HEADLINES

Month: October 2024

Saints Cut Roster Down To 53

August 30th, 2022 at 6:59pm CST by Ely Allen

New Orleans got a head start on the deadline for roster cuts this weekend with several moves, but the team found its way to the 53-man limit today. Here are the moves the Saints made today to get there:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on reserve/injured:

Placed on reserve/suspended by commissioner:

The big story of the day for New Orleans was the trade this morning that sent defensive back Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to Philadelphia. The defensive back had pushed for an extension, staging a hold-in effort early in camp, but ultimately found himself on his way to Pennsylvania, paving the way for the Saints to hold onto six safeties. Safety Daniel Sorensen is on the roster for his special teams contributions, but Justin Evans will really be given a chance to contribute at safety in the absence of Gardner-Johnson.

Despite seeing fellow defensive tackle Huggins head to injured reserve, rookie sixth-round pick Jackson was unable to hold onto a roster spot, being the only member of the Saints’ rookie draft class who failed to do so. The offseason addition of Kentavius Street was likely the determining factor that left Jackson off the 53-man roster.

The team did see an undrafted free agent make the final roster as offensive lineman Lewis Kidd worked his way out of Montana State to make the Saints’ initial 53. He’ll serve as a depth piece on an offensive line with quite a few injury questions.

A position group that definitely looks improved on paper is the receiving corps who gets back Michael Thomas and added first-round pick Chris Olave and veteran Jarvis Landry in the offseason. These new targets will combine with the tight ends group, that includes swiss-army man Taysom Hill, as weapons for quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Andy Dalton.

Besides all the above, the team will look fairly similar in composition to last year’s. The running backs, special teams, defensive ends, and cornerbacks will look largely the same as the team heads into the 2022 NFL season. Where things could end up looking different is on the practice squad. After clearing waivers, many of the players above will have the opportunity to rejoin the Saints’ 16-man squad.

Patriots Trim Roster To 53 Players

August 30th, 2022 at 6:56pm CST by Ben Levine

The Patriots cut down their roster to 53 players today. In the process, they let go of a handful of recent draft picks, including a 2022 selection:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

The Patriots acknowledged some of their previous draft mistakes today. The team let go of three 2021 draft picks in wide receiver Tre Nixon, linebacker Will Sherman, and linebacker Cameron McGrone, and they even let go of a 2022 draft pick in sixth-round running back Kevin Harris. However, perhaps the biggest move was releasing tight end end Devin Asiasi. After waiving fellow 2020 third-round tight end Dalton Keene earlier this month, Asiasi was let go today. Despite his third-round status, Asiasi only saw time in 10 games for the Patriots in two years. With Asiasi and Keene out of the picture, it was expected that Lil’Jordan Humphrey would make the squad as a hybrid WR/TE. However, for the time being, the Patriots will roll with only two tight ends in Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith.

Terrance Mitchell started 29 games over the past two seasons in stints with the Browns and Texans, and he had a chance to compete for a starting gig in New England. However, despite all the uncertainty surrounding the position, the veteran wasn’t able to make his mark, leading to a surprising release. Justin Bethel is another surprising cut, as the veteran has established himself as a special teams ace in recent years.

Raiders Trim Roster To 53 Players

August 30th, 2022 at 6:34pm CST by Ben Levine

The Raiders have been busy today, trading former second-round cornerback Trayvon Mullen to the Cardinals for a conditional seventh-round pick. The Raiders have since completed their 53-man roster, cutting a number of players:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

Keelan Cole started 11 of his 15 games for the Jets last season, finishing with 28 receptions for 449 yards and one touchdown. He was expected to serve as an end-of-the-depth-chart option at wide receiver (and in the return game), but he ultimately lost out on the gig to Tyron Johnson and DJ Turner. Wideout Dillon Stoner and Isaiah Zuber were also candidates for the fourth or fifth receiver gig, but they were cut.

Matthias Farley saw time in all 17 games for the Titans last season, finishing with 16 tackles. He has extensive special teams experience, but the Raiders ended up pivoting to younger options to round out their roster, Darius Phillips was also a candidate to contribute on special teams following a 2021 campaign where he returned 25 punts for the Bengals.

Austin Walter had a career-high 28 touches for the Jets last offseason, but he wasn’t able to crack the Raiders roster even with the release of Kenyan Drake. The Raiders RB room is still plenty crowded, with Josh Jacobs, rookie fourth-round pick Zamir White, special teams ace Brandon Bolden, rookie seventh-round pick Brittain Brown, and veteran Ameer Abdullah all earning roster spots.

49ers Approached Jimmy Garoppolo About Staying Weeks Ago

August 30th, 2022 at 6:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the 49ers attempted to trade Jimmy Garoppolo for months — both before and after his March shoulder surgery — the parties agreed to a surprising reunion. While Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday he did not believe this was a possibility, he floated it to his former starting quarterback near the start of training camp.

Garoppolo had been working away from the 49ers since camp opened, but Shanahan and John Lynch broached the subject of a return for a sixth San Francisco season about a month ago, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle notes.

“I remember the first week of camp, me saying to Jimmy, ‘Hey, if you don’t like any of these opportunities, you don’t go to the place you want, you can’t get the contract you want, we would love to have you here as a backup, in a backup role,” Shanahan said, continuing to affirm Trey Lance has commandeered the 49ers’ QB1 gig. “But I want you to know that we feel that way. But I also think there’s no way you’re not going to get something as this goes throughout training camp.

“And Jimmy agreed with that. And we waited throughout all training camp. I think as he saw the other situations out there, it seems like everyone was just waiting for us to cut him to see how much they could get him for.”

Lance did not threaten Garoppolo’s job status last season; the starter returned after missing time with early- and late-season injuries. (Lance also dealt with a finger injury that limited his effort to be San Francisco’s starter.) Garoppolo coming back to be Lance’s backup does invite questions about the 30-year-old passer making another bid at the starting job, but Shanahan and Lynch stressed to Lance a Garoppolo return would be contingent on a QB2 role.

Garoppolo’s camp searched for a team that would agree to pay him his $24.2MM base salary or a discounted rate, but nothing materialized. The ninth-year QB waited out the weekend’s final preseason games to see if an injury would change the equation. When it did not, he agreed to the 49ers’ compromise, Branch adds.

“There were no problems with it at all,” Shanahan said of informing Lance of a Garoppolo return. “I told [Trey] the exact same thing that I told Jimmy. The options of Jimmy being here: That it had to be in a backup-type deal, which Jimmy knew was his option. We told that to Trey also. When I told Trey that Jimmy was going to come back, he was like, ‘Awesome. That dude was awesome for me last year. I can’t wait to be the same way.'”

The incentives in Garoppolo’s revised contract ($6.5MM base, $15.45MM max value) surfaced Tuesday as well. As thrilled as Lance might be Garoppolo could mentor him, his contract would pay him far more if the 49ers reinstated their old arrangement.

Garoppolo will receive $250K for each game in which he takes at least 25% of the offensive snaps, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. For every game this happens and the 49ers win, Garoppolo pockets another $100K. Should Garoppolo take half the snaps in a playoff game, he would collect $500K. If a Garoppolo-quarterbacked 49ers team wins the NFC title, another $500K would be included. A $1MM incentive exists if Garoppolo plays at least 50% of the snaps for the 49ers in Super Bowl LVII, Garafolo adds.

This will be the third contract Garoppolo has played on with the 49ers, who took on his Patriots rookie deal in 2017 and gave him a five-year, $137.5MM deal in 2018. Garoppolo nearly played out that lucrative second contract, and while Lance is presently entrenched as the 49ers’ starter, the team’s previous first-stringer represents unique insurance. The 49ers could still end up trading Garoppolo to an approved destination by the Nov. 1 deadline, but it certainly cannot be ruled out the veteran retakes the reins from his unseasoned teammate at some point as well.

Bears Reduce Roster To 53 Players

August 30th, 2022 at 6:10pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bears trimmed their roster to the NFL’s mandatory 53-man limit today:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

Michael Schofield III is an experienced starter with more than 100 NFL games under his belt, but it was immediately clear that he was competing for a roster spot when he inked a deal worth only $1.12MM. He ultimately lost out on a starting gig in Chicago to Teven Jenkins, who was mentioned as a trade candidate only yesterday.

Sam Kamara got into eight games with Chicago in 2021 while mostly appearing on special teams. Nsimba Webster got into six games with the Bears last year, returning four punts for 13 yards. Both of these young players are candidates to return to Chicago’s practice squad to start the 2022 campaign.

Nathan Peterman is also expected to land back on the Bears’ practice squad, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). After tossing three touchdowns vs. 12 interceptions in two seasons with Buffalo, Peterman spent the past three years with the Raiders, getting into only a pair of games. Justin Fields and Trevor Siemian are the only two QBs on the Bears active roster, so Peterman will see a promotion if either of those two are sidelined.

Bengals’ Roster Down To Final 53

August 30th, 2022 at 5:53pm CST by Ely Allen

Cincinnati made the necessary moves today to trim its roster down to 53 players. While some may find themselves back in the striped helmet Wednesday, many will have to clear waivers before being announced to the 16-man practice squad. Here are the moves made today to get down to the 53-man roster:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Placed on reserve/PUP list:

The defending AFC champions are looking to run it back with much of the same roster as last year. Thirty-eight of this year’s 53-man roster were on last year’s Super Bowl roster, with the differences coming on offensive line and at the bottom of the depth chart.

Additionally, it appears all six 2022 draft picks made the roster for the Bengals, as well as one undrafted rookie signing. With so many starters returning from the Super Bowl team, all the rookies will be expected to contribute in backup roles. First- and second-round defensive backs Daxton Hill and Cam Taylor-Britt figure to factor heavily into the defensive rotation, though. Also in the secondary, cornerback Allan George is the lone UDFA from this year’s crop to make Cincinnati’s final roster.

To call it the final roster is a bit misleading as the Bengals will likely follow their own trends from last season, setting the roster up for multiple post-deadline moves. The roster currently includes 11 defensive backs, not including starting safety Jessie Bates, working currently on a roster exemption. Taylor-Britt could likely find his way to the four-week injured reserve list after undergoing core surgery recently. Defensive end Khalid Kareem will join Taylor-Britt on short-term IR, according to head coach Zac Taylor, with a hamstring injury.

Many expect Cincinnati to mirror a roster move from last year with wide receiver Thomas. Thomas is a vested veteran who will avoid the waiver wire and is expected to re-sign with the team after a corresponding roster move, exactly what he did last year.

Finally, two position battles have been effectively decided with the waiving of long snapper Adomitis and punter Chrisman. Both intended to challenge incumbents Clark Harris and Kevin Huber from their long-time starting jobs. After avoiding being unseated, Huber is now on track to set a franchise record for games played in a Bengals uniform. Harris is close behind, trailing Huber by just six games.

Bills Set 53-Man Roster

August 30th, 2022 at 5:44pm CST by Ben Levine

After waiving six players yesterday, the Bills cut 18 more players today to get themselves down to the 53-man roster limit:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on reserve/PUP:

Placed on reserve/suspended:

We heard about some of Buffalo’s bigger moves earlier today, including the release of O.J. Howard and Duke Johnson. Greg Mancz is one of the most experienced players to get cut, with the veteran having appeared in 63 games across seven NFL seasons. His positional versatility was expected to land him a roster spot as a backup offensive lineman, but the team ultimately opted for a younger option. Mancz certainly didn’t help his case when he missed the preseason finale while recovering from a foot injury suffered during practice.

Tanner Gentry and Alec Anderson are both candidates to return to Buffalo via the practice squad. Gentry has bounced on and off the Bills roster over the previous two seasons without getting into a game. Anderson started 10 games at UCLA last year before landing with the Bills as an undrafted rookie.

Matt Barkley has spent the past four seasons in Buffalo. He got into eight games with the Bills between 2018 and 2020, completing 53 of his 97 pass attempts for 788 yards, three touchdowns, and four interceptions. He was demoted to QB3 in 2021 following the acquisition of Mitchell Trubisky, and Barkley didn’t end up seeing the field last year. He was eyeing a similar role in 2022 with Case Keenum now serving as Josh Allen‘s primary backup.

Chiefs Lower Roster To 53

August 30th, 2022 at 5:33pm CST by Sam Robinson

In addition to their cuts of Josh Gordon and Danny Shelton, the Chiefs jettisoned a few vested veterans and a host of rookie-contract players. Here is how the defending AFC West champs moved their roster to 53:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Carter came to Kansas City after starting all 17 Carolina games last season. The four-year Panther contributor signed a fully guaranteed one-year, $1.77MM deal, but was unlikely to have the same role he enjoyed in Charlotte. The Chiefs roster second-round linebackers Nick Bolton and Willie Gay, and they used a third-round pick on Leo Chenal at the position this year.

The starter for the Super Bowl-winning 2019 Chiefs team, Reiter returned after spending 2021 with the Saints and Dolphins. Things have changed at the center spot since Reiter was last in Missouri; the Chiefs have Creed Humphrey in place for what could be a long run as their starter. Reiter was with the Chiefs from 2018-20.

A former first-round pick, Coleman appears to be running out of time. The ex-Baylor standout has not played in a regular-season game since the 2018 season. Prior to signing with the Chiefs, Coleman was out of football for nearly 18 months.

Panthers Trim Roster To 53 Players

August 30th, 2022 at 5:18pm CST by Ben Levine

The Panthers trimmed their roster to 53 players today, meaning a long list of players earned their walking papers:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Placed on IR:

The most notable move was kicker Zane Gonzalez landing on injured reserve, making him ineligible to return for the 2022 campaign. Gonzalez injury himself on Friday night while warming up on the sideline. It was later revealed that he suffered a significant groin injury, and that injury ended up being season-ending. The Panthers worked out five potential replacements yesterday.

Juston Burris started 20 of his 23 games for the Panthers over the past two seasons. After collecting a career-high 53 tackles in 2020, the safety finished with only 23 tackles this past year, with Pro Football Focus ranking him 77th among 92 qualifying safeties. He was on the roster bubble following the offseason pickup of Xavier Woods. Brandon Zylstra has seen time in 37 games for the Panthers over the past three years, hauling in 29 receptions for 391 yards and one touchdown. Yesterday’s trade for Laviska Shenault Jr. only pushed him further down the depth chart, leading to his release.

Ravens Drop Roster To 53

August 30th, 2022 at 5:03pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Ravens have confirmed their final roster cuts, bringing the squad to the league-mandated 53-man limit. Like many teams, they are releasing a number of vested veterans with the intention of keeping them in the fold in the coming days, once other necessary moves have been made. Here is the list of Baltimore’s departures:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Released:

Badie might be the most surprising inclusion on the list. The sixth-round rookie led the SEC in rushing yards last year, but the team has had a crowded RB room throughout the offseason. Badie was though to be in competition with veteran Mike Davis for the No. 3 spot. Another notable name is soon to be added to the mix in the form of Kenyan Drake, though. Badie would, considering his age, represent a practice squad priority should he clear waivers.

Hayes was a fifth-round pick last season, but was limited to one appearance as a rookie. That extended absence, coupled with his relative lack of college production, could make him another practice squad candidate. Still, his inclusion – along with that of Means – is noteworthy given the team’s lack of depth in the edge rush department. Either of them departing to another roster could make the position even more of a priority than it is now.

Like Jefferson, Urban was named in the build-up to today’s deadline as a likely veteran to be released temporarily, while having a handshake agreement in place to return later in the week. The Canadian began his career in Baltimore, and returned this offseason as one of many changes the team has made along the defensive line.

Load More Posts