Wide receiver Julio Jones underwent surgery to remove a bunion from his foot and is expected to be sidelined four-to-five months, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. That timeline won’t affect Jones’ availability for the regular season, as he’s expected to ready for Falcons training camp in late July.
Here’s more from the NFC South:
- The Panthers plan to tender restricted free agent guard Andrew Norwell before Thursday’s deadline, a source tells Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. Norwell has started 38 games for Carolina dating back to 2014 and started in all 16 contests last year. The 25-year-old Norwell graded as the league’s No. 11 guard in 2016, per Pro Football Focus, so the Panthers aren’t going to be able to assign him an original round tender if they hope to dissuade other clubs from stealing their starting guard. The second-round tender, with a price tag of $2.746MM, is the more likely route.
- Clubs interested in free agent quarterback Mike Glennon were reportedly unclear on who was acting as the Buccaneers‘ backup’s agent, but as teams assumed, David Dunn of Athletes First is officially serving as Glennon’s counsel, tweets Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. Glennon, now the top quarterback on the open market after Washington franchised Kirk Cousins, is expected to garner $14-15MM annually, and has received interest from the Jets, Bears, and 49ers.
- Although mutual interest exists between the Saints and Sterling Moore, the veteran cornerback is expected to reach free agency before possibly agreeing to a new deal with New Orleans, reports Josh Katzenstein of the Times-Picayune (Twitter link). Moore, 27, ended up starting 12 games for the Saints in 2016 after signing a one-year, minimum salary benefit contract.