Tag: River Cracraft

Three areas of intrigue for Dolphins vs. Buccaneers preseason opener

A few things that might pique Dolphins fans’ interest.

The Miami Dolphins kick off their preseason slate Saturday night in Tampa Bay against the Buccaneers. It will be Mike McDaniel’s inaugural in-game action as head coach, as he officially becomes the 11th (14th including interims) coach in franchise history.

While this is his 16th season as a coach in this league, McDaniel is a rookie as head coach and enters 2022 with a Dolphins team on a two-year winning record streak, despite missing the postseason both years. The Dolphins are looking for their first appearance in the playoffs since 2016 and seeking a victory in the tournament for the first time since the 2000 season.

In the 10 seasons Miami has played under a new coach, the franchise is 75-81 with four coaches leading the Dolphins to the playoffs in their first season – Don Shula in 1970, Dave Wannstedt in 2000, Tony Sparano in 2008 and Adam Gase in 2016.

McDaniel and the Dolphins will face a Buccaneers team just two seasons removed from a Super Bowl victory, and while they may be without Tom Brady because of personal reasons, this is still a strong litmus test for this Miami – a team that enters 2022 with their highest expectations in nearly two decades.

Here are a few things to be focused on during the contest.

Dolphins WR and TE ratings in Madden NFL 23

EA Sports released the first positional rankings

As we’re all collectively crossing the end of another long offseason in the coming weeks, football fans are looking forward to the newest installment of the Madden video game series.

We’ve seen some early looks of new Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel in the game, and it doesn’t look half bad. However, everyone knows the gameplay and the ratings are the aspects of the game that are much more important and frequently discussed.

On Monday, EA Sports, the publishers of the game, released the wide receivers and tight end ratings for Madden NFL 23, and the Dolphins have a top 10 player at each position.

Here’s a look at most of Miami’s wide receiver and tight end ratings for launch and how they compare to other players at the same position:

  • Tyreek Hill – 96 overall (No. 3 WR)
  • Mike Gesicki – 86 overall (No. 7 TE)
  • Jaylen Waddle – 84 overall (t-No. 27 WR)
  • Cedrick Wilson Jr. – 75 overall (t-No. 85 WR)
  • Preston Williams – 72 overall (t-No. 120 WR)
  • Lynn Bowden Jr. – 70 overall (t-No. 148 WR)
  • Adam Shaheen – 68 overall (t- No. 56 TE)
  • Durham Smythe – 68 overall (t- No. 56 TE)
  • Trent Sherfield – 68 overall (t-No. 190 WR)
  • Cody Core – 67 overall (t-No. 208 WR)
  • Hunter Long – 66 overall (t-No. 69 TE)
  • Erik Ezukanma – 66 overall (t-No. 223 WR)
  • River Cracraft – 65 overall (t-No. 241 WR)

There will be more ratings coming out before the game’s release on August 19.

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2022 Dolphins positional preview: Depth is a key difference at WR

More than one talented player could end up not making the roster.

The Miami Dolphins’ offseason is weeks away from coming to an end, as training camp is set to start at the end of July. From there, the team will be practicing on campus against each other and other teams before the start of the regular season.

This gives us some time to talk about the state of the roster before the first camp of the Mike McDaniel era begins. After discussing quarterbacks and running backs earlier in the week, today we’ll take a look at a wide receiver group that has certainly gotten a lot better since Miami last took the field.

Dolphins WR talks up Mike McDaniel, compares him to others

No one has said a bad word about the coach yet.

When the Miami Dolphins hired Mike McDaniel back in February, there wasn’t a ton of information available about him.

He was Kyle Shanahan’s right-hand man, and he had some funny clips when speaking to the media. Beyond that, there wasn’t much.

Over the last few months, his personality and football acumen have been made clear from his interviews, press conferences and past players’ and coaches’ stories.

One of the first moves that the Dolphins made after McDaniel was hired was signing former San Francisco 49ers wide receiver River Cracraft. The wideout and coach obviously had the connection from their time with the 49ers, and the former was impressed by the latter.

This week Miami is holding organized team activities, giving a number of the veterans their first shot to get on the field together. Cracraft took some time to speak with the media, and he complimented his head coach.

“He’s a super genius,” Cracraft said. “That’s all you need to now. He’s smarter than everyone else. No offense to everybody out there. He’s a player’s coach… He acts like one of us in the sense that you can talk to him. He’s never going to big time you.”

Cracraft also spoke about what drew him to McDaniel and the Dolphins, and he talked about their shared experience.

“I’ve just always believed in Mike,” Cracraft said. “I was with him for the last two years. My first real experience getting to know Mike, he substituted for our receiver room back in San Francisco. It was my first time one-on-one really getting to know what he knows and I was so blown away with how comfortable and how smart he was…That was my introduction to Mike and I was just so blown away. So when he got this opportunity and he told me I had an opportunity to get over here, I jumped on it as quick as I couldn’t and I’m just glad it worked out.”

That seems to be the same sentiment that a lot of players have shared since meeting and working with McDaniel. He’s personable, but he also knows a ton about the game. That’s why he’s been getting the respect before coaching a single game.

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49ers legend River Cracraft follows Mike McDaniel to Dolphins

A former #49ers WR is heading to Miami to join Mike McDaniel.

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The first former 49ers player to depart the Bay Area and join Mike McDaniel in Miami is wide receiver River Cracraft. The Dolphins on Thursday announced the signing.

Cracraft joined the 49ers in the 2020 offseason and spent most of the next two seasons in San Francisco. He bounced between the practice squad and the active roster during his two years and appeared in 15 games mostly on special teams.

In 2020 while the 49ers dealt with injury issues he saw 112 offensive snaps in six games and caught six balls for 41 yards. In 2021 he didn’t play at all on offense in nine games.

Now he’ll get a shot with the Dolphins in a familiar offense, and he’ll likely take on an on-field coach role for Miami’s first-time head coach.

Dolphins sign former 49ers WR River Cracraft

He’s done some returning and has played sparingly on offense.

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The Miami Dolphins have made their first signing since the team hired Mike McDaniel as their new head coach.

The team announced Thursday that they’ve signed former San Francisco 49ers wide receiver River Cracraft, who has spent the last two seasons jumping back and forth from the active roster and the practice squad. However, he was waived on January 29 and was never picked back up.

Cracraft went undrafted in 2017 after a decent four-year career at Washington State. He was signed after the draft by the Denver Broncos and was on and off the roster for three seasons. After being waived by the Broncos, he signed with the Eagles practice squad but was never called up.

In his five-year career, the 27-year-old has appeared in 24 games, recording seven receptions for 85 yards. He also did some returning, averaging just 4.7 yards per punt return between Denver and San Francisco.

Cracraft joins his former head coach in Miami and will look for an opportunity to make the roster this summer for a team that has six wide receivers that are set to become free agents.

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San Francisco 49ers sign free agent WR River Cracraft to 1-year deal

River Cracraft will be back with the San Francisco 49ers on a 1-year contract and should have a shot to make the roster.

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The San Francisco 49ers on Monday announced wide receiver River Cracraft will return to the club on a one-year deal.

Cracraft signed last year during training camp when San Francisco suffered a rash of injuries at the wide receiver position. While they likely added him to work in as a camp body, he wound up getting more than half the season on the active roster while injuries continued wreaking havoc on the receiving corps.

He started one of his nine games last season and caught six of his nine targets for 41 yards. Cracraft also worked in as a punt returner and churned out 40 yards on five returns.

With some question marks toward the back end of the wide receiver depth chart, a player like Cracraft with experience in the offense who can also contribute on special teams is a valuable piece to have in camp. While they likely hope Cracraft won’t need to play nearly as often in 2021 as he did in 2020, he’ll have a real shot to stick around on the roster if he puts together a strong offseason.

Ex-Broncos WR River Cracraft signs with 49ers

The former Broncos punt returner has a new team.

Former Denver Broncos wide receiver River Cracraft has signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The 49ers needed to add more depth with five receivers battling injuries at training camp.

Cracraft (6-0, 195 pounds) entered the league as a college free agent out of Washington State in 2017. He joined the Broncos’ practice squad midway through his rookie season. After starting the 2018 season on the practice again, Cracraft was promoted to the active roster to serve as a punt returner.

Cracraft initially made the Broncos’ 53-man roster last year only to be cut, re-signed and then cut again. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Philadelphia Eagles in January and was cut in April.

After being let go by Philly, Cracraft worked out for the Arizona Cardinals but was not signed. He then visited San Francisco and signed Wednesday.

Cracraft has one career catch that went for 44 yards in 2018. He has also returned 12 punts for 40 yards and three kickoffs for 43 yards.

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49ers add 2 WRs, waive WR and DL

The San Francisco 49ers added a couple wide receivers, then waived a WR and DL in a corresponding move.

The 49ers on Thursday made a couple new additions to their roster. San Francisco announced the signing of wide receivers River Cracraft and Kevin White to help their ailing receiving corps. In a corresponding move they waived WR Jaron Brown and waived/injured defensive lineman Jonathan Kongbo.

Cracraft and White were both part of a workout earlier in the week. Cracraft signed with the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2018. He played in nine games and posted one catch for 40 yards. He also had 12 punt returns, which may be his path to sticking with the 49ers.

White was a high-profile prospect in the 2015 draft. He went No. 7 overall, but missed his first year with an injury. That set the tone for his entire career. White has played in just 14 games since 2015, including none in 2015 and none last season after spending the preseason with Arizona. He has 25 catches for 285 yards and no touchdowns in his career. White is a great combination of size and athleticism who could carve out a role in the NFL once he’s healthy.

Neither White nor Cracraft are likely to land on the 53-man roster since they’re joining a crowded group late in training camp, but the 49ers need capable bodies at that position with Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, Richie James Jr. and Jalen Hurd all out with injuries.

Brown and Kongbo were both let go to make room on the 49ers’ 80-man roster. Brown was signed on August 19, but didn’t perform well enough in camp to stick around. Kongbo was waived with an injury designation, so he’ll revert to the 49ers’ Injured Reserve if he clears waivers.

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Philadelphia Eagles waive a pair of wide receivers

Philadelphia Eagles waive a pair of wide receivers

The Philadelphia Eagles added a ton of receiving help in the NFL draft and just waived a pair to lessen the roster.

The Eagles announced they’ve waived Marken Michel and River Cracraft

A California native, Cracraft played four seasons at Washington State and was named honorable mention All-Pac-12 Conference and honorable mention All-Freshman Team by College Football News.

Cracraft had 53 receptions, 701 receiving yards, and five touchdowns in his senior season and was named honorable mention All-Pac 12 before tearing his ACL in the tenth game of the season.

Cracraft spent three years on the Broncos practice squad after going undrafted.