HEADLINES

DeJuan Neal

Commanders Move Down To 53, Keep RB Brian Robinson On Active Roster

August 30th, 2022 at 11:54am CST by Sam Robinson

Teams have until 3pm CT to trim their rosters to the regular-season 53-man limit. The Commanders have done so but did it without moving Brian Robinson off the roster.

Shot twice in the lower body Sunday, Robinson underwent surgery. Ron Rivera also expressed optimism the third-round rookie could play this season. Washington is following through on these hopes, keeping the rookie running back on its active roster. Here are the moves the Commanders made to reach the 53-man max Tuesday:

Released:

Waived:

Placed on IR:

By keeping Robinson on their active roster, the Commanders opened the door to him not only playing in 2022. The team needed to carry the Alabama product through to its 53-man roster today in order to place him on short-term IR. An IR placement today would have ended Robinson’s season.

One of the gunshot wounds Robinson sustained hit his knee, but the bullet did not seriously damage ligaments, tendons or bone, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com reports (video link). It is not a lock Robinson returns this season, per Garafolo, but the team is keeping its options open.

Robinson playing as a rookie would be obviously be a remarkable development. Prior to being shot, the Day 2 draftee had made a serious charge at the Commanders’ starting running back role. The team’s primary starter over the past two seasons, Antonio Gibson, remains on the roster, as do J.D. McKissic and Jonathan Williams. Robinson being moved to IR later this week will sideline him for at least four games — likely much longer, in this case — but allow him to return later this season, should he be cleared to do so.

The Chiefs, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter), also submitted a claim for Blanton recently, when the Rams waived him. It will be interesting to see if the young tight end generates any interest this week. Martin has generated consistent interest on the wire. The Commanders, who drafted the guard during the Bruce Allen regime, have made two waiver attempts to land him. The second one, earlier this month after the Jaguars cut Martin, was successful. It would not surprise if Martin is brought back via the practice squad — as several of Tuesday’s cuts will be — but he could also bring more interest on the wire.

Commanders Add Two USFL CBs

July 14th, 2022 at 5:54pm CST by Ben Levine

A pair of former USFL standouts have found NFL gigs. The Commanders have signed defensive back DeJuan Neal (per ESPN’s John Keim on Twitter) and cornerback Channing Stribling (per Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com). To make room on the roster, Washington has cut cornerbacks Nijuel Hill and Devin Taylor.

Neal, a former Division II standout, got his first NFL gig with Washington as an UDFA in 2019, but he didn’t end up making it to the regular-season roster. Since then, he had a stint in the XFL and most recently the USFL. He played for the New Jersey Generals during the 2022 campaign, and while he battled injuries for much of the season, he still contributed 16 tackles.

Stribling went undrafted out of Michigan in 2017 and has had plenty of NFL gigs, spending time with the Browns, Colts (two stints), 49ers and Chargers. Since getting cut by the Chargers during the 2018 season, Stribling has had gigs in the AAF, CFL, XFL, and USFL. In seven games this past season, the 27-year-old had seven interceptions.

Hill, a UDFA out of California, and Taylor, a UDFA who spent time at Bowling Green, Virginia Tech, and Illinois State, were both added to the Commanders roster earlier this offseason.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/11/19

August 11th, 2019 at 4:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Sunday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the day.

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

  • Signed: WR Deontez Alexander
  • Waived/injured: LB Tre Lamar

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

Oakland Raiders

Philadelphia Eagles

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Redskins

Extra Points: Kalil, Cardinals, Giants, Bucs

August 3rd, 2019 at 9:12pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Ryan Kalil‘s decision to come out of retirement and sign with the Jets was a shock to everybody around the league, but it wasn’t that sudden for him. The center decided that last season would be his last after battling injuries, but by March he was already feeling the itch to play football again, he told Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. He started lifting weights then, and was working out fully by May, so he won’t be coming in completely cold. His weight had dropped all the way down to 260 pounds, but he’s already back up to 297.

Cimini also reports that the Jets reached out to Kalil before camp even started, so it sounds like this comeback has been in the works for a little while. Kalil has often been one of the league’s better centers, and his presence will be a huge boost to New York’s offensive line and Sam Darnold’s development. He hasn’t been slacking off during his time away from the game, so it sounds like Kalil will easily be ready to man the pivot for the Jets come Week 1.

Here’s more from around the league on Hall of Fame induction night.

  • Things haven’t gone too smoothly for Cardinals linebacker Haason Reddick during his first couple of years in the league. The 13th overall pick of the 2017 draft has had his position changed multiple times, and is in his third defensive system in three years. He also apparently hasn’t been fully healthy, as he recently underwent “minor surgery,” according to Mike Jurecki of the team’s official site (Twitter link). We don’t have many details on the injury, but Reddick said he’d be ready for the opener. There were rumors last year that Reddick was on the trade block, and we’ve heard recently 2019 will be a pivotal year in determining his future with the team. The Temple product has been moved back to inside linebacker for this season.
  • The Giants conducted a minor workout, bringing in cornerback DeJuan Neal for a visit, a source told Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Neal is an undrafted rookie from D-II school Shepherd University, and the fact that he hasn’t already latched on somewhere tells you all you need to know.
  • The Buccaneers added to their staff, hiring Dave Hamilton as director of performance science, according to Greg Auman of The Athletic (Twitter link). Hamilton had been working at Penn State, and Auman notes that he’ll be “helping team’s focus on innovation in optimal preparation/health for their players.”