2016 April - Pro Football Rumors

Browns Re-Sign Pasztor, Solomon, Three ERFAs

April 4th, 2016 at 12:44pm CST by Luke Adams

The Browns didn’t re-sign many of their top unrestricted free agents when the 2016 league year opened last month, but the team has brought back several of its restricted and exclusive-rights free agents. The Browns announced today in a press release that they’ve re-signed RFA offensive lineman Austin Pasztor and linebacker Scott Solomon, along with ERFA kicker Travis Coons, wide receiver Darius Jennings, and offensive lineman Kaleb Johnson.

Of the re-signed players, Pasztor and Coons had the most significant roles on the 2015 Browns. Pasztor made four starts at left guard for the club, and has now made 27 starts in his NFL career. Given his experience at multiple positions along the offensive line, Pasztor may have an opportunity to win a full-time starting job in 2016, with Mitchell Schwartz and Alex Mack no longer in the mix.

Coons, meanwhile, was Cleveland’s starting kicker in his rookie season, converting 28 of 32 field goals (87.5%) and 22 of 24 extra points (91.7%). Coons was perfect on field goal tries from inside 40 yards, but missed four attempts of 40+ yards, and didn’t make a 50-yarder.

Jennings saw action in four games for the Browns down the stretch, catching 14 balls for 117 yards and earning some reps as a kick returner. Solomon, meanwhile, appeared in just two games before landing on injured reserve with a knee injury, while Johnson was claimed off waivers from Baltimore in December and didn’t see any playing time down the stretch in Cleveland.

Pasztor and Solomon both received low-end RFA tenders, so they’ll be in line for salaries of $1.671MM if they make the team. The other three players are on minimum-salary deals, and weren’t really free agents, since their only two options were to sign their respective ERFA tenders or to sit out.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

FA Rumors: Dolphins, Broncos, Hillman, Bills

April 4th, 2016 at 11:41am CST by Luke Adams

The Dolphins haven’t been linked to cornerback Leon Hall since the league year opened, despite the fact that defensive coordinator Vance Joseph coached Hall in Cincinnati. Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald explains that Hall’s asking price has precluded the Dolphins from getting involved so far, but if that price tag eventually comes down, the veteran corner should see his market heat up, and Miami could get involved.

Here are a few more free agency updates from around the NFL:

The Broncos have reached out and expressed interest in bringing back free agent running back Ronnie Hillman, writes Mike Klis of 9NEWS. However, according to Klis, Denver is one of a few teams showing interest, and Hillman’s other suitors have more cap room than the Broncos.
The Bills continue to weigh their options on defense, bringing in a pair of defensive free agents for visits today. The club announced (via Twitter) that linebacker Zach Brown and defensive back Corey White arrived at One Bills Drive on Monday morning to meet with the team. Brown, who started 33 games for the Titans over the last four years and had 77 tackles in 2015, is one of the more intriguing free agents still available.
Tim Lelito, who received a low-end RFA tender from the Saints, garnered some interest from the Cowboys but opted not to sign an offer sheet with Dallas and sounds prepared to return to New Orleans for 2016, as Lyons Yellin of WWL outlines. Lelito technically remains a free agent until he formally signs his one-year, $1.671MM RFA tender.
Veteran guard Chris Chester, who underwent surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff, likely won’t be ready to go until sometime in June, which is why he remains unsigned, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter links). The free agent lineman, who spent last season in Atlanta, has a decent chance to start somewhere once he eventually gets healthy and signs.
Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune provides the details on a handful of recently-signed Bears contracts, reporting that offensive lineman Manny Ramirez, linebacker Sam Acho, wide receiver Deonte Thompson, and safety Chris Prosinski all received one-year, minimum salary benefit deals, with $80K signing bonuses.

49ers Re-Sign Tony Jerod-Eddie

April 4th, 2016 at 11:19am CST by Luke Adams

The 49ers have brought back a free agent on their defensive line, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who tweets that Tony Jerod-Eddie has re-signed with the team. Rapoport adds that it will be a one-year, $1.3MM contract.

Jerod-Eddie, who turned 26 last week, was eligible for restricted free agency this season, but the 49ers opted to non-tender him rather than issuing him a qualifying offer. Early in the free agent period, a report indicated that, despite not tendering him a contract, the Niners remained interested in re-signing Jerod-Eddie. As it turns out, the team will save a little money by taking this approach, since the Texas A&M alum would have been in line for a $1.671MM tender as a restricted free agent.

Jerod-Eddie was one of seven interior defensive linemen for the 49ers to receive at least 200 defensive snaps in 2015, and according to Pro Football Focus, he received the lowest grade of the group — PFF ranked him 107th out of 123 qualified players at the position. Still, Jerod-Eddie has some value in a part-time role, contributing 14 tackles and four passes defended last season.

The 49ers, who re-signed nose tackle Ian Williams earlier in the offseason, will keep their defensive line from last season essentially intact. The team also brings back Arik Armstead, Quinton Dial, and Glenn Dorsey, among others.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

South Notes: Bucs, Ramsey, Titans, Butler

April 4th, 2016 at 10:41am CST by Luke Adams

Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston knows that the odds of his club landing Florida State defensive back Jalen Ramsey are extremely slim, given where Tampa Bay is drafting and how early Ramsey is expected to come off the board. However, that didn’t stop Winston from lobbying GM Jason Licht to draft his former Seminoles teammate, as Mark Cook of PewterReport.com details.

“We (FSU) definitely have the best player in the world in Jalen Ramsey,” the Buccaneers quarterback said. “People talk about his position. But Jalen is the best cornerback, safety… I will take a pay cut to play with him again. He has a fierce mentality.”

Of course, Winston’s rookie contract can’t be reworked at this point in his career, and it’s a moot point anyway, but the endorsement from the Bucs QB is the latest signal that Ramsey is one of the very best players in this year’s draft.

Here’s more from around the NFL’s South divisions:

The Titans, who hold the first overall pick, will certainly consider Ramsey — Peter King of TheMMQB.com hears that the Florida State defensive back is one of Tennessee’s top two targets for that No. 1 pick, along with Ole Miss tackle Laremy Tunsil. However, King also writes that the Titans have received “significant” trade interest in that selection, and he believes there’s a 50-50 chance the team moves down.
Louisiana Tech defensive tackle Vernon Butler is set to visit the Titans today and the Panthers on Wednesday, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Those two teams hold the 33rd and 30th overall picks, respectively, so they may view Butler as a player who will be available at that point in the draft.
In addition to his previously-reported visits, Alabama running back Kenyan Drake also has a meeting lined up with the Colts, per Mike Wells and Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.
The Buccaneers will host North Carolina State offensive lineman Joe Thuney, a probable late-round pick, for a visit next week, tweets Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times.

Eagles Sign Stefen Wisniewski

April 4th, 2016 at 10:11am CST by Luke Adams

10:11am: The Eagles have formally signed Wisniewski to a one-year deal, the team announced today (via Twitter). The club also confirmed that offensive lineman Matt Tobin has signed his low-end RFA tender, officially taking him off the free agent market.

7:29am: The Eagles are set to sign veteran offensive lineman Stefen Wisniewski, reports Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (Twitter links). According to Garafolo, Wisniewski will be getting a one-year deal from Philadelphia after visiting the team last week.

Wisniewski, 27, was a second-round pick back in 2011, drafted 48th overall by the Raiders. After starting all but three regular season games during his four years in Oakland, the Penn State alum – and Pennsylvania native – signed with Jacksonville last season, where he started all 16 games at center for the Jaguars.

Although Wisniewski isn’t one of the NFL’s elite offensive linemen, he has been fairly consistent and reliable since entering the league. In 2015, Pro Football Focus viewed him as a middle-of-the-pack center, ranking him 19th out of 39 qualified players and assigning him an especially strong grade as a pass blocker.

In Philadelphia, Wisniewski likely won’t get an opportunity to play his usual center position, barring an injury to Jason Kelce. Wisniewski figures to compete for playing time at guard, where newly-signed Brandon Brooks is penciled in for one starting spot while the other is still up for grabs. Allen Barbre is among the players in the mix for that spot, so Wisniewski will have to beat out him and others to earn a starting job.

Earlier in free agency, Wisniewski also visited the Steelers, and was said to have received interest from the Browns and Jaguars as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Colin Kaepernick To Report To Niners

April 4th, 2016 at 9:31am CST by Luke Adams

With the 49ers’ offseason workouts set to get underway today, Colin Kaepernick – the subject of several trade rumors within the last few weeks – is expected to be in attendance. Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News first tweeted on Sunday night that the quarterback would likely report, and as David Fucillo of Niners Nation details, Kaepernick was spotted on a flight from Denver to the Bay Area. He had been rehabbing in Colorado.

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee has also reported that Kaepernick will report to the Niners’ facility on Monday, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweeting that the signal-caller is set to attend a team meeting at 8:30 pacific time this morning, along with the rest of his teammates.

Of course, as Barrows has detailed and as Mike Klis of 9NEWS tweets, reporting to San Francisco is something of a tactical move for Kaepernick, who is still recovering from multiple injuries and may not be able to participate much in workouts. The Niners QB is owed a $400K workout bonus on his current deal, which he may have forfeited by not showing up this week.

Trade speculation involving Kaepernick swirled all weekend, with conflicting reports on whether or not the Broncos and 49ers were close to reaching a trade agreement. Although there was some disagreement on how close the two sides were on agreeing to trade compensation, virtually every report suggested that Denver would want Kaepernick at a reduced salary, and it remains to be seen whether he would be willing to take a pay cut from his current $11.9MM figure, which is fully guaranteed.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Panthers Re-Sign Kyle Love

April 4th, 2016 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

The Panthers are bringing back Kyle Love, having signed the veteran defensive tackle to a one-year contract, the team announced today in a press release. We had heard last week that the two sides remained in touch, and it seems those conversations resulted in a new deal.

Love, 29, appeared in all but one game for the Panthers last season as a part of the club’s interior defensive line rotation. For the year, the Mississippi State alum recorded 19 tackles, three sacks, and a fumble recovery in the regular season, then added another sack in the playoffs.

After heading into the free agent period with no backups for defensive tackles Star Lotulelei and Kawann Short, Carolina has now signed Love and Paul Soliai to contracts, creating a little depth up front. However, as Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer tweets, that veteran depth likely won’t prevent the Panthers from addressing the defensive line in the draft as well.

Financial terms on Love’s new deal aren’t yet known, but he had a non-guaranteed minimum salary contract in 2015 — another minimum salary deal, perhaps with a signing bonus this time around, would make some sense.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Extra Points: Broncos, Seahawks, Texans, Drake

April 3rd, 2016 at 9:15pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Even if they’re unable to land Colin Kaepernick, panic over the Broncos’ quarterback situation isn’t in order, opines Troy Renck of the Denver Post. As Renck writes, the defensively dominant Broncos were able to defy logic last season by winning a Super Bowl with Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler (primarily the former) combining to offer some of the NFL’s worst quarterback play. In Renck’s estimation, next season’s performance from Denver’s signal-caller(s) probably won’t be much of a downgrade, if at all, and the Broncos should still possess an elite defense. The Broncos were in the league’s basement in nearly all relevant passing stats in 2015, so Renck’s belief that they should at least tread water under center with Mark Sanchez (and/or someone else) is justifiable. It’s worth noting, though, that the defense could regress to some degree after it lost a pair of integral contributors, Malik Jackson and Danny Trevathan, when free agency opened last month.

Here’s more from around the NFL as we wrap up another week of the offseason:

Acquiring Kaepernick could force cap-strapped Denver to release pricey left tackle Ryan Clady as a way to free up spending room. The tackle-needy Seahawks would seem to be a fit for Clady on paper if he becomes available, but their own lack of cap space ($7MM, which doesn’t factor in the few million dollars necessary to sign draft picks) might take them out of the running, according to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times.
Texans three-time Pro Bowl left tackle Duane Brown is progressing well from the surgery he underwent in January to repair a torn right quadriceps and expects to be ready for the regular season, per Mark Berman of FOX 26 (Twitter link). The eight-year veteran suffered the injury in Week 17 last season and missed the Texans’ playoff loss to Kansas City as a result.
Alabama running back Kenyan Drake visited the Cowboys and Dolphins and will next head to San Francisco to meet with the 49ers, he told ESPN’s Vaughn McClure (link via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com). Drake was stuck behind the likes of Eddie Lacy, T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry while with the Crimson Tide, but he averaged a lofty 6.4 yards per carry on 233 attempts and totaled 22 touchdowns (18 rushing, four receiving) during his four-year NCAA career.

DB Rumors: Ramsey, Titans, Whitner, Washington

April 3rd, 2016 at 8:15pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The latest concerning a trio of defensive backs…

Florida State’s Jalen Ramsey has a legitimate chance to become the first defensive back taken No. 1 overall in the draft since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970, as John Glennon of the Tennessean details. The popular belief is that the Titans will select Ole Miss offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil if they keep the top pick, but they’ve also shown interest in Ramsey and will meet with him soon. Considering opposing quarterbacks shredded the Titans last season and their defensive backfield continues to look like a significant weakness, that’s not particularly surprising. Further, the pass-happy nature of today’s league makes Ramsey to Tennessee that much more plausible. ESPN’s Mark Dominik, a former general manager, told Glennon that choosing Ramsey first “has to be a discussion just because the way the game is being played now as a passing league.”
Donte Whitner instantly became one of the best safeties on the market when Cleveland released him Saturday, and Washington head coach Jay Gruden said last month that he’s “very concerned” about the club’s safety depth. That would seem to make Washington a potential landing spot for Whitner, right? Wrong, tweets Mike Jones of the Washington Post. A source told Jones that Washington isn’t interested in signing Whitner, even though he’s likely superior to the team’s current top two strong safeties – Duke Ihenacho and David Bruton.
After leaving his Giants visit earlier this week without a contract, free agent cornerback Jerraud Powers tweeted positive words Sunday about his time with Big Blue’s brass, but he added that he’s not in a rush to sign anywhere. The 29-year-old doesn’t have any other reported visits lined up at this time.

QB Rumors: Kaepernick, Vick, Lions, Falcons

April 3rd, 2016 at 6:51pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

As those who have closely followed the Colin Kaepernick saga know, the 28-year-old will collect a $400K bonus if he partakes in 90 percent of the 49ers’ offseason workouts. Those workouts begin Monday, and much has been made about whether Kaepernick will appear or stay away and continue to hold out hope for a trade. The Broncos – who are pursuing a deal for Kaepernick – begin their offseason workouts April 18, so Kaepernick could theoretically skip the 49ers’ program and recoup the $400K with Denver if it acquires him by then, as Mike Klis of 9News notes (on Twitter).

Here’s more on Kaepernick and two other QBs:

Whether Kaepernick attends the start of 49ers workouts Monday could be crucial to both teams’ leverage, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee writes. If he’s a no-show, it will further demonstrate that his relationship with the 49ers is irreparable and potentially force them to settle for an underwhelming offer from the Broncos. On the other hand, should Kaepernick report, there’s a chance he and new 49ers head coach Chip Kelly will develop a rapport and ultimately lead No. 7 to continue his five-year career in San Francisco.
Free agent Michael Vick thinks he’s capable of playing next season, but he seems content to retire if nobody pursues him. “I’m 35, about to turn 36,” Vick told David Teel of the Daily Press. “I’ve got one more dedicated season in my blood, if somebody needs me to come in. But I’m kind of happy where I am right now.” Vick spent last season in Pittsburgh, where he played in five games (three starts), completed 60.6 percent of passes, and tossed two touchdowns and an interception. He also flashed some of his signature mobility, rushing for 99 yards on 20 attempts, but the Steelers have a better, younger backup option to Ben Roethlisberger in Landry Jones. Thus, if Vick does return next season, he’s all but guaranteed to be in another uniform.
Liberty’s Josh Woodrum worked out for the Lions last week and will do the same for the Falcons on April 11, Gil Brandt of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Despite having played at an FCS school, Woodrum had an eye-opening showing at his pro day, leading to interest from Detroit and Atlanta, per Brandt.