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NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/27/17

December 27th, 2017 at 7:58pm CST by Micah Powell

Here are today’s practice squad transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Signed: CB Jonathan Moxey

Buffalo Bills

  • Signed: OT Josh James

Chicago Bears

  • Signed: OL D.J. Tialavea

Dallas Cowboys

  • Signed: WR K.D. Cannon

Denver Broncos

  • Signed: WR Jordan Leslie

Detroit Lions

  • Signed: QB Alex Torgersen

Houston Texans

  • Released: OL Dorian Johnson
  • Signed: OL Erik Austell

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Signed: RB Jalen Simmons
  • Released: OL Andrew Wylie

New York Giants

  • Placed on IR: LB B.J. Goodson
  • Signed: DL Kristjan Sokoli
  • Signed: WR Canaan Severin

New York Jets

  • Signed: DL Francis Kallon

Oakland Raiders

  • Signed: CB Darius Hillary

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Signed: WR Rashard Davis
  • Released: C Jon Toth

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Signed: WR Jake Lampman

Job Security A Distraction For Bucs’ Koetter

December 26th, 2017 at 9:12pm CST by Micah Powell

After leading Tampa Bay to a 9-7 record in his first season as head coach, Dirk Koetter and the Buccaneers entered the 2017 season as breakout favorites in the NFC. Things have not gone according to plan, however, with the Buccaneers sitting at 4-11 entering the final week of the season. The dismal display has prompted talks about the coach’s future with the team, which have been a distraction in recent weeks, Koetter admitted to reporters including ESPN’s Jenna Laine on Tuesday. Dirk Koetter (vertical)

“It’s your life, it’s your life. It’s what you do. So just flip it around. Of course it is,” Koetter said. “But we all as players and coaches, we’re paid to do a job, and you try to do it to the best of our ability. That’s all you can do.”

His job security is not the only thing serving as a distraction in Tampa Bay at the moment. Koetter acknowledged that a screaming fit happened during the team’s Week 16 loss vs. the Panthers, with quarterback Jameis Winston and linebacker Kwon Alexander confronting defensive lineman Chris Baker about his late penalty that set up Carolina for the game-winning score and his lack of remorse for committing the infraction.

Koetter played off the incident by saying, “Emotions [were] running, and that game — we had a lot of nice opportunities to win, [but] we didn’t do it. No one’s happy about that. A shouting match … I don’t think that would be the first or last time that’s ever happened.”

Though his influence in the locker room appears to be dissipating, Koetter said he has no fears of having lost the team. With the disappointing season almost in the books, the Buccaneers appear like they could be looking for a new coach in the near future.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/26/17

December 26th, 2017 at 8:55pm CST by GregGoldstein

Here are today’s practice squad transactions:

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed: CB Robert Nelson Jr.

Buffalo Bills

  • Signed: DT Marquavius Lewis
  • Signed: LB Xavier Woodson-Luster

Cleveland Browns

  • Signed: WR C.J. Board
  • Placed on PS IR: WR Kasen Williams

Detroit Lions

  • Signed: TE Brandon Barnes

Green Bay Packers

  • Signed: WR Jake Kumerow

Houston Texans

  • Signed: TE Jevoni Robinson

New York Giants

  • Signed: OL/DL Kristjan Sokoli

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/26/17

December 26th, 2017 at 8:07pm CST by GregGoldstein

Here are today’s minor moves around the NFL:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Promoted from PS: LB Edmond Robinson

Baltimore Ravens

  • Promoted from PS: WR Quincy Adeboyejo

Buffalo Bills

  • Promoted from PS: DT Rickie Hatley
  • Promoted from PS: WR Malachi Dupree
  • Promoted from PS: RB Marcus Murphy
  • Released: DT Deandre Coleman

Dallas Cowboys

  • Signed: LB Tre’Von Johnson

Detroit Lions

  • Placed on IR: OG Don Barclay
  • Promoted from PS: TE Hakeem Valles

Green Bay Packers

  • Promoted from PS: TE Emanuel Byrd

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Promoted from PS: WR Monday Crockett

New England Patriots

  • Released: LB Trevor Reilly

New York Giants

  • Promoted from PS: LB Derrick Matthews

Washington Redskins

  • Released: RB Kenny Hilliard

East Rumors: McDaniels, Bridgewater, Martin

December 17th, 2017 at 9:12am CST by Rory Parks

Ben Volin of the Boston Globe and Phil Perry and Mike Giardi of NBCSports.com take a look at some of the potential landing spots for Patriots OC Josh McDaniels should he depart New England for a head coaching gig this offseason. The NBC scribes suggest that some of the coaching opportunities may not be as desirable as they were earlier this season — given the increased concerns over Andrew Luck‘s shoulder and the mess that the Giants recently made of their quarterback situation — but both pieces suggest that now might be as good a time as any for McDaniels to make his second run as a head coach (and for director of player personnel Nick Caserio, who is typically marketed along with McDaniels, to get his first crack at a GM job).

Now for more rumors from the league’s east divisions:

  • In the same piece linked above, Perry and Giardi suggest that Patriots corner Malcolm Butler — whose play has suffered this year and who has generally been a “pain in the butt” — foreclosed any chance of a return to New England in 2018 when he retweeted a Pro Football Focus graphic showing Dolphins QB Jay Cutler‘s success against the Patriots’ blitzes in the aftermath of the Pats’ loss to Miami last week.
  • The Jets have been frequently connected to impending free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins and to some of this year’s top collegiate signal-callers (i.e. Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen), but Manisha Mehta of the New York Daily News suggests that current Vikings QB Teddy Bridgewater could also be in play for Gang Green. After all, Bridgewater — who will also be a free agent at season’s end — is younger than current Jets starter Bryce Petty, he could be had for a reasonable multi-year deal, and he managed to win in Minnesota without much of a supporting cast. This is just an opinion piece, but as Mehta suggests, a Bridgewater signing could be a low-risk, high-reward move that would not necessarily preclude the cash-flush Jets from also pursuing a QB in the first round of the draft.
  • The Cowboys and guard Zack Martin were deep in extension talks over the summer, but they could not get a deal done before the unofficial late August deadline that the two sides set for themselves. However, they are expected to revisit those discussions this offseason, as Martin is only under club control through the 2018 campaign (via the fifth-year option of his rookie contract). Hardik Sanghavi of OverTheCap.com looks at Martin’s case in excellent detail and projects a six-year, $84.6MM deal for the Notre Dame product.
  • James Kratch of NJ.com says the Giants‘ handling of Davis Webb makes no sense, and that New York should start the rookie quarterback over the last few games of the season. After all, if he plays poorly, it won’t ruin his career, and the 2-11 Giants actually stand to benefit from losing out. If he plays well, obviously that would be good for the team, and even though the talent around him is poor, he can still be evaluated, which Kratch says the Giants owe to their new regime. Kratch makes a number of good points, but it sounds as if Eli Manning will remain under center for the duration of 2017, which Kratch says smacks of a desperate campaign to appease Manning.

NFC Notes: Bears, Stafford, Falcons, Ellerbe

December 3rd, 2017 at 8:30pm CST by GregGoldstein

The Bears most recent loss to San Francisco this afternoon has Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun Times asking, “What’s left to evaluate?” in terms of what the franchise should do this offseason.

Jahns asserts that change is inevitable and that losing to one of the worst teams in the NFL is just a sign that there needs to be at least somewhat of an overhaul in the organization from top to bottom.

The reporter also cites that the team is not handling themselves like a 3-9 roster, as they frequently post videos of themselves fooling around in the locker room and had a heated exchange in practice between current wide receiver Josh Bellamy and the recently released Tre McBride. Despite the walls seeming to close on him, head coach John Fox expressed that his team had a good week of preparation for their Week 13 contest.

“It was hard to even talk to the team after this loss,” Fox said. “We had a great week of preparation. The guys’ mindsets [are] good; they’re working at it.”

Chicago has its young signal caller in Mitch Trubisky, but big changes may be on the horizon elsewhere on the roster and coaching staff considering the troubles the team has gone through in 2017.

  • Coming into Week 13 with a leg injury, Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford also suffered “nerve-type damage” to his throwing hand during this afternoon’s game, according to Kyle Meinke of MLive.com. Meinke reports that while the 29-year-old signal caller didn’t suffer any breaks, but there was a lot of pain. “I couldn’t feel it too well, to tell you the truth,” Stafford said. “Had some, like, burning nerve pain, I didn’t know what it was going to be. But X-rays were negative.” With their loss today, Detroit will have to run the table in order to have a shot at the postseason, and it appears they’ll have to do it with their franchise signal caller not even close to full health.
  • There’s going to be at least some shakeup in the Falcons coaching staff this offseason. Quarterbacks coach Bush Hamdan is leaving his position in Atlanta to become the new offensive coordinator at the University of Washington, reports Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The position became available after the school’s former offensive coordinator, Jonathan Smith, became the head coach at Oregon State. Hamdan will wait till the end of the Falcons season before he departs for his new job.
  • Eagles linebacker Dannell Ellerbe is active for the first time this season for tonight’s game vs. Seattle, reports Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). The Eagles signed the veteran middle linebacker in the middle of November and he could see significant playing time because current Eagles starter Joe Walker is out with a neck injury. Ellerbe last played for New Orleans in Week 16 of the 2016-17 season.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/2/2017

December 2nd, 2017 at 9:51pm CST by Micah Powell

Here are today’s minor moves:

Los Angeles Rams

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Miami Dolphins

  • Added from practice squad: DE Cameron Malveaux
  • Placed on reserve/non-football illness list: FS Maurice Smith

Indianapolis Colts

Carson Palmer Not Ruling Out 2017 Return

December 2nd, 2017 at 5:30pm CST by Micah Powell

Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer said his rehab from a broken left arm is on schedule and he is trying to make a return to the field before the end of the season, Kent Somers of AZCentral.com tweets. Carson Palmer (vertical)

The veteran signal-caller suffered the injury in Arizona’s 33-0 loss to the Rams in Week 7 and was placed on injured reserve. Should he make a return, Palmer would need to practice two weeks before being activated. Though he is hoping to return this season, Palmer did add he was making no assurances.

With the Cardinals a long shot in the NFC wildcard hunt at 5-6, the team would likely want to rattle off a couple of wins before thinking about sending Palmer back out. A win vs. the Rams in Week 13, however, would close the gap in the NFC West to two games.

Palmer was playing well before the injury, throwing for 1,978 yards and nine touchdowns in nine games and would be a welcome addition to a team looking to get hot down the stretch.

NFC Notes: 49ers, Fox, Reed, Fisher

November 26th, 2017 at 7:39pm CST by GregGoldstein

It was a long awaited day for 49ers fans, as they got their first look at newly acquired quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in today’s loss to the Seahawks. The former Pats backup signal caller got into the game because rookie starter C.J. Beathard was forced to exit with an injury. Garoppolo made good use of his mild playing time, throwing a nice touchdown pass as time expired.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan chose not to shed much light on how he’s thinking about the QB position moving forward. Although, he did mention that Beathard’s leg injury was not too serious, reports Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). While Beathard’s injury does not appear to affect his playing status moving forward, he will get additional testing tomorrow. Nevertheless, it’s notable that Shanahan wouldn’t commit to a starter for Week 13 either way, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter link). However, Barrows did also tweet that the 49ers coach didn’t think about pulling his rookie starter while he was healthy.

It’ll be a tough decision considering the way Garoppolo played when he entered the game and the high pick the front office gave up to get him. Shanahan hasn’t caved into public pressure as of yet, so it’s a decision that seems to remain truly up in the air.

  • If the Bears fire John Fox this offseason, Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com believes that Eagles quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo should be considered for the job. DeFilippo would be an out-of-the-box hire since he is not a coordinator, but the feeling in Philadelphia is that no one has been more instrumental in Carson Wentz‘s development than the 39-year-old. It’s possible that DeFilippo could be the guy to help rookie QB Mitch Trubisky reach his full potential. And, with anywhere from 7-10 teams potentially looking for a new head coach this offseason, DeFilippo can be expected to draw some interest.
  • Redskins star tight end Jordan Reed has missed a lot of time in 2017 and looks to miss another game in Week 13, according to John Keim of ESPN.com. Keim notes that Reed didn’t practice or do any side running today as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury. Coach Jay Gruden confirmed that Reed would be held out for the next few days as well. “We’re going to take off that part of it here for a couple days, see where he’s at,” Gruden said. While there will still be some time for Reed to get on the field after, it’s tough to expect him to heal quick enough to be effective in game action considering his past injury problems.
  • With the Rams surging to an 8-3 record under first-year head coach Sean McVay, a lot of criticism has been tossed at former head coach Jeff Fisher for the way he handled the offense. Fisher appeared on the Amazon show All or Nothing over this past summer and expressed desire to get back on the sideline for the 2018-19 season. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk opines that despite Fisher’s recent track record, he does bring a ton of experience in the game and has the skills to impress in the interview room. Florio hears that his name has already “bubbled up” for coaching jobs, so there’s some potential for interest to come from the NFL as well. They’ll also be a number of coaching jobs open, both head coach and as a coordinator. It’ll be a tough sell considering what has transpired in Los Angeles this season, but Fisher is clearly still held in high regard among the football community, so anything is possible.

Extra Points: Anthem, Raiders, Bengals, Jets

November 22nd, 2017 at 9:23pm CST by Micah Powell

Discussion about who stands and who sits for the national anthem could come to an end next season if the owners have their way, the Washington Post’s Mark Maske hears. Maske reports that some NFL owners think there is a “strong possibility” they could enact a change to the league’s policy next season that could keep players off the field during the playing of the national anthem.

Maske quoted one person familiar with the owners’ deliberations saying, “I think that if players are still kneeling at the end of the year, then it could very well happen.” He continued with the source, who said, “I think most owners would support it, particularly if players continue to kneel this season.”

The thought this action could quell attention from the league’s anthem issues is a naive one. Players in favor of demonstrating their right to protest are sure to feel disrespected, while having no one standing for the flag is certain to draw ire from a wide range of fans. Whatever the decision, the NFL isn’t likely to escape the spotlight anytime soon.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • Raiders  head coach Jack Del Rio issued a statement on Wednesday stating “nobody should feel comfortable” following the team’s firing of defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr., NBC Sports’ Scott Blair reports. Del Rio continued, saying, “We couldn’t continue doing what we’ve been doing to this point. So I made the call. The whole idea is to change what we’re doing and make sure…what I’m looking for at the end of the day is for us to play fast on defense. We weren’t playing fast enough. We weren’t playing confident enough.” After starting the season with Super Bowl aspirations, the Raiders are holding out hope for a second-half revival to contend for a wildcard spot.
  • Former Chiefs general manager John Dorsey sat down with ESPN’s Adam Schefter on his Know Them From Adam Podcast to give his first interview since being fired in June. In the interview, which the Kansas City Star’s Blair Kerkhoff recapped, Dorsey didn’t address his departure much outside of saying he’s had better days. He did claim he wanted to make a return to football, however. “I know I can do my job with the best with my peers in the National Football League,” Dorsey said. “I’m very proud of being able to help an organization re-establish their winning ways, and I think that’s important.”
  • When asked if the team was committed to kicker Randy Bullock for the remainder of the season, Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said they were committed to him “for the week.,” ESPN’s Katherine Terrell reports. Bullock has connected on 8-of-10 field goals on the season but has missed an extra point in each of his last two games.
  • It’s getting close to time for the Jets to see what they have in Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News writes. Though Josh McCown has played well, Mehta claims it is time to call the kids up from “Triple-A” to see what they can do.
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