2017 August - Pro Football Rumors

Rams Work Out Tyson Jackson

August 7th, 2017 at 12:30pm CST by Zachary Links

Former Chiefs and Falcons defensive end Tyson Jackson is working out today for the Rams, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). This marks Jackson’s first known workout of the offseason.

Jackson was cut loose by Atlanta at the start of free agency, terminating his deal with two years and $8.5MM left on his contract. The defensive tackle signed a lucrative five-year, $25MM deal with Atlanta heading into 2014, but he was viewed as a likely cap casualty after weak production last year.

In 2016, Jackson finished out with 13 total tackles and two pass deflections in 16 games (seven starts). The advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus rated him as just the No. 67 interior defender in the NFL out of 127 qualified players. His grades for run defense, pass rush, and coverage were all poor in his 389 total snaps.

Still, Jackson offers some promise as a former No. 3 overall pick. And, in the wake of Dominique Easley‘s season-ending knee injury, he could help provide some badly needed depth at nose tackle.

Vince Wilfork Retires From NFL

August 7th, 2017 at 12:23pm CST by Zachary Links

Vince Wilfork is moving on from football. The longtime defensive lineman took to Twitter on Monday morning to announce his retirement.

All offseason long, Wilfork has wrestled with the decision.

“Mentally, I’m where I’ve been all this while, I’m 50-50,” Wilfork said in June, while maintaining that he could pick things up late in the summer if necessary. “Camp now is like ‘Camp Cupcake.’ You’re only in pads for 10 days,” he said. “I mean, it’s so different now, so anybody that thinks I’m missing because I want to miss training camp or preseason, man, that is baloney.”

Wilfork, a 13-year veteran, spent his first 11 seasons in New England and the previous two in Houston. Last year, he completed his 12th straight year in which he started in all of his appearances. The 35-year-old took part in 15 of the Texans’ regular-season games in 2016 and picked up 21 tackles along the way.

Although he had only 16 career sacks, the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus show that he was among the game’s elite between 2006 and 2012. Once he’s eligible, Wilfork is a candidate to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

Wilfork leaves the game with five Pro Bowls, one First-Team All-Pro selection, and a Super Bowl ring from the 2014 season. We here at PFR wish him the best in retirement.

Bills To Sign Anquan Boldin

August 7th, 2017 at 11:19am CST by Zachary Links

The Bills are set to sign Anquan Boldin, as Peter Schrager of NFL.com tweets. As one would expect, it’s a one-year deal for the veteran wide receiver.

Boldin’s deal will pay him $2.75MM in 2017 plus another $1.25MM in incentives, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter links). Schefter adds that Boldin agreed to a deal with Buffalo last week and backed out before having another change of heart on Monday morning.

Boldin, 36, isn’t quite as dynamic as he once was, but he showed last year that he can still be productive. Boldin had 67 catches and a career-high eight touchdowns, though it should be noted that he averaged a career-worst 8.7 yards per reception.

Boldin will be counted upon to serve as insurance for Buffalo in the event that star Sammy Watkins has to miss time this season. Aside from using a second round pick on Zay Jones in the spring, the Bills didn’t do a whole lot to beef up their thin wide receiver group. Now, they’re in better shape with Boldin.

You can jot Boldin down as the team’s No. 2 or No. 3 wide receiver, depending on how Jones fares in practice for the rest of the month. After that, free agent additions Rod Streater, Corey Brown, Andre Holmes, and Jeremy Butler are among the names pushing for spots on the 53-man roster. Dezmin Lewis and Brandon Tate are also fighting for jobs while Walt Powell must serve a four-game suspension to start the year.

Dolphins’ Jarvis Landry Accused Of Battery

August 7th, 2017 at 11:15am CST by Zachary Links

On Monday morning, Dolphins coach Adam Gase confirmed to reporters that wide receiver Jarvis Landry is under investigation for battery. The news was first broken by Andy Slater of WINZ.

The incident in question took place earlier this year with the mother of Landry’s child, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links) hears. Police were called to the scene, but ultimately local authorities chose not to prosecute Landry. The wide receiver cooperated with police and also provided the Dolphins with information, Rapoport hears.

The news comes at a particularly poor time for Landry since he has been pushing the team for a contract extension. The Dolphins have yet to make an offer to him (or even indicate that an offer is on the way), but Gase insists that is unrelated to any unresolved legal issue.

Of course, Landry can still face league discipline even though he will not face legal consequences for the alleged incident.

NFL Hires Former 49ers GM Trent Baalke

August 7th, 2017 at 10:35am CST by Zachary Links

Trent Baalke is back in football. The former 49ers GM has accepted a job within the league office, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

Baalke will serve as a “Football Operations Consultant,” a job which is composed of several micro-jobs. He’ll have “an advisory role on game-related matters, officiating, player development and evaluation, and officiating video review,” sources tell Schefter.

Baalke was canned by San Francisco in January after five years as the team’s GM. Prior to that, he spent six years in the Niners’ front office. Under his leadership, the Niners advanced to the Super Bowl after the 2011 season, but that wasn’t enough for him to keep his job after a two-win season.

At one point this winter, Baalke was in the mix for a job in the Packers’ front office, but that never materialized.

Browns Reject Brock Osweiler Trade Offer

August 7th, 2017 at 9:19am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns will start quarterback Brock Osweiler in the team’s preseason opener against New Orleans, head coach Hue Jackson announced Monday. And, apparently, it’s not to showcase him to other teams.

Pat McManamon of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears the Browns are starting Osweiler because he is their best option at quarterback and not because he is potential trade bait. When the Browns first acquired Osweiler from Houston this offseason, it seemed likely that they would flip him to a team desperate for a quarterback. Now, Cleveland seems prepared to keep him for themselves. In fact, the Browns have already turned down a trade proposal for Osweiler this offseason, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter).

“A lot goes into our evaluation but it’s always going to be about efficiently and effectively running the offense,” Jackson said in the press release regarding Osweiler’s preseason start against the Saints. “You want your starter to be able to do that despite any circumstance. Brock hasn’t really gotten any first team reps and this will give him that chance. We look forward to seeing what he can do with this opportunity throughout the week and against the Saints.”

Cody Kessler will serve as the No. 2 QB against New Orleans and he’ll be followed by rookie DeShone Kizer and Kevin Hogan on the depth chart.

Dolphins To Place Ted Larsen On IR

August 7th, 2017 at 8:31am CST by Zachary Links

Ted Larsen‘s torn biceps will require a stay on injured reserve, Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald tweets. The hope is that the Dolphins can bring him after Week 8, the earliest point at which players can return from IR.

[RELATED: Dolphins Sign Jay Cutler]

Larsen was expected to serve as one of the Dolphins’ starting guards in Week 1. Although he wasn’t stellar last year, he was the team’s best option next to Kraig Urbik. Miami will now have to consider backups like Jermon Bushrod and fifth round pick Issac Asiata. The Dolphins may also want to look at free agent options, like the newly available Orlando Franklin. Of course, after his stay with the Saints was terminated in less than a week, the Dolphins would want to take a good look at his knee injury.

Last year, players were permitted to only bring one player back from injured reserve during the season. This year, teams will be allowed to designate two players for return from IR. Teams do not have to declare their one IR-DTR player in advance, meaning that the Dolphins can monitor Larsen’s situation and bring him back when he is fully healthy. Conversely, the Dolphins reserve the right to change course and use their two IR-DTR spots on other players.

AFC Rumors: Broncos, Fins, Glenn, Raiders

August 6th, 2017 at 8:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

It’s not exactly a secret the Broncos are hoping their 2016 first-round pick takes the quarterback reins by Week 1, but Paxton Lynch has yet to offer much evidence he’s ready to do that. The obvious caveat of the Broncos being yet to begin their preseason slate applies, but Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com notes Trevor Siemian is in control of this job by default. Broncos staffers aren’t sensing a different vibe from this competition compared to last season, Robinson reports, adding current Broncos personnel view Siemian in front of this race due to Lynch’s inconsistency.

While the Broncos would still hold out hope for Lynch to seize this job at some point in the season, he has lost “every single practice” to the less heralded Siemian, Robinson writes. Siemian’s backstory as a seventh-round pick holding off a player of Lynch’s pedigree for a second season would be interesting for a Broncos team expected to again rely on its defense, but as of now the ex-Northwestern part-time quarterback has a legitimate chance to keep the job.

Here’s the latest out of the AFC:

Two anonymous agents told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald any possible Dolphins overtures to coax Ryan Tannehill into a pay cut are likely to be met with a rejection on agent Pat Dye’s part. Only $5.25MM in injury guarantees remain on Tannehill’s deal, which runs through 2020. Tannehill’s 2018 salary ($17.5MM) becomes guaranteed on the fifth day of the next league year. And although there may be higher-end quarterbacks available in 2018 compared to the past several years, they would likely cost more per year than Tannehill’s deal requires, Jackson writes.
The Raiders return their entire starting secondary from last season, but they are not using Sean Smith as a first-unit player presently. Smith worked as a reserve corner on Sunday while the team shuttled rookie UDFA Breon Borders into the fray. Jack Del Rio confirmed this was a performance-based promotion for Borders, via Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). David Amerson and T.J. Carrie worked as the starting corners, with Borders at nickel, per Scott Bair of CSN Bay Area (via Twitter). The 6-foot-3 Smith has been used as a boundary corner for years, and Carrie patrolled the slot for the Raiders after D.J. Hayden went down last season. This marked the third day Carrie played ahead of Smith, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com notes. Smith’s $9.25MM salary is guaranteed for 2017, while no guaranteed money remains on the 30-year-old defender’s four-year deal after this season. Gareon Conley has yet to factor into this equation.
Cordy Glenn returned to Bills practice Sunday after a bout of ongoing foot trouble, and the sixth-year left tackle said he would “hopefully” be ready to go by Week 1, via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com. Ankle and foot injuries have dogged Glenn since last season. He recently received a second opinion from a specialist in Charlotte.
The Chiefs worked out defensive lineman Connor Wujciak on Sunday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Originally a UDFA with the Eagles in 2016, Wujciak missed all of his would-be rookie season with a shoulder injury. The Eagles waived him in February.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/6/17

August 6th, 2017 at 7:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here’s a list of today’s minor moves:

A day after the Dolphins cut him, tackle Terry Poole landed with the Texans via waiver claim, Mark Berman of Fox 26 tweets. Poole was initially a Seahawks fourth-round pick but hasn’t yet played in an NFL game.
The Saints worked out their longtime long snapper Justin Drescher this week and reached an agreement to bring him back on Sunday, Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate reports. Sean Payton had been frustrated by the long snapping during camp recently, and the team made the decision to release veteran Thomas Gafford and Chase Dominguez on Sunday. Drescher returns to the Saints after spending the past seven seasons in New Orleans. The team did not re-sign the 29-year-old specialist after his contract expired following last season.
Former VCU basketball player Mo Alie-Cox cleared waivers and will revert to the Colts‘ IR list, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The Titans have signed RB Brandon Radcliff, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). They waived/injured Victor Ochi to make room, Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com tweets. Ochi tore his ACL on Friday.
The Steelers have signed cornerback JaCorey Shepherd and cut defensive end Nelson Adams. Originally a sixth-round Eagles selection in 2015, Shepherd followed Chip Kelly to San Francisco and played in 11 games for the 49ers last season.

Dolphins Considered Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow

August 6th, 2017 at 5:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

A common theme appears to have developed in Miami this week in the Dolphins’ search for quarterback help after Ryan Tannehill‘s injury: familiarity with coach Adam Gase.

As a result, some interesting names were considered. Although it’s not certain how seriously these considerations were, Armando Salguero reports (on Twitter) at some point in the process this week former Gase Broncos charges Kyle Orton and Tim Tebow were discussed.

Salguero also confirms the Dolphins’ previously reported interest in Colin Kaepernick, adding more names were likely bandied about during this emergency process (Twitter link). He also notes (via Twitter) some of the names were discarded quickly.

While the Dolphins landed their preferred target in convincing Jay Cutler to come out of retirement, their range of candidates is obviously notable. Set to turn 30 next week, Tebow has not played a down of regular-season football since 2012 and is currently in the New York Mets’ farm system. A historically inaccurate passer, Tebow did lead the Broncos to seven wins in 2011 and a dramatic playoff triumph. Gase was coaching Denver’s quarterbacks at the time, but OC Mike McCoy adjusted the scheme dramatically to fit Tebow’s unique skill set.

Orton, 34, played in a more comparable system to what Gase used with Cutler in Chicago and with the Dolphins in 2016. The passer opened three straight seasons as the Broncos’ starter before Tebow replaced him midway through ’11, and Denver primarily used a three-wide shotgun set for the less mobile signal-caller. Orton, however, retired after the 2014 season.