Saw that one, and that they also released Mo Sanu, which was expected. There will probably be fans around here clamoring for the Falcons to pick up Michel, as he played his college ball at Georgia. Jaguars released Laquon Treadwell, former Vikings draft pick who also spent most of 2020 on Atlanta's practice squad. I'm not sure why, but that one surprised me a little. He's a chronic underachiever, but this year I thought he was going to make the back end of the Jacksonville roster. Sounds like they're bumping him out to make room for Tim Jones.
Brian Robinson out of hospital, meeting with team doctors Tuesday Commanders running back Brian Robinson is set to be back at the team’s facility on Tuesday. Robinson was shot twice as the target of an attempted armed robbery on Sunday and John Keim of ESPN.com reports that Robinson was released from the hospital on Monday. He is set to meet with team doctors as he puts together a plan for his rehabilitation and return to the football field. Commanders head coach Ron Rivera said on Monday that there is no timeline for that return, but that there’s no sign that Robinson will have to miss the entire season. The meeting with doctors will likely determine whether the Commanders make a roster move with Robinson on Tuesday. Placing him on the non-football injury list would leave him unable to play for the first four games of the season. PFT
Colts release Phillip Lindsay The Colts are moving on from one of their veteran running backs. Indianapolis has released Phillip Lindsay, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media. Lindsay signed a one-year deal with the Colts in May. He spent 10 games with the Texans last season before he was released in November. He then played four games with the Dolphins. In all, he rushed for 249 yards with one touchdown and caught four passes for 45 yards in 2021. Lindsay played his first three seasons with the Broncos, rushing for 1,000 yards in each of his first two seasons. He was a Pro Bowler as an undrafted rookie in 2018. Lindsay recorded 16 carries for 55 yards in this year’s preseason. The Colts have Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines at the top of their running backs group. PFT
That's harsh to say you missed on that one, unless you thought he was a lock to make Buffalo's roster and are referring to that as the "miss". In spite of injuries (playing through almost constant foot and ankle issues and going on IR twice), he was still good enough for the Bucs that they picked up his fifth year option. And then he tore his Achilles. He's certainly not the same player right now, but the issues with him in the NFL have always been medical, and there were no medical red flags on him going into the draft. Injuries happen. That's not a miss in my book.
Saints trade Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to Eagles The Saints and Eagles pulled off a surprise trade for a veteran player on 53-man roster cutdown day. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, a veteran defensive back, is getting shipped from New Orleans to Philadelphia, according to NFL Network. There’s no immediate word on what the Eagles are sending back to the Saints. Gardner-Johnson made no secret in training camp that he wanted a new contract, but the Saints didn’t give him one. It’s unclear whether the Eagles are willing to pay him what he’s asking for. A 2019 fourth-round draft pick, Gardner-Johnson was heading into the final year of his rookie contract and is due a base salary of $2.54 million this season. Last year Gardner-Johnson played in 12 games, with 11 starts. PFT
Bullet passed through Brian Robinson’s knee without damaging ligaments, tendons or bones It may seem strange to describe Commanders running back Brian Robinson as “lucky” after he was minding his own business in his car when two carjackers shot him, but the details of the shooting do suggest that luck was on his side. Although he was struck twice, Robinson appears to have avoided any major injuries that would affect his football career. According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, a bullet passed through his knee without doing any significant damage to ligaments, tendons or bones. An NFL running back who gets shot in the knee could easily have his career ended, and yet Robinson is remaining on the active 53-player roster. That suggests the Commanders’ medical staff thinks he’ll be ready to play soon. That’s great news for the team, and even better news for Robinson, who faced a situation that could have been career-ending or even life-ending, and came out of it largely OK. PFT ___________ ____________________ Good news!
Tom Pelissero says teams are talking with Pittsburgh right now about trading for Mason Rudolph. Jaguars have traded WR Lavishka Shenault to Panthers for a pair of late round draft picks (7th in 2023, 6th in 2024). Jags already released Laquon Treadwell and now moving Shenault as well. Interesting handling of the bottom of the WR group. Looks like Tom Jones is in for sure. Not sure who else they're going to keep. Panthers made room on the roster by trading offensive lineman Dennis Daley to the Titans, flip-flopping two 2024 draft picks (5th and 7th). Net effect for the Panthers is Daley becomes Shenault and 2023 7th + 2024 6th and 7th become 2024 5th.
Lol... Tim Jones. Vikings trade for Texans DT Ross Blacklock. Trade price is flip 6th rounder for 7th rounder.
Well, Pellisero didn't say the trade price would be high. The offer could be Rudolph plus a 2024 seventh rounder for a 2023 seventh rounder for all we know. I'm curious as to which teams might be calling. Panthers seem like one likely option, as Darnold is out for four weeks and I suspect they wouldn't want to throw Matt Corral in for true game action at this point. Rudolph would be a temporary insurance policy, but if the trade price is cheap enough I could certainly see them pulling the trigger and doing it. I don't know if the Browns would make such a deal with a division rival, but the situation would fit otherwise - they're releasing Rosen, and they do have an extra roster spot while Watson is on the suspended list. For that matter, even my Falcons might be a possibility. If they're going ahead and turning Feleipe Franks into a full time tight end, he can't be the QB on the scout team and throw it to himself. Rudolph on the roster as the QB#3 and Franks on the practice squad as a TE is a reasonable (though unlikely) scenario.
Rudolph would be a starter for a few teams in the league. Lions, Jets, Browns right now, Seahawks, Texans, to name some sure ones.
Steelers to acquire Jesse Davis from Vikings The Steelers are adding some veteran depth to their offensive line. According to a report from NFL Media, the Vikings are trading Jesse Davis to the Steelers. Minnesota will receive a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2025 draft in exchange for Davis. Davis signed with the Vikings in March after spending his first five seasons with the Dolphins. Last year, he appeared in all 17 games with 16 starts for Miami, playing 92 percent of the team’s offensive snaps. He played nearly every offensive snaps for the Dolphins since 2018. The Steelers had reportedly cut offensive linemen Joe Haeg and John Leglue, so acquiring Davis gives the team some different depth. PFT
Falcons cuts are in. Only big surprise for me is TE Anthony Firkser, who seemed to be a lock for the TE #2 role. Minor surprises are RB Qadree Ollison, who had a strong preseason, and backup guard Colby Gossett, who I had as their #9 overall lineman. They did keep the pure fullback Keith Smith, which was probably a factor in Ollison not making it. I expected Caleb Huntley to be cut, but now it's a question of whether the team will make room for both running backs on the practice squad. Not sure what's up on the OL, as they released the entire third unit and had already released OT Rick Leonard. Could be a signing or waiver pickup coming up.
Thinking more about Firkser... I have a feeling the team isn't even telling him to clean out his locker. I suspect he might be back on the Atlanta roster as soon as tomorrow afternoon, and I'm guessing nearly every team in the league will have a a couple of similar situations. The weird quirk in the rules is that if you put a player on IR up through today, he's out for the season. After today, a player going on IR is out for at least four weeks but can then return. Also, if you release a prospect with an injury settlement rather than putting him on IR, he's off limits to you (but can sign with any other team) for six weeks beyond the duration of the injury settlement. So the ideal approach for someone likely to miss several games is to hang on to them for the initial roster but then move them to IR later this week. The catch is someone else has to go - at least temporarily - to make room for the banged up guy. I think that's the case with Firkser. Late draft pick TE John FitzPatrick was banged up and was held out of the final preseason game with an unspecified injury. Defensive lineman Marlon Davidson had arthroscopic surgery on his knee and is likely out at least two or three weeks. Given that he's a defensive tackle, a few extra weeks seems likely for the big man. Offensive lineman Jalen Mayfield has been dealing with a lower back issue. The entire first and second unit lines were kept out of the final preseason game, so there's no telling if he would have played or been kept out due to the injury. But given that he's likely to be inactive for the first several games anyway (with Elijah Wilkinson winning the starting left guard spot), he'd be a strong candidate to put on the shelf for a month or two. Firkser is the ideal candidate to have take a day or two off while shuffling the roster. He has strong ties to Arthur Smith, so he's not likely to want to jump ship to another team. He's not exactly a household name either - the world wasn't beating a path to his door to sign him as a free agent this spring. He was signed to a one year contract, so there aren't any messy cap ramifications due to a signing bonus on a multi-year deal. So he's the perfect choice for the roster two-step. Otherwise, ditching him really doesn't make a whole lot of sense, as he's the most reliable backup tight end the team has.
FWIW The Buccaneers have the oldest 53 man roster at the moment, averaging 27.1 years of age. The youngest... Cleveland Browns; 25 years of age. Now you know the rest of the story..... Good...........................day?
I sure hope he lands in Minnesota. I think he would be a perfect fit as Im not sold on Irv Smith staying healthy and the Vikings arnt real deep at TE.