HEADLINES

Jonathan Grimes

NFL Workout Updates: 9/13/17

September 13th, 2017 at 6:31pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s workout updates, with nearly all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account:

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Tennessee Titans

Washington Redskins

Jaguars Trim Roster To 75

September 1st, 2017 at 5:14pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Jaguars have cut their roster from 90 players to 75, according to John Oehser of the team’s website:

Waived:

  • TE Caleb Bluitt
  • OL Malcolm Bunche
  • LB P.J. Davis
  • CB Charles James
  • DT Tueni Lupeamanu
  • WR Larry Pinkard
  • OL Demetrius Rhaney
  • WR Jamal Robinson
  • CB Dwayne Thomas
  • FB Marquez Williams (waived/injured)

Released outright (vested veterans who are not subject to waivers):

Placed on IR:

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/11/17

August 11th, 2017 at 9:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are today’s minor moves.

  • The Vikings placed Bishop Sankey on IR, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Minnesota signed the former Titans second-round pick to a reserve/futures contract in January, but an MRI Friday revealed Sankey tore an ACL. He will miss the season. Sankey hasn’t played in a game since 2015.
  • Cut by both the 49ers and Jets in August, Bruce Ellington caught on with a third team this month. The Texans agreed to terms with the wide receiver/return specialist, John McClain of the Houston Chronicle reports. The Jets waived Ellington with an injury designation, but a Friday workout with the Texans provided a green light for the franchise to sign him. The Texans are currently reeling at wideout. In addition to Will Fuller‘s absence, Braxton Miller and DeAndrew White aren’t practicing. Ellington missed all of last season with a torn hamstring.
  • The Jaguars signed veteran running back Jonathan Grimes and waived running back Tyler Gaffney with an injury designation, the team announced. Grimes is a five-year NFL veteran whose most notable work came as a backup for the Texans from 2012-16. He gained 455 yards from scrimmage in 2015, the final year Arian Foster suffered a severe injury.
  • Defensive end Keionta Davis agreed to terms with the Patriots, who cut cornerback Dwayne Thomas to make room, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets. A rookie out of Chattanooga, Davis was invited to the Combine but wasn’t drafted or signed after the draft.
  • The Chargers re-signed tight end Matt Weiser, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports (on Twitter). A University of Buffalo alum, Weiser spent time with the Bolts during their final San Diego camp last summer but was cut just before the season.
  • The Colts reached injury settlements with tight end (and former VCU basketball standout) Mo Alie-Cox and wideout Harvey Binford, Wilson tweets.
  • Mykkele Thompson‘s time as a Giants secondary cog could be coming to a close. After Big Blue cut Thompson — a fifth-round pick in 2015 — on Thursday, he cleared waivers. NJ.com’s Dan Duggan expects an injury settlement to follow (Twitter link). Duggan notes this Thompson is battling a minor quadriceps injury.

AFC Contract Details: Patriots, Ravens, Texans

March 22nd, 2016 at 7:13pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Here are the contract details on some notable AFC deals which were agreed upon or signed within the last week:

  • Shea McClellin, LB (Patriots): Three years, $8.95MM. $2.5MM signing bonus. $3.5MM guaranteed. $1MM salary in 2016 guaranteed. Annual $300K roster bonus. $100K workout bonus in 2016, $200K workout bonuses in 2017 and ’18. (Twitter links via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle).
  • Chris Long, DE (Patriots): One year, $2.375MM. $1MM guaranteed. $500K signing bonus. $625K roster bonus (Twitter link via Ben Volin of the Boston Globe).
  • Chris Carter, LB (Ravens): One year, $1MM. No guaranteed money. $500K split salary (Twitter link via Wilson).
  • Jonathan Grimes, RB (Texans): One year, $900K. $200K guaranteed roster bonus. Deal includes a de-escalator clause (Twitter links via Wilson).

Texans, Jonathan Grimes Agree To Deal

March 19th, 2016 at 9:40am CST by Luke Adams

SATURDAY, 9:40am: Grimes’ one-year deal with the Texans is worth $900K, reports Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter).

FRIDAY, 10:42am: The Texans are bringing back running back Jonathan Grimes, according to agent Sunny Shah, who tweets that his client has agreed to a one-year contract to return to Houston. The deal will allow Grimes to return to the free agent market a year from now.Jonathan Grimes

Grimes, 26, wasn’t the primary option in Houston in 2015, even with Arian Foster out for the majority of the season, but he did earn a slightly increased role. In 14 games, he set new career highs in rushing attempts (56), rushing yards (282), receptions (26), receiving yards (173), and total touchdowns (two). Despite not receiving a ton of touches, the William & Mary product averaged 5.0 yards per carry and has a fan in head coach Bill O’Brien, as John McClain of the Houston Chronicle tweets.

Foster is no longer in the picture heading into the 2016 season, but the Texans’ backfield should still be fairly crowded. The team signed Lamar Miller to a four-year deal, and the financial terms on that contract suggest he’ll be in line for a majority of the carries. In addition to Grimes, Alfred Blue – who had 183 carries in 2015 – will also return, and so will young speedster Akeem Hunt.

Having reached an agreement with Grimes, the Texans are also looking ahead to the draft today, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, who writes that the team worked out Texas A&M offensive linemen Germain Ifedi and Mike Matthews. Ifedi projects as a possible first-round pick, while Matthews is a potential late-round selection.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/8/16

March 8th, 2016 at 10:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Tuesday’s minor tender decisions from around the NFL on potential restricted and exclusive-rights free agents:

  • The Texans have assigned the low tender to both cornerback A.J. Bouye and linebacker John Simon, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter links). Both players will earn a $1.671MM non-guaranteed base salary next year.

Earlier updates:

  • The Buccaneers have assigned the low-end tender to RFA wide receiver Russell Shepard, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. Shepard, 25, hasn’t been a major part of the offense since joining the team in 2013, catching just seven total passes, but he has been a key contributor on special teams.
  • The Texans will not tender an offer to running back Jonathan Grimes, nor will they re-sign him to a lesser deal, as Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets.
  • The Ravens have begun extending contract tenders to their ERFAs, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (all Twitter links), who reports that wide receiver Daniel Brown, running back Terrance West, and cornerback Sheldon Price all received offers from the team. Cornerback Jumal Rolle — another ERFA — also received a tender, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
  • The Packers have issued a tender to safety Chris Banjo, who was an exclusive rights free agent, Weston Hodkiewicz of the Press Gazette tweets.