HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Dolphins To Sign Adrian Hubbard

September 6th, 2015 at 10:55am CST by Rory Parks

Tyler Dunne of The Buffalo News tweets that the Dolphins have agreed to sign former Packers linebacker Adrian Hubbard. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (via Twitter) confirms the news, though it is unclear whether Hubbard will be signed to the team’s practice squad or if he will be added to the 53-man roster. The former Alabama product was signed as an undrafted free agent by Green Bay last season and spent the year on the Packers’ practice squad. He was released earlier this week.

Hubbard played in 36 games during his collegiate career with the Crimson Tide, starting 26 of them and racking up 10 sacks in Alabama’s 3-4 defense. After the Packers bypassed potential edge rushers like Randy Gregory and Owa Odighizuwa in this year’s draft, Hubbard had a real chance to make the club as part of the team’s pass rushing rotation. Although he failed to make the cut, the 6-6 physical specimen still has upside that he will now try to realize with the Dolphins.

 

NFC Notes: Bucs, Byrd, Brooks

September 6th, 2015 at 10:07am CST by Rory Parks

After taking a peek at a few AFC notes this morning, let’s have a look at some NFC links in advance of today’s flurry of waiver claims and practice squad news:

  • The Buccaneers are first in line to claim players waived by the 31 other teams in the league, and Greg Auman of The Tampa Bay Times says one position where the Bucs will likely add a player is defensive end. After placing Larry English on injured reserve and cutting backups Lawrence Sidbury and rookie Ryan Delaire, Tampa Bay currently has only three defensive ends on its roster.
  • We learned yesterday that Saints safety Jairus Byrd had avoided the regular season PUP list, meaning that he is eligible to play immediately when he is medically ready. As Katherine Terrell of The Times-Picayune observes, it is still unclear as to exactly when Byrd will be back, but the fact that he is on the 53-man roster indicates that he could be ready to go soon.
  • Ahmad Brooks will remain on the 49ers‘ 53-man roster as the league continues to monitor his criminal case, per Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle. Head coach Jim Tomsula said he expects Brooks to play next week’s season opener, and the NFL issued a statement stating that it was not appropriate to place Brooks on the Commissioner’s Exempt List at this time.
  • John Keim of ESPN.com takes a closer look at some of the fallout from the Robert Griffin III drama in Washington. Keim notes that not everyone in the organization believes in Kirk Cousins, and Griffin’s biggest fan is team owner Dan Snyder. If Cousins gives Snyder a reason to believe in him, then Griffin may be traded or released. But if Cousins struggles, and there is plenty of reason to believe he will, the possible tension between ownership and the rest of Washington’s brass may be further illuminated.
  • Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com looks at five Washington starting jobs that could change hands this season, including quarterback (obviously), left guard, and strong safety.
  • If he goes unclaimed on waivers, the Eagles will definitely sign RB Raheem Mostert to their practice squad, according to Les Bowen of The Philadelphia Daily News (Twitter link).
  • The Lions, meanwhile, plan to sign Andrew Peacock to their practice squad today, according to a tweet from Dave Birkett of The Detroit Free Press. Peacock cleared waivers last week.

AFC Notes: D. Carter, Browns, Sanders

September 6th, 2015 at 8:41am CST by Rory Parks

Although today may not spark the same frenzy of activity and excitement that have come to signify the first day of free agency, it is still a critical date on the NFL calendar. The claiming period for players waived during final roster cuts ends at 11:00am central time today. After that, teams may establish a practice squad of 10 players. After 3:00pm central time, teams are permitted to place one player on the injured reserve list with the designation to return.

As we wait for all of today’s transactions to trickle (or flood) in, let’s take a quick swing around the AFC:

  • Duron Carter, who set the CFL afire in 2014 and became the subject of many late winter rumors, was waived by the Colts during final roster cuts yesterday. However, Stephen Holder of The Indianapolis Star says the team would like to sign the promising wideout to its practice squad if he clears waivers. But given the intense amount of interest in Carter just a few months ago, the chances that he goes unclaimed seem fairly slim.
  • Although Browns head coach Mike Pettine said his team won’t make a great number of moves today, Nate Ulrich of The Akron Beacon Journal says one position Cleveland will certainly be looking to bolster is the offensive line. The Browns have only six offensive lineman on their 53-man roster at the moment.
  • Emmanuel Sanders will serve as the Broncos‘ primary punt returner this season, writes Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post. Head coach Gary Kubiak wants to get his explosive wideout, who had one punt return for 11 yards last season, as many touches as possible. Sanders returned 16 punts for a 10.9-yard average from 2010-12 as a member of the Steelers.
  • Texans linebacker Jadeveon Clowney will be ready for next week’s season owner, per Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle. Head coach Bill O’Brien, though, would not comment as to whether Clowney would start or how many snaps he would see.

East Notes: Wayne, Brown, Tebow

September 5th, 2015 at 10:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Bill Belichick and Reggie Wayne agreed to mutually part company when the Patriots officially released the wide receiver they employed for not even two weeks, according to Ryan Hannable of WEEI.com.

Another reason for Wayne’s abrupt departure amid the Patriots’ injury struggles at the position could stem from the wideout’s lack of enjoyment in the Pats’ environment, per team radio analyst, Scott Zolak (on Twitter).

A source told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk the the Patriots like to bring in veterans and let them learn the system to a degree, so even in the event they are cut, they could potentially fill a need later in the season if help is needed. Florio offers that Wayne might not be willing to follow in this path.

Two months shy of 37, Wayne’s beginning to sound like he’s on the way out, with a source telling Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link) the potential Hall of Fame wideout is willing to return but only in the right situation. But then again, not many veterans this far into their careers like to join up with losing franchises, so Wayne not jumping at just any chance to play makes sense.

Here are some other notes from the Eastern divisions as cut day closes.

  • Chip Kelly told Tim Tebow to hone his craft in Canada when the third-year Eagles coach cut the polarizing quarterback today, reports Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter). Tebow has previously rebuffed such opportunities, but Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com notes (on Twitter) the Toronto Argonauts hold Tebow’s CFL rights, have spoken with him before and happen to be on a bye week presently.
  • The Bills may not be done reshuffling their backfield. They’ve had discussions of trading Bryce Brown, Albert Breer of NFL.com tweets. Buffalo GM Doug Whaley surrendered a fourth-round pick for Brown last season. The backup to the recently relocated Fred Jackson and the less-recently relocated C.J. Spiller last season, Brown, 24, didn’t receive many opportunities in his debut Bills slate. Now a two-time LeSean McCoy understudy, Brown appears to have fallen out of favor in Buffalo. He still sits behind Anthony Dixon and potentially fifth-rounder Karlos Williams. Dixon accrued 105 carries to Brown’s 36 last season despite Brown’s 5.1 yards per tote eclipsing Dixon’s tally by a full yard.

Davis, Jones Among Rams’ Final Cuts

September 5th, 2015 at 10:01pm CST by Sam Robinson

Thought to have the upper hand in the Rams’ center competition, Barrett Jones was one of St. Louis’ roster cuts as it trimmed to 53 players (according to Myles Simmons of the team’s website).

Tim Barnes and Demetrius Rhaney ended up sticking on the roster due to having better positional versatility than Jones, an Alabama product who the Rams took in the fourth round in 2013, per ESPN.com’s Nick Waggoner.

An undrafted free agent in 2011, Barnes is listed as the Rams’ starting snapper.

The Rams also waived Austin Davis, who started eight games for the team last season in Sam Bradford‘s absence. Davis threw for over 2,000 yards and completed 63.4% of his passes in his first game sample.

Here are the rest of the Rams’ cuts:

  • Alex Bayer, TE
  • Emory Blake, WR
  • Malcolm Brown, RB
  • Christian Bryant, S
  • Justice Cunningham, TE
  • Marcus Fortson, DT
  • Montell Garner, CB
  • Jacob Hagen, S
  • Martin Ifedi, DE
  • Zach Laskey, FB
  • Matt Longacre, DE
  • Marshall McFadden, LB
  • Brandon McGee, CB
  • Trovon Reed, CB
  • Daniel Rodriguez, WR
  • Louis Trinca-Pasat, DT
  • Brandon Washington, OL

Rams Release Jo-Lonn Dunbar

September 5th, 2015 at 9:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

One year into a two-year agreement, the Rams parted ways with Jo-Lonn Dunbar as they cut their roster to 53 on Saturday.

Akeem Ayers‘ March signing made Dunbar more expendable, writes Nick Waggoner of ESPN.com.

Dunbar signed a two-year, $3.5MM deal with the Rams prior to the 2014 season that saw him reprise a similar role from 2013. The Rams initially signed Dunbar from the Saints, where he played from 2008-11 after going undrafted.

Coming off the field on most passing downs while James Laurinaitis and Alec Ogletree played three-down roles, Dunbar was the Rams’ worst-rated starting linebacker, per Pro Football Focus, in each of his last two seasons in St. Louis.

In 2012, however, PFF tabbed Dunbar as the Rams’ best linebacker. Dunbar played both strong- and weak-side positions with the Rams, who will go with special-teamer Daren Bates, seventh-rounder Bryce Hager and undrafted rookie Cameron Lynch behind their top trio this season.

 

Bears Set 53-Man Roster

September 5th, 2015 at 9:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

John Fox‘s first roster with the Bears will include three quarterbacks, but the third isn’t the one he oversaw in Denver. The Bears sent Zac Dysert back to waivers after picking up the ex-Broncos quarterback last week.

Instead, David Fales will back up Jay Cutler and Jimmy Clausen, as the Bears made their cuts to slash their roster to 53 players, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.

Also among the cuts was third-year defensive end/linebacker David Bass, who played in 20 games the past two seasons. A former seventh-round pick of the Raiders in 2013 with a pick-six to his credit as a rookie in Chicago, Bass has interested suitors and will land somewhere soon, per Bleacher Report’s Dan Pompei (on Twitter).

Here are the rest of Chicago’s final cuts:

  • Jonathan Anderson, ILB
  • Qumain Black, WR
  • Conor Boffeli, OL
  • A.J. Cruz, WR (Waived/injured)
  • Jacoby Glenn, CB
  • Anthony Jefferson, DB (Injured reserve)
  • Rashad Lawrence, WR
  • Tyler Moore, OL
  • Michael Ola, OL
  • Ify Umodu, WR
  • Gannon Sinclair, TE
  • Matthew Wells, ILB
  • Terry Williams, DT
  • Kyle Woestmann, OLB

49ers Acquire Nick Easton From Ravens

September 5th, 2015 at 8:51pm CST by Ben Levine

8:51pm: Easton’s Ravens-to-49ers exchange is for a conditional seventh-round pick, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports (via Twitter).

11:51am: According to Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, Baltimore received a conditional draft pick from the Niners for Easton (Twitter link via Zrebiec).

11:20am: The Ravens have traded center Nick Easton to the 49ers, the player’s agent told Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (via Twitter). ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan was the first to report (via Twitter) that the two teams were working on a deal involving the undrafted free agent.

The Harvard product had a solid preseason, Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun notes (via Twitter). ProFootballFocus.com advanced metrics (subscription required) show that Easton played 155 snaps this preseason. His overall grade was the highest on the entire team, and it also led all centers.

Zrebiec adds that the odds were stacked against the rookie considering the team’s depth, as John Urschel and Ryan Jensen can both play center.

Rams Cut Isaiah Battle

September 5th, 2015 at 8:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

8:31pm: Should a team claim Battle on waivers, it would have to pick up Battle’s $80K in bonus guarantees, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports.

7:11pm: After using a fifth-round pick in this summer’s supplemental draft on Isaiah Battle, the Rams determined the Clemson product was not ready for action, waiving the rookie tackle, according to NFL.com’s Gil Brandt (on Twitter).

The Rams lost a 2016 fifth-round draft pick as a result of Battle’s selection and now have nothing to show for it. Battle was the only player picked in this year’s supplemental draft.

Battle couldn’t usurp either Andrew Donnal or Darrell Williams on the second team of the Rams’ depth chart. St. Louis kept 10 offensive linemen, per Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter link).

The 22-year-old must pass through waivers.

 

 

Raiders’ Roster Takes Shape

September 5th, 2015 at 8:24pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite surpassing Trent Richardson on the depth chart, Michael Dyer couldn’t complete his ascent into regular-season action with the Raiders.

Instead, Oakland rejiggered its depth chart by bringing Taiwan Jones, a former running back, back to his original spot from corner, where he played previously. Jones now occupies the third-string spot behind Latavius Murray and Roy Helu, as the Raiders announced the waiving of Dyer and others in order to dice their roster down to 53.

In addition to severing ties with Christian Ponder, Oakland released Kris Durham and defensive lineman C.J. Wilson.

Here are the rest of Oakland’s cut-day casualties:

  • George Atkinson III, RB
  • Mitch Bell, G
  • Spencer Hadley, LB
  • Shelby Harris, DE
  • Dan Kistler, T
  • Brian Leonhardt, TE
  • Ricky Lumpkin, DT
  • Tevin McDonald, CB
  • Anthony Morris, T (Waived/injured)
  • Leon Orr, DT
  • Brandian Ross, S (IR)
  • Josh Shirley, LB
  • Georgio Tavecchio, K
  • Max Valles, DE
  • Gary Wilkins, DE
  • Devon Wylie, WR
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