Broncos Place Bryce Callahan On IR
It’s now official. The Broncos placed cornerback Bryce Callahan on IR, per a press release from the team. To take his place on the roster, the club will activate wide receiver Tim Patrick from IR. 
The Broncos gave Callahan a three-year, $21MM deal with $10MM guaranteed. The former Bears slot standout, unfortunately, has yet to play a down in Denver. This comes after last season’s letdown – he ended the 2018 campaign on Chicago’s IR with a broken foot. This year, he aggravated that injury in training camp.
Callahan was one of three high-profile Broncos free agent additions, joining Kareem Jackson and Ja’Wuan James. While Jackson has delivered in his first full season as a safety, James has missed most of this season. Two out of three ain’t bad, but one out of three is….pretty bad.
The Broncos are 3-6 with nearly no chance of seeing the playoffs this year. On the plus side – they managed to beat the Browns in their last time out and they’ll be ticketed for a high first-round draft pick, provided that they don’t mess things up by winning too much the rest of the way.
Vikings Activate Josh Doctson
The Vikings have activated wide receiver Josh Doctson, per a club announcement. The former first-round pick could be in line to make his season debut on Sunday with Adam Thielen out for yet another week. 
The Vikings signed Doctson towards the end of August, shortly after cutting Laquon Treadwell, who was taken one spot behind him in the 2016 draft. Treadwell has since returned to Minnesota, meaning that the two may actually take the field together.
Doctson’s next game with Minnesota will be his first in purple – at least, his first in Vikings purple. Before joining the Vikings, Doctson started 26 games across the previous two years for the Redskins, but registered just 79 total catches for 1,034 yards and eight touchdowns. Last year, he placed 96th out of 107 qualifying wideouts in yards per route run last season, according to Pro Football Focus.
Those numbers aren’t great, but the potential is still there. His history with quarterback Kirk Cousins may also help.
Besides Doctson, Treadwell, and the injured Thielen, the Vikings also currently have wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Olabisi Johnson in the mix.
Eagles To Sign Jay Ajayi
The Eagles intend to sign free agent running back Jay Ajayi, a source tells NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). Ajayi worked out for the club this week and a deal should come together before the end of business today. 
Ajayi joins the club just after word of Darren Sproles‘ season-ending (and possibly career-ending) injury. Given his track record, Ajayi figures to provide some serious support in the backfield, if he is healthy himself.
The Eagles traded for Ajayi in 2017 and saw immediate results out of the former Dolphins ball carrier. After his 1,272-yard 2016 season with Miami, he became a key part of the Eagles’ Super Bowl run the following year. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry with the Eagles in 2017. He did not fare as well with the ’18 Eagles, who lacked consistency on the ground. But, the team will see what the 26-year-old can provide as they come down the home stretch.
Ajayi may make his Eagles return on Sunday, when the Eagles face the Patriots in Philly.
Bengals To Place Dre Kirkpatrick On IR
The Bengals have placed Dre Kirkpatrick on injured reserve, per a club announcement. In related moves, the team promoted linebacker Hardy Nickerson and wide receiver Damion Willis to the active roster. 
Kirkpatrick, 30, is in the midst of a five-year, $52.5MM deal he inked back in 2017. He’ll remain on the books for 2020, when he’s due a base salary of $9.4MM. Before he season-ending hyperextended knee injury, Kirkpatrick tallied 33 stops, one sack, and one fumble recovery across six games.
Last year, Kirkpatrick allowed just 44.4% of the targets thrown his way to be caught, good for the second-best rate in the league. That was good for second amongst all NFL cornerbacks with at least 400 coverage snaps.
The Bengals were hoping to get him back before the end of the season but, then again, they’re not playing for much at this point.
Browns’ Myles Garrett Suspended Indefinitely
The NFL has suspended Myles Garrett indefinitely for his actions on Thursday night. Garrett, at minimum, will be banned for the remainder of the 2019 season. The rest will be determined at a later time and will likely involve a lengthy process of hearings, meetings, and appeals. 
In addition to Garrett’s suspension, the league has also suspended Steelers offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey for three games and Browns defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi for one game. Garrett will not be paid during his ban and Ogunjobi and Pouncey have been fined.
In the waning moments of Thursday night’s win over the Steelers, Garrett ripped the helmet off of Mason Rudolph and smashed the Steelers quarterback in the head with it. The brutal incident could even have consequences beyond football. Rudolph’s agent says the QB’s camp will review the matter thoroughly and intimated that the matter could be taken to the legal system.
Garrett’s actions in the brawl were somewhat reminiscent of former Titans defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth’s actions years ago, when he stomped on the forehead of Cowboys center Andre Gurode with his cleats. Haynesworth got a five-game ban for that, but the league has stepped up its punishments for brawls and between-the-whistle violence recently. Vontaze Burfict, for example, was banned for the entire 2019 season after his latest safety violation.
Garrett, 23, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft. On the field, he’s been mostly exceptional – he notched 13.5 sacks in 2018 en route to his first ever Pro Bowl nod and, through ten games this year, he has ten sacks. He will not record another sack in the 2019 season and it remains to be seen whether he’ll be permitted to play in 2020.
Eagles’ Darren Sproles Done For Season
The Eagles announced that running back Darren Sproles is done for the season. The veteran suffered a partial tear of his right hip flexor against the Jets on Oct. 6 and, at some juncture, aggravated the injury further. 
Sproles went through four weeks of rehab after the initial injury against Gang Green and managed to play against the Bears on Nov. 3 after he was cleared. Later, doctors found that he had suffered a much more serious tear of the muscle.
Sproles, 36, re-signed with the Eagles in July. Despite his advanced age, he was hoping to return to his old form after losing the bulk of the 2018 season to a broken arm and a torn ACL. All the health issues left a bad taste in his mouth, and he didn’t want to go out like that.
“That’s my whole thing,” Sproles said over the summer. “I want a full year. I want to get up to top-four or top-five in all-purpose yards, like ever. Right now, I’m number six. If I would have played a full year last year, I’d be number four right now.”
Unfortunately, this latest injury could be the end of the line for the fan favorite. His 2019 season concludes with just 17 carries for 66 yards, plus six catches for 24 yards.
Over the course of 14 seasons with the Eagles, Saints, and Chargers, Sproles has earned three Pro Bowl trips with a strong 4.9 yards per carry average. He’s also been a remarkably effective pass-catcher – in his three seasons with the Saints, Sproles totaled 232 grabs for 1,981 yards and 16 touchdowns through the air.
Browns’ Morgan Burnett Done For Year?
Browns safety Morgan Burnett is believed to have suffered a torn Achilles in Thursday night’s win over the Steelers, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter) hears. He will have an MRI today to confirm, but it is expected that he will be ruled out for the rest of the season.
Before the injury, Burnett logged five tackles and an interception against his old friends in Pittsburgh. After being relegated to a part-time role in his one Steelers season, Burnett has been a full-time starter in Cleveland.
For the year, Burnett has 41 tackles, two sacks, and the aforementioned INT. Currently in his tenth year, the injury leaves his NFL future in a bit of limbo.
Burnett inked a two-year, $7.5MM deal with the Browns in April, which theoretically keeps him under contract through next season. However, the Browns could release Burnett and save $3.5MM against just $1.325MM in dead money.
To date, Burnett has made 121 career appearances (including 112 starts) for the Packers, Steelers, and Browns.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/14/19
Today’s minor moves:
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted from practice squad: T Aviante Collins
- Placed on injured reserve: C Brett Jones
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: LB Jayrone Elliott
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Tevin Jones
- Placed on IR: WR Ryan Switzer, FB Roosevelt Nix
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/14/19
Today’s practice squad updates:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DE Ufomba Kamalu
- Released: OL Marcus Applefield
Indianapolis Colts
- Waived from PS-IR: RB Bruce Anderson
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: DB Adonis Alexander
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: C John Keenoy
Browns Release WR Antonio Callaway
The Browns have released wide receiver Antonio Callaway, per a club announcement. Meanwhile, Callaway is facing, and appealing, a ten-game suspension for another violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy, sources tell NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). While that’s a major factor in the team’s decision to cut him, Rapoport hears that it is not the only reason the team waived him.
The Browns drafted Callaway in the fourth round of the 2018 draft, opting to roll the dice on an extremely talented player who had multiple red flags off the field. At times, that talent has shown. Last year, he clicked with Baker Mayfield and finished out with 43 catches for 586 yards and five touchdowns. This year, however, his off-the-field problems reappeared – the NFL suspended Callaway for the first four games of the year after violating the substance abuse policy and he’s now looking at an additional ten-game ban.
The Browns benched Callaway against the Bills on Sunday for reasons that head coach Freddie Kitchens did not disclose. Days later, Callaway is out of a job. Per league rules, he’ll hit the waiver wire as a post-trade deadline cut. In his four games this year, Callaway registered eight catches off of 15 targets for 89 yards and zero TDs.
In a related move, the Browns have activated offensive lineman Drew Forbes. Forbes, a sixth-round pick, is now set to debut after recovering from a knee injury suffered late in the offseason.