The Kansas City Chiefs waived Thomas Gafford, leaving rookie Tanner Purdum as the only snapper on the roster. Gafford filled-in for the injured JP Darche last year to finish the season for the Chiefs. The Bengals also waived rookie snapper James Smith from Florida, leaving just a handful of teams with snapping competition heading into training camp. The NFL Long Snappers chart has been updated to reflect the latest moves.
Longsnapper Jeremy Cain, waived last week by the Redskins, has been claimed off waivers by the Jaguars. Cain, who can also play linebacker, is expected to compete with Joe Zelenka for the Jags snapping job.
With training camps approaching and teams starting to sign draft picks, the 80 man roster limitation has caused some movement at the snapping position. Client Mark Estermyer was let go by the Steelers this morning and Jeremy Cain, who was challenging veteran Ethan Albright in Washington, was let go last week. In the past, NFL teams had extra roster spots for players that participated in NFL Europe. With the league gone, rosters are frozen at 80, making it difficult to keep and develop young snappers in training camp.
The NFL Long Snappers chart has been updated due to recent snapping transactions and also includes a new column with training camp competition snappers.
The link to the chart is attached.
Brian Jennings has just signed a five-year contract extension with the 49ers. Jennings, who first made headlines with the contract he signed in 2004 that included a 1.1 million dollar signing bonus, is now signed through 2014.
Client Bryan Pittman has agreed to a one-year deal with the Seattle Seahawks. Pittman, who was an unrestricted free agent, had previously been with the Texans. Pittman’s signing leaves Jason Kyle and JP Darche as the top experienced snappers on the free agent market.
There were more mini-camps this weekend and a few rookie prospects got some additional NFL camp experience. Sean Griffin of Michigan, who was in mini-camp with the Seahawks last weekend, spent this weekend with the Saints, while Wisconsin’s Dave Peck was in mini-camp with the Giants after spending last weekend with the Bears. At this point, it does not appear that either Griffin or Peck have been offfered contracts.
Following the first mini-camps, a couple of snappers turned tryout performances into contracts. James Smith of Florida signed with the Bengals and Garrison Sanborn, who was in last year’s Draft class, signed with the Bills. As Sanborn’s signing demonstrates, it can sometimes take a year or more for a snapper to find the right place for an opportunity. For example, most recently, the Chiefs added Tanner Purdum prior to the Draft to compete with Thomas Gafford following the release of veteran JP Darche. Purdum snapper at Baker University in 2007, attended a number of free agent camps and send a reported 128 homemade DVDs before finally getting a shot with the Chiefs.
Veteran NFL special teams coach Joe DeCamillas has reportedly suffered a broken vertebrae during yesterday’s shocking collapse of the Cowboys practice facility. Best wishes to Joe D. for a speedy recovery!
With many teams having mini-camps this week, some additional details have emerged concerning the snapping position around the league. The Seahawks waived Tyler Schmitt, their Sixth Round pick from last year. Ryan Senser is the only snapper under contract, as it now appears Michigan’s Sean Griffin is in on a tryout basis and has not signed a contract. Georgia Tech snapper Bret White is with the Lions on mini-camp invite, and Garrison Sanborn, from last year’s Draft class, is in mini-camp with the Bills.
Longsnap.com 