Troymaine Pope

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/2/21

Here are Thursday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the day:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

  • Placed on IR: WR Aaron Parker

Cincinnati Bengals

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

  • Released from IR with injury settlement: LB Asmar Bial

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Released from IR with injury settlement: DT Chris Okoye, OL Tyree St. Louis

Los Angeles Rams

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

  • Released from IR with injury settlement: RB Brian Hill

Washington Football Team

  • Released from IR with injury settlement: OT Rick Leonard

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

Cincinnati Bengals

Minnesota Vikings

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Bucs Sign 4 After Weekend Tryout

The Buccaneers have signed cornerback Antonio Hamilton, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). Greg Auman of The Athletic adds (via Twitter) that Tampa has also agreed to terms with tight end Jerell Adams, running back Troymaine Pope, and safety Curtis Riley. That quartet was part of a five-man group invited for tryouts during this weekend’s rookie minicamp and did enough to earn a contract.

Hamilton, who signed with the Raiders as a UDFA out of South Carolina State in 2016, played a full 16-game slate with the Giants in 2019, and he also enjoyed perfect attendance in 2020 as a member of the Chiefs. Most of his work has come on special teams, as he has played a total of 335 defensive snaps in his five-year career. If he makes the Bucs’ roster, it will probably be due to his ST prowess, but he could get some action as a backup corner.

Adams was a sixth-round selection of the Giants back in 2016, but he has played in exactly one game over the past three seasons. In that game, a 2018 appearance with the Texans, Adams played only five special teams snaps. Over his first two years in New York, the South Carolina product tallied 24 catches for 214 yards and a score.

Tampa’s tight end depth chart is pretty full, and Adams will try to convince the club to roster four TEs again. He will join Tanner Hudson and Codey McElroy in that endeavor.

Riley, 28, worked as a full-time starter for the 2018 Giants, lining up with their first-stringers in all 16 games. He intercepted four passes that season. He then landed in Oakland, playing as a Raiders backup/spot starter in 2019. Last season, Riley saw limited action with the Vikings and Cardinals.

The Bucs will be Pope’s sixth NFL team. A Jacksonville State alum, Pope has been in the league since arriving as a 2016 UDFA. Stints with the Seahawks, Jets, Colts, and Texans preceded work as a Chargers backup from 2019-20. Injuries in Los Angeles’ backfield summoned Pope to action on offense briefly at the midseason point last year, but he mostly played special teams with the Bolts.

Tampa Bay’s backfield is also crowded. Leonard Fournette was re-signed this offseason, and Giovani Bernard joined up with the Super Bowl champs. Ronald Jones and Ke’Shawn Vaughn, both on their rookie contracts, will also return.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/19/20

Here are Saturday’s practice squad decisions:

Chicago Bears

  • Activated from practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Manti Te’o

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

Tennessee Titans

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/17/20

Here are Thursday’s minor moves:

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

New York Giants

  • Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Devonta Freeman; Freeman remains on IR

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Washington Football Team

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/2/20

Today’s minor transactions from around the NFL:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Los Angeles Chargers

New Orleans Saints

Tennessee Titans

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/31/20

Here is the league’s avalanche of Halloween minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Chargers Activate Melvin Ingram, Justin Jones From IR

As they attempt to snap a four-game losing skid, the Chargers will have some reinforcements back. They activated defensive linemen Melvin Ingram and Justin Jones off IR on Saturday.

Ingram has been out since Week 2 with a knee injury. This year’s tweaked IR policy allows teams to shelve players for just three weeks, and the longtime Bolts defensive end will miss the minimum number of contests before returning to team with Joey Bosa on the edge.

This stretch of games will be key for Ingram, who lobbied for a new contract but failed to secure it during a brief training camp hold-in. The Bolts extended Ingram in 2017, and his contract expires at season’s end. Bosa signed an NFL-high (for defenders) $27MM-per-year deal in August, topping Ingram’s $16MM-AAV deal as the top Chargers contract.

It will be difficult for the Bolts to give Ingram a major raise ahead of his age-32 season in 2021, though Justin Herbert‘s rookie contract will make that easier than it would have been with Philip Rivers‘ deal on L.A.’s books. But Ingram showing good form in his team’s final 11 games would strengthen his bargaining position in free agency.

A third-year defensive tackle, Jones will also miss the minimum number of games. He went down with a shoulder injury. The Chargers have used the 2018 third-round pick as a starting defensive tackle over the past two seasons.

The Chargers also promoted running back Troymaine Pope from their practice squad and waived wide receiver Jason Moore and defensive end Jessie Lemonier.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/19/20

Recent practice squad notes from around the league:

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

  • Signed: WR Hakeem Butler
  • Released: S T.J. Green, T Aaron Monteiro

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed: OL Brandon Walton

Of course, the big news here surrounds Callaway. Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports (via Twitter) that the wideout has earned an additional four-game suspension for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy. This means he’ll be eligible to return to the field in Week 8.

Callaway will continue to sit on the Dolphins’ practice squad suspended list, per Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com. The 23-year-old will still be allowed to attend meetings, but he can’t practice with the squad until his suspension ends.

The talented wideout out of Florida fell to the Browns in the fourth round of the 2018 draft thanks in part to a 2016 four-game suspension from former head coach Jim McElwain. Callaway immediately contributed in Cleveland, hauling in 43 receptions for 586 and five scores during his rookie campaign. However, the receiver was suspended for the first four games of the 2019 season after violating the substance-abuse policy, and he underwhelmed in the four games following his return (eight receptions, 89 yards).

He was slapped with a 10-game ban late last year, and the suspension was supposed to last through the third week of the 2020 season. Thanks to the latest suspension, Callaway won’t see the field through the first seven weeks of the season.

Chargers Work Out RB Bilal Powell

Longtime Jets running back Bilal Powell made a trip to Los Angeles on Tuesday. The Chargers worked out the veteran, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.

The Bolts also auditioned younger backs as well, with Tom Pelissero of NFL.com noting Jordan Scarlett and Brian Herrien took part in the Tuesday running back workout (Twitter link). Ex-Chargers running back Troymaine Pope also participated in the audition, per the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter).

Powell re-signed with the Jets in 2019, doing so after suffering a severe injury in 2018. The nine-year veteran has resided in free agency since March. The Chargers, however, have a potential opening at this position. Justin Jackson is dealing with a quadriceps injury.

Chargers HC Anthony Lynn was the Jets’ running backs coach during Powell’s first five years with the team. Powell, 31, mostly served as a complementary back in New York but played with the Jets from 2011-19. He submitted three seasons with 900-plus yards from scrimmage from 2013-17. Powell played in 13 Jets games last season, totaling 262 scrimmage yards.

The Panthers drafted Scarlett in the 2019 fifth round out of Florida, while Herrien went to training camp with the Browns this year. A veteran UDFA who made his NFL debut in 2016, Pope played 14 games with the Bolts last year.

The Chargers have Austin Ekeler entrenched as their starter, and fourth-round rookie Josh Kelly rushed for 60 yards and a touchdown against the Bengals in Week 1.