NFC South: Nate Salley
We had a flurry of transactions in the NFC South on Tuesday, but I don’t think any of them are reasons to go buying tickets to Miami for the Super Bowl.
Every team except the Saints made some minor roster moves. Here’s a quick analysis of what happened:
Buccaneers. They placed safety Jermaine Phillips on the injured-reserve list and released safety Steve Cargile. Hmm, anybody think the Bucs will be adding two safeties in the next 12-16 hours? Might be a good landing spot for any safety on the streets because a starting job is within reach pretty quickly. The starters right now are Will Allen and Sabby Piscitelli and the Giants are coming to town with a group of emerging wide receivers. On the bright side, Tanard Jackson only has two games left on his suspension.
Panthers. Carolina signed defensive tackle Antwon Burton, mainly because he weighs 325 pounds. At the rate the Panthers are going, they’ll probably be signing Shane Burton before too long. I’m just kidding on that one (I think). Shane Burton was a backup on some very good Carolina defensive lines, back when Carolina had very good defensive lines. He’s got to be pushing 40 now, but he’s probably better than any defensive tackle the Panthers have right now. Back to Antwon Burton: He’s appeared in eight games since coming into the league as an undrafted free agent. The Panthers also placed Louis Leonard on the injured-reserve list, where he’ll join Maake Kemoeatu, who was supposed to be the starter heading into camp. Nick Hayden, the Week One starter by default, miss Week Two because of a toe injury. Not sure if he’ll be back this week, but the Panthers now have three healthy defensive tackles in Antwon Burton, Ra’Shon Harris and Damione Lewis. Does that trio scare anybody – besides Carolina fans? In other news, the Panthers waived safety Nate Salley from the injured-reserve list and released defensive tackle George Hypolite from the practice squad. We won’t analyze those moves because …well, basically, because they mean nothing.
Falcons. A day after elevating defensive tackle Vance Walker from the practice squad to take the roster spot of the injured Peria Jerry, the Falcons signed defensive tackle Jeremy Clark to the practice squad. This move might be a little more significant than it looks. Clark has spent some time on the practice squads of the Giants and Eagles, two teams with pretty good defenses. With sudden uncertainty at defensive tackle, Clark could move up to the regular roster if he shows some promise.
Posted by ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas
On this busy day of resignations and trades in the NFC South, we’ve collected some other transactions that weren’t quite capable of standing alone on this blog.
But put them all together and you get, well, this:
The Bucs signed defensive end Jarriett Buie, who they released Aug. 29, and claimed center Jonathan Compas off waivers from the Oakland Raiders. The Bucs also waived defensive back Marshall McDuffie and guard Ryan Schmidt. The Panthers waived defensive tackle Lonnie Harvey and placed safety Nate Salley on injured reserve.
Another quiet day in the NFC South so far, but that could always change this afternoon as teams get ready for the start of free agency. Speaking of that, I've been getting a lot of people asking for lists of free agents.
I did team-by-team breakdowns back in January but decided to run the lists for all four NFC South teams here just to refresh everybody. Keep in mind, these are the guys who are prospective free agents at the end of the month and things could always change with teams re-signing their own players or using the franchise tag.
ATLANTA FALCONS
Unrestricted free agents: Linebacker Michael Boley, defensive end Chauncey Davis, cornerback Domonique Foxworth, tackle Wayne Gandy, linebacker Tony Gilbert, defensive tackle Grady Jackson, defensive tackle Jason Jefferson, punter Michael Koenen, safety Lawyer Milloy, tight end Justin Peelle and linebacker Coy Wire.
Restricted free agents: Tackle Tyson Clabo, guard Harvey Dahl, safety Jamaal Fudge and center Ben Wilkerson.
CAROLINA PANTHERS
Unrestricted free agents: Linebacker Donte' Curry, tackle Jordan Gross, offensive lineman Geoff Hangartner, return man Mark Jones, long-snapper Jason Kyle, tackle Frank Omiyale, defensive end Julius Peppers, linebacker Adam Seward and defensive tackle Darwin Walker.
Restricted free agents: Defensive tackle Gary Gibson, tight end Jeff King, safety Nate Salley and linebacker James Anderson.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
Unrestricted free agents: Cornerback Aaron Glenn, quarterback Joey Harrington, receiver Devery Henderson, defensive tackle Antwan Lake, guard Matt Lehr, running back Aaron Stecker, tackle Jon Stinchcomb and linebacker Jonathan Vilma.
Restricted free agents: Guard Jahri Evans, receiver Lance Moore, receiver Courtney Roby, defensive tackle Montavious Stanley and offensive lineman Zach Strief.
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS
Unrestricted free agents: Wide receiver Antonio Bryant, cornerback Phillip Buchanon, defensive end Kevin Carter, receiver Michael Clayton, quarterback Jeff Garcia, receiver Cortez Hankton, defensive tackle Jovan Haye, safety Jermaine Phillips, defensive tackle Ryan Sims and tight end Jerramy Stevens.
Restricted free agent: Tackle Donald Penn.
Breaking down Carolina's free-agent class
Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas
Our next stop on our team-by-team look at potential free agents is the Carolina Panthers.
Carolina's list of players who can become unrestricted free agents includes linebacker Donte' Curry, tackle Jordan Gross, offensive lineman Geoff Hangartner, return man Mark Jones, long-snapper Jason Kyle, tackle Frank Omiyale, defensive end Julius Peppers, linebacker Adam Seward and defensive tackle Darwin Walker.
Carolina's restricted free agents are defensive tackle Gary Gibson, tight end Jeff King, safety Nate Salley and linebacker James Anderson.
Overview: It's going to be a very interesting offseason in Charlotte and the Panthers are going to have to make some tough decisions on keeping some of their own free agents. One decision appears to already have been made for them with Peppers saying he wants out. The Panthers still may put the franchise tag on him and try to trade him or else they'll just have to let him walk and get nothing in return.
Peppers' situation probably helps the chances of Gross returning. If the Panthers aren't paying Peppers big money, they should have room to get a deal done with Gross. That's critical because he's the focal point of a good offensive line.
Gross and Peppers are the only big-name free agents here, but the Panthers face tough calls on some guys who have been crucial role players. Hangartner is a versatile and very solid backup and the Panthers want to keep him. But that may be difficult because he's talented enough to get a shot at a starting spot somewhere else.
The special teams is also an area to keep a close eye on. Jones had a solid season as a return man, but the Panthers are expecting Ryne Robinson to come back from injury. Kyle is one of the best long-snappers in the league, but his veteran status makes him costly even if he plays for somewhere close to the minimum. Kyle is as dependable as they come, but the Panthers have a lot of other issues to deal with and not a lot of salary-cap room. Keeping a high-priced long-snapper might be difficult.
Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas
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| Robinson |
The players appeared to bang knees as they both went for a pass. Salley got up after a few seconds, but Robinson did not. The team's medical personnel appeared to be checking his left knee before taking him off the field on a cart. Coach John Fox said after practice that he didn't have an update on Robinson's condition.
The Panthers have depth at wide receiver, but an injury to Robinson could impact the special teams. Robinson returned 26 kickoffs and 30 punts as a rookie last season. There's no clear-cut replacement if Robinson is out for any length of time.
Rookie running back Jonathan Stewart got some work as a kickoff returner. Defensive back Ricardo Colclough and receiver Jason Carter also have returning experience.
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Pat Yasinskas
Yasinskas joined ESPN.com in January 2008 after covering the Carolina Panthers for The Charlotte Observer for nine seasons. He began his journalism career with The Tampa Tribune in 1990.
