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Injured Reserve Return Tracker

December 14th, 2024 at 9:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

This offseason brought a change in how teams could construct their 53-man rosters while retaining flexibility with injured players. Clubs were permitted to attach return designations to two players (in total) placed on IR or an NFI list before setting their initial rosters.

In prior years, anyone placed on IR before a team set its initial 53-man roster could not be activated in-season. All August 27 IR- or NFI-return designations, however, already count against teams’ regular-season limit of eight. This introduces more strategy for teams, who will be tasked with determining which players injured in-season will factor into activation puzzles as the year progresses.

All players designated for return on August 27 were eligible to be activated beginning in Week 5, though any player placed on IR after a team set its initial 53 has not been designated for return and therefore does not yet count toward a club’s eight-activation limit. Players who receive return designations after Week 5 also appear on this list.

This offseason also brought a second adjustment, with teams who qualify for the playoffs set to have two additional activations at their disposals. On that note, here is how teams’ activation puzzles look going into Week 17:

Arizona Cardinals

Designated for return:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Atlanta Falcons

Designated for return from IR (August 27): 

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Baltimore Ravens

Eligible for activation:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 3

Buffalo Bills

Designated for return from IR (August 27):

Activated

Activations remaining: 2

Carolina Panthers

Activated:

Activations remaining: 0

Chicago Bears

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Cincinnati Bengals

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 5

Cleveland Browns

Eligible for activation:

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 1

Dallas Cowboys

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Denver Broncos

Designated for return:

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 3

Detroit Lions

Designated for return: 

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Green Bay Packers

Eligible for activation:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 5

Houston Texans

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 1

Indianapolis Colts

Designated for return from IR (August 27):

Designated for return: 

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

Jacksonville Jaguars

Eligible for activation:

  • OL Cooper Hughes

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 3

Kansas City Chiefs

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

Las Vegas Raiders

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Los Angeles Chargers

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

Los Angeles Rams

Eligible for activation:

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 1

Miami Dolphins

Designated for return from reserve/NFI list:

Eligible for activation from IR:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

Minnesota Vikings

Designated for return from IR (August 27):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 3

New England Patriots

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

New Orleans Saints

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

New York Giants

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

New York Jets

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

Philadelphia Eagles

Designated for return from IR (August 27):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Pittsburgh Steelers

Designated for return from IR (August 27):

  • OL Dylan Cook (released Oct. 31)

Eligible for activation:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 2

San Francisco 49ers

Eligible for activation:

Reverted to season-ending IR: 

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 3

Seattle Seahawks

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 2

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Designated for return: 

Eligible for activation:

Reverted to season-ending IR:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 4

Tennessee Titans

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 5

Washington Commanders

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/14/24

December 14th, 2024 at 8:47pm CST by Ely Allen

Saturday’s minor moves and standard gameday elevations:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Demercado has taken a backseat to Florida State third-round rookie Trey Benson, but he has averaged 9.3 yards per carry on 24 carries this year. Palardy will take over punting duties with Gillikin landing on injured reserve.

Jackson signed with Bills in late July, and although he was among the team’s final roster cuts he was immediately retained via a practice squad deal. This elevation means Week 15 will mark his first time spent on the active roster this season. The 36-year-old has started all but 10 of his 203 NFL games, but last season was marred by suspensions which led to his Broncos release. Jackson could suit up for Buffalo down the stretch as a gameday elevation in a bid to rebuild his stock to a degree.

With the playoffs nearly out of reach and quarterback Joe Burrow dealing with a few ailments (wrist and knee), the Bengals don’t seem to be taking any chances. Jake Browning will continue serving as the primary backup, while Woodside’s promotion will allow him to act as the emergency backup.

Adams has seen his biggest NFL roles during his time in Pittsburgh. Though he hasn’t gotten the same number of starts as he had in 2022 and 2023, he’s continued the same level of production. After missing the last four games, he’ll be looking to return to the field as early as tomorrow.

Ravens Suspend WR Diontae Johnson

December 4th, 2024 at 10:02pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Ravens have suspended veteran wide receiver Diontae Johnson for one game, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.

General manager Eric DeCosta issued the following statement on the team’s decision, one that stems from Johnson refusing to enter the team’s Week 13 game against the Eagles.

“We have made the difficult decision to suspend Diontae Johnson for our upcoming game against the New York Giants for conduct detrimental to the team,” DeCosta said. “Diontae’s suspension stems from refusing to enter our game against the Philadelphia Eagles.”

DeCosta added that the Ravens would not have any additional comment on the situation moving forward.

Johnson did not play a single snap in the Ravens’ Week 13 loss to the Eagles despite a knee injury that knocked starter Rashod Bateman out of the game. Head coach John Harbaugh declined to elaborate on Johnson’s absence after the game, though his comments hinted at the sort of internal issue that DeCosta’s statement revealed.

Johnson has been active for all five games since his arrival in Baltimore, but only played 39 snaps on offense with just one catch for six yards on five targets. Bateman’s injury appeared to be an opportunity for the veteran wideout to see more targets from Lamar Jackson, but Johnson refused to enter the game, leading to his suspension. Nelson Agholor and Tylan Wallace filled in for Bateman instead, with Agholor unable to reel in his two targets while Wallace caught both of his for 14 yards.

The suspension continues a tumultuous contract year for Johnson in which he was averaging 51.0 yards per game in Carolina before his trade to the Ravens. Johnson quickly grew frustrated with his minimal role in Baltimore’s offense, though it is unclear why he would turn down the opportunity for more snaps when it arose.

The Ravens’ decision to suspend Johnson signals that the team is considering moving on from the veteran receiver. Baltimore still thinks that Johnson “could help them down the stretch,” according to FOX Sports’ Jordan Schultz, especially if Bateman misses time. However, a team with strong playoff chances and Super Bowl aspirations needs “everyone to be fully committed and team-focused,” per Schultz, forcing the Ravens to determine if Johnson is worth keeping around.

Baltimore has some time to weigh their options with a bye week before their Week 15 matchup against the Giants in which Johnson will be ineligible to play. Keeping him on the roster after the bye would indicate that the Ravens have resolved the situation with Johnson.

This is not the first internal issue the Ravens have dealt with this season. Marcus Williams has been reduced to a healthy scratch multiple times after his struggles in coverage, and Eddie Jackson was released after refusing to travel with the team to Pittsburgh in Week 11.

WR Diontae Johnson Facing Uncertain Ravens Future

December 3rd, 2024 at 9:28am CST by Adam La Rose

The Ravens were among the teams which made a receiver addition ahead of the trade deadline, acquiring Diontae Johnson from the Panthers. The sixth-year veteran was happy to move on from Carolina after less than one campaign with the team, but it remains to be seen how long he will remain in Baltimore.

Johnson had a number of receivers ahead of him on the WR depth chart upon arrival with the Ravens. Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman have operated as starters, while Nelson Agholor and Tylan Wallace have been more involved than Johnson over the past several games. In five games since joining Baltimore, the former Steelers Pro Bowler has only managed one catch on five targets with no uptick in usage in sight.

“At this time, I’m going to have to wait just to clarify it,” head coach John Harbaugh said when asked about Johnson’s future (via ESPN’s Jamison Hensley). “There’s some moving parts there that we’re going to have to figure out and explore and just see where we’re at. I know that’s not the answer you want, but that’s the best I can do in fairness to everybody right now.”

Johnson dressed for the Ravens’ Week 13 loss to the Eagles, but even with Bateman suffering a knee injury he did not log a snap during the game. The 28-year-old represented a low-cost rental since he is a pending free agent and the Panthers retained most of his remaining 2024 salary to pull off the deal. Expectations were therefore low from the beginning, but Johnson’s lack of usage coupled with Harbaugh’s remarks have led to questions about his Baltimore tenure ending even before the regular season concludes.

Bateman’s knee injury is not believed to be serious, and with the Ravens on their bye in Week 14 he may be recovered in time for the team’s next game. Provided he and Flowers remain healthy, Johnson will be set to continue as a complementary option on an offense which also relies on tight end Mark Andrews in the passing game and Derrick Henry on the ground. As Baltimore considers roster moves over the coming days, it will be interesting to see if more clarity emerges in Johnson’s case.

Ravens Remain Committed To Justin Tucker

December 2nd, 2024 at 10:40am CST by Adam La Rose

Week 13 marked a continuation of Ravens kicker Justin Tucker‘s struggles. Questions were once again raised about a change at the position, but nothing on that front is imminent.

Tucker missed two field goals and an extra point during the Ravens’ five-point loss to the Eagles. It marked the first time in the five-time All-Pro’s decorated career he missed three kicks in a single contest, and it represented another poor outing in 2024. Tucker’s field goal accuracy now sits at 70.4% on the year, easily the lowest of his NFL tenure.

“If you’re asking me, ‘Are we going to move on from Justin Tucker?’ I’m not really planning on doing that right now,” head coach John Harbaugh said after the game (via ESPN’s Jamison Hensley). “I don’t think that’d be wise.”

In place with Baltimore since 2012, Tucker has spent much of his career as one of the league’s top kickers. His resume includes a Super Bowl title, a spot on the 2010s All-Decade team, seven Pro Bowl nods and the all-time record for the longest made field goal in league history (a 66-yarder from 2021). At the start of the season, the 35-year-old’s career accuracy mark of 90.2% was the highest in NFL history.

On multiple occasions in 2024, however, Tucker’s misses have proven costly in close Ravens losses. Overall, he has gone only 9-for-17 on field goals beyond 40 yards while remaining perfect within that distance. The Texas product’s two missed extra points match the most he has had on that front in a single campaign. Baltimore’s bye comes in Week 14, giving Tucker and the team time to reset before the final stretch of the campaign.

Tucker signed a $6MM-per-year extension in 2022; at the time, that made him the league’s highest-paid kicker. Jake Elliott (Eagles) and Harrison Butker (Chiefs) have since matched and surpassed that figure, respectively, but expectations understandably remain high in Tucker’s case given his track record and his contract. He is due $4.2MM in 2025 and ’26, with an increase in pay to $5.15MM for the final year of the pact. No base salary is guaranteed beyond the current season, something which could lead to increased speculation about a kicker change relatively soon. For now, though, Tucker is set to remain in his current role.

NFL Contract Notes: Henry, Barkley, Smith, Reddick, Hubbard

December 1st, 2024 at 7:25pm CST by Ely Allen

Ravens running back Derrick Henry has been enjoying a phenomenal first season in Baltimore. The team signed him to a two-year, $16MM deal that saw him receive $9MM in cash in the first year. Henry’s deal also came with five $500K incentives.

His incentives are maxed out at $2MM, so he can only cash in on four of those five incentives, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. So far this year, Henry has hit on three incentives: 1,200 rushing yards, 13 total touchdowns, and 15 total touchdowns.

The remaining two incentives would require him to reach 1,500 rushing yards or would require the team to win the Super Bowl. While the Ravens still have a ways to go in order to get to the big game, Henry only needs 93 yards in the team’s final four games in order to max out his incentives.

Here are a few other contract notes from around the NFL:

  • Eagles running back Saquon Barkley also is tracking down some incentives. Smartly, none of Barkley’s incentives revolve around rushing touchdowns, thanks to the infamous “tush push,” per Garafolo and Ian Rapoport. Barkley will earn $250K if he reaches 1,500 scrimmage yards (he’s 36 yards away from that total after today’s game in Baltimore) and an additional $250K if he reaches 2,000. Additionally, each incentive acts as an escalator for next year’s base salary, adding a potential $1MM to his total contract value. He also would receive $250K for a second-team All-Pro or Pro Bowl selection and $500K for a first-team All-Pro selection. That incentive would act as an escalator for next year, as well. Lastly, Barkley would earn $250K each for victories in the NFC Championship Game and the Super Bowl.
  • Jets left tackle Tyron Smith may have just been placed on injured reserve, but his health up to that point had been paying dividends. His recent injury history required him to settle for a heavily incentivized contract with only $6.5MM in base salary and $12MM in playing time incentives. By playing every snap through nine games, Smith essentially qualified for the 50% of offensive snaps threshold that earns him $2.75MM. Every additional game after that would essentially net him an additional $1MM, per ESPN’s Rich Cimini, with the final five games being worth $1.25MM per week. Unfortunately, he only fit one game in before moving to IR. He could make his way back to earn a couple more incentives, but New York may prefer to get an extended look at their tackle of the future, Olu Fashanu, instead.
  • Also in New York, pass rusher Haason Reddick still has an opportunity to earn some playing time incentives after ending his holdout, per Cimini. Through the four games (before today) Reddick has appeared in, he has played 179 of 275 defensive snaps, good for about 43 percent. If he can keep that percentage over 40, he’ll earn a $791,628 incentive bonus, but his last two games have seen him only play 37 percent of the team’s snaps, so that bonus may be in danger. Reddick could also earn a $500K bonus if he reaches eight sacks, but with only 0.5 sacks through five games with only five more remaining, that incentive feels out of reach.
  • Lastly, we saw the Panthers reward running back Chuba Hubbard with a recent four-year, $33.2MM extension. Per our friends at OvertheCap.com, the deal comes with a signing bonus of $7.71MM and only sees the first year’s base salary guaranteed.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/30/24

November 30th, 2024 at 9:34pm CST by Ely Allen

Saturday’s minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo is listed as questionable, but head coach Raheem Morris is confident he’ll play, calling Patterson an emergency option.

Speculation out of Baltimore was that Maulet wouldn’t require a second stint on injured reserve with his calf injury, but that intel appears to have been off. Maulet and Kolar could potentially make a return in time for the postseason, but they’ll miss four games before they do.

VanSumeren served double-duty as a fullback and linebacker. With his placement on IR, Uzomah was targeted as a possibility to fill in at fullback.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/28/24

November 28th, 2024 at 6:45pm CST by Ely Allen

Thanksgiving Day minor moves from around the NFL:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Quitoriano’s injury struggles continue. The depth tight end who often appears in running plays and multi-tight end sets has yet to prove he can stay on the field for much more than half a season. After appearing in 16 games (11 starts) over his first two years in the NFL, Quitoriano was only able to appear in seven games (four starts) before hitting injured reserve this year. Signed off the Bears’ practice squad to make up for the season-ending loss of Brevin Jordan, Quitoriano’s loss leaves Dalton Schultz and Cade Stover as the only healthy tight ends on the active roster as Quitoriano joins Jordan and Dalton Keene on IR. Houston has veteran Irv Smith on the practice squad, as well.

Practice Window Opened For Ravens NT Michael Pierce

November 27th, 2024 at 10:01pm CST by Ely Allen

The Ravens have been without veteran nose tackle Michael Pierce for the last four weeks now, officially making him eligible to return from injured reserve. Baltimore is preparing to do just that after designating him to return from IR today, opening his 21-day practice window, per Ravens staff writer Clifton Brown. According to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley, head coach John Harbaugh is even hopeful that Pierce will be able to return this week.

This is a massive upgrade over the status report from last week. Only a week ago, the Ravens were reporting that they didn’t have a timeline on when Pierce would return, only that they definitely had plans to bring him back. Pierce was placed on IR with a calf injury at the end of October, and even then, the team knew that it would not be a season-ender.

The injury spread Baltimore’s defensive line incredibly thin, with injuries to Travis Jones and Brent Urban making it necessary to elevate practice squad defensive tackle Josh Tupou three times. The unit is starting to get its health back, which couldn’t come at a better time. Pierce’s return could complete a defensive line group that is about to face the league’s top rushing attack. While the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry had given that title to Baltimore over the first several weeks of the season, some recent impressive performances by running back Saquon Barkley have earned Philadelphia that honor of late.

There’s work yet to be done in order for the Ravens’ defensive line to be full-strength against Barkley and the Eagles. Baltimore will keep a close eye on Pierce in their remaining practices this week before anything becomes official, but the good news is that it sounds like a return to the field will happen sooner rather than later.

Ravens TE Charlie Kolar Out With Broken Arm

November 27th, 2024 at 8:33pm CST by Ely Allen

The Ravens could soon place one of their tight ends on injured reserve after an injury from this past Monday night’s game. Before fantasy owners go sprinting for their phones, it’s not Mark Andrews or Isaiah Likely dealing with injury but third-string tight end Charlie Kolar. Kolar suffered a broken arm, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, and is expected to miss four games before a possible return.

According to Pelissero, Kolar suffered the broken bone early on in the fourth quarter then went on to finish the game before ever undergoing X-rays. A four-week absence would include a bye week but would also end in the midst of a 10-day stretch in which the Ravens play three games ending on Wednesday, Christmas Day. If he missed exactly four weeks, to the day, he would be returning on Christmas, so it’s probably not likely that they’d see him return with only three missed games on a short week.

For this reason, an IR stint might be best, especially considering that Baltimore still retains five of its eight IR activations. This would see Kolar make a return in time for the team’s regular season finale against the Browns and, potentially, in time for a playoff run.

Kolar is no stranger to injury, missing all but two games of his rookie season on IR after surgery to address a sports hernia injury. In his third year with the team, he’s posted career highs in receptions (9) and receiving yards (131). Kolar has obviously been playing third fiddle to teammates Andrews and Likely, but that certainly doesn’t mean he’s not a talented tight end in his own right.

According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), while Andrews ranks as the fourth-best tight end in the NFL out of 77 graded players at the position and Likely ranks 12th, Kolar sits just behind them at 16th. This isn’t the usual scenario in which one of the three tight ends is a talented run blocking specialist, all three have exceptional receiving metrics with Kolar holding the seventh-best receiving grade in the league.

In response to the injury, head coach John Harbaugh told the media they were “going to put another guy out there,” per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. Obviously, Andrews and Likely will continue to dominate time at tight end, but Kolar still played about a third of the team’s offensive snaps. If they’re going to replace those snaps with somebody currently on their roster, they’d have to dip into the practice squad.

Currently, Zaire Mitchell-Paden is one healthy option. The 25-year-old was signed as an undrafted free agent in Cleveland following a graduate transfer year at Florida Atlantic in which he caught nine passes for 90 yards and a touchdown. He was more likely signed based on his time at Division II Notre Dame College where he caught 90 balls for 1,206 yards in four years. Another option is Scotty Washington, who the Ravens signed to their practice squad today, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Washington joined the team’s practice squad about this time last year but didn’t open this year with the team after failing to make either roster.

The team also rosters undrafted Samford rookie Qadir Ismail. The son of a former two-time 1,000-yard receiver for the Ravens, Qadry Ismail, Qadir is a converted quarterback who became a wide receiver at Villanova before transferring. Now, in the NFL, Baltimore views him as a tight end, but he’ll need to get healthy in order to make an impact this year.

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