HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Jets’ Quinnen Williams Suffers Injury

May 4th, 2021 at 10:07am CST by Zachary Links

Jets defensive lineman Quinnen Williams broke a small bone in his foot (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero). Williams should be fine for the start of the season, but his surgery will require 8-10 weeks of recovery. 

Williams won’t be present for OTAs or minicamp, but the expectation is that he’ll be good to go for training camp. Williams, who wants to be a “Jet for life,” is looking to build off of an impressive 2020 campaign. In 13 games (all starts), the former No. 3 overall pick notched 55 tackles, seven sacks, and two forced fumbles. Unfortunately, his season ended on injured reserve with a neck injury.

In years past, Williams has heard his name floated in trade rumors. But, even in the midst of a rough year for Gang Green, they rebuffed all midseason inquiries. At this point, Williams is optimistic that he’ll be staying for the long haul.

“I just handle what I can handle, just control what I can control,” Williams said earlier this year. “Just go out and work hard as I can for any team that I’m on. Hopefully it’s the Jets so I can play with Coach (Robert) Saleh, but any team I’m on, I just work my hardest so that when that comes around I can be the best player I can be.”

Browns Sign 5 UDFAs

May 4th, 2021 at 10:00am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns have added five undrafted free agents to their offseason roster, per a club announcement. The group is headlined by Florida State defensive tackle Marvin Wilson, who will receive a hefty $192K guarantee:

Wilson was a ballyhooed recruit out of high school who could have been a second-round pick in last year’s draft. After a lackluster 2020, he may regret his decision to return to campus. The 6’5″ defensive tackle notched 44 stops and 8.5 sacks as a junior, but finished last year with 17 tackles and one sack in six games. Given his guarantee, he’s a safe bet to make the final cut. Harbison, who topped 1,000 yards twice at Northern Illinois before transferring to Charlotte, may also have a shot at the Week 1 roster.

Ravens To Sign Alejandro Villanueva

May 4th, 2021 at 9:15am CST by Zachary Links

The Ravens will sign Alejandro Villanueva to a two-year deal, according to a source who spoke with ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler (Twitter link). The contract is worth up to $14MM with $8MM fully guaranteed (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 

Villanueva will replace Orlando Brown Jr. following their huge draft week trade. Once Ronnie Stanley is healthy, the Ravens will slot the former Steeler at right tackle.

The Ravens have long been connected to Villanueva. Trading Brown to the Chiefs pretty much sealed the deal, but the Ravens waited until after May 3 to avoid losing ground in the compensatory pick formula. Now, they’re still projected to earn a pair of fourth-round comp picks in 2022 for losing Matthew Judon and Yannick Ngakoue in free agency.

Villanueva was never considered an elite left tackle, but he usually did an okay job of protecting Ben Roethlisberger‘s blindside. He’s also been durable, starting all 16 games in each of the past five seasons. He’ll be a key part of the Ravens’ O-Line moving forward, especially since they did not select any linemen in last week’s draft.

Front Office Notes: Panthers, Kuechly, Texans

May 3rd, 2021 at 10:26pm CST by Ben Levine

Scott Fitterer is looking to add to his staff. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the Panthers have requested permission to interview Bills director of player personnel Dan Morgan for their assistant GM job. The organization has also reached out to the Eagles about interviewing director of player personnel Ian Cunningham for the assistant GM gig, via Rapoport on Twitter.

Morgan, of course, was a first-round pick by the Panthers back in 2001. The linebacker spent the first seven seasons of his career with Carolina, including a 2004 campaign where he made his lone Pro Bowl appearance. Following his playing career, Morgan joined the Seahawks front office, and he’s been in his current role with Buffalo since 2018.

Cunningham’s front office career started in Baltimore, and he joined the Eagles organization as director of college scouting in 2017. The executive was promoted to his current gig in 2019. As Eagles reporter Geoff Mosher points out (on Twitter), Panthers director of player personnel Patrick Stewart previously served as Philly’s national scout, so the front office has a connection to the Eagles.

Let’s check out some more front office notes from around the NFL…

  • While the Panthers are looking to add to their front office, the team has also lost a valuable (and very popular scout). Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that Panthers legend Luke Kuechly resigned from his role as pro scout. The former Defensive Player of the Year took on the role after retiring as a player last offseason. Panthers reporter Joe Person tweets that Kuechly wants to spend more time with his family before deciding the next steps of his career.
  • The Texans and director of pro personnel Rob Kisiel have mutually decided to part ways, according to Albert Breet of TheMMQB (via Twitter). Kisiel had been with the organization since the beginning, first serving as a scout before eventually making his way up to director of pro personnel.
  • Speaking of the Texans, the front office hired former Patriots pro scout Ronnie McGill prior to the draft, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). Houston GM Nick Caserio has had a habit of stealing talent from New England, and it makes sense that he’d have his eyes on McGill. The former college running back had been with the Patriots organization since 2010.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/3/21

May 3rd, 2021 at 9:23pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor transactions:

Denver Broncos

Pittsburgh Steelers

Despite bouncing around the NFL over the past four years, Saubert has put together a solid career as a blocking tight end. In stints with the Falcons, Bears, and Jaguars, the 27-year-old has appeared in 40 games (five starts), hauling in 10 receptions for 85 yards. Cox joined the Broncos last offseason, and he ultimately appeared in seven games, although the majority of his playing time came on special teams.

That Steelers trio has combined for only four career appearances (all via Jones). Acy joined the 49ers as an undrafted free agent last year, but he ultimately spent most of the season with the Seahawks.

Vikings Sign P Zach Von Rosenberg

May 3rd, 2021 at 8:04pm CST by Ben Levine

We don’t usually write full articles for undrafted free agent signings, but this one is too good not to pass along. Today, the Vikings agreed to terms with punter Zach Von Rosenberg (via Chris Tomasson of TwinCities.com). What makes this signing so unique? Von Rosenberg is a 30-year-old former minor league pitcher.

The veteran/rookie punter had spent the past four seasons punting for LSU, averaging 44 yards per punt on 193 attempts. That included a 2020 campaign where he got plenty of opportunities to put his play on tape. Despite appearing in only nine games, Von Rosenberg collected 59 punts, the second-highest total in all of college football.

Prior to his collegiate football career, Von Rosenberg was a prospect in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. The pitcher spent five years with the organization (2009-14), going 15-25 in a career that never saw him never elevating above Single A baseball.

Von Rosenberg will now have an opportunity to put together a Disney-movie-worthy career. As Tomasson writes, the rookie will have a legitimate chance to unseat starter Britton Colquitt, who reworked his contract this offseason to avoid being cut. The team also invited undrafted free agent Oscar Bradburn to rookie minicamp, but a source tells Tomasson that the Virginia Tech product might not attend.

Falcons Sign 20 UDFAs

May 3rd, 2021 at 6:49pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Falcons became the latest team to announce their 2021 UDFA class on Monday, and it’s a big one. Atlanta inked the following 20 rookies to contracts:

We already had full write-ups on the Franks and Hawkins signings, which you can read here and here. Hawkins’ deal came with $35K in guaranteed money, a $5K signing bonus and $30K salary guarantee, veteran NFL reporter Aaron Wilson tweets.

Meanwhile Thompson, the linebacker from Mississippi State, got $23K guaranteed, Wilson tweets. The Falcons signed three players from Mississippi State, so clearly they liked the program. The signings are pretty spread around, not concentrated on any one position.

Lions Sign 13 UDFAs

May 3rd, 2021 at 6:03pm CST by Ben Levine

Brad Holmes just completed his first draft as Lions GM, and the executive has now completed his first crop of undrafted free agent signings. The Lions agreed to terms with 13 UDFAs today, per the team website:

McKinley received a lucrative payday to join the Lions, receiving $100K in guaranteed money, including an $85K guaranteed base salary (per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle on Twitter). After dealing with injuries through his first three years of college, McKinley had a breakout campaign in 2020, hauling in 42 receptions for 717 yards and three touchdowns. He’ll be joined in Detroit by two of his college teammates, offensive lineman Tommy Kraemer and tight end Brock Wright.

Jacobs is one of the more intriguing signings. The cornerback put himself on the NFL radar following a 2018 campaign where he compiled 31 tackles, 12 passes defended, and four interceptions. However, he missed the majority of the 2019 season with a torn ACL, and he ultimately sat out the entire 2020 campaign.

Packers Sign 7 UDFAs

May 3rd, 2021 at 5:08pm CST by Ben Levine

The Packers have added on to their rookie class. The team agreed to terms with seven undrafted free agents today (per the team’s website):

Dietzen will surely be a fan favorite in camp, as the offensive lineman grew up in nearby Black Creek, Wisconsin. Dietzen actually retired from football after the 2018 campaign, but he returned this past season and started all seven games for Wisconsin, including time at left guard, right guard, and left tackle.

Some scouts expected Uphoff to a be a fourth- or fifth-round pick (per The Athletic’s Bob McGinn), but he ended up falling off the board entirely. The Illinois State product had a standout season, but he suffered a hamstring injury that ultimately put a damper on his pro day. However, the prospect isn’t letting the draft process ruin his hopes of reaching the NFL.

“It happened,” Uphoff said of his workout (via McGinn). “If I would have had better numbers, I’m sure I would have been drafted. You’ve got to deal with it.”

As The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman tweets, these signings take the Packers to 88 players, leaving room for two more additions. The reporter believes the organization could use both of those spots on quarterbacks, whether it be rookies or veterans.

Jaguars Decline Taven Bryan’s Option

May 3rd, 2021 at 3:57pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Add another player to the list of 2018 first-round picks not getting their options picked up. The Jaguars have declined the fifth-year option on Taven Bryan, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets.

Had they picked it up, the Jags would’ve owed Bryan a fully guaranteed $7.368MM in 2022. He’ll now be a free agent after this season. The 29th overall pick of the 2018 draft hasn’t done much to stand out in the pros. The defensive tackle has appeared in all 48 games since getting drafted, but has only started 17.

This past season in 16 games and eight starts, he played about 45 percent of the defensive snaps as a run-stuffer. He finished with 18 tackles, three for a loss, and a half sack. In 2019 the Florida product was more productive, with 30 tackles, five for a loss, and two sacks.

The new regime in Jacksonville has no ties to him, and they made upgrading defensive tackle a priority this offseason. The Jags signed Roy Robertson-Harris and traded for Malcolm Brown.

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