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Rashaan Evans

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/4/23

November 4th, 2023 at 3:49pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves and gameday callups for Week 9:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

  • Elevated: QB Dresser Winn

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

With Kyler Murray not being activated from injured reserve this week, the Cardinals are heading into Week 9 with Clayton Tune as the only quarterback on their active roster. Driskel will be called up for the week as a standard gameday elevation to back up Tune.

With Matthew Stafford listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game, the Rams are adding some depth at the quarterback position. Dresser Winn had a breakout 2022 campaign at UT Martin, tossing 18 touchdowns while adding another three scores on the ground. He joined the Rams as an UDFA but was cut at the end of the preseason. He had a brief stint in the Canadian Football League before rejoining the Rams practice squad earlier this week. If Stafford can’t go, Brett Rypien will get the call under center for the Rams.

Peters will be elevated for the second straight week in Seattle. The 41-year-old, playing in his 19th NFL season, split snaps with right tackle Stone Forsythe last week against Cleveland.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/28/23

October 28th, 2023 at 7:57pm CST by Adam La Rose

Here are the gameday elevations and other minor moves made around the league in advance of Week 8:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Wilkinson’s loss will be notable for the Cardinals, given his status as an entrenched starter at the left guard spot. The 28-year-old joined Arizona on a one-year deal worth the veteran’s minimum in free agency after stints in Denver, Chicago and Atlanta. Trystan Colon replaced him in the starting lineup in Week 7, and that will likely continue for the time being. Wilkinson will be out for at least four weeks as a result of the IR move.

Ridgeway has been out since Week 1, his Texans debut. The former 49er joined the Texans in a move which allowed him to continue working under head coach DeMeco Ryans. Ridgeway ended last season on IR, so he will be looking for an extended run of availability in his new home. A veteran of 78 games (and 19 starts), he will aim to carve out a rotational role up front.

Peters was brought in by the Seahawks while they were dealing with injury problems at both tackle spots. Blindside blocker Charles Cross has since returned, so Peters’ most familiar spot will not be available if he is to make his Seattle debut on Sunday. The fact the latter is healthy and in game shape does mean, however, that he will be eligible to play in a 19th NFL season.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/12/23

October 12th, 2023 at 7:36pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad moves:

Dallas Cowboys

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks are bringing Holton Ahlers back to their squad after the UDFA spent the preseason with the organization. Ahlers had a standout 2022 campaign at East Carolina, completing 67.2 percent of his passes while tossing 28 touchdowns vs. five interceptions. He’ll be taking the taxi-squad spot previously held by Teez Tabor, who already earned one promotion to the active roster in 2023.

Cowboys Expected To Sign LB Rashaan Evans

October 11th, 2023 at 11:34am CST by Sam Robinson

11:34am: Although the Cowboys worked out four linebackers today, they are expected to go with the highest-profile name among that contingent. Rashaan Evans is expected to sign with the team, Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News reports. This would be a fourth NFL home for Evans, though his third (Philadelphia) did not produce any game action. The former Titans and Falcons starter, however, figures to be part of the Cowboys’ 53-man roster — via direct signing or the practice squad promotion route — soon. Per Archer, Evans will initially land on the P-squad. Though, it should be expected he will vault to the 53-man roster in the near future.

8:53am: Leighton Vander Esch is expected to land on IR, opening the door to questions at the Cowboys’ linebacker position. Although 2022 stopgap Anthony Barr remains unattached, the Cowboys are looking in another direction in the aftermath of Vander Esch’s latest neck issue.

Rashaan Evans will meet with the team Wednesday, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler reports. Evans spent time with the Eagles recently but requested a release from the defending NFC champions’ practice squad, eyeing other opportunities. This would qualify as a high-profile chance, should the Cowboys view the former first-rounder as a fit.

While Evans has a Falcons past, he did not overlap with Dan Quinn in Atlanta. The Falcons used Evans as a one-and-done starter in 2022, with ex-Titans OC Arthur Smith bringing in the former Tennessee top pick. Evans started throughout the ’22 season and loomed as an option to stay in Atlanta, but nothing materialized. Evans then waited for several months for an opportunity. Evans caught on with the Eagles’ P-squad shortly after the team lost Nakobe Dean in Week 1, but he was gone days later, aiming for a chance to sign elsewhere. Teams can poach players off P-squads, but the player’s options narrow in those transactions.

Evans going this long without another opportunity is a bit strange. The Alabama product led the Falcons in tackles — by a substantial margin — last season, totaling 159. That number doubled as a runaway career-high mark, as Evans only topped 100 tackles in one Titans season. Tennessee did not pick up Evans’ fifth-year option in 2021, leading to his 2022 defection. The Falcons landed Evans on a one-year, $1.75MM contract.

Pro Football Focus rated Evans just outside the top 50 among off-ball linebackers last season. A buyer’s market formed at the position, however, limited young veterans’ options. Many starter-caliber linebackers fetched deals worth between $5-$7MM per year. Vander Esch landed just south of this bracket, scoring a two-year accord worth $8MM. Evans, 27, was among those on the outside looking in. But the six-year Cowboys starter’s injury could lead to a shot with a third team.

Vander Esch, 27, is expected to miss at least a month with a neck strain. Considering the neck trouble the 2018 first-round pick has battled in the past, it would not surprise to see his recovery timetable lengthened. Vander Esch, who went off the ’18 draft board three spots before Evans, has seen neck injuries limit his earning potential. The Boise State product has missed time with neck trouble in multiple seasons, with a spinal stenosis issue leading to lower-level second and third contracts with the Cowboys. While Dallas kept Vander Esch in its plans, a lucrative extension path never formed despite a dominant rookie season.

In not re-signing Barr, the Cowboys went with second-year player Damone Clark alongside Vander Esch. Quinn said the prospect of Micah Parsons playing more at linebacker is in play, but considering the Defensive Player of the Year candidate’s value as an edge rusher, that might ultimately be deemed counterproductive. Dallas also lost third-round rookie linebacker Demarvion Overshown to an ACL tear this summer. The team has used P-squad elevation Malik Jefferson as a backup option this season; he figures to factor in more prominently following Vander Esch’s injury.

The Cowboys have also brought in Tanner Vallejo, Brandon Smith and Jordan Evans for this linebacker workout, per the Dallas Morning News’ Calvin Watkins and ESPN’s Todd Archer. Jordan Evans started nine games for the Bengals from 2017-18; he has not played in a regular-season game since 2021 but saw action for the XFL’s Seattle Sea Dragons. A six-year veteran who started seven Cardinals games from 2021-22, Vallejo did not make the Vikings’ 53-man roster out of camp. The Panthers drafted Smith in the 2022 fourth round; he played in 12 games as a rookie.

Eagles’ Avonte Maddox To Undergo Surgery On Torn Pectoral Muscle

September 18th, 2023 at 10:35am CST by Sam Robinson

SEPTEMBER 18: After undergoing an MRI and receiving a second opinion, Maddox will indeed have surgery, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. As a result of the procedure, the Eagles will be without a starter in their secondary for an indefinite stretch, or potentially the remainder of the season. Maddox is on the books through 2024, but none of his scheduled base salary for that year ($6.85MM) is guaranteed.

SEPTEMBER 15: Letting their starting safeties and linebackers walk in free agency, the Eagles paid up to keep their cornerback contingent intact. The new deals for Darius Slay and James Bradberry kept them in the fold with slot corner Avonte Maddox, who signed an extension back in 2021.

Slay and Bradberry are unlikely to have Maddox alongside them for a while. Another injury has cropped up for the experienced inside defender, with NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark reporting the team fears Maddox suffered a torn pectoral muscle. Maddox is seeking a second opinion, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

The final diagnosis confirming this fear would almost definitely sideline Maddox for the rest of the season. This continues a trend for Maddox, the longest-tenured member of the Eagles’ secondary. The 2018 fourth-rounder missed time because of hamstring, ankle and toe injuries last season. The ankle setback prompted Philly to place Maddox on IR; the toe injury sidelined him for three late-season games. Maddox ended up missing nine of the Eagles’ 20 games last year.

Maddox, 27, left Thursday night’s game in the second quarter. Second-year UDFA Mario Goodrich replaced him in the slot. The injury-relief cameo doubled as Goodrich’s first NFL action. The Clemson product spent last season on the Eagles’ practice squad, and the team retained him via reserve/futures deal in February. The Eagles kept Goodrich on their 53-man roster this year; he may be needed to play extensively going forward.

Joining the Eagles just after their Super Bowl LII-winning season, Maddox has been a regular on their defense since his rookie slate. Despite the team trading for Slay and extending him in 2020, the Eagles paid Maddox not long after. Maddox’s three-year, $22.5MM extension runs through 2024. He is due a $6.85MM base salary next season.

The Eagles already went into last night’s game without defensive starters Reed Blankenship and Nakobe Dean. Additionally, Philly released one of its recent linebacker pickups — Rashaan Evans — from its practice squad Friday. The team also reached an injury settlement with running back Trey Sermon, who landed on season-ending IR — after being waived with an injury designation — last month. This will sever ties between the former third-round draftee and the Eagles, who had claimed Sermon off waivers from the 49ers in August 2022.

Evans requested to be released off the Eagles’ P-squad, Schefter tweets. He has received interest from other teams. While clubs can poach players off P-squads, the player’s options are limited. Evans, who spent several months in free agency this offseason, will try his luck back on the market.

Eagles Place LB Nakobe Dean On IR, Promote LB Nicholas Morrow

September 12th, 2023 at 1:07pm CST by Adam La Rose

SEPTEMBER 12: Dean’s absence will lead to an IR placement, the team announced. In a corresponding move, the Eagles signed Morrow to their active roster. Morrow signed with the Eagles this offseason but did not land on their 53-man roster. The former Raiders and Bears starter landed on the Eagles’ practice squad; he is now back on the active roster. Dean is not eligible to come back until Week 6.

SEPTEMBER 11: The Eagles came away with a win in Week 1, but their middle linebacking unit suffered a notable blow. Nakobe Dean is set miss multiple weeks with a foot injury, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

No surgery will be required to address the issue, but the injury is serious enough that an IR stint is a possibility, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler notes. An IR designation would require an absence of at least four games and the team using one of its eight in-season activations, so a decision on that front will be worth watching. Geoff Mosher of Inside the Birds reports that the injury is expected to sideline Dean for four weeks.

With Dean not in the picture for the time being, an Eagles LB corps which was already thin will be without a starter. Expectations were high for the Georgia alum after he served in a rotational capacity as a rookie last year and was set up for a first-team role beginning in 2023. Christian Elliss is likely to fill in with the starting lineup for the time being, and the reigning NFC champions also have Nicholas Morrow available on the practice squad.

The team has moved quickly in finding another contributor at the position, though. Fowler’s colleague Adam Schefter reports that Rashaan Evans has been added to the practice squad. The former Titans first-rounder spent his first four seasons in Tennessee before heading to Atlanta last year. He started all 17 games for the Falcons, posting 159 tackles and a pair of sacks. That led to mutual interest in a re-up, but Evans remained on the open market throughout the offseason.

Now, the 27-year-old will join an Eagles team in need of depth at the linebacker spot and likely see time on gamedays in short order. Players can be elevated to the active roster up to three times in a season, but veterans in Evans’ situation often sign from the taxi squad to a full-time position relatively quickly. Evans would be hard-pressed to see action in the Eagles’ upcoming Thursday night contest, but he may be on the field not long after that.

Mutual Interest Between Falcons, Rashaan Evans On Re-Signing

February 9th, 2023 at 12:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Titans did not pick up Rashaan Evans‘ fifth-year option in 2021, and tepid interest came the linebacker’s way in free agency last year. But the former first-round pick started for the Falcons throughout last season.

Dean Pees‘ retirement would stand to cloud Evans’ future with the Falcons, given their two-city history, D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes there is mutual interest between the five-year veteran and the Falcons about another deal.

Evans played on a one-year pact worth $1.75MM. He ended up leading the Falcons — by a wide margin — in tackles with 159. That total bested Evans’ previous career-high mark by 38. The Alabama product added two sacks and a forced fumble; Pro Football Focus ranked Evans just outside the top 50 among off-ball linebackers this season.

Evans, 27, started all 17 Falcons games for this Falcons edition. It is safe to say the former No. 22 overall pick will command a deal worth a bit more than $1.75MM in 2023, but Ledbetter adds the sides only recently began negotiations.

The Falcons have hit on a few linebackers in recent years. In addition to longtime starter Deion Jones, the team drafted De’Vondre Campbell and Foye Oluokun. Atlanta did not re-sign either player, after having reupped Jones in 2019. The team also dealt Jones before last year’s deadline, incurring a sizable dead-money hit in the process. It will be interesting to see how new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen views Atlanta’s holdover ‘backers. Nielsen spent the past six seasons coaching a 4-3 scheme in New Orleans; Atlanta used a 3-4 alignment (when in base sets, that is) under Pees over the past two years.

A second Evans accord factors into an equation involving contract-year inside ‘backer Mykal Walker, a former fourth-round pick who moved into the starting lineup following Okuokun’s defection to Jacksonville. The Falcons also drafted Troy Andersen in last year’s second round. A number of notable off-ball linebackers are on track to hit free agency. Evans joins Tremaine Edmunds, ex-Titans teammate David Long, Lavonte David, Bobby Okereke, T.J. Edwards, Germaine Pratt, Kyzir White, Leighton Vander Esch and Azeez Al-Shaair as free agents-to-be.

AFC South Rumors: Jordan, Titans, Shenault, Radunz

June 23rd, 2022 at 7:58pm CST by Ely Allen

After allowing tight end Jordan Akins to walk in free agency, the Texans are expected to turn to second-year tight end Brevin Jordan to lead the position-group in 2022, according to ESPN’s Sarah Barshop.

Pharaoh Brown started the most games of any tight end on the roster last year but mostly serves as the team’s primary run-blocking tight end. Jordan, though, has seemingly passed Brown on the depth chart in the passing game as he looks to make a big leap during his second year in Houston.

Last season, Jordan caught 20 passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns, comparable with Brown’s 23 receptions for 171 yards. Jordan will look to improve those numbers in his sophomore season. The former Miami Hurricane is set up nicely to do so as the newly re-signed Antony Auclair and newly drafted Oregon State rookie Teagan Quitoriano are, like Brown, both well-known for their blocking abilities.

Here are a few more rumors from around the AFC South, starting with a rumor out of Nashville:

  • In a report on the future of Titans linebacker David Long Jr., Terry McCormick of Titan Insider made an interesting claim that, after claiming linebacker Zach Cunningham off of waivers from the Texans in December, Tennessee didn’t feel pressed at all to re-sign former first-round pick Rashaan Evans. This may be mainly due to how Tennessee values the inside linebacker position. Evans, now with the Falcons, had started 39 games, only missing one week of football in his first three seasons, when the Titans declined his fifth-year option. Evans’ best season came in 2019 with his stats falling slightly in 2020. An injury-affected 2021 season sealed his fate in Tennessee as they let him walk in free agency.
  • After bringing in wide receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones on big money deals, ESPN’s Michael DiRocco reports that Jacksonville still has wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. in their plans. Shenault has stayed consistent over his first two years in the league catching 58 balls for 600 yards as a rookie and 63 passes for 619 yards in his second season. The big difference was in his touchdown totals as he went from five touchdown catches in 2020 to zero in 2021. The Jaguars also like to use Shenault sparingly in the running game, which might be where Shenault’s role lies in the future: as a dual-threat offensive weapon alongside running back Travis Etienne. If not, he’ll be competing for snaps with Kirk, Jones, and Marvin Jones Jr. in the receiving game.
  • According to Turron Davenport of ESPN, rookie offensive lineman out of North Dakota State Dillon Radunz is expected to earn the starting right tackle job in Tennessee. While the position group still has some question marks, the second-round rookie is set to bookend the line opposite veteran Taylor Lewan. This leaves Jamarco Jones, Ben Jones, Nate Davis, Aaron Brewer, and others to compete over the three inside positions over training camp and the preseason as the Titans look to cement their offensive line.

Falcons, LB Rashaan Evans Agree To Deal

April 4th, 2022 at 5:37pm CST by Sam Robinson

Rashaan Evans‘ Falcons visit produced an accepted contract offer. The former Tennessee linebacker agreed to a one-year deal with Atlanta, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

This move will reunite Evans with Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees, who formerly worked as the Titans’ DC. Pees and Arthur Smith will deploy a familiar face to address the latest linebacker defection in free agency.

The Falcons lost Foyesade Oluokun last month; the breakout tackler signed with the Jaguars. This came two years after the Falcons let De’Vondre Campbell walk in free agency. Evans should be expected to line up alongside Deion Jones in Atlanta.

A 2018 first-round pick, Evans started 50 games for the Titans. He did not miss a start during the 2019 or ’20 seasons and, after a midseason IR stay last year, returned to help Tennessee secure the AFC’s No. 1 seed. The Titans did not pick up Evans’ fifth-year option in 2021, routing him to free agency.

Evans’ Titans run ended meekly. The Titans made the former Alabama standout a healthy scratch for their divisional-round game and had used him on fewer than 40% of their snaps in Weeks 17 and 18. Evans has a 100-plus-tackle season on his resume (2019); he added 2.5 sacks that year. Evans, 26, intercepted two passes and forced a fumble in his abbreviated 2021 season. This Falcons pact represents an opportunity for the former top prospect to re-establish some momentum in a familiar defensive system.

Falcons Hosting Kemoko Turay, Rashaan Evans

March 29th, 2022 at 3:39pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Falcons could be in line for two notable additions on defense. The team is holding free agent visits with edge rusher Kemoko Turay and linebacker Rashaan Evans.  

[RELATED: Falcons Sign WR Tate]

NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported the Turay visit (on Twitter). The 26-year-old was a second round pick of the Colts in 2018. He saw the most playing time in his rookie season, registering his only three starts. It was in 2021, however, that he posted a career-high 5.5 sacks and five tackles for loss. He could at least provide depth behind the likes of Lorenzo Carter and Adetokunbo Ogundeji, while providing a boost to the team’s pass rush.

The Evans visit, meanwhile, was reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The former first-rounder has played four seasons with the Titans, starting 50 of 59 games. His best year came in 2019, where he totalled 111 tackles and 2.5 sacks. Tennessee declined his fifth-year option, however, leading him to free agency this offseason. Evans met with the Jaguars one week ago.

Either of those two options could help add not only experience, but also, potentially, upside to the Falcons’ defense. That would certainly be welcomed, as the team ranked at or near the bottom in almost every major category on that side of the ball in 2021.

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