HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Tim Jennings Meeting With Buccaneers

September 1st, 2015 at 9:43am CST by Luke Adams

Veteran cornerback Tim Jennings didn’t waste any time setting up his first free agent visit. According to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (via Twitter), Jennings is in Tampa today to meet with the Buccaneers, just two days after being released by the Bears.

The fact that Jennings is receiving some interest from the Bucs isn’t a real surprise, considering his connection to Lovie Smith. Smith, the current head coach in Tampa Bay, was coaching in Chicago when the team brought Jennings aboard in 2010, and oversaw the cornerback’s first Pro Bowl season in 2012.

A nine-year vet, Jennings signed with the Bears back in ’10 after spending the first four years of his career with the Colts. According to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required), Jennings posted a successful 2014 season, grading as the league’s No. 28 corner while playing more than 1,000 snaps. During his time in Chicago, Jennings, a Georgia alum, started all but six games, posting 16 interceptions during that span.

If Jennings were to sign with the Buccaneers, he’d be joining a group of cornerbacks that includes Alterraun Verner, Johnthan Banks, Mike Jenkins, and Sterling Moore.

Dolphins Release Brandon Fields

September 1st, 2015 at 9:21am CST by Luke Adams

After spending the last eight seasons acting as the Dolphins’ punter, Brandon Fields will be looking for a new NFL home this week. According to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (via Twitter), Fields has been released by the team, having lost the job to rookie Matt Darr.

Fields, the Dolphins’ second-longest-tenured player, earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2013, but wasn’t as effective for the Dolphins last season. Appearing in all 16 games for the team, the 31-year-old ranked 23rd out of 32 qualified NFL punters, according to the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

Back in March, Fields agreed to restructure his contract, reducing his 2015 base salary to $1.65MM. At the time, reports indicated that the veteran punter’s only hope of remaining with the team was to rework his deal, but it turns out that even that didn’t save his roster spot. By releasing Fields, the Dolphins will create some cap savings, but will still carry dead-money hits of $870K in 2015 and $770K in 2016.

According to Salguero (via Twitter), the Dolphins made the decision on their starting punter based on performance, not based on Fields’ higher cap figure.

Vikings Trim Roster To 75 Players

September 1st, 2015 at 9:10am CST by Rob DiRe

TUESDAY, 9:10am: The Vikings are now down to 75 players, having waived/injured quarterback Mike Kafka, according to the team (Twitter link). He’ll land on the team’s injured reserve list if he clears waivers.

MONDAY, 2:13pm: The Vikings have announced two more moves today, removing another two players from their active roster. According to a team release, Minnesota has waived/injured tackle Carter Bykowski, who will be out for the year with a pectoral injury, and placed cornerback Josh Robinson on the reserve/PUP list, meaning he’ll miss at least the first six weeks of the season.

SUNDAY, 6:30pm: The Vikings have moved closer to securing their 75-man roster, announcing that they’ve cut 11 players:

  • Joe Banyard, RB
  • Brandon Bostick, TE
  • Jalil Carter, CB
  • Justin Coleman, CB
  • DaVaris Daniels, WR
  • Stephen Goodin, OT
  • Josh Kaddu, LB
  • Jordan Leslie, WR
  • Caesar Rayford, DE
  • Chrishon Rose, DT
  • DeMarcus Van Dyke, CB

They currently have 78 men on the roster, and will need to cut an additional three players in time for the Tuesday deadline.

Browns Cut Ishmaa’ily Kitchen, Put Shaw On IR

September 1st, 2015 at 8:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Browns have announced several more roster moves today, but perhaps the most notable transaction of the bunch has yet to be confirmed by the team. According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com (via Twitter), the club has waived defensive lineman Ishmaa’ily Kitchen.

Kitchen, who turns 27 next month, earned 279 defensive snaps for the Browns in 2014, making 27 tackles. While his play in the middle was unspectacular, the Kent State product was solid enough in his three years in Cleveland that the team felt comfortable tendering him a one-year contract offer worth $1.542MM when he hit restricted free agency. However, that contract was non-guaranteed.

Here are the rest of the Browns roster moves, which the team officially announced in a press release:

Placed on injured reserve:

  • OL Michael Bowie
  • QB Connor Shaw

Placed on reserve/non-football injury list:

  • DB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu
  • TE Randall Telfer
  • RB Glenn Winston

The players who landed on IR won’t return for the Browns this year, while the NFI players will be eligible to practice and play starting after Week 6. The club’s announcement indicates that the roster is now down to 79 players, though that number will dip to 78 when Kitchen’s release becomes official. After that, Cleveland will have to make three more moves to get down to the 75-man roster limit.