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Jordan Magee

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/23/24

October 23rd, 2024 at 7:33pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

  • Signed: LS Matt Orzech
  • Waived: DL Jonathan Ford

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

The Bears should soon be getting some offensive reinforcement. Most notably, lineman Larry Borom returned to practice today after missing the first chunk of the season with an ankle injury. The former fifth-round pick has been a reliable swing OT for the Bears over the past three years, starting 23 of his 39 appearances. The team will also welcome back Travis Homer, who has been sidelined since Week 3 with a finger injury. The veteran RB may have a tough time cracking the rotation upon his return with D’Andre Swift, Roschon Johnson, and Khalil Herbert currently leading the depth chart. The Bears will have 21 days to activate either of the two players to the 53-man roster.

Jordan Phillips was back at Cowboys practice today after landing on IR in mid-September. The defensive lineman’s injury wasn’t ever made particularly clear; the Cowboys claimed the player was favoring his previously repaired wrist, although the player later hinted that he was forced to the sideline because of conditioning. After more than a month on the shelf, the veteran will now get another look. The Cowboys acquired Phillips from the Giants back in August, and the veteran only got into about one fourth of his team’s defensive snaps before landing on IR. Phillips appeared in 26 games for the Bills between 2022 and 2023, collecting 35 tackles and four sacks.

Commanders’ Marcus Mariota, Efe Obada, Jordan Magee Return To Practice

October 2nd, 2024 at 2:05pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Commanders have enjoyed a strong start to the season, and they could have a number of reinforcements in the fold soon. Among the players who returned to practice on Wednesday is backup quarterback Marcus Mariota. 

The 30-year-old was placed on injured reserve just before the start of the regular season. That move guaranteed a four-game absence, so today’s news is a sign he has recovered in full while returning to action when first eligible. Mariota will be able to dress as Jayden Daniels‘ backup provided he is activated in time for Week 5.

After the Commanders traded away Sam Howell, it became clear the organization would invest in a new passer via the draft. Mariota was brought in on a one-year deal to provide experienced depth capable of handling first-team duties on a temporary basis if needed. The play of Daniels to date has not created any doubt about his readiness for NFL duties, although Mariota did see some starter’s reps during the summer before this year’s second overall pick was placed atop the depth chart.

After the end of his five-year run in Tennessee, Mariota has bounced around the NFL. The Oregon product spent the 2020 and ’21 seasons as a backup with the Raiders before his single campaign in Atlanta the following year. Mariota logged 13 starts during his Falcons tenure, but neither he nor the team’s offense impressed in that time. Last season, he worked as the Eagles’ QB2 and made just three appearances.

As long as Daniels remains healthy, he will remain atop the depth chart for the 3-1 Commanders. Mariota’s return would leave Jeff Driskel as Washington’s third-string passer while letting undrafted rookie Sam Hartman develop on the practice squad. Mariota seeing the field at some point would allow him to help his free agent value ahead of next offseason and add to his 90 games (including 74 starts) of experience.

In other roster news, defensive end Efe Obada has been designated for return from the PUP list. The 32-year-old was limited to only five games with Washington last season, but he recorded between 3.5 and 5.5 sacks in each of the three previous campaigns. Obada should continue in a rotational role along the edge once he is activated. Fifth-round round rookie linebacker Jordan Magee, meanwhile, had his practice window opened after he was designated for return from IR before the roster cutdown deadline.

Washington also placed Jamison Crowder on injured reserve. The veteran wideout is dealing with a calf injury, and he will now miss at least four games. Crowder, 31, returned to the nation’s capital in 2023 after beginning his career there, and he played all 17 games. The pending free agent will look to get back on the field and into the Commanders’ receiver rotation once healthy.

Commanders Cut Five 2023 Draftees, Move Down To 53

August 27th, 2024 at 10:48pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here is how Adam Peters‘ first Commanders offseason concluded. The Commanders are moving on from a 2023 Day 2 pick; their roster is now at 53.

Released:

Waived:

Placed on reserve/PUP list:

Placed on IR:

Placed on IR/return designation:

This represents an early exit for Stromberg, whom Washington drafted in last year’s third round. The former No. 97 overall pick only played in four games as a rookie, logging just 26 offensive snaps. Washington brought in ex-Dallas center Tyler Biadasz this offseason, and the team also kept four guards on its 53-man roster. Other personnel staffs around the league may be intrigued here, as this is a quick hook for a Day 2 O-lineman.

Five of the seven Commanders 2023 draftees are part of this cut continent, with Daniels, Rodriguez, Henry and Andre Jones joining Stromberg in being waived. Daniels, a fourth-rounder, spent last season on IR. Rodriguez, a sixth-rounder, rushed for 247 yards. Jones (Round 7) played 171 defensive snaps, while Henry (Round 5) started three games and registered 1.5 sacks. It will be interesting to see if any of these second-year players end up on Washington’s practice squad, as this does not reflect well on Ron Rivera‘s final draft in charge — especially after the team just traded 2022 first-rounder Jahan Dotson to a division foe.

The Commanders attempted to trade both Turner and defensive tackle John Ridgeway, per the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala. The latter ended up making the team. Magee suffered an MCL injury recently. While it required surgery, the rookie fifth-rounder is not expected to miss the full season. He already counts toward the Commanders’ eight injury activations, however. The Hartman and McSorley cuts leave only Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota on the 53-man roster.

NFL Injury Updates: Hill, Horne, Cook, Magee, 49ers

August 25th, 2024 at 6:48pm CST by Ely Allen

As the preseason comes to a close, a number of teams experienced the scares of a worst-case scenario for most players: getting injured just before the team makes final roster decisions. Some ended up being that worst-case scenario, while others lucked out with minor ailments.

Texans safety Brandon Hill was one such player who experienced a worst-case scenario this weekend. In Houston’s final preseason game against the Rams, Hill suffered a significant knee injury, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. The injury will be enough to end Hill’s 2024 season before it even got a chance to begin.

A seventh-round pick out of Pittsburgh last year, Hill only appeared in two games. With much of the same cast from last year returning in 2024, he wasn’t likely to see much more time on the field, but his loss thins out the team’s depth at safety and certainly ends his chances of being on the 53-man roster.

Here are a few other injury updates from around the NFL:

  • Per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, Giants defensive tackle Timmy Horne is also likely to miss the 2024 season. The third-year player out of Kansas State suffered a tear to his Achilles tendon that will keep him out for the year. Horne came to New York late last year after spending most of his first two seasons in the league with the Falcons. He started five games as an undrafted rookie in 2022 but has been a depth piece ever since.
  • The Steelers continue dealing with some bumps and bruises along the offensive line. After seeing rookie first-round tackle Troy Fautanu suffer an MCL sprain two weeks ago and center Nate Herbig tear his rotator cuff, the latest bump hits key reserve lineman Dylan Cook, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. Pittsburgh picked Cook up after he was waived by the Buccaneers last offseason and, while he made the team’s final 53-man roster in 2023, he didn’t ever appear in a game. With the recent foot injury, it looks like Cook will have to wait several more weeks before he can make his NFL- and Steelers-debut.
  • Another player who avoided the worst-case scenario but who is set to miss a decent amount of time is Commanders middle linebacker Jordan Magee. According to John Keim of ESPN, the fifth-round rookie out of Temple had an MCL injury that required a “procedure.” It’s been confirmed that the injury is not season-ending and that he will return at some point this season. Washington has a bit of depth at linebacker, but Magee was the only player listed behind veteran Bobby Wagner in that Mike-role.
  • Lastly, we finally got an update on the MRI results of 49ers pass rushers Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos. Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area reported late after Friday’s contest that the two had suffered knee sprains that didn’t result in ACL damage, but MRIs were scheduled for both players to be sure. The Athletic’s Matt Barrows was the one to provide an update today, claiming that, following the MRIs scheduled for yesterday, Floyd has been determined as day-to-day, while Gross-Matos will be week-to-week.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/10/24

May 10th, 2024 at 9:13pm CST by Ely Allen

Yesterday’s rush of rookie signings continued today. Here are Friday’s draft pick signings:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

  • K Will Reichard (sixth round, Alabama)
  • C Michael Jurgens (seventh round, Wake Forest)
  • DT Levi Drake Rodriguez (seventh round, Texas A&M-Commerce)

New England Patriots

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • G Mason McCormick (fourth round, South Dakota State)
  • DT Logan Lee (sixth round, Iowa)

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders