HEADLINES

Year: 2024

Jaguars Activate WR Jamal Agnew From IR

December 16th, 2023 at 3:36pm CST by Ely Allen

It looks like Jaguars wide receiver and return specialist Jamal Agnew only required a short practice window in order to return from injured reserve. Agnew was only designated to return from IR three days ago as he continued working to overcome rib and shoulder injuries that placed him there in the first place. In order to make room on the active roster for the newly activated Agnew, Jacksonville waived backup quarterback Nathan Rourke.

Agnew had missed the four games required to come back from injured reserve when the Jaguars designated him to return. During his absence the team had turned to rookie sixth-round receiver Parker Washington to return punts and veteran backup running back D’Ernest Johnson to return kickoffs. Now, they’ll get back a return man who was a first-team All-Pro selection as a rookie in Detroit and a Pro Bowl returner in Jacksonville just last year. Agnew has also found a bit of a role in the passing offense since arriving in Duval, providing the Jaguars with another offensive weapon just in time for a tough matchup with the Ravens on Sunday night.

Rourke has spent his first season in the NFL going back and forth between the team’s active and practice squad rosters. He had been called up to back up C.J. Beathard in the off chance that Trevor Lawrence was unavailable to play after his high ankle sprain, but Rourke became expendable with Lawrence playing through the injury. Should he clear waivers, expect Rourke to find his way back to the practice squad in Jacksonville.

Speaking of the practice squad, the Jaguars took the opportunity to announce that practice squad tight end Josh Pederson would serve as the team’s standard game elevation for tomorrow’s matchup with the Ravens. Pederson has appeared in two games so far this season, making his NFL debut two weeks ago.

NFC West Rumors: Murray, Dobbs, Adams

December 16th, 2023 at 2:48pm CST by Ely Allen

The outcome for the Cardinals‘ 2023 season was pretty much already decided by the time the team finally was able to return quarterback Kyler Murray to the roster. Murray has now missed 18 games over the past three years, and even when he’s been available, Murray has a 5-10 record during the most recent two seasons.

Still, Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing has full confidence in Murray as a franchise quarterback in Arizona, according to Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic. Petzing, who worked with Kirk Cousins during his tenure in Minnesota, points towards Murray’s first three years in the NFL, which resulted in an Offensive Rookie of the Year award and two Pro Bowl selections in the years following.

Petzing claims that, if it were up to him, he wouldn’t look at drafting a quarterback in the first round with one of their two Day 1 picks this April. Unfortunately for Petzing, it’s not necessarily up to him. With the recent major injury to Murray and his lack of success since the 2021 season, the rest of the team brass may deem it necessary to bring in a Day 1 passer to expand their options.

Here are a couple of other rumors coming out of the NFC West, starting with another note out of Phoenix:

  • When Arizona traded quarterback Joshua Dobbs to Minnesota along with a seventh-round pick, there were conditions in place that would allow for the Cardinals to get that pick back if Dobbs met certain milestones. Well, according to Howard Balzer of PHNX, despite Dobbs recently being benched in favor of Nick Mullens, the fact that Dobbs started four games for the Vikings will send Arizona’s seventh-round pick back to the Cardinals.
  • In a recent Q&A with Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic, Dugar addressed the possibility of Seattle moving on from former All-Pro safety Jamal Adams after this season. While that seems like a real possibility with massive cap hits of $26.9MM and $27.9MM over the next two years and Adams’ recent drop in quality of play, it wouldn’t benefit the team as much as you might think. Releasing or trading Adams would result is a charge of $20.8MM in dead money for the Seahawks while only saving $6.08MM in cap space. Designating the move as a post-June 1 release would spread the dead money over the 2024 and 2025 seasons and increase the cap savings for 2024 to $16.5MM, but that still holds quite a heavy cost. Dugar believes that Adams may receive the benefit of the doubt, given the organization knows that he’s been limited with a knee injury. The high costs with that benefit of the doubt may be enough to keep Adams in green and navy for a couple more years.

Latest On Colts RB Jonathan Taylor

December 16th, 2023 at 12:09pm CST by Ben Levine

The Colts could welcome back their offensive star as soon as next week. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, there’s optimism that running back Jonathan Taylor will be available for the Colts’ Christmas Eve matchup against the Falcons.

Taylor suffered a torn UCL in his thumb back in Week 12, and standard surgery would have kept the running back off the field for months. Instead, the player underwent an internal brace procedure, giving him a recovery timeline of three-to-five weeks.

Taylor wasn’t able to return to the field for the short end of that recovery timeline, as the running back was already ruled out for today’s game against the Steelers. The Colts decided against placing Taylor on injured reserve, a move that would have kept him off the active roster until at least Week 17.

The former All-Pro RB missed the start of the season thanks to an ankle injury/contract dispute, and it didn’t take long for Taylor to return to the field after inking a a three-year, $42MM deal in October. In his seven appearances, Taylor was averaging a career-low 59.1 rushing yards per game, but he was starting to heat up before his latest injury, collecting 160 rushing yards and three touchdowns in Week 10 and Week 12.

Zack Moss had a productive start to the season while filling in for Taylor, but the veteran backup has struggled during Taylor’s most recent absence. Over the past two weeks, Moss has collected 113 yards from scrimmage on 38 touches.

Eagles CB Darius Slay Sidelined After Knee Surgery

December 16th, 2023 at 10:47am CST by Ben Levine

The Eagles will be without a key defender for at least Monday night’s game against the Seahawks. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, cornerback Darius Slay underwent arthroscopic knee surgery this week that will sideline him for at least one game.

While coach Nick Sirianni declined to say exactly how long Slay would be out, he did reveal that the cornerback is expected back on the field by the end of the regular season. With only four games remaining on the regular season schedule, this means Slay will likely avoid a trip to the injured reserve.

The veteran defensive back has been dealing with a knee issue for the entire season. The injury forced him to miss Philly’s Week 6 loss to the Jets, and Slay has only practice once over the past two weeks. With the Eagles sitting towards the top of the NFC, the team is clearly hoping to get Slay right before the playoffs.

Despite the lingering injury, the five-time Pro Bowler is having another productive season in 2023. In 12 starts, Slay has collected 57 tackles, 14 passes defended, and two interceptions (including a pick-six). Pro Football Focus has Slay ranked 41st among 119 qualifying cornerbacks, with the site giving him especially high marks for his coverage.

With Slay sidelined, it’s uncertain who will step into the starting lineup. Kelee Ringo seems like the most likely candidate to start opposite James Bradberry, with the rookie fourth-round pick recently jumping Josh Jobe on the depth chart. Per ESPN’s Jeff McLane, the Eagles could also consider moving Bradley Roby from the slot to the outside while Slay is sidelined.

Chargers Fire Brandon Staley, Tom Telesco

December 15th, 2023 at 10:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

Following the Raiders’ historic rout of the Chargers on Thursday night, the reeling team will drop the hammer early. The Bolts announced the firings of Brandon Staley and Tom Telesco on Friday morning.

The Chargers have since announced the promotion of Giff Smith and JoJo Wooden to respectively replace Staley and Telesco on an interim basis. The former has experience as a D-line coach dating back to 1999, and he has been in the organization since 2016. Over the past two seasons, though, he has worked as the team’s outside linebackers coach. This will be Smith’s first appointment as a head coach at the college or pro level.

Wooden, meanwhile, has been with the Chargers for the past decade. He has served with the title of player personnel director after working his way through the ranks in the Jets’ scouting department from 1997 to 2012. Like Smith, he will now oversee the conclusion of a highly disappointing campaign for the Bolts before potentially garnering consideration for the full-time role.

This is the first instance of the Chargers firing a head coach in-season since they axed Kevin Gilbride 25 years ago. But Staley has long been expected to be out, with the Bolts regressing in a season following a 27-point collapse in the wild-card round. Telesco spent 11 years as the Chargers’ GM. While much-hyped rosters formed under his watch, the team did not turn well-regarded transactions into sustained success.

Hired in 2021, Staley came over after one season as the Rams’ defensive coordinator. But the ascendant assistant could not establish success in this area with the Chargers. The Raiders dropping 63 on their rivals, 42 of those points coming in the first half, after the Vikings had held them scoreless in Week 15 prompted Bolts ownership to act early.

Telesco backed Staley following the Jaguars’ wild-card rally, which doubled as the third-biggest postseason deficit ever overcome, and the “what if?” involving Sean Payton is worth examining. The then-FOX analyst was linked to being interested in the Chargers job at multiple points last year. The move would have allowed Payton to stay in Los Angeles. But Telesco kept Staley, continuing a Chargers trend of keeping coaches beyond two seasons.

Staley is now the first Bolts HC to lose his job after less than four full seasons since the team fired Mike Riley following the 2001 campaign. Even Riley, who did not produce a winning season, lasted longer than Staley. But the alarming Week 15 performance opened the door to the Bolts needing to cut the cord now. As the team began to struggle this season, Chargers president John Spanos — a previous Staley advocate — began to distance himself from the embattled HC, Outkick.com’s Armando Salguero notes. The Spanoses will now begin to look for Staley’s replacement in an offseason that will remind of 2013, when the Bolts replaced both their HC and GM.

The Telesco news represents a bigger-picture development. The former Colts exec had hired Mike McCoy, Anthony Lynn and Staley during his run as GM. Telesco’s drafts brought difference-makers in Joey Bosa, Keenan Allen, Derwin James, Rashawn Slater and Justin Herbert. Telesco did well to leave no gaps between star quarterbacks, selecting Herbert sixth overall a month after Philip Rivers departed in free agency. Telesco, 51, also hammered out a through-2029 Herbert extension this offseason. The quarterback’s presence will make both the new Bolts vacancies attractive, but rampant underachievement has defined this team for much of the 21st century.

Even before the Raiders’ rout, Telesco was rumored to be on the chopping block. Dean Spanos will opt to not let Telesco hire a fourth HC. The three he hired combined for just three playoff appearances in 11 seasons. The Chargers, who had sustained success under Marty Schottenheimer and the early part of Norv Turner‘s ensuing HC run, have not ventured to back-to-back playoff brackets since the 2008-09 seasons. Despite Rivers playing his final seven Chargers seasons during Telesco’s tenure, the potential Hall of Famer only piloted the Bolts to two playoff brackets in that span. The Chargers won postseason games in 2013 and ’18 and were on track to eliminate the Jags last season, but success proved fleeting for squads that seemed to annually generate buzz.

After hiring offense-oriented coaches in 2013 and ’17, Telesco chose Staley’s defensive acumen to pair with Herbert in 2021. The Chargers managed to produce the AFC’s Pro Bowl starting quarterback and miss the playoffs. That had not happened in the AFC since the 1989 Bengals. Herbert put up dazzling numbers in 2021, but a Week 18 loss to the Raiders led to the budding superstar’s season wrapping early. A rib injury last September limited Herbert, and Staley fired OC Joe Lombardi following the playoff season. Two-year DC Renaldo Hill left to rejoin Vic Fangio in Miami this offseason.

Following a 2021 season that featured the Bolts ranking 29th in points allowed, Staley made a push for the team to equip him with better defensive personnel in 2022. The team traded for Khalil Mack and signed J.C. Jackson and Sebastian Joseph-Day. The Mack trade belatedly panned out, with the former Raiders and Bears standout rebounding for 15 sacks this season. The five-year, $82.5MM Jackson contract proved disastrous for the Chargers, who sent the underperforming cornerback back to the Patriots for next to nothing earlier this season.

The Chargers had made Jackson a healthy scratch in Week 3. Even after the round of defensive reinforcements, Staley’s 2022 defense ranked 20th; after last night’s Raider rampage, his third Charger defense ranks 29th. Last season’s Jacksonville catastrophe also featured the Bolts lining up without Mike Williams, who was injured in a meaningless Week 18 game against the Broncos. Staley and Telesco each defended the decision to leave starters in that contest deep into the second half, but the Chargers — who have struggled with receiver health over the past two seasons — suffered the consequences of Williams’ absence a week later. As the Chargers swooned in the wake of the playoff debacle, they lost Herbert to a season-ending finger injury.

Herbert’s status will naturally drive interest in this position, and some around the league are monitoring the Chargers as a Bill Belichick suitor. The Bolts would likely need to trade for the Patriots legend, and it would be interesting to see if this gains traction. A short-term Belichick-Herbert pairing would draw interest for a franchise that has struggled to establish itself in L.A., while such a move would also be a zag after Telesco made inexperienced coordinators — in Staley and Lynn — his HC choices. But we are still a ways away from the Belichick market taking shape.

Regardless of where the Chargers go from here, their next regime will be responsible for undoing some of the damage this era brought. The organization’s reputation for letdowns pushed “Chargering” into the NFL lexicon. In a division with Payton and Patrick Mahomes, the Bolts suddenly have more ground to make up despite striking gold with Herbert.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

NFL Injury Rumors: Holland, Dillon, Pacheco, Miller, Elam

December 15th, 2023 at 10:11pm CST by Ely Allen

Injuries aren’t anything to keep Dolphins safety Jevon Holland down for long. The third-year starter has missed three games this season (the most he’s missed in his short carer) while dealing with reported knee injuries. According to an interview Holland did with Adam Beasley of Pro Football Network, the Dolphins defender has been dealing with two MCL sprains.

A single MCL sprain is enough to force many players to sit out multiple games, as those knee ligament injuries are not meant to be dealt with lightly. Regardless, Holland wants to be through with missing time, telling Beasley that “he’s optimistic about playing this week.” With the team’s other starting safety DeShon Elliott out this week after suffering a concussion in Miami’s surprising loss to the Titans on Monday, the defense would be glad to return Holland to the field.

Here are a few other injury rumors from around the NFL:

  • Packers running back A.J. Dillon has already been asked to step into a starting role with Aaron Jones out for the past three weeks. Green Bay may be down another rusher as Dillon reportedly suffered a broken thumb in the team’s loss to the Giants on Monday night, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. Like Holland, Dillon isn’t one to miss time with an injury. The only games he’s missed in his career were due to COVID-19 during his rookie year. That being said, he’s never played with a broken thumb. He’s listed as questionable heading into the weekend, but Dillon is trying to figure out if he can play through the injury. The biggest issue comes with the fact that opposing teams will know of the injury and attempts to punch out fumbles could lead to further harm.
  • Isiah Pacheco has only missed one game since taking over as the Chiefs‘ starting running back in Week 2, sitting out for last week’s loss to the Bills. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, head coach Andy Reid reported that Pacheco underwent “a clean up procedure on his shoulder” that will force him to miss this weekend’s matchup with the Patriots, as well. Reid expects that Pacheco should be able to return after that.
  • Yet another running back, Saints rookie rusher Kendre Miller has missed the team’s past four games with an ankle injury and is scheduled to miss a fifth straight game this weekend. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill believes that we haven’t seen the last of Miller this season. While the TCU-product may not be back immediately after this week’s game, Underhill thinks a Week 17 appearance in Tampa Bay could be in the cards for the 21-year-old.
  • Lastly, it’s safe to say that we haven’t seen the best from Bills second-year cornerback Kaiir Elam in his sophomore season. 2023 has been an injury-riddled year for the Florida-product as he’s only made an appearance in three games this year, the most recent of which only saw him on special teams. According to Ryan O’Halloran of The Buffalo News, Elam reportedly tore an ankle ligament prior to the start of the regular season. While he did sit out the team’s first four contests, Elam’s Week 5 return apparently saw him attempting to play through the injury without it being healed due to injuries to Tre’Davious White and Christian Benford in the team’s Week 4 win over the Dolphins. The injury would eventually push him onto injured reserve at the start of November. He’s since been designated to return from IR. If he isn’t able to return by shortly after Christmas, Elam will remain on IR for the rest of the year.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/15/23

December 15th, 2023 at 7:54pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor transactions, including some practice squad callups for the Saturday games:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Indianapolis Colts

Minnesota Vikings

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Getting Charles back should provide a bit of a boost for a Commanders’ offensive line that has allowed quarterback Sam Howell to be sacked an NFL-leading 58 times. That being said, they led the league in that category when Charles was healthy, as well. Still, as Charles attempts to come back from the calf injury that sidelined him for six games, he’ll have to overcome second-year guard Chris Paul, who has been starting in his place since the injury. While Charles had been struggling in a contract year, his replacement has ranked as the fourth-worst guard in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

Wormley, Krull, and Senat all make their way up to the active roster for two reasons: first, injuries, and second, they’ve already appeared as standard gameday elevations off of the practice squad the maximum three times. In order to appear in any other games this year, all three needed to be signed to new contracts. If the players they are replacing come back from injury before the end of the season, any of them can be waived, re-signed to the practice squad, and elevated an additional three times.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/15/23

December 15th, 2023 at 6:51pm CST by Ely Allen

Friday’s practice squad adjustments:

Indianapolis Colts

Seattle Seahawks

Rivers finds his way to the practice squad injured reserve list, making room for Hambright to return after being released from the squad yesterday.

Rashed finally finds his way onto a roster in 2023 after failing to make the Buccaneers 53-man roster in August. He comes in as a replacement for outside linebacker Tyreke Smith, who was signed away from Seattle onto the Cardinals active roster today.

Texans’ Will Anderson Out For Week 15

December 15th, 2023 at 5:53pm CST by Adam La Rose

DECEMEBER 15: Anderson has indeed been ruled out on the Texans’ injury report. His recent uptick in production will be interrupted, while Houston will enter Week 15 notably shorthanded on both sides of the ball. After not practicing all week, Anderson’s ability to return to the field in any capacity will be worth monitoring following the Titans contest.

DECEMBER 14: The Texans are in the thick of the AFC playoff picture, but they are in danger of being severely shorthanded on both sides of the ball for their next game. Quarterback C.J. Stroud is in the league’s concussion protocol, and the team’s other top-three rookie could also miss a contest for the first time in his career.

Edge rusher Will Anderson suffered a high ankle sprain in the Texans’ loss to the Jets on Sunday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reports. As a result, Anderson has been in a walking boot over the past few days and he has not practiced. While there is still time for a turnaround, signs point to Anderson missing the upcoming contest against the Titans, Wilson adds.

Anderson has managed to suit up for every game so far in his rookie season, one which began with substantial expectations. The Texans pulled off a major trade-up to acquire the No. 3 pick in April’s draft after using the previous selection to add Stroud. Houston had been expected by many to forego drafting a quarterback at the top of the board to instead choose Anderson, widely seen as the 2023 class’ top edge rusher. Instead, the team managed to draft both, and they have each played a signficant role in the Texans’ impressive season to date.

While Stroud has drawn considerable praise for his performances throughout the year (Week 14 being a notable exception), Anderson endured a cold spell during the early part of the campaign. After a six-game sack drought, however, the latter has racked up four sacks across the past six games, bringing his total in that department to five. The Alabama alum has also produced 42 tackles, 19 QB hits and 27 pressures in 2023.

Those figures have helped the 22-year-old generate a PFF grade of 80.5, which ranks 18th amongst qualified edge rushers. Missing Anderson would thus deal a signficant blow to the Texans’ defense, a unit which already sits outside the top 20 in the league in sacks. Fellow defensive end Jonathan Greenard – who has produced a career-best and team-leading 10 sacks in his walk year – would be counted on even more in the event Anderson were unable to suit up in Week 15.

Houston is one of six AFC teams sitting at 7-6 on the year, and the absence of Stroud (if he were unable to clear concussion protocol) would significantly hinder the team’s offense. The Texans would likewise be significantly affected on defense if Anderson is unable to return to practice in the coming days.

Latest On Jim Harbaugh

December 15th, 2023 at 5:12pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Chargers have joined the Raiders and Panthers by making an in-season head coach firing. That adds them to the list of clubs on the lookout for a replacement during (or in advance of) a hiring cycle which figures to have a few big-name candidates.

One of those could be Jim Harbaugh. The former 49ers bench boss has not been in the NFL since he took charge of Michigan in 2015. A new deal with the Wolverines could be in play, something which would mark an end to the latest round of speculation pointing to an NFL return. People around the league remain convinced Harbaugh does have his eyes on the pro ranks, though, Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post notes.

Harbaugh has been met with two separate three-game suspensions this season, but Michigan’s sign-stealing scheme is not believed to be a hindrance to his prospects of taking an NFL job. Once again, the 59-year-old has been connected to a number of openings with his future in question. Reports have pointed to a 2024 return, but no firm decision has been made at this point.

On that note, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler writes Harbaugh will wait until after the upcoming College Football Playoff has concluded. Ranked No. 1 in the country, the Wolverines have a strong chance of winning a national title for the first time under Harbaugh, who could pursue unfinished business by returning to the NFL. He led to 49ers to the Super Bowl in 2012, but came up short of a Lombardi Trophy during his four-year tenure in San Francisco.

Still, Harbaugh’s track record in the NFL, along with his stints at Stanford and Michigan, have made him a high-profile coaching candidate. He interviewed with the Vikings in 2022, and met with the Broncos before any other HC prospect in Denver’s search this offseason. That process was followed by a new commitment to remaining at Michigan, but Harbaugh has unsurprisingly been linked to numerous openings – both amongst teams which have a vacancy and those which are presumed to make a change this offseason – around the league.

Prior to dismissing Staley earlier today, the Chargers showed informal interest. Outkick’s Armando Salguero reports a “Spanos family confidant” reached out to people connected to Harbaugh before reporting back to the Chargers’ owners. It will be interesting to see what, if anything, comes of that backdoor inquiry with Los Angeles now on the lookout for a new coach.

Unlike coordinators currently under contract in the NFL, Harbaugh is a candidate not subject to the rules related to when prospective coaches are allowed to be interviewed for HC positions. As a result, he can agree to join an NFL staff at any time, though his attention will remain on Michigan’s title hopes in the coming weeks. In any event, Harbaugh’s name will remain on the front burner for the time being.

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