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USA Today
9 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Predicting 49ers 53-man roster before 2nd week of training camp begins
The San Francisco 49ers on Thursday will begin their second week of preseason practices. All of these sessions will be in pads and will likely see the first real separation in the battle for starting jobs and roster spots. Before the team begins its next trio of training camp work, we put together a 53-man roster projection based on the early training camp returns. Most of the practices have been without pads, but there's still been enough information to get an idea of what the roster could ultimately look like. Here is our first guess at what San Francisco's initial 53-man roster will be: Quarterback (2) Notes: We may see Tanner Mordecai stick around as a third QB. For now our guess is two QBs on the 53-man roster, Mordecai to the practice squad and up on game days as an emergency QB, and rookie seventh-round pick Kurtis Rourke sticking on IR for the season while he rehabs his surgically repaired ACL. Running back (4) Notes: Undrafted rookie Corey Kiner could still work his way onto the roster. Special teams contributions may be the determining factor in which player scoops up the fourth roster spot. Fullback (1) Notes: Ever heard of him? Wide receiver (6) Notes: It's hard to envision Brandon Aiyuk coming off the PUP list any time soon. Keeping him there and giving him at least four weeks into the regular season before he's eligible to come back makes a ton of sense. Gage has put together a nice camp and found his way onto our 53-man to help offset some of the youth and inexperience elsewhere in the receiving corps. Tight end (4) Notes: There's not a ton of certainty once we get past Kittle and Farrell. Dwelley gets the nod thanks to his experience. Don't sleep on Jake Tonges, though. He was with the club last year and flashed some pass-catching chops in the preseason. Blocking is always going to be the top priority for TEs under head coach Kyle Shanahan, but upside as a receiver could separate a tight race for the final TE roster spot(s). Offensive line (9) Notes: Reserve OL spots are wide open. Hennessy is probably their best backup center option. Bartch is firmly in the mix to snag the starting left guard job if/when he returns from a quad injury that landed him on the PUP list to start camp. Pleasants gives San Francisco a swing tackle, while Burford can play everywhere on the OL except center. Defensive line (10) Notes: There's still some stuff to figure out a defensive end with room for a recent addition like Jaylon Allen or a practice squad player from last year like Jonathan Garvin to make their way into the fold. The same goes for defensive tackle where Kalia Davis could still stake his claim to a roster spot. Linebacker (5) Notes: It isn't out of the question that the 49ers keep an extra linebacker and trim the roster elsewhere (perhaps on the D-line or tight end). For now this group is a good mix of special teams contributors with Winters stealing a starting Will LB spot alongside Warner. Curtis Robinson is also a name to keep an eye on. He's still on PUP while he rehabs an ACL he tore last offseason. Cornerback (5) Notes: Six CBs is certainly a possibility, and the back of the depth chart is wide open. Lenoir and Green look locked into starting spots. Behind them everything is up in the air. Players like Darrell Luter Jr. and Siran Neal are potential additions for special teams purposes. Safety (4) Notes: Malik Mustapha is working his way back from a knee injury. We've got him starting the season on the PUP list. Without him there's not a lot to work with at safety for San Francisco. Grant got the nod over second-year undrafted free agent Jaylen Mahoney, but Mahoney could certainly wind up snagging that final spot. Specialists (3) Notes: All indications out of training camp are that Moody and veteran Greg Joseph are deadlocked in their kicker battle. Our assumption is that the team will lean Moody assuming all things remain equal.
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Dolphins Stock Report: McDaniel seeks more physical padded practices
The Miami Dolphins are working to shed the soft, finesse label the team has been given during the Mike McDaniel era. The bar has been set higher, which is why the first two padded practices of training camp haven't exactly met McDaniel's expectations for his 2025 team. 'It was solid. Kind of close to my expectations, but not where my team wants it to be,' McDaniel said, evaluating Miami's first padded practice on Tuesday. 'Our expectations and standards are going to be higher.' McDaniel claims these padded practices are providing him and his staff good tape to teach technique and pad level from. Here's a breakdown of what happened in Day 7 of Dolphins training camp. Top Performers ▪ Offensive tackle Patrick Paul had another monster day in a padded practice. The Dolphins' 2024 second-round pick won every rep of 1-on-1 for two practice periods (20 minutes), and then went to the field and locked down the left side of Miami's offensive line. Once Paul has a player blocked the play is seemingly over because it's hard to get around him, and nobody is powering through his 6-foot-7, 326 pound frame to the quarterback. ▪ Pass rusher Grayson Murphy was one of the Dolphins' most impressive undrafted rookies last year, but a knee injury he suffered in the exhibition season kept him from contributing during the regular season. Murphy, who spent all of last season on injured reserve, appears to have picked up where he left off. He's consistently creating pressure and would-be sacks on Miami's backup quarterbacks, and has been outperforming Mohamed Kamara and Cameron Goode. ▪ Receiver Dee Eskridge caught a deep ball touchdown from Zach Wilson after getting behind newly added cornerback Jack Jones. Safety Jordan Colbert took a couple false steps to his right, creating the opening for Wilson to unleash the cannon of an arm he has. At this point Eskridge has established himself as one of Miami's top four receivers. It might be time he starts working with the starters. STOCK UP ▪ Willie Gay Jr. has been one of training camp's top performers, making at least one impactful play per day. During Wednesday's practice he produced his usual sack. But he also dropped a possible interception from Quinn Ewers. That's his third interception drop of the first seven practices. Based on the way Gay has played the past seven practices it's pretty clear that defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver needs to find a role for Gay in Miami's third down defense. STOCK DOWN ▪ Julian Hill dropped an easy pitch and catch pass from Tua Tagovailoa during the first 11-on-11 period, and has had a relatively quiet training camp. Considering Pharoah Brown seems to be working his way up the depth chart, and Darren Waller, who began camp on the PUP, will be cleared to practice in a week or two, this is Hill's opportunity to lock down a starting role, and he's falling short of expectations. Injury updates ▪ Safety Ashtyn Davis will likely be sidelined an extended period, but not the season because of the left leg injury he suffered in Wednesday's practice. ▪ Cornerback Kader Kohou, the Dolphins' most experienced cornerback, is headed to injury reserve because of the left knee injury he suffered last Saturday. ▪ Cornerback B.J. Adams, who suffered a concussion on Saturday, continues to be sidelined while he's in the NFL concussion program. ▪ Safety Dante Trader Jr. continues nursing a soft tissue issue and will be held out of practice for a week, giving him time to heal for Miami's joint practices against the Chicago Bears next week. ▪ Offensive tackle Bayron Matos, who was hospitalized after the first practice because of a head/shoulder injury, has been released from the hospital but hasn't returned to practice.. ▪ Tight end Jalin Conyers missed a four straight day of practice and has a boot on his left leg. ▪ Linebacker Dejuan Jackson missed his second practice for unknown reasons. Offensive tackle Obinna Eze missed Wednesday's practice with an undisclosed injury. Corrnerback Kendall Sheffield missed Wednesday's practice with an undisclosed injury. What they said 'That dude is not faking that energy. And energy is a huge piece of how football teams play the game,' McDaniel on Gay's impact as an emotional tonesetter for the Dolphins.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Terry McLaurin faces 'scary' impasse over new Commanders contract: Report
Adam Schefter says that he thinks #Commanders WR Terry McLaurin wants 'considerably more' than DK Metcalf ($33M APY)WOW.(via:@PatMcAfeeShow) The Washington Commanders might have to prepare for life without star wide receiver Terry McLaurin if they aren't willing to give him a major contract extension. ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter told The Pat McAfee Show on Monday that he thinks McLaurin wants "considerably more" than what Pittsburgh Steelers receiver DK Metcalf recently earned on his new contract. Schefter added that the Commanders aren't willing to pay McLaurin that much money right now. "They love and value Terry McLaurin, but they love and value him at a different price," Schefter reported during his segment. If you're a Commanders fan, this might not be the mot pleasant clip you watch this week. McLaurin is in the midst of a hold-in with the franchise, as he's around the team facilities but presumably not practicing until he gets a new contract. The team recently put McLaurin on the PUP list with an ankle injury, and he was seen giving autographs to fans on Sunday. McLaurin told reporters on Monday he's taking his contract situation "day by day," but Schefter's reporting does put into question if these two sides will be able to come together on a mutually beneficial deal any time soon. Per Over the Cap, McLaurin making more than Metcalf (about $33 million annually) would put him within the top-four paid receivers in the league at present, with only Bengals wideout Ja'Marr Chase ($40.25 million), Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson ($35 million) and Cowboy wideout CeeDee Lamb ($34 million) making more annually on their deals. McLaurin is making $25.5 million this season in the last year of his deal, so a pay raise would probably be about $9-10 million annually more annually if we had to guess based on what Metcalf is making. Washington has superstar quarterback Jayden Daniels on a rookie salary, so money in essence shouldn't be an issue in the long term. McLaurin being 30 might be factored into the equation, but his remarkable durability throughout his career suggests more dependable football on the horizon. McLaurin's production remains remarkably consistent, too, as he has posted more than a thousand receiving yards in each season of his career outside of his 2019 rookie campaign. He had a career-high 13 touchdowns last year in the regular season and added three more in the postseason. He is instrumental to his team's overall success. The numbers game most likely just comes down to how much McLaurin views his value to the franchise and how much the franchise views his value in comparison to other star receivers in the league. Giving him Lamb's deal feels incredibly reasonable given how vital McLaurin is to the passing game, but would he want more? Is Washington not willing to even eclipse what Metcalf earned from Pittsburgh in the offseason? Just how far off are these two sides? Questions abound for McLaurin and the Commanders, as a pivotal season ahead currently can't rely on the offense's best non-quarterback playmaker joining the lineup. If Washington can't make a deal work before the first week of the season, it's officially scary business in D.C.
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Dallas Cowboys training camp: Takeaways from Day 6
The Dallas Cowboys put pads on for the first time on Sunday, their fifth practice of their 2025 training camp. For many players, this is when things turn serious. It's difficult to glean much of anything aside from ability to execute technique without the pads on. The work in the trenches isn't authentic, especially when it comes to the running game. Coaches often refer to the pre-pad days as an extension of the spring installations that take place at OTAs and through minicamps. So how did the Dallas Cowboys fare on Sunday? It's an interesting look into what trends continued, and which players who had begun to stand out kept the momentum. Rising star goes out The biggest injury news of the day is that TE Brevyn Spann-Ford, who is in contention for the TE2 role, had to limp off of the practice field. Spann-Ford made a huge impression on the coaching staff as a UDFA in 2024, and spent the offseason trying to improve his catch instincts to add on to his role as the team's best blocking tight end. Most reports spoke glowingly of his improvement, but he may be out for a while after having to be helped to the locker room on Sunday. He went down on the line of scrimmage and was holding his right ankle. Nick Eatman of floated their is concern it's a high ankle sprain, and apparently not the miraculous kind that Terence Steele suffered earlier in the week. Additional Injury Updates Also of injury note, Patrik Walker reported that CB Trevon Diggs looks a lot closer to being activated from PUP than he had recently, running DB routes and even jumping to secure passes. Diggs was the subject of team owner Jerry Jones' vitriol over missing offseason work with the team while rehabbing his knee injury on his own, but if he's able to get himself into game shape over the next five weeks, it will be well worth the $500,000 fine to have had someone other than the team trainers getting him on track. Safety Juanyeh Thomas (foot/ankle) and running back Deuce Vaughn (hamstring) missed practice today. This isn't a big issue for Thomas, who is slated to have a big role this season, but Vaughn is only loosely tethered to the proverbial bubble and needs every rep he can get to make an impression. Jake Ferguson gets paid, what does it mean? Not an on-field note, but clearly the biggest news of the day is Jake Ferguson's new four-year extension that will pay him $52 million, including $30 million gauranteed. With $12 million in signing bonus and assumed vet minimum base salary of $1.1 million, it seems like the deal that runs through 2029 will at least keep Ferguson in Dallas through the 2027 season. The math seems to indicate some of that year's salary, but not all of it, is going to be guaranteed early in the 2026 season. As for the trickle-down effect, one has to wonder what this means for Luke Schoonmaker. When Ferguson was anticipated to playing in a contract year, Schoonmaker had a shot to be anywhere on the depth chart. TE1 is now off the table and if Spann-Ford isn't out long-term, then what's the long-term prospect for the Michigan product? Cowboys Wire has floated the possibility of a trade off the team to another franchise that eyed him pre-2023 draft. That likelihood could've gotten a small bump with this declaration by the team. Reclamation cornerbacks showing well The Cowboys have made two moves over the last two seasons where they looked to fix highly-drafted cornerbacks who didn't work out for their teams. Last season, the club traded away former third-round pick Nahshon Wright to the VIkings for Minnesota's Andrew Booth, the 2022 second-round pick. This year, they acquired former Buffalo Bills first-round pick Kaiir Elam. Throughout the offseason, the possibility of Elam turning the corner in the final year of his rookie deal was spoken with cautious optimism. That's continued thus far through camp as it appears he is in line to start, at least until Diggs is ready. On Sunday, Booth — who flopped badly when put in regular season games in 2024 — joined the party with an insane day of coverage. Rookie RB Jaydon Blue continues to impress The veteran running backs have been given the majority of first-team reps. Dallas signed both JaVonte Williams and Miles Sanders in the early weeks of free agency, long before the draft. The team then waited until Day 3 to pull the trigger on the position, selecting Texas back Jaydon Blue in the fifth round. Right before training camp started, a weird report from a former coach (not on board in any recent season) that there was talk among the current front office that Blue didn't have the work ethic necessary to thrive. If the first week has been any indication, throw that baby out with the bath water. Blue was extra impressive on Saturday, and continued the trend with the pads put on, on Sunday.
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
WATCH: Commanders rookie WR Jaylin Lane makes the best play of training camp so far
y'all see that Jaylin Lane catch??? The Washington Commanders returned to the practice fields in Ashburn on Sunday for Day 4 of training camp. It was "Back Together Weekend," with fans in attendance for the first time. It also featured the end of wide receiver Terry McLaurin's holdout, although he will begin on the PUP list. That meant Sunday was the perfect time for a rookie to show everyone what he was made of, and that's exactly what wide receiver Jaylin Lane did. Being defended in the back corner of the end zone, quarterback Jayden Daniels threw a dart to Lane, with cornerback Mike Sainristil and safety Quan Martin in perfect coverage. The 5-foot-10 Lane makes a phenomenal play on the ball. Check it out: What a throw. What a catch. Unfortunately, it was ruled incomplete, but that does not detract from the play Lane made on the ball. He was going up against arguably Washington's top two defensive backs and caught the ball. Grant Paulsen of 106.7 The Fan explained the circumstances. This was the play of camp so end of game drill. 6 secs left. All verts. 'D had 3 guys playing at goal line. Daniels got this ball in behind them to give rookie Jaylin Lane a shot. Incomplete upon review but an awesome 1st team rep for the rook. That's what makes Jayden Daniels special. He was able to deliver a perfect throw in a pressure situation. Everyone was already excited about Lane, the speedy rookie receiver/punt returner from Virginia Tech. That catch will only enhance his legend throughout the remainder of this camp and the preseason.
