Carlos Hyde traded, Terrelle Pryor cut in Week 7 of the NFL

It was a busy, busy week for Ohio State alumni in the NFL, with a handful of players being traded, cut and moved around a practice squad. Other Buckeyes made momentum-shifting scores for their teams in Week 7, and several more were sidelined with lingering or new injuries.

Here’s everything you need to know about Buckeyes in the NFL in Week 7:

El Guapo to the Jags

In a move that seemed to come out of nowhere, the Cleveland Browns traded their No. 1 running back Carlos Hyde to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a 2019 fifth round draft pick — joining Buckeye offensive guard Andrew Norwell.

With the young guys on the roster behind Hyde, the team had confidence in the depth at the position — not to mention a trade forcing OC Todd Haley’s hand to utilize his rookie talent. The move also signals that Jacksonville is expecting to be without rusher Leonard Fournette for longer than previously anticipated.

Hyde was averaging 3.4 yards per carry this season, a career low, but was on pace to perhaps finally break 1,000 rushing yards in a season — coming so close in 2016 (988) and 2017 (940). He also continued to be a man to move the chains, with 20 first downs in the first six games of the year.

Hyde was inactive for the Jags in Week 7 — no surprise given the two-day turnaround — but should be headed to London with his new team in Week 8 to take on the Philadelphia Eagles (Malcolm Jenkins, Cameron Johnston).

Jets (maybe?) cut their losses with Pryor

Just a day before the New York Jets were set to take on the Minnesota Vikings, the team decided to waive Terrelle Pryor Sr., citing his injured groin as the reason for release. It’s a bit odd, considering his injury should only keep him sidelined for a couple of weeks, but his lackluster performance and rough start with the team could have played into it.

Pryor’s season with the Jets has been tumultuous to date. During training camp he earned a rare public rebuke from head coach Todd Bowles for divulging information on an offseason injury. Pryor’s season has been up and down. Loafing on routes during key plays in early games led to a reduced role. He then went to the media to complain about that reduced role.
— John B, Gang Green Nation

There are some reports that the Jets could re-sign Pryor once he’s healthy, but that seems like an odd move — however, we are talking about the Jets. He’s suffered a few key injuries over the past two seasons, and with little production to back him up, could be done for the rest of the 2018 season.

Although, there are always teams looking for receivers.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Practice squad movement

There are two Buckeyes that are currently bouncing on and off their team’s practice squad, and even getting a chance on the active roster.

J.T. Barrett spent the offseason with the Saints, but for the majority of his rookie season has held onto one of the team’s practice squad spots. As injuries have forced New Orleans to move around some personnel, Barrett on occasion ends up on the transaction wire, but ultimately looks like a player the team is interested in developing at least over the course of another year.

Safety Tyvis Powell is a guy who has spent time on and off practice squads for the better part of his career, but with Richard Sherman inactive for Sunday’s game, the San Francisco 49ers called up the Buckeye to the active roster. He’ll likely bounce around a bit more depending on the health of the team’s secondary, but he’s hanging on to an NFL job with everything he’s got.

Other notables

• A couple of Buckeyes will play on “Monday Night Football” this week when the Atlanta Falcons (Michael Bennett) host the New York Giants (Eli Apple).
• If you’ve found yourself wondering where all of Ohio State’s linebacker talent has gone, the answer is: Miami. The Dolphins defense features both second-year linebacker (although, first season healthy) Raekwon McMillan and rookie linebacker Jerome Baker. On Sunday, McMillan nabbed a career-high eight tackles and one forced fumble, while Baker had a solid five tackles and one pass breakup.
• The Eagles lost in heartbreaking fashion thanks to Curtis Samuel’s revival of the Panthers offense in the fourth quarter, but Buckeye Malcolm Jenkins had a big game — despite some jawing with Eric Reid — and finished the day with seven tackles and two passes defended.
• The Saints beat the Ravens by one point, and while the Buckeye defenders were good, there wasn’t a lot to particularly note: Vonn Bell (3 tackles), Kurt Coleman (2 tackles), and Marshon Lattimore (3 tackles, 2 PDs).

Plays of the Week

Michael Thomas

Oh, look at that, wide receiver Michael Thomas had yet another big game for the Saints. In their one-point victory over the Ravens — thanks to the first career miss of Baltimore kicker Justin Tucker — Thomas had seven catches for 69 yards and a touchdown to take the lead with five minute left in the game.

Curtis Samuel

The Panthers are starting to give their young receivers and backs a bit more opportunity, and that was on full display on Sunday when Buckeye Curtis Samuel nabbed his first career rushing touchdown — second career TD — and helped spark a 21-point fourth-quarter comeback.

Injuries, Inactives and Bye Weeks

• Ted Ginn Jr. (knee) was moved to the Saints’ IR on Thursday. Teams can only bring back two players in a season, and given that he’d be out until at least Week 14, I would doubt that he ends up back on the field in 2018.
• John Simon suffered a shoulder injury in the Patriots’ Week 5 game against the Colts, and despite being a limited participant in practice during the week, ultimately was held out of Sunday’s contest.
• Joey Bosa is still out for the Chargers, and was expected to be sidelined through the team’s Week 8 bye, so we’ll see if he’s back two weeks from now. Billy Price is similarly still dealing with a lingering foot injury that is keeping him from being on the field for the Bengals.
• There were a few teams on bye this week the Green Bay Packers (Corey Linsley), Oakland Raiders (Gareon Conley, Johnathan Hankins), Pittsburgh Steelers (Cameron Heyward), and Seattle Seahawks (Nick Vannett) — and at least one Buckeye spent his time helping out those in need.