Kalif Raymond

Jets Waive KR/PR Kalif Raymond

There’s little room for error when you’re a punt returner. The Jets announced on Tuesday that they have released Kalif Raymond after his costly punt return fumble over the weekend.

The Jets got shellacked by the Raiders in Oakland and they’re hanging at least some of the blame on Raymond’s shaky hands. He muffed a punt towards the end of the first half and the Raiders quickly turned his error into a touchdown. Instead of going into the locker room down 14-10 (or perhaps in better shape than that, if the Jets ran an effective two minute drill), the Raiders took a 21-10 advantage. Things only got worse in the second act, of course, as Marshawn Lynch threw a dance party and the Raiders won 45-20.

Raymond was cut loose by Denver on cutdown weekend but was claimed off waivers by the Jets the next day. The Jets had top five waiver priority and it’s possible that other clubs submitted claims on him.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC East

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC East 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 BillsDolphinsPatriots, and Jets 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 AFC East transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Buffalo Bills

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Broncos Down To 52-Man Roster

The Broncos are down to a 52-man roster. Why 52, you ask? That’s because their signing of quarterback Brock Osweiler is not yet official. Once he’s inked, they’ll be at the 53-man max.

The Broncos also have Shane Ray on the active roster as of this writing. If they place him on IR, they’ll have another spot to work with.

Here’s the full look at their roster:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/Injured:

  • LB Kevin Snyder

Placed On IR:

Reserve/NFI:

Jets Notes: Hackenberg, Garoppolo, Raymond

The Jets have a lot of questions to answer at the quarterback position and, at the same time, there are lots of question marks about second-round pick Christian Hackenberg. Hackenberg hasn’t played in any games this season and remains something of a mystery to the Jets.

I think he’s a developmental player at this point, and there is a lot of talent there. The sky is the limit. But we don’t know yet,” offensive coordinator Chan Gailey said (via Darryl Slater of NJ.com).

Gailey says that Hackenberg has grown in practice, but it is strange that he has not been mentioned as an option in a year where three other QBs have started for the Jets. The Jets could go in a number of directions this offseason, but elevating Hackenberg to starter probably isn’t a viable option.

Here’s more on the Jets:

  • Jimmy Garoppolo would be the perfect quarterback for the Jets, but Patriots coach Bill Belichick would never let Gang Green have him, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News opines. Garoppolo is expected to be dangled this offseason and could fetch a high price for the Pats in a trade. However, the Patriots know better than to let their divisional rivals get a promising 25-year-old quarterback. As Mehta notes, Garoppolo’s value is enhanced by an uninspiring 2017 quarterback draft class that will likely include Notre Dame’s DeShone Kizer, North Carolina’s Mitch Trubisky and Clemson’s DeShaun Watson. Also helping his value is that he is due to make only $820K in 2017. In 2018, the team that has him could apply the franchise tag and hold off on giving him an expensive long-term deal.
  • The Jets tried to sign wide receiver Kalif Raymond off of the Broncos’ practice squad last week, Mike Klis of 9News tweets. To keep him, Denver bumped his salary. Then, today, they promoted him to the 53-man roster.
  • Yesterday, Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis responded to the retirement rumors surrounding him.

Broncos Promote WR Kalif Raymond

The Broncos have promoted wide receiver Kalif Raymond from the practice squad to the 53-man roster, Mike Klis of 9News tweets. Raymond will now serve as Denver’s new returner, Klis adds, which could be a sign that Jordan Norwood is being squeezed out. Kalif Raymond (vertical)

The Broncos had seven wide receivers on the roster before adding Raymond, so it stands to reason that at least one of the team’s receivers will be bumped from the 53-man roster. Lately, the Broncos have been using Cody Latimer and Norwood as their kick returners with Norwood as the primary punt return man. Now, those duties belong to Raymond, an undrafted Holy Cross product. In the preseason with Denver, he averaged 23.9 yards per kick return with his best return coming on a 41-yarder in the preseason finale.

In other Broncos news, quarterback Trevor Siemian will be sidelined on Sunday, coach Gary Kubiak told reporters. Paxton Lynch will get the start against Jacksonville in his place. In his previous outing, a 23-16 loss to the Falcons on Oct. 9, Lynch completed 23 of 35 passes for 223 yards, a touchdown and an interception. In total, Lynch has hit on 37 of 59 attempts for 393 yards, two scores and a pick this season.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC West

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC West 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 Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders, and Chargers 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 AFC West transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:

Denver Broncos

Kansas City Chiefs

Oakland Raiders

San Diego Chargers

Broncos Cut Players To Get To 53

The Broncos are making their way to 53. Here’s the list of cuts: "<strong

Thompson, an undrafted free agent, clawed his way on to the 53-man roster in each of the last two season. Unfortunately, he was not able to make the final cut this year thanks to the numbers crunch in the backfield and his lingering injuries. In 2014, the Duke product ran for 272 yards off of 54 carries with three rushing touchdowns. He also added four catches for 25 yards. Last season, Thompson appeared in 15 regular season games but carried the ball only 18 times for 48 yards while adding six catches for 51 yards. Andy Janovich will likely serve as Denver’s fullback with Thompson gone.

Peko got the highest bonus of any undrafted rookie free agent this year so it is a mild surprise to see him cut. The defensive tackle and other players on today’s cut list should find their way to Denver’s taxi squad.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Broncos Agree To Terms With 21 UDFAs

The Broncos have officially agreed to terms with 21 rookies who went undrafted over the weekend, according to the team’s official website. Denver’s undrafted free agent class is heavy on front-seven defenders and wide receivers — those players make up 13 of the 21 UDFAs headed to the Broncos.

Here’s the full list: