Minor NFL Transactions: 11/2/21
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Promoted: LB Daren Bates, LB James Vaughters
- Waived: LB Dorian Etheridge
Baltimore Ravens
- Released via injury settlement: T Andre Smith
Cleveland Browns
- Waived: FB Johnny Stanton
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on IR: LB Jabril Cox (story)
- Waived: DE Bradlee Anae
Detroit Lions
- Designated for return: T Taylor Decker, DL Devin Strong
Green Bay Packers
- Promoted: LS Steven Wirtel
- Waived: LS Hunter Bradley
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed off Chiefs’ practice squad: LB Christian Rozeboom
- Placed on IR: WR Tutu Atwell (story), LB Travin Howard
- Waived: LB Jonah Williams
New York Jets
- Designated to return: LB Hamsah Nasirildeen
- Promoted: S Jarrod Wilson
- Waived: LB Noah Dawkins
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Promoted: LB Taco Charlton
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: LB Tyrell Adams, K Joey Slye
Washington Football Team
- Designated for return: TE Logan Thomas
- Waived: TE Jace Sternberger
Bucs Designate Sean Murphy-Bunting, Scotty Miller For Return
The Buccaneers’ cornerbacks and pass-catching corps have encountered constant injury trouble this season, but the defending champions will have some help soon.
Cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting and wideout Scotty Miller surfaced as IR-return players Tuesday. Given that this is a bye week, that marks a good sign for their prospects of being active when the Bucs resume play in Week 10. Each has 21 days from Tuesday to return to action.
Murphy-Bunting, a former second-round pick, has been out since going down with a dislocated elbow in Week 1. A two-year Bucs starter who notched three interceptions during the 2020 playoffs, Murphy-Bunting was the first of a few Tampa Bay corners to go down this season. The Bucs subsequently lost Jamel Dean and Carlton Davis, though Dean has since returned. Davis, who has been out since Week 4, is eyeing a Week 10 return. The cornerback brought in because of this injury run, Richard Sherman, has also missed the past two Bucs games. Fellow replacement Dee Delaney also missed last week’s game.
Operating as the Bucs’ No. 4 wide receiver, Miller has seen a “severe” turf toe case sideline him since Week 3. Miller has just two catches this season but eclipsed 500 receiving yards in 2020. He added a rather crucial deep touchdown grab in the NFC championship game to help the Bucs to their second Super Bowl.
The Bucs have since played without Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski for much of the time between then and their loss to the Saints on Sunday. With Brown not expected to need an IR stint, it is possible the Bucs will deploy Gronk, Brown and Miller alongside Mike Evans and Chris Godwin following their bye week.
Raiders Waive QB Nathan Peterman
5:07pm: Indeed, the Raiders and Peterman are not truly planning to separate. Peterman is expected to land on Las Vegas’ practice squad, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). Unless another team poaches him, Peterman will stay on as the Raiders’ de facto third-stringer.
4:48pm: Nathan Peterman is no longer on the Raiders’ 53-man roster. The team cut its third-string quarterback Tuesday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The Raiders also waived linebacker Javin White.
Since this transaction processed after today’s 3pm trade deadline, Peterman will head to the waiver wire. If unclaimed, the fifth-year quarterback will be a free agent. The Raiders signed Peterman to an extension in February; just more than $500K remains on his deal.
Following some disastrous in-game outings with Buffalo, Peterman landed in Oakland in December 2018. The then-Jon Gruden-led franchise then kept Peterman around via a reserve/futures deal and used him as a Derek Carr reserve over the next three seasons. Marcus Mariota stands as Carr’s backup; the Raiders do not have a quarterback on their practice squad.
Given Gruden’s abrupt exit, it will be somewhat interesting if the Raiders bring back Peterman. He remains practice squad-eligible, should Las Vegas go this route. Mariota has spent time on IR in each of his two Raiders seasons and certainly battled health issues while with the Titans.
A fifth-round pick in 2017, Peterman has a ghastly 3-to-12 touchdown pass-to-interception ratio and has completed 52.6% of his passes (at just 4.2 yards per throw). The 27-year-old passer has nevertheless stuck around as a backup arm. He appeared two Raiders games, the second of which coming earlier this season.
Broncos Place Noah Fant On Reserve/COVID-19 List
Beset by injuries to their pass-catching group all season, the Broncos appear likely to be without their starting tight end this week. They placed Noah Fant on the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday.
If vaccinated, Fant will need to test negative twice two days apart to return to the team. If unvaccinated, the third-year target faces steeper return protocols. Going into the season, the Broncos were one of the leaders on the vaccine front. Fant indeed tested positive, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
This stands to deal another blow to a Broncos team that has seen three of its aerial weapons miss extensive time this season. Jerry Jeudy missed six games because of a high ankle sprain, and K.J. Hamler has missed the past five due to his ACL tear. Fant’s backup, Albert Okwuegbunam, missed three games with a hamstring injury.
A first-round pick in 2019, Fant is a bit off his 2020 pace (62 receptions, 673 yards). But the Iowa product has still been a key part of Denver’s passing attack. Fant has 37 catches for 320 yards and three touchdowns this season. Okuegbunam would be in line to take over as the team’s top tight end against the Cowboys should Fant miss the game. Okwuegbunam returned to action in Week 8.
Rams To Cut WR DeSean Jackson
The Rams will release DeSean Jackson this week (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). This was the expected move after the Rams were unable to find a trade for the veteran wide receiver. As a post-deadline drop, Jackson will be subject to the waiver wire for 24 hours after his release. If no one claims him, he’ll be free to sign with any club.
While Jackson drew interest on the market, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore (on Twitter), teams were anticipating a release and did not want to surrender any assets. That is somewhat interesting given Jackson’s post-deadline departure, which will not allow him to control his destination — at least, not initially. 
Jackson joined the Rams on a one-year, $4.5MM deal this year with the expectation that he’d be a focal point of the offense. Instead, he’s only been on the field for about one-third of L.A.’s snaps. That didn’t sit well with Jackson, who requested a change of scenery earlier this month.
If DJax goes unclaimed, the Rams will be left with the balance of Jackson’s $2.75MM base salary on the books. Either way, they’ll be without one of the game’s most prolific deep threats. Even at the age of 34, Jackson has torched the opposition for 27.6 yards per catch. Granted, the sample size is limited with just eight receptions, but there’s no question that DJax still has top-end speed.
Jackson has yet to top 25 snaps in any of his games this year. His playtime only dwindled from there, with four snaps against the Lions in Week 7. After that, the Rams held him out of action against the Texans to avoid a trade-scuttling injury.
For his career, Jackson has 620 catches for 10,877 yards and 57 touchdowns. Now, after parting ways with his fourth pro team, he’ll look to add to those totals elsewhere.
Broncos To Place CB Bryce Callahan On IR
Bryce Callahan‘s latest injury will cause him to miss time. The acclaimed slot cornerback is headed to IR, according to Mike Klis of 9News (on Twitter). Callahan suffered a knee injury in the Broncos’ win over Washington.
This is familiar territory for the veteran corner. Since signing with the Broncos in 2019, Callahan has missed 22 games. He was down for the entire 2019 season — due to a lingering foot injury he suffered while with the Bears in 2018 — and missed Denver’s final five games in 2020. Foot trouble shelved Callahan again last season.
[RELATED: Broncos Trade Kary Vincent Jr. To Eagles]
After letting All-Decade slot corner Chris Harris walk in 2020, the Broncos have used Callahan as their primary slot defender. Denver revamped its cornerback corps this offseason, adding Ronald Darby, Kyle Fuller and Patrick Surtain II. Callahan has teamed with Surtain and Darby in recent weeks, with Fuller benched. Callahan and Fuller drew trade interest leading up to the season, but the Broncos shut down those talks.
Denver shopped Fuller ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, but the veteran cover man remains with the team. Fuller might be needed more with Callahan down for at least three games. Denver also has 2020 third-round pick Michael Ojemudia, but he remains on IR after suffering a troublesome hamstring injury during preseason play. Callahan’s contract expires at season’s end.
Broncos Trade Kary Vincent Jr. To Eagles
The Eagles have acquired rookie cornerback Kary Vincent Jr. from the Broncos in exchange for a 2022 sixth-round pick (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). The deal became official just before 3pm CT/4pm ET, beating the deadline by a matter of minutes.
[RELATED: No Trade For Eagles’ Fletcher Cox]
The Broncos were getting calls on multiple defensive backs this week, including Kareem Jackson and Kyle Fuller. Instead, those veterans will be staying put while Vincent heads to Philly.
Vincent, a seventh-round pick of this year’s draft, played three seasons at LSU before opting out of the 2020 season. His best work came in 2019 — 48 tackles, four interceptions, and nine passes defensed. He’s yet to see the field as a pro, but he could have his first opportunity on Sunday when the Eagles host the Chargers.
Chiefs Trade Laurent Duvernay-Tardif To Jets
The Chiefs have agreed to trade guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif to the Jets, according to sources who spoke with NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo (Twitter link). In exchange, the Jets will send tight end Daniel Brown to Kansas City. 
It appears that Duvernay-Tardif personally signed off on the trade, since he’s one of ~10 NFL players to have a no-trade clause. The Chiefs received — and rebuffed — calls on LDT throughout the summer, but they’ve took Gang Green up on their pre-deadline offer.
LDT was a full-time starter for the Chiefs from 2015-19, but opted out of the 2020 campaign in order to treat COVID-19 patients. The licensed medical professional has yet to play this year, due to a broken bone in his hand.
This is just the latest move in the Chiefs’ offensive line revamp. After the Bucs clobbered KC’s front five in the Super Bowl, the Chiefs swung a blockbuster deal for tackle Orlando Brown Jr. and used a second-round choice to take center Creed Humphrey. LDT was set to be a part of that lineup, but his hand injury pushed sixth-round pick Trey Smith into a first-string role instead. Although he hasn’t played since the ’19 season, LDT offers serious experience with 60 games, including 57 starts.
Brown, 29, first entered the league as an undrafted free agent out of James Madison. After stints with the Ravens and Bears, he joined up with the Jets in 2019. He’s appeared in just six games for the Jets, with the bulk of that action coming in ’19. Known more for his blocking, Brown has just 44 catches for 420 yards and two touchdowns across six-and-a-half seasons.
Titans Add D’Onta Foreman To Practice Squad
The Titans have signed running back D’Onta Foreman to the practice squad, per a club announcement. Foreman will be joined by Adrian Peterson, who agreed to terms on Monday. 
[RELATED: Titans Sign Adrian Peterson]
Peterson is set for a quick promotion — he’ll likely be brought up to the varsity squad later this week. Foreman, meanwhile, will provide additional insurance at running back in the wake of Derrick Henry‘s injury. Henry’s foot trouble is expected to shelve him for a minimum of six weeks, but a late-season return remains possible.
The Titans have also released linebacker Avery Williamson from the 53-man roster while dropping running back Mekhi Sargent and defensive linemen Eli Ankou and Caraun Reid from the 16-man practice squad. That’ll give them enough room to accommodate the veteran tailbacks, though at least one of those players figures to return once Peterson is elevated to the active roster.
Packers Release LB Jaylon Smith
The Packers are cutting linebacker Jaylon Smith, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Smith joined the Packers just a few weeks ago, but he’s back on the market and free to sign with any club. 
Smith, 26, earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2019 with 154 tackles, good for the second-highest total in the NFL. He was still productive for the Cowboys this year too — the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus pegged him as a top-15 linebacker through four weeks. Still, the Cowboys opted to cut him and eat the remainder of his $7.2MM base salary.
Smith’s Packers tenure will end after just two games and a single tackle with Green Bay. The Panthers and the Washington Football Team were both said to be in on him in early October, so either one of those clubs could circle back. Smith may also make sense for the Steelers, who have just traded Melvin Ingram to the Chiefs for a Day 3 draft pick. The Steelers are reportedly eyeing defensive line help, but it couldn’t hurt to beef up elsewhere in the front seven.
The Packers, sans Smith, will ride a seven-game winning streak into this week’s game against the Chiefs.