HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Jets Place T George Fant On IR

September 27th, 2022 at 3:35pm CST by Sam Robinson

A lingering knee injury forced George Fant out of Sunday’s Jets-Bengals game, and the issue will sideline Fant for a while. The Jets placed the veteran tackle on IR Tuesday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.

This moves yet another high-profile Jets tackle off the active roster. Fant’s IR shift follows the transactions that sent Mekhi Becton and Duane Brown to the injured list. While Brown will be eligible to return in Week 5, Fant is shut down until at least Week 8.

Robert Saleh classified Fant as “day to day” Monday. Instead, Fant’s IR placement further depletes the Jets at a premier position. The team finished Sunday’s Bengals tilt with Conor McDermott at left tackle. Fourth-round rookie Max Mitchell has played every snap for the Jets at right tackle this season. This is far from the initial configuration Gang Green planned, and Fant’s absence figures to make matters more difficult for Zach Wilson, who is on track to return from his August knee surgery in Week 4.

Fant had a tough day against standout Cincinnati defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who notched strip-sacks against Fant and McDermott. But Fant has been battling this knee problem all season, Brian Costello of the New York Post notes. The issue caused him to miss multiple practices last week.

Fant, 30, has been a vital O-line presence for the Jets since signing with the team as a free agent in 2020. The ex-Seahawk spent the 2020 season as the Jets’ right tackle starter and moved to the left side after Becton’s Week 1 injury last season. The Jets named Fant their starting left tackle before Becton’s training camp injury. After being on the Jets’ extension radar early this offseason, no deal came to fruition. Fant’s return from injury will begin a rather important stretch for the former college basketball player. His contract expires at season’s end.

When Fant returns, the Jets will hope to deploy the Brown-Fant tackle combo that has yet to take the field together. After winning the left tackle gig, Fant saw Brown’s late-summer signing move him back to the right side. The Jets signed veteran Mike Remmers as a stopgap option Monday. Remmers currently resides on Gang Green’s practice squad, but the journeyman right tackle is likely to be moved up to the 53-man roster soon.

Ravens Add OLB Jeremiah Attaochu

September 27th, 2022 at 3:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jeremiah Attaochu worked out for the Ravens on Monday; the team has since added the veteran outside linebacker to its practice squad. Baltimore released cornerback T.J. Carrie to make room on its 16-man P-squad.

A veteran who has bounced around the league, Attaochu has been available since the Bears released him in June. The Ravens will bring him in days after signing Jason Pierre-Paul to their active roster.

This will be Attaochu’s fifth NFL team. The former Chargers second-round pick previously bounced from the Bolts to the Jets to the Broncos to the Bears. Intermittent production has followed, but Attaochu managed to collect a bit of money based on his last decent season. He posted five sacks off the bench for the 2020 Broncos, a team that did not have Von Miller throughout that campaign. After totaling 8.5 sacks in two seasons under Vic Fangio in Denver, the Bears gave Attaochu a two-year, $5.5MM deal to play behind Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn.

The Georgia Tech product, 29, did not tally a sack with the Bears last season. Though, Attaochu only played five games with Chicago; a torn pec sustained in October 2021 ended his season early. Justin Houston suffered a groin injury Sunday, limiting the starter to just six defensive snaps. The Ravens also have Tyus Bowser and David Ojabo out of the picture for the time being. Bowser cannot return until Week 5, while Ojabo — who suffered an Achilles tear preparing for the draft — is unlikely to debut until later this season.

JPP stands to take some heat off the starters. Brandon Copeland, who signed with Baltimore’s P-squad last week, played that role against the Patriots. Attaochu will join Copeland as stopgap insurance behind the team’s top trio soon. A ninth-year veteran, Carrie joined the Ravens’ taxi squad nearly two weeks ago.

Dak Prescott Targeting Week 5 Return

September 27th, 2022 at 2:38pm CST by Sam Robinson

Cooper Rush is now 3-0 as a starter, adding back-to-back 2022 victories to a ledger that included an upset win in Minnesota last season. While Jerry Jones has talked up his backup since Dak Prescott‘s injury, Mike McCarthy slammed the door on the veteran QB2 keeping the gig once Prescott returns. That window is approaching.

Since Prescott is not on IR, he could come back Sunday against the Commanders. Although Prescott told ESPN’s Lisa Salters on Monday he was not ruling that out, the seventh-year veteran said he “probably” will not be ready in time. But Dak added he is targeting the Cowboys’ Week 5 Rams matchup for his return, via Lorenzo Reyes of USA Today.

Prescott had the stitch removed from his surgically repaired thumb Monday, Reyes adds, with ESPN.com’s Todd Archer (via Twitter) noting the Pro Bowl passer is improving his grip strength as he ramps up toward retaking the reins for the Cowboys. Jones called Prescott’s progress “nothing short of amazing” during an appearance on 105.3 The Fan (via The Athletic). The longtime owner said his starter is a week or two away from returning.

Equipped with a much better defense than the one that surrendered a franchise-record point total in 2020, the Cowboys are in superior shape than they were when Prescott last missed a chunk of a season. Michael Gallup will likely be back when Prescott returns, after the fifth-year wideout practiced ahead of the Giants game but was held out for precautionary reasons.

Rush, albeit in a very small sample size, ranks sixth in QBR after helping the Cowboys to wins over the Bengals and Giants. The sixth-year backup’s improvement will give Prescott time to recover, without the starter needing to be rushed back. But it will be interesting how the Cowboys play it if Dak deems himself ready ahead of their Rams tilt. The Cowboys face the Eagles in Philadelphia the following week.

Giants Shopped Kenny Golladay During Camp; Team Unlikely To Add Free Agent WR?

September 27th, 2022 at 2:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

Of the top Dave Gettleman-era wide receiver pickups still with the Giants, Sterling Shepard was the only one to carve out a major role under Brian Daboll. The longest-tenured Giant’s latest significant injury — an ACL tear sustained on the team’s final offensive play Monday night — will change the team’s receiver plans.

The team played its Week 3 game without Kadarius Toney and second-round rookie Wan’Dale Robinson, and Darius Slayton saw 14 snaps behind unlikely regulars David Sills and Richie James. Most notably, Kenny Golladay‘s workload did increase after his two-snap Week 2 game; the disgruntled veteran played 24 snaps against the Cowboys. Golladay’s final-drive drop ended a zero-reception night, and although he will likely continue to have a role, the Giants have already begun discussing him in trades.

The Giants shopped Golladay just before cutting their roster down to 53 players, according to Albert Breer of SI.com (on Twitter). While the Golladay trade rumblings are connected to the team taking on most of the sixth-year wideout’s salary ($13MM) to move him, Breer adds the Giants expressed a willingness to pay a “significant chunk” of that salary during the late-August trade talks. No teams bit, and the $18MM-per-year wideout continues to go through a de facto walk year as a Giant.

Golladay, 28, caught two passes for 22 yards in the Giants’ opener but has not pulled down a reception since. Cutting the former Pro Bowler now would saddle the Giants with $25MM-plus in dead money, but releasing him with a post-June 1 designation next year brings that total down to barely $7MM. A 2022 trade in which the Giants take on much of Golladay’s through-2024 contract would check in between these two figures.

As for the rest of the Giants’ receiving corps, the team might be standing pat at the position for now. Daboll discussed the players on the active roster and practice squad filling the Shepard void, Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports tweets. The team pursued ex-Daboll Bills charge Cole Beasley, but Dan Duggan of The Athletic calls a move that poaches Beasley off the Buccaneers’ practice squad a “long shot” (Twitter link). Beasley expressed interest in heading to Tampa, DM’ing Tom Brady. The veteran slot receiver is now one of the numerous vested veterans in the Bucs’ receiving corps, though playing time could be scarce once Chris Godwin and Julio Jones return from injuries.

Robinson should be expected to play a big role, given that the Daboll-Joe Schoen regime acquired him, while the team was intrigued by Toney this offseason. That said, Toney has been unable to stay on the field since being taken in the 2021 first round. Slayton has been a trade candidate for months, and while Shepard’s absence could open the door for the team’s 2019 and 2020 receiving leader, the pay cut Slayton took before the season also reopens the door to a trade.

Bears Place WR Byron Pringle On IR

September 27th, 2022 at 12:55pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Bears’ passing game has been the league’s worst so far, and it will be shorthanded for the time being. The team announced on Tuesday that wideout Byron Pringle has been placed on IR. As a result, he will be sidelined for at least the next four weeks. 

Pringle injured his calf during Sunday’s game against the Texans. He made one catch in the game, only his second of the season as he begins his tenure in Chicago, the team which ranks last in the league with an average of only 99 passing yards per game.

The former UDFA spent the first three years of his career with the Chiefs. He saw an increased workload with each passing season, culminating in a 49% snap share last year. With the increased opportunity, Pringle put up carer-highs across the board, totaling 568 yards and five touchdowns on 42 catches. In free agency, he followed new Bears general manager Ryan Poles to the Windy City on a one-year, $6MM deal.

This marks the second significant injury Chicago is dealing with at the position. N’Keal Harry, whom the team traded for from the Patriots in July, is still on the mend from the ankle surgery he underwent last month. He was initially expected to miss at least the first two months of the season, so the Bears are likely to be without two of their top pass-catchers for the foreseeable future.

In their absence, Chicago will lean more heavily (inasmuch as the team’s low-volume passing attack will allow) on the likes of No. 1 Darnell Mooney, fellow free agent signing Equanimeous St. Brown and third-round rookie Velus Jones Jr. With the spot opened up by the move, the Bears signed linebacker Joe Thomas to the 53-man roster from their practice squad. He appeared in Sunday’s contest after being a game-day elevation, seeing action both on defense and special teams.

Giants WR Sterling Shepard Suffers Torn ACL

September 27th, 2022 at 11:14am CST by Adam La Rose

On their final offensive play of last night’s game, one of the Giants’ most important players saw his final action of the 2022 campaign. Wideout Sterling Shepard suffered a non-contact knee injury which was immediately expected to be season-ending (Twitter link via ESPN’s Jordan Raanan). It has since been confirmed by head coach Brian Daboll that he tore his left ACL. 

Shepard fell to the ground despite not being touched by a defender; he was ultimately carted off the field. The diagnosis marks the second consecutive major injury he now has to recover from.

The 29-year-old suffered a torn Achilles last December, so news that yesterday’s injury is season-ending is a major blow for him. The Giants’ longest-tenured player, Shepard has battled an number of ailments throughout his career, and has played a full season just twice in his seven years in the NFL.

When on the field, the Oklahoma product has proven himself to be a reliable contributor in the pass game, though. Starting all but three contests to date, he has reached or eclipsed 65 catches in a season three times, recording between 576 and 872 yards from the years 2016-2020. He had once again been a mainstay this year, logging starter’s snaps in all three contests while registering 24 receptions, 154 yards and one score.

In his absence, New York’s situation at WR could become the subject of even more scrutiny. 2021 first-rounder Kadarius Toney sat out yesterday’s contest due to a hamstring injury, the latest in a long line of ailments which have defined his young career. Kenny Golladay, meanwhile, has been at the center of trade speculation given his reduced role under the team’s new coaching staff and front office. Either of those two could see an increase in playing time with Shepard sidelined for the year; the team also has Darius Slayton and rookie Wan’Dale Robinson at the top of the depth chart, along with David Sills, who has taken many of Golladay’s reps.

Commanders Committed To Carson Wentz As Starting QB

September 27th, 2022 at 9:13am CST by Adam La Rose

For the Commanders, attempting to find a long-term franchise quarterback over the past several years has been akin to pulling teeth. They made another noteworthy move this offseason to address the issue, but the team’s top acquisition is already the subject of questions regarding his No. 1 status. 

After struggling mightily during Sunday’s game against the Eagles, Commanders head coach Ron Rivera was asked if he was considering benching Carson Wentz. He replied, quite simply, “No. I’m not” (Twitter link via Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post.

During Washington’s 24-8 loss, Wentz and the offense were held off the scoreboard until the closing minutes of the contest. Overall, his first game against the team that drafted him second overall in 2016 finished with 211 yards, nine sacks taken and a QBR of 71. That marked a stark contrast to his performance during the two previous weeks, in which the 29-year-old totaled 650 passing yards and seven touchdowns (along with three interceptions).

After his one-year stint with the Colts ended in a late-season collapse which kept the team out of the playoffs, Wentz fell out of favor with Indianapolis’ front office. That led to plenty of trade speculation in anticipation of the league’s fervent QB market this offseason; ultimately, the Commanders took on the full remainder of his contract in a trade aimed at stabilizing the position for at least the immediate future.

Washington has also been linked to a number of other passers who were – or were intended to be – on the move in recent months. Included on that list is Jimmy Garoppolo, who has resumed his role of starter for the 49ers due to Trey Lance‘s season-ending injury. That leaves the Commanders with Wentz, the eleventh different quarterback to start a regular season contest for them since Kirk Cousins‘ departure in 2018.

The North Dakota State product has two years remaining on his current deal after this one, with cap hits just over $26MM and $27MM, respectively. None of that compensation is guaranteed, however, so Washington could move on from him as early as this offseason. With the backing of his head coach, he still has a hold on the starter’s job for the 2022 season to earn his way into an extended stay in the nation’s capital.

Titans Sign DL Mario Edwards Jr. Off Jaguars Practice Squad

September 26th, 2022 at 7:51pm CST by Ben Levine

The Titans have snagged a veteran defensive lineman off a division rival’s practice squad. The team announced that they’ve signed Mario Edwards Jr. off the Jaguars’ practice squad and on to their 53-man roster. To make room, the Titans waived linebacker Derrek Tuszka.

Edwards has never lived up to his second-round billing, but the defensive lineman has still seen time in 86 games across seven professional seasons. The veteran spent the previous two seasons with the Bears, collecting six sacks despite only starting one of his 27 appearances. He was released by Chicago at the end of the preseason and subsequently joined Jacksonville’s practice squad.

The 28-year-old won’t knock Jeffery Simmons out of the starting defensive tackle spot, but he’ll provide some additional pass-rushing prowess along the defensive line. His ability to play defensive end could also help him see some defensive snaps.

Tuszka was claimed off waivers from the Steelers in early September, and after being inactive through the first two weeks, he earned a start on Sunday with Bud Dupree and Ola Adeniyi sidelined.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/26/22

September 26th, 2022 at 7:26pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Dallas Cowboys

New York Giants

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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