Tag: Will Parks

Jets re-sign S Will Parks

The Jets have re-signed S Will Parks.

The Jets have re-signed S Will Parks, the team announced Thursday.

Parks joined New York late in the 2021 season after injuries decimated the team’s safety unit. He started two out of three games played after coming over from the Dolphins. Parks recorded nine tackles, one TFL and a defended pass with the Jets.

Parks, 27, entered the league as a sixth-round pick with the Broncos in 2016. He has also played for Denver and Philadelphia. He briefly spent time with the Chiefs and 49ers in 2021, in addition to Miami, before joining the Jets.

Parks has 189 tackles, eight TFLs, four interceptions, 14 defended passes, two forced fumbles and two sacks in 76 career games.

The Jets also re-signed fellow safety Lamarcus Joyner on Thursday.

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Jets Free Agent Profile: What to do with S Will Parks?

The Jets claimed Will Parks off waivers in December in an effort to bolster their ailing secondary. Should he be back in 2022?

Before Joe Douglas can focus on external targets, he has a handful of impending in-house free agents to evaluate.

The Jets have more than a few players set to hit the open market this offseason. Some won’t factor into New York’s plans for 2022, while others, it’s safe to assume, the Jets would like to keep around for a while. Either way, Douglas has a lot of work to do to put together a competitive roster for Robert Saleh’s second year at the helm.

New York claimed Will Parks off waivers in December in an effort to bolster its ailing secondary. Should he be back as depth again in 2022? Let’s evaluate the situation in Jets Wire’s latest free agent profile.

Jets’ only healthy safeties are newcomers

The Jets’ only healthy safeties are a pair of players who haven’t taken a single snap for New York.

Ashtyn Davis and Sharrod Neasman are on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Elijah Riley is in concussion protocol. That means the Jets’ only healthy safeties are a pair of players who haven’t taken a single snap for New York.

Meet Will Parks and practice squad member Elijah Benton.

Parks was claimed off waivers this week after the Dolphins released him on Dec. 20. The 27-year-old played for the Broncos and Eagles from 2016-2020. He has 180 tackles, 13 defended passes and four interceptions for his career.

Benton, meanwhile, was signed in early December. The 25-year-old spent time with the Seahawks and Patriots this season. Benton entered the league as an undrafted free agent with the Browns in 2020. He appeared in one game for Cleveland and only played a handful of snaps on special teams.

Both players now have a chance to see significant snaps at safety, a position that has hindered the Jets all season. There is a chance Riley returns this week after his scary Week 15 collision, but Parks and Benton could play a lot either way when the Jets face the Jaguars this weekend.

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4 things to know about new Jets safety Will Parks

Get to know new Jets safety Will Parks after he was signed on Tuesday.

The Jets signed safety Will Parks on Tuesday, adding some depth to their secondary after Elijah Riley suffered a concussion against the Dolphins and Michael Carter II was placed on the COVID-19 list.

Parks has bounced around the league throughout 2021, with New York being his fourth stop of the year. The Jets are hoping the 27-year-old can provide some much-needed veteran help if called upon, as they have struggled in the secondary all season.

Here are four things to know about New York’s newest safety.

Dolphins place Justin Coleman on COVID list, make two roster moves at safety

Miami made a flurry of moves on Monday.

The Miami Dolphins thought they were finding their way out of their COVID-19 outbreak on Monday when they returned Jaylen Waddle and Jevon Holland from the reserve/COVID list, however, another player has landed on it.

Defensive back Justin Coleman is being placed on the team’s reserve/COVID list, as the Dolphins announced on social media. Coleman is the seventh player to be added to the list in just over a week’s time, and considering he played 63% of the snaps Sunday and has been around his team, it’s possible that there could be more joining him in the coming days.

With this news, the Dolphins also announced that they made two moves at the safety position, as they waived veteran Will Parks and signed Sheldrick Redwine from their practice squad.

Parks has been with the Dolphins for roughly a month and has only appeared in one game (Week 13 vs. the Giants) where he played just four special teams snaps.

Redwine has been back and forth from Miami’s practice squad this season. He played 20 special teams snaps against the Jets on Sunday.

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Dolphins sign a safety, place two defenders on injured reserve

Miami is signing Will Parks from the 49ers’ practice squad.

During Sunday’s game against the New York Jets, the Miami Dolphins lost two players to injuries that knocked them out for the game.

Linebacker Brennan Scarlett suffered a knee injury in the first half, and cornerback Jamal Perry was carted off with a knee in the second half. The team announced Tuesday that both players would be placed on injured reserve, forcing them to miss at least three games.

Scarlett, in his first year with Miami, has been in a rotational role to this point, playing 21% of the snaps. However, he’s played significant time on special teams.

Perry was signed to the active roster last week from the team’s practice squad and was likely going to be a depth option for the team. He had played just five snaps Sunday before suffering his injury.

These moves opened up two holes on the Dolphins’ 53-man roster. One of those holes is being filled by safety Will Parks, who Miami signed Tuesday off of San Francisco’s practice squad.

This is Parks’ sixth year in the league after being drafted the sixth round of the 2016 draft. Parks spent his first four years with the Broncos, before splitting his fifth season between Denver and Philadelphia. In 2020, he played 75% of the defensive snaps for the Broncos.

With Perry out at least three weeks, and Jason McCourty not coming back anytime soon, it makes sense that the Dolphins add some veteran depth. If they lose any of their top three safeties, Parks could be plugged in with some confidence.

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Report: S Will Parks is a candidate to land with the Vikings

Do you want the Vikings to sign S Will Parks?

Last offseason, the Vikings were in contact with safety Will Parks, but ultimately Parks signed with the Eagles in free agency.

Now that Minnesota needs safety depth again, Parks is a name that has come up, according to Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune. With safeties Xavier Woods and Josh Metellus banged up, the Vikings are pursuing Parks after he was released by Kansas City this offseason.

The move to do this makes sense. This not only a player the Vikings have liked in the past, but one who fits an obvious need at safety and on special teams.

If Woods and Metellus end up missing significant time, there will be a big drop-off on the depth chart past Harrison Smith. The next best safety would either be Camryn Bynum, a fourth-round pick from 2021, or Myles Dorn, an undrafted free agent who signed in 2020.

Chiefs DB Will Parks fined for illegal block vs. 49ers

#Chiefs DB Will Parks became the first player to be flagged and fined under the NFL’s expanded low block rules.

A pair of Kansas City Chiefs players caught fines for plays during preseason Week 1 against the San Francisco 49ers. One of those players was the first to receive a fine under the NFL’s expanded low block rule.

Had you never read the newly implemented rule, this would have looked like a normal football play that you’ve probably seen dozens of times. 49ers offensive guard Aaron Banks was pulling to the right side of the offensive line and Chiefs DB Will Parks went low to block him in order to keep his leverage. The expanded rule doesn’t allow for offensive and defensive players on scrimmage downs to block low when contact occurs beyond five yards and more than two yards outside of either offensive tackle.

Here’s a look at the play:

This is tough on defensive backs, who are at a huge size disadvantage when offensive linemen are heading at them with a full head of steam. In the past, it has been considered a smart football play for them to go low rather than get barreled over. Now, the league believes it’s too dangerous and puts offensive and defensive players at unnecessary risk of injury.

Parks was fined $5,500 against his game check for this penalty per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

You’re going to see a lot more outside runs in the NFL this season with pulling linemen getting two yards outside the offensive tackle. It’s going to be really tough for defenses to stop because of that natural size advantage that offensive linemen have over defensive backs. If officials throw the flag frequently, it’s going to extend a lot of offensive drives this year.

The other fine for the Chiefs wasn’t quite as severe. Darwin Thompson, who was flagged for unnecessary roughness after a tough run, was fined $4,900 for what the NFL considered “headbutting” a 49ers player per Pelissero.

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Chiefs to sign former Broncos DB Will Parks

The Kansas City Chiefs are adding a veteran defensive back, formerly of the Denver Broncos.

The Kansas City Chiefs have rounded out their 90-man offseason roster with a pair of free-agent signings. First, they added former Notre Dame WR Chris Finke and now they’ve added a former AFC West foe.

According to reports from both ESPN and NFL Network, the Chiefs are signing veteran defensive back Will Parks, formerly of the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles. Parks is a former sixth-round pick by the Broncos in 2016 who has made a nice career for himself as a reserve.

Over fives seasons, he appeared in 66 career games and started 15 for the Broncos. Recording 149 total tackles, two sacks, seven tackles for loss, four interceptions, 13 passes defended, two fumble recovers and one forced fumble. He played a part of the 2020 season with the Eagles but was waived and claimed by his former team.

The Chiefs tend to like to bring in veteran defensive back depth during the course of the offseason program. Last season they brought in Tedric Thompson and Adrian Colbert as Juan Thornhill was recovering from his prior ACL injury. While Parks is probably a long shot to make the 53-man roster, it pays to have veteran depth available in the event an injury were to happen during the course of offseason training.

This is the 90th player for Kansas City, meaning that barring any releases their 90-man offseason roster is complete.

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Lions held visits for two free agent defensive backs

Dunbar and Parks each remain unsigned

The Detroit Lions haven’t added any players in free agency in a few days, but GM Brad Holmes and the team continue to look for additional help on the free agent market. The Lions hosted two veteran defensive backs for official visits.

Cornerback Quinton Dunbar and safety Will Parks each had visits with the Lions on the NFL’s official transaction log on Monday.

Dunbar’s presence was an expected one. The former Seahawks and Football Team starter was known to have a visit with the Lions on his schedule, though the actual date was not known. Dunbar, 28, started six games for the Seahawks in 2020 before winding up on injured reserve. He was a full-time starter–when healthy–for Washington in 2017-2019.

Parks split 2020 between Denver and Philadelphia. A sixth-round pick by the Broncos in 2016, Parks has played in 72 career NFL games, starting 18. He played extensively in three-safety looks in Denver and can play any of the three primary safety spots.

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