2016 March - Pro Football Rumors

Patriots Re-Sign LaAdrian Waddle

March 9th, 2016 at 8:13am CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots and tackle LaAdrian Waddle have agreed to a two-year deal, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The deal, which quietly took place on Tuesday, includes a $250K bonus and gives the lineman $2.425MM before incentives, Tom Pelissero of USA Today tweets.

Waddle, a former undrafted free agent, was cut by the Lions in December after playing two-plus seasons with the team. Soon after, he was picked up by the Patriots. The 24-year-old (25 in July) has battled injuries in recent years, including a torn ACL in 2014. Last year, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) rated Waddle as the worst qualified offensive tackle in the NFL with an overall grade of 23.5.

Specific terms of the deal are not yet known, but I would expect that a large portion of Waddle’s contract will be non-guaranteed. Waddle will likely compete for a reserve tackle role in camp this summer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Bengals Free Agent WRs

March 9th, 2016 at 8:07am CST by Zachary Links

The latest out of Cincinnati:

There is mutual interest between the Patriots and Mohamed Sanu, according to sources who spoke with Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald. Howe writes that Sanu could command $5MM/year, particularly because of the lack of talent at the position in this year’s crop. In 2014, Sanu hauled in 56 catches for 790 yards and five touchdowns. Last year, he saw a dip in production with just 33 catches for 394 yards and no touchdowns.
The Titans are also showing interest in Sanu, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com tweets.
Marvin Jones is “atop the Giants‘ wide receiver wish list,” according to Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger (on Twitter). Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press says that the Lions feel similarly about Jones (link).

Ravens’ Marshal Yanda Restructures Contract

March 9th, 2016 at 7:58am CST by Luke Adams

While one veteran Ravens guard – Kelechi Osemele – is set to officially leave the team to sign with the Raiders later today, the team’s other starting guard has reworked his contract to create extra cap room. According to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Marshal Yanda has restructured his deal, opening up nearly $4MM in cap space.

Yanda’s contract, which he signed in October, was an ideal candidate for restructuring, since his 2016 salary was already fully guaranteed — converting a chunk of it to a signing bonus allows the veteran guard to get that money up front, and spreads it over the next four years for cap purposes, without adding any additional guaranteed money to the Ravens’ tab.

According to Yates, Yanda converted about $5.3MM of his $6.186MM base salary into a signing bonus, which should reduce his cap hit to just above $4MM for 2016. He had originally been on track to have a cap number of nearly $8MM. The move will also increase his cap hits in future seasons by about $1.325MM.

The extra cap flexibility should help the Ravens conduct their offseason business — it could be put toward signing tight end Ben Watson, who reportedly reached a contract agreement with Baltimore on Tuesday.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Texans, OT Chris Clark Agree To New Deal

March 9th, 2016 at 7:42am CST by Dallas Robinson

WEDNESDAY, 7:42am: Clark’s new two-year deal is worth $6MM, according to Rand Getlin of the NFL Network (Twitter link), who observes that $3MM per year is a nice deal for Clark, assuming he’ll be Houston’s swing tackle.

TUESDAY, 7:05pm: The Texans have reached an agreement with swing tackle Chris Clark, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 (Twitter link). Clark was set to hit the open market on Wednesday if the two sides hadn’t come to terms on a new deal.

Houston acquired Clark from the Broncos during final roster cutdowns last August, sending a seventh-round selection to Denver to bring in the offensive tackle. Clark, 30, served as a backup to Duane Brown and Derek Newton, and ultimately started four games, playing on a little over a third of the club’s offensive snaps.

A report earlier this week indicated that the Texans would like to work out a new deal with Clark. Having accomplished that goal, however, the team is still expected to draft an offensive tackle to develop as something of an insurance policy as Brown recovers from injury, per John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Panthers Re-Sign Charles Johnson

March 9th, 2016 at 7:31am CST by Dallas Robinson

WEDNESDAY, 7:31am: Johnson has officially signed his new one-year deal with the Panthers, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

TUESDAY, 7:47pm: Johnson’s one-year pact will be worth $3MM, tweets Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer, so Johnson will take a $8MM pay cut to stay in Carolina. According to Person, Johnson turned down as much as $6MM elsewhere to re-sign with the Panthers.

6:30pm: Just days after being released by the Panthers, defensive end Charles Johnson plans to return to the only team he’s ever known, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that Johnson will re-sign with Carolina. It’ll be a one-yer deal, per Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

After being cut by the Panthers on March 3, Johnson quickly lined up suitors, taking visits with both the Giants and the Buccaneers. Johnson almost went to New York, as he tells Anderson (Twitter link), but admitted that his “heart was in Carolina” — indeed, Johnson tweeted a cryptic message earlier today, indicating that many observers would be surprised by where ended up.

Johnson was scheduled to earn $11MM in 2016 (between his base salary and a workout bonus), as well as account for a $15.02MM charge on the Panthers’ cap, and it’s safe to say that Johnson will earn less than that total on his new contract. Johnson was thought to have refused a pay cut before being released, so evidently he and the club have negotiated an acceptable figure since that time.

The 29-year-old Johnson has been the Panthers’ most reliable pass rusher over the last several years, recording at least 8.5 sacks in every season from 2010 to 2014. However, his 2015 campaign was derailed by a hamstring injury, which landed him on the injured reserve list with the designation to return, sidelining him for nearly half the season.

In nine regular-season games in 2015, Johnson recorded just 12 tackles and a single sack, easily making it his least productive year since his rookie campaign. He showed flashes of his old self during the team’s postseason run though, picking up three playoff sacks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Extra Points: Hasselbeck, Powell, Vernon

March 8th, 2016 at 10:32pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Former Colts quarterback Matt Hasselbeck is set to join the cast of ESPN’s Sunday Countdown, sources tell Jason McIntyre of the Big Lead, who adds that a retirement announcement from Hasselbeck could come as soon as tomorrow. Indianpolis informed Hasselbeck that it would not re-sign him late last month:

More from around the league before the craziness starts tomorrow:

The Patriots are interested in free agent running back Bilal Powell, tweets Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. The Jets, Powell’s club for the duration of his career, already lost one RB earlier tonight when Chris Ivory agreed to sign with the Jaguars.
Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports is the latest to confirm rumors that the Dolphins may rescind Olivier Vernon‘s franchise tag, noting that if the club works out an extension with Cameron Wake, Vernon could become an unrestricted free agent.
Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo underwent successful collarbone surgery and is expected to recover within six-to-eight weeks, according to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (Twitter link).

Buccaneers, Doug Martin Nearing Deal?

March 8th, 2016 at 10:21pm CST by Dallas Robinson

10:21pm: The two sides have “a ways to go” when it comes to reaching a deal, tweets Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports, who adds that there is definitely a “gap to bridge.”

9:27pm: The Buccaneers are set to re-sign one of their own, as they’re reportedly nearing a deal with running back Doug Martin, according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). Per Stroud, the new contract would pay Martin $6.85MM per season.

As many as six clubs were thought to have interest in Martin, with the Raiders, Texans, and 49ers (per Stroud on Twitter) among them. Instead, it looks like Martin will return to Tampa Bay, where he enjoyed his best season since his rookie year. Martin rushed for more than 1,400 yards, scoring six times, and added 33 reception and another touchdown for good measure.

If Martin’s new deal does come in around $6.85MM, he’ll be among the second-tier of running back contracts, as Jamaal Charles ($6.9MM) and Jonathan Stewart ($7.3MM) earn comparable annual salaries. The fact that Tampa Bay and Martin’s representatives were able to agree to a deal so quickly is a little surprising, as just days ago a report indicated between the two sides had broken down. However, it appears as though any gap in talks was able to be bridged.

Martin, 27, ranked as PFR’s No. 13 free agent, and No. 1 available running back. He’s not the only RB to agree to terms tonight, as Chris Ivory will reportedly sign with the Jaguars tomorrow.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Brock Osweiler

March 8th, 2016 at 10:19pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Brock Osweiler looks to be the Broncos’ quarterback of the future following Peyton Manning‘s Sunday retirement, but there’s just one problem — Osweiler is a free agent. Denver was thought to be negotiating with Osweiler, but according to James Palmer of NFL.com (Twitter link), the Broncos have not spoken to Osweiler’s reps since making an initial three-year offer several days ago.

That offer was said to be worth roughly $39MM — obviously, without knowing the structure or the guarantees, it’s hard to judge how realistic that potential contract might be. But it was always going to be hard to judge Osweiler’s value as a whole, given that he’s started only seven games during his four-year career. Each of those starts came in 2015, but the Broncos (and other clubs) can’t be sure of what they’re getting in Osweiler.

One other team that has expressed interest in Osweiler is the Texans, who are expected to make a “competitive” offer to Osweiler. Per reports, $15-16MM might be the figure Osweiler is targeting. Of course, like any free agent, he cannot officially sign with another club until tomorrow afternoon, but he can agree to terms between now and then.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/8/16

March 8th, 2016 at 10:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Tuesday’s minor tender decisions from around the NFL on potential restricted and exclusive-rights free agents:

The Texans have assigned the low tender to both cornerback A.J. Bouye and linebacker John Simon, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter links). Both players will earn a $1.671MM non-guaranteed base salary next year.

Earlier updates:

The Buccaneers have assigned the low-end tender to RFA wide receiver Russell Shepard, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. Shepard, 25, hasn’t been a major part of the offense since joining the team in 2013, catching just seven total passes, but he has been a key contributor on special teams.
The Texans will not tender an offer to running back Jonathan Grimes, nor will they re-sign him to a lesser deal, as Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets.
The Ravens have begun extending contract tenders to their ERFAs, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (all Twitter links), who reports that wide receiver Daniel Brown, running back Terrance West, and cornerback Sheldon Price all received offers from the team. Cornerback Jumal Rolle — another ERFA — also received a tender, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
The Packers have issued a tender to safety Chris Banjo, who was an exclusive rights free agent, Weston Hodkiewicz of the Press Gazette tweets.

Contract Details: Sendejo, Rubin, DHB, Cox

March 8th, 2016 at 9:59pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Here are the specifics on a few deals signed in recent days:

Andrew Sendejo‘s four-year contract with the Vikings contains a $3MM roster bonus, per Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). The safety will make $4MM in 2016, and he has another $1MM that will become guaranteed next March.
Defensive tackle Ahtyba Rubin received a $4.5MM signing bonus as part of his $12MM deal with the Seahawks, tweets Pelissero. Rubin will take home $6MM during the upcoming season.
Receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey got a $400K signing bonus per the terms of his three-year deal with the Steelers, according to Pelissero (Twitter link).
Long snapper Morgan Cox‘s new five-year contract with the Ravens is worth $5.6MM, tweets Jeff Zriebec of the Baltimore Sun. Cox will receive a $700K signing bonus and net $1.5MM in the first year of the deal.