Category: Practice Squad

Jags add DE Jabaal Sheard to practice squad

The Jags lack a experience on the edge and have decided to bring in a former rival player of the team’s to help them rush the passer.

The Jacksonville Jaguars made several transactions Monday after their 30-14 loss to the Houston Texans and the most notable may have been the addition of veteran pass rusher Jabaal Sheard to their practice squad. The move came after there were some practice squad openings available due to the Jags decisions to elevate kicker Jon Brown and defensive lineman Caraun Reid to the active rosters.

Sheard’s signing comes as no surprise for several reasons. The team worked the veteran out last week, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. Additionally, the team has struggled when it comes to rushing the passer partly due to being inexperienced and could use a veteran.

Sheard, who is a native of Hollywood, Fla., was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the second-round of the 2011 NFL Draft (No. 37 overall) and will be entering his tenth season. After spending four years there, he spent two with the New England Patriots (2015-16) and three with the Jags’ AFC South rivals in the Indianapolis Colts (2017-19).

Sheard will enter this season with 103 career starts, 387 total tackles, and 51.5 sacks. With such experience, he shouldn’t be expected to stay on practice squad long as the Jags will probably aim to get him acclimated and in football shape before placing him on the field. Then again, if defensive end Josh Allen is unable to return Week 6 after missing Sunday’s game, Sheard could see the field as soon as Sunday as the Jags will take on the Detroit Lions at TIAA Bank Field.

Jags re-sign safety Doug Middleton to practice squad

The Jags are bringing back Doug Middleton to their practice squad after activating him for Week 4’s game against the Bengals.

The Jacksonville Jaguars made one transaction Monday, signing safety Doug Middleton to their practice squad. The move came after the Jags temporarily promoted Middleton to their active roster on Saturday for Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals. However, according to the league’s transaction log, the Jags released him, which allowed them to pick him back up for their practice quad.

Middleton, 27, entered the league as an undrafted player for the New York Jets in 2016. He was there until 2019 and was picked up by the Miami Dolphins temporarily. The Jags signed him afterward in November of 2019 and activated him to their active roster in mid-December. They later released him in August of this year and he spent a brief stint with the Tennessee Titans  before returning to the Jags in September.

Middleton has participated in a total of 15 career games while starting in four (all of which were with the Jets). He’s also managed to garner 35 career tackles and four career pass breakups and will be one of the more experienced players on the Jags’ practice squad.

Steelers practice squad 2020: 4 players Pittsburgh protected for Week 4

A new concept for the 2020 season is the “protected” practice squad. Here are the four players the Steelers chose to protect.

For Week 4, the Steelers have chosen to protect wide receiver Deon Cain running backs Trey Edmunds and Wendell Smallwood and defensive end Henry Mondeaux. These four are not eligible to sign with another team until after Sunday’s game.

The most interesting observation is that Pittsburgh has protected two running backs. With the addition of Edmunds, linebacker Jayrone Elliott is now unprotected.

Practice squad “protection” is a new concept for the 2020 season. It’s a concession for the potential personnel shortages that could occur if the virus strikes the locker room.

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Teams can designate protected players each Tuesday beginning at 4 p.m., except for clubs that played on the previous Monday night; their designations go into effect prior to 4 p.m. Wednesday.

The Steelers continue their 2020 season Sunday, Oct. 4 versus the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium.

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Jags promote DT Daniel Ekuale to active roster, release DT Timmy Jernigan

The Jags made a roster transaction on defense by releasing Timmy Jernigan and signing Daniel Ekuale off their practice squad.

The Jacksonville Jaguars made some transactions on the defensive side Monday by promoting defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale to the active roster and releasing veteran defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan. Jernigan’s release was initially reported by SB Nation’s Demetrius Harvey and later the Jags confirmed it alongside the additions of kickers Steven Hauschka (to the active roster) and Aldrick Rosas (to their practice squad).

Jernigan’s release is one many weren’t expecting after the team just signed the Lake City native back in mid August, however, he never really found a groove with the team. In 54 snaps and three games, he only managed to register one tackle, which came Week 2 against the Tennessee Titans.

Jernigan previously played for the Philadelphia Eagles before signing with the Jags, however, the team didn’t resign him this offseason making him a free agent.

As for Ekuale, he joined the Jags after final cuts through their practice squad. He entered the league in 2018 and was on the Cleveland Browns’ practice squad for most of his rookie season. Last season, however, he made their final-53 man roster but had to be placed on injured reserve in November due to a calf injury. Ultimately, he was able to garner four tackles, one of which was registered as a tackle for loss.

Listen to the latest from Jags Wire’s own James Johnson and Phil Smith on their podcast “Bleav in the Jags.” Subscribe via Apple Podcasts and check out our archived episodes via Bleav Podcasts.

Jags promote Ben Ellefson from practice squad to active roster

TE Ben Ellefson has been elevated to the Jags’ active roster for the second consecutive week.

The Jacksonville Jaguars made an addition to their active roster Saturday by promoting tight end Ben Ellefson from their practice squad.

The Jags also added a new tight end to their practice squad in Eric Saubert and released cornerback Josh Nurse to make space for his addition.

Under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement teams are now allowed to elevate up to two extra players from their practice squad to their active roster for a game. This new rule is specifically explained in Article 33, Section 5 of the 2020 CBA.

In accordance with Article 33, Section 5 of the 2020 CBA, each club may elevate a maximum of two players each week from its practice squad to its active/inactive List as a 54th or 55th player without the player first terminating his practice squad contract. 

After the player takes part in the game they were elevated for, they revert back to the practice squad at 4 p.m. ET the following business day. The catch with the rule, however, is that a player can be only elevated twice.

This will be the second time the Jags have elevated Ellefson for a game, so he will no longer be eligible for another pre-game elevation. Of course, the first time he was elevated was for the Jags’ only game of 2020, which occurred Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts.

Ellefson saw the field for 13 offensive snaps, but didn’t register a target or catch. He may be able to end his catchless streak Sunday against the Tennessee Titans, however, as he will be replacing Tyler Davis (knee) who was ruled out for Week 2.

Steelers practice squad 2020: 4 players the Pittsburgh protected for Week 2

A new concept for the 2020 season is the “protected” practice squad. Here are the four players the Steelers chose to protect.

For Week 2, the Steelers have chosen to protect linebacker Jayrone Elliott, defensive end Henry Mondeaux, tackle Derwin Gray and running back Wendell Smallwood. These four are not eligible to sign with another team until after Sunday’s game.

Practice squad “protection” is a new concept for the 2020 season. It’s a concession for the potential personnel shortages that could occur if the virus strikes the locker room.

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Teams can designate protected players each Tuesday beginning at 4 p.m., except for clubs that played on the previous Monday night; their designations go into effect prior to 4 p.m. Wednesday.

The Steelers continue their 2020 season Sunday, Sept. 20 versus the Denver Broncos at Heinz Field.

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Jags elevate RB Nathan Cottrell, TE Ben Ellefson from practice squad for opener vs. Colts

The Jags decided to call two players up from their practice squad to help them out at the running back and tight end positions.

With the Jacksonville Jaguars down a few players at the running back and tight end positions, the team decided to elevate both rookies Nathan Cottrell and Ben Ellefson to their active/inactive roster. Due to the new NFL rules which allows each team to expand their game day rosters by two, there will be no need for the Jags to make any cuts as a result of both promotions.

These transactions come after the Jags placed running back Devine Ozigbo (hamstring) on injured reserve this week and ruled tight end Tyler Davis out with a knee injury. The Jags will also enter the game without second-year running back Ryquell Armstead, who was placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list after final cuts.

Per a Jags spokesperson, the rule in which the Jags utilized to promote both players is explained in Article 33, Section 5 of the 2020 Collective Bargaining Agreement.

In accordance with Article 33, Section 5 of the 2020 CBA, each club may elevate a maximum of two players each week from its practice squad to its active/inactive List as a 54th or 55th player without the player first terminating his practice squad contract.

Any elevated practice squad player shall automatically revert to the club’s practice squad at 4 p.m. ET on the first business day following such game without being subject to waivers.

A practice squad player may be elevated to a club’s active/inactive list as a 54th or 55th player for a maximum of two regular season or postseason games.

If a Practice Squad player is elevated to a club’s active/inactive List as a 54th or 55th player for any regular season game, the player’s weekly compensation specified in Paragraph 4 of the practice squad player contract will be adjusted to one-seventeenth (1/17th) of the Paragraph 5 minimum salary for players on a club’s active/inactive list with the practice squad player’s number of credited seasons for such game

Both Cottrell and Ellefson joined the Jags as undrafted free-agents after the 2020 draft. Cottrell attended Georgia Tech where he exited with 640 career rushing yards and four touchdowns.

Ellefson, on the other hand, attended North Dakota State where he was able to garner 463 career receiving yards for 16 touchdowns.

Jags finally add CB Sidney Jones to practice squad alongside DT Daniel Ekuale

The Jags’ 2020 practice squad is finally filled.

The Jacksonville Jaguars filled out their practice squad Tuesday by making several transactions. The most notable was one many had been anticipating, which was the signing of former Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Sidney Jones.

The Jags also added former Cleveland Browns defensive tackle, Daniel Ekuale, to their practice squad after an extra spot was available due to quarterback Mike Glennon being promoted to the active roster.

Jones, 24, was one of the more notable names who was cut during the league’s process of forming their final 53-man rosters. As a second-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, the Eagles had high hopes for but him things didn’t pan out mostly due to injuries. He’s only played in 22 regular season games out of 48, although he was simply inactive for some.

Now, with a change of scenery, Jones will look to blossom in Jacksonville who need experience at cornerback. They currently have four rookie corners on the roster, including first-round pick C.J. Henderson, fourth-round pick Josiah Scott, seventh-round pick Chris Claybrooks, and undrafted free-agent Luq Barcoo. That said, don’t be shocked to see Jones on the active roster sooner rather than later.

Ekuale, 26, was on the Browns’ practice squad for most of his rookie season. However, in 2019 he made their final-53 man roster but had to be placed on injured reserve in early November with a calf injury. He ultimately finished the season with four tackles and one of them was registered as a tackle for loss.

Listen to the latest from Jags Wire’s own James Johnson and Phil Smith on their podcast “Bleav in the Jags.” Subscribe via Apple Podcasts and check out our archived episodes via Bleav Podcasts.

Devlin ‘Duck’ Hodges signed to Steelers practice squad

The Steelers rounded out their initial practice squad with the addition of quarterback Duck Hodges.

On Sunday, the Steelers waived quarterback Devlin “Duck” Hodges upon claiming quarterback Josh Dobbs off waivers.

Hodges cleared waivers on Monday, and the Steelers swooped down and snapped him up for their practice squad.

Duck was deemed a hero when he came off the bench in favor of Mason Rudolph; however, the luster didn’t last long. In six starts last season, Hodges went 3-3 for 1,063 yards, five touchdowns and eight interceptions.

The Steelers initital practice squad roster is now set at 16 players. Before rounding it out with Hodges, Pittsburgh signed running back Wendell Smallwood to the practice roster.

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Reportedly, ‘Duck’ season is not over, at least not for the practice squad

The Pittsburgh Steelers have two of 16 practice squad spots up for grabs.

The Steelers signed 14 players to their practice squad on Sunday, leaving two spots open. The number of players allowed on the practice squad increased from 10 to 12 with the new collective bargaining agreement, and from 12 to 16 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the Steelers are expected to bring back reserve quarterback Devlin “Duck” Hodges and running back Wendell Smallwood.

Hodges had appeared to secure the No. 3 quarterback slot when he initially made Saturday’s 53-man roster. However, when former Steelers quarterback was cut from the Jaguars Saturday and cleared waivers on Sunday, Pittsburgh responded by waiving Hodges and claiming Dobbs.

Dobbs was traded to the Jaguars a week before the 2019 season in favor of Hodges. The Steelers received a fifth-round 2020 draft pick in exchange for the quarterback.

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