Patriots To Sign Mike Nugent
It appears that the Patriots’ kicking competition has come to a close. Mike Nugent will likely be signed as the club’s replacement for the injured Stephen Gostkowski, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter).
As Garafolo notes, Nugent’s teams have gone 0-for-5 in the playoffs, so this could be Nugent’s best possible opportunity to taste postseason victory. Across 14 seasons, Nugent has nailed 81.4% of his field goals – a rate that isn’t on a par with Gostkowski’s career work. Then again, few kickers can rival the storied career of Gostkowski.
Nugent spent three games with the Raiders last year and nailed all six of his tries. Before that, the 37-year-old kicked for the Jets, Bengals, Bears, and Cowboys.
Ravens Sign LB Josh Bynes
The Ravens have signed free agent linebacker Josh Bynes, Baltimore announced today.
Fresh off an embarrassing defensive performance against the Browns in Week 4, Baltimore is revamping its linebacker corps. Earlier this week, the Ravens agreed to terms with veteran L.J. Fort, and now they’ve added Bynes, who spent the first three years of his career in Baltimore after entering the league as an undrafted free agent.
Bynes, 30, joined the Lions after leaving Baltimore and subsequently spent 2017-18 with the Cardinals. Last season, Bynes started 11 games in the desert while posting 75 tackles and two interceptions. Among qualifiers, Bynes graded as the NFL’s 14th-best linebacker, per Pro Football Focus.
Thus far, Patrick Onwuasor and Kenny Young have seen the majority of the Ravens’ snaps at inside linebacker, but it’s possible one or both will see their playing time reduced given Baltimore’s recent additions. both Onwuasor and Young rank among the bottom-quarter of PFF’s linebacker grades.
Packers Claim LB Tim Williams
The Packers have claimed edge rusher Tim Williams off waivers from the Ravens, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Green Bay has waived tight end Evan Baylis in a corresponding move, tweets Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.
A highly-touted pass rusher coming out of Alabama, Williams fell to the third round of the 2017 draft and hasn’t produced since in the NFL. He’s barely played in Baltimore, appearing in just 19 games and on 312 defensive snaps over parts of three seasons, managing only two sacks in that time.
In Green Bay, Williams will join another former Ravens edge defender — linebacker Za’Darius Smith — in a talented Packers front seven. Green Bay already ranks sixth in adjusted sack rate, so the club doesn’t necessarily need any help on the edge. But Williams will give the Packers depth at linebacker while offering, potentially, a bit of upside.
Minor NFL Transactions: 10/2/19
Today’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Ventell Bryant
San Francisco 49ers
- Promoted from practice squad: DB Marcell Harris
- Released: DB Antone Exum
Washington Redskins
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Cam Sims
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/2/19
Today’s practice squad updates:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DL Jeremiah Ledbetter
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: WR Tyron Johnson
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: S Josh Jones
Houston Texans
- Signed: TE Jerell Adams
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: OL Tyree St. Louis
New England Patriots
- Signed: WR Kelvin McKnight
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: QB Taryn Christion
- Released: TE Alize Mack
Washington Redskins
- Signed: WR Darvin Kidsy
Patriots Sign S Jordan Richards
The Patriots have signed free agent safety Jordan Richards, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
New England should be quite familiar with Richards, as Bill Belichick & Co. drafted the former Stanford standout in the second round of the 2015 draft. Despite his draft pedigree, Richards never became much more than a special teams ace during his time with the Patriots, as his season-high in defensive snaps was 272 (2017).
Richards saw much more defensive action after New England traded him to Atlanta prior to the 2018 campaign in a deal that netted the Patriots a 2020 seventh-round pick. After the Falcons were decimated by injuries to their defensive unit, Richards made 12 starts and played on 42% of the club’s defensive snaps, posting 39 tackles and three passes defensed in the process.
The Patriots are well-stocked in their defensive backfield, with Devin McCourty, Patrick Chung, and Duron Harmong seeing the majority of the snaps. Richards will slot in as a special teams option alongside fellow reserves Nate Ebner and Terrence Brooks.
Patriots Place Stephen Gostkowski on IR
The Patriots’ kicker workout from earlier today now makes a lot more sense. New England is placing longtime kicker Stephen Gostkowski on injured reserve, a source told Jim McBride of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Furthermore – a mid-season return has already been ruled out, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. Gostkowski’s left hip injury will require season-ending surgery, but he is expected to be ready to go for next season. 
Gostkowski has been the Patriots’ kicker since 2006, and nobody else has attempted a kick for the Pats since he missed some time back in 2010. Something clearly wasn’t right with him, as he’s already missed four extra points and a field goal so far this season. New England is undefeated, but obviously Bill Belichick isn’t going to get complacent with a weakness. It’s unclear exactly what injury he’s dealing with, and it’s possible the Patriots are just using IR to let one of their most respected veterans save face.
That being said Gostkowski is still only 35, so he shouldn’t be declining too much just yet. The Patriots have always had a very stable kicking situation, as Gostkowski took over as Adam Vinatieri, who had handled New England’s kicking game for the previous ten seasons. Gostkowski just signed a new two-year deal with the team back in April. If this is the end of the road for him with the Patriots, he’ll leave town as the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. We’ll likely receive word of a kicker signing shortly.
Cardinals Sign DT Zach Kerr
The Cardinals are making another move. Arizona has been shuffling its roster the past week, and now they’re bringing in veteran defensive tackle Zach Kerr, the team announced.
The Cards had an open roster spot, so no corresponding roster move is coming. Kerr worked out for them yesterday along with a handful of other defensive linemen, and they apparently liked what they saw. He originally entered the league as an undrafted free agent out of Delaware, and signed with the Colts. He started eight games his last two years in Indy, then signed with the Broncos.
He played a role as a run-stuffer, and got a two-year extension from Denver in March. However, they cut him at the end of the preseason. He worked out for the Lions a couple weeks back, but hasn’t drawn too much other known interest. He was able to pocket a $600K signing bonus that the Broncos gave him before cutting him. For his career, he has 116 tackles and 7.5 sacks in 63 games.
Bengals Place John Ross On IR
Receivers are dropping like flies. Just moments after we heard the Chargers were placing Dontrelle Inman on injured reserve, we got word of another wideout hitting the shelf. The Bengals are placing John Ross on IR, according to a tweet from Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic.
Dehner notes that the Bengals have promoted receiver Stanley Morgan from the practice squad in a corresponding roster move, and that it’s a sternocavicular injury for Ross. We heard yesterday that Ross was going to miss some time, but it was initially reported as something that would sideline him for around a month. Now, he’ll have to miss the next eight weeks at least. On the bright side Ross is expected back this season, and the injury had about a six-week timetable but the Bengals wanted to give him extra rest, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.
It’s a tough blow for Ross, and for the Bengals’ offense. The ninth overall pick of the 2017 draft, who had been written off by many as a bust, was finally starting to make an impact. Injuries and a lack of trust from Marvin Lewis had plagued Ross’ first two years in Cincy, but he had 270 yards through the first two games of this season and was starting to look like the elite deep threat he was supposed to be.
With A.J. Green still not set to return anytime soon, the Bengals’ 0-4 offense is in dire circumstances. Second-year seventh-round pick Auden Tate will now be asked to play a big role moving forward. Morgan is an undrafted rookie from Nebraska who was waived at final cuts.
Chargers Sign K Chase McLaughlin
With Michael Badgley still ailing, the Chargers have added another kicker. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports (via Twitter) that Los Angeles has signed rookie Chase McLaughlin.
Badgley has missed his team’s first four games as he recovers from a groin injury. As Pelissero notes, the 24-year-old recently suffered a setback that will keep him on the shelf for several more weeks. Punter Ty Long has filled in for the first month of the season, and he’s been solid through four games; the 26-year-old has converted seven of his nine field goal attempts and all nine of his extra point tries.
Long was caught limping during Sunday’s win over the Dolphins. The Chargers presumably don’t want to suffer another special teams injury, and with Badgley out longer than expected, the front office finally decided to add a kicker.
In comes McLaughlin, an undrafted rookie out of Illinois. The former walk-on ended up having a standout college career, earning a Bakken-Anderson Big Ten Kicker of the Year award and a First-Team All-Big Ten nod. He was waived by the Bills at the end of the preseason before catching on with the Vikings practice squad. He was cut by Minnesota in mid-September, and he’s had a single workout (with the Colts) since that time. The 23-year-old will presumably make his NFL debut against the Broncos this weekend.