HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

49ers Waive Kendall Hunter

September 17th, 2015 at 4:12pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The 49ers have reached an injury settlement with running back Kendall Hunter, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Hunter will become a free agent if he passes through waivers unclaimed.

Hunter, 27, hasn’t played since 2013. He missed all of 2014 with a torn ACL, but he returned to practice this summer and played in the 49ers’ last two preseason games. They subsequently placed him on injured reserve, however, and this injury settlement means he’ll be able to look for work elsewhere. He still could end up back with the 49ers, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com tweets, though they’ll have to wait at least six weeks to re-sign him (Twitter link).

Hunter has appeared in 43 games since the 49ers used a fourth-round pick on him in 2012, racking up 1,202 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on an impressive 4.6 yards per carry.

NFC West Notes: Rams, RGIII, Hayne

September 17th, 2015 at 3:51pm CST by Zachary Links

The Rams have been pitching a solo project in Los Angeles for quite some time, but recent reports have indicated that they might wind up sharing a stadium with the Chargers in the end. The Chargers, of course, have been teamed up with the Raiders on a stadium proposal, but is concern that the Raiders don’t have the capital to see it all the way through. While we wait to see how the rush to L.A. plays out, here’s more on the Rams and other items from the NFC West..

  • The Rams and Washington will always be tied together as a result of the RGIII trade, even though more than three years have passed since the swap. As the two teams get set to face each other this weekend, Peter Hailey of CSNMidAtlantic.com looked at the players that St. Louis drafted as a result of the deal. The Rams didn’t come away with any megastars – at least not yet – but they did land quality players such as linebacker Alec Ogletree and tackle Greg Robinson.
  • While serving as the head coach of the Rams, Steve Spagnuolo says that he was in awe of Julio Jones before the 2011 draft. He told others within the organization, “We have to find a way to get this guy,” as Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger tweets. Of course, that didn’t wind up happening, and Jones is now a superstar for the Falcons.
  • Despite fumbling away his first NFL punt return against the Vikings on Monday, former Australian Rugby League star Jarryd Hayne hasn’t lost his job on special teams, as Taylor Price of 49ers.com writes. “We put him out there for the next two punts,” the 49ers coach said. “He would have stayed out there all day.” The 49ers signed Hayne this past offseason to a deal with a partial guarantee, despite the fact that he had never before played American football.

East Notes: JPP, Giants, DeflateGate

September 17th, 2015 at 2:50pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a look at the latest out of the East Divisions..

Texans Claim Oday Aboushi, Trade Keshawn Martin To Pats

September 17th, 2015 at 2:18pm CST by Luke Adams

THURSDAY, 2:18pm: The Texans will receive a fifth-round pick from the Patriots and the Texans gave the Patriots a sixth-round choice, Mark Berman of FOX 26 tweets.

WEDNESDAY, 4:00pm: A day after he was cut by the Jets, offensive lineman Oday Aboushi has been claimed off waivers by the Texans, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The Texans had an open roster spot after placing tight end Ryan Griffin on IR-DTR, so Aboushi slides into that opening.

Aboushi, 24, was suspended for the first game of the 2015 season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, and when it came time to reinstate him this week, the Jets opted to simply waive him instead. A year ago, Aboushi started 10 games at left guard for New York and held his own — Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked the former fifth-round pick as the 43rd-best guard out of 78 qualified players, giving him an above-average grade as a run blocker.

In Houston, Aboushi reunites with Mike Devlin, who served as the Jets’ offensive line coach in 2013 and 2014. Devlin now holds the same position for the Texans, who could be without starting left tackle Duane Brown this Sunday.

As Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reported earlier today (via Twitter), the Texans are also promoting WR/KR Chandler Worthy from the practice squad. In order to accommodate Worthy, Houston has traded WR/KR Keshawn Martin to the Patriots, per John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter).

Martin, 25, acted as Houston’s primary kick and punt returner and caught 32 balls in his first two years with the Texans, but had just six receptions in 2014 and didn’t play in the team’s opener this year. It’s not clear yet what sort of compensation Houston got from New England for Martin, but I can’t imagine it was more than a late-round draft pick, perhaps a conditional one.

AFC East Notes: Geno Smith, Babin, Patriots

September 17th, 2015 at 1:51pm CST by Zachary Links

Its been more than a month since Geno Smith‘s season was derailed by a locker room punch and he’s still pretty mad about it.

“I’m extremely (angry),” said the Jets quarterback, according to Kimberley A. Martin of Newsday. “But I have to keep my temper down. I can’t exhibit that in the locker room, I can’t exhibit that on a daily basis. I just feel for my family more because they enjoy seeing me out there.”

As Smith is on the mend, it’s fair to wonder if he’ll have the starting job upon his return. Right now, the Jets appear to have found a suitable replacement after Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 179 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday’s 31-10 win over the Browns. Here’s more from the AFC East..

  • New Ravens linebacker Jason Babin is still perplexed by the Jets‘ decision to release him and he decided to take a couple shots at Gang Green, as Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com writes. “Obviously, it was a surprise,” Babin said. “I think the coach said they want to win. But then in hindsight … the general manager talked about building. Who knows what is exactly going on?” Babin, 35, notched two sacks and 27 quarterback hurries in 2014, which was his first season of a three-year, $8.275MM contract with the Jets. New York saved $1.5MM against the cap by releasing him. Babin, meanwhile, is expected to help Baltimore’s front seven, which is now without Terrell Suggs.
  • New acquisition Keshawn Martin will bring speed and return experience to the Patriots, things that New England needs, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes. Reiss senses that the Patriots probably feel a bit more comfortable with his experience as a returner than someone like rookie Chris Harper.
  • Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap (on Twitter) wonders if there’s any kind of market for Jets wide receiver Jeremy Kerley. In retrospect, Fitzgerald writes that Kerley’s deal just seems like a mistake. The wide receiver played just one snap in the team’s opener against the Browns.

Texans To Bench Hoyer, Start Mallett

September 17th, 2015 at 1:30pm CST by Zachary Links

THURSDAY, 1:30pm: The Texans officially announced that Mallett will be the team’s starting quarterback on Sunday against the Panthers.

WEDNESDAY, 1:34pm: Just one game into the 2015 season, the Texans are gearing up to make a change under center. This Sunday against the Panthers, the Texans are planning to start Ryan Mallett over free agent addition Brian Hoyer, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).

Both Hoyer and Mallett signed two-year contracts with the Texans this past March, with Mallett getting a $7MM deal from the team, while Hoyer received a $10.5MM pact. While Mallett had the advantage of having spent the 2014 season in Houston, Hoyer has the more extensive résumé as a starter, having started 17 career games, including 13 last season for the Browns. Mallett has just two career starts.

Hoyer, who had a 7-6 record last season being replaced by Johnny Manziel in Cleveland, signed a two-year contract with $4.75MM guaranteed. Despite far less in-game seasoning in two career starts (both coming last season), Mallett re-signed on a two-year, $7MM deal shortly after to create a strange scenario where a team signs both of its potential starting signal-callers in free agency. The 29-year-old Hoyer was set to be in the lower third of compensation for starting QBs while Mallett, 27, was to be one of the league’s best-compensated backups.

Despite neither completing passes at a rate higher than 55 percent last year, Hoyer and Mallett were two of the most coveted QBs in a barren veteran class. After Hoyer’s rough start to the 2015 season, the Texans are probably glad that they doubled up on competent signal callers.

 

NFC East Notes: Murray, Maxwell, JPP

September 17th, 2015 at 10:50am CST by Zachary Links

Now that the Cowboys and DeMarco Murray have gone their separate ways, Rainer Sabin of The Dallas Morning News isn’t sure if either side is better off. On Sunday, Dallas rushed for 80 yards, 12 fewer than its lowest total last season. The following night, Murray gained 20 yards from scrimmage in his debut with the Eagles. While many view both rushing performances as anomalies, Sabin seems concerned that it’ll be a pattern. Here’s more from the NFC East as the Cowboys gear up for an awkward interaction with their ex..

  • Some believe that the Cowboys let Murray go because they chalked his production up to the play of their offensive line more than the running back himself. Coach Jason Garrett says that the real reason for not matching the Eagles‘ offer was simply about money, as Ed Barkowitz of the Philadelphia Daily News writes. “We had a situation where we had a few different guys [whose contracts were up], who hit free agency at the same time,” Garrett said. “In a salary-cap era, unfortunately, you can’t keep everybody.”
  • Eagles cornerback Byron Maxwell hasn’t been living up to the fat contract he signed in free agency but he’s confident that he can “fix” the problems he had in Week 1, as Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I understand that’s what it’s going to be,” the $63MM corner said of the criticism he’s received. “They’re going to react like that. They’re going to love you when you do well and hate you when it goes the other way. That’s part of the business that we’re in. You’ve got to take one on the chin and keep moving. Keep going. You can’t let it bother you too much.”
  • Will Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul be the same player going forward after his fireworks accident? He sure seems to think so, based on a tweet he sent out Thursday morning. “I can’t think of the last time my index finger got me a sack ;),” JPP wrote.

Panthers To Sign Fernando Velasco

September 17th, 2015 at 9:32am CST by Zachary Links

9:32am: In a related move, the Panthers replaced offensive lineman Nate Chandler (knee) on IR, as Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer tweets.

8:29am: The Panthers will sign center Fernando Velasco, a source tells Rand Getlin of NFL.com (via Twitter). Velasco recently became a free agent when he was among the Titans’ final cuts before dropping down to a 53-man roster. The veteran will provide depth in Carolina as rookie Daryl Williams is sidelined for 2-to-4 weeks with a sprained knee.

Velasco came to the Panthers as a free agent prior to the 2014 season and while he’s listed as a center, he spent the bulk of 2014 as a guard, playing 407 overall offensive snaps. The 30-year-old wasn’t a core piece of Carolina’s offensive line, but he was a useful part-time player, appearing in multiple games at both right guard and left guard, and not allowing a quarterback sack all year.

In Tennessee, Velasco was expected to challenge for playing time at center, where Brian Schwenke was the favorite to start, but things didn’t work out that way. Velasco, who began his career with the Titans and started all 16 games at center in 2012, boasts 37 starts overall for his career. In 2013 with the Steelers he filled in for injured center Maurkice Pouncey and Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked him as the team’s fourth-best lineman.

Extra Points: Pats, Cofield, Raiders, Solomon

September 16th, 2015 at 9:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Another DeflateGate loose end was tied off earlier today, when the NFL announced that Patriots employees John Jastremski and Jim McNally have been reinstated from their suspensions. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links) notes, the NFL said the Pats “satisfied the league’s requirements” for the staffers’ returns, but Jastremski is prohibited from handling footballs and McNally is barred from handling equipment going forward.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • Defensive tackle Barry Cofield, viewed by many NFL people as the best defensive free agent available, will likely sign with a contending team in October when he recovers from hip surgery, says Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link). Cole cites the Colts and Packers as a couple teams that would interest Cofield and that may have a need on the defensive line.
  • The Raiders did not come close to signing safety Stevie Brown this week even though there’s a clear need at the position, Bill Williamson of ESPN.com writes.
  • Browns outside linebacker Scott Solomon will miss four to six weeks with an ankle injury suffered early in the season opener, a source told ESPN’s Adam Caplan. The Browns had high hopes for Solomon, who made his mark after being signed to the practice squad in November. Cleveland will likely add an outside linebacker to replenish its depth.
  • Eric Grubman, the NFL’s point man on Los Angeles, said this week that San Diego and St. Louis reps won’t get the opportunity to make presentations on their stadium plans at the league’s October owner meetings, according to Bernie Wilson of The Associated Press. Grubman suggested that another time and place would allow for a more in-depth presentation, since there’s already a “full agenda” for next month’s meetings.
  • As Howard Belzer of The SportsXchange tweets, many NFL team owners want to have serious discussions at those October meetings about Roger Goodell’s disciplinary power, which is one reason why there isn’t room for stadium presentations. Steelers president Art Rooney II indicated this week that “informal discussions” on that issue have already begun, per Mark Maske of the Washington Post.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Re-Introducing Pigskin Links

September 16th, 2015 at 8:36pm CST by Zachary Links

Here at Pro Football Rumors, we deliver up-to-the-minute news on NFL transactions and high-quality original analysis. Each week, we’ll also be featuring some of the best blog articles from around the web in our regular feature, Pigskin Links.

We’re looking for interesting reads on all things football from blogs of all sizes. While PFR is dedicated to player movement, Pigskin Links will be open to pieces on all areas of the game. If you would like to suggest your blog post (or someone else’s) for Pigskin Links, send Zach an email with the link and a brief synopsis at PigskinLinks@gmail.com.

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