2016 September - Pro Football Rumors

Seahawks To Sign C.J. Spiller

September 28th, 2016 at 6:46pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Seahawks and free agent running back C.J. Spiller have agreed to terms, Rand Getlin of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Spiller will head west and join Christine Michael and Thomas Rawls in the Seahawks’ backfield.

It’s a one-year deal for Spiller, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). He previously signed a four-year contract with the Saints in March of 2015 but barely made it into Year 2 of that accord.

The Seahawks now have an additional weapon to help their banged-up backfield, which features an ailing Rawls and C.J. Prosise. This, of course, will continue a pipeline that’s resulted in the Seahawks adding former Bills ball-carriers. Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson each were listed above Spiller on respective Buffalo depth charts in the past and enjoyed varying degrees of success in the Pacific Northwest, with Lynch obviously redefining his career in Seattle. Jackson joined the Seahawks after his prime concluded and didn’t see extensive time last season.

The 29-year-old Spiller, though, should have much more left in the tank than Jackson. He did not prove to be a fit with the Saints but did twice surpass 1,100 yards from scrimmage with the Bills. His top season came back in 2012, when the former Clemson back scampered for 1,700+ yards from scrimmage.

With the Saints, Spiller’s stock plummeted. Multiple injuries cost him three games last season, one he concluded on IR after gaining just 351 yards from scrimmage. He signed a four-year, $18MM deal but the Saints opted to carry dead money rather than pay out that deal in full.

This could certainly crowd the Seahawks’ backfield when it returns to full strength. Michael rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns last week, and Rawls proved quite effective when healthy last season. Seattle drafted Prosise as a potential passing-down specialist in the third round.

To make room, the Seahawks waived running back Terrence Magee, as Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times tweets. The second-year player received three carries and gained 12 yards in his only in-game work this season.

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East Notes: Bush, Watkins, Jets, Dez

September 28th, 2016 at 5:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

Upcoming roster decisions involving Marcell Dareus and Seantrel Henderson could put Reggie Bush‘s status with the Bills in jeopardy, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com writes. Bush has three carries for minus-4 yards and did not play in the Bills’ 33-18 win over the Cardinals.

Buffalo handed the former No. 2 overall pick and Heisman Trophy winner a $375K signing bonus despite signing him late in the offseason but has given Mike Gillislee the backup job behind LeSean McCoy. Last week, fifth-round rookie Jonathan Williams saw action ahead of Bush as well.

Rex Ryan hinted that Bush had a role as a slot receiver set for last week but the team never got to it. The 31-year-old Bush also has not seen action on special teams to this point despite an extensive history as a punt returner.

Here’s more from the Eastern divisions.

Sammy Watkins has not sustained any further damage to his foot, structurally speaking, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com reports (video link). It will continue to be about pain tolerance for the Bills’ talented wide receiver, per Garafolo. Watkins suffered the foot fracture in May and hasn’t been effective this season, by his standards. The former top-five pick has six receptions for 63 yards through two games.
Jets No. 4 wide receiver Jalin Marshall suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder during Sunday’s loss to the Chiefs, Todd Bowles said (via Connor Hughes of NJ.com). The 21-year-old made the Jets as a UDFA out of Ohio State. Hughes notes the team is not ready to put Marshall on IR yet but adds the Jets could be looking to add a wide receiver soon since Eric Decker is also battling an injured shoulder. Brandon Marshall practiced fully today but was questionable for Week 3 after suffering a knee injury against the Bills.
Rich Cimini of ESPN.com was surprised that the Jets claimed Austin Seferian-Jenkins off waivers. Late last week, the tight end was arrested and charged with DUI, leading to being waived by Tampa Bay. The Jets have been taking a conservative approach toward players with character issues under the new regime, but the ASJ acquisition is a clear departure from that mindset. On the other hand, none of his $677K salary is guaranteed for this season, making this a low-risk move from a fiscal standpoint.
While Watkins’ issues may well stem from pain management, Dez Bryant isn’t as fortunate at this juncture. The Cowboys‘ top wideout has a hairline fracture in his knee, but instead of a two-to-three-week timetable previously reported, Bryant’s injury could keep him out more than a month, per Dr. David Chao (via Sirius XM Radio, on Twitter). Bryant missed seven games last season due to a broken foot.

Zach Links contributed to this report.

Dolphins Waive Justin Hunter

September 28th, 2016 at 5:17pm CST by Sam Robinson

Justin Hunter‘s tenure with the Dolphins didn’t end up lasting long. The team waived the fourth-year wideout and will likely make a subsequent practice squad promotion, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets.

A former Titans second-round pick, Hunter was a healthy scratch for the Dolphins last week and resided as the No. 6 wideout in Miami. The Fins did not use its Nos. 4-5 wideouts, rookies Leonte Carroo and Jakeem Grant, on offense, as Jackson notes (on Twitter), making Hunter’s place on the team somewhat superfluous.

Miami claimed Hunter after Tennessee waived him coming out of the preseason. He’s played in one game thus far and does not have a reception this season. The 6-foot-4 target could coax another team to claim him, or add him as a free agent, as his athleticism has always tantalized. But he’s now been waived twice this month. Hunter has 68 career catches for 1,116 yards and eight touchdowns.

Hunter took a pay cut earlier this month as well, with the Dolphins slashing his $1.1MM salary to $675K. He was coming off a season that ended with a fractured ankle and, of course, encountered a legal dust-up last summer for which he was found not guilty.

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Jets Release Dee Milliner From IR

September 28th, 2016 at 4:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

Dee Milliner‘s tenure with the Jets ended Wednesday after the team released the former first-round cornerback from its IR list, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Milliner is now a free agent.

Just before the season, the Jets waived Milliner with an injury designation, and he resided on the team’s IR in the meantime. He spent three seasons on the team’s active roster, making this the shortest tenure by a Jets first-round pick with the team (of those who have seen appropriate service time) since Vernon Gholston‘s three-year stay from 2008-10. Of course, a previous Jets regime brought in Milliner, making his status with the team less stable.

Like Gholston, Milliner was a top-10 pick, going off the 2013 board at No. 9 to the Jets. He did not stand out and saw Todd Bowles sign three corners — Darrelle Revis, Antonio Cromartie, and Buster Skrine — in 2015, relegating Milliner to deep-backup status. He played in just five games last season after an Achilles injury limited the former Alabama corner to three in 2014.

New York declined to pick up Milliner’s fifth-year option in May, but he’ll now get an earlier look at unrestricted free agency. The team attempted to trade him this summer but could not find a taker.

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Coughlin Takes Meeting With Bills’ Owners?

September 28th, 2016 at 4:26pm CST by Sam Robinson

Tom Coughlin hasn’t made any secret of his desire to return to coaching, and the two-time Super Bowl-winning leader may have met with Bills ownership over the weekend. However, multiple parties are denying this summit occurred.

The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle’s Sal Maiorana reports a meeting between Coughlin and Terry and Kim Pegula occurred (Twitter link), but he did not detail whether it was a consulting session or a job interview. Both the NFL — for which Coughlin currently works in the operations department — and his agent, Sandy Montag, deny this took place, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports. The Bills did not comment on whether or not this meeting occurred due to a team policy.

Prior to this season, the 70-year-old Coughlin had coached for 20 of the past 21 seasons with the Jaguars and Giants. He’s working alongside Troy Vincent as a senior advisor participating in all game-related committees while having responsibilities relating to the draft and Pro Bowl.

Before their upset victory over the Cardinals, the Bills were dealing with turmoil due partially to the early dismissal of OC Greg Roman and subsequent fallout that may have put Rex Ryan and Doug Whaley on notice. Buffalo’s home triumph may have stalled that speculation, but Ryan’s job status likely isn’t going to fade into the background this season, leading to potential links between the Bills and possible Ryan successors.

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Rams Claim Marqui Christian Off Waivers

September 28th, 2016 at 3:20pm CST by Zachary Links

The Rams have claimed Marqui Christian off waivers from the Cardinals, according to a source who spoke with Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Christian was waived by Arizona on Tuesday.

Christian, a safety out of Midwestern State, was a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft. The youngster impressed coaches with his aggressive play this offseason, but he ultimately found himself bumped from a roster that had plenty of depth in the secondary. The Cardinals were reportedly hoping to re-sign Christian to their practice squad before Los Angeles swooped in.

The Rams will now have Christian in reserve behind starters Mo Alexander and T.J. McDonald. Cody Davis and Isaiah Johnson are also on the depth chart at safety.

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Dez Bryant Has Hairline Fracture In Knee

September 28th, 2016 at 2:30pm CST by Zachary Links

2:30pm: There’s a chance Bryant could play Sunday but he might also miss the next two or three games, David Moore of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter).

1:57pm: Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant has a hairline fracture in his knee, coach Jason Garrett told reporters on a conference call (including Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group on Twitter). Garrett referred to the injury as a “day by day” or “week by week thing,” meaning that we won’t have an exact timetable on the wide receiver’s recovery. Still, the Cowboys are hopeful that he can suit up against the Niners on Sunday.

Bryant is no stranger to the injury bug. Last year, Bryant had his season derailed by foot and ankle injuries. Those issues limited him to the worst numbers of his career — in nine games, he caught just 31 balls for 401 yards and three touchdowns, all career lows. In late December, Bryant was placed on season-ending IR. Fortunately, this injury does not appear to be anywhere near as severe. If team doctors give Bryant the green light, he may try to play through the pain this weekend.

Bryant, 28 in November, has caught 11 passes for 150 yards and one touchdown through three games this year.

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Saints To Sign OT Khalif Barnes

September 28th, 2016 at 2:23pm CST by Zachary Links

The Saints are expected to sign tackle Khalif Barnes today, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Barnes had multiple auditions with the Saints this month and he finally has landed a deal with New Orleans.

The tackle hooked on with New Orleans towards the end of the preseason but he did not make the final 53-man cut in early September. Coach Sean Payton indicated that Barnes didn’t make the team initially because he wasn’t in football shape. Now, Barnes is presumably ready for live action.

Barnes played in 14 games for the Raiders last year, but he only started one contest. In his previous ten NFL seasons, Barnes started in more than 80% of his games.

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Cowboys Place Charles Tapper On IR

September 28th, 2016 at 1:45pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys announced that they have placed defensive end Charles Tapper on injured reserve with a back injury. The move will make room for the addition of offensive tackle Emmett Cleary.

Tapper was a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft and Dallas hoped that he would make an immediate impact while second-round Jaylon Smith would be sidelined for 2016. Unfortunately, Tapper was diagnosed with Pars Defect, an issue that had gone undetected since birth. He hoped that he could play through the pain in his lumbar spine with an injection, but it apparently wasn’t enough. Tapper will now be out for at least the next eight weeks and possibly for the entire season.

Tapper appeared in 39 games with Oklahoma in three seasons and piled up 13.5 sacks and 24 tackles for loss.

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Cardinals To Sign Joplo Bartu

September 28th, 2016 at 10:38am CST by Zachary Links

The Cardinals have agreed to sign linebacker Joplo Bartu, according to a source who spoke with Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). It’s not immediately clear if it’s a 53-man deal or a practice squad contract, though Bartu already has plenty of in-game experience and it would stand to reason that he will be joining the varsity team.

Bartu, who turns 26 on Oct. 3, auditioned for the Cardinals on Tuesday along with fellow linebackers Nate Irving and James-Michael Johnson. Last year, Bartu split his time between the Falcons and the Jaguars. This offseason, Bartu was let go by Jacksonville before the 75-man deadline.

The bulk of Bartu’s NFL experience came with the Falcons in 2013 and 2014 where he appeared in every regular season game and amassed 167 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and two fumble recoveries. Last year, he totaled just eleven tackles. He’s ostensibly hoping to get the kind of burn that he had in the early part of his career.

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