Tag: Kalija Lipscomb

Titans sign Tedric Thompson, Reggie Floyd among 4 roster moves

The Titans made four roster moves on Thursday.

The Tennessee Titans made four roster moves on Thursday afternoon, agreeing to terms with two players while also waiving two others, the team announced.

The Titans are bringing aboard safeties Tedric Thompson and Reggie Floyd. The signing of Thompson was announced on Wednesday via his agent.

On top of those moves, the Titans also waived offensive lineman and decorated college wrestler, Adam Coon, who recently suffered an injury in practice, and former Vanderbilt wide receiver, Kalija Lipscomb.

Thompson was a fourth-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 2017 and has spent four seasons in the league, three with the Seahawks and one with the Chiefs.

In 37 career games (16 starts), Thompson has three interceptions, five passes defensed and two fumble recoveries. He spent the 2020 campaign with the Chiefs, playing in eight games (no starts).

Floyd, who played his college ball at Virginia Tech, was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Arizona Cardinals in 2020 but was later released. He has yet to play in a regular season game in the NFL.

While Floyd appears to just be a bottom-of-the-roster addition, Thompson’s experience tells us he’s a bit more than that. The Colorado product will have a good chance to make the cut as a backup out of training camp.

The Titans will hit the field for their first preseason game on Friday night when they go to Atlanta to take on the Falcons.

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Titans sign WR Kalija Lipscomb, waive 2 after rookie minicamp

Lipscomb was one of four players the Titans invited to rookie minicamp.

One of the four players the Tennessee Titans invited to rookie minicamp on a tryout basis has been signed by the team.

The Titans announced on Monday that Vanderbilt product and wide receiver Kalija Lipscomb has been inked, one of three moves Tennessee made. Along with the signing, the Titans also waived wide receiver Rashard Davis, and linebacker Davin Bellamy with a non-football injury.

The 6-foot-1, 201-pound wideout tallied 198 catches for 2,356 yards and 22 touchdowns during his collegiate career. His best season came in 2019 when he finished with career-highs in catches (87), yards (916) and touchdowns (nine).

Lipscomb’s chances of sticking with the Titans through the offseason and making the roster are slim even with the team’s need at the position, but perhaps he can latch on with the practice squad after final cuts are made.

Jim Wyatt of Titans Online provided some clips of Lipscomb in action from Day 2 of Titans rookie minicamp on Saturday.

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Packers add former Chiefs WR Kalija Lipscomb to practice squad

The Packers added one of the top undrafted free agent WRs in the 2020 class to the practice squad.

The Green Bay Packers added one of the top undrafted free agent wide receivers from the 2020 class to the team’s practice squad.

The Packers announced the signing of former Kansas City Chiefs receiver Kalija Lipscomb to the 16-player practice squad on Tuesday.

The Vanderbilt product signed with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in April. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, his deal with the Chiefs included $110,000 in guaranteed money, a sizable amount for an undrafted player.

The rookie receiver spent all summer with the Chiefs and was on the team’s practice squad for the first three weeks of the 2020 season.

Over 48 games and 25 starts at Vanderbilt, Lipscomb (6-0, 205) caught 198 passes for 2,356 yards and 22 touchdowns. As a senior, he caught 43 passes for 533 yards and three scores.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, Lipscomb ran the 40-yard dash in 4.57 seconds, did 16 reps on the bench press and hit 32″ in the vertical leap and 10-7 in the broad jump. His arms measured almost 33″ long.

From The Draft Network’s breakdown on Lipscomb:

“Kalija Lipscomb projects as a depth receiver at the pro level. He lacks the high end explosiveness and separation skill to reliably serve as a starting receiver, but his football IQ should allow him to win enough routes and be a productive role player. If Lipscomb struggles with special teams contributions, his odds of making a 53-man roster are diminished — but he has dabbled with the return game in the past, which should help to boost his odds. Low end draft value but viable depth.”

Lipscomb joins Reggie Begelton, Robert Foster and Juwann Winfree as the four receivers on the Packers practice squad.

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Chiefs release WR Kalija Lipscomb from practice squad

A minor roster move for the Kansas City Chiefs on Tuesday.

The Kansas City Chiefs have made a minor transaction on Tuesday.

According to the NFL’s official transaction report, the Chiefs have terminated the contract of undrafted rookie WR Kalija Lipscomb, who was on the 16-man practice squad for Kansas City.

In 2019, Lipscomb caught 43 passes for 533 yards and three touchdowns for the Vanderbilt Commodores. He went undrafted in the 2020 NFL draft but landed with the Chiefs on a contract with a big signing bonus. He didn’t make much noise throughout training camp and was cut from the 80-man offseason roster, but he did make the initial 16-man practice squad for the team.

The receiver position group is one that’s a bit overloaded on the practice squad for Kansas City. You have players like Gehrig Dieter, Jody Fortson and Maurice Ffrench there too. There’s now one free roster spot on the practice squad for the team to add a new player.

Could this move perhaps clear the way for another position or will the Chiefs bring in another receiver? Most recently the Chiefs had former Cardinals and Colts WR Chad Williams in for a tryout on Saturday.

In other transaction news, the Chiefs did not protect any members for their 16-man practice squad this week. That’s a good indicator that everyone came out of “Monday Night Football” healthy.

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Chiefs UDFA Spotlight: Vanderbilt WR Kalija Lipscomb

How does Vanderbilt WR Kalija Lipscomb fit with the Kansas City Chiefs?

A three-star prospect out Jesuit High School in New Orleans, Louisiana, Lipscomb helped lead his team to a state title as just a sophomore. He’d continue his dominant play through his junior and senior seasons and earn offers from Nebraska, Northwestern, Louisiana Tech, and Vanderbilt. He, of course, chose to join the Commodores.

Once he arrived at Vanderbilt, Lipscomb continued to make big strides. He was one of few true freshmen to play in all 12 games. He’d continue to flourish throughout his college career as a receiver, ranking in the top-10 in Vanderbilt history for all major receiving statistics.

Stats:

2016: 12 games played. 27 receptions for 319 yards and two touchdowns. Three carries for five yards. 10 punt returns for 149 yards.

2017: 12 games played. 37 receptions for 610 yards and eight touchdowns. Three carries for 17 yards. 14 punts returns for 83 yards. 3 kick returns for 49 yards.

2018: 13 games played. 87 receptions for 916 yards and nine touchdowns. 14 carries for 75 yards and one touchdown.

2019: 11 games played. 47 receptions for 511 yards and three touchdowns.

Combine/pro day results

Height: 6-foot
Weight: 207 pounds
Hands: 9 3/8″
Arms: 32 7/8″
40-yard dash: 4.57
10-yard split: 1.61
225-pound bench: 16
Vertical: 32″
Broad Jump: 127″
20-yard shuttle: N/A
3-Cone Drill: N/A

Highlights & Film:

Fit with the Chiefs:

Unlike a few of the other receivers the Chiefs picked up, Lipscomb isn’t overly fast. He’s not going to be a speed threat in the NFL. Lipscomb is, however, a dynamic receiver with the ball in his hands. As a senior, he forced 18 missed tackles and he was heavily utilized on screen passes at Vanderbilt.

Lipscomb only had two drops during the 2019 season. He does a good job with contested catches too, hauling in 22-of-39 over the past two seasons according to PFF’s data. Vanderbilt seemed to leave some plays on the table because of poor quarterbacking. Lipscomb’s best quarterback and best season came under former Chiefs practice squad QB Kyle Shurmur.

Kansas City gave Lipscomb $110K in guaranteed money to sign with the team, so they obviously like him quite a bit. While he wasn’t utilized often on special teams beyond his first two seasons, that’s where he’s going to have to earn his money in the NFL. He showed promise as a punt returner as a freshman, averaging nearly 15 yards per punt return. For reference, the best yards per punt return in the NFL last season was 12.4 from Steelers WR Diontae Johnson.

Chiefs’ undrafted free agents

Position Player School Article Release Date
QB Shea Patterson Michigan 5/26
WR Maurice Ffrench Pittsburgh 5/28
LB Bryan Wright Cincinnati 6/2
OC Darryl Williams Miss. St. 6/6
CB Hakeem Bailey West Virginia 6/8
P Tommy Townsend Florida 6/15
WR Kalija Lipscomb Vanderbilt 6/17
DB Rodney Clemons SMU TBA
OT Yasir Durant Missouri TBA
DE Tershawn Wharton Missouri S&T TBA
WR Justice Shelton-Mosley Vanderbilt TBA
CB Jalen Julius Ole Miss TBA
WR Aleva Hifo BYU TBA
LB Omari Cobb Marshall TBA
WR Cody White Michigan St. TBA
CB Lavert Hill Michigan TBA
WR Andre Baccelia Washington TBA
OG Jovahn Fair Temple TBA
CB Javaris Davis Auburn TBA

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Report: Vanderbilt WR Kalija Lipscomb lands big contract with Chiefs as UDFA

The Kansas City Chiefs handed out another big contract to an undrafted free agent, this time a WR out of Vanderbilt.

The Kansas City Chiefs have made yet another big commitment to an undrafted free agent.

According to a report from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Chiefs are paying Vanderbilt WR Kalija Lipscomb $110K in guaranteed money with a whopping $10K signing bonus. That’s an even bigger undrafted free agent contract than the one they handed out to Mississippi State C Darryl Williams. These big contracts indicate that they like Lipscomb and Williams quite a bit and wanted to ensure they both ended up in Kansas City and not with another team.

In 2019, Lipscomb caught 43 passes for 533 yards and three touchdowns. He also carried the ball four times for 53 yards.

While the 2019 production for Lipscomb might seem on the weaker side, the Chiefs have likely been following this player since at least the 2018 college football season. They added Lipscomb’s 2018 quarterback, Kyle Shurmur, as an undrafted free agent following the 2019 NFL Draft. He spent the entirety of the 2019 season on the practice squad in Kansas City.

During the 2018 season, Lipscomb caught 83 passes from Shurmur, totaling for 916 yards and nine touchdowns on the season. He also carried the ball another 14 times for 75 yards and a touchdown.

Lipscomb will be reunited with Shurmur once again in Kansas City. That could give both players and edge in making an impression in what is shaping up to be a very competitive crop of receivers and quarterbacks.

2020 NFL Draft: Giants could benefit from deep WR pool

The New York Giants could benefit from an exceptionally deep wide receiver pool in the 2020 NFL Draft.

The 2020 NFL Draft is loaded at the wide receiver position. It is so saturated with NFL-level pass catchers, each team should be able to come away from the draft table with at least one potential starter or contributor.

Both the haves and the have-nots of the NFL are going to get better at the wide receiver position this offseason. The New York Giants have to be smart and beat teams to the wideouts that fit them best.

The Giants already have an impressive lot at wideout, but considering Sterling Shepard suffered two concussions, Golden Tate is 32 years old and Corey Coleman is on a one-year contract, the future at the position looks like Darius Slayton and several other unprovens.

The Giants can fortify their depth chart in this draft. Now’s the time.

They likely won’t take a receiver in the first round, and maybe not even in Rounds 2 or 3, but the depth of this class goes beyond three rounds. Last year, they found Slayton in the fifth round. This year, they can easily find another viable receiver in that round — or beyond.

Here are some mid-to-late round options they should consider:

Isaiah Hodgins, Oregon State (6’4″, 210) – Big outside and red zone target with good hands and ability to win the contested catch.

Donovan Peoples-Jones, Michigan (6’2″, 212) – Underachieving college player who could find his niche in the NFL. Has size, speed and hands to make it at the next level.

Antonio Gandy-Golden, Liberty (6’4″, 223) – Smaller-school prospect that is on everyone’s sleeper list. Can do it all.

James Proche, SMU (6’0″, 195) – Speedster who averaged 20.4 yards per catch. Caught 112 passes for 1,225 yard and 15 touchdowns in 2019.

Tyler Johnson, Minnesota (6’1″, 206) – Powerful frame allows him to bully defenders. Is one of the Gophers’ all-time productive receivers.

K.J. Hill, Ohio State (6’0″, 196) – The Buckeyes’ all-time receiving leader who is a reliable pair of hands. He’ll be on an NFL roster in 2019.

Kalija Lipscomb, Vanderbilt (6’1″, 207) – Coming off a disappointing 2019 campaign, but led the SEC in receiving in 2018 and is a versatile option.

Quez Watkins, So. Mississippi (6’0″, 195) – Ran 4.35 40 at the NFL Combine and is still scratching the surface of his ability.

Collin Johnson, Texas (6’6″, 225) – A huge target who will likely find his niche in the NFL as a downfield/red zone option.

Quartney Davis, Texas A&M (6’1″, 201) – Has 4.5 speed and is built to play in the slot in the NFL.

Others who interest me: Juwan Johnson, Oregon; John Hightower, Boise State; Dezmon Patmon, Washington State; Stephen Guidry, Mississippi State;  Ja’Marcus Bradley, Louisiana and Jauan Jennings, Tennessee.

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