Allen Hurns - Pro Football Rumors

AFC Links: Bills, Jets, Colts, Jaguars

May 26th, 2014 at 7:35pm CST by Ben Levine

Earlier, we took a look at what ESPN’s NFC writers had to say on this Memorial Day. Now, let’s focus on ESPN’s AFC writers…

While he could envision the Bills adding a veteran defensive end to play alongside Mario Williams, ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak is very intrigued by former first-rounders Jerry Hughes and Manny Lawson.
The Jets will likely only keep four of their six runnings backs, writes ESPNNewYork.com’s Rich Cimini. Even then, the writer believes that the backfield, which includes Chris Johnson, Chris Ivory, Bilal Powell, Daryl Richardson, Alex Green and Mike Goodson, will still have “a lot of mouths to feed.”
Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne is making good progress in his recovery from a torn ACL, says ESPN.com’s Mike Wells. Still, the wideout will likely miss the team’s mandatory minicamp in June.
The Jaguars have four receivers that are locks to make the roster, according to Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com: Cecil Shorts, Ace Sanders, Marqise Lee and Allen Robinson. That leaves Mike Brown, Kerry Taylor, Tandon Doss, Lamaar Thomas, Chad Bumphis, Damian Copeland and Allen Hurns to compete over the final two spots.

Sunday Roundup: Pats, Jags, Browns

May 25th, 2014 at 8:53am CST by Rory Parks

With the increasing importance of tight ends in today’s game–the current average for tight ends on a roster is 5.5–it is not surprising that the Patriots have brought in veteran free agent TEs Dustin Keller, Ben Hartsock, and Nate Byham for tryouts over the past couple of weeks, writes Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com. The team has two open spots on its 90-man roster, and would like to add more depth to the tight end position with Rob Gronkowski currently unavailable to practice. If the Patriots do decide to pull the trigger on any of those players, Reiss expects it will be after June 1, so they can protect their compensatory picks.

Now for some more notes around the league on this Sunday morning:

In the same piece, Reiss says that if the Patriots are looking to add a veteran linebacker, James Anderson might be their guy. He was in for a tryout last week, and he offers solid coverage abilities. Again, if New England were to sign him, it would be after June 1.
Finally, Reiss takes a look at the players the Dolphins drafted with the picks they received in the Brandon Marshall trade and comes to an obvious conclusion: the Bears got the better end of the deal.
Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union examines UDFA Allen Hurns‘ path to the Jaguars‘ roster and what attracted the team to Toby Gerhart, who currently tops the Jacksonville’s depth chart at running back.
Chris Boden of CSNChicago.com offers his early projections as to how the Bears‘ final roster might shake out, with the caveat that injuries and veteran additions will inevitably happen.
Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com looks at a number of Browns-related topics in his weekly mailbag, including several clarifications on the Josh Gordon saga and an early look at the right tackle position battle.
Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee offers an early take on the 49ers‘ roster battle at inside linebacker.

Jags To Sign 17 UDFAs, Cut Six Players

May 12th, 2014 at 10:46am CST by Luke Adams

10:46am: The Jaguars’ final three cuts were running back Delone Carter, defensive tackle Drake Nevis, and wideout Stephen Williams, according to O’Halloran (via Twitter).

10:02am: Fullback Shaun Chapas will also be among the Jaguars’ cuts, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.

9:52am: The Jaguars have cut guard Will Rackley and wide receiver Jeremy Ebert, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (via Twitter). The moves won’t be the last ones for the club today — O’Halloran notes (via Twitter) that with 17 undrafted free agents being added to the roster, six players will need to be released to make room, meaning four more cuts should be on the way.

Rackley and Ebert were both in the final year of their respective contracts, with Rackley set to earn a $1.431MM base salary, while Ebert was on a minimum salary deal. Rackley started 11 games at left guard for Jacksonville last season and his performance ranked 79th out of 81 qualified guards, according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required). Meanwhile, Ebert hauled in three passes in his time with the team.

As for the Jaguars’ undrafted free agent signings, PR coordinator Tad Dickman has the full list (via Twitter):

Jeff Budzien, K, Northwestern
Terrance Cobb, RB, Cumberland
Deandre Coleman, DT, California
Damian Copeland, WR, Louisville
Trevor Gillette, LS, Rice
Ricky Havili-Heimuli, DT, Oregon
Allen Hurns, WR, Miami (FL) ($5K bonus and $15K in other guarantees, per Aaron Wilson)
Marcel Jensen, TE, Fresno State
Reggie Jordan, TE, Missouri Western
Craig Loston, S, LSU
Stephen Morris, QB, Miami (FL) ($5K bonus and $30K in other guarantees, per Wilson)
Rashaad Reynolds, CB, Oregon State
Tyler Shatley, G, Clemson
D.J. Tialavea, TE, Utah State
Josh Wells, OT, James Madison
Marcus Whitfield, LB, Maryland
Chad Zinchini, P, Tennessee Tech