Vikings Sign Ito Smith, Place Janarius Robinson On IR
Teams continue to make flurries of roster moves on Monday, and we’ve got another couple of notable ones to pass along. The Vikings announced that they’ve signed free agent running back Ito Smith and placed rookie defensive end Janarius Robinson on injured reserve.
Smith wasn’t out of a job too long, as he was just released by the Cardinals last week. He spent the first three seasons of his pro career with the Falcons, and was Atlanta’s lead back for stretches in both 2018 and 2020. As a rookie he got his most extensive run, carrying the ball 90 times for 315 yards and four touchdowns, adding 27 receptions for another 152 yards. This past season he rushed 63 times for 268 yards and one touchdown, with 17 catches for 75 yards.
Smith will now compete with Ameer Abdullah and Kene Nwangwu for spots in Minnesota’s backfield behind Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison. Since Robinson is being placed on IR before the cutdown to 53 players, that means he’ll have to miss the entire season.
It’s a disappointing end to his first campaign. The pass-rusher was just drafted by the Vikings in the fourth-round out of Florida State. Minnesota re-signed Everson Griffen earlier this morning, perhaps partially due to this injury.
Packers Cut Kamal Martin
As teams trim their rosters down to the required 80 players, the Packers have made a notable cut. Green Bay has waived linebacker Kamal Martin, a source told Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Martin was a fifth-round pick of the team just last year, and his release raised plenty of eyebrows. Numerous Packers beat writers were quick to express surprise that Martin wasn’t even able to make it to final cuts. The Minnesota product was running with the ones for a lot of last offseason, and he started six games for the Pack in 2020.
It is pretty rare for a guy to go from six-game starter to released well before final cuts in the span of one year, especially when there was no coaching change with the team. Martin had 24 tackles, three for a loss, and one sack in 10 games last year.
Normally an inside linebacker, the team was trying him out at outside linebacker earlier this training camp, which in hindsight would’ve been a sign he was battling for his roster spot.
Chiefs Cut Taco Charlton, Will Parks
The Chiefs have released defensive end Taco Charlton, defensive back Will Parks, and guard Bryan Witzmann, per a club announcement. They’ve also waived linebacker Riley Cole and quarterback Anthony Gordon, bringing them down to an 80-man roster in advance of tomorrow’s deadline. 
Despite entering the league as a seventh-round pick, Parks has seen considerable playing time as a pro. He spent most of his career with the Broncos before moving on to the Eagles in 2020. Injuries led to Parks’ release in December, bringing him back to the Broncos. Parks missed six games last year, but previous to that, he was only scratched for two. He’s been with the Chiefs since May — now, he’ll have to hook on elsewhere.
Charlton, a highly-touted first-round pick of the Cowboys, flamed out quickly in Dallas. After just two-plus years with the Cowboys, he moved on to the Dolphins and did his best work in 2019 — five sacks in ten games. He had a decent 2020 with the Chiefs too, up until he broke his leg in November. He finished out with two sacks, four quarterback hits, and a forced fumble for KC. However, the 26-year-old (27 in November) wasn’t able to make the cut.
Seahawks’ Ben Burr-Kirven Done For Year
Seahawks linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven has suffered a torn ACL (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). It’s a tough blow for the former fifth-rounder, who was in the midst of a solid camp. 
Burr-Kirven went down during the opening kickoff of the Seahawks’ 30-3 loss to the Broncos on Saturday night. His Monday morning MRI confirmed the team’s fears — a serious knee injury that will force him to spend 2021 rehabbing.
“Both those guys got hurt seriously,’’ said head coach Pete Carroll, referring to Burr-Kirven and receiver John Ursua. “And it breaks your heart. This is a rough game and sometimes it takes a toll. Those two kids are hurting, so we’ll see what happens with them. But it’s going to be a while.’’
Like Ursua, Burr-Kirven will be placed on injured reserve. The Seahawks may need to find outside help to replace the ‘backer — Cody Barton stands as the only other reserve ILB with experience. Otherwise, the Seahawks may need to rely on fullback Nick Bellore to work at his original position. Fortunately, there are some quality options still available, including old pal K.J. Wright.
Bears Place Austin Calitro On IR
The Bears have gained a roster spot while losing a veteran linebacker. Austin Calitro has been placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, per a club announcement. 
Calitro suffered the injury in Saturday’s preseason loss to the Bills. Before that, Calitro was pushing to make the 80-man cut and pursue one of the final LB spots on the roster.
Calitro spent last season with the Broncos before joining up with the Bears in May. The 27-year-old is no stranger to changing teams — he even spent his first pro season (2017) with four different clubs (Jets, 49ers, Seahawks, and Browns). The Seahawks gave him another chance in 2018 and he established himself as a legitimate NFL ‘backer. He appeared in all 16 games during that 2018 season (with five starts), compiling 45 tackles, 0.5 sacks, and three tackles for loss.
He got into 13 games with the Jaguars in 2019, finishing with 40 tackles and one sack. His 2020 with the Broncos was less eventful — 13 games and just three tackles while playing exclusively on special teams. It’s not clear whether his injury is a true season-ender, but Calitro will be sidelined for an extended period.
Vikings To Sign DE Everson Griffen
The Vikings are set to sign defensive end Everson Griffen (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
The deal hasn’t been finalized just yet, but Griffen will return to Minnesota barring any snags.
Griffen spent his entire career with the Vikings up until 2020. Splitting time between the Cowboys and Lions, Griffen finished out with six sacks in total. Meanwhile, no Vikings edge rusher finished with more than five. His ten-year run with the Vikes saw four Pro Bowl appearances and 74.5 total sacks.
Minnesota’s D-Line registered just 23 total sacks last year, putting them 28th in the league. Things are already looking up with Griffen back in the fold plus the return of Danielle Hunter. Meanwhile, the interior will be held down by veterans Michael Pierce, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Sheldon Richardson. All of those vets will lead the way as third- and fourth-round rookies Patrick Jones II (Pittsburgh) and Janarius Robinson (Florida State) provide support at DE.
With Griffen, Justin Houston, and Melvin Ingram off of the market, Olivier Vernon stands as the most accomplished DE in free agency.
Texans To Waive TE Kahale Warring
The Texans are giving up on Kahale Warring, a third-round pick from the 2019 draft. Houston is waiving the young tight end, Mark Berman of Fox 26 tweets.
Teams must trim their rosters from 85 to 80 players by 3pm CT Tuesday, and the Texans have made Warring one of their second-wave cuts. Two years remain on Warring’s rookie contract, which will only be relevant if another team claims him.
A San Diego State product who went off the 2019 draft board at No. 86 overall, Warring has struggled with injuries and has not played much during his time in Houston. The 6-foot-5 pass catcher has played in just seven games in two seasons. Warring missed all of the 2019 season due to injury and spent a chunk of the 2020 season on IR as well.
GM Nick Caserio‘s regime authorized numerous deals for midlevel veterans across the Texans’ depth chart, but the team is light on proven tight ends. The Texans cut previous starter Darren Fells earlier this year. The Texans used a fifth-round pick on former Miami tight end Brevin Jordan this year, though they still have former Bill O’Brien-era third-round pick Jordan Akins on their roster.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/22/21
Here are today’s minor moves. All teams must reduce their roster size to 80 players by 4pm ET on Tuesday, August 24.
Chicago Bears
- Signed: WR Isaiah Coulter
Cincinnati Bengals
- Cut: DE Freedom Akinmoladun, QB Eric Dungey, S Kavon Frazier, C Lamont Gaillard, TE Cheyenne O’Grady
Minnesota Vikings
- Cut: WR Warren Jackson, CB Dylan Mabin
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: TE Cary Angeline
- Placed on IR: TE Jason Croom
- Cut: Blake Countess
Seattle Seahawks
- Cut: TE Dominick Wood-Anderson
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Cut: OLB Quinton Bell, CB Nate Brooks, RB Troymaine Pope, WR T.J. Simmons, S Lawrence White
Bengals To Sign DE Noah Spence
The Bengals are signing free agent defensive end Noah Spence, as Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports (via Twitter). Cincinnati brought Spence in for a workout several days ago in the wake of injuries to DLs Khalid Kareem and Joseph Ossai, and as Pelissero notes in a separate tweet, Ossai is likely to miss the entire 2021 campaign. The third-round rookie sustained a meniscus injury that will require surgery.
The loss of Ossai will be an especially difficult pill for the Bengals to swallow. The club mustered a league-worst 17 sacks in 2020, and while the free agent addition of Trey Hendrickson was supposed to help offset Carl Lawson‘s defection to the Jets, Cincy was also relying on Ossai to play a significant role in its pass rush. The Texas product did not disappoint in his preseason debut against the Bucs last week, piling up five pressures and sacking Tom Brady in an absolutely dominant showing.
Unfortunately, Ossai suffered a wrist injury during that game, and as he was being examined for that ailment the following day, he also noted that he was feeling some knee pain. Further examination of the knee revealed the depth of the problem (Twitter link via Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic).
Spence, meanwhile, has not done much since a promising 5.5-sack performance in his rookie season with Tampa Bay in 2016. The former second-round pick did not make it to the final year of his rookie contract with the Bucs, as he was waived as part of final cutdowns in August 2019. He hooked on with Washington several weeks later, but after seven games with WFT yielded just one sack and three tackles, he was waived again.
The 27-year-old signed with the Saints later that year. He did not get into a game with New Orleans, but the club saw enough from him in practice to re-sign him to a one-year contract for 2020. Unfortunately, a torn ACL suffered in May of that year knocked him out for the season, and after he signed another one-year pact this March, Spence was unable to carve out a spot on the Saints’ roster. He was cut one week ago.
The Bengals hope that Spence can finally start to unlock some of his potential in the Queen City. They are going to need it.
Saints Place Tommylee Lewis On IR
To make room for kicker Aldrick Rosas and safety Jeff Heath, the Saints effectively moved on from a veteran today. The team announced that they’ve placed Tommylee Lewis on injured reserve.
[RELATED: Saints, S Jeff Heath Agree To Deal]
While the NFL recently made it easier for players to return from injury, that still doesn’t apply to players placed on the IR prior to the regular season. In order for a player to be “eligible to be designated for return” from IR/NFI, they need to be on the 53-man roster after final cuts (via NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero on Twitter). This means players who are placed on IR during preseason are effectively sidelined for the season. It’s uncertain what ailment Lewis is dealing with, but the 28-year-old could conceivably negotiate an injury settlement if he hopes to see the field in 2021.
Lewis has spent the majority of his NFL career in New Orleans, seeing time in 39 games. He made a name for himself as a key returner, collecting 45 punts for 404 yards and 27 kicks for 617 yards. He also got some run on offense, compiling 30 touches for 306 yards and two touchdowns.
The former undrafted free agent signed with the Panthers last August but was waived before the start of the regular season. He caught on once again with the Saints, and he proceeded to get into five games. He re-signed with the organization back in July.