News From The North #8
Adam Nelson
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Welcome to the eighth edition of News From The North! This is your destination for updates on the NFC North, released the first and third Saturday of every month (except for today due to site upgrades!). This report includes game recaps, roster moves, coaching changes, injury reports, pregame analysis and more. The AAF (Alliance of American Football) has folded since our last edition, and lots of player signings across the NFL have come from it.
The Minnesota Vikings:
Roster Moves/Coaching Changes:
The Vikings have kept busy the past couple weeks, making several notable signings.
K Dan Bailey re-signed with the team on a one-year, $1M contract. Last year the veteran made 21 of 28 field goal attempts.
RB Ameer Abdullah was also re-signed. Acquired from the Lions last season, Abdullah was active for 10 games but only had one carry all season.
G Josh Kline, formerly of the Titans, was signed to a three-year, $15.75M contract. Two other offensive linemen were signed: C Brett Jones was re-signed, and OT Dakota Dozier left the Jets to join Minnesota.
S Derron Smith was signed. Smith was previously in the AFC North, playing for Cleveland and Cincinnati.
CB Duke Thomas was signed. While Thomas has been on NFL rosters before, he has never played a game.
QB Sean Mannion has been signed as the new backup. While details are still being released, it’s expected to be a one-year deal paying the veteran’s minimum. Mannion has spent the last four seasons as the Rams backup.
Up Next:
Despite making changes to the OL, don’t be surprised if Minnesota stills drafts a lineman with their first pick in the draft. Speaking of, the draft is just over two weeks away!
The Chicago Bears:
Roster Moves/Coaching Changes:
Chicago has been less active after they had an aggressive signing period with the start of free agency this year.
- Re-signed P Pat O’Donnell
- Re-signed QB Tyler Bray to a one-year contract. Bray did not see any snaps last season as Trubisky’s backup.
- Re-signed DB DeAndre Houston-Carson
- Re-signed LB Aaron Lynch to a one-year contract. Last season he had 3 sacks in 13 games.
- Re-signed LS Patrick Scales
The Detroit Lions:
Roster Moves/Coaching Changes:
The blue and silver haven’t made waves in recent weeks either, with the exception of signing RB C.J. Anderson. The former Super Bowl 50 winning Bronco ended last season with the Los Angeles Rams and saw a decent number of carries as Todd Gurley faced minor injuries throughout the end of the season.
Other signings:
- Re-signed CB Marcus Cooper
- Signed WR Tommylee Lewis
- Signed TE Logan Thomas
- Re-signed OL Andrew Donnal
- Signed CB Rashaan Melvin
The Green Bay Packers:
Roster Moves/Coaching Changes:
The Cheeseheads have been comatose these last few weeks, only re-signing TE Marcedes Lewis.
As always, special thanks to ESPN and Pro-Football-Reference for all statistics. Please subscribe to our Patreon to get exclusive content and perks, and follow me on Twitter @AdamNelson22_ to stay up to date on all things Vikings! SKOL