Patriots To Waive QB Nathan Rourke
Following the draft, New England was one of a few teams with five quarterbacks on the roster. That logjam has been addressed to a degree now, however. The Patriots are waiving Nathan Rourke, ESPN’s Mike Reiss reports. 
Rourke put himself on the NFL radar with a decorated tenure in the CFL. The 25-year-old Canadian initially joined the Jaguars, but he was unable to lock down the backup spot in Jacksonville. New England claimed him off waivers in December and he was re-signed in March.
That decision came after the Patriots cycled through a number of passers during the 2023 season, including Matt Corral and Malik Cunningham (who played QB in college but may need to transition to receiver at the NFL level). Starter Mac Jones is no longer in the fold, and the position has seen considerable change over the course of the 2024 offseason. Veteran Jacoby Brissett was signed as a bridge option for a rookie added at the top of the draft.
To little surprise, the Patriots used the No. 3 selection on Drake Maye. The North Carolina product profiles as New England’s quarterback of the future, although Brissett may begin the year atop the depth chart. In any case, those two will each use up roster spots throughout the campaign, leaving the QB3 position up for grabs. With New England having used a sixth-rounder on Joe Milton, three places on the depth chart are likely accounted for regarding the 2024 season.
Reiss noted over the weekend that Rourke would likely be competing with Bailey Zappe for the fourth and final roster spot amongst signal-callers. Monday’s move means the latter will remain in place for the time being, after he made eight starts across the past two seasons. With Maye now in the fold, however, Zappe’s path to a first-team role has become unclear in New England. For Rourke, meanwhile, it will be interesting to see if outside teams put in a claim; failing that, he will become a free agent.
NFL Front Office Updates: Titans, Browns, Eagles, Cardinals, Bears
We mentioned yesterday how a number of teams who have seen changes in the leadership of their front office may be making changes following the NFL Draft. These teams needed their staff at the time, with only weeks leading up to the draft, but with that process now over, the new leadership has started making changes.
The Titans are one such team making changes in recent days. One change is the apparent departure of college scout Tom Roth, who no longer appears on the team’s website, according to Neil Stratton of SucceedinFootball.com. Roth had spent the last six years in Tennessee after serving 14 years as a college scout for the Bills.
It’s not all departures, like yesterday. Stratton noticed two promotions in Tennessee’s front office, as well. Previously the team’s pro scouting coordinator, Rob Riederer now appears on the team’s website as assistant director of football strategy. Likewise, Bryce Wasserman has been promoted from manager of football strategy to chief of staff of football strategy.
Here are a few other updates in player personnel offices around the league:
- The Browns also see a departure, per Stratton, with Joe Dever reportedly not returning to the team for 2024. Joining the team as a scouting intern in 2019, Dever had spent five years with Cleveland. He had risen to the position of mid-Atlantic scout before his departure.
- The Eagles are also losing a longtime staffer, according to Stratton. A 15-year veteran of the NFL, Brad Obee will use the expiration of his contract with Philadelphia as a reason to pursue new opportunities in the NFL. Obee began his scouting career on the personnel staff of the Eagles in 2009, working his way up the ladder for six years. He left to serve as a pro scout for the Bears for the next six years before ultimately returning to Philadelphia as a college/pro scout for the past three.
- The Cardinals, who we noted lost a personnel staffer in yesterday’s post, will also part ways with area scout Darius Vinnett, per Stratton. Vinnett’s contract was expiring, as well, and though Arizona offered him an extension to return in 2024, Vinnett has declined and will seek other opportunities.
- Lastly, the Bears are moving forward without area scouts Drew Raucina and Sam Summerville, according to Stratton. Raucina is a holdover from the Ryan Pace-era, serving the last six years with the team. He had previously been a combine scout for the NFL. Summerville’s departure is a bit more surprising. He had been with Chicago since 2012 and was voted the BART List as one of the NFC’s best scouts in 2022, per Stratton. He was also named NFC Scout of the Year in 2019. Regardless, general manager Ryan Poles is making changes for the 2024 NFL season.
RB Duke Johnson Announces Retirement
Boasting an eight-year career spanning time with five NFL franchises, running back Duke Johnson is now known as one of the league’s best receiving backs in recent history. Having not appeared on an NFL roster since the end of the 2022 season, the now 30-year-old Johnson has made the decision to officially hang up his cleats, announcing this retirement decision on Instagram. 
Johnson came to the league after a storied career at the University of Miami. A five-star recruit, Johnson became an immediate factor as a true freshman, rushing for 947 yards for 10 touchdowns and adding one score through the air and two more on kickoff returns. After a junior season that saw him rush for 1,652 yards and 10 touchdowns and receive for 421 yards and three touchdowns, Johnson announced that he would forgo his final year of eligibility and declare for the draft.
Johnson left Coral Gables as the Hurricanes’ all-time leader in career rushing yards, despite only playing for three seasons. The school has produced such NFL rushers as Chuck Foreman, Ottis Anderson, Cleveland Gary, Edgerrin James, Clinton Portis, Najeh Davenport, Willis McGahee, Frank Gore, and Lamar Miller. Johnson outgained them all at the collegiate level and holds that record to this day.
Johnson was selected by the Browns in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He was the sixth rusher taken off the board behind Todd Gurley, Melvin Gordon, T.J. Yeldon, Ameer Abdullah, and Tevin Coleman and was taken just nine picks before David Johnson.
As a rookie, Duke split starting duties with second-year back Isaiah Crowell while also serving as the team’s primary receiving back. The two would continue in those roles for the next two years. Johnson made the most with the carries he was granted, averaging 4.3 yards per carry over his years in Cleveland, but he truly shined as a receiver for the Browns.
During that 2015 season, Johnson finished third on the team in receiving yards behind only tight end Gary Barnidge and wide receiver (and fellow Hurricane) Travis Benjamin. He was third on the team in 2016, as well. In 2017, though, Johnson was actually the Browns’ leading receiver with 74 catches for 693 yards. His 348 rushing yards that year helped him to lead the team in scrimmage yards, and his seven total touchdowns were the most on Cleveland’s roster that year. His efforts earned him a three-year, $15.61MM contract extension.
In 2018, the arrival of a rookie Nick Chubb and a veteran Carlos Hyde saw a huge cut to Johnson’s carries, though he still averaged 5.0 yards per rush. He still proved a major asset as a receiver, as well, with 62 catches for 429 yards, but with the emergence of Chubb, Johnson became an unnecessary cost. Cleveland traded Johnson to the Texans in exchange for a conditional fourth-rounder that ended up turning into the third-round pick the Browns would use to draft Jacob Phillips.
Hyde would follow Johnson to Houston and would take RB1 duties, though Johnson would still contribute with 410 rushing yards and 410 receiving yards. The Texans would trade for David Johnson in 2020. A talented receiving back in his own right, David’s acquisition led to diminished usage of Duke. Houston would cut Johnson at the end of the season.
Over the final two years of his career, Johnson saw minimal usage as he spent time on the Jaguars’ practice squad, started four of five game appearances for the Dolphins in 2021, and was a practice squad elevation for one game for the Bills in 2022. Those final two years were the first of his career in which the running back had more rushing than receiving yards.
That fact perhaps underlines the feats of Johnson’s career. Despite his rushing pedigree at Miami, Johnson came into the NFL and provided his talents as a bailout option for the league’s worst team at the time, getting utilized early and often. Since his arrival in Cleveland in 2015, only Jarvis Landry, David Njoku, and Amari Cooper have more receiving yards for the Browns over that period.
Circumstances prevented Johnson from ever taking a leading back role in his career, but the 30-year-old made the most of every opportunity he was granted, regardless of the role he was assigned. Though other backs tended to earn carries over him, Johnson was hard to keep off the field thanks to his impressive receiving abilities. He ends his NFL career with 2,265 rushing yards for 11 touchdowns and 2,870 receiving yards for 12 touchdowns.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/5/24
The only minor moves to close out the week:
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: WR Julian Hicks, C Lecitus Smith, WR Dimitri Stanley
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: DT Buddha Jones
Some undrafted rookies may not get signed to three-year, undrafted free agent contracts but will, instead, be invited to rookie minicamps on a tryout basis. Such is the case for Hicks, Stanley, and Jones. Both the Packers and Seahawks had already announced the signings of their UDFA classes, but both will now add to that rookie group.
Rookie minicamps also serve as an audition opportunity for some veteran free agents. Smith joins the aforementioned three rookies as players who earned a deal taking advantage of a rookie minicamp tryout opportunity.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/4/24
Saturday’s minor moves:
Kansas City Chiefs
- Waived: WR Jacob Copeland, TE Izaiah Gathings, S Tyree Gillespie
- Withdrew ERFA tender: LB Cole Christiansen
Christiansen began his career with the Chargers in 2020, and he spent his first two seasons in the league as a core special teamer. The 26-year-old had been with Kansas City since 2022, making six total regular season appearances and playing three postseason games this year. Christiansen was tendered in March, but today’s decision makes him an unrestricted free agent.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/4/24
Saturday’s lone draft pick signing:
Philadelphia Eagles
- G Trevor Keegan (fifth round, Michigan)
Keegan spent five seasons with the Wolverines, serving as a full-time left guard starter from 2021-23. He was a key member of Michigan’s O-line (a unit which won the Joe Moore Award as the nation’s top offensive front in 2021 and ’22) and he earned second-team All-Big Ten honors last season. With Landon Dickerson locked into the left guard spot in Philadelphia, Keegan will look to compete for playing time at the opposite guard position. The Eagles have now signed two members of their nine-man draft class.
NFL Front Office Updates: Panthers, Cardinals, Buccaneers, Raiders
Oftentimes, when there are staff and front office changes on NFL teams, a Black Monday-type of exodus can happen following the NFL Draft. With mere months or even weeks between the time of a new staff’s hiring and the draft, it can be advantageous to utilize the scouting and personnel department already in place. Though, after the draft concludes, those same teams may opt to clear house and in their own preferred employees.
The Panthers are one such team, with Joe Person of The Athletic reporting that both director of pro scouting Rob Hanrahan and assistant director of pro scouting Tyler Ramsey have been let go. Hanrahan had been with the team for seven years, while Ramsey had been there for three.
The two weren’t alone as Neil Stratton of SucceedinFootball.com reported the departure of northeast area scout Michael Coe and senior personnel executive Jeff Morrow, as well. New general manager Dan Morgan had forecasted changes after the draft, which we’re seeing now.
Here are some other changes in NFL personnel departments:
- Stratton also informs us that the Cardinals have parted ways with director of college scouting Josh Scobey. The former Arizona running back had just finished his second year in the role after 12 seasons as a part of the team’s scouting department.
- The Buccaneers have also moved on from personnel department employees with Stratton reporting that neither veteran scout Mark Ellenz nor assistant director of pro scouting Alex Smith will return in 2024. Smith had been with the team for seven years and was elevated to his most recent position after four seasons as a pro scout.
- The Raiders are the next team mentioned by Stratton with director of scout development Keith Kidd reportedly being removed from the team’s website.
Chiefs Sign 17-Man UDFA Class
The rich got richer last week when the winners of the last two Super Bowls drafted seven players, with the first three selections joining the team’s well-established offense. The Chiefs expanded their rookie class to 24 players by signing these 17 undrafted free agents:
- Emani Bailey, RB (TCU)
- Miles Battle, CB (Utah)
- Swayze Bozeman, LB (Southern Mississippi)
- Phillip Brooks, WR (Kansas State)
- Reggie Brown, WR (James Madison)
- Baylor Cupp, TE (Texas Tech)
- Ethan Driskell, T (Marshall)
- Curtis Jacobs, LB (Penn State)
- Fabien Lovett, DT (Florida State)
- Griffin McDowell, T (Tennessee-Chattanooga)
- McKade Mettauer, G (Oklahoma)
- Derrick Miller, CB (Kent State)
- Ryan Rehkow, P (BYU)
- Christian Roland-Wallace, CB (USC)
- Carson Steele, RB (UCLA)
- Nick Torres, G (Villanova)
- Luquay Washington, LB (Central Connecticut State)
The Chiefs return their top three rushers in Isiah Pacheco, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, and La’Mical Perine, but after finishing a middling 19th in the league in rushing yards, Kansas City may be taking some flyers on potential upgrades at the backup positions behind Pacheco. Bailey comes in after two seasons at Louisiana and two seasons at TCU. At each school he had a season in which he scored eight touchdowns, and he racked up 1,209 rushing yards in 2023. Steele arrives after two years at Ball State and one at UCLA. He led his team in rushing yards all three seasons and was first-team All-MAC in 2022 after leading the conference with 1,556 yards and 14 touchdowns.
Driskell was a surprising prospect to end up undrafted. He’s raw and needs NFL coaching to develop a role with the Chiefs, but his towering 6-foot-8 frame was expected to land him somewhere in the fifth or sixth round of the draft. Lovett was likewise expected to land in the fifth or sixth round but slipped out to an undrafted position unexpectedly. He has the ability to flash as a rotational defensive lineman, but a lack of consistency could cost him a spot on the 53-man roster.
After trading away L’Jarius Sneed in the offseason and drafting Kamal Hadden in the sixth round out of Tennessee, the Chiefs bring in three more prospects including Roland-Wallace. Roland-Wallace spent his final season with the Trojans after four years as a starter at Arizona. His quick twitch helped him rack up four interceptions and 29 passes defensed in college.
Even Rehkow was expected to get drafted after four years with the Cougars. The four-year punter saw his punting duties skyrocket in 2023 as BYU’s offense struggled mightily in their move to the Big 12.
Jets Sign 17 UDFA Rookies
The first five of the Jets’ seven draft picks last week focused on the offensive side of the ball. Luckily, they were able to add a number of defensive rookies who fell out of the draft as undrafted free agents. Here are the 17 players heading to New York as UDFAs:
- Shemar Bartholomew, CB (Georgia Southern)
- Al Blades Jr., S (Duke)
- Jimmy Ciarlo, LB (Army)
- Tyler Harrell, WR (Miami)
- Peewee Jarrett, QB (West Florida)
- Tre Jenkins, LB (San Jose State)
- Tyreek Johnson, DE (South Carolina)
- Myles Jones, CB (Duke)
- Brady Latham, G (Arkansas)
- Braiden McGregor, DE (Michigan)
- Jarius Monroe, S (Tulane)
- Marcus Riley, WR (Florida A&M)
- Lincoln Sefcik, TE (South Alabama)
- Jackson Sirmon, LB (California)
- Leonard Taylor, DT (Miami)
- Willie Tyler, T (Louisville)
- Eric Watts, DT (Connecticut)
Latham, a four-year starter for the Razorbacks spent nearly all of his time as a left guard at the collegiate level. His father was an All-Conference center for Oklahoma back in the 1980’s, and some NFL teams thought Latham had potential to follow his father’s footsteps as a center at the next level.
Many saw McGregor as a draft-and-develop prospect that could go on Day 3 of the draft, but instead the 22-year-old leaves Ann Arbor as an undrafted free agent. He’s long, fast, and explosive but will need to get coached up in order to turn those attributes into starting potential.
Taylor falling out of the draft altogether was one of the more surprising outcomes from last weekend. A former 5-star recruit for the Hurricanes, Taylor racked up five sacks and 20.0 tackles for loss in his first two seasons. A disappointing junior year had teams questioning whether the lack of production came from discipline on the field or perhaps an inability to buy-in. Still, the raw talent available to Taylor was thought to warrant at least an early-Day 3 selection. Instead, he falls to the Jets, where he could find rotational playing time behind two excellent role models in Javon Kinlaw and Quinnen Williams.
Taylor is joined in New York by two former teammates who spent time in the transfer portal. Harrell only spent one year in Coral Gables after transferring from Alabama, where he also spent only one season. A burner with track experience, Harrell showed the most potential during his final year at Louisville in 2021, when he averaged 29.1 yards per catch and caught six touchdowns. Blades spent his final year of eligibility at Duke but played his first four seasons at Miami. He had two strong seasons for the Hurricanes in 2019 and 2020, nabbing four interceptions and 13 passes defensed, but was quiet the following two years until he transferred to Durham, where he led the Blue Devils in passes defensed with 10 in 2023.
Commanders Add 11 UDFAs
TODAY, 11:35am: The Commanders have made a late addition to their UDFA class. According to Nicki Jhabvala, the team has signed Notre Dame linebacker Bo Bauer. The rookie is expected to compete for a spot on defense and a spot as a long snapper.
WEDNESDAY, 9:00am: The first Adam Peters-Dan Quinn UDFA group has surfaced. Here is the result of the Commanders’ post-draft signing period:
- Chigozie Anusiem, CB (Colorado State)
- Sam Hartman, QB (Notre Dame)
- Austin Jones, RB (USC)
- Ben Nikkel, S (Iowa State)
- David Nwaogwugwu, OT (Toledo)
- Tyler Owens, S (Texas Tech)
- Norell Pollard, DT (Virginia Tech)
- Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, WR (Georgia)
- Michael Wiley, RB (Arizona)
- AJ Woods, CB (Pittsburgh)
- Colson Yankoff, TE (UCLA)
Rated as the 12th-best QB prospect in this draft (per ESPN’s Scouts Inc.), Hartman will join a team that selected the No. 2 player at this position. The Commanders now have Jayden Daniels, Marcus Mariota, Jeff Driskel, Jake Fromm and Hartman on their 90-man roster. Neither Driskel nor Fromm is tied to any guaranteed money; Hartman outranks the two vets, with NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero indicating the team gave the Notre Dame alum a $225K base salary guarantee. Prior to transferring in 2023, Hartman put up big numbers at Wake Forest, producing 38- and 39-touchdown pass seasons to close out his Demon Deacons career. Piloting Notre Dame to a 10-3 record last season, Hartman threw 24 TD passes, eight INTs and averaged a career-best 8.9 yards per attempt.
Washington is going further to bring in Anusiem. The Colorado State product drew interest from around half the league, per Pelissero, who adds the Commanders are giving him a $300K base salary guarantee and a $50K signing bonus. This gives Anusiem a boost toward sticking around as a UDFA. After four years at Cal, Anusiem was a two-season regular with the Rams.
The team is allocating $245K to Owens, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson, in the form of a base salary guarantee and $25K signing bonus. Only working as a full-time starter in one of his five college seasons (spent at Texas and Texas Tech), Jones played both safety and in the slot last season. He joins a team that lost Kamren Curl from its safety depth chart in March.
Jones and Wiley join a team that lost Antonio Gibson this offseason. After signing Austin Ekeler, Washington did not draft a running back. Brian Robinson and 2023 draftee Chris Rodriguez remain on the roster. Neither Jones nor Wiley topped 800 yards rushing in a season during a combined 10 years in the Pac-12. A Stanford transfer, Jones rushed for 477 yards alongside MarShawn Lloyd for the Trojans last season. Jones, who gained 705 on the ground in Lincoln Riley’s USC debut, rejoins 2023 Trojans assistant Kliff Kingsbury in Washington.