Arizona Cardinals make series of roster additions, including Pat Elflein, Geoff Swaim
The Arizona Cardinals announced a series of roster moves upon reporting to training camp on Tuesday at State Farm Stadium, including the signing of veteran Pat Elflein, who figures to compete for either the starting center or left guard position.
Elflein, 29, has started 64 of 65 career NFL games at either center or guard since entering the league with the Vikings in 2017 as a third-round pick out of Ohio State. He spent his first four seasons with Minnesota, including six games with the Jets in 2020, before joining the Panthers in 2021.
He was Carolina’s starting center for the first six games of the 2022 season before a hip injury sent him to injured reserve for the rest of the season. He’s started 40 games at center and 24 at guard. With the Cardinals, he will compete with Hjalte Froholdt and rookie Jon Gaines II at center and might also get some work at left guard, where a handful of players are vying for the starting job.
The Cardinals also announced the signings of veteran tight end Geoff Swaim, wide receivers Kaden Davis and Davion Davis and long snapper Jack Coco. In addition, the team placed long snapper Matt Hembrough (back) on injured reserve and released tight end Chris Pierce.
On Wednesday, the Cardinals announced they have placed tight end Zach Ertz (knee), quarterback Kyler Murray (knee) and rookie linebacker BJ Ojulari (knee) on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list (PUP). In addition, rookie cornerback Garrett Williams (knee) was placed on the Non-Football Injury list (NFI).
Swaim, 29, is an eight-year pro who spent the past three seasons with the Titans, where Cardinals General Manager Monto Ossenfort served as director of player personnel from 2020-22. Predominantly a blocking tight end, Swaim appeared in 17 games for the Titans last season, finishing with 12 receptions for 58 yards and a touchdown.
A former seventh-round pick out of Texas by the Cowboys in 2015, Swaim has 100 career catches for 752 yards and six touchdowns in 86 games. He spent the 2019 season with the Jaguars. His best season might have come in 2021 when he finished with 31 catches for 210 yards and three TDs with Tennessee.
Kaden Davis joined the Broncos last season as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Northwest Missouri State. He did not appear in a game for Denver but did spend time with the Michigan Panthers of the USFL, where in five games, he caught passes for 83 yards, returned 12 kickoffs for 311 yards and four punts for 22 yards.
Davion Davis spent the majority of last season on the Texans’ practice squad and has also spent time with the Vikings and Browns during his four NFL seasons. He spent the 2023 offseason with the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL, where he totaled 39 receptions for 575 yards and four touchdowns.
Coco snapped in all 17 games last season as a rookie with the Packers and had one tackle on special teams after joining Green Bay as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Georgia Tech.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Cardinals announce roster moves as training camp begins
