Here’s a look at the NFC:
- Panthers defensive tackle Star Lotulelei says the Panthers have not approached him about a long-term extension, Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer writes. However, he made it known in his own way that he wants to stay. “It’s a great organization and a great team. I’ve grown to love this place,” said Lotulelei, who had his ~$6MM fifth-year option exercised for the 2017 season. “I’m going to play as hard as I can, work as hard as I can and we’ll see what happens.”
- Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com took a stab at projecting the NFL’s next big-money contracts, including that of Saints quarterback Drew Brees. Brees, who turned 37 in January, would cost the team a whopping $43.09MM if they were to use the franchise tag on him next offseason. Unless the Saints want to move on from the veteran in 2017, they have to do a multiyear extension. The two sides have been discussing a deal for some time and recently, two league sources told Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports that Brees could see in excess of $65MM in guarantees on a four-year contract worth between $95MM and $100MM in total.
- This season will almost certainly be Chad Greenway‘s farewell tour with the Vikings and with that in mind, one reader asked Ben Goessling of ESPN.com about the team’s plan to replace him at weakside linebacker. Emmanuel Lamur would seem to be the in-house solution and Goessling says he might not have to wait until 2017 to get that chance. Lamur joined Minnesota on a two-year, $5.5MM deal this spring. The former Cincinnati outside linebacker is a favorite of coach Mike Zimmer. Of course, if the team feels the need to use Lamur elsewhere or things don’t work out, they could be in the market for a different WLB solution next year.