Minor NFL Transactions: 7/19/19
Today’s minor moves will be posted here:
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: WR Malik Taylor
Miami Dolphins
- Claimed off waivers from Raiders: WR Saeed Blacknall
Taylor is an undrafted rookie who played his college ball at D-II Ferris State. He originally signed as an UDFA with the Buccaneers after the draft, but didn’t last long in Tampa Bay. The Packers already have a bunch of young receivers on the roster, so he’ll be facing an uphill climb to even make the practice squad.
Blacknall is a speedster who went undrafted out of Penn State last year. He signed with the Raiders and after some impressive moments during the preseason he made the practice squad. He was briefly signed to the active roster in November, so he does have one NFL game under his belt. Blacknall could have a legit shot of making the team since the Dolphins are entering a full-blown rebuild and will be looking for as much young talent as possible.
Eagles Re-Sign Darren Sproles
Darren Sproles is coming back for at least one more year. The veteran is signing a one-year deal with the Eagles, the team announced on Twitter. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that the deal has a base value of $1.03MM and includes a $300K signing bonus. Plus, $600K of his base pay is guaranteed.
We heard back in May that Sproles was interested in returning for one more year, but that he wanted to play with one of the teams he already had familiarity with, meaning the Chargers, Saints, and Eagles. After Sproles only played in three games due to a broken arm and torn ACL in the Eagles’ Super Bowl-winning season, he said 2018 would be his last year in the league. But injuries ruined last year for him too, and he missed ten games.
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 recently when speaking to Dr. David Chao of the Pro Football Doc podcast. “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.”
Sproles will now be joining a crowded backfield in Philadelphia, with Miles Sanders, Jordan Howard, Corey Clement, and Josh Adams (among others) already in tow. In a tweet, Tim McManus of ESPN.com writes that the “coaching staff had been keeping door open for [Sproles].” He might not play quite as big of a role as he did in the past, but Sproles will still be a valuable change-of-pace back who can catch passes well out of the backfield, and he’ll be a nice veteran presence in a mostly young group.
Now Sproles will get the chance to go out with the full 16-game season that he wants, as well as to climb the all-purpose yards leaderboards. He’s 36 now, but he’s still been pretty good when he’s been healthy the last couple of years. Last year, Sproles carried the ball 29 times for 120 yards and a touchdown, and he dded 15 receptions for 160 yards and two touchdowns. He also returned ten punts for 83 yards.
Bills Sign Kurt Coleman; Rafael Bush Retires
Bills safety Rafael Bush has retired after nine seasons in the NFL, according to a team announcement. To replace Bush, the club signed fellow safety Kurt Coleman. Coleman will make just over $1MM on a one-year deal with a chance to make a maximum of $2M, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
Bush, 32, was expected to serve as a depth option and round out his two-year pact. Instead, he’s opted to hang ’em up just before the start of training camp. Last year, Bush appeared in 15 games (seven starts) and helped out at the nickel corner spot after Taron Johnson was lost to a torn labrum.
Enter Coleman, 31, who has a long history with head coach Sean McDermott thanks to their time together in Carolina. With the Panthers, Coleman enjoyed the two best seasons of his career. He’ll likely serve as a reserve behind starters Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, stepping straight into the role that was supposed to be addressed by Bush.
Bush first appeared in the league as an undrafted free agent with the Broncos in 2011, but made a name for himself with the Saints where he saw frequent action. After five straight seasons in New Orleans, he hooked on with the Lions for 2016, returned to the Saints in 2017, and spent ’18 with Buffalo.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/18/19
Broncos To Re-Sign RB David Williams
The Broncos are re-signing running back David Williams and waiving offensive lineman Nathan Jacobson, per Ryan O’Halloran of the Denver Post (Twitter link). Denver selected Williams in the seventh round of the 2018 draft. Mike Klis of 9News first reported the Broncos were likely to re-sign Williams (Twitter link).
Williams was waived by the Broncos at last year’s final cutdowns, but subsequently spent time on Denver’s practice squad before joining the Jaguars’ 53-man roster in October. The Arkansas product appeared in six games and played 19 offensive snaps, rushing eight times for 36 yards.
Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay is expected to be ready for training camp while recovering from a wrist injury he suffered near the end of last season. The 2018 undrafted free agent took the first rep at Denver’s camp today, per Klis (Twitter link). The Broncos’ other running backs include 2018 third-rounder Royce Freeman, Devontae Booker, Khalfani Muhammad, and Devontae Jackson.
Saints Place Carl Granderson On Did Not Report List
The Saints placed defensive end Carl Granderson on the did not report list, per a team announcement. In a related move, they also placed receiver Emmanuel Butler on the non-football injury list. 
Granderson agreed to plea no contest to one count of sexual battery and one count of unlawful contact and was set to serve out a year of probation after striking a plea deal. The judge did not agree with that compromise, however, and ordered him to immediately begin serving a six-month jail sentence in Wyoming.
Granderson, naturally, is not expected to play this season. The Wyoming product is a talented player who almost certainly would’ve been drafted if not for his legal situation. Many analysts gave Granderson a mid-round grade and the Saints gave him a hefty $85K to sign as an undrafted free agent this offseason.
Broncos Sign WR Steven Dunbar Jr.
The Broncos have signed wide receiver Steven Dunbar Jr., according to an announcement from the team. Dunbar takes the spot of Aaron Burbridge, who retired just before the start of training camp. 
[RELATED: Broncos, Drew Lock Agree To Deal]
Dunbar signed with the Niners last year after going undrafted out of the University of Houston. He spent the bulk of the year on the practice squad, but was promoted to the varsity squad for the final game of the 2018 season.
Dunbar may be facing an uphill climb on a WR depth chart that also includes Courtland Sutton, Emmanuel Sanders, DaeSean Hamilton, River Cracraft, Tim Patrick, and fifth-rounder Juwann Winfree. Still, Dunbar may have one advantage as an ex-49er who has familiarity with Rich Scangarello‘s system.
Falcons, Deion Jones Agree To Extension
Part 2 of the Falcons’ major midsummer contracts can soon be removed from the franchise’s checklist. The Wednesday negotiations between Drew Rosenhaus and the Falcons apparently went quite well, with Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reporting (on Twitter) Deion Jones agreed to a four-year, $57MM extension.
The fourth-year linebacker will receive $34MM guaranteed, Schefter adds, with Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reporting (via Twitter) part of that guarantee will be an $11MM signing bonus. The $34MM figure will also include $25.8MM fully guaranteed at signing, Florio tweets. Jones will receive $35.5MM in the first three years of this re-up, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. The Falcons and Rosenhaus met today in Atlanta to finalize the deal.
This extension falls in between C.J. Mosley‘s lofty Jets pact and the field, with the $14.25MM average making Jones the league’s second-highest-paid off-ball linebacker. It comes in nearly $1MM north of Anthony Barr‘s Vikings deal, in terms of AAV. Regarding fully guaranteed money, this pact trails only Mosley’s $43MM figure and Luke Kuechly‘s $27MM amount.
Two days after the Falcons locked up Grady Jarrett through 2022, they have their middle linebacker signed through 2023. Now, the focus will shift to the team’s highest-profile player. Julio Jones and the Falcons have been working on a new deal, one that will almost certainly make the All-Pro the league’s highest-paid wide receiver, for months. Arthur Blank‘s “Falcons for life” trio is two-thirds extended, but Julio Jones will end up with the biggest contract out of this triumvirate.
Although Deion Jones missed 10 games due to injury last season, the 2016 second-round pick has anchored Atlanta’s linebacking corps since his rookie season. Pro Football Focus graded Jones as its No. 14 linebacker last season; his placement was even higher during a 2017 Pro Bowl slate. The 24-year-old ‘backer has recorded 297 tackles, eight interceptions and three pick-6s in his 37-game career.
Broncos, Drew Lock Agree To Deal
The Broncos will have their entire rookie class ready to go when they convene for practice Thursday. After some drama, the team and Drew Lock reached an agreement on the second-round pick’s four-year deal, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk tweets.
Set to conduct their first training camp practice Thursday morning, the Broncos now have their six-man draft class under contract. They signed No. 41 overall pick Dalton Risner on Tuesday and, after a report emerged about the No. 42 selection seeking a “quarterback premium,” will have Lock ready to go as well.
The Broncos did not give into any demands of an overslot deal, with Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic confirming the team gave Lock the same workout bonuses it did Risner (all Twitter links) and the $3.1MM signing bonus that comes with the No. 42 slot.
Lock poses as John Elway‘s third try to find Peyton Manning‘s long-term successor through the draft. Denver’s GM has gone through Brock Osweiler (2012 second round) and Paxton Lynch (2016 first round) and was long linked to being intrigued by the four-year Missouri starter. The fourth quarterback off the board this year, Lock will attempt to develop behind Joe Flacco.
“Obviously we’ve been looking for one since Peyton retired,” Elway said Wednesday of the Broncos’ quarterback situation (via The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala, on Twitter). “That’s always a difficult position to fill, but I finally feel pretty good about that position with where we are.”
A Kansas City, Mo, native, Lock concluded his Mizzou career with 99 touchdown passes — including 44 as a junior — and 12,193 yards. Flacco’s early work dissuaded the Broncos from using a first-round pick on a quarterback, but when Lock was still on the board in Round 2, the team decided to pull the trigger. This would seemingly take the Broncos out of the running for a 2020 QB investment, and given the rate at which highly drafted passers have begun their tenures as NFL starters, Lock starting at some point this season appears likely.
Only nine 2019 rookies remain unsigned. Here is the Broncos’ full rookie class:
- 1-20: Noah Fant, TE (Iowa): Signed
- 2-41: Dalton Risner, T (Kansas State): Signed
- 2-42: Drew Lock, QB (Missouri): Signed
- 3-71: Dre’Mont Jones, DT (Ohio State): Signed
- 5-156: Justin Hollins, LB (Oregon): Signed
- 6-187: Juwann Winfree, WR (Colorado): Signed
Broncos’ Aaron Burbridge Retires
Broncos wide receiver Aaron Burbridge is retiring, a source tells Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Burbridge, once a standout player at Michigan State, was pushing to make the roster as a special teams player.
Burbidge notified the Broncos on Wednesday morning he planned to retire, and Mike Klis of 9News notes (via Twitter) the team waived him. 
Unfortunately, injuries have marred the 25-year-old’s career. After entering the league as a sixth-round pick of the Niners, he was kept off the field for much of the last two years. In his rookie year, Burbridge managed seven catches for 88 yards.
Without the wide receiver, the Broncos have a vacant spot to fill on their 90-man roster.