HEADLINES

Mike Hull

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/18/20

March 18th, 2020 at 8:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the minor moves from the first day of official free agency. The list will be updated throughout Wednesday.

Carolina Panthers

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

Washington Redskins

AFC East Rumors: Gronk, McCoy, Fins, Jets

July 21st, 2019 at 9:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

The AFC East’s teams will report to training camp this week. Here is the latest surrounding the Patriots and their perennial challengers:

  • The Rob Gronkowski comeback talk has escalated considerably, with Gronkowski doing the speculating and predicting how restless he will be when Patriots camp and games begin. It won’t be Gronk’s relationship with Bill Belichick that stands in the way, Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston notes. After 2017 featured tension between Gronkowski and Belichick, Curran adds that the two “greatly” improved their relationship last season. This came despite the Patriots at one point planning to trade Gronk to the Lions last year. This improved relationship could point to Belichick signing off on a Gronk mid- or late-season return. The Patriots’ shaky tight end depth chart would seemingly have the defending champions eager to have the 30-year-old back in uniform.
  • One of Gronkowski’s former sidekicks in New England, Dwayne Allen will not begin camp on time with his new team. The Dolphins placed the veteran tight end on their active/PUP list on Sunday. Cornerback Cordrea Tankersley and linebacker/special-teamer Mike Hull joined Allen in receiving this designation before Miami’s camp. Tankersley tore an ACL in November, so this additional delay was not unexpected. He started 11 games at corner as a rookie but played in only six, as a reserve, last season.
  • Might third-round rookie Devin Singletary‘s performance put a potential Hall of Famer on the outs in Buffalo? LeSean McCoy is entering the final season of a five-year, $40MM Bills contract, and his cap savings ($6MM-plus) would benefit the Bills more than releases of Frank Gore or T.J. Yeldon. This led an NFL scouting director to call the McCoy situation one to monitor, per Albert Breer of SI.com. On a limited Bills offense last season, McCoy averaged a career-low 36.7 yards per game. His 3.2 yards per carry were nearly a yard shy of his previous-worst figure. The idea of a McCoy trade has surfaced this offseason, too.
  • Despite Leonard Williams being one of Mike Maccagnan‘s highest-profile investments, the New York Post’s Brian Costello predicts, barring unrealistic contract demands, Williams will end up staying on a long-term deal. The defensive end’s positive off-field reputation and standing within the locker room supports the notion the new regime, in Costello’s view, regarding him as a cornerstone player going forward. Speculation in league circles emerged that Adam Gase wanted to move on from Williams, but nothing has developed on that front in weeks. Williams, 25, is set for a fifth-year option season at $14.2MM.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/21/19

March 21st, 2019 at 9:04pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit Lions

Miami Dolphins

Oakland Raiders

Dolphins Sign DT Sylvester Williams

October 31st, 2018 at 10:55am CST by Zachary Links

The Dolphins announced the signing of defensive tackle Sylvester Williams on Wednesday morning. They’ve also activated linebacker Mike Hull off injured reserve, giving the front seven a bit of a midseason lift. 

Williams started eleven games and made 15 total appearances for the Titans last year, his first campaign outside of Denver since the Broncos made him a first-round pick in 2014. He was strong against the run in 2017, but he didn’t fare well with the Lions this year. Last week, Detroit cut him loose after trading for Damon Harrison.

At the time of his release, Williams ranked as Pro Football Focus’ No. 78 overall defensive tackle in the league with a subpar score for run defense. He didn’t fill the traditional stat sheet much either with six tackles in six games.

Last season, Williams played on roughly a third of the Titans’ defensive snaps, good for third-most among the club’s defensive linemen. Pro Football Focus gave him high marks against the run and some not-so-great marks for his work on passing downs.

Dolphins Designate OL Jake Brendel, LB Mike Hull As IR/Return

October 17th, 2018 at 6:24pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Dolphins will designate offensive lineman Jake Brendel and linebacker Mike Hull to return from injured reserve, according to Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (Twitter link), who reports both players were back at Miami’s practice on Wednesday.

Both Brendel and Hull were placed on injured reserve in September after initially being carried through to the Dolphins’ initial 53-man roster. NFL rules stipulate that any player who returns from IR must have been on his club’s original 53-man roster, and also mandates a minimum eight-week absence. As such, both Brendel and Hull can be activated in advance of Miami’s Week 9 matchup against the Jets.

Brendel, 26, joined the Dolphins’ practice squad in 2016 after going undrafted out of UCLA. He went to appear in all 16 games for Miami in 2017, although he didn’t see much action on the field. Brendel played 67 snaps on offense and 87 snaps on special teams, serving in a backup role for the entire campaign. Once he returns from IR, Brendel will give the Dolphins another interior option behind veterans Travis Swanson and Wesley Johnson, the former of whom has taken over at center following Daniel Kilgore‘s season-ending injury.

Like Brendel, Hull has mostly served as a backup since joining the Dolphins in 2015. He played in 32 games from 2016-17, making four starts during that time. But Hull’s main contribution has come on special teams, where he racked up a whopping 631 snaps over the past two seasons. His return could bolster a Miami special teams unit that already ranks third in DVOA, and give the Dolphins linebacker depth after the club placed Chase Allen on injured reserve earlier today.

Because each team is only allowed to IR/return players, Brendel and Hull’s activation will prevent the Dolphins from bringing any other injured players — such as offensive linemen Josh Sitton or Kilgore, or defensive end William Hayes — back in 2018.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC East

September 2nd, 2018 at 4:55pm CST by Dallas Robinson

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 Bills, Dolphins, Patriots, 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

Claimed:

Cut:

Practice squad:

Miami Dolphins

Claimed:

Placed on injured reserve:

Cut:

Practice squad:

New England Patriots

Claimed:

Placed on injured reserve:

Practice squad:

New York Jets

Practice squad:

Dolphins Rumors: Fales, Osweiler, DBs, LBs

August 23rd, 2018 at 9:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

David Fales completed just 1 of 6 passes in the Dolphins’ second preseason game, and although Brock Osweiler is the bigger name, the team’s internal preference is believed to be for the incumbent to back up Ryan Tannehill, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald notes. As for Bryce Petty, he’s still behind both aforementioned backups, Jackson adds. Osweiler signed for the league minimum, making the Dolphins’ 2018 quarterback depth chart much cheaper than last year’s setup of Tannehill, Jay Cutler and Matt Moore — which represented more than $30MM against the 2017 team’s cap. A former sixth-round Bears pick in 2014, Fales has 48 career pass attempts — 43 of those coming last season with Miami.

Here’s the latest out of south Florida.

  • Minkah Fitzpatrick is primarily working as a slot defender for the Dolphins, Roy Cummings of FloridaFootballInsiders.com passes along. The first-round pick out of Alabama was billed as a versatile performer entering the draft, with safety or cornerback potential. It looks like, for now, the Dolphins are taking advantage of that. Previous slot bastion Bobby McCain has moved to the outside, and that looks to have been done to give Fitzpatrick a role. Prior to the move, the Dolphins didn’t have a place for Fitzpatrick, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald writes. Fitzpatrick, though, also played sparingly as a pure safety in Miami’s initial two preseason games.
  • Mike Hull may begin the season on IR, Jackson notes. The Dolphins would carry their fourth-year veteran linebacker onto the 53-man roster before placing him on IR, which would allow him to return during the season once he recovers from the sprained MCL he sustained earlier this month. Hull started three games last season. Raekwon McMillan is Miami’s middle linebacker starter.
  • Second-year UDFA Chase Allen looks to have a job as a Dolphins backup linebacker, but former Saints first-round pick Stephone Anthony may not. Jackson writes the 2015 first-rounder’s put together a poor preseason that has him on the bubble. Anthony played in eight Dolphins games upon being traded to Miami last year. He played 130 defensive snaps but did not stand out. However, with Hull out, the Dolphins need bodies to fill out their linebacking corps. UFA addition Terence Garvin isn’t a lock to survive cutdown weekend, either, Jackson adds.

AFC Notes: Jets, Brady, Fowler, Dolphins

August 11th, 2018 at 10:56am CST by Ben Levine

The Jets‘ quarterbacks looked solid during last night’s preseason win over the Falcons, completing 21 of 27 pass attempts for 178 yards and a pair of touchdowns. While veteran Josh McCown sits atop the depth chart, head coach Todd Bowles acknowledged that any of the team’s three signal-callers (a grouping that also includes Teddy Bridgewater and first-rounder Sam Darnold) could end up earning the starting gig.

“We’ll see how the preseason goes,” Bowles said (via Brian Costello of the New York Post). “Like I said, I’ll make my decision when it happens. I’m not going to jump to any conclusions after one game. I’m going to take my notes and watch practice and compare with the coaches and we’ll come up with a decision. It’s a tough decision. We’ve got three good players and we’re happy to have them.”

As ProFootballTalk.com’s Michael David Smith points out, Bowles previously said that the team would wait until the end of the preseason to make a decision on their starting quarterback. In other words, there’s still plenty of time for the depth chart to sort itself out.

Let’s check out some more notes from around the AFC…

  • ESPN’s Field Yates has even more details on Tom Brady‘s revised contract (Twitter links). The Patriots quarterback had $10MM of his $14MM base salary converted into a signing bonus, which means he’ll get that chunk of cash now instead of spread out over 17 weeks. His 2018 cap number will not increase (allowing the Patriots to maintain cap flexibility), but his 2019 cap hit has increased from $5MM to $27MM. If Brady decided to keep playing in 2019, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com says the team would presumably sign their franchise quarterback to a new deal, thus pushing some of that money to 2020.
  • Meanwhile, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe believes the revised contract is an indication that Brady intends to keep playing in 2019 (Twitter link). While his 2019 dead cap number was previously $7MM, that’s since been boosted to $12MM. If the Patriots weren’t confident that their quarterback was going to stick around the NFL, there wouldn’t have been much of an incentive for the salary-to-bonus conversion.
  • There was good news for the Jaguars this morning, as the team took defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. off the physically unable to perform list (via ESPN’s Michael DiRocco on Twitter). The former third-overall pick had missed offseason programs, training camp, and the team’s preseason opener as he continued to recover from a shoulder injury. “I’m just happy to see him back to start playing,” said head coach Doug Marrone (via NFL.com’s Kevin Patra). “Obviously, he’s worked hard to get back, strengthening and everything, and we’ll return him to practice. He’ll come back out and we’ll work him there. I’m excited to see him. He’s put in a lot of work and we’ll see him on the field and see what he can do.” The 24-year-old finished last season 21 tackles, eight sacks, and two forced fumbles in 16 games.
  • Dolphins linebacker Mike Hull has a sprained MCL and is expected to be out for several weeks, reports NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (via Twitter). The 27-year-old has been an important bench piece for Miami over the past two seasons, and he finished last season with 35 tackles in 16 games (three starts). Terence Garvin, Chase Allen, Jerome Baker, and Quentin Poling will receive more backup reps during Hull’s absence.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/14/18

March 14th, 2018 at 4:06pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Here are today’s restricted free agent and exclusive-rights free agent tender decisions, with the list being updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:

RFAs

Tendered at the second-round level ($2.914MM):

Tendered at original round level ($1.907MM):

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

Load More Posts