Luke Falk

Extra Points: Coaches, Falk, Bibbs, Tevi

The 2019 NFL season is about halfway over (sorry for reminding you), and it won’t be long before everyone’s attention turns to the coaching carousel. It should be a busy cycle, with at least a handful of jobs opening up. The Redskins have already fired their head coach and several other teams, most obviously the Falcons, could do the same at any moment. But with several first-year head coaches disappointing, there’s also the chance we see some more ‘one and dones’ across the league. Steve Wilks, of course, was fired by the Cardinals after just one season this past cycle. With that in mind, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports took a look at all eight new head coaches, and which might be on the chopping block.

Despite the Bengals being 0-8 and the only winless team in the league, La Canfora doesn’t think Cincy owner Mike Brown would pull the plug on Zac Taylor given his penchant for loyalty. Brown gave Marvin Lewis nearly two decades, so that isn’t too surprising. Interestingly, La Canfora seems to float the possibility of a second Bruce Arians retirement after just one year in Tampa Bay. If the Buccaneers don’t show improvement and are forced to tear it all down, JLC wonders whether Arians would “want to endure a rebuild in 2020.” He adds that “this situation is being watched closely around the league.” La Canfora also seems to think there’s a real possibility the Jets and Browns move on from Adam Gase and Freddie Kitchens respectively, which isn’t all that shocking.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Just when you thought the Jets couldn’t get more dysfunctional, quarterback Luke Falk is filing an injury grievance against the team, sources told Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. New York cut Falk prior to Week 6 after he started two games for the team. Falk, who had a disastrous couple of outings under center, has a hip injury that requires surgery, sources told Mehta. Apparently Falk feels that the Jets released him outright instead of placing him on injured reserve to avoid paying him. Of course, the franchise is already dealing with an ongoing injury grievance filed by offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele.
  • Free agent running back Kapri Bibbs has been suspended for one game, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. It’s unclear exactly what he was suspended for, but obviously it’s pretty minor for it to only be one game. After spending the first three years of his career with the Broncos, Bibbs has bounced around a bit. He finished last season with the Packers, and was cut by Green Bay back in June. He worked out for the Redskins last month, who he was with earlier last season. The pass-catching back received some decent run in a few random weeks with Washington in 2018, totaling 33 touches in ten games.
  • The Chargers are going to be without starting right tackle Sam Tevi for a bit, as he underwent surgery on his knee to scope his meniscus, according to Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn said the injury isn’t season-ending, and that he’ll be back sooner rather than later. Trent Scott, a second-year UDFA, has been filling in. Scott has been dreadful in his place so Los Angeles could really use Tevi back, even though he has never been too solid either.

Jets Waive QB Luke Falk

Luke Falk‘s tenure with the Jets has come to an end. The team waived the quarterback this morning. Taking his spot on the roster is linebacker Brandon Copeland, who had been suspended for the first four games of the season.

With both Sam Darnold and Trevor Siemian out of the lineup, the Jets were forced to turn to the 24-year-old Falk, who had previously been sitting on the organization’s practice squad. He ended up getting into three games for New York, completing 64.4-percent of his passes for 416 yards, three interceptions, and zero scores. The Jets were outscored 20-61 in his two starts.

With Darnold set to return tomorrow vs. the Cowboys, Falk’s days as a starter were clearly over. However, the Jets won’t even keep him around as a backup, instead turning to David Fales. Falk, a 2018 sixth-round pick out of Washington State, will now be looking to join his fourth team in less than two seasons. There’s always a chance he could land back on the Jets practice squad.

Copeland joined the Jets last season and ended up having a career year, compiling 35 tackles and five sacks in 16 games (10 starts). In August, he was slapped with a four-game ban for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/16/19

Here are today’s minor transactions:

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Jets

Jets’ Sam Darnold Won’t Play Vs. Browns

When the Jets take on the Browns on Monday night, they’ll be without starting quarterback Sam Darnold. Darnold will be held out as he recovers from mononucleosis, head coach Adam Gase announced. 

Darnold was held out of Wednesday’s practice this week with an undisclosed and previously undiagnosed illness. The illness was a bit more serious than first thought and, according to Gase, Darnold has lost a significant amount of weight as a result. It’s possible that Darnold will miss additional time, but the team should have a better read on his condition next week.

Without Darnold, the Jets will turn to Trevor Siemian as their Week 2 starter. To back him up, the club has promoted QB Luke Falk from the practice squad.

Siemian, 27, fared reasonably well as the 2016 Broncos’ starter, leading the team to a 9-7 record and throwing 18 touchdown passes against ten interceptions. In 2017, he rated as one of the NFL’s worst quarterbacks, prompting the Broncos to change course. The Jets inked him to a one-year deal this offseason to serve as Darnold’s safety net and he’ll be thrust into action as the club looks to reach .500.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC East

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC East teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Bills, Dolphins, Jets and Patriots are noted below.

Additionally, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads today. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s AFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.

Buffalo Bills

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Jets 

* = International Pathway Program player

Jets Reach 53-Man Max

The Jets did more than just cut a 2019 third-round pick on Saturday, making nearly 40 moves to reach the Week 1 roster limit. Here’s the complete rundown of cut players:

Another spot was freed up when the Jets placed corner Austin Bless on the reserve/non-football injury list.

Extra Points: Elliott, Jets, Titans, Suh, Texans

Let’s check out some notes from around the NFL as we wrap up the weekend:

  • Could the Cowboys be preparing for a future without Ezekiel Elliott? Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk thinks that could be the case, as the writer believes the team could be taking “the DeMarco Murray approach” of running their star back into the ground before moving on. Florio cites a recent quote from COO Stephen Jones, who compared fourth-round running back Tony Pollard to Saints star Alvin Kamara.
  • Sam Darnold and Trevor Siemian are slotted in atop the Jets quarterbacks depth chart, but there will be some competition behind the duo. As ESPN’s Rich Cimini writes, the organization is likely to only carry four quarterbacks to training camp, meaning one of Luke Falk, Davis Webb, or Brandon Silvers will likely be without a job. Cimini notes that head coach Adam Gase likes Falk’s potential, explaining why the Jets claimed him off waivers earlier this week.
  • Would the Titans consider bringing in veteran defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh? Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com says he has not “heard a lot of internal buzz about this.” Suh did visit with the Titans last offseason before he landed with the Rams, and Wyatt notes that the veteran enjoyed his visit with Tennessee. Plus, Suh has a relationship with Titans defensive-line coach Terrell Williams and lineman Cameron Wake, so perhaps a deal isn’t all that unrealistic.
  • Safety Jahleel Addae‘s one-year deal with the Texans is worth $1.105MM, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). The deal includes an $805K base salary, $150K signing bonus, and up to an $150K roster bonus. Addae, 29, was released by the Chargers just prior to the start of free agency after spending six years with the club.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/2/19

Here are today’s minor moves, which feature several recognizable signal-callers:

Arizona Cardinals

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Los Angeles Rams

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Waived: S Delvon Randall (signed as UDFA with partially-guaranteed contract on May 1)

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/1/19

Today’s minor moves:

Cleveland Browns

  • Waived: G David Bright

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed: S P.J. Locke (undrafted college free agent)

Seattle Seahawks

  • Waived: OL Marcus Henry