Ryne Giddins

The Spring League Announces Camp Roster

Since we learned last year that there’d be a spring football league in 2017, several former NFL stars have committed to the endeavor. Today, The Spring League announced (via Twitter) their full training camp roster.

Ahmad BradshawAs was previously reported, defensive end Greg Hardy, tight end Kellen Winslow Jr., and running back Ben Tate were among the major names to have committed to the league. Former cornerback Brandon Browner was reportedly involved, but he was curiously omitted from the training camp roster. Former Giants and Colts running back Ahmad Bradshaw is seemingly the biggest addition to the roster since the last update.

The Spring League is composed of four teams, with the rosters comprised of veteran free agents. Ultimately, six games will be played between April 5 through April 26. Players who are currently on NFL rosters are not eligible to participate.

The full training camp roster can be found below:

Quarterbacks

Running backs

Fullbacks

  • Adam Cox
  • Jonathan Amosa

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Kellen Winslow, Ben Tate Join Spring League

The Spring League kicks off in April and it will feature some notable names looking to resurrect their football careers. Defensive end Greg Hardy, tight end Kellen Winslow Jr., cornerback Brandon Browner, and running back Ben Tate are among the players who have been confirmed as participants, according to a press release. Greg Hardy (vertical)

Winslow has not played in an NFL game since the 2013 season and we haven’t heard much from him since he worked out for the Packers last August. Tate, a former second-round pick, showed lots of promise in Houston but could not capitalize on a starting opportunity with the Browns in 2014. Hardy and Browner first committed to the league in early March.

The Spring League consists of four teams comprised of veteran free agents. The league will conduct practices and play six games from April 5 through April 26. Players who are currently on NFL rosters will not be eligible to participate.

The league has secured five quarterbacks thus far, including Chiefs 2011 fifth-round pick Ricky Stanzi and NFL practice squad journeyman McLeod Bethel-Thompson. At wide receiver, there’s former Ram Brandon Gibson, Jets 2014 fourth-round pick Jalen Saunders, and one-time Bills WR2 David Nelson. Former Jets defensive back Ellis Lankster and Texans 2013 third-round defensive tackle Sam Montgomery will also be suiting up for The Spring League next month.

The full list of players can be found below. In addition to those listed here, Pro Football Rumors has learned that another 30 players are expected to join prior to the start of training camp.

Quarterbacks

  • Hutson Mason
  • Ricky Stanzi
  • McLeod Bethel-Thompson
  • Zach Kline
  • Jeremy Cannon

Running backs

Wide receivers

  • Jalen Saunders
  • David Nelson
  • Kenzel Doe
  • Brandon Gibson
  • Daje’ Johnson
  • Gavin Lutman
  • Tyler McDonald
  • J.D. Woods
  • Sed Cunningham
  • Lawrence Smith
  • Terrance Lewis
  • Rashon Ceaser
  • Kendrick Wiggins

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Buccaneers Cut 13 Players

MONDAY, 9:29am: The Bucs have made another move, releasing linebacker Damaso Munoz, tweets Rick Stoud of the Tampa Bay Times. Tampa’s roster is now at 77.

SUNDAY, 3:46pm: The Buccaneers have issued their first wave of roster moves, cutting 12 players, per Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com (Twitter links):

With Cain, Andrew DePaola is now in line for the long-snapping job. Tanney is notable for being a “trick-shot” QB of YouTube renown. Tampa Bay still needs to make three more roster cuts before Tuesday’s 3pm CT deadline.

Minor Moves: Tuesday

Here are the NFL’s minor transactions for Tuesday, with the latest moves added to the top of the page throughout the afternoon and evening:

  • The Bears waived linebacker Conor O’Neill to make room for the addition of Greg Herd, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
  • The Browns reached an injury settlement with James Oboh, Wilson tweets.
  • The Broncos waived defensive end Hall Davis with a left squad designation, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Denver signed Davis to a reserve/futures contract in February.
  • The Vikings waived Lestar Jean from injured reserve, tweets Wilson. The wideout has ten career receptions for 186 yards and one touchdown.
  • Running back Kendall Hunter will spend the season on the 49ers’ injured reserve list after he cleared waivers on Tuesday, writes Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.
  • The Dolphins announced that they have signed kicker Danny Hrapmann and waived linebacker Ryan Rau, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Hrapmann was one of at least three kickers Miami auditioned recently.
  • The Bears added wide receiver Greg Herd today, according to Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter). Chicago must make a corresponding roster move for Herd, who had short stints with the Cowboys and Seahawks after entering the NFL in 2013.

Earlier updates:

  • The Colts agreed to sign former Eagles outside linebacker Phillip Hunt, a source tells Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). To make room for Hunt, the Colts dropped wide receiver Nu’Keese Richardson, who signed with the club just two days ago.
  • The Browns announced that they have signed tight end Martell Webb, linebacker Keith Pough, and wide receiver Tim Smith, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. Originally signed by Philadelphia as an undrafted free agent in 2011, Webb has spent time on the practice squads of the Jets (2011), Bucs (2011), Colts (2012), Titans (2012), and Lions (2013).
  • The Browns waived defensive back Darwin Cook, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (via Twitter).
  • The Titans will sign Lanier Coleman, a defensive lineman who has spent time with the Jets and Packers, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. Tennessee has a full 90-man roster, so the team will need to cut someone to make it official.
  • The Saints have signed former second-round tight end Richard Quinn, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter). In a separate tweet, Mike Triplett of ESPN.com adds a few more Saints moves courtesy of Yates: New Orleans also signed wideout Tobais Palmer, waiving receiver Steve Hull (injured designation), defensive tackle Tyrone Ezell, and linebacker Marcus Thompson.
  • As first reported by NFL Draft Diamonds, the Browns have reached a deal to sign tight end Kyle Auffray, writes Mike Wilkering of Pro Football Talk. Cleveland entered the day with four open roster spots, so there’s plenty of room for Auffray, who spent some time with the Patriots in the spring.
  • The Buccaneers completed a series of roster moves today, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed defensive ends Ryne Giddins and James Ruffin, and waived-injured linebacker Jeremy Grable and safety Mycal Swaim.
  • The Steelers are set to sign wide receiver James Shaw, who previously played for the Arena League’s Pittsburgh Power, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Pittsburgh has a full 90-man roster, so the club will need to make a corresponding roster move to make room for the latest signee.
  • Jermaine Cunningham, who tore his Achilles tendon during training camp, has been waived-injured by the Jets, who signed offensive lineman Bruce Campbell to fill Cunningham’s roster spot, per Rich Cimini of ESPN New York (Twitter link). Campbell attended the team’s minicamp back in June on a tryout basis.
  • Armed with an open spot on their 90-man roster, the Broncos have signed former Browns defensive end Brian Sanford, as Mike Klis of the Denver Post details. Sanford, who turns 27 next month, has been active for 13 career regular-season contests for Cleveland and Oakland.
  • The Seahawks have waived-injured safety Dion Bailey and signed defensive back Trey Wolfe to replace him, tweets Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.

NFC Notes: Bucs, Vikings, Redskins, Seahawks

A total of 26 local prospects from 11 schools worked out for the Buccaneers today, tweets Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com. Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times identifies a handful of them in a series of Twitter links, including Florida offensive lineman Jon Halapio, Boston College offensive lineman Matt Patchan, USF defensive end Ryne Giddins, USF defensive back Fidel Montgomery, Toledo receiver Bernard Reedy, and Rutgers safety Jeremy Deering.

  • The Vikings will work out Teddy Bridgewater on Saturday, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
  • It was reported yesterday that the Redskins brought in free agent receivers Austin Collie and Anthony Armstrong for visits, and Mike Jones of the Washington Post adds another name to that list, tweeting that the club also worked out Brian Hernandez. Hernandez has signed with the Eagles and Redskins, though he has never appeared in a regular-season NFL game.
  • Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun provides the breakdown on Jeron Johnson’s reworked deal with the Seahawks (via Twitter). Rather than earning a $2.187MM base salary in 2014, Johnson will now have a $1MM base, a $250K signing bonus, up to $250K in per-game roster bonuses, and up to $500K in playing-time incentives. As John Clayton reported yesterday, the one-year pact can be worth up to $2MM in total.
  • Calvin Watkins of ESPNDallas.com discusses whether the Cowboys will add a quarterback in this year’s draft or wait another year to address the situation.