Charles Gaines

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/27/17

Today’s minor moves:

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

New England Patriots

  • Waived: DE Caleb Kidder
  • Waived/injured: TE Matt Lengel

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Jaguars Sign DuJuan Harris

The Jaguars have signed running back DuJuan Harris, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union tweets that the team has waived/injured CB Charles Gaines to make room for Harris.

DuJuan Harris

With Leonard Fournette and T.J. Yeldon both battling injuries, Jacksonville needed depth at the running back position. Harris began his career with the Jags back in 2011, when he signed with the club as an undrafted free agent out of Troy. He has also seen regular season action with the Packers, Seahawks, and 49ers, and he accumulated 38 carries for 138 yards (3.6 YPC) for San Francisco last year, along with eight catches for 115 yards and a score. The 49ers re-signed him to a one-year deal this March but released him just a few weeks later.

Fournette, of course, is expected to anchor the Jags’ offense after being selected with the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s draft, and O’Halloran reports that Fournette is very optimistic about his chances of suiting up on Week 1. He sustained a foot injury on August 12 but indicated he has made good progress in the last week. And, although the high ankle sprain that he suffered with LSU last year was on the same leg as his current foot ailment, he indicated that the two injuries are not related.

Chris Ivory will be Jacksonville’s No. 2 back this season, so assuming Fournette is healthy, Harris will compete with Yeldon for the team’s No. 3 job, along with the likes of Jonathan Grimes, Corey Grant, and Tim Cook.

In the same piece linked above, O’Halloran reports that wide receiver Marqise Lee, who is dealing with an ankle injury that initially looked severe, also plans to be ready by Week 1.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/1/17

Today’s minor moves:

  • The Jaguars announced that they’ve signed cornerback Charles Gaines and waived/injured fellow cornerback Taurean Nixon. A sixth-round draft choice in 2015, Gaines appeared in six games for the Browns during his rookie campaign, starting four contests while playing on a quarter of Cleveland’s defensive snaps. Despite seeing that level of playing time in his first NFL season, Gaines was subsequently waived, and spent time with the Bills’ practice squad in 2016. Nixon, meanwhile, came to Jacksonville via waivers last month.
  • The Texans have signed wide receiver DeAndrew White and waived/injured wideout Deante’ Gray, the cub announced today. White, 25, signed with the 49ers in 2015 after going undrafted out of Alabama. He spent his rookie season solely as a return man, appearing in four games while returning six kickoffs and one punt. White spent the majority of the 2016 campaign on New England’s practice squad, but was waived by the Patriots in June. Gray, meanwhile, suffered a torn ACL last week and will miss the 2017 season.
  • The Saints are signing running back Darius Victor, per his representatives at Players First Sports Agency (Twitter link). Victor, a Towson product, left the collegiate ranks early in order to enter the NFL draft but ultimately wasn’t selected. Although he played in only four games in 2016, Victor had topped 200 carries in the each the prior two years, averaging five yards per carry from 2014-15. In order to create a roster spot, New Orleans waived/injured linebacker Sae Tautu, who has a sprained MCL, per Nick Underhill of the Advocate (Twitter link).
  • The Cardinals have signed defensive tackle David Moala, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Moala, 24, signed with Denver in 2016 as an undrafted free agent out of Utah State. After being cut last August, Moala — the brother of former NFL defender Fili Moala — spent the season on the workout circuit but failed to land a contract. Arizona also signed defensive tackle Peli Anau and waived cornerback Elie Bouka, the club announced.
  • The Bengals have waived wide receiver Monty Madaris off the physically unable to perform list with an injury settlement, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). Madaris, an undrafted rookie out of Michigan State, signed with Cincinnati in May but had been on PUP for the duration of his stint in the Queen City.

Bills Sign LB Gerald Hodges

Bills coach Sean McDermott announced that the team is has signed linebacker Gerald Hodges (Twitter link via Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News). To make room, the Bills cut cornerback Charles Gaines.Gerald Hodges (vertical)

Hodges only visited with two clubs — the Chiefs and Seahawks — during the first month of free agency. Recently, however, he has embarked on a tour that saw him meet with the Jets, Giants, Patriots, Jaguars, and Colts. However, it was his meeting with the Bills that has fostered a deal.

Hodges played on approximately half of the 49ers’ defensive snaps last year while grading out as the league’s No. 21 linebacker, according to Pro Football Focus. In his 15 games, the 26-year-old racked up 80 tackles, three sacks, and two interceptions. He also was on the field for 73 special teams snaps.

The Bills’ linebacker group has already gone through some changes this year after the departures of Zach Brown and Lerentee McCray in free agency. The Bills project to start Reggie Ragland and Lorenzo Alexander at the OLB spots with Preston Brown in the middle, but the group behind them is looking a little thin. Ramon Humber and rookies Matt Milano and Tanner Vallejo figure to primarily pitch in as reserve OLBs, leaving them without a proven depth option for MLB. That’s where Hodges might come in handy for Buffalo.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/7/2016

Today’s practice squad moves:

Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Diego Chargers

NFC Workout Notes: Seahawks, Bucs, Lions

We rounded up the latest workout news from the AFC earlier. Now for the NFC (courtesy of ESPN’s Adam Caplan, unless otherwise noted):

  • Before he signed with the Kansas City on Tuesday, defensive end Kendall Reyes visited the Seahawks (Twitter link). He spent just under two weeks on the open market after the Redskins released him Oct. 5.
  • Tight ends Mitchell Henry, Casey Pierce and Eric Wallace tried out for the Buccaneers (Twitter link). Wallace played college basketball at Ohio State and DePaul, and then spent three years playing Australian Rules Football. He was previously with the Panthers, who will work him out Wednesday, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times.
  • Defensive back Jeremiah McKinnon worked out for the Panthers on Tuesday, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.
  • Former LSU linebacker Lamar Louis recently visited the Saints, according to Nick Underhill of The Advocate (on Twitter).
  • The Lions took a look at linebackers Brandon Chubb, Raphael Kirby and Reggie Northrup (Twitter link). Chubb impressed the team enough to earn a place on its practice squad.
  • Defensive backs Charles Gaines and Demetrius McCray worked out for the Rams last week, per Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter).

AFC Workout Notes: Colts, Chiefs, Ravens, Pats

Free agent receiver Aaron Dobson visited the Colts on Tuesday, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN (Twitter link). Dobson has worked out for several teams and had multiple stints with the Lions since the Patriots cut him Sept. 3. The three-year veteran has 53 receptions and four touchdowns in 24 games (13 starts).

The Colts also worked out running back David Cobb (Twitter link). The former Titan has tried out for a bevy of clubs since Tennessee cut him in August. Cobb briefly caught on with the Steelers, who waived him from their practice squad last week.

Along with Dobson and Cobb, receiver Marcus Leak, tight ends Alex Bayer and Darion Griswold, and linebackers Trevor Reilly and James Vaughters tried out with the Colts, tweets Howard Balzer of USA Today.

More workouts from the AFC (courtesy of Caplan, unless otherwise noted):

  • In addition to defensive end Kendall Reyes, whom they signed, the Chiefs tried out fellow DE Lynden Trail on Tuesday, according to Nick Underhill of the Advocate (Twitter link). Joining them were linebackers Deion Barnes, Randell Johnson, and Kyle Kragen.
  • Veteran offensive lineman Garrett Reynolds worked out for the Ravens on Tuesday (Twitter link). Reynolds has been on the radar of a few teams since Los Angeles released him prior to Week 1. The 29-year-old has 42 appearances and 23 starts on his resume.
  • The Patriots tried out out two offensive tackles – Ryan Mack and Pearce Slater – as well as defensive end Jordan Williams, reports Doug Kyed of NESN (via Twitter).
  • Along with linebacker Quentin Gaus and tight end Steven Scheu, both of whom joined their practice squad, the Broncos worked out linebackers Lenny Jones, J.R. Tavai and Kyrie Wilson; defensive ends Deonte Gibson, Ian Seau and Josh Shirley; and safety Elijah Shumate (Twitter links via Balzer).
  • The Texans worked out safety Don Jones and a pair of cornerbacks, Denzel Rice and Charles Gaines (Twitter link).
  • Running back Mekale McKay and Jhurell Pressley tried out for the Jets, according to Balzer (Twitter link).
  • Three tight ends – Kivon Cartwright, Tim Semisch and Gannon Sinclair – worked out for the Titans, tweets Balzer.

Browns Down To 53

The Browns have officially cut down to a 53-man roster, according to a team announcement.

The team’s cuts include receivers Taylor Gabriel and Marlon Moore. Undrafted out of Abilene Christian in 2014, the 5-foot-8, 176-pound Gabriel appeared in 29 of a possible 32 regular-season games with the Browns and started four. He amassed 64 receptions for 862 yards and a touchdown during that time, with most of those numbers coming as a rookie. Gabriel caught 36 passes on 72 targets and averaged a prolific 17.1 yards per reception in his first year, but that figure fell to a paltry 8.6 on his 28 grabs in 2015.

Moore, a six-year veteran, previously saw action with the Dolphins and 49ers before joining the Browns last season. He pulled in only seven receptions in 14 games in Cleveland.

The full list is below.

Released:

Waived:

Browns Cut Multiple Players

The Browns have made a handful of moves they work their way down to a 53-man roster. Here’s what they’ve done thus far:

Waived/Injured:

  • RB Rajion Neal (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)

Waived:

Ulrich reports that the Browns hope to sign Hamlett to the practice squad if he clears waivers.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/10/15

Here are Tuesday’s minor signings, cuts, and other moves from around the NFL:

  • The Saints have signed linebacker James Anderson, as Katherine Terrell of The Times-Picayune tweets. The Saints have been thin at linebacker recently, with injuries to strongside linebacker Hau’oli Kikaha (ankle), weakside linebacker Dannell Ellerbe (hip/groin), and backup Ramon Humber, so Anderson will provide additional depth for New Orleans. To make room for Anderson, the Saints have cut fellow linebacker Mike Mohamed, as Mike Triplett of ESPN.com tweets.
  • The Vikings announced that they have signed linebacker Jason Trusnik while placing fellow linebacker Audie Cole on IR. Trusnik, a former Division-III standout, was cut by the Panthers before the final trim down to a 53-man roster. He first broke into the league as a UDFA with the Jets in 2007. The Ohio native has played in 109 career games with 24 starts, tallying 146 total tackles, 4 PDs, 4 FRs and 1 FF in his first eight NFL seasons. Cole wasn’t a factor on the Vikings’ defense, but he was playing more than half of the club’s special teams snaps before fracturing his ankle.
  • The Giants announced that they have added defensive tackle Montori Hughes to the active roster while placing defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins on IR. Hankins suffered a torn pectoral muscle over the weekend, ending his 2015 season prematurely. Hughes, who stands at 6’4″ and weighs 350 pounds, played in 16 games for the Colts between 2013 and 2014.
  • The Browns announced that they have activated defensive back Charles Gaines and running back Glenn Winston. Both players were previously sidelined with injuries.
  • The Buccaneers announced that they have signed safety Kimario McFadden, who played with them in the preseason. To make room for McFadden on the 53-man roster, the Buccaneers waived defensive end Lawrence Sidbury.
  • The Chargers announced that they have signed tight end Sean McGrath while waiving guard Craig Watts. McGrath briefly retired following his second season in 2013, a season in which he caught 26 balls for 302 yards and two touchdowns.
  • The Chiefs will promote safety Saalim Hakim from the practice squad, Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.
  • The Bears will promote wide receiver Deonte Thompson to the 53-man roster from the taxi squad, Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune tweets.