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Kevin Murphy

AFC South Notes: Brackett, Colts, Mallett

October 17th, 2014 at 9:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Three AFC South teams are squaring off against AFC North opponents this week, as the Jaguars seek their first win of their season against the Browns, the Texans look to knock off the Steelers in Pittsburgh, and perhaps most importantly, the Colts will face the Bengals in a battle of first-place teams. With 11 weeks still to play, there’s plenty of time for teams to move up or down in the standings, but there’s a real possibility that Sunday’s Colts/Bengals matchup could have seeding or home field implications for two teams with 2013 playoff teams with Super Bowl aspirations.

As we look forward to that game and the rest of this weekend’s slate, let’s check out the latest out of the AFC South:

  • The Texans traded for Ryan Mallett just before the beginning of the season, and his history with head coach Bill O’Brien from their time in New England led some to believe that Mallett would eventually get a chance to play. O’Brien spoke up on Friday, praising the strong-armed former Patriot for his preparation and presence on the sidelines, reports Tania Ganguli of ESPN.com. However, O’Brien stops short of saying Mallett is ready to go under center and get his first real NFL action.
  • Titans’ head coach Ken Whisenhunt indicated today that tight end Brett Brackett, who’s currently on the team’s practice squad, could be re-added to the 53-man roster again this week, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean.
  • In addition to the offensive lineman whose auditions have been previously reported, the Titans also worked out Dennis Roland and Kevin Murphy this week, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com and Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links).
  • The Colts will be looking very carefully at the 2015 transition tag numbers, with Andrew Luck and Trent Richardson both approaching the final year on their respective rookie deals. The 2015 transition tag will be equal to the 2016 fifth-year options for the top ten picks of the 2012 NFL Draft, where both Luck and Richardson were selected, according to Albert Breer of NFL.com. Keeping Luck for a fifth year at $16.12MM is a no-brainer, but declining Richardson’s number of $9.02MM is just as obvious a choice according to Breer.

 

Rob DiRe contributed to this post.

NFC South Notes: Bucs, Falcons, Saints

September 25th, 2014 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

The NFC South has been one of football’s less predictable divisions so far, with the Saints – everyone’s preseason pick to win the division – sitting at 1-2, while the popular postseason sleeper Buccaneers look like the NFL’s worst team at 0-3. All four teams, including the 2-1 Panthers and Falcons, are on the road this week, as Carolina and Atlanta try to continue their winning ways in Baltimore and Minnesota respectively. Meanwhile, the Bucs will try to get in the win column in Pittsburgh, while the Saints will look to halt the Cowboys’ winning streak in Dallas.

Here’s the latest out of the NFC South:

  • With offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford away from the team indefinitely for health reasons, don’t expect the Buccaneers to hire an offensive consultant to work with Marcus Arroyo, tweets Alex Marvez of FOX Sports. According to Marvez, “it’s Arroyo’s show” in Tampa Bay.
  • Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link) adds defensive backs Roc Carmichael and Tommie Campbell to the list of players to work out for the Buccaneers this week.
  • Reid Fragel was the offensive lineman to ultimately sign with the Falcons‘ practice squad this week, but the club also took a look at tackles Kevin Murphy and Martin Wallace, according to Wilson (via Twitter).
  • The Saints also auditioned a handful of players this week, and Wilson provides several new names (via Twitter). The team signed offensive lineman Alex Parsons to its practice squad, but also tried out linemen Lemuel Jeanpierre and Eric Olsen, as well as cornerback Brandon Ghee.

Vikings Trim Roster, Cut Derek Cox, 13 Others

August 25th, 2014 at 10:58am CST by Dallas Robinson

10:58am: The Vikings have announced the release of several more players via press release. Minnesota’s roster sits at 76, so they need to make one more cut.

10:04am: The Vikings have made several roster moves this morning, releasing the following players, per Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 (Twitter links):

Cox is the headliner here — a former third-round pick who spent four seasons with the Jaguars, Cox played in San Diego last year before signing a one-year deal with Minnesota in March. Per Wolfson, Raymond was released with an injury settlement.