Tag: tryouts

First day as Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia holds slew of player tryouts

Raiders interim HC Rich Bisaccia had a busy first day holding a slew of player tryouts

With a new head coach in charge comes changes. Interim head coach Rich Bisaccia got a good look at good many free agent players Tuesday. The team hosted some 11 players, most of whom trying out for the team.

Those players were as follows:

WR Omar Bayless
WR Austin Mack
TE Hakeem Butler
TE Dax Raymond
T Dan Skipper
G Earl Watford
LB Sutton Smith
DB Tony Brown
DB Bradley McDougald
DB Kevin Toliver (visit)
DB Ken Webster

The Raiders have lost two straight after starting the season 3-0. They have also seen a few players go down with injuries and few slated to return soon.

Being that it’s the middle of the season, the fix is not as simple as changing up schemes. And there’s only so much improvement that can be had by rearranging the players they currently have. After that it’s either about trying to uncover a player others missed or make a trade to acquire one.

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Browns tryout five players on Friday

Browns GM Andrew Berry continues to scour the earth looking for talent. Today, the team worked out 3 offensive linemen and two defensive backs:

The Cleveland Browns continue to look to upgrade their roster for the best fits for the short and long-term. The team made a number of changes this week including releasing LB Elijah Lee to make room for the returning Anthony Walker at the same position. The Browns also placed Nick Harris on injured reserve and signed Hjalte Froholdt, both on the offensive line.

Lee returned to the Cleveland practice squad for a day then was re-signed to the active roster to fill the spot available after the Browns waived DE Joe Jackson.

Today, the Browns have five players in for workouts:

  • OT Coy Cronk – Iowa
  • OT Evin Ksiezarczyk – Buffalo
  • OT Elijah Nkansah – Toledo
  • DB Luther Kirk – Illinois State
  • DB Nate Meadors – UCLA

Cronk was an undrafted free agent that was signed by the Green Bay Packers after this year’s draft. Ksiezarczyk was with the Minnesota Vikings this offseason after training camp with the Atlanta Falcons in 2020. Nkahsah has bounced around with a number of teams since being undrafted in 2018 including playing one game for Seattle that year.

Kirk was with the Vikings in 2020 and 2021 but was waived in early September of this year. Meadors has also been with the Vikings with three games played there between 2019 and 2020. Since then, he has been signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars and Philadelphia Eagles with no games played.

None of the five were signed today but the team could make that move on Saturday or wait until Monday of Week 6.

For now, general manager Andrew Berry and his staff continue to turn over every stone looking for the best players for their team.

Kenny Stills among latest Saints free agent tryouts

Kenny Stills, Marqise Lee among latest Saints free agent tryouts:

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Well that’s interesting. The New Orleans Saints reported a group of free agents in for tryouts on Monday’s update to the daily NFL transactions wire, and one of them is pretty familiar: wide receiver Kenny Stills. He was one of four wide receivers to work out for the team after it sent Tre’Quan Smith to injured reserve for at least three weeks.

That leaves a group of receivers on the 53-man roster that includes Marquez Callaway, Deonte Harris, Ty Montgomery, Lil’Jordan Humphrey, and Chris Hogan, with three more on the practice squad — Kevin White, Easop Winston Jr., and rookie draft pick Kawaan Baker.

Originally drafted by New Orleans out of Oklahoma, Stills found immediate success with the Saints until he was surprisingly traded to the Miami Dolphins in 2015, where he remained until he signed with the Houston Texans in 2019. After two years in Houston, he’s a free agent again, and could return where his career started. Stills has averaged 2.6 receptions and 41.4 receiving yards per game in the NFL.

But no one has been signed yet. Here’s the other players who worked out on Monday:

Several ex-Lions hit the NFL’s tryout circuit this week

Danny Amendola and Kerryon Johnson were among the ex-Lions trying out for other teams this week

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While the Detroit Lions didn’t make any transactions on the NFL’s official log on Tuesday, several familiar names made appearances in the “tryouts” section.

Houston was apparently the place to be for ex-Lions on the tryout circuit. Two former Detroit players were auditioning for the Texans, most notably wide receiver Danny Amendola. The veteran slot receiver, a Houston-area native, was joined by CB Cre’von LeBlanc, who was with the Lions in 2018.

Running back Kerryon Johnson, fresh off his injury settlement with the Philadelphia Eagles, was in Las Vegas to work out for the Raiders. Safety Alijah Holder, who was cut by the Lions last week, was also in Las Vegas. One-time starting fullback Nick Bawden tried out for the Patriots.

None of the players were immediately signed by the respective teams. This is the first time Amendola, 35, has worked for any teams since his Lions contract expired after two years as Detroit’s starting slot receiver.

Saints sign defensive tackle after tryout, waive backup fullback

Saints sign DT Damion Square after tryout, waive FB Sutton Smith

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A series of free agent tryouts this week have resulted in the New Orleans Saints signing some help. Friday’s update to the daily NFL transactions wire saw New Orleans report a new addition to the depth chart in defensive tackle Damion Square, who spent his first six years in the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers.

Square, 32, weighs in at 6-foot-2 and 293 pounds. He was recently waived after spending training camp with the Cleveland Browns. He’s never been much of a pass rusher (bagging just 8 sacks in 1,196 pass-rush snaps, per Pro Football Focus) but could help solidify a position that’s running thin on experienced players with David Onyemata starting the year with a six-game suspension and Jalen Dalton landing on injured reserve.

Right now, the defensive tackles on New Orleans’ roster eligible to play in Week 1 are Square, Malcolm Roach, Shy Tuttle, Christian Ringo, Albert Huggins, R.J. McIntosh, and rookie Josiah Bronson. The team typically only keeps four or five, so at least three of that group will soon be waived and maybe revert to the practice squad.

The corresponding move was the release of fullback Sutton Smith, who was pushing veteran pickup Alex Armah Jr. for the starting job. Smith will test the waiver wire. He had been playing a high number of snaps on both offense and special teams while auditioning for the gig, but the Saints must have seen enough from Armah to call this battle off early. That marks the third preseason roster battle to be settled in as many days — punter Blake Gillikin won his job over rookie Nolan Cooney, while Jameis Winston was of course named the starting quarterback earlier Friday. The Saints’ Week 1 roster is beginning to take shape.

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Saints work out three free agent tight ends, pair of defensive tackles

Saints work out three free agent tight ends, pair of defensive tackles, via @KadeKistner:

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The New Orleans Saints have brought in five free agents to work out in positions that are light on depth. With tight ends Adam Trautman and Nick Vannett both suffering injuries on Monday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars, tight end has become a position of need. While the prognosis is positive for both tight ends, an extra body or two is needed.

Defensive tackle has been a position with plenty of question marks surrounding it heading into the season. Jalen Dalton was a projected starter until he was lost for the year with an injury, and David Onyemata will serve a six-game suspension to start the season.

Here are the players the Saints brought in for workouts:

Bennie Fowler, Malachi Dupre among Saints free agent tryouts

The Saints brought in a crowd of free agents including wide receivers Kevin White, Malachi Dupre, Bennie Fowler, and Devin Smith for tryouts:

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The first wave of roster cuts across the NFL is unpleasant at best, but the New Orleans Saints have taken the opportunity to bring in free agents for tryouts to see where they can improve their team. A group of six players worked out for the team on Tuesday, and more are on the way. Here is everything you need to know:

Seahawks sign 4 players to roster ahead of weekend rookie minicamp

The Seattle Seahawks have signed four players to the roster ahead of this weekend’s rookie minicamp from May 14-16.

The Seattle Seahawks announced they have signed four players to the roster ahead of this weekend’s rookie minicamp, which is set to take place from May 14-16.

Seattle signed safety Joshua Moon, safety LaDarius Wiley, defensive tackle Walter Palmore and defensive end Marcus Webb.

None of the four free agents are rookies, but all are allowed to participate in the camp.

This will mark Webb’s second stint in Seattle as he had signed with the Seahawks last spring as an undrafted free agent.

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Cowboys bring in two tight ends, tackle, and QB for tryouts

After injuries to key starters in Sunday’s Week 1 loss, the Cowboys have brought in several new players for a tryout, including a QB.

Evaluating talent is a full-time-all-the-time endeavor in the NFL. Even if the Cowboys hadn’t seen injuries take Blake Jarwin, Leighton Vander Esch, and Cam Erving off the field in Sunday night’s opener, the team would still be expected to at least kick the tires on some new names this week.

Given the season-ending ACL tear to starting tight end Blake Jarwin, it’s not surprising to see a couple more on the club’s tryout list. Taking a look at tackle is always smart for offensive line depth, especially after Dak Prescott was sacked three times in Los Angeles. There are no linebackers trying out, so Dallas seems content to roll with who they’ve got. But they are getting an up close and personal look at a quarterback with a unique claim to fame.

Erik Swoope is likely the most familiar of the bunch. He has been affiliated with four teams after entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 2014. The University of Miami tight end played with the Colts for five seasons, catching three touchdowns in 2018. Since then, Swoope’s done a one-day stint with the Saints, a two-month stay in Oakland, and a week in San Francisco.

Cheyenne O’Grady played college ball at Arkansas, catching 85 passes from 2016 to 2019 and scoring 11 touchdowns. The tight end left the Razorbacks team in November of his senior year and went undrafted in April.

Offensive tackle Jared Veldheer was a third-round selection by the Raiders in 2010. After four years in the silver and black, he spent four more seasons with the Cardinals. He started 12 games in 2018 as a Denver Bronco. After signing a one-year deal to play in New England in 2019, Veldheer retired from football a week later, only to change his mind and be claimed by Green Bay late last season.

Quarterback Jalen Morton was an undrafted free agent out of Prairie View A&M. He signed with the Packers, but was released in early August. While Dallas’s stable of passers would appear to be full, Morton may be worth a look-see if only to gauge his notable arm strength.

According to his bio, Morton- who has a degree in mechanical engineering- can throw a football 100 yards.

“The last time I did that was late July before camp,” he told Sports Illustrated‘s Bill Huber over his summer in Green Bay. “I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m feeling good about the season. I feel good about it. I feel good about it because I know my arm strength. I used to play baseball. I know the type of conditioning to keep in shape and keep doing that. I’ve seen Aaron Rodgers flick the ball and it goes 75. I can only imagine what he would do if he takes a couple of hitches and lets it go.”

The Cowboys merely brought in all four players for tryouts. The dream may last for just one workout or the invite could lead to a spot on the practice squad. And then who knows?

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Seahawks host defensive linemen for tryouts and visits on Tuesday

The Seattle Seahawks hosted a number of defensive linemen for tryouts and visits on Tuesday in the wake of Rasheem Green’s shoulder injury.

The Seattle Seahawks will always continue the search to beef up and strengthen their defensive line. Seattle hosted two players for visits to the facility on Tuesday – former Seahawk defensive tackle Demarcus Christmas and defensive end Breeland Speaks. The Seahawks also had defensive end John Daka in for a tryout.

The visits come on the heels of an injury to one of Seattle’s defensive ends during the Week-1 win over the Falcons. Rasheem Green briefly left the game in the first quarter with a shoulder injury and was still bothered by it on Monday.

Christmas was with the Seahawks over the summer but was waived during the initial 53-man roster cuts.

Speaks was originally selected by the Chiefs in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft and appeared in all 16 games as a rookie. He spent last season on the injured reserve after undergoing knee surgery. While on the IR, he was suspended four games for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy.

The Seahawks also hosted defensive back Michael Jacquet and guard Andrew Jones for tryouts.

No other transactions were listed for the Seahawks on Tuesday so if any signings were executed, we’ll have to wait until Pete Carroll addresses the media on Wednesday to find out.

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