2018 August - Pro Football Rumors

Dez Bryant Rejects Browns’ Offer

August 24th, 2018 at 6:28pm CST by Zachary Links

The Browns offered Dez Bryant a deal, but it was not to his liking. The proposed contract was worth less than $5MM, a league source tells Mike Florio of PFT.

By virtue of extending the deal, we know that the Browns are in fact interested in signing Bryant. However, that interest is not necessarily being reciprocated. Some in league circles believe that Bryant is waiting for an offer from a better team, Florio writes.

There could be any number of reasons for Bryant’s potential unwillingness to sign with the Browns. The wide receiver could be looking for a winning situation, which is less than assured with a team that has gone 1-31 over the lsat two years. Bryant may also have reservations about joining a stacked receiver group that includes Jarvis Landry, promising rookie Antonio Callaway, and (hopefully) Josh Gordon. Whatever the reason is, evidence is mounting that Bryant is hesitant about going to Cleveland.

While the sub-$5MM offer was not suitable for Bryant, no one knows exactly what the wide receiver is looking for. And, barring an injury to a star wide receiver, he might not get an opportunity to top that elsewhere.

Former Browns TE Randall Telfer Retires

August 24th, 2018 at 5:01pm CST by Zachary Links

Randall Telfer is calling it a career. On Friday, the free agent tight end announced his retirement via Twitter.

Telfer, 26, was a sixth-round pick of the Browns in 2015. After losing his would-be rookie season to injury, he appeared in 30 games for the Browns over the next two years, but recorded only 40 yards in total.

Telfer may be best known to PFR readers for the 2018 offseason trade that should have sent him from Cleveland to Kansas City. Unfortunately, Telfer failed his physical with the Chiefs, meaning that linebacker Dadi Nicolas was never shipped to the Browns (In case you were wondering, Nicolas is now pushing to make the Redskins’ final cut.)

Obi Melifonwu Goes Unclaimed On Waivers

August 24th, 2018 at 4:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Raiders did not find a team willing to take Obi Melifonwu‘s guaranteed salary off their hands. The 2017 second-round pick went unclaimed on waivers, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), tagging the Raiders with $1.73MM in dead money.

Melifonwu reverts to the Raiders’ IR list with his guaranteed money, but with Jon Gruden having essentially given up on the second-year safety, an injury settlement could be coming. The Connecticut alum had an opportunity to impress with the Raiders’ first team earlier this month, due to injuries, but a setback related to his rookie-year hip ailment sidelined him. And he remains out as a result.

The 6-foot-4 defensive back believes he can play this season, per Rapoport. Melifonwu turned heads during his workout tour last year, impressing several teams at the Combine and in private auditions. Teams worked Melifonwu out as a safety and cornerback. He just didn’t pan out in Oakland, but it’s likely another team will extend an opportunity.

Despite Gruden making wholesale changes this offseason Oakland is still slated to use the same starting safety tandem it did in 2016 and ’17 — Reggie Nelson and Karl Joseph. Melifonwu was viewed as a possible hybrid contributor, but he only played in five games in an injury-shortened rookie season.

Panthers Name Tom Glick Team President

August 24th, 2018 at 4:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

A key presence in David Tepper‘s Panthers plan became known Friday. The Panthers announced Tom Glick will serve as their new president and chief operating officer.

Glick spent the past six-plus years as COO for the English Premier League’s Manchester City club but has worked in a variety of sports during a career spanning more than 25 years.

“We are thrilled to have Tom join the Panthers family,” Tepper said. “He has tremendous experience in professional sports, successfully fostering fan engagement in major cities globally. I know that his record, expertise and drive will be major assets as we look to win on the field and in the community.”

Glick will succeed Tina Becker in running the Panthers’ day-to-day operations. Becker took over in that capacity earlier this year but stepped down recently after a 19-year run with the organization. Becker’s role did not include football operations. It remains to be seen if Glick will make an impact on that side of the franchise.

The new Carolina decision-maker previously served as the NBA’s vice president of marketing and business operations, was the then-New Jersey Nets’ chief marketing officer and spent 15 years running multiple minor league baseball teams.

NFC Rumors: Cowboys, Cardinals, Easley

August 24th, 2018 at 4:16pm CST by Sam Robinson

Tyrone Crawford spent his 2017 season at defensive end, but the veteran Cowboys lineman’s been known to move around. The team is asking him to do so again. The Cowboys are shifting Crawford back to defensive tackle, a role he mostly played from 2014-15 before being largely stationed at end the past two seasons. Injuries to inside players, David Irving‘s suspension and the team having amassed more depth at end prompted the move, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram notes. Crawford’s working as a starter alongside nose tackle Antwaun Woods.

This move has opened the door for an interesting setup at end. Hill adds Randy Gregory is now working with the first team across from DeMarcus Lawrence. Recently fully reinstated, Gregory has never started an NFL game and has only played in two contests since the 2015 season. Taco Charlton and Dorance Armstrong are serving as Dallas’ backup ends presently, per Hill. While it’s not a lock Gregory will be a starter in Week 1, it could well be headed that way. Irving’s return from suspension would give the Cowboys the kind of depth they haven’t possessed up front in years.

Here’s the latest from Dallas, along with a couple of other NFC cities as these teams prepare for their dress-rehearsal preseason games.

The most likely scenario for Travis Frederick is a stay on injured reserve to start the season, David Moore of the Dallas Morning News writes. He would then be eligible to return for the final eight games of the season, in the event he’s able to do so. The Cowboys are not ready to concede that their All-Pro center will be IR-bound yet, and Moore adds they’re likely unwilling to face the reality Frederick likely won’t be at his best if/when he does return in 2018. Joe Looney is now Dallas’ starting center, and the Cowboys will need to determine soon if they are going to look for outside help at the position. There isn’t much center help of note available, however.
A defensive lineman throughout his career, Dominique Easley is now working as a standup outside linebacker for the Rams. Wade Phillips confirmed the move, one made shortly after the team activated the fifth-year defender off the PUP list Monday. This doesn’t look to be an experiment, either. “I think this gives him a little more freedom to utilize his abilities. We even played Mario Williams at outside ‘backer,” Phillips said, via Rams.com, of his former Houston pupil. “(Easley is) is a real strong player can play that position and, again, not have as much wear and tear.” Easley’s suffered three ACL tears, the most recent shelving him last season. The former first-round pick’s move to outside linebacker also adds a higher-profile player to a Rams position group that doesn’t feature many big names.
A.Q. Shipley‘s Cardinals extension won’t include much new money. The veteran center can make $2MM in 2019, including incentives, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Shipley’s making $1.5MM in base salary this season. These figures are fairly modest for a player who’s started all 32 Cards games since the beginning of the 2016 season, but Shipley will be 33 next year and just tore an ACL.

Free Agent TE Julius Thomas To Retire

August 24th, 2018 at 3:03pm CST by Sam Robinson

Julius Thomas will step away from the NFL after seven seasons. The free agent tight end announced, via The Players’ Tribune, he intends to pursue a career in psychology and will be returning to school to pursue a doctorate degree.

The Dolphins released Thomas earlier this year, and the 30-year-old pass-catcher will move on from the sport. He spent four seasons with the Broncos, two with the Jaguars and played his final year in Miami.

“While making the decision to no longer play the game is difficult, I’m also incredibly excited about what’s next: Studying therapy and becoming well trained in it so that I can help people heal from their emotional and mental pain,” Thomas wrote.

One of the best basketball-to-football conversion stories, the former fourth-round pick out of Portland State was one of the most sought-after free agents in the game in 2015. He signed a five-year deal worth more than $46MM with Jacksonville, doing so after two dominant seasons in Denver.

Stationed as one of Peyton Manning‘s top targets, the former Division I-FCS talent caught 24 touchdown passes between the 2013 and ’14 seasons. He made the Pro Bowl both years and started in Super Bowl XLVIII. Thomas eclipsed Shannon Sharpe‘s franchise record for most touchdown grabs in a season by a tight end, hauling in 12 in back-to-back slates. While Thomas couldn’t replicate that production away from the future Hall of Fame passer, he totaled two more 40-reception seasons and played three years on that lucrative 2015 contract.

However, injuries played a significant role in Thomas’ career. He missed 28 games during his four Broncos seasons and 11 during his two Jags campaigns. While Thomas surmounted his early-career maladies at the right time, just as Manning set NFL records on explosive offenses, the 6-foot-5 tight end was hobbled for much of his career.

He intends to study the effects of CTE.

“Football has serious cognitive risks, but there’s still a lot to learn about the extent of them and ways they can be mitigated,” Thomas wrote. “The ability to assist with the latest research being done on brain trauma and the pursuit to better understand CTE. To study it not just from the perspective of a psychologist or a clinician, but also as a person who has played for several years at the highest level, is something that excites me. It fills me with a sense of purpose.”

AFC South Notes: Texans, Watt, Colts

August 24th, 2018 at 2:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

J.J. Watt continues to insist he will be on the field with his Texans teammates when they open the regular season, but the severe injury he sustained last season — a tibeal plateau fracture — did not have doctors 100 percent certain the three-time defensive player of the year would play again.

“They weren’t even sure if the surgery would work and if he would be able to run anymore. That’s what was so scary for us,” said Watt’s girlfriend, pro soccer player Kealia Ohai, via Jenny Vrentas of SI.com. “An ACL is difficult, but it’s pretty straightforward. With J.J.’s, because of the type of injury, I remember the doctors were not exactly sure how his leg and his knee would react to [the surgery]. From the beginning, he wanted to work hard and come back. But for a while, [the question] was, would he be able to come back and play at the same level, and support that much weight? Will his leg ever be the same again?”

Watt’s returned to Texans practice, taking part in team drills, but he’s now missed 24 games over the past two seasons. It’s uncertain how the 29-year-old defensive end will look after this extensive rehab process.

Here’s the latest from the South divisions:

D’Onta Foreman likely will not be joining Watt and other healthy Texans in Week 1. The second-year running back is likely to land on the Reserve/PUP list to start the season, John McClain of the Houston Chronicle notes. Foreman currently resides on the Active/PUP list, but if Houston places him on the regular-season version of the PUP, he must sit at least six weeks. Alfred Blue will take Foreman’s place as Lamar Miller‘s primary backup. Foreman tore an Achilles’ tendon in November.
The Colts‘ backfield might not have its projected leader back by the season’s first Sunday. Marlon Mack‘s nursing a hamstring injury, and it’s “no slam dunk” he’ll be available for the opener, Frank Reich said (via Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star, on Twitter). While the Colts are hopeful the second-year back can return by then and take his place with the starting offense, they may have to wait a bit for that to occur. The Colts will also be without Robert Turbin for the first four games of the season due to a suspension; they have rookies Jordan Wilkins and Nyheim Hines, along with the well-traveled Christine Michael, in their backfield behind Mack.
The Jets contacted the Jaguars this week regarding the trade availability of Dante Fowler.
Derrick Morgan appears likely to miss the start of the Titans’ season due to meniscus surgery.

Jets Sign RB Charcandrick West

August 24th, 2018 at 12:52pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Jets announced that they’ve signed former Chiefs running back Charcandrick West. He’ll take recently-released kicker Cairo Santos‘ roster spot, so New York won’t need to make another transaction to clear roster space.

Kansas City released West on Wednesday following four seasons with the club. The 27-year-old West’s most productive campaign came in 2015, when he managed 160 carries for 634 yards and four touchdowns, but his rushing role with the Chiefs had been greatly reduced in recent seasons. While he played more than 500 offensive snaps from 2016-17, West handled only 106 total carries, including just 18 last year.

West has seen more action in the receiving game, as he’s posted at least 20 receptions in three consecutive seasons. However, he hasn’t been very efficient with his touches, as he finished 57th among 62 running backs in Football Outsiders’ receiving DVOA. With Bilal Powell expected to handle most of the Jets’ receiving work, it’s unclear how West will fit on the club’s roster (especially given that he’s never played much on special teams).

West will give New York a bit of depth as it deals with injuries at the running back position. Starter Isaiah Crowell just returned this week after suffering a concussion, while reserve Elijah McGuire is currently sidelined with a broken foot.

Cardinals Extend C A.Q. Shipley Through 2019

August 24th, 2018 at 12:45pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cardinals have signed center A.Q. Shipley to a one-year extension through the 2019 season, the club announced today. Shipley is currently on injured reserve and will miss the upcoming campaign after tearing his ACL earlier this month.

Arizona’s decision to extend Shipley while he’s injury may seem curious at first glance, but the deal likely doesn’t contain much — if any — guaranteed money, so there’s probably little risk for general manager Steve Keim & Co. Shipley originally re-signed with the Cardinals on a two-year pact in March 2017, and that contract will pay him a base salary of $1.5MM in 2018.

With Shipley sidelined, the Cardinals plan to use third-round rookie Mason Cole at center. If Cole establishes himself at the pivot in 2018, Shipley would likely return next season as a reserve at all three interior line spots. But if Cole doesn’t play well in his first NFL go-round, Shipley could conceivably compete to start again next year.

Shipley, 32, has been with Arizona since 2015 but didn’t become the team’s full-time starter until 2016. He started all 32 games over the past two season, and Pro Football Focus graded him as the league’s No. 14 center in 2017.

North Rumors: Browns, Tyrod, Steelers, Bell

August 24th, 2018 at 12:31pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Tyrod Taylor gave Browns fans a scare on Thursday night when he left Cleveland’s preseason game with a hand injury, but he eventually return to the contest and was diagnosed with just a dislocated pinky, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. While undoubtedly a painful ailment, Taylor isn’t expected to miss any time with the issue, and he tweeted earlier today that he’s “doing well.” Taylor will begin the 2018 campaign as the Browns’ starting quarterback, but could eventually cede to No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield.

Here’s more from the NFL’s two North divisions:

Le’Veon Bell isn’t expected to report to the Steelers until Week 1, and it’s unclear if the two-time franchise player will be a member of Pittsburgh’s roster after 2018. He won’t be assigned the tag again, meaning he’ll be able to hit the open market next spring. With that in mind, Terez A. Paylor of Yahoo Sports examined whether Bell will be able to command a fully guaranteed deal, and also looked at the top contenders to land Bell once he finally hits free agency. The Colts, Jets, and Browns — all of whom project to have plenty of 2019 cap space, all make sense as potential destinations, per Paylor.
Bears safety DeAndre Houston-Carson during Chicago’s preseason game against the Broncos and is expected to miss regular season action, according to Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Houston-Carson had been performing well in training camp and during the preseason, but it’s unclear if the Bears will hold a roster spot for a player who’s not a key contributor on defense. The former sixth-round pick has played just 24 defensive snaps over two seasons in Chicago, but is a core special-teamer (303 total ST snaps since 2016).
Edge rusher Aaron Lynch is running out of time to earn a place on the Bears‘ roster, as Campbell writes in a full piece. Lynch has been dealing a hamstring issue since late June, and has since missed 20 practices and three preseason games. He won’t participate in Saturday’s exhibition contest, either, meaning the 25-year-old will need to show progress in Chicago’s final preseason game next Thursday. A third-round pick in 2015, Lynch flashed potential during his first two NFL seasons with San Francisco, but has played in only 14 total games over the past two years due to injuries and a suspension.