Tag: Damion Willis

29 ex-Broncos players set to play in UFL this spring

The XFL and USFL merged to form the UFL. The new league will feature 29 former Broncos players, including Super Bowl champion Cody Latimer.

Two more former Denver Broncos were added to the UFL this week when the Memphis Showboats picked wide receiver Damion Willis and the Birmingham Stallions picked safety Alijah Holder in the 2024 dispersal draft. (Update: Holder was later traded to the San Antonio Brahmas.)

More players could be added through free agency, but as of today, there are 29 former Broncos players set to play in the spring league. The UFL was formed in late December when the XFL and USFL merged to create a new combined league.

The most notable ex-Denver player set to suit up in the UFL is Cody Latimer, a former Broncos wide receiver who won Super Bowl 50 in 2016. He has spent time with two other NFL teams and earned All-XFL honors with the Orlando Guardians last spring. Latimer is now a tight end with the San Antonio Brahmas.

Other names that Denver fans might recognize include punter Marquette King and 2022 preseason fan favorite running back Max Borghi. Here’s the full list of ex-Broncos signed up to play in the UFL this spring. The 2024 season will begin in March. 

4 ex-Giants selected in the 2024 UFL super draft

The newly-created UFL held their 2024 super draft on Monday and four former members of the New York Giants were among those selected.

Following the merger of five XFL teams and three USFL teams to form the United Football League (UFL), a dispersal draft was held in early January.

During Phase 1 and Phase 2, players from the remaining teams who were not a part of the official merger were pooled together and an allocation process began.

All remaining USFL and XFL players, as well as free agents who recently signed with the league, were made available again on Monday as part of the first-ever UFL super draft.

Phase 3 saw four former members of the New York Giants selected.

Giants practice squad: Tracking the additions

An up-to-date tracker of all the New York Giants’ practice squad signings and additions ahead of the 2021 regular-season.

Cutdown day has come and gone, which means it’s waiver claim and practice squad time across the NFL.

The New York Giants will be feverishly adding to the practice squad on Wednesday, likely reaching the league’s 16-player limit before the close of business.

Below is an (unofficial) tracker leading up to the team’s official announcement:

Practice squad additions:

More to come… Keep refreshing.

Damion Willis, Blake Martinez were highest-graded Giants vs. Patriots

WR Damion Willis and LB Blake Martinez earned the New York Giants’ highest offensive and defensive grades in a loss to the Patriots.

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The New York Giants dropped their preseason finale to the New England Patriots, 22-20, and there were plenty of reasons to come away concerned. We’ll get to those.

Before we do however, there were also several reasons to feel optimistic. Case in point: linebacker Blake Martinez demonstrating a significant improvement in coverage — if even just for a day.

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Martinez led the Giants defense with a Pro Football Focus grade of 91.7. He was followed by defensive back Julian Love (89.5), and defensive linemen Elijah Qualls (80.7) and Austin Johnson (76.2).

Other notable defensive grades include linebacker Lorenzo Carter (74.3), cornerback Sam Beal (69.7) and cornerback Rodarius Williams (59.8).

The lowest-graded Giants defenders on Sunday were linebackers Trent Harris (29.9) and Niko Lalos (24.3).

On the offensive side of the ball, wide receiver Damion Willis led the way with a PFF grade of 92.5. He was followed by guard Will Hernandez (92.2), offensive tackle Jackson Barton (78.7) and tight end Nakia Griffin-Stewart (74.7).

Fullback Eli Penny earned a 73.7, while quarterback Daniel Jones graded out at 53.8.

The Giants’ lowest-graded offensive players were running back Devontae Booker (42.1) and wide receiver Darius Slayton (41.4).

Offensive tackles Andrew Thomas and Matt Peart earned grades of 53.4 and 48.5, respectively.

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Giants vs. Browns: 6 things to watch

Here are six things to watch on Sunday when the New York Giants take on the Cleveland Browns in Week 2 of the preseason.

After a week of joint practices, the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns will square off in Week 2 of the preseason on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EDT.

With another cutdown day looming, the pressure is on several players to perform. There is also pressure on some of the starters — assuming they play — to take a step in the right direction.

Here are six things to watch during Sunday’s game at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Jets host 5 players for tryouts during rookie minicamp

The Jets hosted five players for a tryout during their rookie minicamp session at One Jets Drive on Friday afternoon.

New York’s 2021 draft class and its crop of 12 undrafted free agents were not the only players being evaluated at One Jets Drive on Friday afternoon.

The Jets hosted wide receivers Trevor Davis, Steven Mitchell and Damion Willis, tight end Daniel Crawford and defensive lineman Mustafa Johnson during their first rookie minicamp of the offseason. Davis, Mitchell and Willis have previous NFL experience, while Crawford and Johnson are rookies.

A fifth-round pick out of the University of California by the Packers in 2016, Davis has bounced around the NFL throughout his six-year career. Davis caught nine passes for 122 yards and a touchdown in four seasons with Green Bay before catching on with the Raiders in 2019. Davis posted career-highs in single-season receptions (seven) and single-season receiving yards (83) in his lone season with the Raiders and signed with the Bears as a free agent in 2020. However, he did not make Chicago’s 53-man roster out of training camp and was released in August. Davis then signed with the Washington Football Team’s practice squad in October and a reserve/futures contract with Washington in January. He was released after the 2021 NFL draft.

Mitchell spent the 2018 offseason with the Rams before landing in Houston, where he bounced back and forth between the practice squad from 2018-20. In three seasons with the Texans, Mitchell caught seven passes for 97 yards. Willis, meanwhile, worked his way to a temporary spot at the top of the Bengals’ wide receiver depth chart in 2019 in place of an injured A.J. Green. The former undrafted free agent out of Troy lasted just one season with Cincinnati, though, and split 2020 between the Browns and Jaguars. In two NFL seasons, Willis has caught nine passes for 82 yards.

Crawford caught 21 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown at Northern Illinois last season, while Johnson totaled 20 tackles and three sacks for the University of Colorado in 2020.

Jags sign 4 to practice squad, including former CB Quenton Meeks

The Jacksonville Jaguars added four new members to their practice squad, including a familiar face in former cornerback Quenton Meeks. Also joining the practice squad with him will be cornerback Trevor Williams, receiver Damion Willis and defensive …

The Jacksonville Jaguars added four new members to their practice squad, including a familiar face in former cornerback Quenton Meeks. Also joining the practice squad with him will be cornerback Trevor Williams, receiver Damion Willis and defensive tackle Gabe Wright.

As many fans can recall, Meeks joined the Jags during the 2018 season as an undrafted rookie from Stanford. As a rookie, he played in eight games with the Jags and started in one, accumulating eight total tackles and two pass deflections in the process. He’s also a familiar name to the city of Jacksonville due to being the son of longtime NFL coach Ron Meeks, who grew up in Jacksonville.

Williams entered the league as an undrafted player for the San Diego Chargers in 2016. He also spent time with the Arizona Cardinals (2019) and Philadelphia Eagles (2020) afterward. During his time with the Chargers, he registered 27 starts and will enter his tenure with the Jags with 113 total career tackles.

Willis is a second-year player who went undrafted to the Cincinnati Bengals last season. While there, he participated in 10 games and was able to garner nine catches for 82 yards.

Wright is a former fourth-round pick from the 2015 NFL Draft of the Detroit Lions. He’s made stops in Cleveland, Miami and Oakland from 2015-18 on the NFL level, but spent time with the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL in 2019. He’ll enter his Jags tenure with 12 total tackles in the NFL and career one start.

Browns waive newcomer Damion Willis after failing his physical

Willis was on the Browns roster less than 24 hours

Damion Willis, we hardly knew ye.

On Sunday morning, the Cleveland Browns waived Willis, a wide receiver who joined the team on Saturday after being claimed off waivers from the Cincinnati Bengals earlier in the week. Willis failed his physical with the team. No exact reason or specific injury was cited for Willis in failing the physical.

Willis had officially joined the team on Saturday after passing through the required COVID-19 protocols. The Browns waived D.J. Montgomery to make room for Willis.

The Browns also waived center Casey Dunn from injured reserve, a move that does not count against the team’s 80-man roster.

Damion Willis officially added, D.J. Montgomery waived as Browns swap WRs

Willis passed through his COVID protocols and joined the team

The Browns waiver claim on WR Damion Willis is now official. Willis cleared his two days of COVID-19 protocols and joined the team for Saturday’s afternoon practice.

Willis was claimed off waivers from the Cincinnati Bengals during the week. He’s now on the team’s 80-man active roster, with one week to go before the roster cutdown to just 53.

To make room for Willis, the Browns waived fellow WR D.J. Montgomery. The second-year undrafted wideout is now subject to waiver claims of his own.

Willis offers the Browns some size and a little experience in the slot. He started the first two games of the 2019 season as an undrafted rookie for the Bengals.

Damion Willis: What the Browns are getting in their new WR

Scouting report on new Browns WR Damion Willis

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The Cleveland Browns managed to pillage a former starting wide receiver from the Cincinnati Bengals. The Browns claimed Damion Willis off waivers from Cincinnati on Wednesday. He will be added to Cleveland’s roster once he passes through the COVID-19 protocols.

What are the Browns getting in Willis?

It’s overselling Willis in labeling him a former starter. While technically true — he indeed started for the Bengals in Weeks 1 and 2 in 2019 — the 23-year-old Willis played just 239 total offensive snaps. That’s still impressive for an undrafted rookie from Troy and speaks to Willis’s upside.

At 6-4 and 204 listed pounds, Willis is a long, lean receiver. The Bengals used him primarily outside but he did get some reps as their big slot, and that’s where he was most effective in Cincinnati. It’s probably his best fit in Cleveland, too.

He has speed (4.48 40-yard dash at his pro day) but it’s fairly straight-line, and that shows in his route-running. Willis can make catches away from his body and uses his length well to present himself as a big target. While he’s not a muscular guy, Willis can fight for contested throws and hang on through contact. He’s flashed the ability to climb the ladder and catch high throws. There’s not a lot of wiggle or power after the catch.

Willis is a Last Chance U. alum prior to attending Troy. It speaks to his character and drive that he went from there to starting in the NFL in Week 1 as an undrafted rookie. Hopefully, Willis gets a chance to show the Browns something in the limited time left in training camp.