Matt McCrane

NFL Workout Rumors: Dawkins, Lions, Akers

The name of recent UFL linebacker Noah Dawkins is starting to make the rounds in NFL camps. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2, Dawkins worked out recently with both the Cowboys and Bears.

Dawkins’ introduction to the NFL came in 2019 when he signed with the Bengals as an undrafted free agent following an impressive pro day at The Citadel. He was signed off the team’s practice squad to the Buccaneers active roster, appearing in 10 games without recording any defensive statistics. In the next three years, he spent time with the Jets and Bears.

He spent this past UFL season with the Michigan Panthers, totaling 35 tackles and an interception. He wasn’t part of the initial rush of players from the UFL getting NFL interest, but he seems to be growing in popularity. In addition to his recent workouts, Wilson reports that Dawkins has garnered interest from multiple other teams.

Here are a couple other workout rumors from around the NFL:

  • The Lions entered training camp with one of the league’s more intriguing position battles as Michael Badgley and UFL phenom Jake Bates duked it out for the kicking job in Detroit. The incumbent Badgley was forced out of the battle when he suffered a season-ending hamstring injury on Thursday. Despite this setback, special teams coordinator Dave Fipp isn’t simply handing the job to Bates. According to ESPN’s Field Yates, Fipp and the Lions brought in a slew of legs to compete with Bates this summer including Matt Ammendola, Lucas Havrisik, Matt McCrane, and Andre Szmyt. Bates was shining at points of his viral UFL campaign but got cold down the stretch. After Bates missed three of eight field goal attempts in practice yesterday, per Lions senior writer Tim Twentyman, it makes sense for Fipp to bring in some competition to keep the UFL star honest.
  • Former second-round running back Cam Akers has struggled to find his place in the NFL but recently signed with the Texans for his next opportunity. Interestingly, Wilson notes that, before his successful workout in Houston resulted in a contract, Akers was scheduled for a workout with the Raiders this past week. Akers has his chance now to battle for time behind Joe Mixon and Dameon Pierce in Houston, but his chances may have been a bit better in Las Vegas. The Raiders have a few names in Zamir White, Alexander Mattison, and Ameer Abdullah, but White is relatively inexperienced with just four starts to his name, Mattison struggled in his first season of full-time starting duty last season in Minnesota, and Abdullah hasn’t eclipsed 200 yards rushing in a season since 2017. It’s interesting to see Akers sign with Houston when he may have had an opportunity for more playing time with the Raiders.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/8/22

Today’s taxi squad moves:

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Los Angeles Rams

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/3/22

Today’s taxi squad moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Cleveland Browns

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Released: K Matt McCrane

Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/1/22

The first taxi squad moves of 2022:

Green Bay Packers

Los Angeles Rams

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Signed: K Matt McCrane

Tennessee Titans

Eagles Add RB Kerryon Johnson To Practice Squad

Kerryon Johnson is back in Philly. Following a brief stint with the organization earlier this season, the running back is rejoining the Eagles’ practice squad, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter).

[RELATED: Latest On Eagles’ Miles Sanders]

With Miles Sanders sidelined and Jordan Howard banged up, the Eagles were looking for some healthy bodies to pair with Boston Scott and Kenneth Gainwell. So, they turned to Johnson, who spent much of the offseason with the organization. The running back landed on IR before being granted his release, and he managed to later catch on with the 49ers, appearing solely on special teams.

Johnson’s best season came during his rookie campaign, when he collected 854 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns on 150 touches. Over the next two seasons, Johnson only collected 898 yards from scrimmage on 194 touches, and he was ultimately waived by the team back in May.

The Eagles made a handful of additional practice squad moves today, including the signing of former Western Michigan offensive lineman Luke Juriga. The organization also released Matt McCrane and placed wideout John Hightower on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/21/21

Today’s taxi squad moves:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Released: K Matt McCrane

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/11/21

Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/18/21

With the Ravens, Browns, and Rams getting eliminated from the playoffs over the weekend, both teams announced their slew of reserve/futures deals on Monday. As a reminder, these are all non-guaranteed deals, usually for practice squad type players, to help teams flesh out their 90-man offseason rosters.

Baltimore Ravens

Cleveland Browns

Los Angeles Rams

Browns Work Out Folk, Parkey, Others

The Browns may be holding a kicker competition. They brought in Nick Folk, Kai Forbath, Cody Parkey and Matthew McCrane for workouts Wednesday, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.

Austin Seibert resides as Cleveland’s incumbent kicker. He kicked for the Browns last season, going 25-for-29. The ex-Oklahoma Sooner did miss five extra points, however, and may be on the verge of a training camp battle.

Cleveland has not seen much continuity at kicker lately. The team has changed kickers in each of the past four years, with Zane Gonzalez and Greg Joseph enjoying one-season stays. Seibert beat out Joseph last summer.

Folk has the most experience of the tryout legs, having kicked in the NFL since 2007. The 35-year-old specialist kicked in seven Patriots games last season. Parkey, whose “double doink” miss in a 2018 wild-card game set off rampant Bears kicker uncertainty, resurfaced in three Titans games last season. He made 3 of 3 field goals during that stay. Both Folk and Parkey made Pro Bowls as rookies — in 2007 and ’14, respectively.

Forbath was also part of the Pats’ post-Stephen Gostkowski kicker shuffle; he also kicked in three Cowboys games in 2019. McCrane did not play last season but kicked in four games as a rookie in 2018.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/9/19

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Chargers

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks