Ex-Roughnecks DT C.J. Brewer made the most of his NFL opportunity with three tackles and two sacks for the Buccaneers. (Joe Glorioso/All-Pro Reels)
Tryouts
One of two workouts for WR Kaden Davis (Panthers) this week came on Monday, with the Indianapolis Colts. He followed that up with a Wednesday tryout with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Five receivers were in competition with each other that day in Tampa for a spot on the practice squad that ultimately went to Dennis Houston.
The XFL’s QB Ben DiNucci (Sea Dragons) worked out with the New Orleans Saints, also on Monday. With quarterbacks dropping weekly, we could see him appear more often on this list going forward. Tuesday, WR Deon Cain (Stallions) was another spring football receiver to work out, and another that was bypassed for a player at the same position at the same workout: The Commanders opted to sign WR Mike Strachan instead of Cain.
The tour de force of P Brock Miller (Panthers) around the NFL continued on Saturday when he worked out for the Las Vegas Raiders, prior to their Sunday matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs and their lefty punter, Matt Araiza.
Transactions
Two former USFL players were released from practice squad on Tuesday. The Cincinnati Bengals said goodbye to DT Domenique Davis (Gamblers). He had been with the team all season, having initially been signed on August 28, after final training camp cuts.
LS Tucker Addington (Gamblers) was also waived by the New England Patriots. He snapped in one game as a practice squad elevation, but now that regular snapper Joe Cardona is healthy again, Addington’s presence is no longer needed.
The “signing” side of the ledger was strengthened on Wednesday when the New York Jets re-signed C Alec Lindstrom to their practice squad. He had just been waived on October 17, but injuries along the Jets’ line necessitated his return.
To round out the week of transactions, LB Jonathan Garvin (Stallions) was let go from the practice squad of the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday. This was his second time being waived from the practice squad, having re-signed earlier this month. Then on Monday, just prior to Pittsburgh’s game against the New York Giants, the Steelers waived RB Aaron Shampklin (Gamblers) from the active roster, promoting RB Jonathan Ward from the practice squad to take his place.
XFL
*Inactive last week, an injury to DT Greg Gaines opened up a spot on the gameday roster again for DT C.J. Brewer (Roughnecks) of the Buccaneers. Brewer made the most of his opportunity, making three tackles, including two sacks. They were his first two sacks of the season, and of his career. The first came late in the second quarter on a broken play, when Atlanta Falcons QB Kirk Cousins ran to the right and eventually just slid down, with Brewer being the first to touch him. The second sack occurred midway through the third quarter. Playing right defensive tackle, Brewer got a great burst off the snap to beat center Ryan Neuzil, dropping Cousins for a loss of nine yards. There’s a possibility his first sack gets changed to a rush later in the week, but he’ll at least walk away from this game with one. Brewer did all of this in just 13 snaps (21%).
*Not needed on offense for the Falcons, OT Storm Norton (Wildcats) was relegated to special teams only, playing six snaps on the field goal/extra point protection unit.
*In Cleveland, Baltimore Ravens LS Nick Moore (Tampa Bay Vipers) made all long snaps for the team, with no stats.
*Entrenched in the backup role in Baltimore, QB Josh Johnson (Wildcats) was active as the #2 QB but did not see game action.
*It was overall a solid day for Green Bay Packers P Daniel Whelan (Defenders), who had to deal with a dangerous punt returner in Parker Washington of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Washington had already returned a punt for a touchdown this season. Whelan averaged 48.2 yards on five punts, with a net of 44.8. Three landed inside the 20. His best punt was his final one, a 63-yarder late in the fourth quarter down to the Jaguars four-yard line. Perhaps his most important play was holding on the game-winning field goal by Brandon McManus as time expired.
*On Monday night, LS Christian Kuntz (Renegades) delivered perfect snaps all evening on punts and field goals for the Steelers.
*With Wyatt Teller returning from injured reserve this week for the Cleveland Browns, he slotted back into his starting right guard role, moving G Michael Dunn (Dragons) back to the bench. His role was on special teams, where he played five snaps.
*Active, QB Taylor Heinicke (Battlehawks) did not see the field, as Justin Herbert took all snaps under center for the Los Angeles Chargers.
*Miami Dolphins S Elijah Campbell (Defenders) continued to earn his keep by playing an important role on special teams. He played 62% of the snaps on the third unit.
*Two weeks ago, LS Scott Daly (NY Guardians) suffered a knee injury that seemed serious. However, after resting up during last week’s bye, he came back to play this week and did not even appear on the Chicago Bears’ final injury report.
USFL
*LS Mitchell Fraboni (Maulers) continued to perform as the long snapper for the Denver Broncos.
*Getting his first start of the season with DT Daniel Ekuale out injured, DE Jeremiah Pharms, Jr. (Maulers) contributed two assisted tackles to the New England Patriots’ victory over division-rival Jets. He did this in playing 53% of the defensive snaps for the Patriots, third among defensive linemen on the team.
*Though he played in a backup role, DT Khalil Davis (Stallions) did not make the final stat sheet. Davis played 28% of the snaps on D for the Houston Texans.
*Three tackles (one solo and two assists) and a tackle for loss was the stat line for Carolina Panthers starting DE LaBryan Ray (Stars). He held down one defensive end position on 44% of the snaps.
*A unique story unfolded this week when K Brandon Aubrey (Stallions) missed a few days of practice because of jury duty. He showed no ill-effects from that time off the field, as he made a 29-yard field goal and all extra points for the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night. His one blemish was a penalty in which he mishit a kickoff short of the landing zone.
*Aubrey’s Dallas teammate, WR Kavontae Turpin (Generals), returned five kickoffs for 115 yards, including a few fake reverses on the play. Those numbers average out to 23.0 per return with a long of 26, so for the most part, San Francisco’s coverage team held him in check. He also returned one punt for 13 yards. On offense, he was targeted four times; his first target was intercepted by Ji’Ayir Brown on a long pass down the sidelines. He did catch one of the passes, for 16 yards. He also ran the ball once for 11 yards, fumbling it at the end, though it was recovered by Dallas.
UFL
*Elevated from the practice squad for the second week in a row, DE Jalen Redmond (Renegades) was credited with one assisted tackle on Thursday night. He played 24% of the snaps on defense, most of them coming in the second half. Pro Football Focus had Redmond as the second-highest graded defender on the Vikings in his limited playing time.
*For the second week in a row, LB Dondrea Tillman (Stallions) was a healthy scratch for the Broncos.
*Making his only field goal of the day, from 51 yards out, K Jake Bates (Panthers)set a Detroit Lions record by hitting 11 straight field goals to start his Lions career. Bates had plenty of opportunities for kickoffs – the Lions scored 52 points – and registered touchbacks on eight of nine of them.
*In Cleveland’s upset of Baltimore, LS Rex Sunahara (Brahmas) snapped on all punts, field goals, and extra points for the Browns.
*The second UFL practice squad elevation of the week was C Alec Lindstrom (Showboats) of the Jets. Lindstrom was made active for the game against the Patriots, but did not play.
