Minor NFL Transactions: 8/10/22
Today’s minor moves:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Activated from NFI: OL La’el Collins
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: RB JaQuan Hardy
- Placed on IR: WR Jakeem Grant (story), LB Silas Kelly
Denver Broncos
- Signed: RB JaQuan Hardy, RB Stevie Scott
- Waived/injured: RB Tyreik McAllister
- Placed on IR: OLB Christopher Allen
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: S Micah Abernathy, RB Dexter Williams
- Released: LS Steven Wirtel
- Waived/injured: WR Osirus Mitchell
Houston Texans
- Signed: RB B.J. Emmons
- Placed on IR: RB Darius Anderson
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: DL Auzoyah Alufohai
- Waived/injured: DL Jeremiah Ledbetter
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: WR Chris Lacy
- Released: WR Jordan Veasy
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: RB DeAndre Torrey
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Claimed off waivers (from Jets): DE Hamilcar Rashed
- Waived/injured: LB Ulysees Gilbert
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: CB Jameson Houston
- Waived: OL Keenan Forbes
Tennessee Titans
- Placed on IR: S Michael Griffin II
Bears Activate LB Roquan Smith
Roquan Smith‘s stay on the Bears’ active/PUP list is over. The team activated the disgruntled linebacker Wednesday. This opens the door to Smith practicing or following through with his hold-in measure.
The fifth-year defender requested a trade out of Chicago on Tuesday morning, accusing the Bears of not negotiating in good faith. Prior to Smith going on the PUP list, however, he was planning to attend practices but not participate — a tactic that is becoming standard procedure for players in negotiations or those upset about their contracts.
Indeed, Smith is not expected to practice with his teammates, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com adds (via Twitter). Teams can still fine players for attending practice and not practicing, but they have largely been reluctant to do so during the three-year run of hold-ins.
Bears GM Ryan Poles said the plan remains for the team to extend the standout middle linebacker, despite Smith’s trade request indicating he does not see a reasonable path back to his former role in the middle of Chicago’s defense. Smith’s Pro Bowl-less resume aside, he is one of the league’s top off-ball ‘backers. The two-time second-team All-Pro has not proven to be the best at his position, but that distinction does not stop players from commanding top dollar. It may well be pausing the Bears’ negotiations with their agent-less talent.
The Bears did shed four notable defender contracts this offseason, but they still have veterans Eddie Jackson and Robert Quinn on the payroll. The franchise, after building a top-tier defense around Khalil Mack, has decided to rebuild. Smith is undoubtedly angling to not only become the Bears’ highest-paid player but surpass Shaquille Leonard‘s $19.7MM-per-year contract, which currently tops the off-ball linebacker market.
This activation will prevent Smith from being placed on the reserve/PUP list to start the season, ratcheting up this situation. A 2023 franchise tag does not seem especially realistic, with on- and off-ball linebackers grouped together on the tag. The 25-year-old defender would generate trade interest. The Bears can also up their offer — something Smith said the team has been reluctant to do — to a player who stands to be a long-term cornerstone. Teams with receivers holding in resolved those situations recently. Deebo Samuel, D.K. Metcalf and Diontae Johnson are all back at work after signing big-ticket extensions.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/9/22
Today’s minor moves around the NFL:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: CB Cortez Davis
- Released: CB Nate Brooks
Atlanta Falcons
- Placed on IR: DL Bryce Rodgers
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: LB Jordan Kunaszyk
- Waived: LB Silas Kelly
Indianapolis Colts
- Released via injury settlement: WR John Hurst
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: QB EJ Perry
- Waived: QB Kyle Sloter
Kansas City Chiefs
- Activated from PUP list: CB Rashad Fenton
New Orleans Saints
- Activated from PUP list: DE Marcus Davenport (story)
- Signed: DE T.J. Carter
- Placed on IR: LB D’Marco Jackson and CB Dylan Mabin
New York Jets
- Signed: OL Chris Glaser
- Released: DE Hamilcar Rashed and OL Parker Ferguson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Placed on IR: DE T.D. Moultry
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: S Elijah Benton and S Adrian Colbert
- Waived: CB Kenneth George
- Waived (injury designation): S Michael Griffin
Washington Commanders
- Signed: WR Matt Cole
Perry’s interesting post-draft NFL journey continues. Initially slated to join the Eagles as a UDFA, he ended up signing with the Jaguars days later. Then, in July, he was waived (with an injury designation) to make room for Sloter’s addition. Perry has obviously recovered, as the two have now swapped placed once more.
Fenton was one of four Chiefs placed on the PUP list at the start of training camp. That came as little surprise at the time, but his return to practice will be a welcomed sight in Kansas City’s secondary. NFL Network’s James Palmer tweets that Fenton’s preseason availability remains a question mark, but that he is still expected to be fully recovered in time for the regular season.
Jackson was a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft at a position which has been in flux throughout the offseason in New Orleans. The 24-year-old had a highly productive final season in particular at Appalachian State, posting 119 tackles, 20 TFLs and six sacks. He will now have to wait until 2023 to carve out a depth role in the middle of the Saints’ defense.
Saints Activate DE Marcus Davenport
Marcus Davenport has had an eventful offseason with respect to health in 2022, but the Saints defensive end took a significant step towards being available once again. Per a team announcement, he has been activated, and was back on the practice field Tuesday. 
“I want to say this was a good first day,” Davenport said, via Michael Hull of the team’s website. “It’s just one of those things on the process… I still have more to push through. At this point, I’m really just in the process of getting back, getting acclimated, seeing whatever comes up from actually playing football.”
It was revealed in June that the 25-year-old underwent a total of five offseason surgeries to fix knee, shoulder and finger issues. Those procedures added to the list of ailments Davenport has dealt with in his relatively brief NFL career; through four seasons in the league, he has played in no more than 13 contests in any one campaign.
Not surprisingly, the former first-rounder opened training camp on the PUP list. His return marks a positive development, though, as he looks to continue the form he showed in 2021. Despite playing only 11 games (and seeing the field for less than two-thirds of the team’s defensive snaps), he set new career-highs in sacks (nine) and tackles (39). Matching or improving upon those numbers would be crucial for the Saints’ defense.
A strong season would also, of course, do wonders for Davenport financially. He restructured his contract to help the Saints get cap compliant, but his future beyond this season is unclear. With 2022 being the final non-void year of his contract, the UTSA alum could play his way into a significant second deal in the event of a productive (but, more importantly, healthy) campaign. Today’s news is an encouraging sign that he will have the opportunity to put one together.
Chiefs To Sign DT Danny Shelton
One day after working out with one of their division rivals, Danny Shelton is headed to Kansas City. The Chiefs are signing the veteran defensive tackle to a one-year deal, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). 
The soon-to-be 29-year-old auditioned for the Raiders yesterday, but has landed a contract elsewhere in the AFC West. The former first-rounder had an underwhelming one-year stint with the Giants last season, where he didn’t register any starts and logged a career-low snap share of 29%.
Prior to that, he had a more true-to-form stay in Detroit, where he was a full-time starter. That came one season after he posted a career-high three sacks and 61 tackles with New England in 2019. The journeyman has established himself as a capable run defender over the course of his career, but hasn’t developed into the disruptive presence in the passing game that he was drafted to be.
Shelton – who also worked out for the Panthers this offseason – represents the second recent veteran addition to the Chiefs’ front seven. Kansas City added edge rusher Carlos Dunlap on a one-year pact worth up to $8MM less than two weeks ago. On the defensive interior, Shelton will be joined by the likes of Chris Jones and Derrick Nnadi. He figures to carry a rotational workload given the presence of Jones in particular, but he has demonstrated an ability over the course of his career to log starter’s snaps as well.
With Shelton in the fold, the Chiefs have another capable piece in place as they continue to remodel their defense. They entered the day with more than $9MM in cap space, but after Shelton’s performance in 2021, this deal shouldn’t eat too much into that figure.
Cowboys To Bring Back K Brett Maher
The Cowboys’ Tuesday kicker workout has concluded, and it will lead to a transaction. The team will circle back to Brett Maher, Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News tweets.
Dallas’ kicker from 2018-19, Maher spent last season with the Saints. Kicking in eight Saints games last season, Maher lasted longer than New Orleans’ other batch of Wil Lutz replacements did last season. And the Division II product will attempt to secure a second Cowboys stint that lasts into the regular season. Maher went 16-for-18 on field goal tries during his eight-game Saints run — one that ended in February when the team released him.
To make room on their 90-man roster, the Cowboys are waiving rookie Jonathan Garibay. The Texas Tech UDFA struggled during training camp. Tuesday’s transactions will bring about a competition between two inexperienced 30-something specialists. Both current Cowboy kickers have kicked in Canada. Hajrullahu, 32, played in the CFL from 2014-19; Maher, also 32, did so from 2013-16 and again in 2018.
Maher, who joined Matt Ammendola and Cole Murphy in Tuesday morning’s workout, will vie with Lirim Hajrullahu to succeed Greg Zuerlein as the Cowboys’ kicker. Dallas cut Zuerlein in March, leading him to the Jets. The team initially cut Maher back in 2019, signing Zuerlein not long after, but the parties will link up again.
Maher, 32, did not kick in 2020, though he remained a workout-circuit fixture, but his late-2010s Dallas tenure was one of the more memorable short kicker stints in recent memory. Maher’s 63-yard field goal as a Cowboy in 2019 represents a team record. He made two other 60-plus-yard tries, making him the only kicker to boot three field goals from beyond 60 yards in NFL history. The Cowboys, however, ousted him after he made 66% of his 2019 attempts (20-for-30).
Lions Sign OL Kendall Lamm
Kendall Lamm is heading to Detroit. The Lions announced that they have signed the free agent offensive tackle.
Despite going undrafted in the 2015 draft, Lamm has put together a respectable seven-year career. He spent the better part of those seven seasons with the Texans, where he started 24 of his 55 appearances. He spent a pair of seasons in Cleveland before joining the Titans last August.
The 30-year-old ended up seeing time in 12 games (one start) for Tennessee last season, and he pretty much split his playing time between offense and special teams. Lamm didn’t play enough snaps to qualify for Pro Football Focus’ rankings, but his score would have ranked toward the bottom of the OT list. However, the site was much more favorable of his performances in 2020 and 2019, and despite his ugly 2021 score, he still earned a solid grade in run blocking.
The Lions don’t have a whole lot of offensive tackle depth behind starters Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell. Lamm will be competing with the likes of Dan Skipper, Matt Nelson, and Darrin Paulo for backup reps.
Meanwhile, the Lions announced that they’ve placed offensive tackle Zein Obeid on the reserve/retired list. Obeid is now the third member of Detroit’s 12-man UDFA class to retire.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/8/22
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Waived/injured: DT Bryce Rodgers
Carolina Panthers
- Activated from PUP: RB Kyren Williams
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Reverted to IR: RB Nathan Cottrell
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: DE Matt Dickerson
- Waived: LB Shilique Calhoun
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: C/G Cameron Hunt
Los Angeles Rams
- Activated from PUP: WR Warren Jackson, RB Kyren Williams
- Released from IR: TE Kyle Markway
New England Patriots
- Activated from NFI: G Chasen Hines
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: CB Jordan Brown, DE T.J. Carter, LB Chase Hansen
- Activated from NFI: WR Rashid Shaheed
- Waived/injured: CB Dylan Mabin
New York Giants
- Released: OL Matt Gono
New York Jets
- Signed: OL Caleb Benenoch
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: LB Ron’Dell Carter
- Activated from PUP: DE Tyson Alualu
- Waived/injured: LB T.D. Moultry
Washington Commanders
- Signed: WR Matt Cole
- Reverted to IR: WR Jequez Ezzard
Falcons To Sign TE MyCole Pruitt
Despite a severe injury — a dislocated and broken ankle — ending MyCole Pruitt‘s 2021 season, he is back with a team during training camp. The Falcons are signing the veteran tight end, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets.
Pruitt, who spent most of the past four years with the Titans, had surfaced on the workout circuit recently. The Bengals and Vikings brought him in, gauging his form after the ankle injury occurred late last season. Pruitt went down during the Titans’ Week 17 game in early January but will have an opportunity to be part of the Falcons’ 53-man roster.
This will import another of Arthur Smith‘s former Titans tight ends. The team also added Anthony Firkser to its Kyle Pitts-led position group this offseason. Atlanta did not retain 2021 Pitts complement Hayden Hurst, who played with the team for two seasons. Pruitt was with the Titans during part of Smith’s run as their tight ends coach and throughout his stay as offensive coordinator.
Used mostly as a blocker, Pruitt played between 36-44% of the Titans’ offensive snaps over the past three seasons. While the Titans let Pruitt sign with the 49ers in 2021, San Francisco cutting him before the start of the season paved a path back to Tennessee. The former Vikings fifth-round pick played a steady role in helping Derrick Henry to back-to-back rushing titles in 2019 and ’20. Last season doubled as Pruitt’s best receiving year, producing 14 receptions, 145 yards and three touchdown grabs (all career-high marks).
Going into what would be his age-30 season, Pruitt could be in position to complement Pitts. But he will have to show he has recovered from the ankle setback. The Falcons also used a sixth-round pick on tight end John FitzPatrick this year.
Ravens Activate RB J.K. Dobbins, Sign CB Daryl Worley
For the first time in nearly a year, J.K. Dobbins is back with the Ravens at practice. The team took its starting running back off the active/PUP list Monday.
Suffering a torn ACL and sustaining LCL and meniscus damage during the team’s final preseason game last year, Dobbins has not played since his rookie season. Monday’s news does not necessarily mean Dobbins will be in uniform when the Ravens open up their regular season, but it obviously helps open the door to that reality. The third-year back can begin ramping up in full toward debuting with his teammates in Week 1.
The Ravens also signed cornerback Daryl Worley, who worked out with the team over the weekend, and moved linebacker Vince Biegel on IR. This marks somewhat of a reunion for Worley, who finished last season with the Ravens. The veteran cover man, however, played in just one game with the 2021 Ravens. He has played for five other teams over the course of a six-year career.
Dobbins became a key presence as a rookie, averaging six yards per carry and rushing for nine touchdowns. He did this largely as a reserve, starting just one game as part of a deep backfield. The Ohio State product will be brought along slowly ahead of the regular season.
The knee injuries suffered by Dobbins and Gus Edwards threw Baltimore’s backfield into disarray last season. No Ravens running back topped 600 yards in 2021. Veterans Latavius Murray and Devonta Freeman led the way, each clearing the 500-yard mark as part of a committee composed of late free agency additions. Le’Veon Bell was also briefly part of this coalition, as was Ty’Son Williams. None of these players are with Baltimore this year.
The Ravens still face significant questions about their backfield ahead of Week 1, due also to Edwards remaining on the active/PUP list. Teams have until August 23 to move players off the active/PUP list. Doing so avoids a player being shut down for the season’s first four games. Like Dobbins, Edwards is finishing up ACL recovery. Veteran Mike Davis and sixth-round rookie Tyler Badie are now part of the team’s backfield equation.
Despite his nomadic NFL run, Worley is still just 27. He worked as a primary starter for the Panthers and Raiders from 2016-19 but has been more of a depth piece since. The former third-round pick was with the Bills, Cowboys and Lions prior to catching on with the Ravens to close last season.
Biegel suffered a torn ACL last week. The Ravens had signed him in May. This represents another bad late-20s break for Biegel. The 29-year-old defender missed the 2020 season because of an Achilles tear. The former starter recovered to return as a Dolphins backup last season, yo-yoing on and off Miami’s practice squad.