Bears’ Roquan Smith Done For Season
DEC. 9: It is indeed a torn pec for Smith, head coach Matt Nagy confirmed. Smith will head to IR, and his season is over. Nagy hopes to have Smith back in time for April’s offseason program.
DEC. 6: The Bears fear that linebacker Roquan Smith tore his pec in Thursday night’s win over the Cowboys, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter) hears. If the MRI confirms, it would likely knock Smith out for the remainder of the season.
Smith has been playing some of his best football as of late, including a Week 13 performance against the Lions that included 16 tackles and two sacks. If the season is over for Smith, he’ll finish out 2019 with 100 total tackles, the aforementioned two sacks (as an off-ball linebacker), and 701 snaps (85% to date).
As the No. 8 overall pick in the 2018 draft, Smith has two full years left on his rookie deal. After that, the Bears will have the option of keeping Smith for 2022, his fifth NFL season.
After last night’s win over Dallas, the Bears are 7-6 with a puncher’s chance at the playoffs. Their next game against the Packers will be hugely important – a win keeps their slim NFC North chances (currently 5%) alive. A loss, on the other hand, would more or less seal the division for Green Bay and end Chicago’s season. From the sound of it, they’ll be without Smith for the pivotal Week 15 matchup.
Giants, P Riley Dixon Agree To Extension
The Giants have agreed to a three-year, $8.7MM extension with punter Riley Dixon, as Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). Dixon has averaged 47 yards per punt in 2019 — sixth-best in the NFL and a career-high for Dixon — and he may be the most consistent player on New York’s roster this year.
The Broncos drafted Dixon in the seventh round of the 2016 draft, and he served as Denver’s punter from 2016-17 before New York acquired him for a conditional seventh-rounder in April 2018 (the Broncos had recently signed Marquette King, which made Dixon expendable). Other teams were interested in Dixon, who won the Giants’ punting job in 2018 and who was eligible for unrestricted free agency this offseason.
The $2.9MM average annual value on Dixon’s new deal doesn’t make him the highest-paid punter in the game, but it does put him in the top-five. His extension is one order of business for the Giants to scratch off their list in advance of what should be an intriguing offseason.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/7/19
Here are today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Jalen Davis
- Waived: DL Caraun Reid
Miami Dolphins
- Signed off Seattle’s practice squad: CB Linden Stephens
- Waived: CB Chris Lammons
Washington Redskins
- Placed on IR: S Deshazor Everett
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Darvin Kidsy
Falcons Place Matt Bosher Back On IR
Shortly after the Falcons brought Matt Bosher off IR, the veteran punter will return to the team’s injured list. Bosher re-injured his groin and is back on IR.
The Falcons used one of their two IR-DTR slots on their ninth-year punter late last week but will not have the chance to redeploy him on fourth downs Sunday. Atlanta re-signed Ryan Allen, its punter in the past four games.
Bosher returned to Falcons practice on Nov. 20 but will have to wait until 2020 to return to game action. His Falcons contract — signed way back in 2014 — expires after this season. The 32-year-old specialist has been Atlanta’s punter since 2011.
One of the key Patriots in Super Bowl LIII, Allen has only punted since November of this season. The Patriots drafted Jake Bailey in Round 5 and released Allen this summer.
Chris Lindstrom represents the other Falcons IR-DTR player. The rookie lineman is still on track to return this week.
Panthers Sign LB Shaq Thompson To Four-Year Extension
The Panthers announced today that they’ve signed linebacker Shaq Thompson to a four-year extension. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that the deal is worth $54.2MM, with a maximum value of $57MM. There’s $28MM guaranteed and a $16MM signing bonus. The extension will keep Thompson in a Panthers uniform through the 2023 season.
“Shaq is our type of person and our type of player,” said general manager Marty Hurney. “He’s proven that he can play linebacker at a very high level, and he’s got all the traits you want. He’s smart, he’s physical, he can run and he’s very versatile. He fits the blueprint for what we want at the position.”
A 2015 first-round pick out of Washington, Thompson has spent his entire five-year career with the Panthers. The organization picked up his fifth-year option back in 2018, and the linebacker has rewarded them with perhaps his best season in the NFL. In 12 games this year, the 25-year-old has compiled 93 tackles, three sacks, and three passes defended. Thompson has also garnered glowing reviews from the coaching staff, with the organization appreciating his ability to fill in for longtime Panther Thomas Davis.
The $57MM maximum value would place Thompson in the top-five among linebackers, tied with Myles Jack and Deion Jones. Meanwhile, the $28MM in guaranteed money is the third-highest mark at the position behind C.J. Mosley and Devin White.
Browns Activate TE David Njoku From IR
David Njoku is back. The Browns announced this morning that they’ve activated the tight end from injured reserve. To make room on the roster, the team placed cornerback Robert Jackson on injured reserve.
Njoku had been sidelined since Week 2 as he recovered from both a concussion and a broken wrist. There was always optimism that the 23-year-old would be able to return to the field once he passed the concussion protocol, and he was designated to return from the IR in late November.
Prior to this injury, Njoku had played in 34 consecutive games for the Browns since they selected him 29th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. The tight end had a breakout season in 2018, hauling in 56 receptions for 639 yards and four touchdowns. He’ll provide Baker Mayfield with another weapon, as the Browns have been relying on the likes of Demetrius Harris and Ricky Seals-Jones during Njoku’s absence.
Jackson, a rookie out of Nevada-Las Vegas, appeared in six games for the Browns this season, compiling three tackles. The defensive back had already been ruled out for this weekend’s game with an ankle injury.
Giants Place S Jabrill Peppers On IR
The Giants have made a series of roster moves this morning, via ESPN’s Jordan Raanan (via Twitter). The team placed safety Jabrill Peppers and linebacker Chris Peace on injured reserve. Linebacker Kareem Martin was activated from the injured reserve, and safety Sean Chandler is being promoted from the practice squad.
The Giants acquired Peppers in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade this past offseason. The former first-rounder was on pace to have his best NFL season, as he had compiled 76 tackles, five passes defended, three forced fumbles, and one pick-six in 11 starts. The 24-year-old suffered a transverse process fracture during the Giants’ late-November loss to the Bears, but coach Pat Shurmur had expressed optimism that Peppers would be able to finish the season. Peppers didn’t play in last weekend’s loss to the Packers.
Peppers will be replaced on the roster by Chandler, a former undrafted rookie out of Temple. The 23-year-old has spent his two professional seasons with the Giants organization, and he’s compiled 23 tackles and one sack in 25 career games. Chandler was waived by New York in early November, and he later caught on with the team’s practice squad.
Martin spent the first four seasons of his career with the Cardinals before landing a three-year, $21MM ($7.5MM) deal with the Giants in 2018. He appeared in all 16 games (seven starts) during his first season in New York, compiling a career-high 48 tackles and 1.5 sacks. The 27-year-old suffered a knee injury in Week 1 and was placed on the injured reserve. He was designated for return in late November.
Peace, an undrafted rookie out of Virginia, was claimed off waivers from the Chargers back in September. The linebacker has appeared in four games for the Giants this season. He was listed on the injury report with a knee issue earlier this week.
Bengals Place TE Drew Sample On IR
Bengals tight end Drew Sample is done for the year. The team placed the rookie on injured reserve this morning, reports Tyler Dragon of the Cincinnati Enquirer (via Twitter). Cincy promoted safety Trayvon Henderson from the practice squad to take the open roster spot (per Dragon on Twitter).
The Bengals used a second-round pick on Sample in this past year’s draft. The Washington product found himself playing behind a (relatively) healthy Tyler Eifert and C.J. Uzomah on the depth chart, hauling in five catches for 30 yards in nine games (two starts). The six-foot-four tight end suffered an ankle injury in his team’s Week 10 loss to the Ravens.
Henderson, 24, sat out his entire rookie campaign with a torn ACL. The Bengals waived the defensive back following the 2019 preseason, and Henderson later caught on with their practice squad. Safety Brandon Wilson has already been ruled out for tomorrow’s game against the Browns with a hand injury. Safety Shawn Williams is also listed on the injury report with an ankle injury.
Patriots Waive DT Albert Huggins, Re-Sign K Nick Folk
Albert Huggins‘ stint with the Patriots lasted less than one week. The Patriots waived the rookie defensive tackle this morning, according to ESPN’s Field Yates (via Twitter). The team will use the roster spot on kicker Nick Folk, who the team officially re-signed.
Huggins joined the Texans as an undrafted free agent out of Clemson. He landed on Houston’s practice squad at the end of the preseason, and he was later signed to the Eagles active roster. The 22-year-old ended up appearing in four games for Philly, compiling three tackles. He was waived by the Eagles last weekend, and the Patriots claimed him on Monday. ESPN’s Mike Reiss suggests that Huggins could be a candidate for New England’s practice squad (Twitter link).
Folk was cut last week after undergoing an appendectomy, but the team’s decision to waive fill-in Kai Forbath indicated that the veteran would be ready for tomorrow’s matchup against the Chiefs. However, the Patriots practiced two straight days without a kicker, leading some to wonder whether the team was actually going to go in a different direction.
We heard last night that the deal had been agreed to. With the Pats, Folk has connected on 7-of-9 field goal tries and all three of his extra point attempts across three games. Two of those misses came last month against the Cowboys, but the Pats still came away with the 13-9 win, with Folk’s 42-yard connection in the fourth quarter helping to seal the deal. In total, the Pats have used four kickers this season: Stephen Gostkowski, Mike Nugent, Folk, and Forbath.
Colts, Jack Doyle Agree On Extension
Thrust back into the role of the Colts’ top tight end, Jack Doyle now has another long-term contract. The Colts and Doyle agreed on a three-year extension Friday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The deal is worth $21.3MM in new money and could spike to $29.1MM through incentives, Mike Chappell of CBS4 tweets. This marks another nice payday for the career-long Colt who now has a bigger role since the team placed Eric Ebron on IR. This marks a second Colts re-up for the Indianapolis native; Doyle’s three-year, $18.9MM deal was set to expire at season’s end.
While the pay bump is not much compared to what Doyle’s previous number was, it keeps the 29-year-old weapon tied to the Colts through the 2022 season. Considering Ebron may be set to walk in free agency, after a strange end to his season, the Colts did not waste much time in ensuring some continuity at tight end.
A former UDFA out of Western Kentucky arrived in Indianapolis in 2013, during the three-year stretch of Andrew Luck-led playoff berths, but played behind Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen for three seasons. Doyle emerged in his contract year, 2016, with a 584-yard, five-touchdown performance and made the 2017 Pro Bowl with a career-best 690 yards.
After Doyle suffered a season-ending injury in 2018, Ebron broke Dallas Clark‘s Colts record for touchdowns by a tight end. But Ebron did not come especially close to matching that production this year. Doyle is again the Colts’ top tight end target and will be pivotal to the fringe AFC contender’s playoff chances.