Broncos To Release WR Nick Williams
The Broncos are releasing wide receiver Nick Williams, as Ryan O’Halloran of the Denver Post tweets. With that, the Broncos’ roster is now at 87, three shy of the present 90-man max.
The Broncos have spent Monday doing some cleanup in advance of Saturday’s 53-man deadline. There’s still tons of work to go, but the Broncos have already released linebacker Dekoda Watson, defensive lineman Zach Kerr, and Williams, giving all three players a head start on their job hunt. The releases of Kerr and Watson freed up significant cap room, but Williams’ release will have little impact on the club’s finances.
Williams appeared in two games for the Titans early on last year, but was let go after dropping a would-be go-ahead touchdown pass against the Bills. The 28-year-old then hooked on with the Rams where he caught two passes for 17 yards in two games. The Broncos signed Willams in late July, but his Denver run is up after just one month.
Packers Waive Mike Tyson
The Packers have waived safety Mike Tyson, according to a team announcement. To take his place, the club signed cornerback Jackson Porter.
The Packers claimed Tyson off waivers earlier this offseason when he was dropped by the Texans. After originally entering the league as a 2017 sixth-round pick of the Seahawks, Tyson appeared in ten contests for Houston in 2018.
Porter, meanwhile, is still looking for his first taste of NFL action. The UMass product amassed 84 tackles, 1.5 tackles for a loss and two interceptions over 42 games with the Minutemen, but was unsuccessful in his bid to make the Ravens as a UDFA last year.
Chiefs To Sign QB Matt Moore
The Chiefs have agreed to sign quarterback Matt Moore, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). Moore will step into the role left vacant by Chad Henne, who is undergoing ankle surgery. 
Moore, 35, served as Ryan Tannehill‘s backup with the Dolphins for five seasons, but was out of football in 2018. In the previous season, Moore figured to be Tannehill’s fill-in post-ACL tear, but he was pushed out of the picture in favor of Jay Cutler.
For obvious reasons, the Chiefs are hoping that they won’t have to rely on Moore at all this year. There’s also this to consider – the Dolphins reportedly didn’t turn to Moore in 2017 because his arm was “shot.” Now 35 and coming off of a one-year layoff, it’s fair to wonder what Moore would have to offer if he were thrust into action.
While Moore led the Dolphins to the playoffs in 2016 in place of Tannehill, he did not fare as well in two starts for Cutler in 2017 – Moore’s yards-per-attempt figure dropped from 8.3 to 6.8 and his interception count (five) eclipsed his touchdown-pass total (four).
In addition to Mahomes and Moore, the Chiefs also have Chase Litton and Kyle Shurmur on hand. Neither of those quarterbacks have taken a regular season snap.
Broncos Cut Dekoda Watson
The Broncos have released veteran outside linebacker and special teamer Dekoda Watson, sources tell Mike Klis of 9News (on Twitter). The Broncos traded for Watson just four months ago, but there ultimately wasn’t a place for him on the 53-man roster.
In April, the Broncos shipped the No. 148 overall pick to the 49ers in exchange for Watson and the No. 212 choice. The deal, for at least a brief time, reunited the Watson and the Broncos, as the linebacker played in Denver during the 2016 season.
Watson will have to move on to a new employer, but this is nothing new for the former seventh-rounder. Throughout his nine-year career, Watson has played for a number of teams, mostly as a special teamer.
Broncos To Release Zach Kerr
The Broncos have released defensive lineman Zach Kerr, as Mike Klis of 9News tweets. It’s yet another indication that the Broncos are expecting big things from DeMarcus Walker in 2019.
Following three seasons with the Colts, Kerr joined Denver on a two-year deal prior to the 2017 season. The defensive lineman appeared in 27 games for the Broncos over the past two seasons, including a 16-game campaign in 2018.
Despite not starting a single game last season, the 334-pound lineman still finished with 33 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and one pass defended. While Pro Football Focus gave him a solid score, he still only ranked 73rd among 112 eligible interior defenders.
The release is not ideal for Kerr, but on the plus side, it’s preferable to get cut earlier in the week rather than later. He’ll keep the $600K signing bonus he secured in March, though the rest of his two-year, $5MM deal contained no guarantees.
Patriots To Release Mike Pennel
The Patriots are releasing defensive tackle Mike Pennel, according to ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss (on Twitter). It’s an unexpected move, especially since Pennel was inked to a two-year deal just a few months back.
This year, Pennel was in line to see significant time on the interior, and perhaps even occupy a starting role. Now, it appears that Danny Shelton will roll with the first-string group alongside Lawrence Guy. Meanwhile, fringe DTs like David Parry and Nick Thurman now have improved odds of surviving the 53-man cuts over Labor Day Weekend.
Pennel was a staple of the Jets’ defense in recent years, appearing in every game over the last two seasons. His Jets stint, which included ten starts, yielded an average of 31 tackles per season with zero sacks. His traditional stats did not jump off of the page, but the advanced metrics were very high on his work in 2018. Pennel was tied as the 14th best defensive tackle in the NFL last year, according to Pro Football Focus, though his 358 snaps were the lowest sum of anyone in the top 40.
Despite his productivity, the Jets turned down Pennel’s option for 2019. Now, the Patriots have passed on him, leaving him in limbo with days to go before the start of the season.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/25/19
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Released: LB Hayes Pullard
- Placed on IR: S Josh Shaw
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: K Elliott Fry
- Waived: LB Nicholas Grigsby
Buffalo Bills
- Released with an injury settlement: OL Garrett McGhin
Green Bay Packers
- Claimed off waivers from Ravens: LB Nicholas Grigsby
- Signed: LB James Folston, CB Jocquez Kalili
Houston Texans
- Signed: OT Christian DiLauro
Dolphins Release S T.J. McDonald
Surprising news out of Miami, as the Dolphins announced on Twitter that they’re releasing veteran safety T.J. McDonald. 
The move came as a surprise to most writers covering the team, and they won’t save a ton of money by cutting him. McDonald still had $3.7MM of his $5.1MM salary guaranteed for this season, and Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald tweets that they added $4.6MM in dead cap while saving just $1.4MM in cap space. Last we heard, McDonald had been receiving starters’ reps in training camp. It’s been widely speculated that the Dolphins were heading for a split with safety Reshad Jones, although this move might suggest that Jones is safe.
We heard just yesterday that Jones was being shopped in trade talks, but now it’s unclear if that’s still the case. The Dolphins also have been using Bobby McCain at safety, and they have last year’s first-round pick Minkah Fitzpatrick as well. McDonald originally entered the league as a third round pick of the Rams back in 2013. After spending his first four seasons in with the Rams, the USC product signed with Miami.
He was suspended for eight games prior to his first year with the Dolphins, but he still managed to make a strong impression with the team. Before he ever appeared in a game for them, they gave him a four-year, $24MM extension in September of 2017. The old regime of Adam Gase and Mike Tannebaum was always high on him, but things have clearly changed with Miami’s new leadership. McDonald is still only 28, and he should have no problem finding a new home on the open market. He started 14 games for the Dolphins last year, recording 86 tackles and three interceptions.
Patriots Add RB Robert Martin, Make Other Minor Moves
The Patriots have signed RB Robert Martin and LB Scooby Wright, according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss (Twitter links). Both players practiced with the team today.
Martin, who spent 2014-17 at Rutgers, will add depth for New England, as Damien Harris is dealing with minor injuries and the team isn’t likely to play any of its top running backs in its fourth preseason contest. The franchise worked out former Washington State running back James Williams before signing Martin, as Doug Kyed of NESN relays.
Wright was a seventh-round pick in the 2016 draft. He’s played for the Browns and Cardinals in addition to briefly playing in the failed AAF league.
New England waived DE/OLB Keionta Davis and placed special teamer Brandon King on injured reserve to accommodate the signings.
Patriots To Cut WR Maurice Harris
After some initially encouraging signs Maurice Harris would make the Patriots’ 53-man roster, the veteran wide receiver received word he will be released. The Pats are cutting another recent addition, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter).
Harris has dealt with a recent leg injury, and the Patriots have seen both Josh Gordon and Demaryius Thomas re-emerge in their plans. Gordon returned to practice on Sunday; Thomas is now off the Pats’ active/PUP list. An injury settlement may well be how this ends, with Harris being limited in recent days.
A former Redskins UDFA out of Cal, the 26-year-old wideout signed a one-year Pats deal for the league minimum. He caught 28 passes for 304 yards last season in Washington, his first campaign with north of 100 receiving yards. But the Pats subsequently added promising UDFA Jakobi Meyers and received word of another Gordon reinstatement. The team also re-signed Phillip Dorsett, making Harris’ roster path more complicated.
The Pats have a much higher-profile receiving corps now than they did to start the offseason, with two Pro Bowlers, a Super Bowl MVP and two first-round picks set to make the team. Harris joins Bruce Ellington and Dontrelle Inman as 2019 UFA wideout additions (Dorsett and N’Keal Harry) the defending Super Bowl champions jettisoned before Week 1.