Tag: Keandre Jones

Commanders sign linebacker Keandre Jones

Jones, 26, played collegiately at Ohio State and Maryland.

On the same day the NFL revealed the 2024 salary cap would jump $30 million from last season, the Washington Commanders signed a linebacker.

The team announced it had signed free-agent linebacker Keandre Jones. Jones, 26, is a native of Olney, Md., and played high school football at Good Counsel. He committed to Ohio State out of high school, where he spent three seasons before transferring to Maryland for his final season in 2019.

Jones was a college teammate of Terry McLaurin, Chase Young and the late Dwayne Haskins at Ohio State.

Jones signed with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent after the 2020 NFL draft. The Bears waived him during final cuts that summer, and he signed with the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad.

Jones played three seasons for the Bengals, appearing in eight games and making four tackles. He was waived during final cuts last summer and did not play in 2023.

The Commanders need help at linebacker. While Jones is viewed as more of a depth signing for Washington, he could push for a role on special teams. The Commanders are thin at the position, and new head coach Dan Quinn will value linebackers more than the previous regime.

Washington has around $87 million in salary cap space ahead of the free agency next month.

Bengals could have a sleeper LB to help struggling position

Could LB help be on the Bengals practice squad?

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The Cincinnati Bengals have made a number of moves in recent days to address a linebacker spot suffering multiple setbacks.

Cincinnati claimed one linebacker on waivers and hosted two others on tryouts. Akeem Davis-Gaither is on injured reserve and seeking the help of a foot specialist, while Jordan Evans is also on IR and Markus Bailey is on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

But if push comes to shove and the team is short a ‘backer or two coming out of the bye, special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons has made it clear he has plenty of confidence in practice squad linebacker Keandre Jones, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:

“Keandre is a guy who’s been around here and if we go with him I’m sure he’ll be fine. He and Akeem are close to each other athletically from a size standpoint, so if we go with Keandre, we go with Keandre. If that person’s not here yet, that’s still an option for us too.”

Jones, undrafted out of Maryland in 2020, initially signed with the Bears that year before joining Cincinnati’s practice squad and got promoted to the active roster for the final two games of the season.

Draft writeups likened Jones to a bigger safety and liked his speed, so it’s no wonder the Bengals have kept him around to develop. If necessary, he’ll surely get called up and have a role on special teams with the active roster.

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Bears waive six players ahead of Saturday’s roster deadline

Chicago released six players on Thursday morning to trim the roster to 74 ahead of the Sept. 5 53-man roster deadline.

With less than two weeks until the Chicago Bears open the regular season against the Detroit Lions, there are some roster cuts that need to be made. The Bears need to trim the roster from 80 to 53 players by Sept. 5, and they’ve already started making roster moves.

Chicago released six players on Thursday morning to trim the roster to 74. They waived running back Napoleon Maxwell, receivers Alex Wesley and Ahmad Wagner, offensive lineman Corey Levin, defensive lineman Lee Autry and linebacker Keandre Jones.

There’s a good chance some of these players could wind up on Chicago’s practice squad, which will have 16 available spots should they clear waivers. The Bears still need to cut 21 players by Saturday’s deadline.

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Bears 2020 training camp preview: Linebackers

The Chicago Bears linebacker corps figures to be a strength on defense, but are there depth concerns on the roster?

Chicago Bears history is rich with linebacker talent that has generally been the backbone of the defense. Dick Butkus, Mike Singletary and Brian Urlacher are just a few names who have left their mark on this franchise and on the NFL, as well.

And at first glance, the 2020 version of the linebacker corps looks strong on paper. The Bears added Robert Quinn in the offseason, officially ending a disappointing tenure in Leonard Floyd. Quinn, 30, was signed to a five-year, $70 million deal, and he’s coming off an impressive 11.5 sack year with the Cowboys.

Let’s take an in-depth review of the Bears linebacker room heading into training camp.

OLB Khalil Mack

David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

After an impressive debut season in Chicago, Khalil Mack was double, and sometimes even triple-teamed, to limit the damage. He tallied his lowest sack total (8.5) since his rookie year, and he felt Akiem Hicks’ absence the most. After recording 4.5 sacks through the first four weeks, he logged just four sacks the rest of the way.

Mack remains one of the premier pass rushers in the NFL, and Hicks’ return should boost his statistics in 2020. He can single-handedly wreak havoc on an opposing offense. Despite a down year, Mack started in all 16 games, tallying four pass deflections and five forced fumbles.

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