Minor NFL Transactions: 10/6/22
Today’s minor moves:
Denver Broncos
- Promoted: LB Jonathan Kongbo
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted: RB Phillip Lindsay (story), DT Chris Williams
Patriots Place QB Brian Hoyer On IR
Brian Hoyer suffered a concussion during the first half of New England’s Week 4 game in Green Bay. The Patriots are placing their backup quarterback on IR, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. A concussion sending a player to IR, rather than the team having him go through the protocol on a week-to-week basis, is a somewhat rare move. But that is the path the Pats will take with the 14th-year veteran passer.
This will sideline the Patriots’ backup quarterback for at least four games. Head injuries obviously call for concern, and a report earlier Thursday indicated Hoyer was unlikely to clear concussion protocol in time for the Pats’ Week 5 contest. This will leave the Patriots shorthanded at quarterback, with Mac Jones amid another uphill battle to play after suffering a sprained ankle.
Jones sustained what is believed to be a severe high ankle sprain on the final Pats offensive play against the Ravens in Week 3, leading to Hoyer’s spot start last week. Hoyer being forced out of the Lambeau Field matchup brought in fourth-round rookie Bailey Zappe, who will be set to make his first NFL start if Jones cannot return in time. Zappe will soon be in position to be Jones’ primary backup.
Jones is viewed as likelier to make a legitimate charge toward returning in Week 6 (against the Browns), but he has gotten in two limited practices this week. That keeps the door open for a surprisingly quick re-emergence. For Hoyer, this is a tough development so late in his career. Despite the veteran passer being far removed from his Texans playoff season (2015), the Pats have prioritized their multi-stint backup.
Hoyer, who will turn 37 next week, began his career with New England as a 2009 UDFA. After the Cleveland-area native began a journeyman career as a backup/frequent starter — one that also included a notable 2014 stretch in his home town — Hoyer re-signed with the Pats after the Jimmy Garoppolo trade in 2017. Garoppolo effectively took Hoyer’s 49ers roster spot, but Tom Brady‘s former backup reprised his old role over the next 1 1/2 seasons, collecting a Super Bowl ring in the process. Following Hoyer’s 2019 Colts campaign, the Pats brought him back. In New England stint No. 3, Hoyer has backed up Jones and Cam Newton. Hoyer’s current contract (two years, $4MM) runs through 2023.
New England signed Garrett Gilbert to its practice squad this week. If Jones is unable to go, the team will likely be forced to turn to a Zappe-Gilbert QB depth chart against the Lions.
Falcons Cut DT Anthony Rush
Anthony Rush will go from being 4-for-4 in Falcons 2022 starts to the waiver wire. The Falcons cut their starting nose tackle Thursday, the team announced.
This move comes months after the player who was set to challenge or potentially usurp Rush at the position, Eddie Goldman, retired shortly after signing with Atlanta. Nevertheless, Dean Pees‘ defense will have a new starting nose in Week 5.
Rush, 26, had played 33% of Atlanta’s defensive snaps this season. Weighing north of 360 pounds, Rush worked as a run-stopper with the rebuilding team. Pro Football Focus had graded Rush outside the top 100 among interior defensive linemen, however. The former UDFA started six games for the Falcons last year, after coming over from the Titans midseason. He has played with five teams since coming into the league in 2019.
Grady Jarrett continues to work as the Falcons’ D-line mainstay, while 2021 fifth-round pick Ta’Quon Graham has seen his defensive snap rate rise to 63% this season. Marlon Davidson, a 2020 second-rounder, remains on IR after undergoing arthroscopic surgery late in the offseason. Journeyman Abdullah Anderson and rookie Timmy Horne, who have each been rotational players in Pees’ second season in Atlanta, could see more playing time as a result of this somewhat surprising Rush transaction.
Chiefs Bring Back WR Chris Conley
Bouncing on and off the Texans’ active roster and practice squad this year, Chris Conley is returning to his initial NFL home. The Chiefs picked up the veteran wide receiver on Thursday, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets. It is a practice squad deal.
Conley played for the Chiefs from 2015-18, being part of the franchise’s first Patrick Mahomes-directed offense, before moving on for a Jaguars free agency deal. Conley, 29, has spent the past three-plus seasons with AFC South clubs but will now move into position to potentially help out as a depth piece with the AFC West favorites.
A 2015 third-round pick, Conley played a supporting role as the Travis Kelce–Tyreek Hill partnership formed during the late 2010s. While Conley totaled 530 receiving yards for the 2016 Chiefs — Alex Smith‘s penultimate starter season in Kansas City — the Georgia product broke through in terms of touchdowns during Mahomes’ MVP season. Conley caught five TD passes in 2018 and then matched that with the Jags a year later.
Conley caught 47 passes for a career-high 775 yards with Jacksonville in 2019 but was unable to make a similar impact in Houston. Signing for $2MM and $1.5MM over the past two years, Conley caught just 22 passes in 18 Texans games. With four years of experience with Andy Reid, Conley will rejoin a Chiefs team that has retooled at wide receiver following the blockbuster Hill trade.
The Chiefs lost multiple niche contributors — Byron Pringle and Demarcus Robinson — in free agency and reformed a committee-type approach at the position centered around UFA additions JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Those two have joined contract-year speedster Mecole Hardman and second-round rookie Skyy Moore in a still-uncertain Kansas City receiving corps — one that defers to Kelce in Mahomes’ pecking order.
Broncos Elevate S Anthony Harris; RB Latavius Murray Expected To Be Inactive
Latavius Murray may well become a key factor in the Broncos’ rushing attack. The veteran declined a promotion to the Saints’ 53-man roster in order to accept the Broncos’ offer of joining their active roster, but he is not expected to suit up for Denver’s Thursday matchup.
Citing a quick turnaround from Murray’s London game and his move into a new offense, the Broncos will keep Murray on the shelf for tonight’s Colts tilt, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Murray remains on the Broncos’ active roster; he just will be a gameday inactive.
The Broncos are instead elevating running back Devine Ozigbo from their practice squad. Ozigbo will join Melvin Gordon and Mike Boone as Denver’s active backs in Week 5. Despite having been benched for his fumble against the Raiders, Gordon is expected to work as the Broncos’ lead back tonight, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. It is safe to assume Gordon’s leash, in light of his fourth fumble in four games (running his Denver total to 11 — most among running backs since 2020), will be short.
Using the CBA’s gameday elevation provision, the Saints bumped Murray up to their active roster ahead of their London matchup with the Vikings. Murray logged 11 carried for 57 yards and a touchdown against his former team but reverted to New Orleans’ taxi squad after the game. He then trekked from London to New Orleans to Denver. Murray, 32, will have an extra week and change to get up to speed in Nathaniel Hackett‘s offense. The Broncos face the Chargers in Week 6’s Monday-night game.
Additionally, the Broncos promoted safety Anthony Harris to their active roster. Like Murray, Harris was in Minnesota during now-Denver GM George Paton’s lengthy tenure; the eighth-year defender joined the Broncos’ practice squad last month but has not played for the team yet. Harris sought a release from the Eagles’ practice squad, in order to select a better path toward a 2022 role. The ex-Vikings and Eagles starter should be on the field for his new team Thursday.
Harris, 30, has made 61 career starts. The Vikings franchise-tagged Harris in 2020 but did not prioritize retaining him in 2021, leading to an Eagles agreement. Harris was a full-time Philadelphia starter last season and re-signed on a lower-cost deal this offseason. But the Eagles were not as impressed with his training camp. Philly cut both Harris and Jaquiski Tartt, moving Marcus Epps into a full-time role and acquiring C.J. Gardner-Johnson from the Saints. While Harris circled back to Philly’s practice squad, he did not remain there long.
The Broncos will be without second-year safety P.J. Locke, who suffered a concussion against the Raiders, and Pro Bowler Justin Simmons remains on IR. Kareem Jackson and Caden Sterns have worked as Denver’s safety starters in Simmons’ absence. Harris, who led the NFL in interceptions with six in 2019, could see some snaps behind the starters.
Ravens Sign A.J. Klein Off Giants’ P-Squad
A.J. Klein will go from being out of the NFL for the season’s first month to being part of two teams this week. The Ravens signed Klein off the Giants’ practice squad Thursday.
A veteran linebacker who had spent time with the Panthers, Saints and Bills, Klein joined the Giants’ P-squad on Monday. The Giants continued their busy acquisition stretch at inside linebacker today, however, reuniting with Landon Collins. Despite Collins playing safety during his first tour of duty in New York, the current regime prefers him at linebacker.
Klein, 31, instead will head to Baltimore to earn a chance on the Ravens’ 53-man roster. The former fifth-round pick will fill in behind starters Patrick Queen and Josh Bynes. The Ravens have shifted Malik Harrison to an outside ‘backer role, due to injury issues, leaving an opening for an experienced second-level defender to work as a second-stringer.
After working as a primary starter in place of the injured Matt Milano extensively in 2020, Klein slid back to a bench role last year in Buffalo. The Bills released Klein in March. Still, the one-time Luke Kuechly backup has made 80 career starts. Fifteen of those came in Buffalo, where Klein also contributed as a pass rusher. He led the AFC’s second-seeded Bills squad that season with a career-high five sacks, both highlighting Klein’s versatility and the Bills’ need to augment their 2020s pass-rushing situation.
An Iowa State product, Klein also crossed the 75% defensive snap threshold for two Saints playoff-bound teams (2017 and ’19) after signing a four-year, $24MM deal with New Orleans in 2017. After the Saints made Klein a cap casualty in 2020, he landed a three-year, $18MM deal with a Buffalo regime known to be rather high on ex-Panthers draft choices.
Despite Klein’s quick New York exit, the Giants have still added Collins and Jaylon Smith as veteran options to work alongside Tae Crowder at inside linebacker. Smith played 31 snaps in his 2022 Giants debut Sunday.
Giants To Bring Back Landon Collins
Landon Collins‘ Giants visit did not immediately produce a deal, but the sides nevertheless will agree to reunite. Collins is joining the Giants on Thursday, Josina Anderson of CBS Sports tweets.
It is a practice squad deal, according to Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano (on Twitter). Collins played for the Giants from 2015-18, making three Pro Bowls with the team, but left as a free agent in 2019. The Commanders made him a cap casualty earlier this year.
Although Collins operated as a pure safety during his first tour with New York, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes the current Giants regime is planning on using him as a linebacker (Twitter link). Collins played a hybrid role to close out his Washington tenure. The Giants have been active in bolstering that position this week, having also reached an agreement with veteran off-ball ‘backer A.J. Klein, who joins Collins on Big Blue’s P-squad.
The Giants now have a host of recognizable names at inside linebacker, having reunited with Jaylon Smith as well. The former Cowboy standout-turned-Giants 2021 spot starter saw the most usage alongside Tae Crowder at linebacker for the Giants in Week 4. Smith’s 2022 Giants debut involved 31 defensive snaps. Between Smith, Collins and Klein, it is safe to say the team — which made Blake Martinez a surprise 11th-hour cut — viewed this position as a belated priority.
As for Collins, this is certainly an interesting reunion. The Giants did not make him an offer to stay in 2019, when the former second-round pick’s previous level of play made him a franchise tag candidate. Big Blue passed there, too, leading Collins to Washington on a then-safety-record six-year, $84MM deal. Washington, which changed regimes a year after Collins’ arrival, cut bait on that deal halfway through.
Pro Football Focus viewed Collins as a plus run defender last season, and Ron Rivera‘s club wanted Collins back — just not on a $16.1MM cap number. After the sides could not reach a pay-cut agreement, the Commanders designated Collins a post-June 1 cut. No free agency buzz followed the seven-year veteran, who will obviously take a substantial pay cut to continue his career.
While Collins drifted off the Pro Bowl radar in Washington, he earned invites from 2016-18 in New York. Collins’ 2016 breakout season led to first-team All-Pro acclaim. That year, the Alabama product delivered versatile work (125 tackles, four sacks, five interceptions) to establish himself as one of the league’s top young safeties and help the Giants to their most recent playoff berth. Once the Giants canned GM Jerry Reese, it became clear replacement Dave Gettlemen did not value him on the same level. But after the Gettleman regime let Collins walk, he will circle back to the Giants under a third regime.
Colts To Promote RB Phillip Lindsay
Jonathan Taylor‘s Week 5 absence will leave a gaping void on the Colts’ offense. Ahead of the team’s Broncos clash, the Colts will elevate a veteran presence to help fill it.
Former Broncos 1,000-yard rusher Phillip Lindsay will make his Colts debut Thursday night, with Tom Pelissero of NFL.com noting (via Twitter) the veteran running back will be elevated from Indianapolis’ practice squad. This will be Lindsay’s first matchup against his hometown team since the Broncos rescinded his RFA tender in 2021.
The Colts signed Lindsay this offseason, continuing the former Broncos starter’s post-Denver AFC tour, but released him as they cut their roster down to 53. The team kept Lindsay on its practice squad.
Lindsay played for the Texans and Dolphins last season, but his performance was well off the pace he set during his time in Denver. Lindsay is the NFL’s only UDFA to begin a career with back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons, but the Broncos opted not to extend him and instead paid up to replace the ex-Colorado Buffalo.
The player the Broncos brought in to effectively replace Lindsay, Melvin Gordon, is expected to take over for Javonte Williams as a starter Thursday. Williams is out for the season with ACL and LCL tears. Gordon signed a two-year, $16MM deal with the Broncos in 2020 and re-signed on a one-year, $2.5MM accord this offseason. The former first-round pick, however, leads all running backs with 11 fumbles since that 2020 season. Gordon’s lost fumble in Week 4 proved incredibly costly in the Broncos’ loss to the Raiders, putting the eighth-year back on thin ice with his current team.
As for the Colts, they have passing-down back Nyheim Hines likely set for a bigger role. Hines is not exactly a one-for-one Taylor replacement — as if that were easy to find — and backup Deon Jackson has logged 15 career carries (for 28 yards) since joining the Colts as a 2021 UDFA. Lindsay, 28, figures to complement Hines in his Denver return tonight. This will be Taylor’s first missed game due to injury dating back to his high school days, though he did miss a 2020 Colts game after landing on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Lindsay quickly became a starter in Denver and earned Pro Bowl acclaim as a rookie. He followed that 1,037-yard season up with a 1,011-yard 2019 slate, but the Broncos’ Pat Shurmur OC hire led to the Gordon agreement. Gordon’s deal scuttled Lindsay extension talks, which were rumored early that offseason. Lindsay did not fare as well in 2020, losing time to Gordon and missing games due to injury. The Broncos gave Lindsay the low-end RFA tender in 2021, but a mutual separation soon ensued. Lindsay did not stand out with the Texans or Dolphins, averaging just 2.8 yards per carry on 88 totes last year.
Panthers Place S Jeremy Chinn On IR
The Panthers have lost one of their top defenders for at least the next four weeks. The team announced that safety Jeremy Chinn has landed on injured reserve. Veteran Juston Burris was signed off the practice squad to take the open roster spot.
Chinn led all rookies with 117 tackles in 2020, and he ended up finishing second in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. He followed that up with 107 tackles during his sophomore campaign, making him only the third player in franchise history to top 100 tackles in each of their first two seasons (along with Luke Kuechly and Jon Beason).
The 24-year-old started each of Carolina’s first four games this season, collecting 20 tackles and one sack. Pro Football Focus also graded him as one of the NFL’s best pass-rushing safeties this year. He appeared in only six snaps on Sunday before exiting the contest with a hamstring injury.
Chinn’s versatility will be hard to replace; besides safety, he’s also lined up at safety, linebacker, and in the slot this season. However, Burris at least provides six years of NFL experience, and the veteran even started 20 games for the Panthers over the past two years. He re-signed with the organization this offseason but was cut at the end of the preseason. He subsequently landed on the Panthers practice squad.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/5/22
Today’s practice squad transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: G Koda Martin
- Placed on IR: OL Lachavious Simmons
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: DT Jaleel Johnson
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: WR Bailey Gaither
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: S Richard LeCounte III
Detroit Lions
- Signed: K Michael Badgley
Houston Texans
- Signed: WR Davion Davis, TE Nick Eubanks
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: WR Dezmon Patmon
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: WR Keelan Doss
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: S Mike Brown
New England Patriots
- Signed: OT Sebastian Gutierrez
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DB Bryce Thompson, WR Kevin White
New York Giants
- Signed: OL Solomon Kindley
- Released: RB Antonio Williams
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: WR Willie Snead
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: C Joey Hunt
- Released: CB Quandre Mosely
Washington Commanders
- Signed: T Christian DiLauro
- Released: CB Troy Apke