HEADLINES

Month: December 2024

Saints Elevate WR Kenny Stills

September 25th, 2021 at 5:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

Thin at wide receiver, the Saints are promoting a familiar player to help fill the void. The team elevated Kenny Stills from its practice squad Saturday.

Should the Saints dress Stills for their Week 3 game against the Patriots, it will mark his first game with the team since 2014. Like former teammate Brandin Cooks, Stills has been involved in multiple trades since his most recent game as a Saint. New Orleans traded Stills to Miami in 2015; the Dolphins sent him to the Texans in 2019.

Stills’ most recent Saints slate remains his best yardage total to date, with the former fifth-round pick accumulating 931 in his second season. The veteran deep threat has 37 touchdown catches and 4,843 receiving yards as a pro. Much has changed since Stills’ last stint on New Orleans’ active roster. Only Cameron Jordan and Terron Armstead remain from that period.

The 29-year-old target has, however, hit a bit of a rough patch since the Texans acquired Cooks and reconfigured their receiving corps last year. Stills has not played in a game since the Texans faced the Patriots in Week 10 of last season. Houston released Stills last November. While the Bills signed him to their practice squad late last season, Stills did not suit up for Buffalo.

The Saints reacquired Stills on a practice squad deal last week. He will join a receiving corps in need. The Saints are down Michael Thomas until at least Week 7, due to his belated ankle surgery, and also have Tre’Quan Smith stashed on IR. New Orleans also elevated center Austin Reiter for Sunday’s game. Starter Erik McCoy remains out with a calf injury.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/25/21

September 25th, 2021 at 4:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are today’s practice squad decisions:

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed: RB Nate McCrary

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

New England Patriots

Seattle Seahawks

  • Released: TE Michael Jacobson

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/25/21

September 25th, 2021 at 4:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

The weekly Saturday bunch of minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

  • Promoted: WR Juwan Green

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Raiders Elevate Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Patrick Onwuasor

September 25th, 2021 at 4:07pm CST by Sam Robinson

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix has moved closer to an opportunity to play in his first game since the 2019 season. The Raiders are elevating the veteran safety from their practice squad for Week 3.

Las Vegas signed Clinton-Dix to its practice squad last week, doing so after he failed to make San Francisco’s final 53. The 49ers cut Clinton-Dix less than three weeks after signing him this summer. He has not played since his one-season Bears tenure.

Although Clinton-Dix auditioned for several teams this year, the Raiders represented his first visit of 2021. The Cowboys signed the former Pro Bowler in 2020 but released him before the start of the regular season. Prior to these struggles landing a steady gig, Clinton-Dix did not miss a game from 2014-19. He worked as a starter throughout that stretch, making the Pro Bowl with the Packers in 2016 and ranking as an upper-echelon safety (per Pro Football Focus) with the Bears in ’19.

The Raiders are also adding yet another veteran linebacker to the mix. They elevated former Ravens first-stringer Patrick Onwuasor along with Clinton-Dix. Onwuasor landed on the Jets’ IR list twice last year but was a three-season Ravens starter from 2017-19. The Raiders auditioned Onwuasor in late August.

Onwuasor joins Denzel Perryman and K.J. Wright as new additions to the Vegas linebacking corps in the past month. The Raiders also have Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski, though Nicholas Morrow is on IR.

49ers Elevate RB Kerryon Johnson

September 25th, 2021 at 3:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

The 49ers’ running back carousel keeps spinning. Kerryon Johnson will be the latest to move up to the team’s active roster, and he will replace JaMycal Hasty.

Signed to San Francisco’s practice squad last week, Johnson will rise to the 49ers’ 55-man gameday roster. Hasty suffered a high ankle sprain in the 49ers’ Week 2 win. He will join Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson as unavailable San Francisco backs, with the former out for the season and the latter on the PUP list.

With Hasty out for at least three games, the 49ers do not have a halfback on their active roster who was with them last season. Jerick McKinnon and Tevin Coleman are elsewhere. The 49ers also are not expected to have new starter Elijah Mitchell against the Packers. The sixth-round rookie is doubtful with a shoulder injury. Trey Sermon, however, has cleared concussion protocol and may be in line to start. The 49ers also claimed XFL alum Jacques Patrick off the Bengals’ practice squad. Johnson will join these two and Trenton Cannon on the team’s active roster.

A former second-round pick, Johnson has been part of a few transactions this year. The Lions waived him this offseason, and the Eagles added him with a waiver claim. An injury settlement led to Johnson’s Philadelphia exit.

Knee trouble has plagued the former Auburn standout. Johnson did average 5.4 yards per carry as a rookie with the Lions, totaling 854 scrimmage yards in just 10 games. While Johnson stayed healthy in 2020, the Lions had effectively moved on by signing Adrian Peterson and drafting D’Andre Swift in Round 2. The 49ers will give the fourth-year veteran another chance.

Raiders Move G Richie Incognito To IR

September 25th, 2021 at 3:43pm CST by Sam Robinson

Richie Incognito‘s latest injury will move him to injured reserve for the second straight September. After missing the Raiders’ first two games with a calf injury, Incognito is heading to IR, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.

This designation will sideline the veteran guard for three more games. The Raiders had already ruled Incognito out for Week 3, after he missed another week of practice. Las Vegas used John Simpson and Jermaine Eluemunor as its starting guards in Week 2.

Incognito’s extended absence follows Denzelle Good‘s IR placement. Good, however, does not have a chance to return this season after suffering an ACL tear during the team’s opening-night victory. Good replaced Incognito after his early-season injury in 2020. Incognito suffered a foot injury that knocked him out for most of last season.

The Raiders made wholesale changes on their offensive line this offseason, and while they initially released Incognito, they kept the 38-year-old blocker around after bringing him back on a pay cut. Incognito was productive for the Raiders in 2019, helping the team deploy one of the league’s best rushing attacks. But the polarizing interior lineman has not been available much since.

Cardinals Release G Brian Winters

September 25th, 2021 at 3:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

In finalizing their Week 3 roster, the Cardinals moved Brian Winters off the squad. They released the veteran guard Saturday.

Winters agreed to terms with the Cards this offseason, heading to the desert after a lengthy New York tenure. The Jets released Winters last year, leading him to the Bills on a one-year contract. Winters signed with the Cardinals on a one-year veteran-minimum deal.

A longtime Jets starter, Winters worked as a part-time starter with the Bills last year. In two Cardinals contests, however, he has not seen much action. Arizona has used Justin Pugh and 2020 draftee Josh Jones as its starting guards. Winters has totaled 16 offensive snaps in the Cards’ two games.

Winters, 30, could potentially stick around with the team on a practice squad agreement, with up to six vested veterans eligible for taxi squads. But he is back in free agency for the time being.

The Cardinals also promoted two offensive linemen — Sean Harlow and Koda Martin — from their practice squad. They cleared the other roster spot by placing offensive lineman Josh Miles on IR. Arizona elevated safety Chris Banjo and cornerback Antonio Hamilton to its active roster as well.

Pats Did Not Make Offer To Jason McCourty

September 25th, 2021 at 2:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

After a three-year reunion, the McCourty brothers again went their separate ways this season. As Devin McCourty remains in the same role he has occupied for the past 12 years, Jason is with a fourth NFL team.

The 13th-year cornerback signed a veteran-minimum deal with the Dolphins, doing so after meeting with the Giants. While a lower-level market formed for Jason McCourty, the Patriots were not overly interested in bringing him back. New England did not submit an offer to keep Jason, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com notes.

With McCourty accepting a vet-minimum contract, his market was certainly not robust. But he has remained a viable secondary cog despite his age. The last active corner from the 2009 draft, the Rutgers product has continued to deliver for his various teams (Titans, Browns, Patriots, Dolphins).

The Pats used the veteran cover man as a 33-game starter, and he added three playoff starts during the team’s Super Bowl-winning 2018 season. New England is currently playing without top corner Stephon Gilmore, who is on the team’s PUP list. While the Pats moved offseason signing Jalen Mills back to corner and still have J.C. Jackson and slot man Jonathan Jones, it is interesting they did not make much of an effort to retain McCourty given the minimal cost.

McCourty has started both Miami’s games this season and, at 34, played 94% of the team’s defensive snaps. While Pro Football Focus slotted him outside its top 75 at corner last season, he grades as a top-20 safety thus far in his second tour of duty with Brian Flores.

Dolphins To Place Tua Tagovailoa On IR

September 25th, 2021 at 2:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Dolphins’ stretch without their starting quarterback will last at least three games. Tua Tagovailoa will land on IR, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).

With Brian Flores indicating earlier this week additional testing revealed Tagovailoa suffered multiple fractured ribs, this is not especially surprising. Offseason addition Jacoby Brissett will now have an extended opportunity, which has become familiar for the veteran backup.

Brissett was needed as a rookie in New England, with Tom Brady‘s Deflategate suspension and a subsequent Jimmy Garoppolo injury moving Brissett into the Patriots’ lineup early in 2016. Andrew Luck‘s troublesome shoulder injury thrust Brissett into a full-time starting role, after a late-summer trade, in 2017. After Luck’s return the following year sent Brissett back to the bench, the Indianapolis franchise QB’s sudden 2019 retirement brought on another year of full-time QB1 duty for the former third-round pick. Philip Rivers kept Brissett on the Colts’ bench throughout 2020, but he will now have three more games to use as a potential audition for a 2022 gig. Brissett, 28, signed a one-year, $5MM deal in March.

For Tagovailoa, this continues a less-than-ideal start to his NFL career. The former Alabama superstar became the Dolphins’ starting quarterback last season but saw Flores yank him for Ryan Fitzpatrick in multiple games. As Tagovailoa was believed to be progressing on multiple fronts this offseason, Deshaun Watson trade rumors persisted. They have not exactly died down. And this latest Tua setback may intensify rumblings the Dolphins will look to bring in the embattled Texans QB.

Tua will miss Dolphins games against the Raiders, Colts and Buccaneers. A Week 6 Jaguars matchup stands as the second-year passer’s next opportunity, though it is not certain he will be ready to return by then.

Steelers’ T.J. Watt To Miss Week 3

September 25th, 2021 at 1:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although Ben Roethlisberger‘s pectoral injury will not deter him from suiting up Sunday, the Steelers will be without both their scrimmage yards leader (Diontae Johnson) and their best defender.

Pittsburgh declared T.J. Watt out for its Week 3 game against Cincinnati. Watt suffered a groin injury midway through the Steelers’ Week 2 loss to the Raiders. The All-Pro outside linebacker managed three limited practices this week and entered the weekend with a questionable designation, but the Steelers will give him the weekend off.

This will be only Watt’s second injury-related absence as a pro. He missed Week 3 of his rookie season, with a groin injury sidelining him for that 2017 contest as well.

Sunday’s Steelers front seven configuration will look quite different, with the team also declaring its other outside linebacker starter — Alex Highsmith — out. The second-year edge rusher is also battling a groin ailment. Stephon Tuitt is on IR, while the Steelers placed nose tackle Tyson Alualu on their injured list this week.

Watt and Highsmith’s absences will leave recent signing Melvin Ingram to spearhead Pittsburgh’s pass rush, which has led the NFL in sacks in each of the past four seasons. The Steelers’ injury issues represent a potential reprieve for a Bengals offensive line that has allowed Joe Burrow to be sacked 10 times through two games.

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