2015 March - Pro Football Rumors

FA Rumors: Morgan, Orakpo, Cameron

March 12th, 2015 at 2:28pm CST by Zachary Links

Derrick Morgan won’t be signing with the Buccaneers, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Falcons are out on Morgan too after signing Adrian Clayborn, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com tweets. More free agent news from around the league..

The Titans are still in the hunt for both Morgan and Brian Orakpo, and their best-case scenario would be to land both edge defenders, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean.
Tight end Jordan Cameron is still in Miami and there’s a lot of mutual interest between him and the Dolphins, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Meanwhile, his old team, the Browns, remain the mix and a third team is also in the running.
Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link) hears that there has been a lot of interest in free agent defensive end Michael Johnson, but it’s unclear if any team besides the Bengals or Vikings have a shot at him. Johnson, of course, played for Cincinnati prior to joining the Bucs last year, and was coached there by Mike Zimmer.
The Chiefs have had exploratory talks with former Rams center Tim Barnes, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star tweets. Paylor expects the Chiefs to sign a veteran center, whether it’s Barnes or someone else.
The Steelers are generally quiet when it comes to free agency and trades, but Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) hears that they’re exploring options for a kick returner.

Jets To Sign Antonio Cromartie

March 12th, 2015 at 2:16pm CST by Zachary Links

2:16pm: It’s a four-year, $32MM contract for Cromartie, per Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (via Twitter).

1:58pm: The Jets have reached agreement with cornerback Antonio Cromartie on a contract, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The deal will reunite Cromartie with former partner Darrelle Revis. The two manned the Jets’ secondary together from 2010 through 2012.

On Wednesday, Revis told reporters that he would be working feverishly to make the reunion possible:

“I’m going to get in contact with him very soon and try to convince him to come back and join our Batman and Robin tandem that we had a couple of years ago,” Revis said.

Cromartie, who turns 31 in April, has made no secret of the fact that he’d like to sign with the Jets — his Cardinals teammate Patrick Peterson even complained last month that all Cromartie talked about was “freaking New York.” The Cards maintained interest all along in bringing Cromartie back to Arizona, and the Cowboys were also mentioned earlier this week as a possible destination, but the Jets ultimately won out.

Cromartie had a pretty atrocious year for the Jets in 2013, finishing with an overall grade of -11.4 (per Pro Football Focus, subscription required), placing him in the bottom ten of all qualified cornerbacks. However, he had something of a resurgence in Arizona, finishing with a much less harsh -0.2 overall grade, putting him 45th out of 108 cornerbacks. That uptick was largely credited to Todd Bowles and both men are clearly excited to continue that partnership in New York.

Falcons Sign Adrian Clayborn, Phillip Adams

March 12th, 2015 at 2:15pm CST by Zachary Links

2:15pm: Clayborn’s contract will have a max value of $4.5MM for one year, tweets Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.

1:45pm: The Falcons have agreed to terms with defensive end Adrian Clayborn, according to Pat Yasinkas of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Falcons (on Twitter) have confirmed the signing of Clayborn while also announcing that they have added cornerback Phillip Adams.

Clayborn, 27 in July, played only one game for the Bucs before being placed on IR last September. He made 16 starts in 2013 at right defensive end and tallied 43 tackles and 5.5 sacks. Clayborn was hoping to establish himself in 2014, his contract year, but he didn’t get the opportunity to show what he can do before hitting open market. The Bucs declined their fifth-year option on the former No. 20 overall pick in April of 2014. Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required) weren’t all that fond of Clayborn’s performance in 2013, ranking him 47th out of 52 qualified 4-3 defensive ends.

Adams, 27 in July, spent two seasons with the Raiders before hooking on with the Jets last September. Adams appeared in 12 games for Gang Green, racking up 24 total tackles, three pass deflections, one fumble recovery, and one interception. The former seventh-rounder was Oakland’s primary punt returner in 2012, when he returned 25 punts for 139 yards. He finished the Raiders’ 2013 season with 30 total tackles and a fumble recovery.

Saints Re-Sign Ramon Humber

March 12th, 2015 at 2:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Two days after we learned that there was mutual interest in a new deal between Ramon Humber and the Saints, the two sides have reached an agreement. According to the team’s VP of communications, Greg Bensel (via Twitter), New Orleans has re-signed the linebacker to a two-year contract.

After releasing Curtis Lofton, the Saints will bolter their linebacking corps by ensuring that Humber remains under contract. The 27-year-old started six games for the team in 2014, appearing in 453 total defensive snaps. For the season, he had 50 tackles and a sack.

Chiefs Release Dwayne Bowe

March 12th, 2015 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

1:52pm: Bowe has officially been released by the Chiefs, tweets Rapoport. The wideout issued a statement on Twitter thanking the organization for his time spent in Kansas City.

THURSDAY, 1:00pm: The Chiefs are cutting Bowe today, tweets Schefter.

TUESDAY, 12:15pm: Indications point to the Chiefs releasing Bowe this week, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears that it’ll probably take place on Wednesday.

THURSDAY, 2:11pm: Having franchised Justin Houston earlier this week, the Chiefs currently sit more than $5MM over the 2015 cap, and will need to cut some salary from their books by Tuesday. One likely candidate to be affected by those cut-cutting moves? Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), the Chiefs are expected to either release or trade Bowe this month.

Bowe, 30, was part of the underachieving and record-setting group of Chiefs wide receivers that managed to go the entire 2014 season without catching a single touchdown pass. It was the third straight mediocre season for Bowe, who has averaged approximately 59 receptions and 743 yards per season since 2012, on the heels of back-to-back 1,100-yard seasons in 2010 and 2011.

The Chiefs have already signaled a commitment to retooling their wide receiving corps, parting ways with Donnie Avery and A.J. Jenkins earlier in the offseason. It appears that Bowe will be next, in some form or other. With three years still left on his contract and annual base salaries of $10.75MM, $9.75MM, and $9.75MM, Bowe likely won’t attract much attention on the trade market — especially when other more established wideouts like Andre Johnson and Brandon Marshall are also being shopped.

If the Chiefs ultimately decide to cut Bowe, it would create $5MM in cap savings, which would go a long way toward getting the team under the cap for the 2015 league year. However, it would still leave $9MM in dead money on the books. Designating Bowe as a post-June 1 cut would create more 2015 cap room, but the team would have to wait until after June 1 to actually gain access to that cap room, and it would push some of Bowe’s dead money onto Kansas City’s 2016 cap.

If Bowe were to become available, he would likely generate plenty of interest, even during a month when many noteworthy receivers are expected to hit the open market. Potential suitors for the former first-round pick may suspect that his poor production in recent years can be attributed in part to a Chiefs offense that relies on short, safe passes, limiting Bowe’s upside.

Eagles Working To Trade Evan Mathis

March 12th, 2015 at 1:48pm CST by Zachary Links

1:48pm: The Patriots have also expressed interest in Mathis, reports Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). Meanwhile, Jim Thomas tweets that the Rams have denied having interest, though he rightly points out that the team adamantly denied that they had any interest in trading Sam Bradford.

1:29pm: Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com adds the Bills and Vikings to the list of teams “sniffing around” on Mathis, and says the Saints may be involved as well (Twitter link).

1:23pm: The Dolphins have been in touch with the Eagles about Mathis, reports Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (via Twitter). The Rams are also believed to be in the mix, per Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter).

1:11pm: The Eagles are working to trade guard Evan Mathis, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (via Twitter). Dealing Mathis would be just the latest move in what has been a wild offseason for the Eagles.

Finding a marker for Mathis shouldn’t be too difficult considering his performance last season. Even though he only saw time in nine games, Mathis’ overall score of 25.8 (per Pro Football Focus, subscription required) ranked him as the second-best offensive guard in the NFL last season. The year prior, Mathis graded out as the very best guard in the NFL.

Mathis’ deal calls for him to earn a $5.5MM base with $1MM prorated in 2015, good for a total of $6.5MM. With an extra $500K in his base salary in 2016, that number jumps slightly to $7MM. Mathis is 33, but guards tend to age a little bit better than most other positions.

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March 12th, 2015 at 1:47pm CST by Tim Dierkes

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Saints Shopping Kenny Stills, Others

March 12th, 2015 at 1:43pm CST by Luke Adams

1:43pm: A source with knowledge of the situation tells Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link) that Drew Brees and Brandin Cooks are essentially the only Saints not being shopped, as the team retools.

1:17pm: The Saints have been one of the league’s more active teams this week, working out trades that shipped a pair of Pro Bowlers, Jimmy Graham and Ben Grubbs, out of New Orleans. And it doesn’t look like they’re done yet. According to Dianna Marie Russini of NBC 4 Washington (via Twitter), the team is exploring trades involving wide receiver Kenny Stills. Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports, meanwhile, hears from a source that the team is shopping practically every player on its roster (Twitter link).

Peter King of TheMMQB.com wrote earlier this week that when Mickey Loomis and Seahawks GM John Schneider discussed trades prior to working out the Graham deal, the New Orleans GM “brought up the names of a couple of Saints receivers.” While King didn’t identify specific players, it certainly sounds like one of those receivers was probably Stills.

Stills, who turns just 23 next month, became an integral part of the Saints’ passing attack in 2014, hauling in 63 passes for 931 yards and three touchdowns. The Saints’ top deep threat, Stills have averaged 16.5 yards per catch since entering the league in 2013, and is on an inexpensive rookie contract for two more years, so I expect the team’s asking price would be fairly high.

Ravens To Re-Sign Justin Forsett

March 12th, 2015 at 1:36pm CST by Luke Adams

1:36pm: The deal will pay Forsett about $3MM per year, a source tells Wilson (on Twitter).

1:27pm: The Ravens have reached an agreement with free agent running back Justin Forsett, ensuring the veteran remains with the team for at least the 2015 season, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). According to Schefter, it’s a three-year deal for Forsett.

The Ravens have maintained interest throughout the process but were said to be ready to bow out of the bidding if it got too rich for their blood. At one time, some connected Forsett to the Broncos where he could reunite with Gary Kubiak, but he downplayed the likelihood of a reunion, noting that the Broncos have multiple tailbacks under contract, including C.J. Anderson. At the same time, he made it clear to anyone who would listen that he wanted to rejoin the Ravens.

“I would like to stay in Baltimore, but it is a business and I’m looking for a commitment. However that comes, I just want to be able to take care of my family,” the veteran said.

While he won’t have Kubiak, new offensive coordinator Marc Trestman is expected to keep many of the same principles that Baltimore’s run game used in 2014. Forsett was never regarded as one of the league’s better halfbacks, but after gaining 1,266 yards on the ground, he established himself as a bonafide starter and he’ll look to have a repeat performance for Baltimore in 2015.

The 29-year-old played 2014 under a one-year, $730K deal after being released by the Jaguars. Because he was on a minimum salary benefit contract, he wasn’t eligible to sign a multi-year deal with Baltimore until the official start of free agency. If not for that, it’s likely that the two sides would have hammered something out in advance of March 10th.

FA Rumors: Ravens, Bush, Knighton

March 12th, 2015 at 1:21pm CST by Zachary Links

Look for the Ravens to be players on the receiver market once it comes into better focus, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com writes. The Ravens could be waiting on guys like Dwayne Bowe and Mike Wallace to be cut since their preference is always to gravitate towards guys who have been released. Signing released players doesn’t hurt the team’s status for compensatory draft picks, and they generally come cheaper that way, too. More from around the NFL..

Free agent running back Reggie Bush is set to meet with the Patriots and 49ers, according to Dianna Marie Russini of NBC4 (via Twitter).
A head coach told Russini (on Twitter) that teams are afraid to sign Terrance Knighton because he’s out of shape.
Defensive back Sterling Moore is coming to Tampa for a visit with the Buccaneers, Roy Cummings of The Tampa Tribune tweets. The Cowboys elected not to tender a contract offer to the cornerback earlier this month. The Vikings were also said to have preliminary interest in him earlier this week.
Packers free agent cornerback Tramon Williams is back home thinking things over after his visit with New Orleans, but the Saints remain in play, Mike Triplett of ESPN.com tweets. The Vikings also reached out to Williams this week.
Patriots free agent linebacker Akeem Ayers is currently visiting with the Rams, Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch tweets. Ayers was sent from the Titans to the Pats in a mid-season trade.
The Giants have expressed interest in safety Darian Stewart, but no visit has been scheduled yet, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (on Twitter). Stewart is in Denver today, then headed to Atlanta.
There was talk that the Dolphins were meeting with Falcons free agent cornerback Robert McClain with the intent of signing him, but that’s on hold right now, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter links). Money is tight in Miami and they have other needs to fill, so he’ll remain on their radar while they look at other areas first.
The Cowboys brought in former Browns running back Ray Agnew for a workout, according to Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). That was presumably prior to signing fullback Jed Collins, however, so there might not be a spot for Agnew in Dallas anymore.