2014 April - Pro Football Rumors

Seahawks Notes: Sherman, Williams, Thomas

April 29th, 2014 at 4:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Now that the Seahawks have finalized an extension with one of the top two All-Pro players in their secondary, the team appears set to shift its focus to the other half of that duo. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, after locking up safety Earl Thomas through the 2018 season, the Seahawks are expected to resume contract talks with cornerback Richard Sherman. Reports last week indicated that Seattle and Sherman had made some progress in negotiations, and while no deal is imminent yet, the two sides could get something done in time for the draft.

Let’s check out a few more Seahawks items….

Free agent defensive tackle Kevin Williams paid a visit to the Seahawks on Monday, according to Howard Balzer of the SportsXchange (via Twitter). The former Viking is still looking for a home, and may end up signing after the draft is over, when potential suitors have a better idea of what holes they need to fill.
Marshall offensive tackle Garrett Scott worked out for the Seahawks this afternoon after doing the same for the Chargers this morning, tweets Gil Brandt of NFL.com.
Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com takes a closer look at the Thomas extension, suggesting it’s the latest indication of the rising value of elite safeties in today’s NFL.

Cowboys Re-Sign Anthony Spencer

April 29th, 2014 at 4:05pm CST by Matt Feminis

TUESDAY, 4:05pm: Spencer’s one-year deal has a base value of just $1.5MM, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). $250K of a $1.25MM base salary is guaranteed, while Spencer can earn another $250K in per-game roster bonuses. Presumably, if Archer’s initial report on the contract’s max value is accurate, there are significant incentives available on top of that $1.5MM.

SATURDAY, 6:25pm: Spencer’s contract is worth up to $3.5MM, reports Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com (via Twitter). However the deal includes no signing bonus up front.

12:50pm: Free agent pass rusher Anthony Spencer has re-signed with the Cowboys, according to his agent Jordan Woy (via Twitter). Spencer, 30, is the longest-tenured Cowboys defender. He played in one game last season before undergoing season-ending microfracture surgery on his knee. In 2012, Spencer produced 95 tackles and 11 sacks in 14 games.

In addition to losing his 2013 season, the injury cost Spencer a lucrative free-agent contract. Instead, he was forced to take a one-year, “prove it” deal, as his health and utility remain question marks heading into training camp. This is the third year in a row Spencer will be on a one-year deal, as ESPN’s Todd Archer points out, though Spencer will make a fraction of what he did the last two seasons when he played as Dallas’ franchise tagged player, earning nearly $20MM.

Dolphins Pick Up Option On Mike Pouncey

April 29th, 2014 at 3:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Not long after Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported that the Dolphins would exercise their fifth-year option on Mike Pouncey, the team has made it official, announcing the move today (via Twitter). The option pickup ensures that Pouncey will remain under contract through the 2015 season.

Since taking over as the Dolphins’ full-time starting center in his rookie season, Pouncey has developed into one of the more reliable options in the NFL, ranking eighth among centers in 2012 and 13th in 2013, according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required). Miami’s offensive line has undergone a significant overhaul this offseason, including the addition of tackle Branden Albert, who received $20MM in guaranteed money — Pouncey represents one of the few holdovers, a core piece in the middle of the line.

There were some questions raised about Pouncey’s long-term future in Miami after he was identified in the Ted Wells report as one of the players involved in the bullying of Jonathan Martin. However, Richie Incognito was considered the main instigator in that situation, and both Incognito and John Jerry – who was also named in the report – departed in free agency. Martin is also no longer on the roster, having been sent to San Francisco. Presumably, with those players out of the picture, the Dolphins feel Pouncey’s role in the scandal was minimal enough that the club is comfortable with keeping him on the roster moving forward.

Pouncey, 2011’s 15th overall pick, will be in line for a salary of $7.438MM in 2015, the fifth-year option amount for any offensive lineman picked between 11th and 32nd. You can keep tabs on all of this year’s option decisions leading up to the May 3 deadline with our tracker.

Draft Updates: Bucs, Bills, McCarron, Savage

April 29th, 2014 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

A handful of teams picking at the top of next week’s draft have expressed an openness to move down in the first round, and we can add the Buccaneers to this list. Speaking to reporters today, including Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com, Tampa Bay GM Jason Licht didn’t rule out the possibility of trading down.

“That’s definitely something we’d look into,” Licht said. “We’ve already reached out to teams. If our player isn’t there, we’d be open to conversations about moving back.”

Here are several more draft-related items for Tuesday afternoon:

Within his latest mock draft at ESPN.com, Todd McShay cites three league sources who have told him in the past week that the Bills are trying to trade up from No. 9. According to McShay, if Buffalo does make a move, it will likely be to land Jadeveon Clowney, Sammy Watkins, or Greg Robinson.
Appearing on The Paul Finebaum Show, Alabama signal-caller A.J. McCarron suggested he’s been told he could be drafted as high as 16th in the draft, which is the spot the Cowboys currently hold (link via Andrew Gribble of AL.com).
Pittsburgh quarterback Tom Savage quietly made a pre-draft visit to the Jets last week, reports Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (via Twitter).
After previously identifying a few teams who hosted Northern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com names a few more, tweeting that Ward also visited the Colts, Saints, Texans, and Vikings.
LSU guard Trai Turner has worked out privately for the Lions, Buccaneers, Panthers, Falcons, and Saints, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post. Wilson adds that Turner also visited the Cowboys, Cardinals, Colts, and Dolphins.
Kansas wide receiver and special teams ace Josh Ford has drawn interest from the Packers, Panthers, Texans, Jets, and Chiefs, tweets Wilson.
The Giants, Jets, and Lions were among the teams to host Maryland cornerback Dexter McDougle for a pre-draft visit, writes Wilson.
Finally, Wilson reports that Wisconsin defensive tackle Beau Allen had a total of eight visits and three private workouts, and tweets that Albany tackle Kadeem Williams has been informed he’s on an AFC South team’s draft board.

Falcons Exercise Julio Jones’ 2015 Option

April 29th, 2014 at 2:20pm CST by Luke Adams

2:20pm: The Falcons have since confirmed they’re exercising Jones’ option (Twitter link).

2:11pm: The Falcons are exercising their fifth-year option on Julio Jones, extending his contract through the 2015 season, reports Jay Glazer of Fox Sports (via Twitter). Based on Glazer’s wording, it appears the move isn’t official yet, but the club is likely in the process of finalizing it.

It was just over three years ago that the Falcons sent a handful of draft picks to the Browns in order to move up in the 2011 draft and snag Jones with the sixth overall pick. Since then, the 25-year-old has developed into one of the NFL’s more dangerous offensive playmakers. While Jones missed most of the 2013 season with a foot injury, he ranked among the league leaders in receiving yards (1,198) and receiving touchdowns (10) in 2012.

As our fifth-year option tracker shows, since Jones was selected in the top 10, his 2015 salary will equal the 2014 transition tag amount for wide receivers. As such, he’ll be in line for a $10.176MM salary, which is currently guaranteed for injury only. That money will become fully guaranteed on the first day of the 2015 league year.

Earl Thomas, Seahawks Agree To Extension

April 29th, 2014 at 1:31pm CST by Luke Adams

TUESDAY, 1:31pm: Thomas, who appeared at a press conference today officially announcing the new deal, receives a $9.5MM signing bonus as part of the agreement, tweets Rapoport.

MONDAY, 4:11pm: It’s a four-year extension for Thomas, according to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports (via Twitter). Since those are four new years, that will keep the safety under contract through the 2018 season. Meanwhile, Rapoport has the salary details, tweeting that the agreement has a base value of $40MM, with $27.725MM of that money guaranteed.

3:54pm: The Seahawks have reached an agreement on a long-term deal with safety Earl Thomas, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). According to Rapoport, Thomas’ extension will make him “easily the highest-paid safety,” which means it should surpass the $9MM-per-year contract signed last month by Jairus Byrd.

Thomas has spent the first four seasons of his NFL career in Seattle after being drafted by the club in the first round in 2010. The 24-year-old’s contributions have helped make the Seahawks’ secondary arguably the best in the NFL — he has earned an All-Pro spot in back-to-back years, and has made three straight Pro Bowls. According to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required), Thomas has recorded a positive grade every year of his career, and ranked ninth among 86 qualified safeties in 2013. He also recorded 127 tackles and grabbed five interceptions last season.

Just before Thomas helped lead the Seahawks to a Super Bowl win in February, we heard that an extension for the standout safety would be Seattle’s top priority this offseason. The club handled plenty of other business last month, including re-signing free agent defensive end Michael Bennett, but extensions for Thomas and Richard Sherman were among Seattle’s other goals before the 2014 season gets underway. With Thomas locked up, the Seahawks will shift their focus to Sherman, with whom they’ve reportedly made some progress in extension talks.

As for the specific financial details of Thomas’ new deal, we’ll have to wait for those to be reported — on his current contract, he’s in line for a base salary of $4.625MM in 2014, with a cap hit of about $5.473MM. While Byrd’s new contract is the largest per-year value for any NFL safety, Eric Berry received a larger guarantee.

Over The Cap lists Berry’s guarantee as about $25.7MM, while Joel Corry of CBSSports.com tweets that the Chiefs safety got $34MM guaranteed. There may be some discrepancy there between fully guaranteed money, and money guaranteed for injury only. Either way, if Thomas’ new contract makes him “easily” the highest-paid safety, he’s likely looking at an eight-digit annual salary, with the overall guarantee depending on the number of years.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC Notes: Bills, Browns, Draft, Jaguars

April 29th, 2014 at 1:09pm CST by Luke Adams

A new report from John Kryk of the Toronto Sun suggests that an overlooked clause in the Bills’ non-relocation agreement with Erie County and the state of New York expressly prohibits the sale of the franchise to anyone who intends to relocate the team prior to 2023. However, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk and Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz (via ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak) report that the newly-discovered clause probably doesn’t change much for the team, since a new ownership group could say it won’t sell the franchise, then change course by 2020.

Here’s more from around the AFC:

The Browns are hoping to avoid another Alex Mack situation by reaching an agreement on a long-term extension with tight end Jordan Cameron before he hits free agency, but so far those talks haven’t progressed a whole lot, says Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com.
Free agent linebacker Zac Diles, who was with the Titans last season, is participating in the Browns‘ minicamp on a tryout basis, tweets Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon-Journal. Meanwhile, as we heard yesterday, Vince Young and Tyler Thigpen are also in attendance, and the Browns figure to sign one of the two QBs after the minicamp, tweets Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post reports that Cincinnati tight end Blake Annen visited the Texans, while Kryk tweets that McGill offensive tackle Laurent Duvernay-Tardif didn’t make it to previously-planned visits with the Browns and Colts due to scheduling issues. Both Annen and Duvernay-Tardif worked out for the Eagles.
The Jaguars are eyeing mid-to-late-round linebackers, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union, who says (via Twitter) that Louisville’s Preston Brown worked out for the club.

Panthers Notes: Bell, Draft, Receivers

April 29th, 2014 at 12:02pm CST by Luke Adams

The Panthers will be an intriguing team to watch in next week’s draft, considering the club lost a handful of notable contributors this offseason to retirement or free agency. A good or bad draft could be the difference between Carolina continuing to build on last year’s success or falling back to the middle of the pack in the NFC. Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer has a number of notes on the team, including several tidbits from general manager Dave Gettleman. Let’s check out the highlights (all links go to Person’s Twitter)….

May 2 is the deadline for restricted free agents to sign offer sheets, so resolution on tackle Byron Bell‘s contract situation should be coming soon. The Panthers tendered Bell at the second-round level ($2.187MM), but could lock him up to a longer-term deal.
While the Panthers brought in 26 players for pre-draft visits, the team’s draft board is “not even remotely closed to being finished,” according to Gettleman.
Gettleman identified left tackle and wide receiver as two of the Panthers’ top needs heading into the draft, and raved about the depth of those positions in this year’s draft class. The GM has given nine or 10 wideouts and offensive tackles first-round grades.
Gettleman also indicated that cornerback is a position of need for the team.
Despite the fact that it’s not one of the team’s top areas of focus, if there’s an impact defensive tackle or end available, the Panthers won’t shy away from drafting that player, says Gettleman.
Noting that one of the main takeaways of Gettleman’s comments was how much he loves the receivers in this draft, Person points out that the Panthers’ offseason has been shaped by that fact. If the club thinks it can land a solid wideout or two in the draft, its decision to let its top four 2013 receivers walk makes more sense.

Florida Rumors: Jags, Matthews, Pouncey, Fins

April 29th, 2014 at 11:00am CST by Luke Adams

Two Florida teams figure to have a significant impact on how next week’s top 10 draft picks play out, as the Jaguars hold the third overall pick and the Buccaneers pick seventh. This morning’s round of updates on the NFL’s Florida teams provides some insight into what direction the Jags might be leaning with that No. 3 pick, and checks in on the one Florida club not picking in the top 10 — the Dolphins. Let’s dive in….

After bringing in Jake Matthews for a visit last week, the Jaguars are believed to be targeting the Texas A&M offensive tackle with their third overall pick, a league source tells Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com. While some teams may have Zack Martin or Taylor Lewan higher on their draft boards, Matthews and Greg Robinson are generally viewed as the top two tackles in this year’s class. Jacksonville’s pick is one of the most interesting to watch at the top of the draft, since a number of players, including Jadeveon Clowney, Sammy Watkins, and the top quarterbacks and tackles, could be fits for the club.
The Dolphins are expected to exercise their fifth-year option on center Mike Pouncey in advance of this weekend’s deadline, reports Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Based on Pouncey’s on-field production, the $7.438MM option is a lock to be picked up, but the center’s involvement in last year’s bullying scandal complicates the decision a little.
Teams are no longer allowed to host players for pre-draft visits, but the Dolphins will be working out Wyoming receiver Robert Herron today and tomorrow, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).

Prospect Bradley Roby Resolves Case

April 29th, 2014 at 10:57am CST by Zachary Links

TUESDAY, 10:57am: Roby has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge, resolving his case, as Austin Ward of ESPN.com details.

FRIDAY, 10:53am: Roby took to Twitter to defend himself against this week’s report: “I was not driving. I did not get arrested. [I was] not in a cell. No finger prints. No mugshot.” Roby also posted a picture of his breathalyzer test, showing that he was not drunk at the time of the incident.

THURSDAY, 8:52pm: Ohio State cornerback Bradley Roby has been arrested for operating a vehicle while impaired, tweets Rob Kunz of WBNS-10TV. The cornerback, who is widely projected as a late first-round pick, is due in court tomorrow.

The cornerback was found passed out behind the wheel of a vehicle in Columbus, Ohio on Sunday. This is especially poor timing for Roby and it’s not his first run-in with the law. The Buckeyes standout was also arrested for a bar related incident last summer in Bloomington, Indiana. While the charges related to the incident were later reduced, Roby was still suspended for the first game of the 2013 season.

For Roby, the incident is yet another red flag for a prospect who is coming off of a so-so 2013 campaign. Given the gravity of the situation, it seems likely that the error in judgement will send Roby out of the first round.