Ryan Griffin (QB) - Pro Football Rumors

Practice Squad Updates: Wednesday

September 3rd, 2014 at 9:03pm CST by Luke Adams

It’s hard to imagine any practice squad updates today will be more notable than the news that Michael Sam has joined the Cowboys’ unit, but there figure to be plenty other teams tweaking their squads. We’ll round up all those items right here:

Undrafted rookie center Josh Allen, who was cut by the Bucs, has signed to the Packers‘ practice squad, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter).
The Saints re-signed quarterback Ryan Griffin to their practice squad, a source tells Mike Triplett of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
The Bengals have filled out their practice squad by adding ex-Chargers wideout Tevin Reese, the team announced today (via Twitter).
Safety Matt Daniels has been replaced on the Rams’ practice squad by tight end Brad Smelley, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter).

Earlier updates:

The Vikings have confirmed the previously-reported signing of Ahmad Dixon to their practice squad, announcing that tackle Mike Remmers has been cut to make room (Twitter link).
When they added Sam to their practice squad, the Cowboys dropped seventh-round linebacker Will Smith, according to a team release.
As first reported by Doug Kyed of NESN (via Twitter), linebacker Colton Underwood has signed with the Eagles‘ practice squad, filling the 10th and final opening.
The Patriots made a few changes to their practice squad, bringing in guard Chris Barker, running back Marcus Thigpen, and tight end Allen Reisner, according to Kyed (via Twitter). Quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson, safety Kanorris Davis and defensive back Daxton Swanson appear to no longer be on the squad, writes Lee Schechter of ESPNBoston.com.
After working out several players yesterday, the Giants signed one of those players – defensive tackle Dominique Hamilton – to their practice squad today, tweets Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News.
The Ravens brought in former third-round cornerback Jamell Fleming for a visit and added him to their practice squad, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Wilson’s Sun colleague Jeff Zrebiec adds (via Twitter) that cornerback Deji Olatoye has been cut to make room.
Safety Ahmad Dixon, who was drafted by the Cowboys in the seventh round this year, is expected to sign with the Vikings‘ practice squad, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Minnesota currently has 10 players on board, so a corresponding move will be required.

Saints Re-Sign Shayne Graham

September 2nd, 2014 at 5:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Saints have added a new kicker to their roster, and he looks an awful lot like the one the team cut over the weekend. Per Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate (via Twitter), the Saints have re-signed Shayne Graham, just three days after releasing him.

The series of moves seemed to suggest that Graham was the player the Saints’ had in mind all along for their kicking job, and that the team wanted to wait until today to re-add him to the roster in order to move a player to the injured reserve list with a designation to return. However, the corresponding roster move for New Orleans involved waiving quarterback Ryan Griffin, as Larry Holder of the New Orleans Times-Picayune tweets.

During a two-game regular season stretch last season with New Orleans, Graham was perfect, converting both of his field goal attempts and all seven of his extra point tries. He also didn’t miss a kick in the postseason, making four field goals in the team’s Wild Card win over the Eagles.

Saints Notes: Roster Moves, Goodwin, Griffin

August 25th, 2014 at 9:52pm CST by Rory Parks

There are a few Saints-related items to pass along this evening:

Roster Moves

The team has released LB Victor Butler, tweets Kristian Garic of WWL 870am., thereby saving $1.5MM in cap space. Mike Triplett of ESPN.com was trying to confirm the release as of the time of this post.
The Saints have informed OL Manase Foketi that he will be waived, tweets Evan Woodbery of the Times-Picayune.

Other notes

Woodbery writes that the team’s kicking competition between Shayne Graham and Derek Dimke has not been decided, and head coach Sean Payton said that the battle will go down to the wire.
In a separate piece, Woodbery breaks down how the new practice squad rules affect different members of the Saints’ roster.
Larry Holder of the Times-Picayune believes the Saints’ center battle is over and that Jonathan Goodwin has earned the starting job over Tim Lelito.
In the same piece, Holder writes that it is “increasingly evident” that the Saints will open the season with three quarterbacks. Even though Ryan Griffin has outperformed Luke McCown, the team does not appear ready to part with McCown, who has worked with the first-team offense in every preseason game thus far. Payton said that Griffin will see “plenty of action” in Thursday’s preseason finale against the Ravens.

Extra Points: Fairley, Wallace, Vaccaro

August 16th, 2014 at 12:50pm CST by Matt Feminis

Lions enigmatic defensive tackle Nick Fairley has quickly worked his way into new head coach Jim Caldwell’s doghouse. Fairley been demoted to the second unit, and if that was meant to be a motivational ploy, it doesn’t seem to be working. In his review of the Lions’ second preseason game, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press said Fairley “might as well have not even played. Watching Fairley intently throughout the second quarter, he rarely got any push up front and only once stumbled into a tackle.”

Here’s a handful more miscellaneous news and notes from around the league:

Fox Sports’ Alex Marvez took an insightful look into Mike Wallace‘s slow adjustment to joining the Dolphins. Things are looking up, though, in Year Two, according to head coach Joe Philbin: “The comfort level [Wallace] has with the entire program is miles ahead of where he was a year ago at training camp. Maybe we underestimated just the sheer adjustment of a player moving from one program to another. I think he’s more comfortable in the locker room and with the coaching staff and feels better about his relationships with the quarterbacks.”
Saints second-year safety Kenny Vaccaro is establishing himself as a defensive playmaker and leader by example, writes Jeff Duncan of the Times-Picayune: “[Vaccaro] might have the most swagger of any Saints defender since Darren Sharper. He’s good — and he knows it. And that’s not a bad thing. The Saints’ defense is loaded with alpha males, but Vaccaro is elbowing his way to the head of the pack.”
Ryan Griffin is making a legitimate run at becoming Drew Brees‘ backup, according to ESPN’s Mike Triplett. A second-year pro, Griffin went undrafted out of Tulane, but earned a spot on the practice squad before spending the final 10 games on the active roster. “Griffin, 24, continues to show a combination of poise and confidence that belies his lack of experience,” says Triplett. If the Saints are to keep just two quarterbacks, they will have to choose between Griffin’s upside and experience of 33-year-old veteran Luke McCown.
Rookie nose tackle Louis Nix III is one of five Texans Houston Chronicle writer John McClain will be watching tonight. Nix practiced this week for the first time since having his knee scoped before camp. “They expect him to compete for a starting job,” says McClain. “They traded into the third round to get Nix (6-2, 331), who has the ideal build for a 3-4 nose tackle who’s supposed to tie up two blockers…If Nix stays healthy and keeps his weight under control, he can be an ideal fit for Romeo Crennel’s scheme.”
Ravens defensive lineman Kapron Lewis-Moore, a teammate of Nix III at Notre Dame, suffered a torn Achilles tendon, had surgery yesterday and is expected to be sidelined 6-8 months, reports Aaron Wilson in the Baltimore Sun. The injury is a tough break to say the least for Kapron-Moore, who also missed last season because of a torn ACL suffered in the 2013 BCS Championship against Alabama.

NFC South Links: Bell, Griffin, Robinson

August 9th, 2014 at 9:48pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Panthers‘ offensive line had a poor showing in their first preseason game, getting dominated by the Bills’ defensive line, writes Tom Sorenson of the Charlotte Observer. Granted, the team was without their top two running backs, the unit was unable to open holes for their running game. The offensive line was one of the biggest questions heading into 2014, especially without finding a legitimate replacement for Jordan Gross, who retired unexpectedly this offseason.

Here are some other links from around the NFC South:

Byron Bell filled in at left tackle for the Panthers and did not allow any sacks, but has not locked himself into the starting job just yet, writes David Newton of ESPN.com. Nate Chandler, who took the position on the second team, did give up a sack fumble, and the depth for the unit is not good.
The Saints might have found a long-term backup to Drew Brees in second year man Ryan Griffin out of Tulane, writes Chris Wessling of NFL’s Around the League (via Twitter). Ian Rapoport reports that the Saints agree with Wessling’s assesment (via Twitter).
Patrick Robinson is holding on to the Saints‘ second starting cornerback job, after a strong showing against the Rams, writes Larry Holder of NOLA.com. Corey White is entrenched as the nickel corner, and with Champ Bailey struggling with injury and second-round pick Stanley Jean-Baptiste struggling with performance, it has become Robinson’s job to lose.
The Falcons are getting safety Dwight Lowery and linebacker Pat Angerer back from concussion, reports Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com, as part of his training camp report.