49ers waive veteran S to make room for CB on practice squad

Renardo Green’s injury may have catalyzed a change on the 49ers’ practice squad.

The San Francisco 49ers on Monday announced a couple of roster moves that impacted their practice squad.

Cornerback Nick McCloud was signed to the 16-man practice squad, and veteran safety Adrian Amos was released in a corresponding move.

The addition of McCloud is likely related to an injury suffered by rookie cornerback Renardo Green during the 49ers’ Week 10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Green injured his toe and didn’t return according to head coach Kyle Shanahan immediately after the game. Shanahan should have additional information about Green’s injury when he speaks with reporters Monday. McCloud provides some internal depth if Green misses time.

The Buffalo Bills signed McCloud as an undrafted rookie after the 2021 draft. He’s spent four seasons in the NFL and played in 40 games for the Bengals and Giants. McCloud has 10 pass breakups, one interception, three forced fumbles and 1.5 sacks in his career.

Amos became expendable for the 49ers when they added veteran safety Tashaun Gipson. Gipson was up over Amos for Sunday’s game in Tampa Bay because rookie Malik Mustapha was working through a calf injury. Mustapha wound up playing the entire game, and having two veteran safeties on the practice squad didn’t make a ton of sense.

The 49ers will begin Week 11 practices Wednesday.

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Could free agent S Kamren Curl be Adrian Amos 2.0 for Packers?

Kamren Curl could prove to be an Adrian Amos-like signing for the Packers this year.

The Green Bay Packers need a starting safety entering free agency. The same was true back in 2019, when general manager Brian Gutekunst — who would go on a spending spree that March — signed veteran Adrian Amos away from the Chicago Bears. Amos went on to give the Packers four strong seasons as a plus starter at the backend of the defense.

Could Kamren Curl of the Washington Commanders be Gutekunst’s Amos 2.0 in 2024?

The profiles are undeniably similar.

Amos was a Day 3 pick (fifth round) in 2015. Curl was a Day 3 pick (seventh round) in 2020. And like Amos, Curl has proven to be a reliable and consistent player against the run and pass for four seasons before entering free agency as an underrated player at an overlooked position.

According to PFF, Curl has averaged over 30 “stops” a season during his first four seasons. A stop is considered any tackle that constitutes an offensive failure. For instance, if a player makes a catch for three yards on 3rd-and-4, it’s deemed a failure for the offense, and the defender making the tackle gets a “stop.” Curl is a solid tackler overall, with a missed tackle percentage of just 9.8. Amos’ career missed tackle percentage is 9.2. Anything around a 90 percent tackle success rate is considered strong at safety.

Curl has just three career interceptions and one forced fumble, but splash plays weren’t a big part of Amos’ game until he arrived in Green Bay.

Being in the right spot and doing the right things consistently can sometimes be more valuable than the occasional big play. That’s Curl’s game. And eventually, the splash plays arrive for players consistently in the right spots, as was the case for Amos.

Curl has experience playing free safety but is probably best used in a strong safety role. Teaming him with a speedy and rangy free safety type — like Gutekunst did with Amos and Darnell Savage in 2019 — could provide the ideal mix as the Packers rebuild the safety room in 2024.

Curl isn’t yet 25 years old and looks like an ascending player. The safety market is flooded with veterans, which should drive down the prices for everyone, even at the top of the market. The Packers look destined to be in the market for a safety in free agency and may target a few of the big fish available.

Could signing Curl help the Packers solve big problems at safety like adding Amos helped do in 2019?

AFC Divisional Round picks: Who the experts are taking in Ravens vs. Texans

The NFL experts have made their picks, and the Baltimore Ravens are favored to defeat the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional Round

We’re a little over 30 hours away from the Ravens (13-4) and Texans (11-7) kicking off the AFC divisional round of the playoffs on ESPN.

Houston advanced to the Divisional round of the NFL playoffs for the fifth time in franchise history with a 45-14 win over the Browns in Super Wild Card Weekend.

The playoff win earned the Texans a rematch against the Ravens, and they’ll return to M&T Bank Stadium hoping to avenge a 25-9 loss in Week 1.

With kickoff fast approaching, here’s the NFL expert picks.

Ravens divisional round preview: 10 things to know about the Houston Texans

We’re looking at ten things to know about the Houston Texans ahead of their AFC Divisional Round matchup against the Baltimore Ravens

The Texans advanced to the Divisional round of the NFL playoffs for the fifth time in franchise history with a 45-14 win over the Browns in Super Wild Card Weekend.

The playoff success earned Houston a rematch against the Baltimore Ravens, and they’ll return to M&T Bank Stadium hoping to avenge a 25-9 loss in Week 1.

The Texans are a different team since that humble welcome to the NFL moment for C.J. Stroud, and all the former Ohio State star has done is shatter records and lead his team to the postseason as a rookie.

With final preparations for Saturday’s kickoff underway, we’re looking at ten things about the Houston Texans.

Every Penn State player in the NFL playoffs in 2024

Here is every former Penn State football player on an NFL playoff team’s roster in 2024.

Another NFL postseason is set to get underway, and there is a good chance at least one team playing in the Super Bowl will have a Penn State player on the roster. All but two teams in this year’s NFL playoffs have at least one Penn State player on the roster this year. The top seeds in each conference have multiple Penn State players on the roster, seemingly making it more likely Penn State will see a former player earn a Super Bowl ring.

In all, a total of 64 Super Bowl rings have been won by a former Penn State player. Last year’s Super Bowl had just one former Penn State player on the field, but Miles Sanders and the Philadelphia Eagles came up short of winning the big game. There is an excellent chance there will be more than one former Nittany Lion competing in the Super Bowl this postseason.

The Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns are the only two teams in the NFL postseason without a Penn State player on the roster. Here is a look at every Penn State player on an NFL playoff team’s roster this postseason.

Jets part ways with safety Adrian Amos

The Jets moved on from safety Adrian Amos Saturday which should allow more playing time for Ashtyn Davis and Jarrick Bernard-Converse.

In a surprising move, the Jets released safety Adrian Amos. Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported it as a mutual parting.

Amos joined the Jets in April following Chuck Clark’s season-ending knee injury. He signed a one-year deal worth $1.75 million. Amos was initially expected to start alongside Jordan Whitehead but Tony Adams overtook Amos and won the starting job in training camp, relegating Amos to the No. 3 safety.

Amos’ release could allow for more playing time for Ashtyn Davis and rookie Jarrick Bernard-Converse in the season’s final six weeks. Davis has been a key special-teams player and Bernard-Converse, the Jets’ sixth-round pick in 2023, provides versatility in the secondary.

Amos recorded 23 tackles in 11 games, including three starts.

Jets injury report: Duane Brown not activated; Amos, Lazard questionable

Jets injury report: Duane Brown not activated; Amos, Lazard questionable

The final injury report is out for the New York Jets for their Week 9 showdown with the Los Angeles Chargers.

One of the key notes from the report is that offensive tackle Duane Brown was not activated quite yet from injured reserve. Brown did practice in full all week, but the Jets are going to give him one more week of rest. He will likely be activated next week.

Linebacker Chazz Surratt is also out for Sunday. He missed all week with an ankle injury. Rookie Zaire Barnes will likely be active for the first time this season as a result.

Two new additions appeared on the report Saturday. Safety Adrian Amos (ankle) and wide receiver Allen Lazard (knee) both suffered injuries and are both questionable for Monday.

Everyone else that was on the report — Mekhi Becton, Irvin Charles, Randall Cobb, Xavier Gipson, Joe Tippmann, Laken Tomlinson — all practiced in full Saturday and have no game designation for Monday. They are good to go.

Best photos of Penn State players in the NFL’s Week 4

Check out the best photos of Penn State players in the NFL in Week 4.

Former Penn State wide receiver [autotag]Jahan Dotson[/autotag] came up clutch for the Washington Commanders when he caught a game-ending touchdown on the final play of regulation, forcing overtime on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles. Unfortunately for Dotson and the Commanders, the result did not go their way in the overtime.

Meanwhile, in Dallas, Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys dominated Mike Gesicki and the New England Patriots. Parsons appeared to injure his ankle during the game but continued to play in the blowout. Parsons and the Cowboys have a major test next week on Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers. That one should be a good one.

Here are some of the best photos from around the NFL’s Week 4 of former Penn State football players.

Penn State in the NFL Week 1 roundup: Old faces in new places

Penn State had 39 players on NFL rosters as the NFL season started. Here’s how some of them played in Week 1.

Penn State may have already played two games this season, but the NFL has just gotten its season started. And there are a number of Penn State players scattered around the league. Penn State had 39 players appearing on Week 1 NFL rosters with 33 on the 53-man rosters around the league, four on practice squads, and two additional players on injured reserve to start the season.

A pair of recent standouts took the Sunday night spotlight as [autotag]Micah Parsons[/autotag] and the Dallas Cowboys visited [autotag]Saquon Barkley[/autotag] and the New York Giants. A few more Penn State players will wrap up the first week of the NFL’s regular season when [autotag]Adrian Amos[/autotag] and the New York Jets face Connor McGovern, Ryan Bates, Daquan Jones and the Buffalo Bills on Monday night.

Here is a look at how some former Penn State football players performed in Week 1 of the NFL regular season.

Here’s Aaron Rodgers in his new No. 8 New York Jets uniform

Avert your eyes: The Jets provided a first look at former Packers QB Aaron Rodgers in his new No. 8 Jets uniform.

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This post won’t be for Green Bay Packers fans badly missing Aaron Rodgers or the Packers fans sick of seeing or hearing about him.

The New York Jets released a first look at Rodgers in his full, No. 8 Jets uniform on Wednesday, which was reporting day to training camp for Robert Saleh’s team.

Like Joe Montana in a Chiefs uniform or Brett Favre in a Jets uniform, this one is weird:

The next step in this progression of weirdness is seeing Rodgers play in the uniform. That could come during the preseason or Week 1.

The Jets also released a photo of former Packers safety Adrian Amos, who will be wearing the No. 0 in New York:

We’ll update this post if the Jets drop any more first looks at former Packers. There are plenty of options: Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb, Billy Turner, Malik Taylor, Tim Boyle, Adam Pankey, Nathaniel Hackett.