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NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/12/24

November 12th, 2024 at 7:09pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Signed: WR Jakeem Grant
Released: LB Tyreek Maddox-Williams

Carolina Panthers

Released: LB Cam Johnson

Dallas Cowboys

Signed: QB Will Grier
Released: S Emany Johnson

Detroit Lions

Signed: WR Maurice Alexander, DE Isaiah Thomas

Houston Texans

Signed: OL Cameron Erving, CB D’Angelo Ross
Released: CB Desmond King, OT David Sharpe

Indianapolis Colts

Signed: OT Mason Brooks
Released: DE Derek Rivers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Signed: OL Jerome Carvin, OL Dieter Eiselen
Released: LS Peter Bowden, QB John Rhys Plumlee

New York Giants

Signed: OT Joshua Miles
Released: P Matt Haack

San Francisco 49ers

Signed: RB Patrick Taylor
Released: RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn

Tennessee Titans

Signed: OL Chandler Brewer

The Falcons have added a notable name to their special teams corps in Jakeem Grant. The long-time Dolphins returner has collected six ST touchdowns in his career (four via punts, two via kickoffs), and he’s even hauled in 100 catches. However, the veteran hasn’t seen the field since the 2021 campaign while spending the past few years on Cleveland’s practice squad.

With Dak Prescott done for the season, the Cowboys have added some extra QB depth. In comes old friend Will Grier, who spent the 2021 and 2022 campaigns in Dallas. The former third-round pick has since bounced around the NFL, including stops with the Bengals, Patriots, and Chargers in just 2023. Grier still only has two career appearances on his resume, both coming with the Panthers in 2019.

The Texans have added some experienced OL depth in Cameron Erving. The veteran is coming off a 2023 campaign where he started two of his three appearances for the Saints, and he barely played in 11 appearances with the Panthers in 2022. Still, the 32-year-old brings 98 games (58 starts) of experience to Houston, a factor that could be valuable down the stretch. To make room on the practice squad, the Texans moved on from cornerback Desmond King. The veteran has only seen time in one game for Houston this season, although he’s not far removed from a 2022 campaign where he started 13 games for the Texans.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/8/24

November 8th, 2024 at 6:43pm CST by Ely Allen

Friday’s minor roster moves:

Buffalo Bills

Signed to active roster: WR Jalen Virgil

Cincinnati Bengals

Claimed off waivers (from Lions): WR Isaiah Williams

New England Patriots

Waived: LB Raekwon McMillan

San Francisco 49ers

Waived: RB Patrick Taylor

Taylor was waived today in anticipation of everyone’s expectation that Christian McCaffrey will finally be coming off of injured reserve to make his season debut this week.

Virgil was previously on the Broncos but landed on waivers as part of final roster cuts before the start of the regular season. According to Chris Tomasson of the Denver Gazette, Denver tried desperately to sign him to their practice squad after he cleared waivers, but Virgil ultimately decided to sign with Buffalo’s practice squad. He’ll now get an opportunity on the team’s active roster after two standard gameday elevations this year.

Despite being a vested veteran, McMillan will need to clear waivers in order to be re-signed to the Patriots’ practice squad, per Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald. The team already has Joe Giles-Harris and Monty Rice on the practice squad at the position.

49ers To Place RB Christian McCaffrey On IR

September 14th, 2024 at 10:25pm CST by Ben Levine

Christian McCaffrey is officially out for at least the next month. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the 49ers are placing their star running back on injured reserve.

NFL Network Ian Rapoport says the team is hoping McCaffrey will be ready to play when first eligible in Week 6. That October 10th showdown with the Seahawks could end up marking the running back’s season debut, although ESPN’s Nick Wagoner cautions that it’s “no guarantee” that McCaffrey is ready by that date, and Rapoport added that CMC could be sidelined for six weeks, and possibly longer (video link).

McCaffrey was limited with calf issues during the preseason and the practices preceding Week 1, leading to him being a sudden inactive for the team’s season opener. It’s since been revealed that the RB is dealing with a serious case of Achilles tendinitis, although both the player and the team expressed some optimism that the star would be back for Week 2. At the very least, there was optimism that McCaffrey would only have to miss one more game.

However, the organization’s tone changed over the past 24 hours. Yesterday, coach Kyle Shanahan definitively ruled out McCaffrey for Week 2 while also admitting that an IR stint was a real possibility. Now, the team will be rolling without their top offensive weapon for at least the next four games.

Jordan Mason had a breakout performance while filling in for his star teammate. The running back finished Week 1 with 152 yards from scrimmage and one touchdown, and it sounds like the third-year back will continue to lead the depth chart.

The team actually didn’t give any carries to backups Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor, with wideout Deebo Samuel getting eight rushing attempts of his own. When asked about the receiver’s usage in the running game, Shanahan said it would be a “game by game proposition” (per Wagoner). The head coach also expressed trust in Guerendo and Taylor, so perhaps we’ll see more of the duo in the coming weeks.

Latest On 49ers’ RB Depth

June 15th, 2024 at 12:50pm CST by Ben Levine

Christian McCaffrey‘s recent two-year extension with the 49ers all but assures that he’ll be on the roster through at least the 2026 season. However, there’s uncertainty surrounding the future of the team’s other RBs, and that likely influenced the front office’s approach to the offseason.

Elijah Mitchell (unrestricted) and Jordan Mason (restricted) are both set to hit free agency after the season. The duo’s expiring contracts ended up influencing the 49ers’ decision to trade up for fourth-round RB Isaac Guerendo and sign UDFA Cody Schrader, per ESPN’s Nick Wagoner.

Mitchell once seemed poised to take over the starting RB gig in San Francisco, as he collected 1,100 yards from scrimmage as a rookie. However, injuries limited him to only 16 games across the past two years, and with McCaffrey leading the depth chart, Mitchell has compiled only 581 yards over that two-year span. Mason, meanwhile, has averaged 5.6 yards on his 83 carries, and Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that the RB is a likely lock to make the 2024 squad.

Considering his draft status, Guerendo is also probably a lock to make the roster. After peaking with 500 yards at Wisconsin in 2022, the RB took it to another level at Louisville in 2023, collecting 1,044 yards from scrimmage and 11 touchdowns. Schrader, a Missouri product, is probably destined for the practice squad, although he should be in line for a larger role in 2025. The odd man out in this equation would likely be Patrick Taylor, who got into 34 games with the Packers between 2021 and 2023.

While McCaffrey has been able to put together two-straight healthy seasons, the 49ers will surely be wary of his workload as he enters his age-28 season. With $24MM guaranteed over the next two seasons, the 49ers will want to be careful with their offensive star…which will put even more reliance on the rest of the team’s RB depth.

49ers Sign RB Patrick Taylor

April 3rd, 2024 at 6:54pm CST by Ely Allen

The 49ers added some running back depth in the form of former Packers backup Patrick Taylor, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Taylor joins an already crowded room as a likely camp body who will attempt to break into a bigger role over the offseason.

Taylor was an undrafted signee for the Packers out of Memphis in 2020. After two stellar years with the Tigers in which he rushed for a combined 1,988 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns, Taylor would lose the back half of his senior year to a foot injury. Green Bay took a flyer on him as an undrafted free agent, and he spent his entire rookie season on the reserve/non-football injury list before making his way to the practice squad in 2021.

In his sophomore season, Taylor would be promoted to the active roster in November to make his NFL debut, appearing in nine games that season while rushing for 89 yards and a touchdown. In the two years since, he has played in 15 games, rushing for 172 yards.

He didn’t spend all of the 2023 season in Green Bay, though. The Packers actually waived Taylor after signing him to their active roster in October. As a free agent, the Patriots signed Taylor to their own practice squad. Green Bay made the move to bring him back, signing him off New England’s practice squad to their active roster, where he would spend the remainder of the season.

In San Francisco, Taylor arrives to a room that already contains the highest-paid running back in the NFL, Christian McCaffrey. Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason both shared backup duties pretty equally in 2023, though Mitchell missed quite a few games with injury, and both are set to return. Taylor brings a bit more receiving experience to the room, but McCaffrey is pretty good at that, too.

So, in Taylor comes with a bit of competition ahead of him. He’ll try to earn his way onto the roster and, perhaps, could be stashed to use in the case of further missed time by Mitchell or others.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/20/23

November 20th, 2023 at 6:58pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Cincinnati Bengals

Designated for return from IR: RB Chase Brown

Green Bay Packers

Signed off Patriots practice squad: RB Patrick Taylor
Designated for return from IR: S Darnell Savage Jr.
Waived: DB Dallin Leavitt

New York Giants

Waived: RB Deon Jackson, OT Joshua Miles

New York Jets

Waived: DT Tanzel Smart

Philadelphia Eagles

Promoted: LB Ben VanSumeren

Pittsburgh Steelers

Signed to active roster: S Trenton Thompson
Placed on IR: DB Elijah Riley

Seattle Seahawks

Designated for return from IR: S Coby Bryant

Washington Commanders

Signed off Bears practice squad: DE Jalen Harris
Placed on IR: DL Efe Obada
Waived from IR: CB Troy Apke

The Packers will soon be getting some reinforcement on defense, as the team designated safety Darnell Savage Jr. for return from injured reserve today. The defensive back has missed the last four games while recovering from a calf injury. The former first-round pick started all six of his appearances to begin the season, collecting 34 tackles. The fifth-year starter will provide the Packers with a welcome boost when he inevitably returns to the field.

It seems like Green Bay is already preparing for Savage’s return, as the team moved on from another defensive back. Dallin Leavitt spent the past year-plus with the Packers, with the veteran joining the organization following a four-year stint with the Raiders to begin his career. Leavitt got into all 17 games for the Packers in 2022, with all of his snaps coming on special teams. The veteran has seen a handful of defensive snaps in 2023, collecting two tackles in 10 games.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/18/23

October 18th, 2023 at 7:08pm CST by Ely Allen

Wednesday’s practice squad updates:

Atlanta Falcons

Signed: RB Jacob Saylors, S Arnold Tarpley III

Denver Broncos

Signed: WR Michael Bandy

Las Vegas Raiders

Signed: TE John Samuel Shenker

Minnesota Vikings

Signed: WR Trishton Jackson

New England Patriots

Signed: DE William Bradley-King, RB Patrick Taylor
Released: DL Manny Jones, WR T.J. Luther

New York Giants

Signed: G Jalen Mayfield

Seattle Seahawks

Signed: WR Cody White, T Greg Eiland
Released: QB Holton Ahlers

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/10/23

October 10th, 2023 at 6:27pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Carolina Panthers

Signed to active roster: CB Dicaprio Bootle

Green Bay Packers

Signed: LB Justin Hollins
Waived: RB Patrick Taylor

The Panthers already used up their three practice-squad promotions for Dicaprio Bootle, so now the cornerback will be joining the active roster on a full-time basis. The former UDFA out of Nebraska has exclusively played on special teams this season.

Justin Hollins was waived yesterday to make room for running back Patrick Taylor on the active roster. Hollins has nine tackles in four games with Green Bay this season, with the LB splitting his time between defense and special teams. Taylor has also seen the field for four games this season, collecting 59 yards from scrimmage on 16 touches.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/9/23

October 9th, 2023 at 6:32pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Monday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Claimed off waivers (from Saints): RB Tony Jones Jr.

Atlanta Falcons

Released from IR via injury settlement: WR Penny Hart

Green Bay Packers

Promoted: RB Patrick Taylor
Released: OLB Justin Hollins
Elevated: CB Corey Ballentine

Las Vegas Raiders

Elevated: CB Tyler Hall, CB Troy Pride Jr.

Los Angeles Chargers

Signed: DL Christopher Hinton

New Orleans Saints

Waived: G Tommy Kraemer

Jones will be headed to his third team since the preseason concluded. With James Conner going down with a knee injury, the Cardinals are better equipping themselves in the backfield. Jones, who went to camp with the Broncos and had returned to the Saints, will head to the desert. Jones scored two touchdowns in the Saints’ Week 2 win over the Panthers and played in three other Saints games this season. But the team waived him Saturday. Jones will join Keaontay Ingram and rookie UDFA Emari Demercado on Arizona’s active roster; Damien Williams resides on the Cardinals’ practice squad. Ingram has missed time with a neck injury recently.

Because the Packers have used up their practice squad elevations with Taylor, they are signing him to their 53-man roster. Taylor will come up to replace Aaron Jones, whom the Pack declared inactive. Despite Jones having returned for Week 4, the standout starter is out again with a hamstring injury.