Rich Ohrnberger

Workout Updates: 10/16/15

We’ve passed along a few of the more notable updates from the last few days on workouts and free agent visits, including the Giants trying out wide receivers like Terrelle Pryor and the Cowboys bringing in running back LaMike James. However, there are plenty more tryout updates from this week to round up, and we’ve got them all below. All links point to the Twitter account of Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post, unless otherwise indicated.

Arizona Cardinals

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Miami Dolphins

  • Devin Gardner, WR (link)
  • Josh Harper, WR

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Jordan Dewalt-Ondijo, LB (link)

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Minor Moves: Tuesday

Here are Tuesday’s minor 53-man roster moves from around the NFL:

Earlier updates:

  • The Titans have swapped one offensive lineman for another, placing starting center Brian Schwenke on injured reserve and signing interior lineman Eric Olsen to replace him, says Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (Twitter links). Presumably, Chris Spencer, who replaced Schwenke on Sunday after the second-year starter suffered a knee injury, will be the starting center going forward, with Olsen providing depth.
  • The Dolphins have added a cornerback, according to agent David Canter, who tweets that his client R.J. Stanford has signed with Miami. The move has yet to be announced by the team, so it’s not clear yet what the corresponding cut will be, but there’s a decent chance that it could involve Jamar Taylor landing on injured reserve — the cornerback left Sunday’s game with a shoulder injury and at least one report indicated it could end his season.
  • We heard earlier today that Chargers center Rich Ohrnberger was expected to miss the rest of the season with a back injury, and the team has confirmed as much, announcing in a press release that Ohrnberger has been placed on injured reserve. San Diego has promoted linebacker Cordarro Law from the club’s practice squad to the active roster to fill the newly-created opening.
  • The Bengals announced another team’s roster move today, tweeting that linebacker Terrell Manning had been signed off their practice squad by the Giants. For their part, the Giants haven’t yet made the signing official by announcing a corresponding move.
  • Washington has released linebacker Akeem Jordan from its injured reserve list, making him a free agent, tweets Zac Boyer of the Washington Times.

Ohrnberger, Buckley Likely Out For Season

With just five weeks left in the NFL’s regular season, even shorter-term injuries can spell the end of a player’s season, and it appears two more won’t return until 2015. According to Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Chargers center Rich Ohrnberger will undergo back surgery and will be placed on injured reserve, while Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter) that the Saints believe defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley tore his quad, ending his season.

Ohrnberger, 28, will become the third San Diego center whose 2014 campaign has been cut short by injury, following Nick Hardwick and Doug Legursky to the IR list. In his absence, Chris Watt, who received the first start of his NFL career this past weekend, is expected to continue to hold the job. The Chargers will also open up a spot on their 53-man roster when Ohrnberger officially lands on IR, perhaps leading to the promotion or signing of another offensive lineman.

As for Bunkley, his diagnosis is still pending the result of an MRI, but according to Rapoport, his season is “almost certainly over.” With 276 defensive snaps this year, Bunkley was New Orleans’ second-most-used defensive tackle, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). I’d expect increased roles for players like John Jenkins and Tyrunn Walker over the last few weeks of the season.

Minor Moves: Saturday

Here are today’s minor transactions. We’ll update the list throughout the day, with the most recent moves added to the top…

Earlier Updates

South Notes: Jaguars, Texans, Falcons

The Jaguars have been at the center of a number of NFL stories this week, with the team reportedly on the verge of signing Alex Mack to a five-year offer sheet and hosting some of 2014’s biggest prospects on pre-draft visits this week. Jacksonville continues to pop up in the news cycle, with the team playing a part in a couple of our late-afternoon updates out of the NFL’s South divisions. Let’s dive in….

  • Offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger, who re-signed with the Chargers today, drew interest from the Jaguars before he agreed to return to San Diego, tweets Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. It’s not likely that the Jags viewed Ohrnberger and Mack as equal commodities, but perhaps missing out on the former prompted the team to push harder to finalize an offer sheet with the latter.
  • Add LSU running back Jeremy Hill to the list of prospects visiting the Jaguars tomorrow, says Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (via Twitter).
  • Notre Dame defensive end Stephon Tuitt, who met with the Jags today, will visit the Texans tomorrow, according to Gil Brandt of NFL.com (via Twitter).
  • The Falcons have a visit lined up for next Wednesday with BYU outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy, tweets Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.

Chargers Re-Sign Rich Ohrnberger

The Chargers have officially re-signed offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger to a one-year contract, the team announced today (via Twitter). The guard/center had been an unrestricted free agent.

Ohrnberger, 28, has spent time with the Patriots, Cardinals, and Chargers since being selected by New England in the fourth round of the 2009 draft. Although he started one game for San Diego last season, Ohrnberger has primarily served as a depth piece for the interior offensive line. In 2013, he played 161 regular-season offensive snaps for the Chargers.

Ohrnberger was said to be drawing interest as a potential starting guard or center at the start of free agency, but he’ll likely return to a part-time role in San Diego. Prior to agreeing to sign with the Chargers, the Penn State product visited the Jets.

AFC East Notes: Jets, Pats, Bills, Dolphins

Let’s take a look at a handful of rumblings from the AFC East…

  • Receiver Jacoby Ford and offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger both visited the Jets today, tweets Howard Balzer of The SportsXchange. Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News confirmed the news on Twitter.
  • The Patriots worked out Eastern Washington defensive end Anthony Larry, tweets Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net. As Pauline points out, Larry’s ability to play linebacker and rush the passer is similar to current Patriot Rob Ninkovich, who recently turned 30-years-old.
  • The Patriots are still in need of a defensive end and a defensive tackle, opines Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com. Considering the team’s depth, the Patriots can think in the long-term, which Reiss believes is the “ideal scenario.”
  • With rumors swirling regarding DeSean Jackson‘s eventual destination, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com evaluates whether a deal would work out for the Bills. Rodak focuses on positives (like the similarities between Chip Kelly‘s system in Philadelphia and Bills offensive coordinator Nate Hackett‘s system in Buffalo) and the obvious negatives (the potential price tag and behavioral issues).
  • The Dolphins have become a fan of “show me” contracts, and ESPN.com’s James Walker looks at the team’s current batch of players on one-year deals. This includes Louis Delmas, Knowshon Moreno and Cortland Finnegan.

FA Rumors: McCown, Allen, Mack, Hatcher

Josh McCown‘s first free agent visit, which is already underway, is with the Buccaneers, and the free agent quarterback and also meetings scheduled with the Texans and Jets, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. However, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he doesn’t make it to all his scheduled visits, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). Both La Canfora and Mehta suggest that a deal with the Bucs looks very possible for McCown. Here’s more on free agency:

  • Defensive end Jared Allen has narrowed down his free agent options, but may not sign all that quickly, says Tom Pelissero of USA Today (via Twitter). Meanwhile, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that the Broncos are interested in Allen, but perhaps not at his current asking price. There also may not be any other serious suitors involved at that price, says Florio.
  • The transition tag hasn’t stopped teams from contacting center Alex Mack, according to Mike Garafolo of USA Today (via Twitter). However, Garafalo adds that the Browns free agent center has yet to set up any visits with clubs.
  • Defensive end Antonio Smith would like to stay with the Texans, but has visits lined up with the Redskins, Titans, Rams, and Raiders, tweets John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.
  • Jason Hatcher‘s visit with the Seahawks is the first of five meetings he has scheduled, tweets Calvin Watkins of ESPNDallas.com.
  • Offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger is drawing interest as a potential starting guard or center, says Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter).
  • Free agent running back Anthony Dixon will visit with the Titans, says Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle.