2015 July - Pro Football Rumors

Month: November 2024

Wilson Negotiations To End When Camp Begins?

July 16th, 2015 at 1:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Neither the Seahawks nor Russell Wilson‘s camp has publicly set a deadline for the two sides to reach an agreement on a contract extension. However, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, even though neither party has come out and said it, negotiations will likely be shut down once training camp gets underway.

Wilson and the Seahawks have been having discussions about an extension ever since the Super Bowl ended in February, but have yet to find a common ground. According to Rapoport, the two sides figure to ramp up negotiations in the coming weeks, with Seattle set to begin training camp at the end of the month. As we saw this week with a handful of franchise-tag players, deadlines often lead to deals, but for now, Wilson and the Seahawks aren’t close.

Once training camp begins, Wilson will focus on his play on the field rather than his contract, and agent Mark Rodgers’ history representing baseball players suggests that the closer Wilson gets to free agency, the less likely he is to sign an extension — in other words, if the two sides don’t agree to terms by start of camp, Rodgers may not be eager to negotiate a deal for his client following the season either.

Citing a source who has spoken to Wilson, Rapoport explains that the quarterback doesn’t necessarily want to hit free agency, but he wants to be paid as if he did. The 26-year-old also hasn’t totally given up on the idea of landing a fully guaranteed contract, particularly given Rodgers’ extensive experience with baseball negotiations, where guaranteed deals are the norm.

If the Seahawks and Wilson don’t reach an agreement this summer, the team will still have the option of using the exclusive franchise tag – likely to cost around $25MM in 2016 – to keep the former third-round pick off the free agent market. As I alluded to above, this year’s franchised players proved that receiving that tag can be the first step toward completing a deal. Still, Wilson has expressed a comfort level in playing out the 2015 season without a new contract, so it’s reasonable to expect him to continue to play hardball if he’s franchised by the club next year.

With Wilson reportedly looking to become the league’s highest-paid player, and the Seahawks looking to work out a deal that can accommodate the other big-money investments on their roster, time will tell if the two sides are able to reach a compromise. But it sounds like it won’t happen in 2015 unless it happens by the end of the month.

Details, Reactions On Bryant/Thomas Deals

July 16th, 2015 at 11:52am CST by Luke Adams

Reports earlier this week suggested neither Dez Bryant nor Demaryius Thomas had better than a 50/50 chance of signing an extension this week, so it came as a bit of a surprise yesterday when both players got deals done with their respective teams. We examined a few specific details of those contracts earlier today, and now we’ll round up a few more notes and reactions related to the pair of extensions. Let’s dive in….

Bryant negotiations:

Although Bryant admitted that going through his contract situation this summer was “extremely hard,” he reiterated on Wednesday that he was willing to sit out regular season games if he didn’t get a new deal (link via Dallas Morning News). “I am that guy that, I have to stand by my word, because that’s how I want to raise my babies,” Bryant said. “It was all me. It was honest.”
Appearing on 105.3 FM in Dallas, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones answered a few specific questions about the negotiations with Bryant, noting that the “false financial perspective” set by Calvin Johnson‘s and Larry Fitzgerald‘s contracts was problematic during contract discussions. The Dallas Morning News has that quote and several more from Jones.
During his own radio appearance in Dallas, executive VP Stephen Jones also discussed the deal in some depth, admitting the Bryant negotiations were among the most difficult the Cowboys have ever had. Once again, the Dallas Morning News has the details.

Thomas negotiations:

Broncos general manager John Elway told reporters, including Troy Renck of The Denver Post (Twitter link), that there wasn’t any movement from June 1st until Wednesday morning on Thomas’ deal. At that point, talks between the two sides reignited and led to a five-year, $70MM deal being reached.
Elway also explained that keeping Thomas and locking him up long term was the first step in keeping this Broncos team together, tweets James Palmer of NFL Network.
According to Mike Klis of 9News, the Broncos had a seven-year, $100MM offer on the table for Thomas, but the Pro Bowl wideout opted for the five-year, $70MM pact instead. While the seven-year deal looks more impressive on paper, and would’ve increased the average annual value of the extension, those final two years essentially would’ve been risk-free options for Denver, so it’s not a surprise that Thomas chose the shorter deal.

Potential impact of Thomas/Bryant deals on other players:

Now that Thomas and Bryant have gotten something done, there’s a “general sense” around the Falcons that Atlanta could lock up Julio Jones by the start of training camp, despite a lack of progress so far, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. The Falcons’ camp is scheduled to get underway two weeks from Friday.
After seeing the deals signed by Bryant and Thomas, Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton might be hearing cash registers in his head. The 25-year-old Hilton, who has back-to-back seasons of 80-plus catches and 1,000-plus yards, is entering the final year of his deal, and issued the following tweet on Wednesday: “All this BREAKING NEWS. Does this mean the bar is set?? #THEGHOST”
Hilton will have a hard time demanding a contract in the same range as the five-year, $70MM extensions signed by Bryant and Thomas, but those deals help to reset the market for receivers, and should benefit the Colts wideout in other ways, writes Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.

Other Thomas/Bryant leftovers:

While collusion between teams during contract negotiations isn’t permitted, players and agents are allowed to talk, and it was legal collusion between agents Tom Condon and Todd France that helped both Bryant’s and Thomas’ extensions get done, says Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Condon’s agency, CAA, is on the verge of buying France’s agency, Five Star Athlete Management, and the two agents took advantage of their new relationship.
Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap examines how the Bryant and Thomas contracts compare to one another, as well as how the deals match up to those signed by a few top players at other positions.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Contract Details: Bryant, Thomas, Houston

July 16th, 2015 at 10:33am CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of the four contract extensions signed yesterday by players who received the franchise tag, year-to-year details on structure, salary, and bonuses has begun to surface on three of those deals. While we still don’t have a lot of specific info on Stephen Gostkowski‘s new four-year contract with the Patriots, there are plenty of updates out there on the three big agreements of the day. Let’s round up the latest:

Dez Bryant (WR), Cowboys:

Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com and Gil Brandt of NFL.com (Twitter links) provide the yearly breakdown of Bryant’s base salaries and cap hits. Bryant’s modest $3MM base salary in 2015 will result in just a $7MM cap number. His cap charges increase to $13MM, $17MM, $16.5MM, and $16.5MM in the final four years of the pact.
Bryant gets $32MM fully guaranteed at the time of his signing, and his contract doesn’t feature offsets, according to Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (Twitter links).
Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap lays out what Bryant’s full extension looks like in chart form.

Demaryius Thomas (WR), Broncos:

Thomas’ contract includes an $11MM signing bonus, a $6.5MM roster bonus, and a fully guaranteed $4.5MM base salary for 2015, per Mike Klis of 9News. Thomas’ 2016 salary of $13MM is also fully guaranteed, while his 2017 salary ($8.5MM) is guaranteed for injury only at the moment — it becomes fully guaranteed early in the 2017 league year. The 27-year-old has a $4MM option bonus in 2018.
Thomas’ extension doesn’t feature offsets, tweets Corry.
Here’s what Thomas’ deal looks like in chart form, via Over the Cap.

Justin Houston (OLB), Chiefs:

Houston’s new contract counts for just $5.1MM against the Chiefs’ cap in 2015 before jumping to $19.1MM in 2016. In a tweet, Corry breaks down the cap charges for all six years.
According to Corry (via Twitter), Houston gets $12MM of his $20.5MM signing bonus within 20 days of signing the contract. The remaining $8.5MM is deferred until April 1, 2016.

Dan Connolly Announces Retirement

July 16th, 2015 at 8:58am CST by Luke Adams

Veteran offensive lineman Dan Connolly has decided to retire from the NFL, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Connolly, who says the Patriots’ Super Bowl win last season helped him become more “at ease with the decision,” also cited health reasons when explaining why he’s ending his playing career. The SE Missouri St. alum has suffered four concussions throughout his NFL career, and made his decision to retire after speaking to his wife and doctors.

“It’s important to me to leave the game healthy,” Connolly said. “I’m able to be here for my kids and walk away on my own terms. I feel like I got everything I could out of football in playing 10 years, winning a Super Bowl, and playing alongside some truly great players.”

Connolly, 32, began his career with the Jaguars as an undrafted free agent in 2005, then later caught on with the Patriots. Connolly became a regular contributor in New England in 2009, and a full-time starter on the interior offensive line in 2010. Over the last five years, Connolly has played at left guard, right guard, and center for the Pats, appearing in 70 regular-season contests (67 starts).

A free agent this offseason, Connolly drew interest from a handful of teams, paying a visit to the Buccaneers back in March. However, we heard last month that, despite a strong pitch from Tampa Bay, Connolly wasn’t interested in moving so far away from his family, meaning he wasn’t likely to continue playing unless he got a strong offer from New England.

As the Patriots prepare to move on to younger, more inexperienced options at guard, Connolly expressed gratitude to the team for having given him a shot: “With my football career coming to a close I am grateful for the opportunity given to me by the Kraft family and Coach [Bill] Belichick. It is an honor to have been part of such a great organization for the past eight seasons.”

Extra Points: Bryant, Thomas, Mathis, Green

July 15th, 2015 at 9:22pm CST by Zachary Links

After signing wide receiver Demaryius Thomas to a five-year contract today, the Broncos issued a statement publicly denying that they colluded with the Cowboys to limit the earnings of Thomas and Dez Bryant, as the NFLPA has alleged. “The suggestion that our club may have colluded with another team about a negotiation is completely false and without any merit,” the Broncos said, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Earlier tonight it was reported that the union is now unlikely to pursue collusion charges against the two teams. Here’s more from around the NFL..

In an appearance on CBS Sports Radio, free agent guard Evan Mathis said that he expects his options to be clearer in a week or two, as training camps around the NFL begin to get underway. “There’s no rush at all,” according to Mathis (Twitter links via Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald).
Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer looked at how the deals for Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas might affect Bengals star A.J. Green. The $14MM/year precedent sound reasonable for Green, but the Bengals still shouldn’t expect agent Ben Dogra to accept a carbon copy of those deals. Green has said that he is willing to play out the 2015 season on his current deal and Dehner writes that his patience could pay off.
Having recently announced his retirement from the NFL, former 49ers defensive end Justin Smith is considering heading back to the NCAA, according to Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel, who says Smith may join the Missouri coaching staff as an assistant. Chase Goodbread of NFL.com has the details.
Thomas should send a thank you note to Bryant, Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post writes. Kiszla doesn’t believe that Broncos GM John Elway would have been willing to ink Thomas to a deal before seeing what Bryant got, because he wouldn’t want to pay a dollar more for DT than the Cowboys did for Dez.
Some Ravens fans have slammed the team’s decision to give punter Sam Koch a multi-year commitment with $7MM in guaranteed money, but Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun believes that the deal makes sense for both sides. Koch doesn’t boom 60-yard punts down the middle of the field but he does nullify opposing return games and pin the opposition inside the 20-yard line with his directional punts. Koch is one of the most reliable and most respected players in the Ravens locker room and even with his new deal, he is not one of the league’s five-highest paid punters in terms of average salary per year.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Reactions To Dez Bryant’s New Deal

July 15th, 2015 at 8:41pm CST by Zachary Links

Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones flew to New York to spend five hours on Tuesday night meeting with Roc Nation officials to hammer out Dez Bryant‘s deal, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Now, the Cowboys have their star wide receiver locked up for the next five years and they won’t have to worry about him potentially skipping games. Here’s some of the latest fallout on Dez’s new deal..

Jerry Jones said he was optimistic at 3am that a deal would get done, Charean Williams of the Star-Telegram tweets.
Jones said he took Bryant’s threats of missing camp and regular season games seriously, Todd Archer of ESPN.com tweets. The Cowboys owner added that he knew the wide receiver wasn’t playing around since neither one of them are careless with their words.
There are no special stipulations in Dez’s contract to protect the team from off-the-field indiscretions, Jones told reporters, including Clarence Hill of the Star-Telegram (on Twitter).
Now that the Cowboys and Bryant have reached a five-year deal worth $70MM with $45MM guaranteed, Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com wonders if the Falcons have a better sense of Julio Jones‘ price tag in a long-term extension. Of course, there are many differences between their situations, including timing. Today was the Cowboys’ deadline to get a deal done with Bryant. Meanwhile, the Falcons have roughly a year to go on the shot clock.
Bryant is finally being paid what he deserves, Alex Marvez of FOX Sports writes. A strong argument can be made that Bryant enters this season as the NFL’s best wideout, but a holdout of any sort would have thrown a wrench into things.

Reactions To Justin Houston’s Extension

July 15th, 2015 at 6:47pm CST by Zachary Links

Justin Houston is a case study in a player betting on himself, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Houston turned down a solid deal in October and went on to nearly set a new sack record. Now, he has himself a new six-year deal worth $101MM. Here’s a look at some of the reactions to Houston’s new deal..

Unlike the other tagged players, Houston had leverage in his negotiation, Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap writes. The Chiefs had the most difficult cap situation remaining in the NFL with just slightly over $500K in cap room remaining, a figure that included Houston on a $13.2MM tender. They needed to bring his cap figure down by at least $4MM to function this year, which gave Houston some extra juice in the talks.
When asked if he would have showed for camp if he didn’t get his long-term contract, Houston said “probably not,” according to Adam Teicher of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
The Chiefs were convinced that Houston was serious about his threats to miss games, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report hears (video link). They were comfortable giving him the deal because he erased many of their concerns in 2014.
On a conference call, Chiefs GM John Dorsey said the team still has the flexibility to do other deals, Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk writes.
The Houston deal provides a template for what it might take for the Broncos to secure Von Miller long term, Troy Renck of The Denver Post tweets. Miller will be eligible for the franchise tag after this year. Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) adds that the Houston deal should mark Miller’s salary floor.

Community Tailgate: Most Surprising Extension?

July 15th, 2015 at 5:46pm CST by Zachary Links

We’re still almost two months away from the start of battles on the NFL gridiron, but there’s no offseason when it comes to debate amongst fans. Earlier this summer, we launched a new series here at PFR that will be known as the Community Tailgate. What’s the Community Tailgate all about? Well, it’s pretty simple. Every weekday, we’ll highlight one of the top stories going on in the NFL. Then, in the comment section below, we want you to weigh in and let us know what you think.

Of course, while the debate may get spirited, we ask that it all stays respectful. If you need a reminder of our rules, please check out our commenting policy. Basically, we ask that you refrain from inappropriate language, personal insults, and attacks. Speaking of commenting: we’ve made it much easier to leave a comment here at Pro Football Rumors. You are no longer required to be a registered user – simply put in your name, email address, and comment and submit.

Today, we’ll be talking about today’s major franchised players who agreed to extensions with their respective teams (sorry, Stephen Gostkowski). Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant, Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, and Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston all got deals done with the deadline approaching. We want to know which extension you feel was the most surprising of the bunch.

Things got pretty frosty between the Cowboys and Bryant in recent weeks. The wide receiver threatened to hold out into the regular season if he didn’t get an extension and the NFLPA is looking into possible collusion between the Cowboys and Broncos based on a complaint from Bryant. In the end, the two sides were able to meet in the middle for a five-year, $70MM deal with $45MM guaranteed by March 2016.

All week long, we heard that there was a massive gulf between what Thomas was seeking and what the Broncos were willing to offer. Thomas was said to be seeking money similar to Calvin Johnson‘s deal but the Broncos argued that Johnson’s deal was an outlier due to the unique circumstances surrounding those negotiations. Somehow, the two parties bridged their sizable gap to agree on a deal that looks strikingly similar to Bryant’s.

While things got chippy in the Bryant and, to a lesser extent the Thomas negotiations, we didn’t hear about any discord in the Justin Houston talks. The two sides went back-and-forth quietly in recent weeks and came up with a pact worth $101MM over six years, including $52.5MM guaranteed, just beating out J.J. Watt‘s pact with the Texans. Houston fell short of Ndamukong Suh‘s $114MM+ deal, but he was never really expected to garner that kind of deal since Suh got his contract on the open market.

All in all, which deal surprised you the most and why? Let us know in the comment section below!

NFLPA Likely To Drop Collusion Claims Against Cowboys, Broncos

July 15th, 2015 at 5:00pm CST by Zachary Links

The NFLPA is not expected to pursue collusion claims now that Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas got their deals done, a union source told Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal (on Twitter). Both players agreed to lucrative deals earlier today that, interestingly, were roughly equal.

Evidence of possible collusion between the Cowboys and Broncos reportedly stemmed from a conversation that took place between Bryant and Cowboys COO Stephen Jones. Jones explained to Bryant that the Calvin Johnson contract, which is the most lucrative deal for a wide receiver in the NFL, had no relevance to other receivers because of the unique circumstances surrounding those negotiations. Then, according to Bryant’s account (per the source), Jones told the receiver that he talked to Broncos GM John Elway about the situation. Because the Broncos also had franchise-tagged receiver in Thomas, the admission that Jones and Elway communicated about the situation constitutes evidence of collusion.

The NFLPA letter containing the collusion claims against the Broncos and Cowboys went out to clubs on Tuesday, but it sounds like all is forgiven now that the two star receivers have gotten hefty paydays.

Recap Of Extensions For Franchised Players

July 15th, 2015 at 3:29pm CST by Luke Adams

This time of year is generally fairly quiet when it comes to NFL stories, but July 15 is a notable exception, as the deadline arrives for players on the franchise tag to sign multiyear contracts. If those players don’t sign multiyear deals today, they have to play the 2015 season on a one-year pact, assuming they play at all.

While reports earlier this week expressed pessimism about the number of deals that would come together today, four of 2015’s five franchised players ended up signing extensions, with two of them getting finalized in the hour before the 3:00pm CT deadline.

Here’s a recap of today’s action, along with the contract details we know so far:

Extended:

Dez Bryant, WR (Cowboys)
Franchise tender: $12.823MM
New contract (full story): Five years, $70MM. $14MM per year.
Details: $32MM fully guaranteed at signing ($20MM signing bonus). $45MM guaranteed by March 2016.

Stephen Gostkowski, K (Patriots)
Franchise tender: $4.59MM
New contract (full story): Four years, $17.2MM. $4.3MM per year.

Justin Houston, OLB (Chiefs)
Franchise tender: $13.195MM
New contract (full story): Six years, $101MM. $16.833MM per year.
Details: $32.5MM fully guaranteed at signing ($20.5MM signing bonus). $43MM guaranteed by March 2016. $52.5MM overall guarantee.

Demaryius Thomas, WR (Broncos)
Franchise tender: $12.823MM
New contract (full story): Five years, $70MM. $14MM per year.
Details: $35MM fully guaranteed at signing. $43.5MM overall guarantee.

Not extended:

Jason Pierre-Paul, DE (Giants)
Franchise tender: $14.813MM
Tender remains unsigned — terms of the one-year agreement can be altered if both sides agree.

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