Nazair Jones – Syndication Server

Buffalo Bills sign DL Nazair Jones

DL Nazair Jones signs with Buffalo Bills.

Massive additions to the Bills defensive line, both physically and metaphorically, have continued on Tuesday.

The team announced that defensive tackle Nazair Jones was signed and also confirmed a report from Monday that another defensive tackle, Eli Ankou, was signed as well. In total, the brings the Bills up to nine big boys in the middle of the defensive line on their roster currently.

Along with Jones and Ankou, Buffalo’s defensive tackle position includes:

Justin Zimmer
Harrison Phillips
Ed Oliver
Star Lotulelei
Treyvon Hester
Vernon Butler
Brandin Bryant

Without Lotulelei last season due to his COVID-19 opt out and with Phillips returning from a serious knee injury, the Bills appeared to be lacking in the middle of their defensive line. Certainly the eye test now matches what the team thinks.

The Bills would not have such a packed house at the defensive tackle position had it thought otherwise. Under head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane, the team has often believed in the philosophy of competition bringing out the best in players. The defensive line seems to be the latest spot this avenue is being taken.

Overall, the Bills currently sport 17 defensive lineman on their roster. Notable additions on the edge includes top draft picks Greg Rousseau and Boogie Basham.

On Jones, he was a third-round pick of the Seahawks in 2017. He did not play in 2020 after spending three seasons with the Seahawks. Overall in that time, Jones appeared in 20 total games and his most productive years was his first when he had a sack and three tackles for loss in 11 games played.

In a bit of a corresponding news, the Bills placed defensive end Bryan Cox Jr. on injured reserve.

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Is this the last chance for offensive lineman Ethan Pocic?

The 2017 NFL draft has been full of duds, including offensive lineman Ethan Pocic. Is it time for the Seattle Seahawks to cut bait?

The Seattle Seahawks’ 2017 NFL draft class is not shaping up to be one of their best.

Pro Bowl corner Shaquill Griffin was a strong pick in the third round, and the team used their second seventh round pick on Chris Carson, but outside of those two picks the class as a whole has disappointed.

Malik McDowell, Amara Darboh, Nazair Jones, and Tedric Thompson are among the early round picks who either never suited up for Seattle, or are no longer with the club thanks to poor performances.

David Moore, Lano Hill, and Ethan Pocic are still with the team, but all three of them could be roster casualties if they don’t prove they deserve another chance during the 2020 season.

Pocic was the first one selected of the group, coming to the Seahawks as a late second round pick. The versatile offensive lineman only played in four games last year, starting one and appearing in 91 total offensive snaps before suffering a season-ending knee injury.

All told, Pocic has appeared in 30 games for the Seahawks, playing every position on the line except left tackle. That versatility is what made him appealing to Seattle in the first place, but his performance thus far has not been enough for him to earn a starting role.

Heading into year four, the door may look more open after the team’s release of D.J. Fluker and Justin Britt, two starters from last year’s line, but the addition of free agents B.J. Finney and Chance Warmack and the selection of hulking guard Damien Lewis in the draft seem to indicate the team is going in a different direction.

Lewis, Finney and Warmack will compete with a host of other interior offensive linemen, including Jordan Simmons, Mike Iupati, Phil Haynes, Joey Hunt and Jordan Roos, for spots on the offensive line in 2020.

Pocic’s best chance of making the roster is at backup center, where Finney is expected to start. He’ll be in direct competition with Hunt, the team’s backup center since 2016, and could face competition from Kyle Fuller and Haynes, who played some center in practice last year.

Pocic could theoretically challenge for a backup spot at tackle as well, where there is considerably less depth, but considering his best performances (which still aren’t great) have been on the interior, it’s unlikely he’d have what it takes to make it at that spot either.

The big question is if Seattle is willing to move on from a second round pick this quickly into his career, but considering the recent move to release both Jones (third round) and Thompson (fourth round) it might be time to cut bait on Pocic and admit that, outside of Griffin, Moore, and Carson, the 2017 draft just didn’t get the job done in the Emerald City.

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Will Bryan Mone make an impact for Seahawks in 2020?

The Seattle Seahawks only have three defensive tackles with NFL experience on their roster, and one of them is Bryan Mone.

The Seattle Seahawks biggest area of need between now and the start of the 2020 regular season is along their defensive line.

While most will focus on the lack of a big name pass rusher, this team is also severely lacking depth on the interior defensive line. After losing Al Woods to free agency and cutting Nazair Jones, Seattle is left with Demarcus Christmas, Bryan Mone and two undrafted free agents – Cedrick Lattimore and Josh Avery – as options to backup Jarran Reed and Poona Ford.

The Seahawks almost always sign a veteran defensive tackle to serve as the No. 3 lineman, and there are still plenty of options left on the open market, including Mike Daniels, Damon Harrison, and Brandon MeBane.

However – if the team opts to save some cap space and go with internal options instead, perhaps the most likely candidate to win the job outright is Mone, an undrafted free agent who joined the team last May.

Mone is a hulking presence, standing six-foot-three and weighing a whopping 366 pounds. He made the team out of camp last year in part thanks to Reed’s six-game suspension. He ended up pinballing between the practice squad and the active roster, appearing in four games and 89 total defensive snaps.

He didn’t do much with the opportunities he was given, recording just three combined tackles and one pressure, but he is the only other DT on the roster outside of Reed and Ford with any NFL experience.

Christmas was a sixth round pick by the team in 2019, but he missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury. Lattimore and Avery are both camp fodder, and while either could impress, the odds of making the team with such a limited window of exposure to the coaching staff thanks to COVID-19 are even trickier this season – giving Mone the upper hand.

Mone is the best bet for that No. 3 tackle role on the roster as things currently stand, but it would be a surprise if this team didn’t aggressively pursue a veteran upgrade on the interior over the next few weeks.

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Seahawks cut ties with 2017 3rd round pick Nazair Jones

Nazair Jones’ NFL career got off to a hot start, now he finds himself released with a failed physical designation after missing all of 2019.

In his first NFL game, in fact on his first NFL snap, Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Nazair Jones made quite the impression by intercepting a pass from Aaron Rodgers and returning it 64 yards for a touchdown back in September of 2017.

The touchdown may have been nullified by a block in the back, but the interception stood and, more importantly, it looked like the Seahawks had themselves a star in the making on the defensive line.

Now, less than three years later, Jones has been waived with a failed physical designation, part of four cuts the team made to accomodate 12 new rookie undrafted free agent signings.

Jones finished 2017 with stellar numbers, recording 19 combined tackles and two sacks in 11 games, but he regressed considerably in 2018 – only appearing in nine games and making just seven combined tackles.

The plan in 2019 was for him to make the transition to defensive end, where he would compete at five-tech. However, a knee injury prevented him from seeing the field at all in 2019, and is apparently bad enough for the team to give him the axe before training camp even begins.

Seattle’s depth on the interior defensive line was already thin and is now even thinner without Jones. Jarran Reed and Poona Ford will be the starters, but outside of that only Bryan Mone, an undrafted free agent in 2019, has any NFL experience on the roster.

A veteran signing, like they’ve done in the past with Al Woods and Shamar Stephen, seems all but certain – and a few names they could consider include Mike Daniels, Damon Harrison, and Brandon Mebane.

Jones’ career in Seattle started out with a bang, but unfortunately ends before it ever really got going, leaving Seattle’s 2017 draft class even less represented on the active roster.

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Should the Seahawks pursue defensive tackle Mike Daniels?

The Seattle Seahawks target a veteran defensive tackle late in free agency, and Mike Daniels and his pass rushing acumen are a perfect fit.

Every year, the Seattle Seahawks find a veteran, run-stuffing defensive tackle late in the free agency period to serve as their no. 3 tackle in the middle.

After Al Woods signed elsewhere in free agency, and Seattle did not select a defensive tackle during the draft, it looks like the plan is once again to find a replacement on the open market.

However, considering Seattle’s desperate need for more pass rush, perhaps they’ll look for a veteran defensive tackle who is less of a run-stuffer and more of a pass rusher to help them in that regard.

If that’s the case, Seattle should be on the phones with the representatives of Mike Daniels, a longtime Packers defensive tackle who played last year with the Lions.

Daniels, who turns 31 on May 5, is an eight year veteran who has 235 combined tackles and 30 sacks to his name, along with a Pro Bowl appearance in 2017.

He only appeared in nine games with Detroit last year, thanks to injuries, but he still managed a very solid 70.1 grade from Pro Football Focus – a sign there is plenty left in the tank.

The Seahawks have Jarran Reed and Poona Ford pencilled in to start on the interior, with Demarcus Christmas, Nazair Jones and Bryan Mone competing for backup spots.

An addition like Daniels would immediately bolster the depth up front, while giving Seattle another potential pass rushing threat – which they sorely need.

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Will Seahawks defensive lineman Nazair Jones reappear in 2020?

Nazair Jones saw his playing time dip from 2017 to 2018, and then he missed all of 2019 with a knee injury. What can we expect in 2020?

The Seattle Seahawks finished the 2019 season among the worst pass rushing teams in the NFL, an issue that impacted them all year long despite an 11-5 record.

While the team added a pair of veterans in Bruce Irvin and Benson Mayowa, they also lost Quinton Jefferson to free agency, and have yet to pull the trigger on any of the big name pass rushers on the market, including Jadeveon Clowney, Matthew Judon, Everson Griffen and Yannick Ngakoue.

The draft is almost certainly an avenue the Seahawks will explore to improve the team’s pass rush, but they also have some in-house options that could step up and contribute meaningful snaps in 2020 – including 2017 third round pick Nazair Jones.

Jones has steadily declined since his strong debut in 2017, which saw him appear in 11 games, making two starts, while recording 19 combined tackles, two sacks and an interception. He only appeared in nine games in 2018, making just seven combined tackles, and then missed the entire 2019 season with a knee injury.

Prior to going on the shelf, Jones was reportedly transitioning from three-tech to five-tech, a move that should give him added flexibility for a Seahawks defense that could use it. It also means he probably wasn’t getting the job done on the interior, which isn’t a great sign.

Jones will have to compete with Jarran Reed, Poona Ford, Bryan Mone and Demarcus Christmas for a job on the inside, and the Seahawks are almost certainly going to add to that mix via free agency and/or the NFL draft.

The five-tech spot is currently occupied by some combination of Benson Mayowa, Rasheem Green, L.J. Collier, Branden Jackson and Bruce Irvin – with more additions likely to come there as well.

Jones doesn’t have a clear path to a roster spot at the moment, but his 2017 performance was good enough to earn him another chance this summer – and if he looks healthy and displays some of that aggression and instinct we saw from him back then, he could be a dark horse candidate for rotational snaps in 2020.

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Will Demarcus Christmas make an impact for Seahawks in 2020?

The Seattle Seahawks need a backup defensive tackle in 2020, and 2019 sixth rounder Demarcus Christmas could be an in-house option.

The Seattle Seahawks made 11 selections in the 2019 NFL draft, and the majority of them made an appearance for the team during the regular season.

However, one who did not is defensive tackle Demarcus Christmas, a sixth rounder out of Florida State who was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list during training camp and was never activated, costing him the entire season.

Christmas was selected by Seattle for his versatility, with coach Pete Carroll excited about his ability to play over the center (0-tech) and over the guard (three-tech).

Christmas is healthy now, and will have a chance to compete for a spot on the defensive line. Jarran Reed and Poona Ford will be the starters, with Nazair Jones and Bryan Mone competing with Christmas for a backup spot.

However, Mone didn’t impress in his brief NFL action last year, and Jones was transitioned to five-tech before missing all of 2019 with a knee injury.

Christmas is probably nothing more than a backup run-stuffer, even at his peak, but that’s a role Seattle needs to fill next season, and his emergence would be a welcome development for a team in need of more bodies in the trenches.

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What to expect from Seahawks 2017 draft class in 2020

The Seattle Seahawks are hoping the remaining members of the 2017 Draft class will play a big role on the team in 2020.

The Seattle Seahawks have always valued quantity in the NFL draft. 2017 was no different, with John Schneider making a series of trades to net the squad 11 total draft picks.

Now, three years later, the Seahawks are left with just six of the 11 picks on the 2020 roster – and only two of them are guaranteed starting spots next season.

Malik McDowell was a huge bust, never even appearing in a game with the team after suffering a serious injury during the offseason.

Third rounder Amara Darboh never panned out, and the team recently released fourth round safety Tedric Thompson after a disappointing 2019 season – joining sixth rounders Mike Tyson and Justin Senior who are no longer on the squad.

However, Seattle made a couple great picks in the seventh round, and third rounder Shaquill Griffin developed into a Pro Bowler last season – so the draft was not a total loss.

Here’s a look at each of the players still on the roster, and how they are expected to be utilized in 2020.

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