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NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/14/23

November 14th, 2023 at 8:36pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad transactions:

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

  • Released: CB Reese Taylor

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

  • Signed: LB Austin Ajiake

Houston Texans

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Ravens Sign OL Josh Wells To Practice Squad

November 14th, 2023 at 1:07pm CST by Sam Robinson

It initially appeared Josh Wells‘ gateway to a 10th NFL season would be in Jacksonville. The veteran offensive lineman signed with his initial NFL team back in April, but that partnership did not last too far beyond training camp.

The Jaguars placed Wells on IR in August, preventing him from suiting up for them this season. But a September injury settlement led Wells off Jacksonville’s IR list and back into free agency. On Tuesday, he agreed to terms with the Ravens on a practice squad deal. This came after a workout, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets.

The Ravens have dealt with some injury trouble on the offensive line as of late. Right tackle Morgan Moses has missed the past two games with a shoulder injury, though he logged a full practice Monday. Ronnie Stanley left the Ravens-Browns matchup with a knee injury and did not return. The longtime left tackle did not practice Monday. Considering Stanley’s history with knee trouble and the Ravens readying for a Thursday-night Bengals tilt, they are bringing in a veteran reinforcement.

Wells, 32, has primarily worked as a swing tackle throughout his career. The James Madison alum spent the past four seasons backing up Donovan Smith and Tristan Wirfs in Tampa. Wells made 15 starts with the Buccaneers, including seven last season. He started in the Bucs’ 2021 divisional-round matchup against the Rams, filling in for an injured Wirfs at right tackle. A 2014 Jags UDFA, Wells made nine starts with his first NFL employer before moving on and joining the Bucs in Bruce Arians’ first offseason in Tampa.

To make room on the practice squad, the Ravens released veteran tight end Eric Tomlinson. Spending parts of the 2020 and ’21 seasons in Baltimore, Tomlinson rejoined the team this offseason. After playing regularly in Denver last season, the seven-year vet has not seen action this season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/8/23

September 8th, 2023 at 6:55pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are some minor transactions for today from around the league:

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

Indianapolis Colts

  • Waived from IR with injury settlement: OLB JoJo Domann

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Released from IR with injury settlement: T Josh Wells

Los Angeles Rams

  • Waived from IR with injury settlement: CB Shaun Jolly

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

San Francisco 49ers

Washington Commanders

The releases of Armstrong and Wells are interesting. Armstrong ended last year as a starting cornerback for the Falcons but will now have to continue striving to stay in the NFL. Wells’ release ends a short reunion with the team that drafted him.

Gaskin is reportedly expected to remain in Minnesota and sign to the team’s practice squad to be elevated on Sunday. This is likely a familiar tactic teams use in order to avoid guaranteeing the full value of low-cost veterans’ salaries. Those on the 53-man roster for Week 1 will be guaranteed, while players signed to the active roster after this week will only be guaranteed 35 percent.

Bryant’s short tenure in San Francisco ends as the team makes room for Nick Bosa, who will be activated from the reserve/did not report list after signing his five-year, $170MM extension.

Milne’s move to IR could be an explanation for why the Commanders felt the need to go out and acquire Jamison Crowder following his release from New York.

Jaguars Trim Roster To 53

August 29th, 2023 at 2:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

Teams have until 3pm CT to trim their rosters to the 53-man limit. The Jaguars are getting an early start. Here are the players the Jags cut Tuesday:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Placed on IR:

Placed on reserve/suspended list:

Placed on exempt list:

  • CB Chris Claybrooks

Several of these players will be back, in all likelihood, via practice squad deals. Waiver claims process at 11am CT on Wednesday. Free agents can make plans to join P-squads early, but teams will not have the full picture of who is available until the waiver claims process.

Conner and Ollison being off the roster leaves third-round rookie Tank Bigsby, D’Ernest Johnson and Jamycal Hasty in place behind starter Travis Etienne. The Jaguars chose Conner in the 2022 fifth round, and while they traded James Robinson before last year’s deadline, Conner did not receive much work. He totaled 12 carries for 42 yards as a rookie.

Wells returned to Jacksonville earlier this month, but this IR placement will halt a journey back to regular-season work with his initial NFL team. Wells, 32, started nine games for the Jags from 2014-18. He then worked as a key Buccaneers backup over the past several years. Players placed on IR before the season are not eligible for in-season activations, though an injury settlement could allow Wells to play this season.

Jaguars Sign OL Josh Wells

April 4th, 2023 at 7:34pm CST by Ben Levine

Josh Wells is back with his first organization. The Jaguars announced today that they’ve signed the free agent offensive lineman.

Wells joined the Jaguars as an undrafted free agent out of James Madison in 2014 and ended up spending five years with the organization, appearing in 56 games (10 starts). Following a 2018 campaign where he was limited to seven games thanks in part to a groin injury and a concussion, the lineman was cut by Jacksonville.

He later caught on with the Buccaneers, where he spent the past four seasons. After starting eight of his first 45 games with the organization, Wells started a career-high seven games in 2022. Other than his first season in Tampa Bay, Pro Football Focus has generally graded the veteran as a steady offensive tackle, with the site giving hims props for both his pass- and run-blocking abilities in 2022.

Wells will likely serve as a swing tackle once again in 2023. Cam Robinson and Walker Little are entrenched as the team’s starting tackles, so Wells would need an injury to crack the starting lineup.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/27/22

December 27th, 2022 at 8:55pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor transactions from around the league:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

 

Allen suffered a biceps injury in the Steelers win over Las Vegas, requiring surgery, according to Mark Kaboly of The Athletic. With two games remaining and Pittsburgh in danger of elimination from postseason contention, Allen’s 2022 season has likely come to an end.

Buccaneers T Josh Wells Suffers Season-Ending Knee Injury

December 26th, 2022 at 10:32am CST by Adam La Rose

Tampa Bay earned a come-from-behind, overtime win last night to maintain their lead atop the NFC South. The Buccaneers lost another member of their offensive line for the remainder of the season in the process, however.

Swing tackle Josh Wells suffered a torn patellar tendon in his left knee and is out for the year, reports Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter). He was carted off the field after just 16 snaps yesterday, and was quickly ruled out by the team. That invited speculation that a major injury had occurred, and today’s news confirms that Tampa’s o-line has been dealt another blow.

Wells, 31, was set to make his fourth consecutive start in place of an injured starter at tackle on Sunday, having filled in for Tristan Wirfs the previous three weeks. The latter returned for Week 16, but blindside protector Donovan Smith was unable to play, requiring Wells to shift to the left tackle spot. Wells had already logged the most snaps in a season of his four-year tenure with the Buccaneers (310) prior to suffering the injury.

The former UDFA has made 56 total appearances in Tampa Bay since signing there in 2019. His experience filling in when needed and familiarity with the organization led to a fourth consecutive one-year deal this offseason. The injuries to Wirfs, and then Smith, highlighted his importance despite logging an overall snap share of only 41% on the year. Wells’ PFF grade for 2022 (67.8) was the second-highest of his career, behind only the rating from his rookie campaign in Jacksonville.

This news adds further to the tumult Tampa Bay has endured with respect to their offensive line this season. Both starting guard spots needed replacing with the retirement of Ali Marpet and the free agent departure of Alex Cappa. That was followed by center Ryan Jensen going down with what is expected to be a season-ending injury of his own. The unit’s availability issues – which included Wells being placed on IR in September – have contributed to Tampa’s inconsistency on offense, which has seen the team rank last in rushing production.

If Smith (whom head coach Todd Bowles recently considered benching for performance reasons) is unable to suit up in Week 17, Tampa will likely turn to undrafted rookie Brandon Walton to fill in for him. The latter played 65 snaps in relief of Wells after he went down, and could have a significant role to play in the closing weeks of the season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/22/22

October 22nd, 2022 at 4:45pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are the league’s minor moves going into Week 7:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/19/22

October 19th, 2022 at 5:59pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Cincinnati Bengals

Las Vegas Raiders

Minnesota Vikings

  • Signed off Chiefs practice squad: OLB Benton Whitley

New England Patriots

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Buccaneers Place RB Giovani Bernard, OL Josh Wells On IR

September 21st, 2022 at 9:46am CST by Sam Robinson

After injuries to veterans Giovani Bernard and Josh Wells, the Buccaneers are making roster adjustments. Both players landed on injured reserve Wednesday, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.

Ankle and calf injuries, respectively, will sideline Bernard and Wells for at least four weeks. Wells’ ailment is not believed to be season-ending, per ESPN.com’s Jenna Laine (on Twitter), but the backup tackle will be shut down for a while.

[RELATED: Bucs Add Cole Beasley To Practice Squad]

Wells started in place of injured left tackle Donovan Smith in Week 2, but the ninth-year veteran went down during the Bucs’ win over the Saints. Following Wells’ exit, the Bucs turned to third-year UDFA Brandon Walton, who had spent last season on the team’s practice squad. A Florida Atlantic alum, Walton has only dressed for two NFL games. Sunday marked his first regular-season snaps on offense.

Wells joins center Ryan Jensen and guard Aaron Stinnie on IR. Smith, who missed Week 2 with an elbow injury, remains on the team’s active roster. Smith being unable to go in Week 3 against the Packers would mark yet another new starter for a Bucs offensive line that continues to absorb injury blows. Wells, 31, has been with the Bucs as a backup O-lineman since 2019.

Although the Bucs re-signed Bernard this offseason, the veteran running back has not been used on offense through two games. Leonard Fournette and rookie Rachaad White have played in front of Bernard, whom the Bucs signed as a possible passing-down option last year. Bernard caught 23 passes for just 123 yards last season. At 30, the former Bengals running back has seen time on special teams in his second Bucs slate.

Tampa Bay promoted linebacker Kenny Young and wide receiver Kaylon Geiger to its 53-man roster to replace Bernard and Wells, Stroud adds (via Twitter). The team also added offensive lineman Justin Skule to its practice squad. Skule spent the past three years with the 49ers. While he missed the 2021 season with an ACL tear, Skule started 12 games between the 2019 and ’20 seasons. The Vanderbilt product served as Joe Staley‘s primary replacement during the latter’s 2019 finale.

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