Thursday’s practice squad moves:
Buffalo Bills
Los Angeles Rams
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers
Tennessee Titans
Here are the latest transactions from around the NFL:
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cleveland Browns
Detroit Lions
Houston Texans
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
Pittsburgh Steelers
Tennessee Titans
Murray suffered a torn pectoral in the Bears’ loss to the Commanders on Sunday, thinning out Chicago’s offensive line depth. He played 37 snaps at left guard in Week 5 in relief of an injured Tevin Jenkins, who left Sunday’s game with another injury. After full participation in practice last week, Larry Borom should be ready to be activated from injured reserve to reinforce the Bears’ offensive line before Week 9.
The Texans officially played Diggs on injured reserve after tests confirmed a season-ending ACL tear, a non-contact injury that occurred in Houston’s Week 8 victory over the Colts. With Nico Collins already on IR, C.J. Stroud will turn to Tank Dell and Dalton Schultz to keep the offense afloat until Collins returns. Diggs’ injury could heavily affect his market in free agency after requiring the Texans to remove the final three years of his contact to facilitate his trade from the Bills.
Sutton is eligible to play for the first time this year after serving an eight-game suspension for violation of the NFL’s personal conduct policy. He was suspended after he was arrested for domestic battery by strangulation in March, leading to his release by the Lions. The Steelers then signed him to a one-year deal in June before the league handed down his suspension in July, forcing Pittsburgh to turn to Beanie Bishop at nickel.
Today’s minor moves and standard gameday practice squad callups:
Carolina Panthers
Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Rams
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
New York Jets
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Autry was hit with a six-game PED suspension in July, leaving the Texans without a key figure along the defensive line. The free agent pickup could have suited up by means of Houston using his one-week roster exemption; instead, he has been activated in time for Week 7. Autry, 34, posted a career-high 11 sacks last season and he will look to make an immediate impact during his Texans debut. Especially with Mario Edwards having been issued a four-game suspension of his own earlier this week, he should have a notable role right away.
Today’s practice squad moves:
Arizona Cardinals
Baltimore Ravens
Cincinnati Bengals
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Green Bay Packers
Indianapolis Colts
Las Vegas Raiders
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Here are the latest transactions from around the NFL:
Arizona Cardinals
Buffalo Bills
Houston Texans
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Jones will get to make his Cardinals debut in Week 7 after serving a five-game suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Arizona requested and received a one-week roster exemption so Jones could get acclimated to his new offense before being added to the 53-man roster. He will bring a veteran presence to a young Cardinals receiver room that lost Marvin Harrison Jr. to a concussion on Sunday.
It sounds like DeMarvin Leal‘s season has come to an end. The Steelers announced that they’ve placed the defensive lineman on injured reserve.
Leal suffered a neck injury last Sunday that limited him to only 12 snaps. Per Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the defender is expected to miss the rest of the 2024 campaign.
The former third-round pick has spent most of this season serving as a linebacker while helping to fill in for the injured Alex Highsmith. Leal mostly played defensive end through his first two seasons in the NFL, starting six of his 23 appearances. In total, the third-year player has collected 33 tackles, one sack, and three QB hits.
In corresponding moves, the Steelers signed linebacker Ade Ogundeji to the 53-man roster and promoted linebacker Eku Leota and running back Jonathan Ward from the practice squad. Ogundeji caught on with Pittsburgh’s practice squad at the end of August and is set to make his season debut. The former fifth-round pick started his career in Atlanta, collecting 75 tackles in 27 starts. He missed the entire 2023 campaign with a foot/ankle injury.
There was also some good news on the injury front this morning. The Steelers removed Jaylen Warren from the injury report, meaning the running back should be back on the field for Week 6. Warren missed Week 4 and Week 5 while nursing a knee injury, and he’ll now rejoin a depth chart that’s co-led by Najee Harris.
OCTOBER 3: Pittsburgh is targeting a Week 7 return for Highsmith, ESPN’s Mark Kaboly reports. That would leave him out of the lineup for upcoming matchups against the Cowboys and Raiders but allow him to be back in place with time to spare before the bye.
SETEMBER 24: A groin injury will sideline Steelers outside linebacker Alex Highsmith for multiple weeks, according to Mike DeFabo of The Athletic. Highsmith initially dealt with the injury during training camp and aggravated it during Pittsburgh’s Week 3 win over the Chargers on Sunday.
Highsmith’s injury is not considered major, nor will it require surgery, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, so the veteran could avoid a stint on injured reserve. Still, this will deal a blow to one of the NFL’s best defenses, which has relied on Highsmith as T.J. Watt‘s top wingman for a while.
2023 fourth-round pick Nate Herbig is expected to take over Highsmith’s role, giving the former Wisconsin linebacker his first starting gig in the NFL. Herbig has appeared in 17 games, making 23 tackles, three sacks, and two forced fumbles during a rookie year spent as a rotational edge defender behind Highsmith and Watt.
Herbig took advantage of his opportunity after Highsmith went down on Sunday, finishing the game with two sacks, including a strip-sack of Justin Herbert after beating Chargers Pro Bowl left tackle Rashawn Slater.
Highsmith’s injury leaves the Steelers thin at outside linebacker, with only Jeremiah Moon backing up Watt and Herbig. Rookie linebacker Payton Wilson has the versatility and size to slide outside and play off the edge, a role he occasionally filled at North Carolina State. Practice squad outside linebacker Adetokunbo Ogundeji will likely receive some game day elevations as well.
Highsmith is in the second year of a four-year, $68MM extension signed in 2023 after his 14.5-sack breakout campaign in 2022. The former third-round pick recorded just seven sacks last year and only one over the Steelers’ first three games this season.
While the Steelers are fortunate Highsmith is not facing a long-term absence, his time away will give the team a chance to develop a more well-rounded pass rush beyond relying on its two star edge rushers. Expanded opportunities for Herbig and Moon – plus a potential exploration of Wilson’s versatile blitzing ability — could help Pittsburgh in the long run, giving the 3-0 team more options to pressure opposing quarterbacks later this season.
Many teams used Friday to make further adjustments to their practice squads. Here is the full breakdown:
Baltimore Ravens
Carolina Panthers
Denver Broncos
Green Bay Packers
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Rams
Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots
New York Giants
New York Jets
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Wolford’s seven regular season appearances to date have all come with the Rams. The 28-year-old spent last season with the Buccaneers, though, working with then-offensive coordinator Dave Canales. Canales is now the head coach in Carolina, and Wolford has followed him in a bid to earn a 53-man roster spot at some point during the season. The Panthers already had Jack Plummer on their taxi squad, but Wolford will offer Canales and Co. a more familiar option behind Bryce Young and Andy Dalton.
The Falcons have changed defensive coordinators twice since Ade Ogundeji last played, and the Raheem Morris–Jimmy Lake duo does not have the former starter in its plans. Atlanta cut the fourth-year pass rusher Thursday.
A 2021 fifth-round pick, Ogundeji worked as a starter for much of his first two seasons before suffering a season-nullifying injury during training camp last year. The Dean Pees-era starter, who suffered a foot injury last season, missed the Ryan Nielsen season and will be looking elsewhere ahead of Morris and Lake’s first season running Atlanta’s defense.
[RELATED: Chargers Sign OLB Bud Dupree]
Chosen during Arthur Smith‘s first draft with the team, the Notre Dame alum was drafted to play in Pees’ scheme. The Falcons, who have been thin at edge rusher for years, deployed the 6-foot-4 defender as a starter for most of his first two seasons.
Ogundeji started 26 games for the team from 2021-22, including 16 contests during the ’22 season. Production was rather sparse given the usage, however, as Ogundeji exited his second season with three career sacks. Playing 48% and 51% of the Falcons’ defensive snaps in 2021 and ’22, Ogundeji totaled eight tackles for loss with the Falcons. He produced six sacks in his final season with the Fighting Irish.
Atlanta added low-cost veterans Bud Dupree and Lorenzo Carter last year; those two teamed with 2022 second-rounder Arnold Ebiketie as the team’s top edge rushers last season. No Falcon reached the seven-sack mark. The Falcons showed interest in re-signing Dupree, but the former first-rounder is now a Charger. And the Falcons passed on bolstering their edge rush — though, not for lack of trying through back-door measures — in this year’s first round. This certainly qualifies as a need area for a team that surprised most by choosing Michael Penix Jr. at No. 8.
Two Mays ago, the Falcons cut John Cominsky to lead to eight waiver claims. It will be interesting to see if Ogundeji draws interest elsewhere soon. The 25-year-old pass rusher, however, was not on the field with teammates when the Falcons convened for OTAs last week, per AtlantaFalcons.com’s Terrin Waack.
Today’s minor transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Buffalo Bills
Houston Texans
Kansas City Chiefs
Los Angeles Chargers
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
Pittsburgh Steelers
Sean Chandler brings 64 games of experience to Arizona. Following a 2021 campaign that saw him collect a career-high 48 tackles in 15 games (seven starts) for the Panthers, the 27-year-old got into 17 games for the team in 2022, finishing with 19 tackles while primarily playing on special teams.
Adetokunbo Ogundeji is a tough loss for the Falcons, as the linebacker has turned into an important piece on Atlanta’s defense. The former fifth-round pick has started 27 of his 32 games since entering the NFL, collecting 75 tackles and three sacks. Ogundeji suffered a foot/ankle injury that will require surgery, and his placement on IR means the issue will ultimately knock him out for the entire 2023 campaign.