Transactions - Pro Football Rumors

JANUARY 17: Watson has indeed been activated, per a team announcement. He will be in line to handle a significant workload on Saturday and beyond if the Chiefs manage another deep postseason run.

JANUARY 16: Jaylen Watson is expected to return from IR just in time for the Chiefs’ playoff opener. According to Nate Taylor of The Athletic, the Chiefs are expected to activate their starting cornerback before Saturday’s divisional round matchup with the Texans.

Watson suffered a fractured fibula and tibia back in Week 7 that was expected to knock him out for the rest of the season. Instead, the former seventh-round pick has worked his way back in just a few months. Watson was a full participant at practice on both Tuesday and Wednesday, and Taylor believes the 26-year-old could play a majority of his team’s snaps this weekend. Of course, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was quick to caution that his CB will need to knock off any rust.

“I think these next two (practices) will be really important,” Spagnuolo said (via Taylor). “He needs to get up to the speed of the game — and it’s not regular-season speed. It’s playoff speed.”

After serving as a rotational defensive back through his first two years in the league, Watson took on a larger role in 2023. The cornerback started each of Kansas City’s first six games, appearing in 91 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. In those six appearances, Watson compiled 32 tackles and six passes defended, with Pro Football Focus grading him 30th among 117 qualifying cornerbacks.

As Taylor notes, Watson combined with All-Pro CB Trent McDuffie to limit opposing passers to a 60 percent completion percentage. When the likes of Joshua Williams, Nazeeh Johnson, and Chris Roland-Wallace filled in, that number jumped to 67 percent, so Watson should provide a boost to the team’s defense.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/16/25

January 16th, 2025 at 7:48pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s reserve/futures contracts:

Arizona Cardinals

WR Trishton Jackson, WR Quez Watkins

Minnesota Vikings

DL Jalen Redmond, CB Ambry Thomas

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

P Jake Julien

The Cardinals snagged a pair of wide receivers from recently-eliminated playoff teams. Quez Watkins spent all of this season on the Steelers practice squad, while Trishton Jackson was a member of the Vikings’ taxi squad when they were knocked out of the postseason. Watkins brings the most experience of the duo, as the former sixth-round pick got into 49 games with the Eagles between 2020 and 2023.

The Vikings added a former 49ers third-round pick in Ambry Thomas. The cornerback got into 42 games across three seasons in San Francisco, collecting 79 tackles and two interceptions. Thomas spent most of the 2024 campaign on the 49ers injured reserve, but he was cut by the team last month. He was claimed by the Colts but immediately released after failing a physical, and he subsequently landed on Minnesota’s practice squad.

Rams Designate Troy Reeder, Larrell Murchison For Return

January 16th, 2025 at 3:20pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Rams designated linebacker Troy Reeder and defensive end Larrell Murchison to return from injured reserve, per a team announcement.

Reeder started the Rams’ first six games of the season before a hamstring injury forced him on injured reserve. Christian Rozeboom and Omar Speights stepped up and stayed healthy in his place, but neither has been a high-impact defender. Los Angeles has relied more on a young, explosive pass rush to make up for their deficiencies in coverage.

Murchison has dealt with multiple injuries this season. He landed on injured reserve during final roster cuts with an arm injury, but was designated to return via the NFL’s new IR rules. He returned to practice in October, but broke his foot that same week, sidelining him for the rest of the regular season. Each being activated would leave the Rams with no more activations. Teams received two more activations in the playoffs this year; the Rams had used all their regular-season IR-return moves.

Both players will practice with their teammates and work towards playing in the divisional round this weekend, but the Rams defense has been excellent without them as of late. Other than a 30-point outburst by the Seahawks in Week 18, the Rams’ last four opponents have averaged just 8.25 points, and none broke into double-digit territory.

With a full 53-man roster, Los Angeles will have to decide how much Reeder and Murchison will add compared to the players they’d replace. Activating Reeder would make sense; he played 94% of the team’s defensive snaps when he was healthy, and the Rams only have three active inside linebackers. However, Murchison’s practice period will be crucial to see if he can immediately play in the playoffs after a year away from the field.

Ravens Claim Diontae Johnson; WR Will Not Play In Postseason

January 15th, 2025 at 11:06pm CST by Adam La Rose

The latest turn in Diontae Johnson‘s journeyman 2024 season took place yesterday when he was waived by the Texans. The veteran wideout’s future for the remainder of the campaign has now been settled.

Johnson was claimed off waivers by the Ravens on Wednesday, per the transactions wire (h/t ESPN’s Adam Schefter). To be clear, this is merely a procedural move; he will not suit up for Baltimore over the remainder of the postseason. Like all waived players at this time of year, Johnson will not formally be awarded to the team until after the Super Bowl.

By virtue of being a Raven once the league year ends, Johnson departing on the open market could put Baltimore in line for a 2026 compensatory pick. More immediately, this move prevents the 28-year-old from becoming a free agent amongst the eight remaining playoff team. Had Johnson cleared waivers, an interested suitor could have brought him in as depth option on offense.

Considering how this campaign has played out, of course, it would have come as a surprise if any team had been particularly keen on bringing Johnson in for the stretch run. The former Steeler was traded to the Panthers this offseason, and his early production with Carolina was notable given the team’s offensive struggles. As the trade deadline approached, it became clear a deal sending the pending free agent elsewhere was likely, and he was sent to Baltimore.

That move resulted in sparse usage, however, something Johnson took issue with. After making only four appearances with the Ravens, he was waived and claimed by the Texans as part of their efforts to replace the injured Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell. Johnson played only one game during the regular season before taking part in last week’s wild-card contest, and his playing time (or lack thereof) was again an issue. The Toledo product’s latest departure came as no surprise, and it compounds what will already be a very poor free agent market this spring.

Now, Johnson will be able to turn his attention to free agency in March. Once his two-year, $36.71MM pact expires, it will be interesting to see how many teams are willing to entertain signing him.