Chimdi Chekwa

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/28/15

Today’s minor NFL signings, cuts, and other moves..

  • The Giants cut wide receiver Chris Harper from IR, the Raiders cut offensive lineman Anthony Morris from IR, and the Chargers cut Gordon Hill from IR, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets.
  • The Dolphins will sign offensive lineman Mike Leidtke to their taxi squad, as agent Brett Tessler tweets. Liedtke, an Illinois State product, recently auditioned for the Saints and Jets.
  • The Raiders released cornerback Chimdi Chekwa from their injured reserve list, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The defensive back was drafted by the Raiders in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
  • The Rams will sign wide receiver Nick Toon, a source tells Ross Jones of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Toon had workouts with the Rams and Seahawks last week.
  • To make room for Dion Bailey, the Jets waived Ronald Martin, as Brian Costello of the New York Post tweets. New York claimed Martin from Seattle just a few weeks ago.
  • The Cowboys cut backup defensive tackle Davon Coleman, Todd Archer of ESPN.com tweets.

Raiders To Sign Chimdi Chekwa

Chimdi Chekwa has signed a one-year deal to return the Raiders, agent Drew Rosenhaus tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Chekwa was released by the Patriots on Monday to help make room for linebacker Brandon Spikes.

Chekwa signed with the Patriots after the Raiders declined to tender him an offer in March. The former fourth-round pick was brought in to give some depth to the team’s stable of cornerbacks following the departure of Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner via free agency. Now, he’s back in Oakland, presumably at a lower price than his restricted free agent tender would have called for.

Last year, the 26-year-old (27 in September) appeared in ten games and made two starts for the Raiders. He totaled 16 total tackles and two pass deflections.

Patriots Release Chimdi Chekwa

Chimdi Chekwa‘s stay with the Patriots was a brief one. The cornerback, who was signed on March 11th, has already been let go, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

Chekwa signed with the Patriots after the Raiders declined to tender him an offer in March. The former fourth-round pick was brought in to give some depth to the team’s stable of cornerbacks following the departure of Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner via free agency. Now, with Kyle Arrington and Alfonzo Dennard also jettisoned, there aren’t many true cornerbacks left on the roster. As it stands, Malcolm Butler, Bradley Fletcher, Robert McClain, and Logan Ryan are the only actual cornerbacks in the fold.

As Florio notes, the Pats do have eleven other players listed as defensive backs, but none are cornerbacks. Out of that bunch, five of those players are rookies.

 

Minor Moves: Wednesday

Today’s minor moves…

  • The Giants have waived cornerback Travis Howard, according to the New York Post’s Paul Schwartz (via Twitter). The 25-year-old has yet to play an NFL game, and he spent last season on the injured reserve.

Earlier updates:

  • The Chiefs will sign offensive lineman Paul Fanaika, according to Terez A. Paylor of The Kansas City Star (via Twitter). The 28-year-old started 30 games with the Cardinals over the past two seasons.
  • The Patriots have added cornerback Chimdi Chekwa on a one-year deal, according to ProFootballTalk (on Twitter). The former fourth-rounder had spent the entirety of his four-year career with the Raiders.
  • The Patriots signed wide receiver Kevin Dorsey, according to Howard Balzer of USA Today (on Twitter). Dorsey also had interest from the 49ers.
  • Veteran long snapper Mike Leach re-signed with the Cardinals on a one-year deal today, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. Terms weren’t disclosed, but it figures to be a minimum salary benefit contract with a modest signing bonus for the 38-year-old
  • The Patriots have re-signed wide receiver Brian Tyms according to the NFL’s transaction wire, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe tweets. The Pats declined to make Tyms a qualifying offer on Tuesday but they’ve presumably signed him at a lesser rate.
  • The Browns announced that they have re-signed wide receiver and top special teams contributor Marlon Moore. Moore, 27, appeared in 13 games and was the team’s leading kickoff returner with an average of 24.8 yards on his 13 attempts.

Minor Moves: Monday Evening

Our first round-up of today’s minor transactions around the NFL was starting to get a little unwieldy, so we’ll recap the rest of the afternoon and evening minor moves right here. Here’s the latest:

  • The Titans won’t tender either receiver Kris Durham or linebacker Kaelin Burnett, making both free agents, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean.
  • The Ravens have tendered ERFA cornerback Rashaan Melvin at $585K, per Wilson (Twitter link). Melvin started two games for Baltimore near the end of the season.
  • The Ravens also have extended an exclusive rights tender worth $435K to long snapper Patrick Scales, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). Scales was originally signed in December, becoming Baltimore’s third snapper of the season. The man he replaced, Kevin McDermott, didn’t get an RFA tender, tweets Wilson.

Earlier updates:

  • Rather than tendering restricted free agent linebacker Mike Morgan, the Seahawks have simply signed him to a one-year contract, per Condotta (via Twitter).
  • Updating a previous note, the Seahawks actually have tendered receiver Ricardo Lockette, and have offered a contract to ERFA defensive back DeShawn Shead, as well, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter links).
  • The Jets have tendered offers to two RFAs — defensive tackle Damon Harrison received a second-round tender worth $2.356MM, while safety Jaiquawn Jarrett received the lowest tender.
  • With Ryan Mallett returning to the fold and a deal with Brian Hoyer moving closer to completion, the Texans started clearing out a crowded quarterback position today by cutting Thad Lewis, tweets Field Yates of ESPN.com. Somewhat ironically, Lewis was initially added to Houston’s roster back in November to replace Mallett, who landed on injured reserve with a pectoral injury.
  • The Ravens extended an RFA tender to safety Will Hill at the low-end level, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). The $1.542MM offer ensures that Baltimore maintains the right of first refusal if Hill signs an offer sheet with another club. The Ravens also tendered ERFA defensive end Steven Means, locking him up for 2015, tweets Wilson.
  • The Seahawks have elected not to tender contracts to wide receiver Bryan Walters and offensive lineman Stephen Schilling, says Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter links). All three players could still re-sign with Seattle, but they’ll be unrestricted free agents and can negotiate with other teams too.
  • Punter Marquette King, safety Brandian Ross, and safety Larry Asante all received low-end RFA tenders from the Raiders, writes Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com. Defensive back Chimdi Chekwa and running back Kory Sheets weren’t tendered, and will become UFAs tomorrow.

Contract Tenders: Rams, Vikings, Raiders

With free agency approaching, teams are working to lock up their exclusive rights free agents and to retain the right of first refusal on their restricted free agents. Here are the contract tenders teams have placed on those FAs so far on Wednesday: