HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Steelers GM On Mitchell, Harrison, WRs, Cap

March 24th, 2014 at 10:53am CST by Luke Adams

With the majority of the league’s owners and decision-makers congregated in Orlando, we can expect plenty of interviews this week with NFL general managers. Already this morning, we’ve passed along comments made by Browns GM Ray Farmer, so let’s turn our attention to one of his division rivals. Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has provided a transcript of a discussion with Steelers GM Kevin Colbert. Here are a few notable items:

  • The Steelers typically like pursuing free agents coming off their first contract, but the team felt that Mike Mitchell essentially fit that bill, since his second contract was only for one season. Colbert also believes there’s “a lot of room for continued growth” with the Steelers’ new safety.
  • Colbert is leaving the door open for a possible reunion with James Harrison, though he cautioned that there may be other outside linebackers that could help the team.
  • The Steelers would have liked to bring back Jerricho Cotchery, but wish him luck in Carolina, with Colbert suggesting that the Panthers were “able to do some things financially that we weren’t able to do.”
  • Discussing the signing of Lance Moore, Colbert indicated that the former Saint should give the club a little of what both Cotchery and Emmanuel Sanders provided last season: “He’s a very smart, experienced receiver that knows how to work in the slot.” The Steelers GM also isn’t overly concerned about Moore’s dip in production last season, pointing out that there may not have been enough balls to go around in New Orleans after Kenny Stills entered the mix.
  • The Steelers hadn’t been anticipating the bump to a $133MM salary cap at all, and it allowed the team to make a couple moves that otherwise may not have been possible.
  • Colbert on whether he feels okay about having parted with 2014’s third-round pick in a trade for safety Shamarko Thomas: “If he was in this draft, we certainly would feel good about having used that third-round pick.”

Browns GM Talks Haden, QBs, FAs, Mack

March 24th, 2014 at 9:48am CST by Luke Adams

Appearing at the NFL’s owner meetings in Orlando, Browns GM Ray Farmer answered several questions from reporters today, including Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal and Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Here’s a round-up of some of the highlights, with Twitter links via Ulrich and Cabot:

  • After cornerback Joe Haden fueled speculation by tweeting “It’s a crazy business” last night, Farmer insisted that the team has no interest in trading Haden, and would like to keep him in Cleveland for a long time.
  • Farmer defended the team’s decision not to attend the Pro Days of top quarterback prospects like Blake Bortles, Teddy Bridgewater, and Johnny Manziel by arguing that those days are “scripted” and saying that the Browns’ absence keeps teams guessing about Cleveland’s intentions. The general manager added that he’s “not leaning in any direction” with the No. 4 pick in the draft.
  • Farmer believes Cleveland will have opportunities to trade up or down in the draft, and confirmed that discussions about those possibilities are already underway.
  • Asked if the Browns have interest in Mark Sanchez, Farmer said the team would be interested in “anyone who can help us win,” though he didn’t say whether Sanchez was one such player. For now, the GM says he’s comfortable with Brian Hoyer, and that Hoyer’s competition could come from anywhere, including a player in the draft.
  • Farmer confirmed that the Browns had interest in Matt Schaub before Houston sent him to the Raiders.
  • According to Ulrich, Farmer paused for a few seconds when asked where the Browns stood with offensive lineman Paul McQuistan and defensive end Alex Carrington, before replying, “We’ll see.” Both free agents visited the team last week.
  • Cleveland investigated many options for a No. 2 wide receiver and No. 2 cornerback in free agency, but nothing worked out, according to Farmer.
  • The Browns are still focused on working out a long-term deal with Alex Mack, who received the transition tag from the club this offseason.

Rams Interested In Mark Sanchez

March 24th, 2014 at 9:10am CST by Luke Adams

The NFL’s quarterback carousel has been busy this offseason, with Mark Sanchez representing the latest roster casualty, when the Jets replaced him with Michael Vick on Friday. However, Sanchez is drawing interest from at least one NFL team. Rams head coach Jeff Fisher tells Jim Corbett of USA Today that his team will at least kick the tires on the former Jet.

“I’d say that there is interest. I can’t say how much. But there certainly would be interest,” Fisher said. “I don’t have a backup with experience on the roster right now.”

Rams starter Sam Bradford is coming off an ACL injury, and his 2013 backup, Kellen Clemens, has signed with the Chargers in free agency. The current No. 2 in St. Louis, Austin Davis, has yet taken a snap in an NFL regular season game. As Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com noted in a weekend piece in which he identified the Rams as a top possibility for Sanchez, the ex-Jets signal-caller also has a connection to Rams offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, who was previously the OC in New York for several seasons.

According to Ed Werder of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Rams GM Les Snead also has interest in Sanchez, so Fisher isn’t on his own. However, if Sanchez plans to sign within the next day or two, it likely won’t be with the Rams, says Werder.

Extra Points: Bears, Mack, Steelers, Jackson

March 23rd, 2014 at 9:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bears are considering veterans as they search for a backup to quarterback Jay Cutler, but coach Marc Trestman feels good about what Jordan Palmer showed late in the preseason last year, writes Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. “We give Jordan a lot of credit,” Trestman said. “He literally learned the offense on his own because we didn’t have time to work daily with him. He worked. He worked overtime and he learned the offense and came in and played admirably in the preseason. He moved the football team and was very sufficient. He’s got a lot of experience and not a lot of wear and tear. He’s been around a long time. Obviously, we’re going to have another one in there and see how that goes over the next couple of months.” More from around the NFL..

  • A source tells Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter) that the Ravens have a high opinion of Alex Mack but they’ve believed all along that signing the center would be complicated and expensive to pull off.
  • Steelers GM Kevin Colbert says that with the available talent in this draft, trading down is the best strategy. Unfortunately for him, he says he’s far from alone in that thinking. “It makes more sense in this draft than trading up,” Colbert said, writes Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). “I’m sure everyone shares the same thought.”
  • Jets owner Woody Johnson definitely has a win-now mindset, tweets Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. “I’m not going to use the word ‘patient’ anymore. We want to do it now,” Johnson said.
  • Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk writes that Johnson could face a tampering violation for discussing his interest in bringing DeSean Jackson to the Jets.

Giants Done Spending For Offseason

March 23rd, 2014 at 8:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The Giants have been rather busy this offseason in an effort to put a dismal 2013 behind them. However, as we head into April, it appears that they’re just about tapped out. Owner John Mara told Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post (on Twitter) says the Giants are “pretty much done” signing veteran free agents after their recent spree.

This winter, Big Blue added several impact free agents this winter, headlined by cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who got a five-year, $35MM deal (~$14MM guaranteed). Other big pickups included offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz, cornerback Walter Thurmond, running back Rashad Jennings, and linebacker Jameel McClain. Between those signings and retaining linebacker Jon Beason, Big Blue feels as though they’ve done enough to return to the playoffs in 2014.

Mara went on to say that the club “won’t rule out” reworking Eli Manning‘s contract this year but nothing is in the works at the moment (link). As shown at Over The Cap, Manning has two years left on his deal including 2014. The Super Bowl winning quarterback is set to earn base salaries of $15.15MM in ’14 and $17MM in 2015.

Raiders Acquire Matt Schaub From Texans

March 23rd, 2014 at 8:00pm CST by Luke Adams

MARCH 23rd, 8:00pm: Schaub has restructured his deal with Oakland, lowering his base salary and cap number for this year, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN. The veteran can still earn $15-20MM over the next couple of seasons.

MARCH 21st, 3:48pm: The Raiders have officially acquired Schaub, the team announced (via Twitter). The Texans will receive a sixth-round pick in the deal, says Ian Rapoport (via Twitter).

9:09am: Albert Breer of the NFL Network (Twitter link) confirms that the two sides have agreed to terms, meaning the deal is just pending a physical. Of course, considering this is the Raiders, that’s not necessarily a given.

9:00am: A source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) that Schaub is flying to Oakland right now to take a physical. Assuming there are no snags, the deal could be officially completed later today.

Matt Schaub7:45am: The Raiders are expected to trade a 2014 late-round pick to the Texans in exchange for Matt Schaub, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). According to Schefter (via Twitter), the Browns also expressed interest in Schaub, but Oakland has made a stronger push to get a deal done.

Schaub, the Texans’ longtime signal-caller, lost his starting job in Houston in 2013, and the team was expected to make a move with him this offseason, whether it was a trade or release. The 32-year-old’s fate looked particularly sealed when the Texans agreed to terms with Ryan Fitzpatrick yesterday. With Fitzpatrick in the fold and the club likely to draft another quarterback early in May’s draft, there isn’t much room to keep Schaub around.

As for the Raiders, they’ve been linked to Schaub throughout the offseason, with a report last Friday suggesting he and Mark Sanchez were Oakland targets. A separate story on Sunday suggested the Raiders and Texans were engaged in “serious” trade talks, though the Browns were also in the mix. As Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports notes (via Twitter), acquiring Schaub wouldn’t necessarily stop the Raiders from drafting a QB early in the draft, but it would give the franchise some options.

Although he struggled with performance and health in 2013, Schaub is only two years removed from a Pro Bowl season in which he threw for more than 4,000 yards, completing 64.3% of his passes and recording a 22-12 TD-INT ratio. Even during his down year, he completed 61.2% of his passes and averaged 231 passing yards per game, numbers that compare favorably to the ones compiled by Raiders starter Terrelle Pryor.

Assuming his contract remains untouched, Schaub would count for $10.5MM in dead money on the Texans’ books this season if he’s traded, creating nearly $4MM in cap savings. Meanwhile, the Raiders, with their excess cap space, would take on his $10MM base salary, plus a a little under $1MM in per-game bonuses. Schaub’s contract runs through 2016, though he’s extremely unlikely to play out that entire deal.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Vlad Ducasse

March 23rd, 2014 at 6:27pm CST by Zachary Links

Free agent offensive lineman Vlad Ducasse will decide between the Vikings and two other teams this week, tweets Ben Goessling of ESPN.com. While Goessling hears that the interest between him and Vikings is mutual, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (on Twitter) hears that there’s no verbal agreement in place yet. Ducasse visited Minnesota to meet with club officials earlier today.

The Bengals are one of the teams in the mix along with a “mystery team,” according to Wolfson. We learned last week that the Jets have interest in retaining the guard but the Bengals and Vikings appear to be more likely. The Jets drafted Ducasse based on his upside and potential, not expecting much out of the football neophyte early on. Four years in, the former second round pick has yet to show that he can take a step forward towards being a reliable starter.

Week In Review: 3/17/14 – 3/23/14

March 23rd, 2014 at 4:51pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The headlines from the past week at PFR:

Key Signings:

Trades:

Released:

Retirements:

Other:

  • Free agent offensive tackle Eric Winston was elected president of the NFL Players Association.

Vikings Sign Corey Wootton

March 23rd, 2014 at 4:45pm CST by Zachary Links

SUNDAY, 4:45pm: Wootton will earn a $1MM base salary, with a $400K signing bonus and $100K workout bonus, according to Ben Goessling of ESPN.com (via Twitter). As previously reported, Wootton has $500K available in incentives.

FRIDAY, 10:05am: The Vikings have officially announced the signing of Wootton (Twitter link).

THURSDAY, 8:11pm: It’s a one-year, $1.5MM contract with $500K in incentives for Wootton, tweets Alex Marvez of FOX Sports 1.

7:01pm: Defensive lineman Corey Wootton has agreed to a one-year deal with the Vikings, according to agent Mike McCartney (via Twitter). Wootton previously had surgery for a torn labrum in his hip but is said to have recovered well.

Wootton, 26, saw time on pretty much ever part of the defensive line last season for the Bears. In 16 games (15 starts), Wootton recorded 28 tackles and 3.5 sacks plus five passes defended. Known for his positive demeanor in the locker room, Wootton should bring as much in the locker room as he does on the gridiron. Wootton first emerged in 2012 with Chicago, racking up seven sacks and 20 tackles across 16 games (seven starts).

Extra Points: Raiders, Bears, Draft

March 23rd, 2014 at 4:41pm CST by Dallas Robinson

A few links from around the league:

  • The Raiders acquired several veteran players this offseason, including quarterback Matt Schaub, offensive tackle Donald Penn, and defensive linemen Justin Tuck and LaMarr Woodley, but head coach Dennis Allen is adamant that the team was primarily interested in the players’ ability, writes Scott Blair of CSNBayArea.com. “We’re not bringing in mascots or hood ornaments or whatever,” said Allen. “…A lot of people ask me about veteran leadership. Let’s not confuse things here. I want guys that can play. We’re not bringing in guys just for leadership. We went out and got guys to can still be productive and also fill a leadership role.”
  • The Bears hope that Marquess Wilson will take hold of the No. 3 receiver role vacated by Earl Bennett after his release, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. Head coach Marc Trestman hopes that Wilson, a 2013 seventh-round-pick, can round into form as Alshon Jeffery did last season: “I think he showed that we can work with him and develop him. He’s got the football intelligence that we’re looking for and the ability to be flexible within the offense. He was consistent.”
  • At the National Football Post, former Bears general manager Jerry Angelo writes about what type of NFL systems and schemes would be fits for Johnny Manziel and Jadeveon Clowney,
  • The Ravens scouted several offensive lineman at the Tennessee State pro day, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
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