HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

AFC East Notes: Brady, Jets, Bills, Polian

December 29th, 2014 at 4:57pm CST by Luke Adams

Shortly after his base salaries for the next three seasons – totaling $24MM – became guaranteed over the weekend, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has agreed to rework his deal so that those salaries are now guaranteed for injury only, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Facebook link). While it doesn’t change Brady’s cap hit, the move allows the Pats to free up some cash, since the team no longer has to put $24MM for Brady in escrow right away, as PatsCap.com explains (via Twitter). That could allow the team to be a little more flexible this winter when discussing extensions with a handful of free-agents-to-be.

Here’s more from out of the AFC East:

  • Earlier today, Jets owner Woody Johnson told reporters that he’d “love” to have Darrelle Revis back in a Jets uniform in 2015. Considering Revis remains under contract with the Patriots, that comment could easily be viewed as tampering, which Johnson must have realized, since he has since backpedaled. Johnson’s latest statement, via the team: “I misspoke today when I commented on Darrelle Revis. I would never interfere in the contractual relationship of a player with another team and should not have used those words. I called [Patriots owner] Robert Kraft this afternoon to emphasize those points” (all Twitter links).
  • According to Tim Graham of the Buffalo News (via Twitter), the more he hears, the more he’s inclined to believe that Bill Polian will indeed return to the Bills. However, Graham cautions that there are no guarantees at this point. On Saturday, Polian refuted a report indicating that he was returning to the organization for which he was once the general manager.
  • On the heels of Kyle Orton‘s retirement announcement, Bills general manager Doug Whaley acknowledged that his team will have to add at least one quarterback, and maybe two. Whaley added that Buffalo will leave all its options open when it comes to acquiring a QB, so as not to put the team in a corner “or show our hand” (Twitter links via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com).

 

Chargers Notes: Royal, Johnson, Freeney, Rivers

December 29th, 2014 at 4:31pm CST by Luke Adams

A win yesterday would have secured the Chargers the sixth seed in the AFC, but the team’s offense couldn’t get anything going against the Chiefs, losing the game and ceding that final playoff spot to the Ravens. That gives the Chargers an early and unwelcome head-start on their offseason. Here’s the latest out of San Diego:

  • Chargers wide receiver Eddie Royal earned a $250K bonus yesterday by surpassing 700 receiving yards on the season, per Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter).
  • Jarret Johnson‘s cap hit will jump from $3.5MM this year to $7.5MM in 2015, which raises some questions about his future with the Chargers. Even if San Diego decides to hang onto him, Johnson isn’t sure whether or not he’ll continue his playing career — the 33-year old tells Gehlken, “If I hung it up, I’ll hang it up happy” (Twitter link).
  • Another Chargers linebacker, Dwight Freeney, also has an uncertain future, telling Gehlken that he’ll give it about a month before deciding on his next move (Twitter link). Freeney will turn 35 in February, and doesn’t have a contract yet for next season. If the veteran pass rusher decides to retire, he’ll have a future in television, says Gehlken.
  • Philip Rivers is headed into the final year of his contract, and San Diego is expected to try to extend him this offseason. However, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune says the Chargers shouldn’t even bother if they don’t intend to also invest heavily in protecting their franchise quarterback.

Browns Sign Seven Players To Reserve Deals

December 29th, 2014 at 4:18pm CST by Luke Adams

The Browns have signed seven players to reserve/futures contracts, the club announced today, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link). Here’s the full list of players to sign with Cleveland:

Six of those seven players finished the season on the Browns’ practice squad, while Barnett spent time with the unit back in September. Offensive tackle Braxston Cave was the only player to finish the year on Cleveland’s taxi squad who didn’t have a futures contract announced today.

Titans Sign Eight To Futures Contracts

December 29th, 2014 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

The Titans have officially re-signed eight players from off of their practice squad to reserve/futures contracts, the club announced today in a pair of tweets. Here are the players that reached agreements with Tennessee following the team’s regular-season finale on Sunday:

Of Tennessee’s 10 practice squad players, defensive lineman Chigbo Anunoby and wide receiver Derek Moye are the two names not on this list, so they presumably remain unsigned for now.

Bills Sign 10 To Reserve/Futures Contracts

December 29th, 2014 at 3:36pm CST by Luke Adams

Today is the first day that teams can begin signing players who didn’t finish the regular season on an NFL roster to reserve/futures contracts for the 2015 season, and the Bills have locked up 10 such players, according to a team release.

Here’s the full list of the players to ink futures deals with the team. Of these 10 players, all but one finished the year on the Bills’ practice squad:

Defensive end Ike Igbinosun was the only player to finish the season on Buffalo’s taxi squad and not receive a futures contract from the team. Meanwhile, Holley was the only one to sign a deal after not being on the practice squad, though he spent time earlier in the season on the unit before being placed on the injured list.

For a refresher on how reserve/futures contracts work, be sure to check out our glossary entry.

NFC Notes: Melton, Falcons, Clark, McManis

December 29th, 2014 at 2:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Ndamukong Suh‘s one-game suspension is the bigger story, but the Lions may not be the only team in this weekend’s Wild Card showdown with the Cowboys that’s missing a key defensive tackle. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com first reported (via Twitter), Cowboys lineman Henry Melton sustained a leg injury that could sideline him for the postseason. Melton’s agent, Jordan Woy, confirmed to Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com (Twitter link) that his client suffered a bone bruise on his knee, and the timeline for his return appears to be a matter of weeks rather than days.

Here’s more from around the NFC on a busy Monday:

  • In addition to requesting permission to speak to Dan Quinn and Adam Gase about their head coaching vacancy, as we’d previously learned, the Falcons have also asked for interviews with Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles and Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). Both coaches have Wild Card games coming up, so they aren’t allowed to interview for head coaching jobs this week.
  • Speaking to reporters today, including Jeff Darlington of NFL.com (Twitter link), Washington head coach Jay Gruden said he’ll recommend to owner Daniel Snyder and GM Bruce Allen that the club should retain defensive coordinator Jim Haslett.
  • Washington‘s Ryan Clark has yet to decide whether he’ll continue his playing career, according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post, who tweets that the veteran safety is expected to make his decision within the next couple days. Dianna Marie Russini of NBC4 believes Clark will call it a career, tweeting that the safety will simply sign the necessary papers rather than making a big announcement.
  • According to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter), the Bears made an attempt last week to lock up cornerback Sherrick McManis to a two-year contract extension, but the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement.
  • The Buccaneers will be on the lookout for an offensive coordinator in the coming days and weeks, and head coach Lovie Smith says he wants to “talk to as many people as I possibly can,” according to Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com (Twitter link).
  • Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder, who is eligible for free agency this winter, said today that he’ll start researching potential landing spots later in the week, tweets Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 Twin Cities.

Leonard Williams To Enter Draft

December 29th, 2014 at 2:11pm CST by Luke Adams

Two-time All-American defensive end Leonard Williams will forgo his senior season at USC and enter the 2015 NFL draft, he announced today through the school.

“This was a very hard decision for me,” Williams said in a statement. “I love USC, Coach Sark and the coaching staff, my teammates and the fans, and I love the game of college football. It’s hard to leave all of that. I know life is never the same once you leave college. But I feel like it’s the right time for me to go. I feel like I’m ready. I’m looking forward to the new challenge that the NFL presents.”

Viewed as a lock to be a top-five pick, Williams is one of the very best prospects available this year, ranking second overall on CBSSports.com’s board, and first on ESPN.com’s. While the Buccaneers and Titans are considered good bets to take a long look at the top quarterbacks available, either team could consider Williams, and if they pass, Jacksonville would be a very realistic landing spot for the USC junior at No. 3. Jaguars beat writers Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com and Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union both published tweets in response to Williams’ announcement suggesting that GM David Caldwell would be very interested in the young defensive end.

Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports reported earlier this month that Williams is believed to have already selected an agent based on a “long-standing family relationship.”

Hughes Not Interested In Hometown Discount

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

Even after losing Mike Pettine to the Browns a year ago, the Bills’ defense thrived again in 2014, led by a defensive line that featured three Pro Bowlers in Mario Williams, Marcell Dareus, and Kyle Williams. The one member of that defensive line that didn’t earn a Pro Bowl nod is eligible for free agency this offseason, and defensive end Jerry Hughes doesn’t anticipate taking a “hometown discount” to remain in Buffalo, writes Mike Rodak of ESPN.com.

“Yeah, I’ve never heard of that,” Hughes said, laughing. “I guess that’s a nice little deal, kind of throw that out there. But I’ve never heard of a hometown discount in the business world.”

While he may not have received Pro Bowl recognition like his fellow linemen, Hughes had another strong season for the Bills, recording 9.5 sacks in 2014 after racking up 10 in 2013. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Hughes’ overall play dropped off a little this year, from a +19.9 grade last season to +5.7 this time around. However, a significant chunk of that drop-off can be attributed to his trouble with penalties — he received a -9.1 mark in that category.

Justin Houston of the Chiefs is the best pass rusher eligible for free agency this offseason, but it’s unlikely he’ll hit the open market, with a long-term agreement or the franchise tag a more probable outcome. As such, Hughes could be among the top pass rushers available, along with Jason Pierre-Paul, Jason Worilds, and perhaps Greg Hardy, if his legal troubles are resolved.

Of course, despite Hughes’ apparent lack of interest in a team-friendly contract, the definition of a “hometown discount” differs from player to player. Last winter, Michael Bennett indicated he wouldn’t take a discount, while Golden Tate said he’d be open to the idea, but it was Bennett who signed with the Seahawks for less than expected, while Tate took a big-money offer from the Lions.

Cousins Prefers Trade If RGIII Named Starter

December 29th, 2014 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

1:00pm: Addressing today’s report and his earlier comments, Cousins told reporters – including Boyer (Twitter links) – that he wants to clarify his stance. According to Cousins, he’ll “roll with it” if he’s the backup for a fourth consecutive year in 2015, and he’s not making any demands.

Of course, not demanding a trade doesn’t mean Cousins wouldn’t be open to one if there’s an opportunity for more playing time with another club. As I noted below, that appeared to be his stance earlier this year, and it doesn’t seem as if that has changed.

12:02pm: Jay Gruden and his club closed the book on a disastrous 2014 season yesterday after being blown out at home by the Cowboys, and a day later, one of Washington’s quarterbacks is already looking ahead to 2015. Kirk Cousins indicated today to Dianna Marie Russini of NBC4 (all Twitter links) that if Washington names Robert Griffin III the starting quarterback without an open competition, his preference would be to be traded.

According to Zac Boyer of the Washington Times (Twitter links), Cousins didn’t explicitly say he wants to be traded or that he wants to leave Washington while speaking to a group of reporters, so it’s not clear if the signal-caller made separate comments to Russini or if the two reporters just interpreted them differently. Boyer did acknowledge that Cousins said he wants to be a starting quarterback, so it makes sense that he’d be open to a trade if Washington doesn’t even given him the opportunity to battle for the No. 1 job.

That stance sounds similar to the one Cousins took earlier in the year, when he suggested he’d be open to a deal if it meant he’d have the chance to start for another team. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, the Browns had interest in that point, and could revisit the possibility of a trade with Brian Hoyer facing free agency and question marks surrounding Johnny Manziel.

The Buccaneers and Titans, armed with the top two picks in the draft, could be eyeing a rookie rather than a veteran like Cousins, but given how thin the free agent market is for QBs, several other teams with a potential need at the position could do their due diligence on Cousins.

Of course, before we make a list of potential suitors for Cousins, Washington must decide what it wants to do with him. Even if he enters 2015 as Griffin’s backup, Cousins may be more valuable on Washington’s roster than on the trade market, given the minimal trade return on a player like Ryan Mallett earlier this year. Like Mallett last offseason, Cousins will be just a year away from free agency in 2015, so if he’s not traded, he’ll have an opportunity to reach the open market and explore other opportunities in 2016.

Dan Quinn Receiving Interest As Head Coach

December 29th, 2014 at 12:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Three teams with head coaching openings – the 49ers, Falcons, and Jets – have requested an interview with Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), those clubs haven’t necessarily filed formal requests yet, but all three are expected to do so shortly.

Quinn, who drew interest as a head coaching candidate a year ago, led the Seattle defense to another outstanding season in 2014. The Seahawks ranked first in the league by a wide margin in yards allowed per game, giving up a mere 267.1 — the second-place Lions allowed 300.9 yards per contest. The Seattle D, which allowed the third-fewest rushing yards per game, was also the only unit to allow fewer than 200 passing yards per game (185.6).

Because the Seahawks have a first-round bye, Quinn is permitted to interview for head coaching jobs this week, and it looks like he’ll have the opportunity to be in the mix for at least three of the five current vacancies.

Of the teams linked to Quinn so far, the division-rival 49ers represent perhaps the most interesting potential destination. According to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Quinn isn’t the only NFC West defensive coordinator the Niners are eyeing early in the process — the club has also asked permission to interview Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. Arizona is scheduled to play its Wild Card game this Saturday, so Bowles won’t be permitted to interview for any head coaching jobs this week.

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