WEDNESDAY, 9:34pm: The Giants announced that Vereen’s signing is official, Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News tweets.
TUESDAY, 1:41pm: Vereen’s deal is actually expected to for three years instead of four, tweets Vacchiano, noting that the annual rate should still be $4MM. Sources say it will feature $5MM in guarantees.
12:54pm: It’ll be a four-year deal that could be worth more than $16MM, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (on Twitter).
12:35pm: Vereen to the Giants is a “done deal,” tweets Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports. Of course, it can’t officially be “done” for about two and a half more hours, so we shouldn’t lock it in quite yet, but it looks like the running back will end up in New York.
11:53am: Shane Vereen is expected to sign with the Giants, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Finding a versatile running back was near the top of the wish list for the Giants this offseason and Vereen would certainly fit the bill. Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter) hears that the unrestricted free agent will still give the Pats an opportunity to match or best the Giants’ offer.
Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News reported on Monday that the Giants were “very serious” about adding Vereen. Vereen was said to be seeking $3.5MM annually, but it’s not yet known how much Big Blue has offered him. At last check, the Pats were not willing to approach that $3.5MM/year price tag. The Jets were among the teams with interest in Vereen, but they’re presumably out of the mix after re-signing Bilal Powell.
Vereen, 26, ran for 391 yards off of 96 carries in 2014, good for an average of 4.1 yards per attempt. He was also heavily involved in the Pats’ passing game for the second year in a row, recording 52 catches for 447 yards. Pro Football Focus (sub. req’d) placed him as the 28th best tailback out of 57 qualified players last season with a slightly below average grade of -1.0.
He’s a solid player, but not the kind you want to take up too much cap space for. A great role player that works in the system. Belichick has been known to grab guys like this in the late rounds of the draft or pick them up when they’re released by other teams. I think they let him walk.