The Broncos added RB Kerrith Whyte and OT Adrian Ealy to the practice squad and released LB Curtis Robinson.
The Denver Broncos added two practice squad players and parted ways with another on Tuesday, the team announced.
Denver signed running back Kerrith Whyte and offensive tackle Adrian Ealy to the 16-player practice squad and released inside linebacker Curtis Robinson.
Cutting Robinson was a somewhat surprising move given that he was called on to play in three games this season, totaling five tackles and one quarterback hit. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the rookie out of Stanford land on another team’s practice squad.
Whyte (5-10, 204 pounds) is a second-year running back who has spent time with five NFL teams, appearing in six regular season games. He has played primarily as a returner.
Ealy (6-6, 321 pounds) is an undrafted rookie out of Oklahoma who signed with the Baltimore Ravens in May and started the season on their practice squad.
In addition to making the above transactions, the Broncos also protected offensive tackle Quinn Bailey, running back Damarea Crockett and wide receiver Seth Williams on the practice squad this week.
Denver also worked out free agent defensive back Adrian Colbert on Tuesday. Ealy worked out for the Broncos last week before joining the practice squad this week, so Colbert might be a player to keep an eye on.
Their two practice squad signings came from the five workouts.
The Arizona Cardinals announced some practice squad moves Wednesday morning. That comes on the heels of having five players in on Tuesday for a workout.
The Cardinals often bring in players on Tuesday to address depth because of injuries or simply to try and make the back end of the roster better. On Tuesday, they had in three running backs and a pair of defensive backs.
The Detroit Lions announced they have added running back Tavien Feaster to the practice squad. He will be replacing Kerrith Whyte, who was added to the practice squad injured reserve yesterday.
Feaster (5-11, 220), a former 5-star recruit, was a downhill complement to the speedy Travis Etienne at Clemson. He played for three seasons for the Tigers before transferring to South Carolina for his senior season.
After not being invited to the NFL Combine, and South Carolina’s Pro Day being canceled due to COVID-19, Feaster never got to show off his skills and it led to him being undrafted. He was originally signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars after the draft but was released in August and signed by the New York Giants.
Feaster has underrated straight-line speed and shows above-average contact balance. He has solid vision and a nose for the first-down/end zone, but he needs more time to develop before he is ready to see the field in an NFL game.
The Detroit Lions have placed practice squad running back Kerrith Whyte on injured reserve.
According to the NFL’s Tuesday transaction report, the Detroit Lions have placed practice squad running back Kerrith Whyte on injured reserve.
The practice squad injured reserve works just like the active roster practice squad, meaning Whyte will be out a minimum of three games, with a 21-day evaluation period following that. The Lions can make a roster move involving Whyte at any time during the evaluation period but if they fail to act, they will be forced to make a decision once the evaluation period expires — placing him back on the practice squad, or active roster, or releasing/waiving him.
Additionally, when a player is placed on PS-IR, it frees up a spot on the practice squad, meaning the Lions can add another player for the bye week — or after — if they choose.
Considering the Lions were quick to act in acquiring Whyte to replace Jason Huntley — who was claimed by the Philadelphia Eagles at cutdowns — the Lions may be on the hunt for another quick running back wide receiver hybrid unless they feel Joe Webb is ready to take on that role.
The Lions have been very consistent in who they protect on the practice squad
Being on an NFL practice squad often comes with inherent job insecurity. But for three members of the Detroit Lions 16-man practice squad, the team has valued them enough to protect them from being poached by other teams in all three weeks of the 2020 NFL season to date.
Just as they did in Week 2, the Lions protected the following four players:
QB David Blough
RB Kerrith Whyte
TE Isaac Nauta
CB/Gunner Dee Virgin
Blough, Nauta and Virgin were also all protected in Week 1. Whyte took Jonathan Williams’ spot as the protected RB in Week 2. Williams was released from Detroit’s practice squad on Tuesday.
The protecting of practice squad members is a new wrinkle in the roster construction for 2020. All the practice players are subject to waivers following Sunday’s game, but the Lions can then protect four of them from being signed by another team after Tuesday’s waiver deadline.
Thus far the claiming off waivers of practice squad players has been almost nonexistent. Not a single player who was on a practice squad in Week 2 was tabbed in the claim period this week, per the NFL’s transaction wire.
Ian Rapoport is reporting that the Detroit Lions are releasing running back Jonathan Williams from the practice squad.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting that the Detroit Lions are releasing running back Jonathan Williams from the practice squad.
Williams was added during training camp for depth as the Lions were dealing with several injuries at running back. D’Andre Swift getting healthy took Willams’ opportunity to make the 53-man roster away, but after Bo Scarbrough was placed on injured reserve Williams found a spot on the Lions practice squad.
During Week 1, Williams was a protected practice squad member and received a game day elevation but was declared inactive when it came time to play. The following week, the Lions elected to protect running back Kerrith Whyte, who had presumedly passed Williams on the depth chart.
With four heathy running backs on the active roster, Whyte ahead on the practice squad depth chart, and Scarbrough eligible to return from injured reserve after this weekend’s game, Williams spot on the roster became vulnerable and likely led to them parting ways.
The Lions have yet to acknowledge this move, so we do not know the corresponding practice squad roster transaction at this time. But with Kenny Wiggins also being moved off the practice squad last Saturday — replacing Joe Dahl on the 53-man roster — the Lions have two open spots they can fill.
The Detroit Lions announced they have signed running back/wide receiver Kerrith Whyte to practice squad and waived wide receiver Victor Boldin.
The Detroit Lions announced they have signed running back/wide receiver Kerrith Whyte to practice squad and waived wide receiver Victor Boldin in a corresponding move.
“Whyte comes to Detroit after spending a portion of the 2019 season with the Pittsburgh Steelers after a stint on the Chicago Bears’ practice squad,” the Lions said in a press release. “Appearing in six games with the Steelers, he recorded 24 rushes for 122 yards (5.1 avg.) and returned 14 kickoffs for 264 yards (18.9 avg.). Whyte originally entered the League as a seventh-round selection (222nd overall) by the Bears in the 2019 NFL Draft out of Florida Atlantic.”
Whyte (5-10, 204) has 4.42/4.36 speed and is a multi-faceted offensive weapon, who also has experience returning kicks. With the Steelers, he showed he can lineup in the backfield, in the slot, and even saw a snap out wide at receiver.
He is going to get compared to Jason Huntley — who the Lions lost to the Eagles via waivers — and for the most part, he will likely slot into the role they had planned for Huntley on the practice squad.
Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kerrith Whyte showed speed and versatility in 2019. Where will that leave him in a crowded RB room?
The Pittsburgh Steelers entered training camp with an excellent problem to have — depth at the running back position. Currently, mid-training camp, there’s a crowded running back room: James Conner, Benny Snell, Jr., Jaylen Samuels, Anthony McFarland, Jr., Kerrith Whyte, Wendell Smallwood and Trey Edmunds.
Given the health concerns they had to deal with in Conner, Snell and Samuels missing multiple games in 2019, the more options, the better for Pittsburgh.
One of the temporary solutions last season was the signing of Whyte from the Chicago Bears practice squad. He signed on Nov. 16 and was thrust into action with the Steelers on Nov. 24.
“I am just happy they trusted me,” Whyte told Teresa Varley in her Camp Blog series. “I got here and four days later played in my first game. It was unique. I appreciated that. When someone trusts you with the ball, that’s what it’s about. The game is about the ball… Ball security is the most important thing. I take pride in it. I know how meaningful the ball is.”
Though the Steelers showed interest in the speedy back during a pre-draft visit to Pittsburgh, the Florida Atlantic product wound up in Chicago via a seventh-round selection in the 2019 NFL Draft.
(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
For the casual Steelers fan, Whyte shot out of nowhere. In his first appearance in November versus the Cincinnati Bengals, he carried the ball six times for 43 yards (7.2 per attempt average). Whyte had another nice game in Week 14 versus Arizona with five attempts for 41 yards. Through six games with the Steelers, Whyte finished off the season with 122 yards on 24 carries for a 5.1 average.
“Hopefully it was the start of something,” said Whyte. “I believe in myself. I have so much more to show. I am happy how things played out. Hopefully I did turn some heads. I am going to continue to work and show my God-given talent.”
“The guys here showed nothing but love from the moment I walked in,” he said. “They took great care of me, and I am appreciative of that… I took a little piece from everybody, from the coaching staff, the strength staff, the veterans in the room. They were all a part of the puzzle.”
With his speed and agility, Whyte was able to supplant wide receiver Ryan Switzer as the Steelers’ starting kickoff returner. Finding a reliable return man has been problematic for years, but Whyte led the team in kickoff return yards (264), attempts (14), and average (19 yards), including a team-best return of 34 yards.
What could make Whyte expendable is what he’s best known for: Speed. McFarland, the Steelers rookie back, has a similar playing style to Whyte.
The Steelers kept five running backs (including fullback Rosie Nix) last year and, given the injury concern that Conner comes with, it would be smart to do the same in 2020.
Though he showed some promise his rookie season, Snell didn’t overly impress. But his 426 yards rushing were good enough for second on the team and is a lock to make the 53-man roster. As for Samuels, there’s been some conjecture that he isn’t a roster lock; however, his value as a receiver should not be overlooked. Samuels contributed 305 yards and a touchdown; best among Steelers running backs.
Practice squads were expanded to from 14 to 16 with the new CBA and, to mitigate players testing positive for the coronavirus the week of a game, will allow each team to protect four players weekly. The new rules also mean players who are generally worthy of a spot on the 53-man roster could instead be stashed on the practice squad.
A protected member of the practice squad is the most likely landing spot for Whyte unless the Steelers make a surprise move before the start of the season.
It was an overall disappointment for the Bears’ rookie class during one of the more disappointing seasons in recent history for Chicago.
It was an overall disappointment for the Bears’ rookie class during one of the more disappointing seasons in recent history for Chicago.
With no first or second round draft picks, the Bears had just five selections. They traded up 13 spots to take running back David Montgomery, who had 889 rushing yards and six touchdowns in his rookie season. But Chicago’s other four picks didn’t has big an impact.
NFL.com ranked the Bears’ rookie draft class third in the NFC North with a grade of a C+, which trailed the Packers (B+) and Vikings (B-).
Beyond the well-documented quarterback issue (SEE: next paragraph), the biggest culprit behind Chicago’s unexpectedly blah season was the offensive line. Bears GM Ryan Pace openly acknowledged the unit’s shortcomings in his end-of-season press conference: “We struggled in that area this year — that’s real.” And therein lies the problem in evaluating the rookie campaign of Montgomery, whose yards-per-carry mark (3.7) left a lot to be desired. But honestly, Chicago’s O-line hung Montgomery out to dry pretty routinely — and obviously, opposing defenses weren’t too worried about getting burned by the Mitchell Trubisky-led passing game on a snap-by-snap basis. Montgomery did his best to overcome these adverse circumstances, breaking the eighth-most tackles in the NFL (47) — which is how he finished second among all rookies in both rushing yards (889) and rushing touchdowns (6).
Montgomery was the only draft selection that made an impact for Chicago in 2019, which made the Bears’ draft class unimpressive considering just one of their five selections saw the field for a significant amount of time.
Besides Montgomery’s production, the Bears didn’t get much of anything out of the rookie class. This isn’t all that surprising, considering Chicago made just five selections last April, with Montgomery being the only player taken before Day 3 of the draft. Coming out of Georgia, Ridley was advertised as a polished route runner — like his brother, Calvin — but he couldn’t even crack the game day roster until Week 13. Adding insult to ineffectiveness: The very next two wideouts selected after Ridley — Hunter Renfrow and Darius Slayton — provided significant Year 1 contributions.
Receiver Riley Ridley and cornerback Duke Shelley saw little playing time. Then there was seventh-round picks running back Kerrith Whyte and cornerback Stephen Denmark that didn’t make any impact on the active roster. Denmark spent the season on the practice squad while Whyte was dealt the the Steelers.
The Pittsburgh Steelers did their usual weekly roster shuffle a little ahead of schedule this time around. With injuries at running back and wide receiver, the Steelers made a pair of moves on Saturday.
Gone are linebacker Jayrone Elliott and running back Tony Brooks-James. In their place are running back Kerrith Whyte Jr. and wide receiver Deon Cain.
Whyte played his college ball at Florida Atlantic and was a seventh-round pick of the Chicago Bears in 2019. The Steelers signed Whyte from the Bears practice squad.
The Steelers signed Cain from the Indianapolis Colts practice squad. Cain joined the Colts in 2018 but before he could show off his speed and athleticism he tore his ACL.
