2018 September - Pro Football Rumors

Lions Work Out CB David Amerson

September 10th, 2018 at 11:45am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Lions auditioned a host of free agents including cornerback David Amerson last week, according to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (Twitter links).

Amerson inked a one-year deal with the Chiefs after being cut by the Raiders, but he essentially played himself out of a roster spot on a club that needed all the help it could get in the secondary. The 26-year-old defensive back made 42 starts with Washington and Oakland from 2014-16, but injuries and ineffectiveness have limited his production since that time.

Detroit currently has five cornerbacks on its roster in Darius Slay, Nevin Lawson, Teez Tabor, Jamal Agnew, and Dee Virgin, while safety Quandre Diggs also moonlights as a slot corner. Amerson could give the Lions more depth in the back end, but he hasn’t historically contributed on special teams, a problem for a reserve player.

Here’s the full list of players Detroit worked out, per Balzer:

Cowboys Sign G Xavier Su’a-Filo

September 10th, 2018 at 11:24am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cowboys have agreed to sign free agent guard Xavier Su’a-Filo, according to his agents at Schwartz and Feinsod (Twitter link).

Su’a-Filo, 27, worked out for Dallas last week, so the Cowboys know what they’re getting in the former second-round pick. The UCLA product started 40 games for the Texans from 2015-17, but Houston made little effort to re-sign him this offseason. Su’a-Filo landed a one-year deal with the Titans in March, but didn’t survive final cutdowns.

The Cowboys are currently without starting center Travis Frederick as he deals with the effects of Guillain Barre syndrome, and while Su’a-Filo hasn’t played center in his NFL career, he will give Dallas more depth along the interior offensive line. Other reserve lineman on the Cowboys’ roster include Cameron Fleming, Kadeem Edwards, and Adam Redmond.

Texans OT Seantrel Henderson Done For Year

September 10th, 2018 at 11:11am CST by Dallas Robinson

Texans offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson will miss the remainder of the 2018 season after suffering a suffering a significant ankle injury, head coach Bill O’Brien told reporters, including Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Mike Garafolo of NFL.com reported Sunday that Henderson, who will undergo surgery on Tuesday, broke a bone in his ankle.

Houston was already fielding one of the NFL’s worst offensive lines, so the club could ill afford any depletions to its starting five. After Henderson went down on Sunday, the Texans moved left tackle Julien Davenport to the right side, and inserted rookie Martinas Rankins on Deshaun Watson‘s blindside. That’s likely the combination Houston will use from here on out, but the team could potentially reshuffle its line this week.

Henderson, 26, signed a one-year, $4MM deal with the Texans this spring that contains $500K guaranteed. A former seventh-round pick, Henderson had spent the entirety of his career with the Bills until 2018. After starting 26 games during his first two years in Buffalo, Henderson devolved into a backup in his last two seasons with the Bills.

Eagles To Work Out WR Breshad Perriman

September 10th, 2018 at 10:11am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Eagles are working out former Ravens wide receiver Breshad Perriman, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Perriman, the 26th overall selection in the 2015 draft, has never lived up to his draft billing, as injuries and ineffectiveness have prevented him from reaching his potential. After missing his entire rookie campaign, Perriman posted 33 receptions in 2016, but managed only 10 catches last year.

Philadelphia currently has six receivers on its roster, but Alshon Jeffery is expected to be sidelined for several more weeks. Nelson Agholor, Mike Wallace, and DeAndre Carter saw most of the work in the Eagles’ season opener, while Shelton Gibson and Markus Wheaton are also on the club’s roster.

Perriman certainly isn’t wanting for free agent interest, as he’s met with the Jets, Giants, Bills, and Vikings since getting cut by the Ravens.

49ers Hosting LBs Erik Walden, Hau’oli Kikaha

September 10th, 2018 at 10:04am CST by Dallas Robinson

Free agent linebackers Erik Walden and Hau’oli Kikaha is visiting the 49ers today, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links).

Walden, 33, signed a one-year deal with the Seahawks earlier this year, but didn’t make the final cut and was released from injured reserve last week. The veteran pass rusher spent the 2017 campaign with the Titans, appearing in all 16 games while managing four sacks and 36 tackles. Walden posted 11 sacks as recently as the 2016 season, but he’s struggled to find contracts in recent years despite that production.

Kikaha, meanwhile, was the 44th overall selection in the 2015 draft, but he’s been beset by injuries and ineffectiveness during his three-year tenure. After playing on 62% of the Saints’ snaps during his rookie campaign, Kikaha missed the 2016 season with a torn ACL (the third of his football career) and subsequently saw action on only 209 defensive snaps the following year. New Orleans shopped Kikaha ahead of the 2017 trade deadline, and waived him during final cutdowns.

Both Walden and Kikaha could conceivably play either outside linebacker or defensive end in the 49ers’ 4-3 scheme. At present, San Francisco is deploying former first-round picks Solomon Thomas and Arik Armstead as its starting edge rushers, with Cassius Marsh, Ronald Blair, and Julian Taylor in reserve.

Falcons Place Keanu Neal On IR

September 10th, 2018 at 9:39am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Falcons have placed safety Keanu Neal on injured reserve and signed defensive end Steven Means, the club announced today.

Neal suffered a torn ACL in Atlanta’s season opener on Thursday night and will subsequently miss the entire 2018 campaign. The former first-round pick had started 30 games over his first two NFL seasons, but he’ll now be replaced by 2017 draft pick Damontae Kazee. The Falcons could conceivably target a free agent like Eric Reid, or a trade candidate such as Earl Thomas, but there’s been no indication as of yet that Atlanta will head in that direction.

Means, who turns 28 years old this week, was a preseason star for the Eagles, as he posted three sacks in the club’s final exhibition game. His regular season track record is much more spotty, as he’s appeared in just 26 games since entering the league in 2013. Means, who has spent time with the Buccaneers and Ravens in addition to the Eagles, will boost an Atlanta edge rush that already includes Vic Beasley and Takkarist McKinley, among others.

Aaron Rodgers Expects To Play In Week 2

September 10th, 2018 at 9:21am CST by Dallas Robinson

Aaron Rodgers indicated after Sunday night’s comeback victory that he expects to be available for the Packers’ Week 2 contest against the Vikings, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Rodgers, of course, left last night’s game in the first half with a knee injury, but reappeared in the third quarter and led Green Bay to an improbable win.

Rodgers re-entered Sunday’s game with sporting an air cast typically associated with knee sprains, per Rapoport. He’ll undergo more testing over the next few days, and is expected to experience a bit of soreness as he recovers. However, the Packers boast one of the league’s most conservative medical staffs, says Rapoport, so the club likely wouldn’t have allowed Rodgers back on the field if any risk still existed.

Green Bay trailed 17-0 at halftime in its season opener, and fell behind 20-0 before a Mason Crosby third quarter field goal once again cut the lead to 17 points. Rodgers, amazingly, tossed three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, including a 75-yarder to Randall Cobb that sealed the win.

Rodgers, 34, agreed to a four-year extension late last month which made him the NFL’s highest-paid player at $33.5MM per year.

Latest On Earl Thomas, Seahawks

September 9th, 2018 at 9:47pm CST by Ben Levine

It sounds like Earl Thomas might actually be envisioning a future in Seattle. After previously requesting a new contract or a trade, the All-Pro safety told reporters that he’d like to stay in Seattle “if they want me.”

The 29-year-old also provided some insight into why he ultimately ended his hold out (hint: it was money).

“I talked to my agent,” Thomas said (via Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com). “We understood that I had a lot of money on the line. I just couldn’t throw it away. So basically I decided to come back. I’m glad I did.”

A free agent at the end of the season, it’s uncertain if Thomas will last the season in Seattle. The Seahawks are seemingly rebuilding, meaning it could make more sense to get a future asset for their aging defensive back. The Cowboys have continually been connected to the safety, although the Seahawks recently rejected an offer of a second-round pick.

A full-time component of the Seahawks’ secondary from 2010-17, and the Legion of Boom’s last remaining bastion, Thomas began the final season of his four-year, $40MM contract on the right foot. Despite missing the entire preseason, Thomas ended up playing 65 snaps today, compiling five tackles, two passes defended, and an interception.

“I felt good,” Thomas said. “I felt like my training with my brother and my team back home [in Texas] has been great, has been right on it. The only thing right now is my big toe hurts. My feet hurt. That’s about it.”

Delanie Walker Expected To Miss Rest Of Season

September 9th, 2018 at 9:01pm CST by Ben Levine

Delanie Walker was carted off the field during the Titans’ loss to the Dolphins today, and it sounds like the tight end is set to miss the season. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that Walker suffered a dislocated ankle and an “associated fracture.” The reporter says the player’s “season is almost certainly over.”

A season-ending injury would certainly be a tough blow for the Titans, who were set to depend on Walker’s offensive production. The 34-year-old had been named to three straight Pro Bowls, and he finished the 2017 campaign with 74 receptions for 807 yards and three scores. The tight end had hauled in four receptions for 52 yards before suffering the injury.

If Walker indeed misses the entire season, the Titans will likely turn to 2017 third-round Jonnu Smith as a starter. The Titans are also rostering Luke Stocker and Anthony Firkser.

Walker wasn’t the only Titans player to suffer an injury on Sunday. Quarterback Marcus Mariota briefly returned to the contest after suffering an injury in the third quarter, but he ended up sitting out the remainder of the game. The injury was being described as an elbow/shoulder injury, and coach Mike Vrabel said the signal-caller would be reevaluated tomorrow.

“I just couldn’t feel my fingers, couldn’t feel my hand,” Mariota told TitansOnline.com. “It was one of those things where I couldn’t grip the ball and all that stuff.”

Meanwhile, left tackle Taylor Lewan was forced out of the game with a concussion after suffering a massive hit from defensive lineman Andre Branch. The hit sparked a brief fight as Lewan was lying motionless on the ground.

Doug Baldwin Suffers Sprained MCL

September 9th, 2018 at 7:40pm CST by Ben Levine

There’s some relatively good news for Seahawks fans following the team’s season-opening loss to the Broncos today. Following the contest, head coach Pete Carroll told reporters that wideout Doug Baldwin has a sprained right MCL (via ESPN’s Brady Henderson on Twitter). The injury didn’t occur to the same knee that forced Baldwin to miss a month of training camp.

While Carroll couldn’t give a definitive timeframe for Baldwin’s return, the “ProFootballDoc” over at the San Diego Union-Tribune doesn’t believe the injury is all that serious. Ultimately, the writer could envision the receiver missing up to a week, if anything.

While this is good news, it also means that Baldwin will now be playing through a pair of knee injuries. The 29-year-old returned to practice in late August, and he acknowledged that he’ll have to deal with pain in his left knee throughout the season in his left knee. This pain was attributed to “degenerative joint disease and chronic knee issues” (according to ProFootballDoc), and Baldwin didn’t outright deny that he was forced to go under the knife to deal with the injury.

Baldwin was only targeted once before exiting today’s game, but the Seahawks will surely be counting on him throughout the season. The 29-year-old finished last season with 75 receptions for 991 yards and eight touchdowns.