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Month: September 2024

Cowboys Won’t Sign RBs “At This Time”

July 22nd, 2017 at 10:14am CST by Ben Levine

The Cowboys worked out a pair of veteran running backs yesterday, but it doesn’t sound like a signing is imminent. According to ESPN.com’s Todd Archer (via Twitter), the Cowboys are not planning on signing either Ronnie Hillman or Denard Robinson “at this time.”

Ronnie Hillman (vertical)The workouts could have purely been exploratory, especially when you consider that the Cowboys are rostering an impressive trio of running backs in Ezekiel Elliott, Alfred Morris, and Darren McFadden. For what it’s worth, the team did carry four running backs last season, with Lance Dunbar (who has since signed with the Rams) collecting 31 rushing yards on nine carries while also catching 16 passes for 122 yards. The Cowboys are also currently rostering undrafted running back Jahad Thomas and fullback Keith Smith.

Of course, the Cowboys could also be looking to cover their tracks in case Elliott is suspended. We learned yesterday that the NFL’s investigation was wrapping up, although we probably won’t learn of any discipline until next week. The organization could simply be delaying a running back signing until they get more clarity on their 22-year-old star.

Neither Robinson or Hillman were particularly productive last season. Hillman appeared in eight games with the Chargers and Vikings, compiling only 131 yards on 41 carries. Robinson finished the season with 144 yards on the same amount of attempts. The two running backs have plenty of pass-catching experience, with the duo having combined for four 20-plus reception seasons.

Latest On Deone Bucannon’s Recovery

July 22nd, 2017 at 9:23am CST by Ben Levine

More than two months following his ankle surgery, the Cardinals have placed linebacker Deone Bucannon on the physically unable to perform list, according to AZCardinals.com’s Darren Urban (via Twitter). The team has also placed linebacker Jarvis Jones on the active non-football-injury list.

Deone Bucannon (vertical)The Bucannon news isn’t particularly surprising, although the team was reportedly hoping that the linebacker would avoid the PUP and be healthy by early September.

“Deone is close,” coach Bruce Arians told AZCardinals.com. “He’s getting there. I think he’s a little bit ahead of schedule. We have our fingers crossed. The first game is his due date, so to speak. Hopefully we’ll have him ready to play.”

“I want to start the season,” Bucannon added. “I’m not here to rush anything and I’m not going to put a timetable on it, but at the same time, I want to get out there as quickly as I possibly can. But get out there at 100 percent so I can do the best for the team and not be a liability.”

Following two years at strong safety, the versatile defender spent most of his time at linebacker last season, compiling 89 tackles and one fumble recovery in 13 games. Following his solid campaign, the organization picked up the former first rounder’s fifth-year option, keeping him in Arizona through the 2018 season.

Meanwhile, Jones joined the organization on a one-year deal earlier this offseason. After having lost both Alex Okafor and Calais Campbell this offseason, Jones was supposed to provide some depth, especially at pass rusher. Of course, the 2013 first-round pick only has six sacks through four NFL seasons, but he did set several career-highs in 2016, including tackles (43) and forced fumbles (two).

Roster Resource currently has Chandler Jones, Karlos Dansby, Markus Golden, and Bucannon listed at the team’s starting linebackers. If the team is eyeing a true inside linebacker to replace Bucannon in the lineup, they could opt for either Zaviar Gooden or Scooby Wright. Otherwise, they could consider the assortment of outside linebackers on the roster, including first-rounder Haason Reddick. Assuming Jones returns relatively soon, he’ll presumably be competing with Kareem Martin, Gabe Martin, and Alani Fua for second-team reps.

Extra Points: Saints, Fins, Cowboys, Ravens

July 21st, 2017 at 8:02pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Saints have too many linebackers and not enough spots, which could lead to the ouster of either Manti Te’o or Stephone Anthony, writes Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. Te’o hasn’t even played a down yet for the Saints, who signed him in May, but his two-year, $5MM deal includes just $600K in guarantees. With that in mind, the former Charger will be easy to jettison if he doesn’t impress Saints coaches in the coming weeks. Anthony’s contract, on the other hand, isn’t so team friendly. Cutting him wouldn’t save the Saints any money this year, yet it would leave them with $2.1MM-plus in dead money. While the 24-year-old was a first-round pick of the Saints not long ago, in 2015, he’s coming off a subpar second season that ended after 10 games on account of a knee injury.

More from around the NFL:

  • As of late June, the expectation was that Dolphins center Mike Pouncey would be ready for Week 1. That remains the case, it seems, as Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports that Pouncey hasn’t had any setbacks during his recovery from the hip injury that kept him out of 11 games last year. As a result, both Pouncey and the Dolphins are “confident” a forthcoming hip exam will yield positive results. Still, for precautionary reasons, the Dolphins will limit Pouncey in practice throughout the year in hopes of having him for all 16 regular-season games (and potential playoff contests), relays Salguero.
  • Cowboys defensive end David Irving was a no-show for the team’s first day of camp on Friday, per Todd Archer of ESPN.com. It’s unclear why Irving was absent, but he’s now subject to a $40K fine for missing reporting day. Irving’s already set to serve a four-game suspension for a violation of the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
  • With training camp approaching, Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun projects the Ravens’ season-opening roster. Veterans whose roster spots are in danger include tight end Maxx Williams, fullback Lorenzo Taliaferro, defensive ends Brent Urban and Za’Darius Smith, and cornerback Brandon Boykin, writes Zrebiec. Urban is the only member of the group who appeared in every Ravens game last season, when he picked up two sacks on 150 snaps. Smith, a participant in over 47 percent of Baltimore’s defensive snaps and a starter in 13 appearances, played the biggest role of the five in 2016. But Smith only made a marginal impact statistically (20 tackles, sack, forced fumble), and his performance ranked a less-than-stellar 92nd among Pro Football Focus’ 106 qualified edge defenders.
  • Bears center Hroniss Grasu missed all of last season after tearing his ACL in August, and now it’s up in the air whether he’ll play another down for the team, suggests JJ Stankevitz of CSN Chicago. Grasu’s old starting job now belongs to Cody Whitehair, who more than held his own as a rookie after shifting from guard to center in the wake of Grasu’s injury. So, if the Bears only keep eight offensive lineman this year, it may lead to Grasu’s demise. The 25-year-old was a third-round pick in 2015, when he started in all of his appearances, though a neck injury limited him to eight games that season.

AFC Notes: Texans, Patriots, Jets

July 21st, 2017 at 7:05pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

After Texans running back D’Onta Foreman‘s arrest on charges of marijuana and unlawful gun possession last Sunday, his attorney, Chip Lewis, claimed that the rookie didn’t “use or possess” the drug. To help clear himself of wrongdoing, Foreman was voluntarily tested for marijuana, and the results came back negative, according to Lewis (via Mark Berman of FOX 26). “It makes it clear that he was telling the truth,” Lewis said of the outcome. “He was not using marijuana.” Foreman has a July 31 court date, though there’s reportedly a strong likelihood of a postponement because the Texans will be at training camp in West Virginia then.

  • Patriots running back Dion Lewis may have to fight for a roster spot this summer, Mike Giardi of CSNNE.com points out, but colleague Tom Curran says it would be a mistake for the team to cut him if he’s healthy (video link). Fellow back Brandon Bolden should be in greater jeopardy, as he offers little offensively, opines Curran. Lewis has provided solid production as both a runner and pass catcher when on the field during his two-year New England stint, having averaged 4.6 yards per carry on 113 attempts and totaled 53 receptions, but he hasn’t appeared much. A torn ACL in 2015 and the subsequent recovery process kept Lewis out of action for nine games in each of the previous two regular seasons. Releasing Lewis would save the Pats all but $200K of his $1.49MM cap hit, and they’d still have a capable group of backs with Mike Gillislee, James White and Rex Burkhead leading the way.
  • Having moved on from a cavalcade of veterans in recent months, it may look as though the Jets are tanking, but it’s just a full-scale rebuild, contends Ralph Vacchiano of SNY. Tanking is “almost impossible” to pull off in the NFL, argues Vacchiano, who writes that a top 10 to 15 selection in next year’s draft may be the best-case scenario for the club. Picking that late could mean the Jets found an answer at quarterback in Christian Hackenberg, a second-rounder in 2016 who didn’t take the field as a rookie, and saw a slew of other young players emerge as legitimate building blocks. It’s more likely, though, that they’ll end up with a top five pick, potentially putting them in position to find a franchise QB, observes Vacchiano.
  • More on the Jets, whose deal with first-round pick Jamal Adams contains offsets, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB (on Twitter).

Zach Links contributed to this post.

NFC Notes: Panthers, Norman, Dez, Trubisky

July 21st, 2017 at 5:24pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Dave Gettleman‘s ouster as the Panthers general manager stands as this week’s most shocking NFL story, and Joe Person and Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer detail some of the reasons behind his firing. Gettleman’s “brusque management style” and his reshaping of Carolina’s roster after its 15-1, NFC-winning campaign in 2015 contributed to his demise, with his decision to rescind cornerback Josh Norman‘s franchise tag in 2016 helping to decide his fate. Letting Norman loose on the free agent market meant allowing a No. 1-caliber corner to walk away without the club receiving compensation, and it irked some of the team’s players.

A year later, the departure of ex-assistant general manager Brandon Beane also weakened Gettleman’s grip on the GM job. Beane took over as Buffalo’s GM in May, which cost Gettleman the good cop to his bad cop. The loss of Beane negatively affected Gettleman’s work relationships, according to Person and Fowler, as the former “acted as a go-between among the front office, coaching staff and locker room,” the reporters explain. Former Panthers fullback Mike Tolbert, who signed with the Bills after Gettleman released him in February, confirmed that Beane was a valuable figure in Carolina. “As players we all love Beane. We all love being around him,” said Tolbert. “He’s part of the reason we did what we did. I’m happy to have him in Buffalo now, I can tell you that much.”

More from the NFC:

  • Speaking of Norman, who’s now with the Redskins, he could end up as a cap casualty next offseason if he doesn’t make more of an impact this year, suggests Rich Tandler of CSN Mid-Atlantic. With 14 infractions, Norman led the league in penalties last year, Tandler points out. However, it seems he has otherwise lived up to Washington’s five-year, $75MM investment thus far. Norman picked off three passes and forced two fumbles last season – a slight drop-off from four and three, respectively, in 2015 – started all 16 games, easily led Redskins defenders in snaps (1,057) and ranked 24th among Pro Football Focus’ 109 qualified corners. Nevertheless, it’s worth mentioning that designating the soon-to-be 30-year-old Norman a post-June 1 cut in 2018 would save the Redskins a healthy $14MM and leave them with a manageable $3MM in dead money next season.
  • A lack of punctuality has been a problem for Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant throughout his career, and his issues with reporting to team functions on time have already cropped up this year. Bryant made it to training camp three hours late on Friday, relays Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, though the player informed Jane Slater of NFL Network that he has been dealing with sinus infections and headaches. He’s now working with the Cowboys’ training staff to alleviate his sinus troubles, adds Rapoport. Further, Bryant apologized to Cowboys coaches and “took full responsibility” for his tardiness, writes Slater, but it’s still likely the team will fine him, reports Clarence Hill Jr. of the Star-Telegram (Twitter links here).
  • Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky‘s rookie contract contains partial offsets, tweets Albert Breer of The MMQB. His deal is similar to the one Marcus Mariota signed with the Titans in 2015, when he, like Trubisky this year, entered the league as the second overall pick in his draft class. Mariota and the Titans agreed to make his base salaries (a total of $2.28MM) subject to offsets, but the vast majority of his $24.214MM pact is protected.
  • Cardinals running back Chris Johnson‘s one-year deal includes a $1MM base value, $200K in guarantees and a chance to earn more in incentives, per Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/21/17

July 21st, 2017 at 4:11pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Friday’s minor NFL transactions:

  • The Vikings have signed defensive tackle Jarrod Clements and waived defensive end Caleb Kidder. Clements, who goes by “Chunky,” went undrafted out of Illinois this year. He saw action in each of his four years there, racking up 26.5 tackles for loss and six sacks along the way. Pro Football Focus offered a tepid review of his game in a pre-draft scouting report. Kidder only spent three and a half months with the Vikings, who signed him May 1 as an undrafted free agent from Montana.
  • The Ravens have added cornerback Reggie Porter, an undrafted rookie from Utah, and waived/injured wide receiver Aaron Bailey. Porter signed with the Colts after the draft, but they cut him in early June. Bailey, also an undrafted rookie, signed with the Ravens out of Northern Iowa back in May.

Cowboys Work Out Ronnie Hillman

July 21st, 2017 at 1:51pm CST by Zachary Links

Denard Robinson isn’t the only veteran running back getting consideration from the Cowboys. The team also auditioned Ronnie Hillman on Thursday, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Ronnie Hillman (vertical)

[RELATED: Cowboys Work Out Denard Robinson]

It appears that the Cowboys are looking into reserve running backs on the cusp of training camp. While they arguably have the best trio of running backs in the NFL (Ezekiel Elliott, Darren McFadden, and Alfred Morris), the Cowboys are still looking at ways to bolster the unit.

Hillman, 26 in September, was a surprise cut by the Broncos before the 2016 season. Last year, he spent time with the Vikings and Chargers, but he didn’t do a whole lot with his 41 combined carries. Hillman’s 131 rushing yards left him with a career-low 3.2 yards per carry average and he had zero touchdowns for the first time in his five-year career.

Ravens To Sign WR Griff Whalen

July 21st, 2017 at 1:42pm CST by Zachary Links

The Ravens are signing veteran wide receiver Griff Whalen, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Whalen visited the Ravens and took a physical with the team earlier today. After that, it didn’t take long for a deal to come together. Griff Whalen (vertical)

[RELATED: Bills Meet With Ex-Ravens WR Anquan Boldin]

Terms of the deal are not yet known, but this is likely a one-year deal with little-to-no guarantees. Whalen will push to make the roster as a supporting wide receiver, vying with Chris Moore, Keenan Reynolds, Chris Matthews, Michael Campanaro, and others for just two or three potential spots.

Whalen’s experience in the return game could help his bid to make the 53-man roster.

 

Bills To Work Out Anquan Boldin

July 21st, 2017 at 1:32pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bills are set to audition wide receiver Anquan Boldin, according to ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano (on Twitter). The workout will take place on Monday with other players also involved. Anquan Boldin (vertical)

Boldin, 36, led the Lions with 22 red zone targets last season. He had 67 catches and a career-high eight touchdowns, though he averaged a career-worst 8.7 yards per grab (584 yards in total). The veteran is not a deep threat, but he could provide insurance in the event that Sammy Watkins is once again held back by injury.

As it stands, Watkins, rookie Zay Jones, and veteran Andre Holmes are the team’s top receivers. Although Buffalo improved in other areas, it’s possible that the Bills have left themselves a bit thin at WR. Adding Boldin could help to fix that.

It’s worth noting that Boldin has some history with Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor. Taylor was the Ravens’ backup quarterback while Boldin was in Baltimore.

Cowboys Work Out RB Denard Robinson

July 21st, 2017 at 12:47pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys worked out former Jaguars running back Denard Robinson on Thursday, Jane Slater of NFL.com tweets. Denard Robinson

Dallas is pretty well set at running back as star Ezekiel Elliott is supported by a pair of former 1,000-yard rushers in Alfred Morris and Darren McFadden. It’s possible that the Cowboys are looking at Robinson as someone who can compete for fourth RB spot (if they carry four on the final roster) along with undrafted rookie Jahad Thomas and RB/FB Rod Smith. The Cowboys enjoyed the luxury of having four talented backs on the roster last year, but they’re slightly thinner now that Lance Dunbar is with the Rams. Someone like Robinson could also fill a temporary role on the roster if Elliott is suspended for any length of time.

Robinson, 27 in September, posted the second-worst YPC (3.5) of his career in 2016 off of 41 attempts. In 2014, however, he had a productive year as he averaged 4.3 yards per carry.

The former Michigan star worked out for the Bears in May and the Jets in June, but left both auditions without signing.

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