Cre’Von LeBlanc

Dolphins Set Initial 53-Man Roster

The Dolphins have joined the club of teams to officially get down to 53 players on cutdown day. Here’s the list of of players from Miami that will be looking for new homes in the coming days:

Placed on season-ending IR:

Released:

Waived:

There are some reasonably big names on this list, including LeBlanc and Harvey-Clemons among the vested veterans getting outright released. LeBlanc played a sizable role in the Eagles’ secondary last season, and started nine games for the Bears as a rookie back in 2016. Harvey-Clemons was a decent-sized part of Washington’s defense in 2018, but his role was reduced in 2019 before he opted out of the 2020 seasons.

You’ll likely recognize some of the waiver cuts as well, including Griffin. The brother of star cornerback Shaquill Griffin, the linebacker was attempting to make the team after a few years with the Seahawks. Laird started four games for the Dolphins in 2019 and received 62 carries that year, but he was mainly a special teams guy last season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/23/21

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Arizona Cardinals

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

  • Signed: CB Cre’Von LeBlanc
  • Waived: DE Nick Coe, LS Rex Sunahara

New England Patriots

  • Signed: TE David Wells

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Eagles To Place Cre’Von LeBlanc On IR

The Eagles are set to place Cre’Von LeBlanc on injured reserve, as NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets. LeBlanc will be held out for at least three weeks while he heals up from a high ankle sprain.

The FAU product has appeared in nine games for the Birds this year, mostly in a reserve role. To date, he’s registered 22 tackles, one sack, and one forced fumble. He’s been shuffled on and off of the Eagles’ roster since 2018, appearing in 21 total games with six starts.

LeBlanc isn’t exactly a star player, but he’s been a key player in the slot and a regular with the punt return team. With Craig James done for the year, they’re somewhat limited on options. Practice squader Grayland Arnold could be one option to replace LeBlanc, though he’s more of a safety than a corner.

Miraculously, the Eagles find themselves atop the NFC East with a 3-6-1 record. A win on Monday night against the Seahawks could put additional space between them and the rest of the pack.

Eagles Cut CB Cre’Von LeBlanc

The Eagles are making a bit of a surprise move. Philadelphia is releasing cornerback Cre’Von LeBlanc, the team announced on Twitter.

The cut leaves Philly with only four cornerbacks on the roster, including a banged up Avonte Maddox, so another move is coming. Eagles beat writer Eliot Shorr-Parks tweeted that he thinks the team is hoping to be able to re-siign LeBlanc after they place somebody else on injured reserve. The team claimed LeBlanc off waivers midway through the 2018 season, and he ended up starting four games for them that year.

He signed a one-year extension in September of last year, but ended up missing most of 2019 with a foot injury. Still the team thought highly enough of him to use one of their IR/designated for return spots on him, and he appeared in four games with one start.

The Eagles have been cleaning house in their secondary this week, already waiving former second-round pick Sidney Jones and former third-round pick Rasul Douglas. It looks like LeBlanc may be brought back, and we’ll keep you posted if he is.

Eagles Promote TE Josh Perkins

With Zach Ertz ailing, the Eagles have added some tight end reinforcement. SiriusXM’s Adam Caplan reports (via Twitter) that tight end Josh Perkins has been promoted to the active roster. Philly also activated cornerback Cre’von LeBlanc off injured reserve. Zach Berman of The Athletic tweets that the Eagles have waived defensive tackle Albert Huggins.

Perkins, a former undrafted free agent out of Washington, spent the first two seasons of his career with the Falcons. He appeared in nine games for the Eagles last season, hauling in five catches for 67 yards. After getting waived after the 2019 preseason, Perkins caught on with Philly’s practice squad.

The Eagles were one of the few NFL teams rostering two tight ends. If Ertz is ultimately sidelined with a hamstring injury, the team would have needed another healthy body besides Dallas Goedert. While Goedert would presumably get the majority of snaps at tight end in Ertz’s hypothetical absence, there’s still a good chance that Perkins would make his 2019 debut against the Dolphins.

The Eagles added LeBlanc to their roster last November, and he proceeded to collect 24 tackles and one pass defended in eight games (four starts) with Philly. The 25-year-old inked a one-year extension with the team back in September, and he was later placed on injured reserve with a foot injury. He was designated to return earlier this week.

Huggins was signed off the Texans practice squad back in October. The defensive tackle ended up playing in four games for Philadelphia, compiling three tackles.

Eagles Designate Cre’von LeBlanc For Return

The Eagles are getting another boost in their secondary. Philly is designating cornerback Cre’von LeBlanc to return from injured reserve, the team announced. 

LeBlanc can now begin practicing with the team, and the Eagles have three weeks to activate him to the 53-man roster. The Eagles’ secondary was in a dire situation earlier this year, with cornerbacks dropping like flies for a while. Corners Avonte Maddox, Ronald Darby, and Jalen Mills have all returned to the lineup in recent weeks, and Philadelphia’s pass-defense has unsurprisingly gotten a lot better.

LeBlanc originally entered the league as an undrafted free agent back in 2016, and he started nine games as a rookie with Chicago. After a short stint in Detroit he latched on with the Eagles for the second half of last season, and ended up starting four regular season games, as well as their playoff loss to the Saints.

The FAU product suffered a foot injury in training camp, but the Eagles thought highly enough of him to carry him through to the initial active roster so they could potentially bring him back. They also thought highly enough of him to give him a one-year extension at the beginning of the season. LeBlanc was the first player Philly designated for return, meaning they can still bring back one more.

Eagles, Cre’Von LeBlanc Agree To Extension

The Eagles and Cre’Von LeBlanc have agreed to a one-year extension, per a team announcement. LeBlanc is now locked in through the 2020 season.

The cornerback joined the Eagles off waivers from the Lions last year and quickly impressed. This year, he’s in the mix with fellow Philly CBs Ronald Darby, Avonte Maddox, Sidney Jones, and Rasul Douglas. An even larger role could loom in 2020, if all goes well.

Last year, LeBlanc recorded 24 tackles across eight games (four starts). Previous to that, he saw time in 28 games for Chicago between 2016 and 2017 and three contests for the Lions in ’18.

Eagles CB Cre’Von LeBlanc On Roster Bubble

Eagles cornerback Cre’Von LeBlanc was a pleasant surprise for the Eagles down the stretch last season, starting four games (plus a postseason contest) and providing generally strong play in the slot. Considering Philadelphia plucked LeBlanc off the waiver wire in November, the club couldn’t have asked for much more.

However, LeBlanc is not a lock to make the team, as Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia suggests. Even with Ronald Darby and Jalen Mills absent, LeBlanc has been relegated to the second team and is currently the sixth CB on the depth chart, which puts him firmly on the roster bubble.

Part of the reason for LeBlanc’s demotion has been the emergence of second-year player Avonte Maddox. Zangaro notes that Maddox, whom Pro Football Focus graded as a middling-at-best performer in his rookie campaign, has excelled both in the slot and outside the numbers and is making a case for significant playing time. He did start nine games last season, and the 2018 fourth-rounder appears to have made some strides.

Of course, given the recent injury histories of Darby, Mills, and Sidney Jones, LeBlanc still stands a very good chance of seeing the field. But if the unit remains healthy, he could be looking for a new club this summer. He will be an unrestricted free agent in 2020, so if he can earn playing time somewhere and build on his 2018 performance, he could be in for a nice payday.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/6/18

Here are Saturday’s minor moves and additional post-suspension activations:

Buffalo Bills

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

Oakland Raiders

San Francisco 49ers

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/3/18

We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:

Atlanta Falcons

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed: DE Christian LaCouture

Chicago Bears

Signed:

Cleveland Browns

Signed:

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Signed:

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Signed:

New York Giants

Oakland Raiders

San Francisco 49ers

  • Signed: OL Zack Golditch

Seattle Seahawks

Signed:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Signed:

Tennessee Titans