Tag: Wyatt Ray

Jags place OLB Jordan Smith on IR, sign OLB Wyatt Ray

The Jags made roster moves on Tuesday by placing OLB Jordan Smith on IR and filling the available spot with OLB Wyatt Ray.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have officially placed second-year player Jordan Smith on injured reserve after he went down with a knee injury early last week. They also signed a player to fill his vacant spot on Tuesday by adding fourth-year linebacker Wyatt Ray to the roster.

Ray, 25, entered the league in 2019 as an undrafted player out of Boston College. He spent his rookie season as a practice squad player with various teams but got his first opportunities as a regular-season player with the Tennessee Titans (2020) and Cincinnati Bengals (2021).

While with the Bengals, he recorded 15 tackles and a sack (in 15 games), and while with the Titans, he recorded two tackles (in four games). Ray will also enter his tenure with the Jags with two starts, with one coming through his stints with both aforementioned teams.

As for his collegiate career, Wyatt accumulated 114 tackles, 24 tackles for loss, and 17 sacks while with the Boston College Eagles. In his senior season (2018), he was able to earn Third-Team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors after hitting a career-high of 44 tackles that season.

Wyatt is the grandson of the late legendary singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Nat King Cole and nephew of the late Natalie Cole. He’s also a native of Boca Raton, Fla. where he attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School.

As for Smith, reporters said that the staff was evaluating his right knee when he went down last Monday. Last Thursday, coach Doug Pederson announced that his injury would require surgery, which is expected to keep him out for the season.

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Titans snap count takeaways from 40-14 loss to Packers

Adoree’ Jackson saw a big uptick in snaps in Week 16.

The Tennessee Titans had a few different faces getting an opportunity on defense in Week 16 versus the Green Bay Packers, but unfortunately they weren’t able to help a listless unit that got demolished on Sunday night.

With outside linebacker Derick Roberson out, we saw outside linebackers Wyatt Ray, who notched the Titans’ first sack in 14 quarters, and Brooks Reed both get action in his place.

The question is: who saw more snaps?

In the secondary, we were keeping an eye out for how involved cornerback Adoree’ Jackson was in his second game this season, as well as how much playing time safety Kenny Vaccaro got after missing the last two games.

We’re going to take a look at the snap counts for Jackson, Vaccaro, Ray, Reed and the rest of the Titans on both sides of the ball from the embarrassing 40-14 loss at the hands of the Packers at Lambeau Field.

Report: Titans’ Vic Beasley will not play in Week 2 vs. Jaguars

There was some hope that Beasley would make his Titans debut in Week 2, but that’s gone now.

Despite getting in a pair of full practices to finish off the week, it appears Tennessee Titans outside linebacker Vic Beasley will not play in Week 2 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Per Titans beat writer Paul Kuharsky, Beasley will not be making his much-anticipated debut, and instead will be inactive for the second straight week.

Like last week, Beasley (knee) is on the injury report, however, unlike last week Beasley was a full participant in practice during the final session prior to the game, as opposed to being limited ahead of the Week 1 contest.

We can’t say for sure what’s going on, and at this point with everything that has transpired with Beasley, it could literally be anything.

An educated guess would be that Beasley simply isn’t ready to take the field, either because of a lack of knowledge of the defense, poor conditioning, or perhaps both.

Clearly it isn’t injury-related or else he wouldn’t have been full each of the past two days. Whatever the case may be, it looks like we’ll be waiting another week to see Beasley take the field in a Titans uniform.

Some potentially good news is that fellow outside linebacker, Derick Roberson, might make his 2020 debut after logging full practices the entire week. He’d be the fourth outside linebacker if he suits up and Beasley is inactive, which is one more than the team carried into Denver.

Tennessee also has an option on the practice squad in training camp standout Wyatt Ray, who is one of the team’s four protected players.

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Titans OLB Wyatt Ray is turning heads at training camp

Titans OLB Wyatt Ray is making the most of his opportunity in training camp.

The Tennessee Titans have had their fair share of issues at the outside linebacker position thus far in training camp, and that has opened the door for outside linebacker, Wyatt Ray, who is making the most of his opportunity.

Ray, who was signed on August 13, has shined at a time when the Titans are facing plenty of uncertainty at the position.

Tennesse has waived Reggie Gilbert and Josh Smith, Vic Beasley was placed on the NFI list after reporting late to training camp, and Kamalei Correa missed the first five full-squad practices before finally taking the field for the first time on Friday.

On Monday, outside linebackers coach Shane Bowen told the media that Ray had “flashed already” since joining the team.

Then, on Thursday, Jim Wyatt of Titans Online pointed to Ray as someone who has stood out at practice.

-Linebacker Wyatt Ray has flashed with several nice defensive plays in camp.

On Friday, Ray received recognition once again, this time from Turron Davenport of ESPN, who noted that the Boston College product is “quietly having a solid camp.”

The most important note from Davenport’s evaluation is the fact that Ray is getting consistent pressure. After all, improving the pass-rush is one of Tennessee’s top priorities going into the 2020 campaign.

Despite his standout performance, Ray is still facing an uphill climb to make the roster. The Titans figure to have four players already locked in at outside linebacker in Harold Landry, Correa, Beasley and 2019 fifth-round pick, D’Andre Walker.

Beyond those four, Derick Roberson has a great shot to make the roster after a strong finish to the 2019 campaign, although he isn’t a lock by any stretch.

While the Titans only carried five on their initial 53-man roster in 2019, the uncertainty surrounding Beasley could force Tennessee to carry an extra outside linebacker in 2020, which would obviously benefit Ray.

If that turns out not to be the case and the Titans go with five, Ray will have to topple Roberson for the final spot on the depth chart.

Even if he fails to make the team out of training camp, Ray is doing enough to get a look from another team, or at worst he could end up on the Titans’ practice squad.

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Titans agree to terms with OLB Wyatt Ray

Wyatt Ray is the Titans’ newest outside linebacker.

Two days after waiving outside linebacker Reggie Gilbert, the Tennessee Titans have added another to the roster.

The team announced on Thursday that it has agreed to terms with outside linebacker Wyatt Ray, who went undrafted out of Boston College in 2019.

Ray posted a picture of himself on Instagram signing his deal with the Titans.

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Thank you Lord!🙏🏽 #titanup⚔️

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The Cleveland Browns were the first team to sign him out of college, but he also spent time on the practice squads of the Houston Texans, Buffalo Bills and New York Jets last year.

Much like Gilbert, the 6-foot-3, 255-pound Ray is going to have an uphill climb in making the roster with the Titans having a solid group of outside linebackers already.

In 38 career games with the Eagles, Ray totaled 114 tackles (47 solo, 24 for loss), 17 sacks, one interception and three passes defended. His best season came in 2018 when he finished with 44 tackles (11.5 for loss) and nine sacks.

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2020 New York Jets Position Preview: Outside Linebacker

Jets Wire breaks down New York’s outside linebacker room with training camp and the 2020 season approaching.

With the NFLPA player reps officially approving the NFL’s proposal and training camp just a short ways away, it’s time to take a closer look at the makeup of the Jets’ roster entering the 2020 season.

The Jets did little to address the team’s long-standing issue at the pass-rushing position. While New York was able to bring back Jordan Jenkins on a team-friendly deal after the best season of his career and Tarell Basham has shown flashes of potential, the unit lacks depth. The Jets are going to have to get creative in terms of getting after the quarterback in 2020 considering the limitations the outside linebacker room currently has.

As training camp and the beginning of the regular season inch closer, Jets Wire will provide a look at each of New York’s position groups and what could be in store for the unit in 2020. Let’s breakdown the outside linebacker room at One Jets Drive.

The Starters

Jenkins is back in the fold to lead the group. His free agent market never really took off and while it may have been a letdown for the fifth-year pass-rusher, the Jets welcomed him back with open arms.

Jenkins has been New York’s steadiest presence on the edge. He led the team with eight sacks in 2019, adding 32 tackles, three passes defended, two forced fumbles, nine tackles for loss and 13 quarterback hits. Entering another contract year, Jenkins could play himself into a contract extension if he is able to steadily improve his sack production again.

Depth

A handful of players will compete for the starting job opposite Jenkins.

Basham is a favorite for more playing time in 2020, if not the second starting job. In his first full season in New York, he was a versatile playmaker but contributed the most at outside linebacker, where he registered 18 tackles, two sacks, six passes defended, one interception and one fumble recovery.

A pair of rookies will get a chance to take snaps away from Basham, though.

The Jets have high expectations for Jabari Zuniga, one of the team’s third-round picks in April’s draft. While the University of Florida product could play on the defensive line or at outside linebacker, there’s certainly less depth in the OLB room. Bryce Huff is the other rookie in the mix. The Jets guaranteed him the most money out of any of their undrafted free agents, a sign that he’ll get a chance to stick around. While Huff may be a bit undersized for his position, he has a nose for getting after the quarterback. Last season at Memphis, Huff ranked fourth in the nation among pass-rushers with 64 total pressures.

Among the other players competing for jobs on the outside are Harvey Langi, Frankie Luvu, Ahmad Gooden and Wyatt Ray.

Outlook

While Jenkins and Basham aren’t the most formidable tandem, they should be able to get after quarterbacks with some regularity considering how strong the Jets defensive line currently is. Another year of working under Gregg Williams and the Jets should finally see some consistency at the position.

As for the depth, the talent is there, but right now players like Langi, Luvu and Gooden are best suited as situational pass-rushers. For young edge rushers like Zuniga and Huff, there’s a real opportunity for them to push both Jenkins and Basham for playing time in 2020.

See more from Jets Wire’s Position Previews series:

QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | MLB

Jets waive Jamey Mosley, sign Wyatt Ray to practice squad

Just several weeks after rediscovering a home on New York’s practice squad, linebacker Jamey Mosley is a free agent once again.

Several weeks after rediscovering a home on New York’s practice squad, linebacker Jamey Mosley has found himself in a familiar spot as a free agent.

Mosley has spent most of his collegiate and professional career chasing the success of his older brother, C.J., who signed a five-year, $85 million contract with the Jets this past offseason. The Alabama product entered the league as an undrafted rookie before attempting to land a roster spot with New York in camp.

Though failing to withstand the team’s final rounds of cuts, narrowing the roster from 90 to 53, Mosley was quickly extended an offer to join the Jets’ practice squad. With only 10 spots available to each NFL franchise, New York elected to release their star linebacker’s younger brother to make room for Bronson Kaufusi on Oct. 7.

A few weeks of regular season play would pass before the Jets were faced with another complication at the linebacker position. After suffering a season-ending injury, New York placed Blake Cashman on injured reserve, bringing up Frankie Luvu and voiding his place on the practice squad. With a new hole to fill, the team brought Mosley back on Nov. 1.

Fast forward another several weeks and, yet again, Mosley has found himself on the chopping block. The Jets announced that they released the Alabama product to make room for another linebacker, Wyatt Ray, on Nov. 25.

Coming out of Boston College, Ray went undrafted before finding a home with the Cleveland Browns. That stay, however, would be short-lived, as the linebacker has been struggling to land on his feet ever since.

Ray has been cut by the Browns, Texans and Bills in his short time in the NFL. While experience is lacking in the 23-year-old, Ray will have to impress with potential if he hopes to find a permanent position with the Jets.