The NFL’s transaction wire exploded Tuesday with the kind of chaos only December football can deliver—players cut, claimed, demoted, elevated, and shuffled like a Vegas blackjack deck as teams claw for playoff life or cling to dignity.
Detroit kicked off the frenzy by tossing tight end Ross Dwelley onto waivers, then patching the hole by scooping up veteran corner Arthur Maulet. Houston wasn’t about to be left out, dropping Jalen Mills to the wire before pulling in defensive tackle Naquan Jones off the Chargers’ scrap heap.
The Rams threw linebacker Nick Hampton into waiver purgatory while Philadelphia dumped long snapper Cal Adomitis. Atlanta axed Jordan Fuller, Cincinnati dumped two—rookie receiver Jermaine Burton and veteran Jakob Johnson—while the Chargers cut Jaret Patterson and the Eagles parted ways with Xavier Gipson. Claiming deadline is Wednesday at 4 p.m. New York time, in case anyone is itching to swipe these castoffs.
Free agents, meanwhile, found new homes like stray pets. Indianapolis snagged Cameron Mitchell off its own practice squad, Las Vegas poached Chigozie Anusiem from Arizona’s practice squad, and Tampa Bay promoted Nick Jackson in a move that conveniently coincided with his own contract termination. Creative bookkeeping? Absolutely.
Injuries kept the grim parade going. Cleveland shelved Jerome Ford and Ethan Pocic. Indianapolis lost quarterback Daniel Jones and corner Chris Lammons. Las Vegas sidelined Kyu Blu Kelly. Tampa Bay shelved Ben Bredeson. The Giants slapped “designated to return” labels on Art Green and Darius Muasau, then dragged them back onto the practice field like nothing happened.
Practice squads turned into revolving doors. Arizona added veteran Steven Sims, Baltimore brought in Laken Tomlinson, Tampa Bay signed Jason Pierre-Paul to what feels like his 100th NFL stint, and San Francisco grabbed UCF sparkplug Javon Baker. Tennessee stuffed its unit with Nate Lynn and Cole Turner right before placing Joel Wilson on the injured version of the same list.
Clubs kept swinging the axe with gusto. Baltimore severed ties with Carl Lawson, Buffalo ditched Nick Broeker, Chicago cut Royce Newman, Cleveland dumped both Ochaun Mathis and Mark Robinson, and the Giants trashed corner Myles Purchase. San Francisco even tossed kicker Matt Gay and quarterback Adrian Martinez overboard, a rare two-for-one purge.
Players got in on the breakup action too. Anusiem ended his Arizona stint, Mitchell ditched Indianapolis, and Nick Jackson walked from Tampa Bay—all three immediately landing on active rosters elsewhere. Not a bad day for them.
The Giants looked like a punter convention gone wrong during tryouts, bringing in Jake Camarda, Cameron Johnston, Pat O’Donnell, Brad Robbins and Ryan Stonehouse. Chicago hauled in a small army. The Chargers auditioned half the tight ends in college football. Indianapolis even tried out Philip Rivers. Yes, that Philip Rivers.
And in the background, Baltimore wooed Laken Tomlinson while Detroit hosted Arthur Maulet like they were courting free-agent royalty.
December football: where the games matter, the injuries pile up, and the transaction wire becomes the NFL’s version of a tabloid divorce section. Let’s do it all again tomorrow.
Sports Insider Daily 