Minor NFL Transactions: 4/25/22
Here are Monday’s minor moves:
Houston Texans
- Waived: DL Ron’Dell Carter
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed RFA tender: OL Nate Herbig
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed RFA tender: LB Azeez Al-Shaair
Seattle Seahawks
- ERFA tender rescinded: DB Nigel Warrior
Patriots, Texans Swap Day 3 Picks
Three days away from the draft, Bill Belichick and his former right-hand man made a trade involving Day 3 picks. The Texans picked up a fifth-round pick in this draft, while the Patriots moved down.
Nick Caserio‘s team traded sixth- and seventh-round picks in this draft to the Patriots for a fifth-rounder, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. While trades featuring only Day 3 choices almost always occur during the draft, Belichick and Caserio acted early this year. Here are the official picks swapped, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter).
Patriots receive:
- No. 183
- No. 245
Texans receive:
- No. 170
The Patriots now hold three sixth-round picks in this draft. They already had a fifth, supplied by the Dolphins in the trade that sent DeVante Parker to New England. The Pats now have six Day 3 picks but more than one in just one of those rounds.
The Texans had dealt their original fifth-round choice to the Bears, acquiring wide receiver Anthony Miller just before last season. Miller did not last long in Houston, being cut in October. Houston previously had two sixth-round picks and one seventh. The AFC South club now has five Day 3 selections — two fourths, a fifth and two sixths.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/22/22
Steelers To Re-Sign S Terrell Edmunds
Linked to a few free agent safeties this offseason, the Steelers will bring back a familiar face. They are re-signing Terrell Edmunds, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).
Edmunds agreed to a one-year deal to stay in Pittsburgh on Friday; this will be the former first-round pick’s fifth Steelers season. The agreement comes a year after the Steelers declined Edmunds’ fifth-year option. Edmunds signed for $2.5MM, passing on two other offers to stay with the Steelers, Rapoport adds (on Twitter). Those offers may have come from the Bengals and Dolphins, with ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler tweeting both teams were in the mix for the veteran safety.
The Steelers recently re-signed former first-rounder Karl Joseph as well, but Edmunds figures to have a much better chance of starting alongside Minkah Fitzpatrick next season. He has been a starter throughout his NFL tenure, lining up as a Steelers first-stringer in 60 games. The former No. 28 overall pick started all 18 Steelers games in 2021, intercepting two passes and making a career-high eight tackles for loss.
Edmunds’ return may well close the book on a Steelers deal with Tyrann Mathieu. The team was believed to be interested at the right price, but other teams — like the Eagles and Saints — have been more prominent Mathieu suitors. The Steelers are eyeing a Fitzpatrick extension, one that could top the safety market, this year. Saving money at the other safety spot makes sense for a team that recently gave T.J. Watt a defender-record contract.
Bears To Sign Julién Davenport
Julién Davenport is heading to Chicago. The veteran offensive tackle is signing with the Bears, reports Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com (via Twitter).
[RELATED: Bears Sign WR David Moore]
The 2017 fourth-round pick out of Bucknell spent the first two seasons of his career with the Texans, including a 2018 campaign where he started 15 games. He was included in the Dolphins/Texans Laremy Tunsil trade in 2019, and he started eight games during his first season in Miami. However, despite dressing for every game, he was limited to only five percent of his team’s offensive snaps in 2020.
The lineman spent the 2021 season in Indy, and he started four of his nine games for the Colts. The 27-year-old also had a part-time role on special teams.
2021 second-round Teven Jenkins currently sits atop the Bears depth chart at left tackle, and he’ll likely get the first shot at the starting gig. Davenport will provide some veteran competition, with 2020 seventh-round pick Lachavious Simmons also vying for a role.
Bears Sign WR David Moore
The Bears have added players on both sides of the ball. The team announced that they’ve added receiver David Moore and cornerback Greg Stroman on one-year contracts.
Moore is a notable name, having appeared in 50 games in time with the Seahawks, Broncos, and Packers. He had a productive stint in Seattle, collecting 1,254 yards from scrimmage and 13 touchdowns between the 2018 and 2020 seasons. He split the 2021 season between Denver and Green Bay, seeing time in only three games.
In Chicago, Moore will likely continue to see a role on special teams. He’ll be joining a receivers room that features Darnell Mooney, Equanimeous St. Brown, Byron Pringle, Isaiah Coulter, Nsimba Webster, and Dazz Newsome.
Stroman was a seventh-round pick by Washington in 2018, and he saw time in 15 games as a rookie. Since that season, the defensive back has only seen the field for five games. He split the 2021 campaign on the Bears and Rams practice squads, and he didn’t end up appearing in a game.
Jets To Sign S Marcell Harris
The Jets are adding another contributor to their safety corps and another defensive back familiar with Robert Saleh‘s system. Former 49ers safety Marcell Harris is joining the Jets, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.
Harris visited the Jets on Thursday. He will follow D.J. Reed as ex-49ers DBs to join Saleh in New York this offseason. The Jets also added former Buccaneers safety Jordan Whitehead, shortly before losing Marcus Maye to the Saints, in March. Harris, 27, figures to add depth or potentially give the Jets another starter option alongside Whitehead.
A former San Francisco sixth-round pick, Harris saw extensive action on defense. Although the ex-Florida Gator backed up Jimmie Ward and Jaquiski Tartt, injuries to the 49ers’ starters opened the door to playing time throughout Harris’ Bay Area run. Harris started 20 games with the 49ers, including a career-high seven last season. Some of those starts came at linebacker, when Harris filled in for an injured Dre Greenlaw at points last season.
Harris also improved in coverage last season, seeing his passer rating as the nearest defender plummet considerably — to 75.8 — after those numbers hovered well above 100 during his first three seasons. The 215-pound defender made 155 tackles (including a career-high 44 last season) over his four-year run. The Jets return C.J. Mosley and Quincy Williams on their defensive second level. They figure to add help on all three levels in the draft, given the team’s last-place defensive rankings in Saleh’s debut.
Bills Sign OL David Quessenberry
The Bills have made an addition on their offensive line. The team announced on Thursday the signing of veteran David Quessenberry.
The 31-year-old was drafted in 2013, but didn’t make his NFL debut until the end of the the 2017 campaign. The delay was caused by his successful treatment of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which opened the door to playing time with the Texans. Those two games to finish the season, however, ended up being his only appearances in Houston.
The San Jose St. product remained in the AFC South, being added to the Titans’ practice squad in 2018. One year later, he made his debut with Tennessee. Even though he was cut by the team in October of that season, he remained in Nashville through 2021.
This past campaign saw him spend a full season as a starter for the first time in his career. Occupying the right tackle spot, he acquitted himself very well, considering his lack of playing experience despite his age. He earned an 80.6 PFF grade, which ranked him 18th out of 83 qualified tackles. While he only committed two penalties, he did allow 11 sacks, however.
Quessenberry now joins Rodger Saffold as former Titans signing with the Bills. He will, at a minimum, provide quality depth along the right side of their offensive line.
Giants To Sign TE Jordan Akins
The Giants have made another addition to their tight end room. The team is signing Jordan Akins to a one-year contract, per Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network (Twitter link).
Akins, despite being 30, was a free agent for the first time in his career. In four seasons with the Texans, he played a notable role in the team’s offense, staying on the field for over half of their offense snaps in 2019 and 2020. The former campaign saw him make 36 catches for a career-best 418 yards and two touchdowns.
He was included in trade talk this past year, however, as the team looked to move on from a number of veterans. He ultimately stayed in Houston, though he was a healthy scratch on multiple occasions. It comes as no surprise that he is moving on to a new team now.
The former third rounder will now join a Giants team looking to fill out its tight end room. Evan Engram left in free agency, and the most notable offseason addition prior to this one was Ricky Seals-Jones, who also signed a one-year deal. By coming to New York, Akins will also be able to continue working with TEs coach Andy Bischoff, who held the same title in Houston last year.
Jets Re-Sign DE Vinny Curry
Despite Vinny Curry suffering a late-summer health issue that prevented him from playing for the Jets last season, the parties are reuniting. The Jets re-signed the veteran defensive end Wednesday, Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus tweets.
The former Eagles and Buccaneers defender dealt with a number of complications stemming from blood clots and a recent spleen removal, leading to the Jets placing him on their non-football injury list in August. The team released Curry from its NFI list shortly before the season ended, but the sides will try to make it work again in 2022.
Curry (34 in June) played eight seasons with the Eagles from 2012-20 — sandwiched by a 2018 Bucs partnership — and served as either a starter or key rotational cog. He totaled eight sacks and 22 quarterback hits over his final two Eagles seasons but signed with the Jets on a one-year, $1.3MM deal in 2021. It will be interesting to see if Curry can complete his comeback from the issues he battled last year.
The Jets played without their big-ticket pass rusher addition last year and saw no edge rusher accumulate more than two sacks. Carl Lawson is expected to lead Gang Green’s edge crew this season, with Curry in a potential supporting role. But it is likely the team will add a major piece to its defensive line in the draft. Kayvon Thibodeaux is on the Jets’ radar.