HEADLINES

Demarcus Christmas

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/6/21

July 6th, 2021 at 7:29pm CST by Ben Levine

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

Pittsburgh Steelers

Christmas was waived by the Steelers last week to make roster space for kicker Sam Sloman. The defensive lineman was waived with an injury designation, but it’s uncertain what is ailing the 26-year-old. It’s worth noting that Christmas missed the entire 2019 season with a back injury.

The Florida State product was a sixth-round pick by the Seahawks back in 2019. He spent that entire campaign on the PUP list, and he spent most of the 2020 campaign bouncing between Seattle’s practice squad and active roster. He joined the Steelers practice squad in November, and he was retained into the offseason thanks to a futures contract.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/1/21

July 1st, 2021 at 6:38pm CST by Ben Levine

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

Pittsburgh Steelers

Sloman was selected by the Rams in the seventh round of the 2020 draft, and he saw time in seven games for Los Angeles before they let him go. The 23-year-old ended up catching on with the Titans, where he ultimately made a single appearance. In total, Sloman converted 10 of his 13 field goal attempts and 23 of his 26 extra point tries.

Sloman will likely provide the Steelers with an extra leg as they look to keep starter Chris Boswell fresh. However, barring an injury or a drastic drop in performance from the veteran, Sloman likely won’t crack the Week 1 roster.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/15/21

January 15th, 2021 at 3:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest reserve/futures contracts given out:

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Las Vegas Raiders

  • QB Kyle Sloter

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/6/20

October 6th, 2020 at 4:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Tuesday’s practice squad updates:

Carolina Panthers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Placed on practice squad suspended list: RB Kenjon Barner (four-game PED ban)

NFC Notes: Giants, Panthers, Seahawks

November 8th, 2019 at 9:28pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Seahawks waived rookie fourth-round pick Gary Jennings earlier this week, and many immediately speculated the Dolphins would claim the young receiver. That’s exactly what happened, and Miami was awarded the West Virginia product. If they hadn’t submitted a claim Jennings wouldn’t have tumbled very far though, as the Giants put in a claim for him as well, a source told Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The Giants are obviously toward the top of the waiver priority, and just barely missed him. With Sterling Shepard on the shelf for the foreseeable future, their interest makes plenty of sense. Jennings never appeared in a game for Seattle, and will likely see some run with the Dolphins, especially after Preston Williams‘ ACL tear.

Here’s more from the NFC on a quiet Friday night:

  • Even without Cam Newton the Panthers are right in the thick of the playoff race, so they have to start thinking about some late-season moves. Carolina is apparently looking for a boost to their receiving corp, as the team plans on using one of their two injured reserve-return slots on receiver Chris Hogan, according to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic. Rodrigue notes that Hogan was out on the practice field on Wednesday. Hogan only had three catches through four games with his new team before getting put on IR.
  • Speaking of late-season returns, Seahawks rookie Demarcus Christmas won’t be making one. Seattle declined to activate the defensive lineman off the PUP list meaning he will miss the rest of the season, according to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times (Twitter link). The Seahawks drafted the Florida State product in the sixth-round back in April, and he’ll officially be getting a redshirt year. Since he’s on PUP he isn’t allowed to practice, which means he’ll have a lot of catching up to do as he tries to crack the team next offseason.
  • Alvin Kamara is officially back. Saints head coach Sean Payton announced Thursday that he expects to have his star running back on the field when New Orleans hosts the Falcons. Kamara has missed his team’s past two games as he dealt with knee and ankle issues. This will be the first time that Drew Brees and Kamara have shared the field since back in Week 2.

 

NFL Players Returning From IR/PUP

October 16th, 2019 at 8:05pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Now that we’re approaching the midway point of the regular season, players on various injury lists are now able to begin to return to practice and, eventually, return to game action. Here’s the list of players coming back to practice this week while on injured reserve or physically unable to perform list, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets:

Players on the PUP list are only required to miss six weeks of the regular season, so every player listed above with the exception of Sternberger could technically be activated this weekend. Sternberger has officially been designated as one of Green Bay’s IR/return players, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Because he was originally placed on IR, Sternberger — a third-round rookie — will be absent for at least two more weeks.

Seahawks Get Down To 53 Players

August 31st, 2019 at 6:25pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Seahawks have made their roster cuts. Perhaps most notably, they cut quarterback Geno Smith. Since they already waived Paxton Lynch last night and also waived J.T. Barrett, they currently have no passers on the roster behind Russell Wilson. It’s possible the team is just maneuvering the roster and planning on re-signing Smith. If not, they’ll be adding a veteran in the coming days.

The Seahawks had a crowded running backs room, and J.D. McKissic and Bo Scarbrough ended up as the odd-men out. A lot of people were expecting Jaron Brown to start the year as the team’s number two receiver while D.K. Metcalf recovers from his knee injury, but he didn’t even end up making the initial 53. Brown was set to make $2.75MM, so maybe he’ll be brought back after the regular season starts when his contract won’t be guaranteed.

Here’s the full list of moves:

Released:

FB Nick Bellore

WR Jaron Brown

DE Cassius Marsh

C Marcus Martin

DT Jamie Meder

QB Geno Smith

CB Jamar Taylor

Waived:

QB J.T. Barrett

WR Jazz Ferguson

TE Jackson Harris

T Will Holden

TE Jacob Hollister

LB Jawuan Johnson

WR Kahlil Lewis

S Shalom Luani

 RB J.D. McKissic

DT Earl Mitchell

WR Nyqwan Murray

T Elijah Nkansah

WR Keenan Reynolds

G Jordan Roos

TE Wes Saxton

RB Bo Scarbrough

DE Logan Tago

CB Simeon Thomas

G Landon Turner

RB Xavier Turner

T Brian Wallace

WR Terry Wright

LB Juwon Young

Waived/injured:

CB Jeremy Boykins

LB Justin Currie

PUP:

DT Demarcus Christmas

G Phil Haynes

Injured reserve:

G Jordan Simmons

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/14/19

May 14th, 2019 at 8:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest players to agree to terms on their rookie deals:

  • The Chiefs signed the latter of their two second-round picks, safety Juan Thornhill, on Tuesday. Thornhill, who arrived in Kansas City as the No. 63 overall pick out of Virginia, will attempt to move into the starting lineup alongside Tyrann Mathieu as a rookie. Thornhill intercepted 13 passes over his final three seasons with the Cavaliers. The only member of their six-man class left unsigned is third-rounder Khalen Saunders; third-rounders’ deals can be tricky with the current CBA.
  • Four more Seahawks draftees signed their four-year deals Tuesday. Wide receivers Gary Jennings (Round 4) and John Ursua (Round 7) signed. So did sixth-round picks Demarcus Christmas, a defensive tackle out of Florida State, and Travis Homer, Miami-produced running back. Jennings and Ursua, out of West Virginia and Hawaii, respectively, have better odds at contributing this season after Doug Baldwin‘s retirement. Jennings caught 13 touchdown passes last season, while Ursua snagged 16. D.K. Metcalf remains unsigned.
  • Two of the Broncos‘ Day 3 picks — fifth-round outside linebacker Justin Hollins and sixth-round wide receiver Juwann Winfree — became the team’s first 2019 draftees to sign. Hollins, an Oregon product who combined for 11 sacks across his junior and senior seasons, will likely be in good position to see time behind Von Miller and Bradley Chubb. The Broncos lost Shaquil Barrett in free agency and are unlikely to bring back Shane Ray. Winfree will join a young Denver receiving corps, which will likely have four first- or second-year cogs.
  • Only one Lions draft choice remains unsigned after sixth-rounder Travis Fulgham agreed to terms. The Old Dominion-produced wideout will vie for a reserve role behind Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones and Danny Amendola. Third-round safety Will Harris has yet to sign.