will now be available for the league’s other 31 teams, via the waiver wire. 
The seven-time Pro-Bowler could be an interesting pickup for contenders between now and Monday. Before his release, Suggs started in all 13 games for the Cardinals this season and notched 5.5 sacks plus four forced fumbles.
“Regarding Suggs, we’ve been having conversations as the season went on, as his role has been reduced, and we’ve kind of made the shift to playing some younger players,” Kingsbury said. “… In fairness to him to try to find a better fit right now, we released Terrell today.”
Despite Kingsbury’s comment about Suggs’ diminishing role, he played 76% of the Cardinals’ defensive snaps last week against the Steelers. He’s been over the 70% threshold in nine of Arizona’s 13 contests. The Cards will transition to said younger edge defenders opposite Chandler Jones on Sunday.
Any team claiming Suggs on Monday would owe him $353K, the prorated portion of his salary for the final two weeks of the season. Any team to claim Suggs would have exclusive negotiating rights until March. Suggs was listed as questionable to play this week because of a back injury.
Suggs left the Ravens after 16 seasons to join the Cardinals on a one-year, $10MM deal in the offseason. The Arizona native exited Baltimore as the franchise’s all-time sacks leader with 132.5 QB takedowns – 62.5 more than runner-up Peter Boulware. Suggs also surpassed Ray Lewis to become the Ravens’ games-played leader, suiting up for his 229th career regular-season contest in Week 17 of the 2018 campaign.
Baltimore sits 32nd on the wire, so while a return trip to Maryland would be quite the development, it doesn’t appear likely to occur. The Seahawks, despite their Jadeveon Clowney and Ziggy Ansah additions, rank 29th in sacks. The Clowney- and J.J. Watt-less Texans, as presently constructed, will surely consider such a claim. Houston resides in front of Seattle in waiver priority. Jon Gruden‘s affinity for veterans may not make such a move out of the question for the 6-7 Raiders, especially if they are to beat the Jaguars on Sunday.