HEADLINES

Corey Fuller

North Rumors: Browns, Gordon, Kuhn, Packers

April 11th, 2016 at 8:16pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, the football world was rocked by the news that embattled Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon has apparently failed another drug test, putting his NFL future in jeopardy. However, top execs in the Cleveland front office probably weren’t all that shocked. The Browns were getting the sense for weeks that Gordon wasn’t going to be reinstated anytime soon and felt that it was possible that he might not get reinstated at all, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets. The league office had concerns about who Gordon was continuing to associate with (link) and, after some initial optimism, the Browns started to fear the worst.

While we wait to learn more about Gordon, here’s the latest from the North divisions:

  • With one week to go before the start of the Packers‘ offseason program, veteran fullback John Kuhn remains unsigned, as Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com writes. Agent Kevin Gold says he is still waiting to hear whether the Packers will re-sign Kuhn or instead roll with second-year player Aaron Ripkowski. In 2015, the Packers did not re-up Kuhn until April 13th, so it’s possible that he could still be in the mix for 2016.
  • Appearing on SiriusXM NFL Radio (Twitter link), tight end Hunter Henry said he has had five or six workouts with teams, but has only visited one club so far — the Bears. The former Arkansas Razorback is widely viewed as the top tight end in the draft.
  • The Lions, with wide receiver Corey Fuller already on their roster, will take a look at another Fuller brother this week, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, who reports that Virginia Tech cornerback Kendall Fuller is visiting Detroit.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/10/16

March 10th, 2016 at 9:11pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves from around the NFL:

  • The Cardinals have re-signed tight end Ifeanyi Momah, tweets Howard Balzer of The SportsXchange. Momah survived Arizona’s preseason roster cuts in 2015, but suffered a torn meniscus before Week 1, ending his season. Momah received an ERFA tender from the Cards last week.
  • Corey Fuller signed his exclusive-rights tender with the Lions, Wilson tweets. Fuller caught four passes for 76 yards last season after posting 212 yards on 14 receptions in 2014.
  • A Saints cog from 2012-14, tackle Bryce Harris re-signed with the Falcons, his 2015 employer, according to Evan Woodberry of NOLA.com (on Twitter). The former UDFA played in two games for the Falcons last season.
  • The Cardinals cut wide receiver Damond Powell with a non-football injury designation, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets.

Earlier updates:

  • The Cowboys have re-signed cornerback Josh Thomas to a one-year contract, says Todd Archer of ESPN.com. Thomas, originally selected in the fifth round of the 2011 draft by the Cowboys, rejoined the team at the end of last season. In between his two stints in Dallas, he played 51 regular-season contests for the Panthers, Lions, Colts, Jets, and Seahawks.
  • Tight end Zach Sudfeld has re-signed with the Jets, agent Jason Bernstein tweets. Manish Mehta of the Daily News (on Twitter) adds that it is a one-year deal. Sudfeld was a restricted free agent, so his new deal will presumably be for less than the low-round tender of $1.671MM.
  • The Chiefs announced (on Twitter) that they have signed defensive lineman David King and linebacker Efe Obada.
  • The Dolphins have re-signed linebacker James-Michael Johnson, per Howard Balzer of USA Today Sports (on Twitter).
  • The Chargers re-signed ERFA guard Kenny Wiggins, Balzer tweets.
  • The Jets will not tender an offer to punter Ryan Quigley, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets.

Lions Re-Sign Tyrunn Walker

March 4th, 2016 at 8:34am CST by Luke Adams

FRIDAY, 8:34am: The Lions’ contract agreement with Walker has been finalized, with the team announcing the signing in a press release.

THURSDAY, 12:23pm: A year ago, the Lions’ signing of defensive lineman Tyrunn Walker from the Saints was viewed as one of the more solid under-the-radar moves of the offseason. However, Walker’s first year in Detroit came to an early end when he suffered a broken fibula and landed on the team’s injured reserve list in early October.Tyrunn Walker

As he recovers from that injury though, Walker is prepared to sign a new contract with the Lions, According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, the free agent defensive tackle is en route to Detroit today, where he will take a physical and sign a new one-year deal with the club, assuming some contractual language gets finalized.

After signing a one-year, $1.75MM pact last year, Walker will get a similar deal this time around. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Walker’s new one-year contract will be worth $1.6MM, with a chance to max out at $2.25MM. It wouldn’t be surprising if the deal features per-game roster bonuses — because the Tulsa alum only appeared in four contests in 2015, only a quarter of his per-game roster bonuses would count against the cap.

In addition to nearing a contract agreement with Walker, the Lions are in talks to bring back Haloti Ngata, and Birkett expects him to re-sign (Twitter link). As Birkett notes, retaining those two defensive tackles would give the club the flexibility to focus on other positions in free agency next week.

Speaking of free agency, Birkett also reports that the Lions have tendered contract offers to all of their exclusive-rights free agents. The following players have received ERFA tenders, per Birkett:

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NFC Notes: Austin, Wilson, Conte

July 21st, 2014 at 8:07pm CST by Matt Feminis

Tavon Austin did not provide the degree of immediate impact the Rams were hoping for when they chose him eighth overall last year. In an AP story, Austin was bluntly honest about why he didn’t play as fast as he’s capable: he struggled with the complexities of his first NFL playbook. “I didn’t really know what was going on,” Austin said. “Everything looked like Spanish and sounded like Spanish to me.”

Here’s some NFC links:

NFC Mailbags: Redskins, Rams, Panthers, Lions

May 24th, 2014 at 9:46pm CST by Ben Levine

It’s Saturday, and that means a fresh batch of mailbags from ESPN.com’s NFL writers. Let’s take a look at some from around the NFC…

  • Trent Murphy was certainly a fallback option for Brian Orakpo, but that doesn’t mean Orakpo won’t re-sign with the Redskins, says John Keim. He adds that the smart move would be to keep both players.
  • Rams‘ writer Nick Wagoner thinks the team will carry three quarterbacks, including Garrett Gilbert. He cautions that the rookie is not a lock to make the roster.
  • The money that the Rams would gain from cutting Austin Pettis could be enticing, Wagoner says. Stedman Bailey‘s suspension might mean that Pettis is sticking around, though.
  • Wagoner thinks the team will bring in a veteran linebacker, similar to what the team did last season with Will Witherspoon.
  • The Panthers will definitely be adding players as they’re cut from other teams, writes David Newton. The writer says General Manager Dave Gettleman is “saving money under the salary cap for a rainy day.”
  • The Lions could potentially keep six wide receivers on their 53-man roster, says Michael Rothstein. He lists Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate as locks and believes Jeremy Ross will find a spot. He says one of Kris Durham, Kevin Ogletree and Naaman Roosevelt will make the roster, as well as one of T.J. Jones and Ryan Broyles. His wild card for the sixth spot would be Corey Fuller.
  • Rothstein doesn’t think the Lions should make a move right now for Asante Samuel. He adds that they could make a move for a cornerback eventually, especially if Chris Houston can’t return.
  • Dwayne Harris‘ job is safe with the Cowboys, opines Todd Archer. Besides being a solid wideout, his skills on special teams make him a lock.