Aldrick Rosas

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/13/21

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:

Carolina Panthers

Dallas Cowboys

Kansas City Chiefs

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Football Team

Shurmur will give WFT another option as Ryan Fitzpatrick recovers from his hip injury. For now, this likely means that Taylor Heinicke will serve as their starter. Heinicke stepped in for Fitz against the Chargers on Sunday, completing 11-for-15 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown.

Saints Elevate K Aldrick Rosas, S Jeff Heath

Jeff Heath has enjoyed a busy 24 hours, from a transactional sense. The Saints released the veteran safety Friday, added him to their practice squad Saturday and then promoted him back to their active roster.

The timing of this move makes sense for the organization, as it prevents Heath’s 2021 base salary from becoming guaranteed. Had Heath stayed on New Orleans’ active roster and not gone through this spree of transactions, his salary would have been guaranteed for the season.

A former Cowboys and Raiders starter, Heath stands to provide depth behind starters Malcolm Jenkins and Marcus Williams. The Saints have Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and P.J. Williams on their roster, but both hybrid players may be needed at cornerback. New Orleans has seen significant turnover at corner this offseason. While the additions of Bradley Roby and Desmond Trufant stand to help the four-time reigning NFC South champs’ cause, the Saints placed Ken Crawley on IR on Friday.

Rosas joined the Saints last month, trekking to Louisiana after Wil Lutz‘s injury. This will be Rosas’ first Week 1 assignment since 2019. A suspension led to the Giants releasing him prior to Week 1 of last season, during which he served a suspension. A 2018 Pro Bowler, Rosas kicked in six Jaguars games last season.

The Saints also released defensive tackle Montravius Adams from their active roster and promoted defensive tackle Albert Huggins and DB Jordan Miller.

Wednesday NFL Transactions: NFC South

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These moves for the BuccaneersFalconsPanthers and Saints are noted below.

Here are Wednesday’s NFC South transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.

Atlanta Falcons

Claimed:

Signed to practice squad:

Carolina Panthers

Release from IR:

Signed to practice squad:

New Orleans Saints

Released: 

  • K Aldrick Rosas; Rosas is expected to re-sign later this week, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets

Claimed:

Signed to practice squad:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Signed to practice squad:

Saints To Sign K Aldrick Rosas

The Saints’ most recent run without a healthy kicker will come to an end. They are signing Aldrick Rosas, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (via Twitter).

Rosas’ workout went well, per NewOrleans.football’s Nick Underhill (on Twitter), and the former Pro Bowler edged out fellow prospective Wil Lutz replacements Alex Kessman and Dominik Eberle. Neither Kessman nor Eberle had kicked in an NFL game previously. Rosas has four years’ experience, though he has not had a regular gig in two years.

Lutz is expected to be out for months, and the Saints’ Brett Maher partnership ended after he suffered an injury during the team’s preseason opener. The team waived Maher with an injury designation. New Orleans will now pivot to Rosas, who made the Pro Bowl in 2018 but is coming off a season abbreviated by a suspension.

The Giants’ kicker from 2017-19, Rosas saw a hit-and-run arrest lead to his New York exit. The NFL suspended Rosas four games to start last season, and although he landed with the Jaguars and kicked in six games with the struggling team, he did not make it to camp under the new Urban Meyer regime.

Rosas received his Pro Bowl nod after making 32 of 33 field goals in his second season, but he has not quite approached that success in any of his other three slates. The 26-year-old specialist made 12 of 17 field goals in 2019 and went 8-for-11 in six Jags games last year. The opportunity to kick for a dome team could move Rosas back on track, however, while giving the Saints some stability. Lutz has kicked in every Saints regular-season game for the past five years. He is signed through the 2023 season.

To make room on their roster, the Saints waived tight end Josh Pederson. The aspiring NFL pass catcher is the son of former Eagles HC Doug Pederson.

Saints Working Out K Aldrick Rosas

Having included Brett Maher in their recent cuts, the Saints continue to search for Wil Lutz replacement options. They are working out a former Pro Bowler.

Aldrick Rosas auditioned for the Saints on Thursday, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (via Twitter). A 2018 Pro Bowler with the Giants, Rosas has been unattached since the Jaguars cut him late last month. The Saints also worked out kickers Alex Kessman and Dominik Eberle.

Rosas, 26, is the only one of these three with NFL experience. Kessman kicked at Pitt, while Eberle played at Utah State.

The Giants placed a second-round RFA tender on Rosas last year but cut him soon after the young specialist was arrested following a hit-and-run incident. After serving a four-game suspension, Rosas landed in Jacksonville and kicked in six Jags games. The Southern Oregon product’s 2018 season, when he made 97% of his field goal tries (32-for-33), has thus far been an aberration. Rosas did not clear the 73% barrier in his other three seasons.

The Saints signed Maher last week but waived him days later; Maher sustained an injury in the Saints’ first preseason game. Lutz is expected to miss extensive time due to a groin injury, forcing New Orleans to search for a kicker for the first time in five years.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/31/21

We’ve got a bunch of minor moves to report from what turned out to be a pretty busy Saturday in the NFL:

Atlanta Falcons

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Football Team

  • Claimed off waivers from Dolphins: OL Ross Reynolds

Hundley is the biggest signing on this list. The Colts adding him is a pretty good sign they expect Carson Wentz to miss some significant time. Assuming Wentz misses games, Hundley will battle it out with second-year pro Jacob Eason.

A couple of kickers who have started a bunch of games both found themselves sent packing in Ficken and Rosas. Mannion latched on with the Seahawks. He’s familiar with new Seattle OC Shane Waldron from their time together with the Rams, explaining why the Seahawks added him as an option behind Russell Wilson.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/12/20

Here is Saturday’s usual barrage of minor moves:

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

  • Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Jachai Polite; Polite tested positive for the coronavirus, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (via Twitter)

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/28/20

Here are Saturday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

  • Promoted: QB Reid Sinnett

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Placed on IR: G Sua Opeta

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

NFL Suspends K Aldrick Rosas

Free agent kicker Aldrick Rosas has been suspended for four games for violating the league’s personal conduct policy, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter).

Rosas, then a member of the Giants, was arrested in June following a hit-and-run incident. Per the police report, Rosas was driving erratically before he blew through a red light and smashed into the side of a pickup truck. Then, cops say he continued driving, stopped only when his SUV broke down, and took off running. Initial reports suggested the 25-year-old may have been intoxicated.

The Giants cut Rosas in July, and he signed with the Jaguars’ practice squad late last month. He was promoted for Jacksonville’s Week 4 loss to the Bengals, a game in which he converted four of five field goal attempts, including a 50-yarder. He also sank his only PAT. However, he was injured in that contest and moved to the Jags’ practice squad injury list. Per ESPN.com, Jacksonville released him on October 30.

Luckily for Rosas, he will not receive any jail time for the June incident. As Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post wrote shortly before the Jags signed the Southern Oregon product, Rosas pleaded no contest to reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident, and driving without a valid license. He did receive three years of probation as part of the plea deal.

Assuming he is healthy, he could be on the shortlist for teams in need of kicking help after his suspension is up.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/3/20

Here is Saturday’s bevy of minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Football Team