Houston Texans defensive tackle Corey Liuget could be a good veteran for rookie Ross Blacklock to look up to.
The Houston Texans signed defensive tackle Corey Liuget to the practice squad on Sept. 28, and the former San Diego Chargers 2011 first-round pick has worked his way onto the active roster.
Given Liuget’s track record as a proven veteran with the Chargers, Oakland Raiders, and Buffalo Bills, defensive end J.J. Watt believes the 6-2, 300-pound defensive tackle can be a good influence on the younger guys along the defensive line.
“He’s a great player,” Watt said. “I think with opportunity, he plays well, and I think he’s also a good resource for some of the young guys, too.”
One of the young guys from whom the Texans have great expectations is second-round rookie Ross Blacklock from TCU. The former Fort Bend Elkins product has produced 10 tackles, a tackle for loss, and a quarterback hit in his 12 games for Houston, none of which he has started to this point.
According to Watt, what will help Blacklock is taking advantage of his reps in the games, whether he is starting or not.
Said Watt: “If he gets more reps, it’s more opportunities. It’s the only way to get better in this league, like I’ve said the whole season long, is to play football. More game reps, more opportunities to prove what you’ve got and opportunities to get better.”
One of the ways Blacklock can also get better is to pay attention to players such as Liuget, who has four combined tackles, two tackles for loss, one quarterback hit, and 1.0 sack in five games.
“He’s had a lot of success in that league,” said Watt. “I think that he wants opportunities, obviously, as he should. Guys want to get on the field, they want to play.”
With defensive tackle Brandon Dunn out for the final three games with a pelvic fracture, Blacklock and Liuget each should get an increase in game reps.
The Houston Texans submitted their four practice squad protections for Week 11, and defensive tackle Corey Liuget was among them.
The Houston Texans submitted their practice squad protections for Week 11, and defensive tackle Corey Liuget made the list.
Liuget has been on the Texans’ practice squad since Sept. 28. He saw his first game action against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 27-25 win in Week 9, but he played just 13 special teams snaps.
In the 10-7 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 10, the former San Diego Chargers 2011 first-round pick saw more playing time with six defensive snaps, providing Houston with 1.0 sack.
Liuget will be protected as he remains on the Texans’ practice squad. Joining him are linebacker Nate Hall, center Greg Mancz, and safety Jonathan Owens.
The Houston Texans are adding veteran depth to their defensive line by signing Corey Liuget and Ryan Glasgow to the practice squad.
The Houston Texans are adding veteran depth to their defensive line via the practice squad.
According to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, the club will sign defensive tackle Ryan Glasgow to the practice squad and also defensive lineman Corey Liuget.
The Texans had worked out Glasgow, and they also brought in Liuget for visits early in September and also on Friday last week. The two veterans have been on the Texans’ radar for a month.
Houston needs to find a way to beef up their run defense, and Glasgow and Liuget could provide them that chance. In Week 3, the Texans marked rookie defensive tackle Ross Blacklock as inactive. On the ground, Houston’s run defense gave out in the second half with Pittsburgh finishing with 169 en route to a 28-21 win that drops Houston to 0-3 for the second time in three seasons.
Are there any free agents out there in July for the Buffalo Bills to sign?
Welcome to July, can’t you just taste the football right around the corner?
Of course, that means little right now. There’s a plan in place to start training camp, as scheduled, at the end of the month… but who really knows what will happen? Assuming that goes according to plan, NFL rosters are still pretty set in stone now.
But let’s have some fun. If Bills general manager Brandon Beane were to be in the market to add another free agent or two before training camp comes around, could there be some options out there?
Here are 15 free agent options for the Bills to consider in July:
Falcons running back Devonta Freeman. Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
RB Devonta Freeman
Age: 28
Freeman could be another solid complement to their complement. Devin Singletary is the No. 1, shifty runner for the Bills. Zack Moss gets the heavy lifting done at times, while Freeman is a solid third-down option as a proven pass catcher. However, bad news could be the asking price. We’re not sure exactly what it would be, but of said in June, Bucs coach Bruce Arians said it’s too high.
The Buffalo Bills did plenty of roster tinkering over the past few months. In doing so, space has to be made for new additions.
NFL teams can only hold around 90 players on their rosters heading into training camp. Unfortunately, that leaves some players in the dust.
Now, that doesn’t mean the Bills won’t re-add some of these players, or perhaps another team comes in and picks them up. But at the time being, things are in a bit of a standstill.
Here’s a quick look at the couple players the Bills rostered last season that haven’t been signed by a team just yet:
2019: 0 games played Bills: 0 games played Career: 61 games played, 2018 PFF grade: 75th best tackle
Not much to breakdown here, unfortunately. The Bills added and added and added to their offensive line last season, hoping to find the right mix. Early in training camp, Waddle was taking reps with the depth players and he suffered a season-ending torn quadriceps injury in August.
Bills linebacker Maurice Alexander. Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
LB Maurice Alexander
Age: 30
Stats
2019: 7 games played, 11 tackles Bills: 7 games played, 11 tackles Career: 57 games played, 134 tackles, 3 sacks, 5 passes defended, 2 interceptions
A special teamer mostly for the Bills in Maurice Alexander. The Bills added Tyler Matakevich, a free agent via the Steelers this offseason, which could spell Alexander’s end in Buffalo.
Julian Stanford #51 of the Buffalo Bills. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)
LB Julian Stanford
Age: 29
Stats
2019: 16 games played, 8 tackles Bills: 29 games played, 23 tackles, 1 pass defended Career: 88 games played, 92 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass defended
Similar to Maurice Alexander, a big special teams role, but also a positive backup for Julian Stanford in the few times he’s had to spell Tremaine Edmunds. Via Matakevich and running back Taiwan Jones, it looks like the Bills want to move in a new direction in terms of their special teamers.
Bills strong safety Kurt Coleman. Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
S Kurt Coleman
Age: 32
Stats
2019: 14 games played, 3 tackles Bills: 14 games played, 3 tackles Career: 146 games played, 554 tackles tackles, 36 passes defended, 2 sacks, 21 interceptions, 5 forced fumbles
Coleman was a staple on the Bills roster as a special teamer in 2019. He has some defensive experience while in Carolina from 2014-2017, playing under Sean McDermott then. That’s an overlying reason the Bills sign plenty of players. Buffalo didn’t massively address their safety room this offseason, but did sign two UDFA safeties in Garrett Taylor and Josh Thomas, so it appears they want to get younger here.
Bills defensive tackle Corey Liuget. Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
DT Corey Liuget
Age: 30
2019: 10 games played, 13 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 1 sack Bills: 7 games played, 4 tackles for loss, 1 sack Career: 118 games played, 287 tackles, 64 tackles for loss, 25 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 20 passes defender
A mid-season addition for the Bills, Corey Liuget played a depth role in Buffalo’s defensive line. Of all the team’s free agents still on the market, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the former first-round pick added at a later date, depending on how thing shake down. Quinton Jefferson can play on the inside of the line, but if a camp injury pops up, there could be a spot for Liuget.
13 post-2020 NFL Draft free agents for the Buffalo Bills to consider signing.
The 2020 NFL Draft is in the books, so the Buffalo Bills’ roster is all set, right?
Well, not exactly. The grind doesn’t stop for Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane and his scouting department. While there’s new rookies on the club, there’s still some veterans out on the free agent market that could help the Bills next season.
Here are 13 current free agents the Bills could still consider adding following the 2020 NFL Draft:
Devonta Freeman #24 of the Atlanta Falcons. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
RB Devonta Freeman
Age: 28
As soon as Devonta Freeman was released by the Falcons, the Bills connections were made. Since then, Buffalo added Utah’s Zack Moss via a third-round pick at the draft. But Freeman could be another solid complement to their complement. Devin Singletary is the No. 1, shifty runner for the Bills. Moss gets the heavy lifting done at times while Freeman is a solid third-down option as a proven pass catcher. During his career, Freeman has been among the league’s best in that category. The jukes, the power and the hands in the Bills’ backfield sounds nice.
Because it’s his Birthday let’s throw it back to when Devonta Freeman dropped a saints player pic.twitter.com/T2wHiOYpcz
Here is the state of the Bills defensive line entering the 2019 offseason.
Here is Bills Wire’s position-by-position breakdown of the team’s roster, continuing with the defensive line, including the season that was and projecting forward:
Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver. Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
Much like the rest of the team, the Buffalo Bills defensive line took a major step forward from their 2018 performance. The team improved from 26th in sacks to seasons ago to 12th last season. They also improved from 17th to 10th in rushing yards allowed per game.
The unit was quite disruptive against opposing offensive linemen all year. Jordan Phillips had a breakthrough season, registering 9.5 sacks, good for second in the NFL among defensive tackles. Rookie Ed Oliver grew throughout the season, justifying his top-10 draft slot, registering five sacks. Star Lotulelei had a strong second half of the season, occupying blocks and causing problems against double teams.
The defensive ends also caused problems, as Jerry Hughes, Trent Murphy, and Shaq Lawson combined for 16 sacks. Lawson had his best season as a pro, registering 6.5 sacks. Hughes, while only credited with 4.5 sacks in the regular season, consistently put pressure on quarterbacks. He sacked Deshaun Watson three times in the Wild Card matchup.
The unit was an integral part of the team’s top-10 defensive ranking this year.
Defensive end Jerry Hughes (55). Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Cap situation
Entering the offseason, the defensive line group commands the largest cap hit among any position group on the Bills, as highlighted on Spotrac.
Lotulelei enters the middle of his five-year deal that he signed in 2018. He will count $10.1 million against the team’s salary cap, the second-highest figure on the team. Continuing with the interior players, Ed Oliver’s cap hit shifts to $4.4 million next year. Harrison Phillips, who missed most of the season due to injury, enters the third year of his rookie deal costing the Bills just under one million dollars against the cap. Depth lineman Vincent Taylor enters the final year of his contract at a cost of $735,000 against the salary cap.
Defensive ends Jerry Hughes and Trent Murphy command a large chunk of the cap hit this year. Murphy enters the final year of a three-year deal with a cap hit of $9.78 million. He’s been a bit underwhelming, so this is a big season for the veteran. Hughes signed an extension to keep him in Buffalo for two more seasons. Darryl Johnson and Mike Love are under contract through next year.
Buffalo has three players who are unrestricted free agents next year: Lawson, Phillips, and defensive tackle Corey Liuget.
The future
This might be the group that undergoes the biggest change over the offseason.
Lawson and Jordan Phillips made major contributions this past season to the defensive line. However, with over $29 million in cap space tied up by Lotulelei, Hughes, and Murphy, the Bills may be hesitant to dedicate more money to this unit. Lawson and Phillips, even with their productivity this year, they may command big bucks in the free market.
Thus, Buffalo will need to replace their productivity in a cost-effective manner. If the Bills were impressed with Liuget’s work, the could re-sign him. If the Bills test the market, they will most likely find players who will command the type of money that Phillips would receive. In that case, they would just sign Phillips.
A healthy Harrison Phillips would also fill the void if Jordan Phillips were to leave.
Buffalo may look to find a pure pass rusher. Murphy enters the final year of his deal and Hughes is entering the twilight of his career. Some have clamored for Jacksonville’s Yannick Ngongue, but that is quite a long shot. A better option could be dedicated an early draft pick to the defensive line. LSU’s K’Lavon Chaisson or Iowa’s AJ Epenesa could be viable options at the end of the first round. Drafting a rookie in the first round would also give the player some time to acclimate to the NFL, just in the same manner that we saw Oliver’s growth over the second half of his rookie season.
Corey Liuget settles out of court for performance-enhancing drug suspension.
Bills defensive tackle Corey Liuget was suspended in 2018 for games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. On Tuesday, reports surfaced that Liuget settled a lawsuit he opened in regard to that matter.
Liuget was originally seeking $15 million in damages from Ian Danney, a former trainer of his. The 29-year-old defender alleged that Danney injected him with what the trainer called an “over-the-counter anti-inflammatory” two days before Liuget failed the drug test in 2017.
Brent Schrotenboer of USA Today reports that a notice in California federal court showed that the case had been resolved. Terms of the settlement were not released. The trail was set to begin on Feb. 4.
Known more as a run stuffer, Liuget played eight years for the Chargers before signing with the Raiders before the 2019 season. Once released by the Raiders, he eventually latched on with the Bills, appearing in seven games, recording one sack, four tackles for loss and 10 total tackles. Liuget is a pending free agent.
Stock report following the Buffalo Bills’ Week 17 loss to the New York Jets.
The Bills fell in their final regularly scheduled game of the 2019 season against the Jets, 13-6.
In terms of stock reporting, it was a different one considering plenty of old faces were in the lineup. The game played out like a preseason contest with plenty of backups for the Bills.
Here’s how some of those players saw their stock move following the Bills’ loss to the Jets:
Buffalo Bills wide receiver Duke Williams. Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
Stock up
WR Duke Williams
The one that everyone wanted to see happen, happened. Receiver Duke Williams started for the Bills and played a heck of a game with his opportunity.
His overall stat line was shaky with 12 targets and only six catches, but a few of them were off target. Of note, one was certainly a drop on third down which he would’ve liked back. All in all, Williams had 108 yards receiving in a game with a backup quarterback tossing him the ball against a solid defense that was playing their starters. Promising signs.
The Bills massed together seven sacks on Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick last week. Of those, one came from defensive end Corey Liuget
The Bills massed together seven sacks on Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick last week. Of those, one came from defensive end Corey Liuget.
The recently signed defender is more known as a run defender. But as a defensive lineman, the sack is always the golden ticket.
That quarterback tackle was the 25th time in his career he’s brought down an opposing signal-caller, but Liuget still called it a special one because of what it took to get there.
“For me, it was a very emotional one because of the ups and downs and injuries I’ve suffered, most guys don’t come back from,” Liuget told the team’s radio show.
What the 29-year-old is referring to was a ruptured quad injury which ended his career with the Chargers last November. As he explained on the Bills’ radio show this week was his rehab included three months of not moving his leg and six weeks in an entire leg cast.
After he was released by the Chargers, Liuget wasn’t brought back by the team he spent his entire career with.
Eventually he did land with the Raiders, but never got into a groove and eventually was released after appearing in three games, making him available for the Bills. Even with the advances in medicine over the years, plenty of players don’t return from the injury he suffered.
Liuget said beating the injury that tried to ruin his career and earning the ultimate team goal is what motivated him to find a new home.
“I wasn’t going to let this injury defeat me. To get that sack, it was very, very, very important for me and it felt great,” Liuget said. “The love for the game and the fact that I want to win a Super Bowl [is why he returned].”
In his first two games with the Bills, Liuget has been part of Sean McDermott’s trademark rotation on the defensive line. He’s played in 25 percent and 28 percent of defensive snaps the past two weeks, respectively.
So far, McDermott approves of the work he’s done and the coach believes he’s settling into his new home well.
“Yeah, he did a good job,” McDermott said. “This past week in particular, I think the more he’s around our system, the more comfortable he gets and the faster he plays. That was good to see last week. He really does some good things that the other guys in the room could stand to learn from as well. That veteran experience from a fundamental and technique standpoint is real for us.”
