Kaelin Clay

Panthers Ship WR Kaelin Clay To Bills

Brandon Beane‘s Panthers ties look to have helped a trade agreement, one that will send wide receiver Kaelin Clay to the Bills. Carolina traded Clay to Buffalo on Saturday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). The Panthers will receive cornerback Kevon Seymour and a 2019 seventh-round pick in return.

Clay spent barely four months with the Panthers but arrived when Beane was still in his previous role as Carolina’s assistant GM. While Beane joined the Bills in May, Beane was part of the staff that brought in the wideout/return specialist a month earlier.

Now, Clay — a third-year player out of Utah — will trek to western New York and join Beane’s new organization. The 5-foot-10 receiver has yet to catch an NFL pass but did serve as the Ravens’ primary kick and punt returner as a rookie. He returned a punt for a touchdown in his second NFL game. A sixth-round Baltimore pick in 2015, Clay did not play last season.

Seymour was the Bills’ final pick in the 2016 draft. He appeared in 15 games last year and even made three starts.

Panthers Sign Kaelin Clay

Kaelin Clay has found a new home. The Panthers announced that they have signed the speedy return specialist. Terms of the agreement are unknown.

Kaelin ClayThe former sixth-rounder has bounced around the NFL since entering the league in 2015, spending time with the Buccaneers, Lions, and Ravens. He ultimately appeared in seven games with Baltimore in 2015, serving primarily as a returner. The Utah product finished that campaign with 14 kick returns for 343 yards (24.5-yard average) and 23 punt returns for 244 yards (10.6-yard average) and one touchdown.

The 25-year-old was set to serve a similar role last season, but he suffered a foot injury during the preseason. Clay landed on the Ravens injured reserve and was subsequently waived.

The Panthers could certainly use some reinforcement on the return game, as Ted Ginn joined the Saints earlier this offseason. Besides Clay, the Panthers could also look towards Fozzy Whittaker, Joe Webb, and Damiere Byrd, as the three players were also involved in Carolina’s return game last season.

Ravens Sign Kamar Aiken, Trent Richardson

With their offseason program set to get underway, the Ravens have confirmed a series of signings, including officially locking up several of their own players for 2016. Per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter), wide receiver Kamar Aiken has formally signed his RFA tender, while the team has announced in a press release that running back Trent Richardson has signed a contract to join the Ravens.Kamar Aiken (vertical)

In addition to re-signing Aiken and adding Richardson, the Ravens also secured a few exclusive-rights free agent. According to the team (via Twitter), wide receiver Jeremy Butler, wide receiver and return specialist Kaelin Clay, and offensive lineman Ryan Jensen have all signed their ERFA tenders.

Aiken, who turns 27 next month, had a breakout 2015 campaign, leading the team with 75 catches for 944 yards. Although Aiken didn’t fully emerge as a go-to option in Baltimore’s offense until after Steve Smith went down for the season with an Achilles injury, the Central Florida product figures to have a significant role going forward. Despite their limited cap flexibility in March, the Ravens assigned Aiken a second-round tender worth $2.553MM, signaling how much they value him.

Richardson, meanwhile, visited Baltimore back in February and has been expected to sign with them for quite some time. GM Ozzie Newsome and the Ravens had been somewhat concerned about Richardson’s conditioning, but agreed to sign him if he lost some weight, which he has. The former third overall pick may have an uphill battle to earn a roster spot in a crowded backfield in Baltimore, but it looks like a low-risk flier for the Ravens.

As for Butler, Clay, and Jensen, while they were technically considered free agents, the Ravens held their exclusive rights, so none of those players could explore the market.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ravens Sign Three Players; Perriman To IR

After a devastating loss on Sunday to the Jaguars, the Ravens have shaken up their roster a little, removing three players from the 53-man squad and bringing in three new additions. Here are today’s roster moves out of Baltimore, according to the team (all Twitter links):

Signed:

Placed on injured reserve:

  • WR Breshad Perriman (knee)

Waived:

Waived/injured:

The most notable move of the Ravens’ six transactions today is the decision to put Perriman on IR, officially ending his rookie season. Baltimore’s first-round pick never saw the field during the 2015 regular season, and after being selected 26th overall in the draft back in April, he won’t get an opportunity to make his NFL debut until 2016.

The Ravens will also be turning to a new return man for their next game, with Ross no longer in the mix, and the newly-signed Clay may get a shot at the job. Ross had fumbled twice in Baltimore’s last three games, leading to his release.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/16/15

Today’s minor moves from around the NFL:

  • The Colts announced that they activated cornerback D’Joun Smith from the Injured Reserve/Designated for Return list. Smith, a third round pick in the 2015 draft, was initially placed on IR-DTR on September 18th. In 44 career games at Florida Atlantic, Smith totaled 120 tackles (78 solo), nine interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, 1.0 sack and 29 passes defensed.
  • The Panthers waived tight end Richie Brockel from injured reserve, Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.
  • The Giants are set to sign offensive lineman Emmett Cleary to the active roster, a source tells Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger. Cleary, 25, spent the first ten weeks of the season on the Giants’ practice squad and he had a strong training camp and preseason. Cleary has also spent time with the Bucs, Colts, Raiders, and Bengals in recent years. To make room, the Giants cut defensive back Tramain Jacobs, as Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News tweets.
  • The Seahawks were awarded defensive tackle A.J. Francis off waivers from the Dolphins, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets. To make room, fellow defensive tackle David King was cut loose.
  • The Eagles released Wade Keliikipi from injured reserve, Wilson tweets.
  • Wide receiver Kaelin Clay took to Twitter to announce that the Ravens have signed him off the Lions‘ taxi squad.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/23/15

Here are the latest practice squad signings and cuts from across the NFL:

Arizona Cardinals

Buffalo Bills

Dallas Cowboys

  • Signed: DE Efe Obada (Twitter link via Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com)

Detroit Lions

  • Signed: WR/KR Kaelin Clay (link via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press)
  • Cut: WR Kendrick Ings

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

  • Signed: TE Sean McGrath (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle), CB Eric Patterson (via Mike Chappell of FOX59 on Twitter)
  • Cut: OL David Arkin

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

  • Signed: TE Connor Hamlett (Twitter link via Evan Woodbery of the Times-Picayune)

Tennessee Titans

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/15/15

Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

  • Signed: RB Zurlon Tipton and OL Robert Myers (via press release)

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Signed: OT Patrick Miller (via Mike DiRocco on Twitter)
  • Cut: DT Toby Johnson (via press release)

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

    • To be signed: RB Kevin Monangai and NT Travis Raciti (via team website)
    • To be cut: TE Andrew Gleichert

St. Louis Rams

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington

Sunday NFL Transactions: NFC South

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four NFC South 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 Falcons, Panthers, Saints, and Buccaneers are noted below.

Additionally, as of 11:00am today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. For the 2014 and 2015 seasons, changes were made to practice squad rules that allow teams to carry eight players instead of 10, and the eligibility requirements for those extra two spots were also loosened. 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 South transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

New Orleans Saints

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Bucs Announce Remaining Cuts, Down To 53

The Buccaneers have confirmed a number of previously-reported transactions, including the release of kicker Connor Barth and defensive end Da’Quan Bowers, and have announced the rest of their moves to get their roster down to 53 players.

Here’s the full list of Tampa Bay’s transactions that weren’t included in our story from this morning, as announced by the team in a press release.

Placed on injured reserve:

  • DE Larry English

Released:

  • DE Lawrence Sidbury

Waived:

  • CB Jude Adjei-Barimah
  • WR Kaelin Clay
  • T Edawn Coughman
  • DE Ryan Delaire
  • WR Donteea Dye
  • LB Josh Keyes
  • DT Caushaud Lyons

Waived/injured:

  • OL Garrett Gilkey

Draft Signings: Browns, Bucs, Titans

With less room for negotiations on rookie contracts under the new CBA, draft picks are coming to terms with their teams quicker than ever, and a few more have struck deals already today. Here are the latest updates on mid-to-late rounders reaching agreements with their respective clubs, with contract information provided by Over The Cap….

  • The Browns have officially brought a pair of draftees into the fold, announcing today in a press release that they’ve formally signed third-round defensive lineman Xavier Cooper and sixth-round fullback Malcolm Johnson. Their signing bonuses will be worth about $592K and $119K respectively.
  • Sixth-round wideout Kaelin Clay has signed his rookie deal with the Buccaneers, as Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com tweets. Clay, the second Tampa Bay pick to sign his deal, after Jameis Winston, will get a $130K+ signing bonus.
  • The Titans have started to lock up their draft picks, agreeing to terms today with sixth-round outside linebacker Deiontrez Mount, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. Mount’s four-year contract will have a total value of $2.428MM, including a signing bonus of about $148K, and a 2015 cap hit of approximately $472K.
  • Saints third-round draft pick P.J. Williams signed his rookie contract on Tuesday, according to a post on his Instagram account. New Orleans has now inked all of its picks with the exception of Stephone Anthony and Andrus Peat.
  • The Eagles and sixth round draft pick JaCorey Shepherd have agreed to terms on a four-year contract, Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com tweets.

Zach Links contributed to this post.