Jets Cut Bless Austin
The Jets have released cornerback Blessuan Austin (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo). Meanwhile, they’ve claimed linebacker Quincy Williams off waivers from the Jaguars, putting him in the same locker room as his brother, Quinnen Williams.
The Jets shopped Austin in recent days but, apparently, they couldn’t find a taker. Austin appeared in eleven games with ten starts last year, registering 63 stops, four passes defensed, one forced fumble, and three tackles for loss along the way. The Rutgers product is still only 25 years of age, but the Jets are moving to even younger options — rookies Brandin Echols, Isaiah Dunn, Jason Pinnock, and Michael Carter III remain on the CB depth chart along with Bryce Hall and Javelin Guidry.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, the Jets dropped quarterbacks Josh Johnson and James Morgan. That leaves Mike White as the team’s QB2 behind rookie Zach Wilson.
Bears To Sign WR Breshad Perriman
Not long after his Lions release, Breshad Perriman landed another deal with an NFC North squad. The Bears agreed to terms with the veteran wide receiver on a one-year deal, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
This will mark Perriman’s sixth team, though his Lions stint did not produce a regular-season cameo. Detroit cut Perriman ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, doing so despite guaranteeing him $2MM earlier this year. The former first-round pick will now try to carve out a role in Chicago.
Although Perriman did not impress the Lions, with a training camp injury impeding his Motor City progress, he has surpassed 500 receiving yards in each of the past two years — doing so with the Buccaneers and Jets.
The former Ravens draftee will join a Bears team looking for targets alongside Allen Robinson and Darnell Mooney. Excepting Mooney, Chicago’s receiver room is filled with veteran presences. The team signed both Marquise Goodwin and Damiere Byrd this year, and both made the Bears’ 53-man roster.
Additionally, the Bears will bring back cornerback Artie Burns, Schefter adds (via Twitter). They created one roster spot by moving Danny Trevathan to IR, and Burns will rejoin the team’s active roster. The Bears initially signed Burns in 2020, but the former Steelers first-round pick suffered a torn ACL that led to an IR placement last summer. They re-signed him in March only to cut him Tuesday. Burns is now back with the team.
Cowboys Claim QB Will Grier
The Cowboys have claimed quarterback Will Grier off waivers (Twitter link via Field Yates of ESPN.com). Grier missed the cut in Carolina, but he’s now found a spot on Dallas’ 53-man roster.
The Cowboys now have three QBs on the roster with Dak Prescott, Cooper Rush, and Grier. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Rush and Grier will stick throughout the year, but Rush will at least stay on board while Grier learns the playbook.
Grier isn’t the ex-Panthers QB that some Cowboys fans were hoping for, but he offers plenty of upside in his own right. The Panthers used a third-round choice on him in 2019 — lots of other clubs had their eyes on the West Virginia product too. To date, Grier has two games (both starts) to his credit, but they were pretty lackluster. Those rookie outings saw four interceptions, zero TDs, and a 53.8% completion rate.
Ravens To Sign LB Josh Bynes To Practice Squad
Shortly after the Panthers released Josh Bynes, the veteran linebacker reached an agreement with a familiar team. The Ravens are bringing Bynes back, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets.
Because Bynes is a vested veteran, he did not need to pass through waivers after his Panthers exit. Bynes entered the NFL 10 years ago as a Ravens UDFA and found his way back to Baltimore in 2019. The Ravens will return to this well ahead of Bynes’ age-32 season.
The Ravens kept four inside linebackers — starters Patrick Queen and Malik Harrison and backups Chris Board and Kristian Welch — so Bynes profiles as high-end insurance, at the very least. It would seem likely the veteran off-ball ‘backer will make his way onto Baltimore’s active roster again at some point.
Bynes spent last season with the Bengals, operating as a 16-game starter. He made 99 tackles during his one-season Cincinnati stay. The 2019 Ravens used Bynes as a seven-game starter, after he largely worked as a backup and occasional first-stringer during his initial Baltimore stint from 2011-14.
Lions Claim K Austin Seibert
The Lions have claimed kicker Austin Seibert from the Bengals, per the league’s official transactions wire. Meanwhile, they’ve also claimed wide receiver Khadarel Hodge from the Browns.
The Lions dropped Randy Bullock and Zane Gonzalez on Tuesday, leaving them with zero kickers at the end of the business day. Now, they’ve got Seibert, a 24 year-old (25 in November) leg with 21 career games to his credit.
Seibert enjoyed a solid 2019 with the Browns, banking 86.2% of his field goals including 9-of-12 from 40-49 yards out. The Browns dropped him after a bad showing in September, leading him to the Bengals. Seibert went 6-of-8 on FG tries in Cincinnati, but lost out on the kicking competition this year.
Panthers Claim G Michael Jordan
The Panthers did not let Michael Jordan get past them on the waiver wire. They submitted a claim and landed the former Bengals guard Wednesday.
Jordan started 19 games with the Bengals over the past two years, doing so after Cincinnati selected him in the 2019 fourth round. The Panthers will give the interior blocker another shot. Two years remain on MJ’s contract.
Pro Football Focus has not been especially impressed with Jordan through two seasons, though he did not fare as poorly in 2020 as the advanced metrics site viewed him as a rookie. Jordan graded just inside the top 60 among the 80-plus full-time guards PFF assessed last season.
An Ohio State product, Jordan will join a Panthers team that houses Pat Elflein, John Miller and recent sixth-round picks Dennis Daley and Deonte Brown at guard.
Texans Sign Jeff Driskel To Practice Squad
The Texans will sign quarterback Jeff Driskel to the practice squad, according to Aaron Wilson of Sports Talk 790 (Twitter link). Driskel missed the cut on Tuesday, but he’ll stick around to provide Houston with some much-needed insurance.
[RELATED: Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross ‘Really Wants’ Watson?]
Deshaun Watson‘s status remains murky – to say the least — with days to go before the start of the season. The Texans are reportedly willing to keep Watson on the team this year, effectively paying him to do nothing. Another team could alter those plans by meeting the Texans’ asking price, but that doesn’t seem likely at the moment.
The teams that remain interested in Watson are only willing to give up draft picks if they are conditional, based on Watson’s availability for the year. New GM Nick Caserio is not willing to take that gamble, since Watson could be sidelined by the league office at any time. Meanwhile, the Dolphins — a long-rumored suitor — are downplaying their interest.
In any event, the Texans aren’t banking on Watson and they need the safety net that Driskel provides. He’ll be on call to start the year while Tyrod Taylor and Davis Mills serve as the top QBs.
Jaguars Claim WR Tyron Johnson
The Jaguars are using their No. 1 waiver priority on a young wide receiver. Tyron Johnson will join the Jags’ 53-man roster via waiver claim, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
Johnson flashed as a Chargers rookie last season, but the Bolts included him on their list of Tuesday cuts. Johnson did not advance at all on the waiver wire and will head to the rebuilding Jaguars. This likely will not be the Jags’ lone waiver claim Wednesday.
Jacksonville cut ties with a host of wideouts Tuesday, including Phillip Dorsett, Laquon Treadwell and Devin Smith. In Johnson, Urban Meyer‘s team will have a younger talent joining the likes of D.J. Chark, Marvin Jones and Laviska Shenault.
During a season in which both Keenan Allen and Mike Williams dealt with injuries, Johnson contributed to Justin Herbert‘s rise. The Oklahoma State product averaged an impressive 19.9 yards per catch, hauling in 20 passes for 398 yards and three touchdowns.
Vikings’ Irv Smith Jr. Done For Year?
Bad news for the Vikings. Irv Smith‘s knee injury will likely shelve him for the entire season, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). 
Smith is looking at a 4-5 month timetable for recovery. Even in a best case scenario, that would effectively rule the tight end out for the regular season. A postseason return remains possible, in theory, but that’s a long way away. For now, Smith will have to focus on rehab while the Vikings plan to be without him for 2021.
Smith, 23, flashed serious potential last year while posting 30 catches for 365 yards and five touchdowns. The football world (and fantasy world) was awaiting a breakout year for Smith, who would have benefitted from all the attention paid to Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and the rest of Kirk Cousins‘ weapons.
Instead, the Vikings will lean more on Tyler Conklin, who is dealing with a hamstring injury. Brandon Dillon stands as the only other tight end on the roster after rookie Zach Davidson and Shane Zylstra were waived on Tuesday. It stands to reason that one of those two players will be re-signed to the 53-man roster once Smith is placed on injured reserve. Alternatively, the Vikings could scour the waiver wire for an out-of-house alternative.
Dolphins, Jakeem Grant Shorten Contract
Jakeem Grant survived the Dolphins’ final round of cuts after agreeing to a reworked deal. The receiver’s new contract isn’t just cheaper — it’s also shorter (via Adam H. Beasley of Pro Football Network). 
Grant was set to be under club control for two more seasons. Now, he’s got just one more year to go, so he’ll be a free agent in the spring of 2022. The revised pact leaves him with a one-year deal that could be worth up to $3MM via incentives.
Grant registered 36 receptions for 373 yards and one touchdown through 14 games last year. Then, a high-ankle sprain in December cut his season short. Before he was placed on IR, Grant stood as the league leader in punt return yards (330) and per-return average (11.4). He also added to his highlight reel with a punt return for a TD against the the Rams in November —a difference-maker in their 28-17 win.
Without the revision, it’s likely that Grant would have missed the cut. Instead, roster hopefuls Kai Locksley, Kirk Merritt, and Malcolm Perry got their pink slips. Grant will slot in as the ‘Fins WR 4/5, alongside Will Fuller, DeVante Parker, rookie first-rounder Jaylen Waddle, and veteran Albert Wilson.