HEADLINES

Month: December 2024

AFC Notes: Bills, Broncos, Titans, Dolphins

March 30th, 2016 at 3:18pm CST by Luke Adams

In an interview with NFL Network this week, Bills head coach Rex Ryan admitted that his roster isn’t particularly deep at several positions. As Mike Rodak of ESPN.com details, though, Ryan is confident that Buffalo will be able to replenish those spots in the draft.

“We don’t have a whole lot of depth right now, so we’re going to have to do a great job in the draft, which we will,” Ryan said. “[Bills GM] Doug Whaley is an outstanding evaluator of talent. We have to hit in the draft, there is no doubt, but I think there are some opportunities there to help us.”

Let’s round up a few more items from across the AFC…

  • Despite the departures of Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler, it’s not time to panic for Broncos fans, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, who writes that GM John Elway still has plenty of quarterback options available. As La Canfora outlines, Denver ranked in the bottom 10 in the NFL in most passing categories in 2015, meaning the team doesn’t have to land a star QB to match or exceed last year’s production.
  • Ohio State director of player personnel Mark Pantoni announced today (on Twitter) that Titans head coach Mike Mularkey, GM Jon Robinson, and defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau were at the school to work out five Buckeyes prospects. Albert Breer of the NFL Network tweets that Tennessee was getting a closer look at DE Joey Bosa, LB Darron Lee, S Vonn Bell, S Tyvis Powell, and DL Adolphus Washington
  • As they prepare for the 2016 draft, the Dolphins‘ top priority in the first two days of that draft will be landing a starting cornerback, writes Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. According to Salguero, cornerback is one of two positions – along with running back – that is a “must-have” for the team.
  • In a piece for CBSSports.com, former player agent Joel Corry provides a cheat sheet for Andrew Luck‘s representatives as they prepare to ramp up contract extension negotiations with the Colts.

Terrance Knighton Visits Pats, Washington

March 30th, 2016 at 1:44pm CST by Luke Adams

WEDNESDAY, 1:44pm: Having visited New England and Washington, Knighton is believed to be leaning toward signing with the Patriots, according to Anthony Gulizia of The Washington Times. It’s not clear whether both teams have made contract offers.

TUESDAY, 7:43pm: It appears that Washington does, in fact, want to see what sort of shape Knighton is in. According to John Keim of ESPN.com, if the team is satisfied with Pot Roast’s physical condition, he will likely return to Washington. Keim observes that Knighton has lost roughly 30 pounds this offseason, and although Washington deploys a nickel defense about 75% of the time, the team still needs someone who can play nose tackle at a fairly high level while still contributing in other packages. A slimmer Knighton could certainly be that player.

TUESDAY, 3:29pm: After meeting with the Pats, Knighton is visiting Washington, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). It’s a little odd that Pot Roast would be visiting the team he played for last season, particularly since there have been no changes at GM and head coach, but perhaps the team wants to get a first-hand look at what sort of shape Knighton is in.

MONDAY, 9:00am: The Patriots made an effort to sign Nick Fairley, but with Fairley heading to the Saints, Bill Belichick and the Pats aren’t wasting any time moving onto other potential targets. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), New England is hosting free agent defensive tackle Terrance Knighton for a visit today.Terrance Knighton

Knighton, who started his career in Jacksonville, spent two seasons in Denver before heading to Washington for the 2015 campaign. The 29-year-old has been very durable in his first seven NFL seasons, appearing in 108 total regular-season games, including 96 starts.

A nose tackle, in Washington’s 3-4 scheme, Pot Roast logged 29 tackles and 1.5 sacks in 2015. Although he didn’t have quite the same impact last year that he did during his final season as a Bronco, Knighton ranked in the top half of Pro Football Focus’ list of qualified interior defenders, placing 58th out of 123 players. Predictably, PFF assigned Knighton a much grade as a run defender than as a pass rusher.

The Patriots don’t run a 3-4 base, so if they do sign Knighton, he wouldn’t play quite the same role that he did in D.C. Still, New England is in need of big bodies up front, having lost Akiem Hicks and Sealver Siliga in free agency earlier this month.

According to Rapoport (via Twitter), Washington also has interest in bringing back Knighton.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bears Sign OL Manny Ramirez

March 30th, 2016 at 1:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bears have further fortified their offensive line, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, who tweets that the club has signed veteran offensive lineman Manny Ramirez to a one-year contract. Financial terms of the deal aren’t yet known.Manny Ramirez (vertical)

Ramirez, who entered the NFL as a fourth-round pick in 2007, spent four seasons with the Broncos from 2011 to 2014, so Bears head coach John Fox is very familiar with him from his time in Denver. Ramirez saw his most extensive action as a starter in those seasons, making a total of 43 regular-season starts for the Broncos at center and right guard.

Having joined the Lions for the 2015 campaign, Ramirez played well when he saw the field, and showed a little versatility too. His seven starts for the club last season came at three different positions — center, left guard, and right guard.

For the Bears, it’s possible Ramirez will continue to play that role as the first lineman off the bench at center and guard, contributing when he’s needed. However, the 33-year-old should also have an opportunity to compete for a starting job, with interior linemen Patrick Omameh, Vlad Ducasse, and Will Montgomery all eligible for free agency.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

FA Rumors: Jets, Carter, Thurmond, Colon

March 30th, 2016 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

Although they re-signed Erin Henderson earlier this month, the Jets lost Demario Davis in free agency and remain in the market for help at the linebacker position. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), the team’s search for reinforcements at linebacker will result in a visit for veteran free agent Bruce Carter.

Having played both inside and outside in 4-3 schemes, Carter would project as an inside linebacker for the Jets. Gang Green currently has David Harris and Henderson penciled in as potential starters, but if he were to sign with the club, Carter could push for playing time.

Here are a few more free agent updates and notes from around the NFL:

Jets Sign Jarvis Jenkins To Two-Year Deal

March 30th, 2016 at 12:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

MARCH 30, 12:06pm: The Jets have finally made the Jenkins signing official, announcing the move today in a press release.

MARCH 16, 10:52am: The Jets and Jenkins have now officially agreed to terms, per agency SportsTrust Advisors (Twitter link). Mehta tweets that it’s a two-year, $7MM contract with $3MM guaranteed for the defensive lineman.

MARCH 11, 5:04pm: While the Jets and Jenkins haven’t officially agreed to terms, there’s an expectation that the two sides will eventually work out a deal, tweets Mehta.Jarvis Jenkins

4:48pm: Jenkins and the Jets do not yet have an agreement, Kimberley Martin of Newsday reports (on Twitter). Jenkins told friends, per Mehta (on Twitter) he was working on a deal with the Jets, but he will head back to Atlanta, where he’s a resident, for now with no deal in place.

4:31pm: The Jets appear to be adding to their top-notch defensive end group by signing Jarvis Jenkins, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News tweets.

It’s a three-year, $6MM deal for Jenkins, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

Joining Muhammad Wilkerson, Sheldon Richardson and Leonard Williams in New York, Jenkins played the first three seasons of his career in Washington before joining the Bears last season.

Jenkins, who missed his rookie season with a torn ACL, signed with the Bears last year but didn’t fare well in the mind of Pro Football Focus, which rated him as its No. 104 interior defender last season. Jenkins did, however, record a career-best four sacks in 2015.

The Jets applied the franchise tag to Wilkerson last week, and Richardson’s likely uncomplicated fifth-year option decision is forthcoming.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Broncos’ Brandon Marshall Seeks Multiyear Deal

March 30th, 2016 at 11:42am CST by Luke Adams

Restricted free agent linebacker Brandon Marshall technically remains unsigned, but having received a second-round tender from the Broncos earlier this month, his options are free agency are limited. While Marshall would prefer to sign a multiyear deal, rival teams figure to be unwilling to part with a second-round pick to land him, and there’s no urgency for the Broncos to up their one-year, $2.553MM offer.Brandon Marshall (LB)

According to Mike Klis of 9NEWS, Marshall is contemplating the possibility of holding out from Denver’s offseason program in the hopes of gaining some leverage for a long-term extension. Marshall and agent Drew Rosenhaus declined to comment on Klis’ report, but as the 9NEWS scribe points out, as long as the linebacker has yet to sign his tender, the team can’t penalize him for missing spring workouts.

If Marshall were to skip the Broncos’ offseason program, the next date to watch would be June 15th — at that point, the team would have the right to reduce the 26-year-old’s RFA tender to about $644K, and the club’s mandatory mini-camp is expected to take place around that time as well.

A former fifth-round pick, Marshall is a key cog in the Broncos’ defense, starting all 16 games and three postseason contests for the club in 2015. Over the course of the regular season, he totaled 101 tackles, 1.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and an interception.

Marshall’s importance to the Broncos has actually worked against his chances of landing a multiyear contract this offseason. Fellow RFA C.J. Anderson received a low-end tender from Denver, which allowed him to explore the market without any potential compensatory picks attached to him. Anderson ultimately signed a four-year, $18MM offer sheet with the Dolphins, which the Broncos matched.

If Marshall had received a low-end ($1.671MM) tender from the Broncos, a rival suitor would only have had to give up a fifth-round pick to sign him away, but Denver decided not to take that risk, tendering him at the second-round level.

At the time of the move, one report indicated that the Dolphins and Seahawks may have some interest in Marshall. However, I speculated that the second-round tender would diminish his value on the open market, writing that the most probable scenario would involve Marshall playing out the 2016 season on his one-year tender before becoming eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2017. So far, that continues to look like the most likely outcome, but we’ll see if the threat of a holdout changes anything for the Broncos and their standout linebacker.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Jerraud Powers Visiting Giants

March 30th, 2016 at 11:02am CST by Luke Adams

Free agent cornerback Jerraud Powers is making his first visit of the month on Thursday, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com, who tweets that Powers is set to meet with the Giants. Although Powers’ first free agent visit will be to New York, there could be more on the way after that, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.Jerraud Powers

Powers, 28, spent the first four years of his NFL career in Indianapolis before playing for the Cardinals for the last three seasons. Having started 82 of his 87 career regular-season games, the former third-round pick is one of the more accomplished cornerbacks still available on the free agent market.

In 2015, Powers started 13 games for Arizona, picking up an interception to go along with 50 tackles, nine passes defended, and a pair of fumble recoveries. However, Pro Football Focus wasn’t overly fond of his play, ranking him 79th out of 111 qualified cornerbacks, assigning him mediocre grades for both his pass coverage and run defense.

For the Giants, Powers would likely be viewed as a nickel corner if he were to sign, since the team has two solid – and well-paid – outside starters in Janoris Jenkins and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Jordan Raanan of NJ.com mentioned in mid-March that Big Blue was seeking corners capable of playing in the slot, and identified Powers as a possible target.

During the legal tampering period earlier this month, Powers told Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com that he’d like to sign a three- or four-year deal, and hoped to join a title contender. He’s unlikely to land a long-term contract at this point, and the Giants may still be a few pieces away from becoming legit Super Bowl contenders, but considering he’s still unsigned three weeks into free agency, Powers’ market apparently didn’t develop quite like he had hoped.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Saints Restructure Mark Ingram’s Contract

March 30th, 2016 at 9:09am CST by Luke Adams

The Saints continue to make changes to the contracts of players on their roster, having most recently restructured running back Mark Ingram‘s deal, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The move comes on the heels of the team also reworking Cameron Jordan‘s and Thomas Morstead‘s contracts.Mark Ingram

[RELATED: Saints sign Nick Fairley]

Ingram, who had been in line for a $3MM base salary in 2016, saw $2.235MM of that money converted into a signing bonus, reducing his base salary to just $765K. The signing bonus is prorated over the next three seasons, opening up $1.49MM in cap room for the Saints in 2016. The running back’s cap hit has been reduced from $4MM to $2.51MM, but his 2017 and 2018 cap charges have increased to $5.245MM and $6.245MM respectively.

In the short term, the move gives the Saints a little more flexibility to continue to conduct offseason business, including finalizing Nick Fairley‘s new deal with the team. After Jordan’s and Morstead’s contracts were restructured, the Saints were said to have about $3.03MM in cap room, but Fairley is set to count for $3MM against the cap, reducing the minimal flexibility New Orleans had. Ingram’s restructure gives the club a bit of breathing room.

As for the long-term ramifications of the move, with Ingram’s cap hit on the rise for 2017 and 2018, the odds of him playing out his entire contract have probably diminished. Depending on how he performs in 2016, Ingram may have his deal addressed again in some form by the Saints a year from now.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Draft Notes: Cravens, Lawson, Hogan

March 29th, 2016 at 9:52pm CST by Rory Parks

Let’s round up some draft notes to close out this Tuesday evening:

  • Contrary to prior reports, USC linebacker Su’a Cravens will not be holding any private workouts for interested clubs, according to agent Fadde Mikhail (article via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk). Mikhail said, “There have been too many teams that have called to set up private workouts, and I think Su’a’s body of work on film speaks for itself.” Cravens played linebacker for much of 2015, but many teams view him as a safety at the next level, and he is seen as a late first-round or early second-round prospect. As Florio notes, the decision not to work out for teams is gradually becoming more popular with some agents, who believe the reward of potentially increased draft positioning does not justify the risk of an injury that could be sustained at a workout. Greg Gabriel of NFPost.com, however, disagrees with that line of thinking, as he thinks private workouts are a critical part of the draft process that allow a team to learn more about a player’s talent and personality. He adds that Mikhail’s decision will cause Cravens’ draft stock to drop (Twitter links).
  • Clemson DE Shaq Lawson, who already has a number of visits/workouts lined up, will also visit with the Lions, according to Dave Birkett of The Detroit Free Press.
  • The Eagles worked out Stanford QB Kevin Hogan, WR/TE Devon Cajuste, and LB Blake Martinez today, according to Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (Twitter links).
  • 16 teams showed up to watch LB Victor Ochi at Stony Brook’s pro day yesterday, per Pauline, who adds that the Colts privately worked out Illinois State running back Marshaun Coprich (post via WalterFootball.com).
  • UCLA KR/WR Devin Fuller worked out for “multiple members of the Falcons braintrust” yesterday, according to Rand Getlin of The NFL Network (via Twitter).
  • Minnesota CB Briean Boddy-Calhoun will visit with the Vikings next week, according to Darren Wolfson of KTSP (via Twitter).
  • The Bengals were on hand at Western Kentucky’s pro day today to watch TE Tyler Higbee, as Robert Klemko of SI.com tweets.
  • Temple CB Tavon Young will work out for the Cardinals, Jets, Titans, and Ravens, and will visit the Steelers and Ravens, according to Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle (article via NFPost.com).

Texans, Brian Hoyer Likely To Part Ways

March 29th, 2016 at 8:41pm CST by Rory Parks

In a tweet that should surprise no one, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports that the Texans and Brian Hoyer are “headed for a divorce” and that both sides are prepared for a fresh start. Hoyer’s stat line from 2015 does not look half bad, as he completed nearly 61% of his passes for 19 touchdowns against just seven interceptions while appearing in 11 contests for Houston. However, he did finish 20th in Football Outsiders’ DYAR metric, and it became apparent that the Texans would only go so far with Hoyer under center.Brian Hoyer (Vertical)

To that end, Houston signed free agent signal-caller Brock Osweiler to a four-year, $72MM deal when free agency opened, a contract that has generated a great deal of discussion among NFL writers and talking heads over the past several weeks. When Osweiler signed, Rapoport indicated that Hoyer was likely to be released, but Houston GM Rick Smith said just a couple of days later that Hoyer could well return to the team as a backup.

Of course, Smith’s comments may have been nothing more than an attempt to extract some sort of trade value out of Hoyer, as the team was reportedly looking to deal Hoyer immediately after agreeing to terms with Osweiler. If the Texans were to trade Hoyer, they would probably accept a sixth-round selection in return, but if they cannot find a trade partner, they could release him and save nearly $5MM of cap space (although Hoyer is set to enter the second year of a two-year deal he signed with Houston last season, no portion of his $4MM salary is guaranteed).

Rapoport’s latest report does not indicate whether the “divorce” between Hoyer and the Texans will come via trade or release, but it looks like a release is the more likely option at this point. Assuming Hoyer does receive his walking papers, the Broncos, Osweiler’s former employer, would be an obvious potential landing spot, and the Jets could also be a possibility (although New York still seems more likely to re-sign Ryan Fitzpatrick than to bring in another quarterback). Hoyer would, of course, be very attractive as a No. 2 quarterback for any number of teams, but the 30-year-old will of course prefer to sign with a club that could give him a chance to start.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

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