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Clyde Edwards-Helaire

Saints To Sign RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire

December 18th, 2024 at 3:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

Cut by the Chiefs late in his fifth season with the team, Clyde Edwards-Helaire has a new home. The former first-round pick cleared waivers but is on his way to New Orleans as a free agent.

Edwards-Helaire is signing with the Saints, NewOrleans.football’s Nick Underhill reports. This comes after the Saints saw Alvin Kamara leave their Week 15 game with a groin injury. With the Saints clinging to “In the Hunt” status, Kamara is not certain to be available in Week 16. The team has some insurance, albeit in a player who has not suited up this season.

Edwards-Helaire is a Baton Rouge, La., native and played at LSU. He will follow ex-teammate Tyrann Mathieu as a Louisiana native-turned-LSUer on the Saints’ roster. Foster Moreau followed that path last year as well. Edwards-Helaire, however, should not be expected to play a comparable role. He will begin on the practice squad, Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz adds.

The Chiefs activated Edwards-Helaire from the reserve/non-football illness list in October but did not use him in any games this season. Kareem Hunt returned and became the team’s primary Isiah Pacheco replacement, with Samaje Perine and Carson Steele filling in behind the veteran. Edwards-Helaire now joins a Saints team that has some depth behind Kamara already, though it has taken two Kendre Miller IR activations to secure it.

New Orleans took advantage of the NFL’s new summer IR-return designation with Miller, who missed most of their training camp and preseason with a hamstring injury. The 2023 third-round pick then went back on IR in November, before returning earlier this month. Miller played ahead of Jamaal Williams, replacing Kamara once he went down. Williams remains on New Orleans’ 53-man roster, as does Jordan Mims.

Kansas City drafted Edwards-Helaire 32nd overall in 2020, and Damien Williams‘ subsequent COVID-19 opt-out cleared the runway for the rookie. The 5-foot-7 LSU alum was not able to live up to the billing, struggling with injuries and eventually being replaced by Pacheco, a 2022 seventh-rounder. Edwards-Helaire posted 803 rushing yards as a rookie but never approached that number again. In 15 games last season, he totaled 223 rushing yards. He resided behind Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon on Kansas City’s depth chart in Super Bowl LVIII.

The Saints will nonetheless take a flier on a once-highly regarded prospect who is still just 25. Edwards-Helaire will attempt to make his season debut soon, as the Saints (and a number of fantasy GMs) will hope Kamara can return. Kamara, 29, did well to land nearly $20MM guaranteed at signing on an extension earlier this season. That gives him some security should this be an injury that requires missed games.

Chiefs Waive RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire

December 16th, 2024 at 3:48pm CST by Sam Robinson

With Isiah Pacheco back, the Chiefs have stuck with Kareem Hunt as a key player on offense. Hunt’s Chiefs reunion continued a season of inactivity for Clyde Edwards-Helaire. The former first-round pick is now off the team’s roster entirely.

The Chiefs cut Edwards-Helaire on Monday, the fifth-year running back announced. This will clear a roster spot in Kansas City, as Marquise Brown ramps up toward a possible Week 16 debut with the team.

Edwards-Helaire had begun his career as a starter for the team, but he was unable to deliver on expectations that came with a No. 32 overall draft slot. Pacheco, a former seventh-round pick, had usurped him; the Chiefs had Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon playing ahead of Edwards-Helaire last season. Despite the team not re-signing McKinnon, it did not find room for CEH on its gameday rosters. Since being activated off the reserve/non-football illness list, Edwards-Helaire has been a healthy scratch.

It is possible Edwards-Helaire could be brought back on a practice squad deal, but the LSU alum’s message certainly does not point to that happening. If this is it for the 5-foot-7 back in Kansas City, he will close his Missouri run with 32 starts, 1,845 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns.

The Chiefs used one of their activations to return Edwards-Helaire to the 53-man roster, doing so after having placed him on the NFI list to start the season. Once Pacheco suffered a broken leg in Week 2, however, Hunt quickly reentered the fray as the team’s primary back. Hunt remains on Kansas City’s roster, with UDFA Carson Steele still around as a third-stringer and Samaje Perine as a pass-down specialist. Teams do not make a habit of carrying five RBs, so the roster math makes sense here — especially with the Chiefs needing a spot for Brown.

Hosting J.K. Dobbins on a free agent visit April 2, the Chiefs instead chose to re-sign Edwards-Helaire to a one-year, $1.7MM deal. This release will leave the team on the hook for just less than $200K in dead money. Having neared a recovery from the shoulder injury that has sidelined him throughout the season, Brown is on track to be activated soon.

Debuting with a 138-yard, two-touchdown performance, Edwards-Helaire could not consistently display the pass-game chops that led to his first-round arrival. He also struggled with injuries, having missed time in each of his four seasons before this year’s NFI stint. Counting hte playoffs, Edwards-Helaire missed 24 games from 2020-23. Still, he profiles as an option for a running back-needy team on waivers. Clubs have until 3pm CT on Tuesday to submit a claim.

Chiefs Activate RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire From NFI List

October 15th, 2024 at 9:57pm CST by Sam Robinson

OCTOBER 15: The Chiefs’ running backs room is starting to show life. After the recent signing of the veteran Hunt to make up for Pacheco’s injury, Kansas City is now also able to add Edwards-Helaire to the roster again at long last. Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 announced that the team has officially activated Edwards-Helaire from the reserve/non-football illness list today.

The former first-round pick is far-removed from his impressive rookie season, but in a year where the Chiefs’ rushers have been continuously banged up, they’ll take whatever Edwards-Helaire has to offer.

OCTOBER 2: Presently associated more with skill-position players who are not available, the Chiefs will have one of their pieces back. Clyde Edwards-Helaire returned to practice Wednesday, joining many around the league coming back from an injured/illness list.

With Edwards-Helaire hitting the Chiefs’ reserve/non-football illness list after roster cutdown day, an activation will count toward the defending champions’ in-season limit. Though, the Chiefs are among the few teams that did not take advantage of the NFL’s new IR-stashing tweak this summer, keeping their activation total at eight for the time being. Given the way Kansas City’s skill corps has deteriorated, the team will undoubtedly be fine using an activation on CEH.

The Chiefs have seen Isiah Pacheco go down with a fibula fracture, leading to a committee of unwanted veterans and rookie UDFA Carson Steele. Andy Reid parked Steele after an early fumble against the Chargers, opening the door for recently signed Kareem Hunt to make his in-game return. Hunt and Broncos castoff Samaje Perine represent the top Chiefs RB options presently; Edwards-Helaire returning would at least bring a player in the champs’ offseason plans back into the mix.

While Edwards-Helaire has not come especially close to living up to the Chiefs’ hopes when they drafted him in the 2020 first round, he suddenly could be a more important figure while Pacheco rehabs. The player who usurped CEH as a Kansas City starter, Pacheco is set to be sidelined for at least five more weeks. A two-month recovery period could be on tap for the former seventh-round pick, leaving a makeshift backfield behind for a team suddenly dealing with two major wide receiver injuries — those affecting Marquise Brown and Rashee Rice.

Brown is out for at least the regular season’s remainder, while Rice is feared to have torn an ACL. The Chiefs have not confirmed Rice’s injury yet, but a return this season appears unlikely. Although Kansas City still has future Hall of Famer Travis Kelce, first-round pick Xavier Worthy and Super Bowl-era tertiary targets JuJu Smith-Schuster, Justin Watson and Mecole Hardman, but this offense has largely lacked explosiveness over the past season and change.

Edwards-Helaire, 25, re-signed on a one-year, $1.7MM deal, doing so on the same day the Chiefs hosted J.K. Dobbins on a visit. CEH played behind Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon during most of the past two seasons; he accumulated just 411 scrimmage yards in 2023. (McKinnon is no longer with the team.) He has not cleared 500 in a season since 2021 and played just four offensive snaps in Super Bowl LVIII. The Chiefs’ current situation, however, could make the LSU alum more valuable than he has been in a few years.

Chiefs Place RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire On NFI List

September 2nd, 2024 at 10:30am CST by Adam La Rose

Kansas City will be shorthanded in the backfield to begin the season. The Chiefs placed Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the reserve/NFI list on Monday, as detailed by ESPN’s Field Yates.

As a result, Edwards-Helaire will be sidelined for at least the first four games of the season. Isiah Pacheco remains in place to handle lead back duties, while undrafted rookie Carson Steele made the roster after impressing during training camp and the preseason. Edwards-Helaire missed considerable time during training camp as well as Sunday’s practice, though, Yates’ colleague Adam Teicher notes. Today’s move thus comes as little surprise.

Edwards-Helaire, 25, entered the league with high expectations as the top running back in his class. The No. 32 pick in the 2020 draft racked up 1,100 scrimmage yards in his rookie season, but since then he has seen his usage rate and production drop with each passing season. A free agent departure during the spring would have been sensible since it would have provided him a fresh start. Instead, Edwards-Helaire remained in Kansas City on a one-year deal. The pact includes $1.33MM guaranteed and can reach a maximum value of $1.7MM.

The LSU alum logged a snap share of only 22% last season, but the Chiefs’ decision not to re-sign Jerick McKinnon left open the possibility for an increased pass-catching role in 2024. Kansas City recently added Samaje Perine, however, and the veteran is in place to handle third-down duties. Perine made 50 receptions last year with the Broncos, but he was let go with other options in place in the Denver backfield.

Pacheco received a career-high 205 carries in 2023, and he should again log a heavy workload on early downs in particular this season. Perine and Steele will offer complementary options in the backfield while Edwards-Helaire recovers. The latter will need a strong showing in 2024 to land another deal with the Chiefs (or to boost his 2025 free agent prospects). Today’s news is obviously not an encouraging start to the campaign in Edwards-Helaire’s case.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/21/24

July 21st, 2024 at 8:52pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s minor transactions to wrap up this final weekend before training camps begin:

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

Chiefs To Re-Sign RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire

April 2nd, 2024 at 10:04pm CST by Sam Robinson

Clyde Edwards-Helaire did not pan out as a Chiefs starter; the team found much better value in recent seventh-rounder Isiah Pacheco. But the two-time defending Super Bowl champions still have the 2020 first-round pick in their plans.

Despite losing his starting job midway through his rookie contract, Edwards-Helaire will stay with the Chiefs. The sides reached an agreement on a one-year deal Tuesday, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports. This move comes at a rather interesting point, as J.K. Dobbins is in Kansas City for a visit today.

[RELATED: Chiefs To Sign QB Carson Wentz]

Pacheco became a pivotal investment for the Chiefs, and the Rutgers alum commandeered the starting running back job during his rookie season. The move helped the team cover for an apparent miss on Edwards-Helaire, whom it chose shortly after winning Super Bowl LIV four years ago. Edwards-Helaire still worked as Kansas City’s top backup RB last season, starting in place of Pacheco in three games. The LSU alum averaged only 3.2 yards per carry, however, finishing with 223 yards and a touchdown in 2023.

Viewed as a potential multipurpose weapon alongside Patrick Mahomes in 2020, Edwards-Helaire totaled 138 yards in his debut and then put together a 161-yard performance against the Bills five weeks later. But injuries and fumbling issues plagued the former SEC talent.

Edwards-Helaire, 25 next week, started in Super Bowl LV and entered the 2021 season as Kansas City’s top back. But the 5-foot-7 ball carrier saw Jerick McKinnon take over as the team’s top receiving back late in 2021 — as more injury trouble intervened for the younger player. McKinnon held that role over the following two seasons, and Edwards-Helaire — who totaled 453 receiving yards for LSU’s national championship-winning team in 2019 — has not eclipsed 200 through the air since 2020.

Pacheco and McKinnon became the Chiefs’ primary backs in 2022, as Edwards-Helaire played in only 10 games. CEH did not play during the 2022 playoffs. Despite being activated off IR for Super Bowl LVII, Edwards-Helaire was a healthy scratch against the Eagles. Edwards-Helaire played in all four Chiefs playoff games last season but only logged two carries combined between the AFC championship game and Super Bowl LVIII.

This signing would seem to impact Dobbins’ chances of catching on with the Chiefs, with McKinnon also unsigned. The veteran receiving back, who has stabilized his career in Missouri after missing two full seasons previously, has made a habit of re-signing with the Chiefs after the draft. McKinnon did miss six straight games before being activated for Super Bowl LVIII. The 2014 draftee would also be going into his age-32 season in 2024. It remains to be seen if McKinnon will be back, but Edwards-Helaire will vie for the Chiefs’ RB2 role soon.

As for Dobbins, The Athletic’s Nate Taylor adds his productive visit may lead to a partnership later this offseason. But nothing is imminent as of now. Dobbins, who has been cleared for work after suffering an ACL tear in Week 1, has now visited the Chiefs and Chargers.

Chiefs To Decline RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire’s Fifth-Year Option

May 2nd, 2023 at 3:57pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chiefs’ Super Bowl LVII inactive list provided a preview of the team’s decision on Clyde Edwards-Helaire‘s fifth-year option. As expected, the defending Super Bowl champions are planning to pass, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports.

Edwards-Helaire, who was not in uniform during the Chiefs-Eagles matchup, was tied to a $5.46MM fifth-year option price. Although that is the lowest number among this year’s option figures and the bottom rung of the running back option price ladder, Kansas City is still expected to move Edwards-Helaire into a contract year. Chiefs GM Brett Veach said last month the team was undecided on the option, but it had been trending in this direction for a bit.

[RELATED: 2024 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker]

A luxury pick of sorts coming off the Chiefs’ Super Bowl LIV victory, Edwards-Helaire became the team’s top back quickly. That bump happened by default, with previous starter Damien Williams exercising his COVID-19 opt-out right. Williams, who worked as Kareem Hunt‘s primary fill-in after the latter’s ignominious exit and enjoyed a standout postseason run a year later, never played again for the Chiefs. Kansas City’s decision to hand the keys to Edwards-Helaire did result in a two-touchdown debut, but the LSU product has not justified his No. 32 overall draft slot.

The first running back taken in 2020, Edwards-Helaire did total 1,100 scrimmage yards as a rookie. But he went down with an ankle injury that December, costing him time and offering a glance at future availability issues. While CEH returned to nearly compile 100 scrimmage yards in Super Bowl LV, his 13-game rookie year tops his career ledger. He missed seven games during each of the 2021 and ’22 regular seasons.

Kansas City moved Edwards-Helaire to IR in 2021 (MCL sprain) and 2022 (high ankle sprain). During each Edwards-Helaire hiatus, Jerick McKinnon saw more work. Last year, McKinnon shined, setting an NFL running back record by catching a touchdown pass in six straight games and establishing a new Chiefs running back benchmark by catching nine TD passes. While the Chiefs used one of their IR activations on Edwards-Helaire, moving him back onto the roster on the eve of Super Bowl LVII, they made him a healthy scratch as McKinnon and 2022 seventh-rounder Isiah Pacheco split work in Arizona.

Edwards-Helaire, 24, is due for free agency next year. It will be interesting to see if another team calls the Chiefs on the fourth-year back, seeing as McKinnon is back in the fold alongside Pacheco. La’Mical Perine is also on Kansas City’s 90-man offseason roster.

2024 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker

May 1st, 2023 at 9:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

NFL teams have until May 2 to officially pick up fifth-year options on 2020 first-rounders who are entering the final year of their rookie deals. The 2020 CBA revamped the option structure and made them fully guaranteed, rather than guaranteed for injury only. Meanwhile, fifth-year option salaries are now determined by a blend of the player’s position, initial draft placement and performance- and usage-based benchmarks:

  • Two-time Pro Bowlers (excluding alternate Pro Bowlers) will earn the same as their position’s franchise tag.
  • One-time Pro Bowlers will earn the equivalent of the transition tag.
  • Players who achieve any of the following will get the average of the third-20th highest salaries at their position:
    • At least a 75% snap rate in two of their first three seasons
    • A 75% snap average across all three seasons
    • At least 50% in each of first three seasons
  • Players who do not hit any of those benchmarks will receive the average of the third-25th top salaries at their position.

With the deadline looming, we’ll use the space below to track all the option decisions from around the league:

  1. QB Joe Burrow, Bengals ($29.5MM): Exercised
  2. DE Chase Young, Commanders ($17.45MM): Declined
  3. CB Jeff Okudah, Falcons* ($11.51MM): N/A
  4. T Andrew Thomas, Giants ($14.18MM): Exercised
  5. QB Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins ($23.2MM): Exercised
  6. QB Justin Herbert, Chargers ($29.5MM): Exercised
  7. DT Derrick Brown, Panthers ($11.67MM): Exercised 
  8. LB Isaiah Simmons, Cardinals ($12.72MM): Declined
  9. CB C.J. Henderson, Jaguars** ($11.51MM): Declined
  10. T Jedrick Wills, Browns ($14.18MM): Exercised
  11. T Mekhi Becton, Jets ($12.57MM): Declined
  12. WR Henry Ruggs, Raiders: N/A
  13. T Tristan Wirfs, Buccaneers ($18.24MM): Exercised
  14. DT Javon Kinlaw, 49ers ($10.46MM): Declined
  15. WR Jerry Jeudy, Broncos ($14.12MM): Exercised
  16. CB AJ Terrell, Falcons ($12.34MM): Exercised
  17. WR CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys ($17.99MM): Exercised
  18. OL Austin Jackson, Dolphins ($14.18MM): Declined
  19. CB Damon Arnette, Raiders: N/A
  20. DE K’Lavon Chaisson, Jaguars ($12.14MM): Declined
  21. WR Jalen Reagor, Vikings*** ($12.99MM): To decline
  22. WR Justin Jefferson, Vikings ($19.74MM): Exercised
  23. LB Kenneth Murray, Chargers ($11.73MM): Declined
  24. G Cesar Ruiz, Saints ($14.18MM): Declined
  25. WR Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers ($14.12MM): Exercised
  26. QB Jordan Love, Packers ($20.27MM): Extended through 2024
  27. LB Jordyn Brooks, Seahawks ($12.72MM): Declined
  28. LB Patrick Queen, Ravens ($12.72MM): Declined
  29. T Isaiah Wilson, Titans: N/A
  30. CB Noah Igbinoghene, Dolphins ($11.51MM): Declined
  31. CB Jeff Gladney, Vikings: N/A
  32. RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Chiefs ($5.46MM): To decline

* = Lions traded Okudah on April 11, 2023
** = Jaguars traded Henderson on Sept. 27, 2021
*** = Eagles traded Reagor on August 31, 2022

Chiefs To Discuss Jerick McKinnon Deal After Draft

April 20th, 2023 at 1:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

It took the Chiefs and Jerick McKinnon until June last year before another contract agreement emerged. A third Kansas City McKinnon pact might end up coming around the same juncture.

The productive pass-catching back remains unsigned, sitting out a market that produced a host of low-cost deals in March. But the Chiefs still have McKinnon in their 2023 plans. Praising the team’s two-year contributor, GM Brett Veach said (via The Athletic’s Nate Taylor) Thursday they plan to begin discussions with the veteran after the draft.

McKinnon, who will turn 32 next month, has managed to go from two straight full-season absences (2018-19) to staying mostly healthy in Kansas City over the past two seasons. The former Vikings draftee did not miss a game last year and enjoyed the best receiving season of his career, catching 56 passes for 512 yards and nine touchdowns. Not only catching two more touchdown passes in a season than any other back in Chiefs history, McKinnon also set a post-merger NFL running back record by catching a TD pass in six straight games.

The Chiefs have relied on McKinnon in each of the past two postseasons. Last season, he and rookie Isiah Pacheco formed a quality tandem — each attached to league-minimum deals — while Clyde Edwards-Helaire was a healthy scratch in Super Bowl LVII. McKinnon logged a 47% offensive snap rate last season, being featured far more often in Andy Reid‘s offense compared to his 2021 debut.

It will be interesting to see if the Chiefs offer the nine-year veteran much of a raise. This year’s running back market led to a few starter-level backs — D’Onta Foreman, Damien Harris, Devin Singletary — signing one-year deals for less than $3MM. Of course, McKinnon played for $1.2MM last season and $1MM in 2021. While his performance warrants a raise, the market has not been kind to veteran backs this offseason. Given Pacheco’s success from a seventh-round draft slot, the Chiefs’ backfield situation may also change in the upcoming draft

Should McKinnon re-sign with the Chiefs after the draft, he will join Cordarrelle Patterson as the only 32-year-old running backs under contract. Raheem Mostert is the only 31-year-old back under contract, having re-signed with the Dolphins last month. The Chiefs have Pacheco signed through 2025, and Edwards-Helaire is likely going into a contract year. While Veach did not indicate which way the team was leaning regarding CEH’s fifth-year option, it should not be expected the defending Super Bowl champions will exercise that by the May deadline.

Chiefs Activate RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Place WR Mecole Hardman On IR

February 12th, 2023 at 4:40pm CST by Adam La Rose

FEBRUARY 12: Even though Edwards-Helaire is healthy enough to play, he is among the team’s inactives for tonight’s championship game. That news comes as little surprise given the time he has missed, and confirms that Pacheco and McKinnon will handle the load in the backfield for Kansas City.

FEBRUARY 6: As the countdown to Super Bowl LVII continues, the Chiefs have made a pair of injury-related moves. The team announced on Monday that running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire had been activated from injured reserve, while wideout Mecole Hardman has been placed on IR.

[Poll: Who Will Win Super Bowl LVII?]

The former’s three-week activation window had nearly expired, as he had been designated for return on January 17. The news will be a welcomed sight for Kansas City in terms of being closer to full health on offense, though the former first-rounder may not be in line for a particularly large role in the championship game.

Edwards-Helaire has not played since Week 11 due to a high ankle sprain. In his absence, the Chiefs have increasingly turned the reins over to seventh-round rookie Isiah Pacheco as their early-down back. Jerick McKinnon, meanwhile, has excelled in a pass-catching role, scoring at least one touchdown in six straight games to close out the regular season. It will be interesting to see how much of a workload Edwards-Helaire takes on within the team’s backfield after missing extended time and with the other two backs enjoying success in his absence.

The other move is likewise not surprising. Hardman being placed on IR guarantees that he will not play in the Super Bowl, something which head coach Andy Reid recently indicated was the likely outcome in his situation. Kansas City suffered a slew of injuries at the receiver position in their AFC title game win over the Bengals, with Hardman reaggravating his pelvis injury suffered earlier in the year.

Fellow pass-catchers JuJu Smith-Schuster and Kadarius Toney are in better shape as it relates to their potential availability for next week’s big game. The Chiefs are always in position to be dangerous through the air with quarterback Patrick Mahomes (who is, of course, nursing an ankle sprain of his own) and tight end Travis Kelce available. Still, the uncertainty they face at the WR position could be a key talking point over the course of the next few days.

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