HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Ravens To Keep Robert Griffin III

September 1st, 2018 at 3:00pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Ravens will keep quarterback Robert Griffin III on their initial 53-man roster, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Baltimore had reportedly been torn on keeping RG3, but he’ll now stick on the roster alongside starter Joe Flacco and first-round rookie Lamar Jackson. Griffin played well enough during the preseason that he forced the Ravens’ hand.

“He has played at a starting-caliber level in the games that he’s played, and he’s an experienced guy,” Harbaugh said, via Hensley. “I’d rather have him than not have him, for sure, but there are other factors that go into that and we’ll have to figure all that out. [GM] Ozzie [Newsome] ultimately will have to make that decision.”

Jerick McKinnon Suffers “Concerning” Leg Injury

September 1st, 2018 at 2:58pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Jerick McKinnon only recently returned to practice, and now could be facing another extended absence. The 49ers running back went down with a leg injury in practice today, and it’s reportedly “concerning” according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).

The injury “did not look good” a source told Matt Barrows of The Athletic (Twitter link). More details are reportedly coming later when coach Kyle Shanahan has a conference call later today. Until then it’s hard to speculate, but it sounds like McKinnon could miss some serious time.

If McKinnon does end up missing time, recent free agent signing Alfred Morris and Matt Breida will fill in. Shanahan specifically sought out McKinnon in free agency as a pass-catching back he thought would be great for his offense, and signed him to a massive contract.

McKinnon signed a four-year $30MM contract in March, but hasn’t been able to stay on the field since. He missed the entire preseason with a calf injury, and only returned to conditioning drills earlier this week. Any missed time would be a big blow to the 49ers’ new-look offense.

Eagles To Start Nick Foles In Week 1

September 1st, 2018 at 2:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

While Carson Wentz is close to returning, the Eagles will play it safe for the time being. Nick Foles will start for the defending Super Bowl champions in Week 1 against the Falcons, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

Wentz is on the verge of completing a “fantastic” rehab, in the Eagles’ eyes, after tearing an ACL and LCL late last year. The Eagles, however, are prioritizing Wentz’s long-term health over having him start before he’s 100 percent ready, Rapoport adds.

The starter’s been cleared for 11-on-11 sessions but interestingly has not been given the green light for contact work yet. So, Foles will start the season after delivering Philadelphia its first Super Bowl title. The Eagles redid Foles’ contract this offseason and turned down trade offers for their high-level backup.

While Foles did not perform well in the Eagles’ dress-rehearsal game in Cleveland, he still delivered a dominant postseason and will face the Falcons for the second time this year.

Steelers Cut QB Landry Jones, Others

September 1st, 2018 at 2:53pm CST by Zachary Links

The Steelers have reached the 53-man roster limit by cutting a number of players, including quarterback Landry Jones.

Jones, 29, hasn’t played much during his six-year NFL career, as he’s attempted just 169 passes in relief of Roethlisberger. In that span, Jones has been a middling option, completing 63.9% of his passes for 1,310 yards, eight touchdowns, and seven interceptions.

The Steelers also placed wide receiver Eli Rogers on the Reserve/PUP List, which will keep him off of the field for at least the first six weeks of the season.

Here’s the full rundown of the Steelers’ moves:

Released:

  • QB Landry Jones
  • S Nat Berhe

Waived:

In addition to those moves, the Steelers designated the following players waived/injured:

Colts To Acquire WR Marcus Johnson From Seahawks

September 1st, 2018 at 2:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

Marcus Johnson will head to another new team this year. A two-trade offseason will ensue for the wide receiver; the Colts agreed to acquire him from the Seahawks, Brady Henderson of ESPN.com tweets.

The Colts are sending tight end Darrell Daniels to Seattle, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. This will mark an interesting second-year UDFA-for-second-year UDFA exchange.

The Seahawks acquired Johnson from the Eagles in the Michael Bennett trade earlier this year. Now, the Colts will add Johnson to a thin wideout corps — one that lost promising rookie Deon Cain for the season.

Johnson collected a Super Bowl ring last year as a rookie, catching five passes for 45 yards last season. The 6-foot-1, 204-pound pass-catcher showed a nice rapport with Russell Wilson this preseason, per Henderson, but the Seahawks’ receiver contingent is slightly more crowded than the Colts’.

Daniels will join a Seahawks tight end corps that lost Jimmy Graham. Daniels played in 12 Colts contests last season and caught three passes.

 

Texans Finalize 53-Man Roster

September 1st, 2018 at 2:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

With cuts due this afternoon, the Texans made theirs official. This includes all-time punter great Shane Lechler, which surfaced on Friday.

The Texans also released Joe Webb, thinning out their quarterback room to just Deshaun Watson and Brandon Weeden.

Houston will begin its season without the services of backup running back D’Onta Foreman as well. Still recovering from his season-ending injury sustained in November of last year, Foreman will begin the season on the Texans’ Reserve/PUP list. He won’t be eligible to play until after Week 6.

As for the rest of Houston’s Saturday roster decisions, here’s who will not appear on the 53-man group to start the season:

Released:

Waived:

Waived with an injury designation:

Released with injury settlements

Placed on Reserve/Non-Football Illness list

Colts Cut John Simon

September 1st, 2018 at 2:26pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Colts have released veteran edge rusher John Simon, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

New defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus planned to play Simon at defensive end rather than middle or strongside linebacker. At 6’2″ and 260 pounds, that was perhaps too tall of an order for the veteran. Simon played well during the preseason after being listed as a potential roster cut during the summer, but Indy still decided to move on.

Simon signed a three-year, $14MM deal with the Colts just last year, but he had no guaranteed money remaining on his deal. The Colts will save $3.28MM against the cap by releasing Simon.

Raiders Cut DE Mario Edwards Jr.

September 1st, 2018 at 2:23pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Raiders have cut defensive end Mario Edwards Jr., according to Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area (Twitter link). The 2015 second round pick lasted just three years in Oakland. 

It was reported yesterday that the Raiders were shopping Edwards, but obviously found no takers. Edwards has battled injuries and never shown the pass-rushing prowess he did in college that made him such a high draft pick.

Edwards entered the league very young as a 21-year-old rookie and missed most of his second season with a hip injury. Edwards bounced back last year as he started in each of his 14 appearances, and he set a new career high with 3.5 sacks. Apparently, he never impressed new head coach Jon Gruden this offseason and the team has now cut ties.

Due to his draft status and his age, Edwards should get another shot relatively quickly. While it’s not the end of the road for the former 35th overall pick, he’ll definitely need to start producing soon. The former Florida State Seminole will likely go unclaimed on waivers, as he carries a $1.255MM salary for this season under his current contract.

Chiefs To Bring Back Ron Parker

September 1st, 2018 at 1:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Ron Parker is set to return to the Chiefs after a few months away from Kansas City. The recently released safety will re-sign with the Chiefs, Terez Paylor of Yahoo.com reports (on Twitter).

The Chiefs released Parker in March after he’d played three seasons of a five-year, $30MM deal. It’s likely Kansas City can get back its longtime Eric Berry sidekick for less than what he was supposed to make on his previous Chiefs contract. The Falcons cut Parker this week after signing him late in the offseason.

Parker’s return comes for a Chiefs team that doesn’t have a surefire option opposite Berry. Projected starter Daniel Sorensen already underwent surgery for what could be a severe leg injury. He hasn’t been placed on IR yet but is not expected to return anytime soon.

The Chiefs deployed Parker as a starter for four seasons, first in 2014 as Berry’s replacement while he battled cancer and then as Berry’s complement. Parker is now 31 but is obviously familiar with fifth-year DC Bob Sutton‘s system and was durable for the Chiefs, playing in all 64 of their regular-season games the past four years.

Parker’s the second safety the Chiefs will have added in two days. K.C. acquired Jordan Lucas from the Dolphins as well, perhaps signalling Sorensen is, in fact, IR-bound.

Bengals Trim Roster To 53

September 1st, 2018 at 1:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

For the time being at least, Michael Johnson will not be part of the Bengals’ 53-man roster. The longtime starting defensive end does not appear among Cincinnati’s regular-season contingent, signalling a changing of the guard opposite Carlos Dunlap.

While Johnson could well return, with Cincinnati.com’s Paul Dehner Jr. tweeting this is a possibility because of the team trying to protect as many young players from the waiver wire as possible, he’s again off the roster. Johnson spent a year with the Buccaneers in 2014 but returned to Cincinnati a year later.

He’s been a Bengals starter in five of the past six seasons, but third-round selections of Jordan Willis and Carl Lawson last year — along with 2018 third-rounder Sam Hubbard — made the 31-year-old talent a less important commodity. Johnson registered five sacks last season and has 44 in his career.

As for the rest of the Bengals’ cuts, here are the other players who aren’t on the 53-man roster.

Released as vested veterans:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

The placement of Barkley on IR and the waiving of Woodside leaves Jeff Driskel as the Bengals’ only Andy Dalton backup. It would be logical if the Bengals examined the waiver wire this weekend for a possible signal-caller addition.

Load More Posts