Tag: Darius Bradwell

Panthers waive 5 players following preseason opener

The Panthers waived five players ahead of the preseason’s first roster reduction deadline.

The Carolina Panthers will be heading into joint practices with the New England Patriots starting this week. But, unfortunately for a handful of guys, they’ll be doing it with a reduced roster.

Less than 24 hours after the team’s 23-21 win in their preseason opener against the Washington Commanders, the Panthers have waived five players. The departed includes running back Darius Bradwell, tight end Nate Becker, offensive lineman Wyatt Miller, linebacker Kamal Martin and cornerback Chris Westry.

Tuesday marks the summer’s first deadline for cut-downs. Teams must get their rosters down from 90 men to 85 with the second batch (or third if you want to count the all-important Hall of Fame Game) of exhibition contests ahead.

The chopping block will be revisited by the Panthers and the rest of the league two more times before the start of the regular season—once prior to Aug. 23 to get to 80 men and the other prior to Aug. 30 to get to 53.

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Panthers sign QB-turned-RB to futures contract

The Panthers have now inked 13 players since the conclusion of their 2021 campaign.

On Saturday, the Carolina Panthers signed running Darius Bradwell to a reserve/future contract.

Before cracking into the NFL as an undrafted free agent in April of 2020, the six-foot, 235-pounder played four years of collegiate ball at Tulane University. Initially recruited as a quarterback, Bradwell did not throw a single pass in his first season with the Green Wave, only rushing 11 times for 33 yards over three games.

Bradwell then transitioned to the backfield starting in 2017, where he ran for 6.2 yards per attempt over 66 takes. He then followed up with his most productive campaign in 2018, totaling 1,134 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground.

The 24-year-old Tallahassee, Fla. native joins the following 12 players who have also been inked by the Panthers over the past week:

  • QB P.J. Walker
  • FB Giovanni Ricci
  • RB Spencer Brown
  • CB Madre Harper
  • DL Frank Herron
  • OL Mike Horton
  • OL Aaron Monteiro
  • WR Aaron Parker
  • WR C.J. Saunders
  • TE Colin Thompson
  • DE Austin Larkin
  • OL Austen Pleasants

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Chargers promote 2 from practice squad to active roster for Week 12

The Chargers added two players from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.

The Chargers promoted running back Darius Bradwell and cornerback Kiondre Thomas from the practice squad to the 53-man roster ahead of their matchup against the Broncos.

In search of a spark in the backfield, Bradwell is given a shot to show his worth as a reliable option behind Austin Ekeler. He does offer special teams upside as well.

With Asante Samuel Jr. out due to a concussion, Thomas provides depth in the secondary. He has appeared in three games this season.

Below is the official team statement:

The Los Angeles Chargers today activated running back Darius Bradwell (standard elevation) and cornerback Kiondre Thomas (COVID-19 elevation) from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.

Bradwell spent the 2020 season on the Los Angeles practice squad, seeing action in two games with the Bolts last season as a practice squad elevation. Over four seasons at Tulane, Bradwell ran for 2,062 yards and 17 touchdowns on 289 attempts (5.2 avg.). He posted 1,134 yards in 2018, the eighth 1,000-yard rushing season in school history.

Thomas has appeared in three games for the Chargers this season. He signed to the Los Angeles practice squad in September and spent the offseason with Cleveland after signing with the Browns as an undrafted free agent out of Kansas State. Thomas played the 2020 season for the Wildcats after spending three years (2017-19) at Minnesota. In 40 career games at the collegiate level, he totaled 102 tackles (86 solo), an interception, 11 passes defensed, a forced fumble and a recovery.

Chargers announce 4 protected players for Week 1

The Los Angeles Chargers have submitted their list to the NFL of the four practice squad players they will protect in Week 1.

The Chargers announced their four practice squad protected players for the season opener against the Football Team.

The players are as follows: Running back Darius Bradwell, defensive lineman Joe Gaziano, wide receiver Jason Moore and cornerback Brandon Facyson.

Just like last season, teams are allowed to protect four of their practice squad players each week.

These players can not be signed off of Los Angeles’ practice squad during the week they are protected. The rule was implemented to allow for more roster flexibility during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Like last year, L.A. can elevate two players from their practice squad and increase their game day rosters to 55 spots.

9 players who will be the toughest for Chargers to cut

A look at a few of the toughest potential cuts the Los Angeles Chargers might soon have to make.

Now that training camp and preseason has officially come to an end, the Chargers are hard at work to compile the 53-man roster and practice squad ahead of the 2021 regular season.

There are a few players that helped their causes this summer, but there still won’t be enough room for them. With that being said, I predicted the nine toughest cuts as the deadline approaches.

Chargers’ offensive position battles heading into preseason finale

There are still several unsettled position battles on the offensive side of the ball for the Chargers.

The preseason finale is set for Saturday night, as the Chargers will take on the Seahawks at Lumen Stadium in Seattle, WA.

Here’s a closer look at the top positional battles ahead of Los Angeles’ matchup against Seattle.

Backup quarterback

Despite Easton Stick outperforming Chase Daniel this summer, I’m still a believer that Daniel has the advantage due to his experience in this league, familiarity with Joe Lombardi’s offense and mentorship for Justin Herbert. What this could ultimately come down to is Stick’s performance to potentially have the coaching staff consider keeping three quarterbacks on the roster.

Running back

In somewhat of a surprise, it’s been rookie Larry Rountree who’s been the highlight of the backfield. Aside from him, Darius Bradwell has raised eyebrows as a runner and contributions on special teams. Could Bradwell sneak into one of the four spots? It’s certainly possible, knowing Justin Jackson has still struggled to stay healthy and Joshua Kelley hasn’t produced much on the ground.

Wide receiver

There are five spots that are presumably filled, with those being by Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Josh Palmer, Jalen Guyton and Tyron Johnson. Assuming the team keeps six wideouts, it’s up for grabs between K.J. Hill, Joe Reed, Jason Moore, John Hurst and Michael Bandy. I believe Hill has a slight leg up, given the fact that he’s been the first-team return specialist during the preseason.

Swing tackle

This was a position battle that flew under the radar heading into the summer because the Chargers had their starters solidified, yet the lack of depth was always evident. It became very clear last weekend when Trey Pipkins and Storm Norton had no answers for the 49ers pass rushers. Even head coach Brandon Staley noted it. Someone needs to step up or else this could be a serious issue this season.

7 toughest cuts from our Chargers 53-man roster prediction

Looking at the toughest cuts from our Chargers 53-man roster projection following the second round of cuts.

We are a little less than a week away until we know how the Chargers 53-man roster for 2021 season will shape up.

With 27 players to cut, that means there will be some tough decisions to make as they fill out their team.

Going off of our latest 53-man roster projection, here were some of the most difficult cuts to make.

QB Easton Stick

I’m a firm believer that Los Angeles should carry two quarterbacks. While Stick has some momentum on his side, I find it difficult to believe that the team will cut Chase Daniel, who brings the knowledge with Joe Lombardi’s offense and mentorship to aide in Herbert’s transition. However, with another strong performance on Saturday against the Seahawks and Stick could have the Chargers considering rolling into the season with three signal-callers.

RB Darius Bradwell

Aside from Larry Rountree, Bradwell has been the most efficient rusher throughout the preseason. He has also made some key plays on special teams. While this may seem like enough to earn the final spot, I still believe that the coaches will roll the dice with the talent of Justin Jackson, despite injury concerns, and the untapped potential of Joshua Kelley. Bradwell should be a strong practice squad candidate, should he not make the roster.

TE Stephen Anderson

I went back and forth with this one, but I kept Anderson off of the 53-man roster for the first time since I started making predictions. The reason for that is because of Gabe Nabers, who has played a similar role. I believe Nabers offers more upside as a blocker, has shown potential as a pass-catcher and most importantly, has been lauded by the coaches for his special teams ability.

DL Joe Gaziano

I’ve always been a fan of Gaziano since he came out of Northwestern, and after making the move inside he has flashed a ton. The one thing that could hurt his chances from earning a spot, however, is that there are a handful of other interior defenders that have performed very well. In this case, I went with the more experienced Cortez Broughton, who has looked like an entirely different player this summer.

NT Forrest Merrill

Like Gaziano, Merrill is in a tough situation because of how great the position group has been as a whole. Merrill, the undrafted free agent, has been a menace in the middle of the defensive line — consistently getting penetration and eating up double teams. Although he’s raised eyebrows, Breiden Fehoko gets the nod for his play and infectious energy he brings to the team.

EDGE Emeke Egbule

I viewed Egbule as a player that would benefit from the defensive switch and while he’s done good things, especially on special teams, he’s recently been sidelined with an injury, which has led to other players flashing like Jessie Lemonier. In this scenario, I have the team rolling with four edge defenders and both players not making the team altogether to save a roster spot for another position group.

CB John Brannon

The defensive backs have benefited from head coach Brandon Staley immensely, which has made it extremely difficult to figure out who will make the squad. While Brannon has led the team in interceptions this summer, players like Tevaughn Campbell and Kemon Hall were given the final spots simply because of their versatility in the secondary and special teams upside.

Who will claim backup running backs spots for Chargers in 2021?

The backup running back spots will be one of the most compelling position battles at Chargers training camp.

We are a little less than three weeks away until Chargers training camp begins, which marks the period that players will fight for spots on the 53-man roster.

Among the most intriguing positional battles lie in the backfield, where a few players will be auditioning for the spots behind RB Austin Ekeler, with those being Justin Jackson, Joshua Kelley, Larry Rountree III and Darius Bradwell.

Jackson, who’s entering Year 4, has only played in 29 out of 48 regular season games. While he’s struggled to stay healthy, he’s been a good compliment to Ekeler, averaging 4.8 yards per carry.

Jackson brings great vision and elusiveness coupled with pass-catching skills.

Kelley, the 2020 fourth-round pick, dealt with some growing pains last season. He experienced back-to-back fumbles early on in the season, which deteriorated his confidence when running the ball and on special teams.

Prior to that, Kelley was one of the most impressive players at training camp last year, showing out in all phases.

Rountree, the sixth-round pick, joins L.A. after being one of the most productive backs in the SEC the past three seasons at Missouri, having posted 3,720 yards and 40 touchdowns.

Rountree is an explosive runner who has good feet, contact balance, second-level vision and ball protection awareness, as well as passing game impact and special teams ability.

Bradwell, a former undrafted free agent, was one of Anthony Lynn’s guys, so he will really have to prove himself to the new coaches to earn a roster spot.

You can make the argument for Jackson getting cut because he has missed 19 games due to injuries. However, he’s arguably the team’s second-best back when healthy.

You can make the argument for Kelley getting cut based on his showing in his rookie campaign. However, he could make a major turn for the better in his sophomore season.

Given the fact that the new coaching staff used one of their draft picks on Rountree, I can’t see a scenario where he’s let go of unless he was to get hurt.

This will be one of the toughest decisions that the coaches will have to make, which could ultimately come down to who performs more optimally on special teams this summer.

My prediction is that it will be Ekeler, Jackson and Rountree, with Kelley resorting to the practice squad. But I wouldn’t be all that surprised if the team includes Kelley into the mix heading into the regular season.

Chargers place 3 players on injured reserve, add 5 from practice squad

The Los Angeles Chargers made a few roster moves ahead of their Week 3 matchup with the Carolina Panthers.

The Chargers announced a handful of roster moves ahead of their Week 3 matchup with the Carolina Panthers.

Los Angeles has placed defensive end Melvin Ingram, defensive tackle Justin Jones and linebacker Asmar Bilal on the injured reserve.

Ingram has been dealing with a knee injury. Jones has a shoulder issue, and Bilal has had a calf injury.

With Ingram out, Uchenna Nwosu will likely start at LEO while Jerry Tillery will get an uptick of snaps as the three-technique.

In correspondence, L.A. activated linebacker Malik Jefferson, guard Ryan Groy and defensive end Jesse Liemonier. They have also promoted running back Darius Bradwell and safety Jahleel Addae from the practice squad.

Ingram, Jones and Bilal are eligible to return in three weeks.

Below is the official team statement:

The Los Angeles Chargers today promoted guard Ryan Groy, linebacker Malik Jefferson and defensive end Jessie Lemonier to the active roster. In corresponding moves, the team placed linebacker Asmar Bilal, defensive end Melvin Ingram III and defensive tackle Justin Jones on injured reserve. Los Angeles also activated safety Jahleel Addae and running back Darius Bradwell from the practice squad.

Chargers promote RB Darius Bradwell to active roster

The Chargers filled the void of running back Justin Jackson.

The Chargers have promoted running back Darius Bradwell from the practice to the active roster, the team announced Saturday.

The move came a day after RB Justin Jackson was listed as doubtful for Sunday’s matchup against the Chiefs.

Bradwell, one of the Hard Knocks favorites, signed as an undrafted free agent out of Tulane. He didn’t make the 53-man roster, but he was signed to the practice squad.

Bradwell ran for 2,062 yards and 17 touchdowns on 289 career in his college career.