Here are Wednesday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
Cleveland Browns
Los Angeles Chargers
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers
Free agent linebacker Neville Hewitt signed a one-year contract with the Jets, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Hewitt met with the Jets on Wednesday and it did not take long for a deal to come together.
Hewitt, 24, spent most of 2017 on the Dolphins’ practice squad, but was promoted for the last six games of the regular season. He played only eleven snaps, but saw 66.5% playtime on special teams.
The Dolphins non-tendered Hewitt in March, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent. He projects as a special teams player for the Jets, but their lack of quality options at outside linebacker could net him some time on defense.
As shown on Roster Resource, the Jets currently project to start Josh Martin and Jordan Jenkins at outside linebacker with Avery Williamson and Darron Lee in between. Meanwhile, edge rushers David Bass and Bruce Carter remain in free agency limbo. The Jets are expected to bolster the group in next month’s draft, though not with their No. 3 overall selection.
The Dolphins are searching for help via the trade market at the league meetings in Orlando, according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Although Miami made several free agent additions over the past two weeks, the club is still hoping to add depth at tight end, linebacker, running back, and defensive tackle, per Salguero. While no trade is imminent, the Dolphins could conceivably trade from their stable of defensive ends. Miami currently has Cameron Wake, Robert Quinn, Charles Harris, William Hayes, and Andre Branch on its depth chart, meaning it could potentially absorb the loss of at least one pass rusher. Branch, who is scheduled to earn a fully guaranteed base salary of $7.9MM in 2018, would be a logical candidate to be moved, per Salguero.
Here’s more from the AFC East:
Here are today’s minor moves:
Detroit Lions
Miami Dolphins
New York Giants
Seattle Seahawks
The Dolphins reached the 53-man roster maximum. Here’s how:
Waived:
Waived/injured:
Released:
Placed on IR:
PUP List:
Williams played in ten games between the Chiefs and Dolphins last season, finishing with eight tackles. He restructured his deal in March, but it wasn’t enough to keep his spot in Miami.
Young was slated to make $1.2MM in 2017 per the terms of the extension he signed in the winter.
3:37pm: The Dolphins have added a couple more UDFAs to their roster, tweeting word of Marshall linebacker Neville Hewitt‘s signing, and listing former Maine wideout Damarr Aultman on their minicamp roster. Aultman got a $1.5K signing bonus, per Aaron Wilson (Twitter link).
10:09am: The Dolphins are the latest team to officially confirm their undrafted free agent signings, announcing (via Twitter) the 14 players they’ve added to their roster. Here are the team’s newest additions: