HEADLINES

Matt Smalley

Kellen Winslow, Ben Tate Join Spring League

March 22nd, 2017 at 11:57am CST by Zachary Links

The Spring League kicks off in April and it will feature some notable names looking to resurrect their football careers. Defensive end Greg Hardy, tight end Kellen Winslow Jr., cornerback Brandon Browner, and running back Ben Tate are among the players who have been confirmed as participants, according to a press release. Greg Hardy (vertical)

Winslow has not played in an NFL game since the 2013 season and we haven’t heard much from him since he worked out for the Packers last August. Tate, a former second-round pick, showed lots of promise in Houston but could not capitalize on a starting opportunity with the Browns in 2014. Hardy and Browner first committed to the league in early March.

The Spring League consists of four teams comprised of veteran free agents. The league will conduct practices and play six games from April 5 through April 26. Players who are currently on NFL rosters will not be eligible to participate.

The league has secured five quarterbacks thus far, including Chiefs 2011 fifth-round pick Ricky Stanzi and NFL practice squad journeyman McLeod Bethel-Thompson. At wide receiver, there’s former Ram Brandon Gibson, Jets 2014 fourth-round pick Jalen Saunders, and one-time Bills WR2 David Nelson. Former Jets defensive back Ellis Lankster and Texans 2013 third-round defensive tackle Sam Montgomery will also be suiting up for The Spring League next month.

The full list of players can be found below. In addition to those listed here, Pro Football Rumors has learned that another 30 players are expected to join prior to the start of training camp.

Quarterbacks

  • Hutson Mason
  • Ricky Stanzi
  • McLeod Bethel-Thompson
  • Zach Kline
  • Jeremy Cannon

Running backs

Wide receivers

  • Jalen Saunders
  • David Nelson
  • Kenzel Doe
  • Brandon Gibson
  • Daje’ Johnson
  • Gavin Lutman
  • Tyler McDonald
  • J.D. Woods
  • Sed Cunningham
  • Lawrence Smith
  • Terrance Lewis
  • Rashon Ceaser
  • Kendrick Wiggins

Read more

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/18/16

August 18th, 2016 at 5:49pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

  • The Panthers announced that they have signed tackle Willie Smith and waved/injured fullback Devon Johnson, as Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer tweets.
  • The Falcons have reached an injury settlement with center Jake Reed, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter).
  • The Redskins have waived offensive tackle Kevin Bowen with an injury designation, per Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post (Twitter link).
  • The Giants have waived defensive back Matt Smalley with a failure to disclose physical condition designation, tweets Wilson.
  • The Browns have reached an injury settlement with running back Patrick Skov, reports Wilson (via Twitter).

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/17/16

August 17th, 2016 at 5:25pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

  • To make room for the newest member of their roster, Brock Vereen, the Chiefs released safety Akeem Davis (Twitter link via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star).
  • The Ravens signed cornerback Carrington Byndom and waived fellow corner Sam Brown, per Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com.
  • The Browns waived offensive lineman Erle Ladson, tweets Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal.
  • The Jaguars signed guard/center Jacques McClendon and waived wide receiver Rasheed Bailey, as Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com tweets. McClendon was with the Jaguars in 2013-14.
  • The Colts signed free agent safety Alden Darby, as Colts PR man Christian Edwards tweets. They also removed running back Abou Toure from IR with an injury settlement, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
  • The Giants signed defensive back Joe Powell, who attended Globe Institute of Technology in Manhattan, according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN (Twitter link). Powell will take the place of fellow DB Matt Smalley, who suffered a dislocated shoulder Monday.
  • The Titans announced that they have signed wide receivers Jarrod West and Donte Foster. The team also waived/injured offensive lineman Josue Matias. Matias, a 2015 UDFA addition, spent last year on Tennessee’s practice squad and is facing a six-month recovery.
  • The Lions waived wide receiver Alex Chisum and signed free agent offensive lineman Lemuel Jeanpierre, according to a team announcement.
  • The NFL announced that Chiefs offensive tackle Zach Sterup has been suspended four games for violating the policy on performance-enhancing substances, as Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star tweets.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/10/16

May 10th, 2016 at 4:30pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

  • Fullback Toben Opurum was claimed by the Broncos after he was waived by the Saints, Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune writes. Opurum, 25, has been with the Saints since the end of the 2014 season. In a related move, the Broncos have waived tight end Anthony Norris, Troy Renck of The Denver Post tweets.
  • The Bills have claimed running back Dri Archer off waivers from the Jets, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com writes. Rodak notes that Archer owns the second-fastest 40-yard dash time (4.26 seconds) in NFL history. Bills wide receiver Marquise Goodwin holds the third-fastest time.
  • The Colts have claimed quarterback Josh Woodrum off waivers from the Giants, as Mike Wells of ESPN.com tweets. In a related move, the Colts waived-injured tight end Mike McFarland. McFarland will go on the Colts’ IR if he clears waivers. As for Woodrum, he becomes the team’s fourth QB on the depth chart after Andrew Luck, Scott Tolzien, and Stephen Morris.
  • The Rams released wide receiver Isiah Ferguson, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). To replace him, the Rams have inked wide receiver J.J. Worton (link).
  • The Vikings announced that they have waived safety Johnny Lowdermilk. The arrival of Lowdermilk will make room for the addition of running back C.J. Ham, whose signing was reported on Monday. Ham, a Duluth native, rushed for 1,097 yards and 16 touchdowns in his final season at Augustana University.
  • The Texans waived outside linebacker Eric Lee, who had signed as undrafted free agent from South Florida, John McClain of The Houston Chronicle tweets. Lee was making the transition to outside linebacker from college defensive end, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle notes (on Twitter).
  • The Packers announced the signing of safety Marwin Evans. Evans, 23, finished his collegiate career at Utah State. The Milwaukee native started 13 of 27 games played for the Aggies, recording 83 tackles (36 solo), 10 tackles for a loss, two sacks, an interception he returned 90 yards for a touchdown, three forced fumbles and five pass breakups.
  • The Giants‘ signing of Matt Smalley will wait until the Lafayette cornerback is done with his finals, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the Daily News (on Twitter). That will give Big Blue time before they have to release someone from the 90-man roster.
  • The Giants released linebacker Uani Unga (Twitter link via SiriusXM).
  • The Rams signed former Auburn wide receiver Duke Williams after his recent tryout, Vincent Bonsignore of the Daily News tweets.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/8/16

May 8th, 2016 at 7:17pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

  • Former Washington Husky defensive lineman Taniela Tupou worked as a fullback with the Seahawks during their rookie minicamp and did so well enough to earn an extended look from the team. The Seahawks are expected to sign Tupou, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (Twitter links). Tupou played in 28 games as a defensive lineman with the Huskies from 2013-15.
  • The Giants will sign Lafayette cornerback Matt Smalley after his weekend tryout, Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger tweets.
  • The Giants have agreed to sign former Brooklyn and Lincoln High School star Ishaq Williams, as Ralph Vacchiano of the Daily News writes. The linebacker has not played football since 2013 since a suspension over academics knocked him off the team at Notre Dame.
  • The Lions signed undrafted rookie free agent offensive lineman Darius Johnson and waived tackle Tyrus Thompson, Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com tweets.
  • The Bengals announced that they have signed Louisville kicker Jonathan Brown, Utah linebacker Gionni Paul, Florida guard/center Trip Thurman, and Marshall cornerback Corey Tindal, as Mike Florio of PFT writes. All four players took part in the team’s weekend minicamp and outshined the other 15 UDFAs in attendance.