Tracking former Lions

[Mainevent]

We can send him Tavai for a 3rd rounder.

[Futureshock]

Adrian Peterson is looking for a contender to give him a chance for a ring

Posted by Charean Williams on April 20, 2021, 9:04 PM EDT

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Adrian Peterson wants to play a 15th season for a chance to win a championship, but to do that, the running back needs to find a team to give him a chance.

Peterson reiterated Tuesday what he said earlier this offseason: He is not ready to retire.

Peterson, who turned 36 last month, has two goals remaining in his career — breaking Emmitt Smith’s career rushing record and winning a Super Bowl ring.

“I’m looking for a contender,” Peterson told SiriusXM NFL Radio, via NFL Media. “I’m looking for a team that’s built to go and chase a championship. That’s my ultimate goal, and I feel like I can really help to contribute in accomplishing that. A team with a good quarterback, a good defense and some playmakers on the offensive side of the ball. For me to be able to get into that type of situation would be perfect.”

It sounds like Peterson just described the Buccaneers, a prospect he mentioned in February. But since then, the Bucs have re-signed Leonard Fournette and signed Giovani Bernard.

Peterson averaged 3.9 yards on 156 carries and 37.8 yards in rushing for 604 in his only season in Detroit. He has played for three other teams since leaving Minnesota after the 2016 season.

Peterson has 14,820 rushing yards, putting him fifth on the all-time list, 3,535 behind Smith. Smith has three Super Bowl rings.

Peterson has never played in a Super Bowl, reaching the NFC Championship Game once. The Vikings went 1-4 in the postseason in his time there, and Peterson has not appeared in a playoff game with any other team.

“The love for the game. That’s really the main thing that’s driving me on top of wanting to win a championship,” Peterson said. “The love for the game. I’m going to be 36 years old. How many 36-year-old guys can say that they’re playing in the NFL and are able to do it at a high level? That’s my whole mindset. I want to look back and say, ‘You know what? Not only did I play because I love the game, and I was chasing a championship, but I was able to do it. I was physically able to go out there and perform at a high level.’ When I’m done, I’ll be able to look back and say, ‘You know what? I put my best foot forward, and I ended on my terms.'”

Peterson, though, won’t get to end on his terms unless he comes to terms with a team for 2021.

[Futureshock]

Bill Belichick: Matt Patricia has been a very valuable resource in return to Patriots

Posted by Curtis Crabtree on April 26, 2021, 11:33 PM EDT

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After a three-year stint as head coach of the Detroit Lions, Matt Patricia is back working for the New England Patriots.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is glad to have him back under their roof.

In an interview with the team’s website, Belichick spoke highly of the role Patricia has played for the team as they prepare for this week’s NFL Draft.

“Matt, he’s done this for the last three years in a different organization and so he’s very familiar with our process, his process and all the things that go around that,” Belichick said. “He’s been really a very valuable resource and confidant and somebody to talk to whose been through the same things that we’ve been through and his experience and perspective has been extremely valuable.”

Belichick has said that Patricia has been heavily involved with the team’s draft process since being brought back to the team in January. Patricia’s return to the organization comes with a hand in multiple roles with the team, which seemingly include a rather significant one surrounding the draft.

Patricia now has three years of experience as a key figure of a draft room with the Lions. He’s the only one on the coaching staff besides Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to have such experience from the NFL.

[whatever_gong82]

Bill Belichick: Matt Patricia has been a very valuable resource in return to Patriots

Posted by Curtis Crabtree on April 26, 2021, 11:33 PM EDT

Getty Images

After a three-year stint as head coach of the Detroit Lions, Matt Patricia is back working for the New England Patriots.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is glad to have him back under their roof.

In an interview with the team’s website, Belichick spoke highly of the role Patricia has played for the team as they prepare for this week’s NFL Draft.

“Matt, he’s done this for the last three years in a different organization and so he’s very familiar with our process, his process and all the things that go around that,” Belichick said. “He’s been really a very valuable resource and confidant and somebody to talk to whose been through the same things that we’ve been through and his experience and perspective has been extremely valuable.”

Belichick has said that Patricia has been heavily involved with the team’s draft process since being brought back to the team in January. Patricia’s return to the organization comes with a hand in multiple roles with the team, which seemingly include a rather significant one surrounding the draft.

Patricia now has three years of experience as a key figure of a draft room with the Lions. He’s the only one on the coaching staff besides Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to have such experience from the NFL.

All that experience didn't do him a whole lot of good 13-29-1, .314 winning percentage in almost 3 years, FINISHING IN LAST PLACE Each year that he coached.

[Mainevent]

This was a random article to run across former Lion Freddie Scott, a story about a HS girl reacting to a faculty member reading the N word out in an African American studies class. Scott had taken over teaching the class after the original teacher seems to have been run out for speaking out about the Jan 6 riot at the Capitol.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...ud/4936984001/

[Futureshock]

Jeremiah Valoaga visiting with Washington

Posted by Myles Simmons on May 5, 2021, 2:39 PM EDT

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After General Manager Martin Mayhew said Washington plans to upgrade its depth at edge rusher, the Football Team has scheduled a meeting with a player still on the market.

According to multiple reports, Washington has scheduled a visit with defensive end Jeremiah Valoaga.

Valoaga re-signed with the Raiders as an exclusive rights free agent, but elected to opt out of the 2020 season. Las Vegas released him in March. He last appeared in a game with the 49ers in 2019, playing 44 defensive snaps in four contests for the club.

Valoaga entered the league as an undrafted free agent with the Lions in 2017. He appeared in nine games and made one sack, two tackles for loss, and five quarterback hits for Detroit as a rookie. He spent the 2018 season on Miami’s practice squad.

[Futureshock]

Jeff Driskel visiting Cowboys

Posted by Charean Williams on May 6, 2021, 10:30 PM EDT

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Jeff Driskel traveled to Texas on Thursday night for a visit with the Cowboys on Friday, Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News reports.

Gehlken adds that there is “a good chance Driskel signs [and] becomes [the] favorite to serve as Dak Prescott‘s primary backup in 2021.”

The Cowboys have Garrett Gilbert, Ben DiNucci and Cooper Rush behind Prescott on the depth chart for now. DiNucci and Gilbert each started a game for the Cowboys last season, their first career starts.

Veteran Andy Dalton, the primary backup for Prescott last season, left for Chicago in free agency.

Driskel, 28, has nine career NFL starts.

Driskel appeared in three games for Denver in 2020, starting one for an injured Drew Lock. He completed 55 percent of his passes for 432 yards with three touchdowns and a pair of interceptions.

The Broncos were Driskel’s fourth team since he entered the league as a sixth-round choice of the 49ers in 2016. He spent 2016-2019 with the Bengals, starting five games in 2018. He also started three games with the Lions in 2019. In all, he’s completed 58.6 percent of his passes for 2,120 yards with 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

[Futureshock]

I did not realize he was even on the squad:

Albert Huggins signing with Saints

Posted by Myles Simmons on May 6, 2021, 3:56 PM EDT

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The Saints are adding some depth to their defensive line.

Per his agent, Casey Muir, defensive tackle Albert Huggins is headed to New Orleans.

Huggins has bounced around since entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Clemson in 2019. He initially signed with the Texans and stayed on their practice squad to start the regular season. But the Eagles signed him to their active roster, and Huggins appeared in four games for Philadelphia in 2019, playing 44 snaps.

Following a journey that took him to New England, back to Philadelphia, back to Houston, then to Detroit and Minnesota, Huggins landed with the Lions’ practice squad midway through the 2020 season. Huggins appeared in one game for Detroit late in the year.

[edindetroit]

Philadelphia Eagles claim former Detroit Lions RB Kerryon Johnson off waivers

The Philadelphia Eagles have claimed former Detroit Lions running back Kerryon Johnson off waivers, the team announced Friday.

The Lions waived Johnson on Thursday, officially cutting ties with their second-round pick out of Auburn in 2018.

Johnson joins a suddenly crowded Eagles backfield that includes Miles Sanders, rookie Kenny Gainwell, Jordan Howard and Boston Scott. Sanders is expected to be the lead back with the rest of the group competing for a spot in the rotation.

Philadelphia selected Gainwell, a dual-threat back out of Memphis, in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL draft.

Johnson became expendable after the Lions drafted D'Andre Swift No. 35 overall in 2020, signed free-agent running back Jamaal Williams in March and then drafted Oregon State's Jermar Jefferson in the seventh round this year.

Johnson was productive in his first season with Detroit, leading the team in rushing (641 yards) in 2018 despite playing just 10 games because of a knee injury. But another injury kept him to just eight games in 2019, and Swift and veteran Adrian Peterson ultimately took over the backfield duties this past season.

Overall, Johnson, who turns 24 in June, ran for 1,225 yards and eight touchdowns over three seasons in Detroit. He also had 61 receptions for 527 yards and three scores.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...ohnson-waivers

[Tom]

They got back at the Lions for drafting that DT...

[The King]

“They got back at the Lions for drafting that DT...”

That was my thought, too. Whatever, they can have our washed RB.

[Futureshock]

Don't they also have Jason Huntley? They love our rb castoffs.

[Futureshock]

Wierd. They have

Travis Fulgham
Tyree Jackson (Was a QB but it looks like they're transitioning him to TE)
Kerryon Johnson
Jason Huntley
Darius Slay

[Futureshock]

A post-draft bonus? Eagles claim former second-round pick RB Kerryon Johnson off waivers
May 07, 2021 at 05:22 PM
Dave Spadaro
It's a Friday and sometimes moves like this get lost in the shuffle. It's also the post-NFL Draft period, when teams make the kind of moves the Eagles made when they claimed running back Kerryon Johnson off of waivers from Detroit that pay off when the pads go on in the summer.

No risk. A reward, possibly.

What the Eagles did on Friday certainly made a lot of sense as they added Johnson – a 2018 second-round draft pick by the Detroit Lions – to a backfield that can use some size and competition. The 43rd overall pick in '18, Johnson had a strong rookie campaign for the Lions as he ran for 641 yards, averaging 5.4 yards per carry, and added 213 yards in the receiving game playing in 10 games, with seven starts. At 5-11 and 211 pounds, he packs some punch. Johnson is a strong pass blocker and a versatile player who was, obviously, highly touted coming out of Auburn entering the NFL.

He suffered some injuries early in his career and his numbers reflect that – Johnson gained only 403 yards on the ground in 2019 with 10 catches for 127 yards and then had 181 rushing yards on 52 carries last season – but the Eagles know how good Johnson can be when he's healthy. The word on Johnson is that he runs with size, and that he's a slasher and a violent finisher.

What it means for the Eagles is that they have added a player entering the final year of his rookie contract who has a lot of incentive to succeed in 2021. Things went a bit south for Johnson – and for the Lions – after the 2018 campaign, so maybe a change of scenery, a new offense, and a potentially top-level offensive line in Philadelphia will help Johnson bounce back.

In college, Johnson was a beast as he ran for 2,494 yards and 32 touchdowns, averaging 4.8 yards per rushing attempt. Johnson also showed he could help on the receiving end of things with 55 catches, 478 yards, and a pair of touchdowns in the three seasons he played at Auburn. He was the Southeastern Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 2017 when Johnson accounted for 1,391 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns rushing, averaging 4.9 yards per carry, and added 24 receptions for 194 yards and a pair of scores in the passing game.

He was a dominating player and the NFL had high marks on him, so nobody was surprised when Detroit used a second-round draft pick on Johnson in 2018. His rookie season was promising and it appeared that Johnson was well on his way to becoming the kind of franchise running back that Detroit had long sought. Instead, knee injuries cost Johnson 14 games and his production dropped.


Reaction to the Eagles 2021 NFL Draft
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The Eagles' backfield remains a work in progress with Miles Sanders leading the way, with Boston Scott a proven contributor, with Jordan Howard a veteran, big back who signed a one-year contract in free agency to return for 2021, with fifth-round draft pick Kenny Gainwell new to the team and with a trio of second-year backs – Elijah Holyfield, Jason Huntley, and Adrian Killins – looking to make their marks. You can never have enough running backs in the league, right? And it certainly is a smart move to keep the waiver wire a live option when players like Johnson are available.

So, we'll see how it all pans out. This is how a roster is rebuilt – with strong drafts, with alert and smart moves like the one to claim Johnson, and with a veteran personnel staff that has to accurately predict the rosters of the other 31 NFL teams.

This is a move worth paying attention to. The Eagles are being aggressive, keeping their eyes open, and their options the same as they look to add talent across the board on this roster. Kerryon Johnson has talent; nobody doubts that. Maybe the move to Philadelphia in this new Eagles offense will be the kind of jolt he needs to get his game on the track it appeared to be after his fine rookie season in 2018. If nothing else, it's more competition in the Eagles' backfield, and that's always a good thing.

[Futureshock]

Panthers waive Frank Herron

Posted by Myles Simmons on May 10, 2021, 5:14 PM EDT

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Not long after he signed with Carolina, Frank Herron will have to find a new team.

The Panthers waived Herron on Monday while also making official the signings of undrafted free agents Spencer Brown and Paddy Fisher.

Herron signed with Carolina on April 13. He’s also spent time with the Patriots, Seahawks, Titans, Lions, and Dolphins — though he’s appeared in games for only Detroit. He played three contests in 2019 and four in 2020, recording both defensive and special teams snaps.