HEADLINES

Month: December 2024

Eagles Favorites To Sign Mark Sanchez

March 26th, 2014 at 9:20pm CST by Luke Adams

WEDNESDAY, 9:20pm: Sanchez is in Philadelphia to meet with the Eagles and a deal could be done soon, tweets Brian Costello of the New York Post. The Eagles are putting the quartberack through a physical with an eye on his injured shoulder.

MONDAY, 4:23pm: While the Eagles are in the lead to sign Sanchez, it’s “not a lock,” a source tells Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Mehta adds the Browns and Titans to the list of teams that have expressed some interest, and says the Giants probably aren’t a serious candidate for Sanchez, despite having some interest.

4:05pm: As expected, Mortensen clarifies (via Twitter) that the Eagles will at least have to do their own medical evaluation of Sanchez before signing him. As Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets, the Eagles look like the frontrunners for the ex-Jet, but there are still a few hurdles to clear.

3:59pm: Mark Sanchez received a “failed physical” designation when he was officially released by the Jets, but his recovery from shoulder surgery is going well, and it won’t stop him from signing with a new team, according to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen. While it’s not entirely clear if he’s reporting that Sanchez already has an agreement in place, Mortensen at least suggests (via Twitter) that the veteran quarterback figures to land with the Eagles now that he’s a free agent.

Ian Rapoport of NFL.com indicates (via Twitter) that it’s not quite a done deal yet, writing that the Eagles will take a “hard look” at Sanchez and his medicals, and may sign him. In a second tweet, Rapoport adds that the Giants and other teams should join the Eagles in the hunt for Sanchez. Earlier today, we heard that the Rams also have some interest in the 27-year-old.

Sanchez, a former fifth overall pick, spent four seasons as the Jets’ full-time starter before giving way to Geno Smith in 2013. After setting career-highs with a 56.7% completion percentage, 3,474 passing yards, and 26 passing TDs in 2011, Sanchez regressed in 2012, with those numbers dipping to 54.3%, 2,883, and 13, respectively.

If he officially signs in Philadelphia, Sanchez would be replacing the man that replaced him in New York, taking over Michael Vick‘s role as the Eagles’ No. 2 quarterback behind Nick Foles.

Extra Points: Allen, Jackson, Clowney, Spencer

March 26th, 2014 at 9:06pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jets kept an eye on the Jared Allen situation but never made a firm offer before the defensive end signed with the Bears, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Meanwhile, Rapoport adds (link) that the Raiders actually offered more money than the Bears. Oakland was willing to give Allen a deal worth $9MM per year, but he believed Chicago was the best fit for him. What made Chicago such a good fit for the Pro Bowler? Rapoport says he chose the Bears in part because he has a great deal of faith in Jay Cutler‘s ability to win championships (link). Here’s tonight’s look around the NFL..

  • In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Field Yates explores the trade market for Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson, identifying the Jets, Raiders, Browns, and Panthers as trade partners that could make sense.
  • Texans ownership, coach Bill O’Brien, and General Manager Rick Smith will be meeting and dining with Jadeveon Clowney the night before his South Carolina pro day next week, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com.
  • Anthony Spencer remains on the Cowboys radar, but there’s no rush on the part of Dallas or any other club to sign him as the defensive end fights his way back from microfracture surgery on his knee, writes David Moore of the Dallas Morning News. Spencer’s representative Jordan Woy says his client, who underwent the surgery last fall and missed the final 13 games of the Cowboys season, is “structurally” sound and now working on his strength and conditioning.
  • Bernie Miklasz of the Post-Dispatch likes the Rams‘ signing of Shaun Hill as their veteran backup quarterback for 2014. Hill, he writes, has been one of the better backup QBs in the NFL since getting his first opportunity to start in a relief role for the 49ers in 2007 and now he’ll be reunited in St. Louis with Frank Cignetti, who was the QB coach with SF during Hill’s time there.
  • San Jose State cornerback Bené Benwikere, who had 14 interceptions over four seasons, penned a journal entry for USA Today Sports and disclosed that he’s set to work out for the Panthers on April 1st.
  • Scouts Walter Juliff and Chris Hall and quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson are expected to be the Cowboys‘ representatives at Johnny Manziel‘s pro day, tweets Charean Williams of the Star-Telegram.

AFC North Rumors: Browns, Ravens, Smith

March 26th, 2014 at 8:24pm CST by Zachary Links

New Browns coach Mike Pettine is eager to get more sacks out of linebackers Barkevious Mingo and Paul Kruger, writes Mary Kay Cabot of the Plain Dealer. “We really liked Barkevious coming out of LSU a year ago, so he’s a guy that has freakish ability,” Pettine said. “But he’s got some technique things that need to get cleaned up.” More on the Browns and Ravens..

  • The Ravens have made it known that a new deal for wide receiver Torrey Smith is a priority and it sounds like the interest is mutual, writes Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. “Everybody knows I want to be in Baltimore for the long haul,” Smith said. “Even when my playing days are long gone, I’m still be here. It’s something I’m looking forward to. I’m pretty sure and hopeful that it will be able to happen one day. It’s a business. I’m not losing any sleep wondering what’s going to happen contractually.”
  • The Ravens met today with veteran unrestricted free agent nose tackle Terrence Cody, sources tell Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. If Baltimore re-signs Cody, he would likely figure into the defensive line rotation as a backup.
  • The Browns are using one of their 30 official visits on Texas guard Trey Hopkins, tweets Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net. Hopkins is a legitimate late round or undrafted free agent prospect.

NFC North Rumors: Capers, Orlovsky, Sanchez

March 26th, 2014 at 6:59pm CST by Zachary Links

Seeing Jared Allen rush the quarterback for a division rival might be strange, but it’s hardly unprecedented, writes Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press. “It will be pretty weird seeing Jared with the Bears, but you’ve got to remember Alan Page played his last (3-1/2 years) with Chicago, so it won’t be any different,” Fran Tarkenton said of the former Vikings standout. “And Alan arguably was our best defensive player that has ever been.” More out of the NFC North..

  • Got a problem with the play calling of Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers? Coach Mike McCarthy doesn’t want to hear it. “Dom Capers has the toughest job on our staff; I can tell you that from experience,” McCarthy told reporters, including Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. “Anytime you’re a coordinator for a head coach that is predominantly on the other side of the ball, there’s a lot of responsibility there. His responsibility with his assistant coaches is a lot higher than with the offensive coordinator, and obviously his background of being a head coach was a big part of why we went that direction. You know, he has a lot of responsibility, and I’m very in tune with the way he goes about it.“
  • Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Post-Gazette (on Twitter) says former Colts offensive lineman Mike McGlynn is set to visit the Packers this week. Meanwhile, USA Today’s Howard Balzer (via Twitter) hears the visit to Green Bay already happened.
  • With the Vikings eyeing quarterbacks in this year’s draft, Tajh Boyd could be a late-round option for the team, according to Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net, who tweets that offensive coordinator Norv Turner is “intrigued” by the Clemson signal-caller.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Lions Notes: Orlovsky, Sanchez, Suh

March 26th, 2014 at 6:01pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest out of Detroit, courtesy of the Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett..

  • The Lions are in the market for a backup quarterback after losing Shaun Hill to the Rams and are now expected to turn their sights to Dan Orlovsky, writes Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Orlovsky played four seasons for the Lions from 2005-08 and made seven starts. He spent the 2011 season with the Colts playing for new Lions coach Jim Caldwell and was with the Buccaneers the last two years.
  • The Lions picked Matthew Stafford over Mark Sanchez when they were looking for a quarterback at the top of the 2009 NFL draft and now that Sanchez is a free agent, they don’t have any interest in bringing him to Detroit, Birkett writes. “We have not entertained it, in that regard,” Caldwell said. “But talented guy who’s got experience in the league, and I’m sure there are a lot of teams who are looking at him closely.” It goes without saying that Orlovsky is much more likely than the USC product.
  • Caldwell and Lions president Tom Lewand say they’re not concerned about Ndamukong Suh‘s contract situation becoming a distraction for the team, Birkett writes.

Bills Cannot Move Until 2020

March 26th, 2014 at 4:52pm CST by Zachary Links

It has long been speculated that the Bills would wind up moving across the border to Toronto, but that won’t be happening in this decade, writes John Kryk of the Toronto Sun. It’s late owner Ralph Wilson’s last “enormous gift” to the people of Western New York, says sports-franchise consultant Marc Ganis: a clause that bars anyone that buys the Bills from relocating the team from the Buffalo area at any time over the remaining nine years of their lease agreement. The agreement expires after the 2022 season and no owner can move the Bills sooner than the team’s out clause after the 2019 season.

It was previously believed that there was a $400MM buyout option on the club’s lease agreement, but Ganis says that’s not the case. The buyout only comes in to play in the extremely unlikely event that the new owner wins a court judgment allowing them to pick up the team and move. Even if the courts say they can move the Bills, they’ll still have to pay out a $400MM penalty.

“In this new 10-year lease that he signed, for the first seven years there is no opportunity to buy that lease out, or terminate it. None. That team is required to stay in that stadium for at least for the first seven years, and one year already has passed in that lease, so for the next six years,” Ganis explained.

The Bills have played a handful of preseason and regular season games in Toronto since 2008.

2014 NFL Draft Picks By Team

March 26th, 2014 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier today, we published the complete 2014 NFL draft order. In that list of 256 picks though, it may be a little tricky to find all your favorite team’s selections, so we’ve created a separate list which shows the breakdown of the 2014 draft picks by club. Here’s the complete list of 2014 NFL draft picks by team, sorted in order of total picks:

  1. New York Jets (12): 1st (18), 2nd (49), 3rd (80), 4th (104), 4th (115), 4th (137), 5th (154), 6th (195), 6th (209), 6th (210), 6th (213), 7th (233)
  2. San Francisco 49ers (12): 1st (30), 2nd (57), 3rd (70), 3rd (77), 3rd (100), 4th (106), 4th (129), 5th (150), 5th (170), 6th (180), 7th (243), 7th (245)
  3. St. Louis Rams (11): 1st (2), 1st (13), 2nd (41), 3rd (75), 4th (110), 6th (188), 6th (214), 7th (226), 7th (241), 7th (249), 7th (250)
  4. Houston Texans (10): 1st (1), 2nd (33), 3rd (65), 3rd (83), 4th (135), 6th (177), 6th (181), 6th (211), 7th (216), 7th (256)
  5. Minnesota Vikings (10): 1st (9), 1st (32), 3rd (72), 3rd (96), 5th (145), 6th (182), 6th (184), 7th (220), 7th (223), 7th (225)
  6. Jacksonville Jaguars (9): 1st (3), 2nd (39), 2nd (61), 3rd (93), 4th (114), 5th (144), 5th (159), 6th (205), 7th (222)
  7. Atlanta Falcons (9): 1st (6), 2nd (37), 3rd (68), 4th (103), 4th (139), 5th (147), 5th (168), 7th (253), 7th (255)
  8. Pittsburgh Steelers (9): 1st (15), 2nd (46), 3rd (97), 4th (118), 5th (157), 5th (173), 6th (192), 6th (215), 7th (230)
  9. Dallas Cowboys (9): 1st (16), 2nd (34), 4th (119), 5th (146), 7th (231), 7th (238), 7th (248), 7th (251), 7th (254)
  10. Baltimore Ravens (9): 1st (17), 2nd (48), 3rd (79), 3rd (99), 4th (134), 4th (138), 5th (175), 6th (194), 7th (218)
  11. Green Bay Packers (9): 1st (21), 2nd (53), 3rd (85), 3rd (98), 4th (121), 5th (161), 5th (176), 6th (197), 7th (236)
  12. New England Patriots (9): 1st (29), 2nd (62), 4th (105), 4th (130), 4th (140), 6th (179), 6th (198), 6th (206), 7th (244)
  13. Seattle Seahawks (9): 2nd (45), 2nd (64), 4th (108), 4th (123), 4th (132), 5th (172), 6th (199), 6th (208), 7th (227)
  14. Oakland Raiders (8): 1st (5), 2nd (36), 3rd (81), 4th (116), 4th (107), 7th (219), 7th (235), 7th (247)
  15. Detroit Lions (8): 1st (10), 2nd (40), 3rd (76), 4th (133), 4th (136), 5th (158), 6th (189), 7th (229)
  16. Chicago Bears (8): 1st (14), 2nd (51), 3rd (82), 4th (117), 4th (131), 6th (183), 6th (191), 7th (246)
  17. Miami Dolphins (8): 1st (19), 2nd (63), 3rd (67), 4th (125), 5th (155), 5th (171), 6th (190), 7th (234)
  18. Cincinnati Bengals (8): 1st (24), 2nd (55), 3rd (88), 4th (111), 5th (164), 6th (212), 7th (239), 7th (252)
  19. Washington Redskins (8): 2nd (47), 3rd (66), 3rd (78), 4th (102), 5th (142), 6th (186), 7th (217), 7th (228)
  20. Buffalo Bills (7): 1st (4), 2nd (44), 3rd (73), 4th (109), 5th (153), 7th (221), 7th (237)
  21. New York Giants (7): 1st (12), 2nd (43), 3rd (74), 4th (113), 5th (152), 5th (174), 6th (187)
  22. Philadelphia Eagles (7): 1st (26), 2nd (42), 3rd (86), 4th (101), 5th (141), 5th (162), 7th (224)
  23. Arizona Cardinals (7): 1st (27), 2nd (52), 3rd (84), 3rd (91), 4th (120), 5th (160), 6th (196)
  24. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6): 1st (7), 2nd (38), 3rd (69), 5th (143), 5th (149), 6th (185)
  25. Cleveland Browns (6): 1st (8), 1st (22), 2nd (35), 3rd (71), 3rd (94), 4th (127)
  26. Tennessee Titans (6): 1st (11), 2nd (54), 4th (112), 4th (122), 5th (151), 6th (178)
  27. New Orleans Saints (6): 1st (20), 2nd (58), 4th (126), 5th (167), 5th (169), 6th (202)
  28. Kansas City Chiefs (6): 1st (23), 3rd (87), 4th (124), 5th (163), 6th (193), 6th (200)
  29. San Diego Chargers (6): 1st (25), 2nd (50), 3rd (89), 5th (165), 6th (201), 7th (240)
  30. Carolina Panthers (6): 1st (28), 2nd (60), 3rd (92), 4th (128), 5th (148), 6th (204)
  31. Denver Broncos (6): 1st (31), 2nd (56), 3rd (95), 5th (156), 6th (207), 7th (242)
  32. Indianapolis Colts (5): 2nd (59), 3rd (90), 5th (166), 6th (203), 7th (232)

AFC Notes: Jets, Broncos, Blount, MJD, Titans

March 26th, 2014 at 2:58pm CST by Luke Adams

In addition to the Seahawks and Cowboys, the Jets may also have been in on Jared Allen before he agreed to sign with the Bears, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. According to Schefter, head coach Rex Ryan spoke to the veteran defensive end last week, and the Jets wanted to get involved in the bidding, though it’s not clear how serious the interest was from Allen’s end. As New York continues to search for upgrades in free agency, let’s check in on a few more AFC teams….

  • Unsurprisingly, the Broncos are expected to exercise their fifth-year option for 2015 on defensive standout Von Miller, according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post. The option, available for 2011 first-round picks, would pay Miller a little less than $10MM in ’15.
  • The running back market is coming into focus, says Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). According to La Canfora, LeGarrette Blount, who is still receiving interest from the Patriots, will visit with the Steelers later this week. Pittsburgh is still considering Maurice Jones-Drew as well, though not at his original $3.5MM-per-year asking price.
  • Free agent offensive lineman Mike McGlynn, who has met with the Redskins and Rams since the start of free agency, is scheduled to visit the Titans tonight and tomorrow, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean.
  • The Raiders have added several players over age 30 in free agency, but GM Reggie McKenzie doesn’t view those players as stop-gap solutions. McKenzie told Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle that he wanted to bring in immediate contributors to show the team’s young players the Raiders are serious about winning.
  • Colts GM Ryan Grigson said today that his team preferred its in-house options at center to the free agents available at the position, as Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star details. That’s not to say that no free agent center would have been an upgrade, but given the potential cost, Grigson didn’t feel a move would be worth it.
  • Offensive line and wide receiver will be areas of focus for the Jaguars in the draft, writes Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union.
  • R.J. Stanford‘s new one-year deal with the Bengals includes a $730K base salary, a $50K signing bonus, and a $25K workout bonus, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.

Knowshon Moreno, Dolphins Making Progress

March 26th, 2014 at 2:36pm CST by Luke Adams

Free agent running back Knowshon Moreno is “moving closer” to a deal with the Dolphins, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). It doesn’t sound like anything is necessarily imminent, but Miami looks to be the frontrunner for Moreno’s services at this point.

Moreno, 26, visited the Dolphins last week, and GM Dennis Hickey confirmed on Monday that the club remains interested in signing the former Bronco. While Denver GM John Elway indicated this week that his team hasn’t closed the door on the possibility of bringing back Moreno, it appears players like Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman will get increased roles with the Broncos next season, with the team’s 2013 starter likely to land elsewhere.

The 12th overall pick in 2009, Moreno posted his first 1,000-yard season in 2013, racking up 13 overall regular-season touchdowns. Although the Broncos’ explosive offense aided those numbers, Moreno would likely be an upgrade for a Dolphins’ running game led by Lamar Miller and Daniel Thomas, who failed to consistently produce last season.

Buccaneers Sign Louis Murphy

March 26th, 2014 at 1:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Buccaneers have signed free agent wide receiver Louis Murphy to a one-year contract, the team announced today.. Murphy, who visited the Bucs last week, also met with the Bengals before reaching an agreement with Tampa Bay.

A former University of Florida standout, Murphy returns down south after spending the first five years of his NFL career with the Raiders, Panthers, and Giants. The fourth-round pick got off to a strong start in Oakland, grabbing 75 balls for 1,130 yards and six touchdowns in his first two seasons with the team, but has played an increasingly diminished role in offenses since then. At age 26, Murphy has bounce-back potential, and could contribute as an occasional deep threat off the bench in Tampa Bay.

Although the Bucs have been very busy in free agency over the last two weeks, adding players like Josh McCown, Michael Johnson, Anthony Collins, and Alterraun Verner, Murphy is the first receiver signed by the team since free agency opened. The club will likely look to further fortify the position in free agency or the draft over the next couple months.

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