Tag: free safety

Marcus Maye reinstated to the Saints’ 53-man roster after serving 3-game suspension

Marcus Maye has been reinstated to the New Orleans Saints’ 53-man roster after serving his three-game suspension. Their secondary just got stronger:

Here’s a big addition to the New Orleans Saints defense: starting free safety Marcus Maye has been reinstated after serving his three-game suspension stemming from a 2021 DUI charge in Florida. The legal proceedings for his case were not concluded until the 2023 preseason, and the NFL has an established precedent of waiting for the legal process to wrap up before issuing its own discipline, so Maye had to wait two years and change teams before being sidelined.

But he’s back now. And he could help a unit that’s already playing at a high level reach even greater heights. Maye is one of seven Saints defenders with an interception this season, having plucked a deflected pass out of the air after cornerback Isaac Yiadom broke it up in the season opener. His return should strengthen an already-stout New Orleans secondary.

Expect the various responsibilities for players around him to revert to what they were prior to his suspension; rookie draft pick Jordan Howden will step back into his role as the team’s dime defensive back, with Johnathan Abram remaining on the practice squad after exhausting his three game-day activations. If the Saints want to continue playing Abram, they’ll have to sign him to the 53-man roster. Odds are strong that they’ll wait until they need him to do that with Maye back in the fold.

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Justin Simmons ‘can’t wait’ for training camp battles vs. Russell Wilson

“It’s been fun, challenging. I can’t wait for camp,” Broncos DB Justin Simmons said of his practice battles with QB Russell Wilson.

Broncos safety Justin Simmons may have found his football soulmate with the team’s addition of QB Russell Wilson.

First, the former said the latter brings the Broncos offense to a “whole other level.” Then, Simmons said Wilson helps the defense prepare against mobile quarterbacks.

Not done yet. After that, the veteran safety added that it’s a “Super Bowl or bust mentality” with Wilson now in town.

Now, Simmons says that he “can’t wait” for the training camp battles he will have with Wilson. Iron sharpens iron. Simmons spoke about the pre-snap checks vs. Russell Wilson he’ll face in practice on June 14.

“I was actually talking to ‘Russ’ about it yesterday,” the safety said. “I was just saying I don’t take this for granted. We’re out here, and I appreciate the look offs and the checks before the snap and the hard counts to get us to maybe show our shell a little bit early. I appreciate it because we’re going to see it from a lot of the quarterbacks we play, especially in our division.”

Bringing home the point of iron sharpens iron, Simmons points out how Wilson brings another dimension to the team. It’s the game within the game with Wilson. Looking off the safety, pre-snap reads and hard counts. Yes, every QB does that. But not to the level of future Hall of Fame QB Wilson. Sorry, Teddy Bridgewater and Drew Lock. But there’s a reason the Broncos’ Super Bowl odds jumped to the seventh-best after acquiring Wilson.

“We’re going to have to be able to rush in coverage and work together with our disguise to get the rush going,” Simmons said. “It’s going to have to be key in order for us to win on crucial third downs or win the early part of first and second down to get the offense behind the sticks so we can potentially win that drive and get the offense the football back. I appreciate it because it’s been great. We’ve won some and lost a lot more. It’s been fun, challenging. I can’t wait for camp.”

Training camp starts next month. That’s right, Broncos Country, the season is on the horizon. In the meantime, check out our projected offensive and defensive depth charts going into the summer.

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Pete Carroll receives honorary doctorate degree from his alma mater

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from his alma mater, the University of the Pacific.

The Seattle Seahawks players aren’t the only ones worthy of praise for their accomplishments this offseason – their head coach is as well. Over the weekend, coach Pete Carroll received an honorary doctorate degree from his alma mater, the University of the Pacific.

“I’m not quite sure how I feel about this,” Carroll joked. “They want to call me a doctor, but that might be a bit of a stretch.”

At Pacific, Carroll received his bachelor’s degree in business administration, his master’s in physical education and a secondary teaching credential. He spent two years as a free safety on the Pacific football team and later as a graduate assistant on the coaching staff.

“Go forth and don’t hold back,” Carroll said. “Make the most of it. Enjoy your time here, but go forth. That means putting in the hard work, the preparation, and the dedication it takes to get it done.”

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Quandre Diggs could be the 1 free agent Seahawks must keep on roster

Free safety Quandre Diggs could be the one free agent the Seattle Seahawks must keep on their roster heading into the new league year.

The start of the new league year and NFL free agency kick off in just under a month and analysts and teams are cramming to put together their lists of the best available players.

Over at NFL.com, senior analyst Gil Brandt took a look at every team and picked one potential free agent each club needs to keep on its roster. For the Seahawks, it’s free safety Quandre Diggs.

“If Russell Wilson stays in Seattle, Pete Carroll and John Schneider will be under pressure to produce a winning roster after a disappointing 7-10 finish,” Brandt starts. “Bringing Diggs back would be one of the more straightforward moves they could make in that effort. Since being traded to Seattle in 2019, Diggs has piled up 13 interceptions and 20 passes defensed.”

“There are multiple defensive backs hitting the market, and an argument could be made for inking cornerback D.J. Reed, who broke out in his first season as a full-time starter in Year 4 and bested Diggs in catch rate over expectation (-11.9 for Reed, -0.3% for Diggs),” Brandt continues. “But if I had to choose, I’d go with the more proven Diggs, even with the caveat that he’s coming off a broken fibula and dislocated ankle suffered in Week 18.”

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‘Bama on ‘Bama: Jaylen Waddle makes Eddie Jackson look silly with nasty move

Waddle didn’t need to do this to family! (But it’s such a beautiful route)

Jaylen Waddle hasn’t played a snap in the NFL yet, but here he is making headlines for making an opposing team’s defender look silly with an elusive move off the line.

On Thursday, the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins held a joint practice, and players from opposing teams lined up opposite each other.

One matchup was Waddle against Bears safety Eddie Jackson, a fellow former member of the Crimson Tide.

Waddle fakes left, stutter steps, then breaks right to make the catch, leaving Jackson with his hips facing the wrong way, rendering him unable to make a play on the ball.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to cover Jaylen Waddle as he gears up for his rookie season in the NFL with the Miami Dolphins.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.

Bradley McDougald could leave Seahawks or switch to free safety after 2020

Strong safety Bradley McDougald could leave the Seattle Seahawks after this season or switch to free safety because of Marquise Blair.

Seattle Seahawks safety Bradley McDougald heads into the final season of his three-year, $13.5 million contract with the team, which could be his last in the Emerald City.

Since the demise of the Legion of Boom after the 2018 season, McDougald has been the biggest veteran presence in Seattle’s secondary. Perhaps as a result, he has been one of the most consistent players on the defense.

McDougald is coming off an impressive 2019 campaign in which he recorded 70 tackles (52 solo), six passes defended, two interceptions, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a half-sack in 15 games and 14 starts. He may have missed 12 tackles throughout the season, but he played his role in a struggling secondary well for the most part.

The Seahawks drafted strong safety Marquise Blair in the second round of last year’s draft and are hoping that he will eventually be a starter. McDougald held down the position quite well, but he could either switch to free safety or leave in free agency next season.

At 29 years old, McDougald has at least a few more solid years left in him. The Seahawks will hope that he can provide at least one more in the Emerald City.

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Quandre Diggs not expected to play Week 16 against Cardinals

Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll confirmed that safety Quandre Diggs has a high-ankle injury, and his status for Week 16 is in jeopardy.

The Seattle Seahawks went into Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers down four defensive starters, and they left the game down two more – Bobby Wagner and Quandre Diggs – who both suffered sprained ankles in the team’s Week 15 victory.

Wagner’s injury seems to be minor, but Diggs may not have gotten as lucky.

Carroll confirmed on 710 ESPN Monday morning that Diggs suffered a high ankle sprain and said they don’t know exactly how long he will be out.

“Quandre, he had a high-ankle shot there, so we’re gonna have to see how that goes and how he responds to it,” Carroll said on 710 ESPN’s Pete Carroll show Monday morning. “We don’t know at this point. Some of these injuries are really bad and sometimes guys have bounced right back. We don’t know yet.”

Diggs has been a huge addition to Seattle’s defense, recording three interceptions, one for a touchdown, as well as 21 combined tackles and one forced fumble in five games since coming over in a trade from the Lions.

He has been Seattle’s highest performer in the secondary, and his play has elevated the play of Bradley McDougald as well.

Seattle will likely turn to Lano Hill and potentially Marquise Blair to replace Diggs for as long as he is out, and updates on his status will be available throughout the week.

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Notre Dame Football: Kyle Hamilton Named Freshman All-American

It didn’t take long at all for Kyle Hamilton to make his presence known at Notre Dame this year as fall camp was pretty much just a daily breakdown of how many interceptions the freshman from Atlanta had that particular afternoon.

It didn’t take long at all for Kyle Hamilton to make his presence known at Notre Dame this year as fall camp was pretty much just a daily breakdown of how many interceptions the freshman from Atlanta had that particular afternoon.

It didn’t take long for him to make an impact on the gamefield either, getting substancial playing time as a true-freshman in the opener against Louisville before returning his first career college interception for a touchdown a week later against New Mexico.

The season would see him pull down four interceptions in total and have pretty much an entire defensive gameplan built around him in October’s win over USC.

On Friday Pro Football Focus named their Freshman All-American Team and named Hamilton their first-team safety.

Notre Dame landed the best coverage safety in the entire 2019 recruiting class. Hamilton recorded a near-elite 89.7 coverage grade in his true freshman season, allowing just seven passes to be completed on 22 targets. Those seven went for 74 yards and no touchdowns. However, the Fighting Irish safety stole possession four times by way of interceptions, and he forced another five pass breakups for a passer rating of 3.0 when targeted, best among all defenders in the nation with at least 15 targets.

– Pro Football Focus 12/6/2019

High praise for a star in the making at Notre Dame.