Tag: Greg Mancz

Steelers, Bills have 8 former Dolphins wild-card matchup

Former Dolphins who will play in Steelers-Bills wild-card game.

The Miami Dolphins have been eliminated from the postseason following their 27-6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday night.

So, while Dolphins fans prepare for the offseason, there are a number of former Dolphins who are still playing for a Super Bowl championship that they can support.

On Monday, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills are set to battle in a wild-card matchup of their own, and there are eight former Dolphins on their rosters and practice squads.

Here’s a look at which players who once donned the aqua and orange will play in this one:

Bills injury update: Players sitting out practice totals seven

Time to heal up:

The Buffalo Bills had a laundry list of an injury report on Tuesday ahead of facing the Chicago Bears in their preseason finale.

In total, seven players missed the early week practice. It’s likely that this total is the largest the team has had so far this summer.

Considering it’s the last preseason game, getting health and on the field could be crucial for certain players. Bills Wire will continue to monitor the injury report throughout this upcoming week, but for now, here’s how the team’s list of dinged up players looked:

Madden 24 ratings for every Bills offensive lineman

Only one #Bills offensive lineman above an 80 rating in #Madden24:

EA Sports is going position-by-position and releasing player ratings for their upcoming NFL video game, Madden 24.

This year’s game will feature Bills quarterback Josh Allen on the cover and we now know how the game rates all offensive line positions in the game.

Here are the Madden 24 ratings for every Bills O-lineman set to feature in the game:

Bills make O-line change to practice squad roster

#Bills make O-line change to practice squad roster:

The Buffalo Bills have switched out offensive linemen on their practice squad ahead of facing the Cincinnati Bengals.

However, it does not appear that the transactions will give any reason for concern ahead of that Divisional-round matchup.

The Bills announced on Thursday that offensive lineman Greg Mancz was brought back to the team via the taxi squad.

Mancz was originally signed by Buffalo last spring. Out of training camp, he made the team’s practice squad. He was later released in November.

Mancz has since bounced around the NFL, spending time with the Cleveland Browns and then Minnesota Vikings. Last week, the Vikings went on to release him.

In search of a home, he returns to Buffalo where he replaces other depth. Making room for Mancz was undrafted rookie Alec Anderson.

Anderson’s designation gives one no reason to worry.

On occasion, an addition to the taxi unit could appear to be a move made to add depth due to an injury to a starter.

However, Anderson was not release, he landed on injured reserve himself.

Anderson has suffered an undisclosed injury and Mancz simply takes his spot. The starting five is still intact.

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Vikings activate T Blake Brandel from IR, waive C Greg Mancz

Brandel was out for the last four games with a torn MCL

Saturday afternoon was the deadline for activations prior to Sunday’s Wild Card game against the New York Giants and the Minnesota Vikings did just that by activating tackle Blake Brandel from injured reserve and waived center Greg Mancz.

Brandel was out for the last four games after tearing his MCL against the Detroit Lions. The Vikings activated his practice window this past Wednesday and he practiced all week. Head coach Kevin O’Connell said that Brandel might be getting the start at right tackle over Oli Udoh with him being healthy. We will find that out at the latest kickoff.

Mancz didn’t end up playing any offensive snaps in the two weeks he spent with the Vikings. He suited up for the Vikings against the Chicago Bears last week.

Could the Vikings start newly acquired center Greg Mancz on Sunday?

Could the newly acquired center start for the Vikings in the playoffs?

Center has become somewhat of a problematic position for the Minnesota Vikings over the past few weeks. Not having center Garrett Bradbury has made things problematic for quarterback Kirk Cousins.

After the injury suffered to center Austin Schlottmann, the Vikings signed veteran Greg Mancz to fortify their depth at the position. What raised some eyebrows is what happened during media availability of Friday’s practice. Mancz was snapping to Cousins and Chris Reed snapping to backup quarterback Nick Mullens.

As ESPN’s Kevin Seifer opined about, I also don’t know that means, but it is something that could end up impacting the Vikings playoff run.

Zulgad: Brian O’Neill’s absence could sink Vikings’ hope of making a playoff run

From @jzulgad: With the loss of Brian O’Neill, the Vikings could see flashbacks of 2017 when they lost Nick Easton

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell is likely regretting his first-quarter decision to go for it on fourth-and-2 on Sunday at Lambeau Field — or at least his play call.

Quarterback Kirk Cousins dropped back with the ball on the Green Bay 37 and rifled it toward tight end T.J. Hockenson. The pass was tipped by cornerback Rasul Douglas and picked off by safety Darnell Savage. Savage raced 75 yards for a touchdown to give the Packers a 14-3 lead and a preview of what was to come in a 24-point loss.

Amazingly, it wasn’t the worst result of the play. Vikings right tackle Brian O’Neill suffered what coach Kevin O’Connell called a “significant” injury to his calf as he pursued Savage. On Tuesday, O’Neill was placed on injured reserve. His season is likely finished and his absence could play a large role in ending the Vikings’ season early in the playoffs.

Minnesota is 12-4 entering its regular-season finale Sunday in Chicago and already has the NFC North clinched. An embarrassing 41-17 loss to the Packers on Sunday means the Vikings are likely to have the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoff field and face the New York Giants on wild card weekend at U.S. Bank Stadium.

What the Vikings won’t have for that game is one of the NFL’s best right tackles. O’Neill was elected to the Pro Bowl in 2021 after signing a five-year, $92.5 million contract just before the regular season. His contract makes him the second-highest paid right tackle in the league to New Orleans’ Ryan Ramczyk. Ramczyk averages $19.2 million per season; O’Neill is at $18.5 million.

O’Connell plans to replace O’Neill with backup tackle Oli Udoh, who struggled playing out of position at right guard last season. A second-round pick in 2018 by the Vikings, O’Neill is a team captain and has become the leader of an offensive line that finally had some stability this season. Pro Football Focus has him graded as the NFL’s fourth-best right tackle.

But wait, it gets worse.

The Vikings also have potential issues at center after placing Austin Schlottmann on injured reserve Tuesday. He suffered a left fibula fracture in the first quarter shortly before O’Neill was lost. Schlottmann was playing because Garrett Bradbury has missed the past four games due to a lower back injury. O’Connell would only say that “the hope is that we’ll have him back,” but he declined to put a timetable on Bradbury’s return.

This could put veteran guard Chris Reed, who had never played a regular-season game at center until Sunday, in a starting role, but the Vikings also have signed eight-year veteran Greg Mancz to the active roster. Mancz has played in 64 games during his career, including one with Buffalo this season.

The Vikings potential starting offensive line in the playoffs could be Reed or Mancz at center, often-struggling rookie Ed Ingram at right guard and Udoh at right tackle. If that’s the case, good luck to Cousins, who likely will be facing the New York Giants and blitz-happy defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale in the first round.

If this sounds familiar it should. It was in the penultimate regular-season game of the 2017 season in Green Bay, when the Vikings lost left guard Nick Easton because of a fractured right ankle. The offensive line was shuffled with Mike Remmers moving from right tackle to left guard and backup Rashod Hill taking over at right tackle. Remmers, like Reed in this situation, was playing out of position and it showed.

That Vikings team, the last to win the NFC North before this one, finished 13-3 and beat the Saints on the Minneapolis Miracle play before getting destroyed 38-7 in the NFC title game in Philadelphia.

Easton’s loss was a blow, but he wasn’t nearly as important as O’Neill is to this unit. This has been mostly a magical season for the Vikings and their first-year coach, but you have to wonder how long it will continue with O’Neill watching from the sideline.

Vikings place O’Neill and Schlottmann on IR, make 2 other roster moves

The offensive line has a couple of new members

The Minnesota Vikings had some injuries to the offensive line on Sunday afternoon against the Green Bay Packers and they made some roster moves on Tuesday to address those issues.

The Vikings placed right tackle Brian O’Neill and center Austin Schlottman on injured reserve effectively ending both of their seasons. In turn, the Vikings signed center Greg Mancz to the active roster and tackle Bobby Evans to the practice squad.

Mancz is an eight-year veteran that spent most of his time with the Houston Texans. He played in one game with the Buffalo Bills this season and has played in 64 games overall.

Evans won a Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams last season after being a third-round pick by the team in 2019. He played in 35 games for the Rams over his three seasons, including 12 this season with four starts.

Browns make 3 roster moves on the eve of their Christmas Eve showdown vs. Saints

The Browns have made three moves on the eve of their Christmas Eve matchup against the Saints.

As the Cleveland Browns get set to take on the New Orleans Saints tomorrow, they have made three roster moves in advance. They have already ruled out defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, and safety John Johnson III is questionable. However, Nick Chubb, Amari Cooper, and Myles Garrett will be good to go after they were not given gameday injury designation. The Saints will be without wide receivers Jarvis Landry and Chris Olave as well.

What moves did the Browns make today as they get set to seek out their fourth win in five games? We take a look at all three of those moves here.

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