Omari Cobb

Chiefs Re-Sign Deandre Baker

The Chiefs have re-signed Deandre Baker for the 2021 season, per a club announcement. The cornerback joined the Chiefs on a practice squad deal in November, shortly after the Broward County State Attorney’s Office dropped armed robbery charges against him

Baker struggled as a first-round rookie with the Giants, allowing a 116.2 passer rating. Then, heading into his second year, Baker was arrested on multiple felony charges. Cops alleged that Baker orchestrated a robbery at gunpoint with Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar as his accomplice. Then, after a number of twists and turns — including payoff allegations against one-time Dunbar attorney Michael Grieco — the charges were dropped.

After a month on the taxi squad, Baker got called up to the varsity squad for a couple of games. Now, he’ll work to make the 53-man cut in KC.

In addition to Baker, the Chiefs announced the following futures deals:

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/26/20

Here are Saturday’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

  • Promoted: C Javon Patterson

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Matt Moore, DeAndre Washington Land On Chiefs’ Practice Squad

After agreeing to re-sign with the Chiefs late in the offseason, Matt Moore learned he did not make their active roster. But he is not leaving Kansas City.

The defending Super Bowl champions are carrying Moore on their expanded practice squad. Moore joins Josh McCown as veteran quarterbacks who agreed to join practice squads Sunday. Teams are now permitted to carry up to six veterans of unlimited service time on their taxi squads, and the Chiefs will also use one of their slots for quarterback insurance.

Moore, signed after he’d left the game and begun working as a scout and a high school assistant coach, started two games in relief of Patrick Mahomes last year. He won one of those, against the Vikings, and that game ended up helping the Chiefs clinch the No. 2 seed in the playoffs. Moore, 36, will play an emergency role behind Mahomes and Chad Henne. The Chiefs are carrying two QBs — Moore and former XFL passer Jordan Ta’amu — on their P-squad.

Former Raiders backup running back DeAndre Washington also rejoined the Chiefs after being released. The Chiefs signed the veteran back this offseason but gave holdovers Darrel Williams and Darwin Thompson roster spots over him, despite Washington having played with Mahomes at Texas Tech.

Here is Kansas City’s full squad:

Chiefs Sign 18 UDFAs

The Chiefs became the latest team to announce their undrafted free agent class:

  • Andre Baccellia, WR (Washington)
  • Maurice French, WR (Pittsburgh)
  • Aleva Hifo, WR (BYU)
  • Kalija Lipscomb, WR (Vanderbilt)
  • Justice Shelton‐Mosley, WR (Vanderbilt)
  • Cody White, WR (Michigan State)
  • Yasir Durant, T (Missouri)
  • Jovahn Fair, G (Temple)
  • Darryl Williams, C (Miss St.)
  • Tershawn Wharton, DT (Missouri S&T)
  • Omari Cobb, LB (Marshall)
  • Bryan Wright, LB (Cincinnati)
  • Rodney Clemons, S (SMU)
  • Jalen Julius, S (Ole Miss)
  • Hakeem Bailey, CB (West Virginia)
  • Javaris Davis, CB (Auburn)
  • Lavert Hill, CB (Michigan)
  • Tommy Townsend, P (Florida)

The Chiefs had to spend relatively big to get a couple of these guys. Lipscomb got $110K guaranteed and a $10K signing bonus, while Williams got $107K guaranteed and a $7K signing bonus (Twitter links via Tom Pelissero of NFL Network). This was regarded as an epic receiver class with plenty of draftable players going un-selected due to the surplus, so it’s not surprising guys like Lipscomb are landing big bonuses.

As a junior at Vandy he had 916 yards and nine touchdowns, although he took a step back last season. Williams was a three-year starter at MSU who can play guard and center.

All told, the Chiefs inked a whopping six undrafted receivers. White declared early after racking up 922 yards and six touchdowns as a senior at Michigan State. Davis was widely expected to get drafted, with NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein projecting him as a fifth-rounder and Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller having him go at the top of the sixth, so he’s a nice get as well.