Jason Weaver

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/3/17

Tuesday’s minor moves:

  • The Lions have signed offensive lineman Garrett Reynolds and promoted cornerback Adairius Barnes from the practice squad, as Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com tweets. They’ll replace offensive tackle Corey Robinson (foot) and cornerback Asa Jackson (ankle), who were put on IR. To fill Barnes’ vacated spot on the practice squad, the team signed O-lineman Jason Weaver, a source told Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter).
  • The Chiefs have signed outside linebacker Victor Ochi off the Jets’ practice squad and placed linebacker Dadi Nicolas on IR, tweets Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. Ochi will now go from a team whose season is over to one with a first-round playoff bye.
  • The Seahawks have signed long snapper Tyler Ott, according to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter link). Ott will take over for Nolan Frese, who’s done for the season because of an ankle injury. Elsewhere on the roster, Seattle will waive safety Tyvis Powell to make room for new addition Devin Hester, per ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link).

AFC Notes: Bolts, Bengals, Bills, Browns, Pats

Cornerback Brandon Flowers‘ NFL future is in question after the Chargers placed him on injured reserve Wednesday, writes Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Flowers had a history of concussions even before suffering two this year, and he told Gehlken in November, “I have to make sure I am sane and can function and remember things after football.” If the soon-to-be 31-year-old does continue his career in 2017, it probably won’t be in San Diego, per Gehlken, who points to the cap savings that would come with releasing Flowers. By cutting the nine-year veteran and three-year Charger, the Bolts would free up $7MM in spending space compared to $4MM in dead money for 2017.

Here’s more from the AFC:

  • Bengals defensive tackle Brandon Thompson will remain on the physically unable to perform list and will not play in 2016, according to Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com. Thompson, 27, tore his ACL at the tail end of the 2015 campaign, but then re-signed with Cincinnati on a one-year deal. He’d been practicing for the past two weeks, but Bengals coaches don’t feel Thompson has progressed enough for a return to action.
  • A few prominent Bills are publicly rallying around embattled head coach Rex Ryan, whom the franchise could move on from after the season. “I think Rex is the guy for the job,” running back LeSean McCoy said. Wide receiver Sammy Watkins would also like the Bills to stay the course with Ryan, he told the Associated Press. And guard Richie Incognito wants to “fight for Rex. “I want to go out there and get wins and keep him around here” (all links here). With games against winless Cleveland, a Dolphins team that could be without Ryan Tannehill and the Jets, the 6-7 Bills seemingly have a decent chance of hitting the nine-win mark by season’s end. Buffalo went 8-8 last year under Ryan in his first season with the team.
  • Browns cornerback Jamar Taylor‘s three-year, $15MM extension includes $5.5MM in fully guaranteed money, relays ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link).
  • The Patriots worked out three free agents – running back Shakir Bell, defensive tackle Michael Brooks and linebacker Deon Lacey – on Wednesday, tweets Doug Kyed of NESN. The only member of the trio with NFL experience is Brooks, who appeared in one game with the Seahawks in 2013.
  • The Texans tried out a pair of offensive linemen in guard Sean Hickey and tackle Jason Weaver on Wednesday, according to Caplan (Twitter link).

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Workout Notes: Giants, Jets, Cardinals

Thursday’s tryouts from around the NFL:

  • The Giants auditioned four offensive linemen – Rob Crisp, Jason Weaver, Jon Halapio and Shahbaz Ahmed – reports Adam Caplan of ESPN (Twitter link). New York ended up signing Halapio to its practice squad. The Patriots selected Halapio in the sixth round of the 2014 draft, but he hasn’t seen any regular-season action. Crisp, Weaver and Ahmed are also devoid of experience.
  • The Jets worked out defensive end Sterling Bailey, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN (Twitter link). Bailey signed with Indianapolis in May as an undrafted free agent from Georgia, but the Colts cut him from their practice squad Monday.
  • The Cardinals tried out guards Kaleb Johnson and Martin Wallace, tweets Caplan. Both Johnson and Wallace have one game of pro experience under their belts.

Practice Squad Updates: 9/26/16

Here are today’s practice squad moves:

Chicago Bears

  • Signed: OL Colin Kelly
  • Cut: OL Jason Weaver (Twitter link via Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune)

Indianapolis Colts

  • Signed: DL Kristjan Sokoli (Twitter link via agent Brett Tessler)
  • Cut: DL Sterling Bailey (Twitter link via Mike Chappell of CBS4)

New York Jets

  • Signed: RB Brandon Wilds (via press release)
  • Cut: RB Dominique Williams

Seattle Seahawks

  • Signed: OL Robert Myers (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times)

Sunday NFL Transactions: NFC North

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four NFC North teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Bears, Lions, Packers, and Vikings are noted below.

Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s NFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Minnesota Vikings

Bears’ Roster At 53

The Bears have officially reduced their roster to 53 players, and in doing so, placed LB Pernell McPhee and WR Marquess Wilson on PUP. As such, each player will be forced to miss at leas the first six games of the season.

Cut:

Waived/Injured:

PUP:

  • LB Pernell McPhee
  • WR Marquess Wilson

Braverman was the club’s seventh-round pick this year after posting a whopping 109 receptions for Western Michigan in 2015.

Moeaki has bounced around a bit since leaving the Chiefs in 2012. The 29-year-old played in 11 games for the Falcons last season, but he only hauled in three catches for 58 yards. Following a 2012 campaign where he caught 33 passes for 453 yards and a score, Moeaki has only compiled 11 catches for 192 yards over the past three seasons.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/24/15

Here are Monday’s minor signings, cuts, and other transactions from around the NFL:

  • The Patriots waived Brian Tyms, who will revert to their IR (foot injury) if he goes unclaimed, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets.

Earlier Updates:

  • The Lions waived/injured linebacker Kevin Snyder, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com tweets.
  • The Bears made a change on their offensive line today, signing former Raiders guard Lucas Nix to a one-year contract and waiving offensive lineman Jason Weaver with an injury designation (Twitter link). Nix, who started 10 games for Oakland in 2013, worked out for Chicago earlier in the month.
  • The Dolphins have waived wide receiver Michael Preston, the team announced today (via Twitter). Preston himself broke word of the move yesterday, with a tweet thanking the club for the opportunity.
  • The Eagles have added one safety to their roster and removed another, signing Brandan Bishop and reaching an injury settlement with Earl Wolff (Twitter links via agent David Canter and Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer). Wolff, a 2013 fifth-round pick, will become a free agent as he recovers from his knee surgery. The Eagles also waived/injured defensive tackle Wade Keliikipi, who suffered a Lisfranc foot injury this weekend, replacing him with defensive tackle Jeremy Towns (Twitter links).
  • The Falcons have parted ways with 2014 fifth-rounder Marquis Spruill, placing him on waivers today, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Spruill, whose rookie season was wiped out by a torn ACL, never played a regular-season down for Atlanta.
  • The Giants formally announced several moves today, including the signing of veteran linebacker Ashlee Palmer, who started 15 games over the last two seasons in Detroit. The club also signed rookie defensive back C.J. Conway, and waived/injured safety Justin Currie (ankle) and linebacker Tony Johnson (knee).
  • The Jaguars announced a series of moves today (via Twitter and press release), adding wide receiver Erik Lora, linebacker Mister Alexander, and offensive lineman Will Corbin to their roster. The outgoing players are receiver Damian Copeland (waived/injured), offensive lineman Brennan Williams (waived/injured), and wideout Arrelious Benn (placed on IR).
  • The Panthers have waived/injured defensive end Frank Alexander, signing tight end Dallas Walker to replace him on the roster, the team announced today (Twitter link). Alexander, who sustained a torn Achilles, is in the final year of his contract, so Carolina isn’t worried about another team claiming him.
  • The Saints‘ tight end carousel continues, as the club is cutting Michael Egnew just a week after signing him, per Kristian Garic of WWL 870AM (Twitter link).
  • The Seahawks have cut defensive back Jeremy Crayton, using the newly-created roster spot to re-sign wide receiver DeShon Foxx, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.
  • The Jets signed tight end Matt LaCosse and waived/injured defensive lineman Davon Walls, Brian Costello of the New York Post tweets.

Reserve/Futures Contracts: Monday

Teams have been announcing their reserve/futures deals all day long, but not every club has made those pacts official. Here are the odds and ends from today as we await the full slate:

49ers

Bears

Broncos

Buccaneeers

Eagles

Falcons

Saints

Washington

  • Lakendrick Ross, DL (via ESPN 980 on Twitter)

Bears Place Lamarr Houston On IR

A week after a sack celebration gone wrong resulted in a torn ACL, defensive end Lamarr Houston has been placed on injured reserve by the Bears, the club announced today (Twitter link). The Bears have promoted defensive end David Bass from their practice squad to replace Houston the 53-man roster, signing tackle Jason Weaver to fill the newly-opened spot on the taxi squad.

Houston, one of the offseason’s most notable free agent signees, is in the first season of a five-year pact with the Bears, and has a sizable chunk of guaranteed money owed to him for next season, so he’ll be back with Chicago in 2015. Still, it was a disappointing first year in Chicago for Houston, who was brought in to help replace departing defensive end Julius Peppers — the sack Houston was celebrating when he tore his ACL was only his first of the season.

Only three Bears defensive ends – Houston, Jared Allen, and Willie Young – had logged more than eight defensive snaps this season. Allen and Young figure to continue seeing plenty of action, particularly as pass rushers, but Bass and fellow reserves Cornelius Washington and Trevor Scott could have their roles expanded in Houston’s absence.

West Notes: Sutton, Chiefs, Rams

Let’s check in on a few Wednesday links from around the NFL’s two West divisions….

  • Jets head coach Rex Ryan told reporters, including Randy Covitz of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter), that he hopes Chiefs defensive coordinator Bob Sutton gets a head coaching job, but added, “I hope it’s not mine.”
  • The Chiefs took a look at a handful of free agent defenders this week, says Howard Balzer of The SportsXchange (via Twitter). Per Balzer, linebackers Brandon Denmark, Kevin Reddick, D.J. Smith, and Uani Unga, as well as defensive end Tim Fugger, all worked out for the club.
  • The Rams brought in offensive tackles Mitchell Van Dyk and Jason Weaver for tryouts this week, according to Balzer (via Twitter).
  • In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Louis Riddick examines several extension candidates who should be in line for big contracts soon, either from their own teams or in free agency. Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas tops the list, with Chiefs outside linebacker Justin Houston and Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson among the other players earning mentions.
  • Earlier tonight, I asked if the Seahawks and 49ers, who entered the year as favorites to come out of the NFC, will even earn playoff spots this season.

Zach Links contributed to this post.