Here are Wednesday’s practice squad moves:
Detroit Lions
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Washington Redskins
With Jon Gruden and Mark Davis leading the charge to trade Khalil Mack — Reggie McKenzie‘s premier draft choice — it could signal a separation of the Raiders‘ power structure soon. Davis gave Gruden power via the 10-year, $100MM contract, but McKenzie’s remained in his GM role. That could change soon, with Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports expecting the Raiders to part ways with McKenzie and bring in one or two younger evaluators to work under Gruden as the franchise transitions to Las Vegas. Some around the league didn’t expect Gruden and McKenzie to coexist for long, and the Raiders making one of modern NFL history’s biggest trades could further drive the decision-makers apart. Gruden has also expressed doubt about McKenzie’s recent draft classes, and the transactions involving those players signal the new coach’s dissatisfaction with the classes.
Here’s the latest from the West divisions:
It looks like James Conner is going to move into the Steelers’ starting lineup when they face the Browns on Sunday, and the second-year running back may get a full workload.
Barring something unexpected, Le’Veon Bell is not expected to play in Week 1, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.
Attached to a $14.5MM franchise tag he’s yet to sign, Bell remains away from the Steelers. He’d reported by this point going into last season’s opener and played in Week 1. However, the running back’s likely voyage to free agency in 2019 appears to have him operating differently going into his sixth season.
The Steelers are at a loss, but they have no plans to rescind Bell’s franchise tag, Fowler reports. No team has rescinded a tag after the start of a training camp since the 2005 Eagles, when they pulled defensive tackle Corey Simon‘s and made him a free agent.
Bell and the Steelers failed to come to an agreement at the past two franchise tag deadlines, and Bell’s agent, Adisa Bakari, said the running back is going to do what is “necessary to protect his value long-term.”
“Le’Veon has several years left in football. We know his days in Pittsburgh are precarious at best. We also know how he’s been utilized in the past by the Steelers organization,” Bakari said during an appearance on ESPN’s NFL Live, which followed a Sirius XM interview featuring the agent appearing to cite the Steelers’ old-school usage of his client as a reason Bell is staying away from the team.
“That’s nothing to say negative about the Steelers. They had one of the best players to play the position and they used him heavily for the production he can provide, but in doing so you take away from his future years.”
This puts the two-time reigning AFC North champions in a strange spot, as they’d like to have the services of their longtime running back. But the sides’ failure to agree to terms in July may have major in-season ramifications. The tougher part of Pittsburgh’s schedule looks to be the second half, with Patriots, Jaguars, Chargers and Saints games slated for November and December. But the Steelers do play the Chiefs in Week 2 and may have to do so without Bell.
A third-round pick out of Pitt last year, Conner averaged 4.5 yards per carry on 32 totes as a rookie.
The Buccaneers are eyeing a long-term linebacker setup that includes both Lavonte David and Kwon Alexander. They are discussing an extension with Alexander’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter).
No deal is imminent, per Rapoport, but the Bucs are working toward a re-up for their three-down linebacker. Alexander is entering a contract year.
A first-time Pro Bowler in 2017, Alexander has been a prodigious tackler for the Bucs for the past two seasons. After registering 145 in 2016, he made 97 stops in 12 games last season. David’s sidekick rated as Pro Football Focus’ No. 37 off-ball ‘backer last year.
The Bucs made Alexander a fourth-round pick in 2015, and he resides as one of their highest-profile contract-year players. Ali Marpet and Donovan Smith are in this queue as well. Tampa Bay holds more than $8MM in current cap space, and early projections have the team set to possess more than $21MM come 2019.
By offering the Seahawks a second-round pick, Cowboys tried again recently to land one of this era’s best safeties. Again, they were rebuffed.
The Cowboys are not planning to increase their Earl Thomas offer beyond a second-rounder, David Moore of the Dallas Morning News reports. However, Moore adds that the Cowboys’ interest in Thomas “remains strong.”
But that interest only goes so far. Moore notes the Cowboys are comfortable enough with their current situation at safety to cap their Thomas offer at a second-round pick. Judging by the offer increase, it seems they’re not that comfortable with what they have on their back line.
Dallas has Jeff Heath and Xavier Woods in place as first-stringers under optimal circumstances, but Woods remains out due to injury. The team claimed Ibraheim Campbell off waivers from the Texans over the weekend as well, but Kavon Frazier is expected to start alongside Heath in Week 1.
Thomas intends to report to the Seahawks, but he’s also unhappy with the team. This situation appears headed for a divorce, and the Cowboys are willing to wait, presumably to see if the Seahawks’ price drops as the trade deadline nears. The Cowboys upped their offer to a second-round pick last week, after their max proposal was a third-rounder in April.
So, Thomas-to-Dallas remains a possibility, just one that’s on the back-burner right now.
Le’Veon Bell‘s usage rate over the past two seasons has dwarfed every other running back’s, making it somewhat curious the 26-year-old All-Pro would chance trying to go through another high-volume season without a long-term contract.
He may not be. Bell’s agent, Adisa Bakari, said in a Sirius XM interview Wednesday (via Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) Bell is interested in making it to the 2019 free agent market without the wear and tear of another 400-touch season.
“I’m not going to discuss our plan publicly, but if you’re Kevin Colbert and you’re Mike Tomlin, and you have a once-in-a-generation type of player for one more season, what would your plan be? You can read in between those lines,” Bakari said.
Bakari’s likely hinting at the presumed plan of the Steelers running their workhorse back ragged, with his presumptive Pittsburgh departure coming in March. That said, Bell put himself in this position by not agreeing to a deal at the franchise tag deadline.
Bell led the NFL with 406 touches last season and paced the league in 2016 on a per-game basis, averaging 28 in his 12-game season — nearly five more touches per game than David Johnson, second in this category, racked up that year. However, it’s unclear how Bell and Bakari plan to coax the Steelers into limiting the sixth-year back’s workload this season if/when he returns. This sets up conflicting agendas for a team that’s running out of time in its hopes to win a Super Bowl with its historically dominant skill-position duo of Bell and Antonio Brown.
Bell said after another tag deadline came and went without a deal that he would report to the Steelers before Week 1 “unless something exceptional happens.” Bakari said today “something exceptional” has occurred. It’s unclear what, in fact, has transpired. But Bell remains estranged from his team as the league’s last holdout. Mike Tomlin said (via ohio.com’s Nate Ulrich, on Twitter) he’d cross the Bell-usage bridge when that became relevant.
Nevertheless, Bakari said the Bell camp remains intent on making this a dominant season.
“I said Le’Veon has every intention to make this the best season of his career. That has not changed,” the agent said (via Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com, on Twitter). “That’s his intention, to make this the best statistical season of his career.”
The Steeler back can hold out until Week 10 before a November 13 deadline looms regarding his playing status in 2018, but he would lose $853K for every week he misses. Having accumulated 1,229 carries through five years, Bell would be an unusual free agent hoping to cash in. Teams could well view him as a diminished commodity as a free agent, which would hurt his chances of signing for Todd Gurley-type money.
Earl Thomas looks to be budging in his offseason-long holdout. The three-time first-team All-Pro safety intends to report to the Seahawks on Wednesday, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
This marks a big morning for Thomas news, with the Cowboys having reportedly upped their offer for the 29-year-old defender. They’re now willing to part with a second-round pick after refusing to do so on draft weekend, but the Seahawks refused to make a deal. It also appears the Cowboys have bowed out of the talks after making that offer, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting (via Twitter) this prompted Thomas to report.
Seattle still wants a first-round pick for Thomas, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports (on Twitter). Considering the Cowboys wouldn’t part with their 2018 second-rounder, it’s understandable they would balk at this price.
The Seahawks are also planning to wipe out the extensive fines (up to $1.6MM) Thomas has incurred during his holdout, Rapoport reports (on Twitter). That’s a notable step in building a bridge for a reunion between the parties, but for a player who formed an extension-or-trade stance, all’s not well between the top Legion of Boom cog and the Seahawks.
Thomas explained as much on an Instagram post.
“I worked my whole life for this….. I’ve never let me teammates, city or fans down as long as I’ve lived and don’t plan on starting this weekend,” Thomas wrote in his latest IG post. “With that being said, the disrespect has been well noted and will not be forgotten. Father Time may have an undefeated record but best believe I plan on taking him into triple overtime when it comes to my career.”
For now, Thomas plans to play on the final year of his 2014-constructed contract. It calls for an $8.5MM base salary. No new agreement is in place, ESPN’s Dan Graziano tweets.
This represents big news for a Seahawks team that lost so much of its defensive core this offseason and stands to be without K.J. Wright in its opener against the Broncos. Thomas will slide in back at his free safety spot, likely kicking Bradley McDougald back to the strong safety role he assumed from Kam Chancellor. Thomas has not worked with his teammates since Week 17 of last season.
While the Seahawks as of now are getting back a brooding Thomas, who may well not factor into the team’s post-2018 future, they are undoubtedly much better because of his return. Thomas returned after breaking his leg in 2016 to play in 14 Seattle games last season. He made the Pro Bowl, his sixth, and finished the year as Pro Football Focus’ No. 5 safety.
The Jets continue to cycle through options at kicker in advance of their regular-season opener. Roberto Aguayo has a workout scheduled with the team on Wednesday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
This marks the third known kicker audition the Jets have held this week. Aguayo is following longtime Cowboys kicker Dan Bailey, while Cardinals camp kicker Matt McCrane has a scheduled workout with the Jets today.
Aguayo hit 3 of 3 field goals during his preseason stay with the Chargers, which did not obviously end up with him winning that job. He remains in search of a team. One of the biggest kicker draft investments in NFL history, Aguayo has not come close to justifying that second-round draft slot.
He has not kicked in a game since that rough 2016 rookie season with the Buccaneers, bouncing around workouts since but never commandeering a job. The Jets still have Jason Myers on their roster but are going through options in an effort to see if an upgrade is out there.
It was reported recently that the Cowboys were offering only a third round pick for All-Pro safety Earl Thomas and weren’t budging. Now the Cowboys have apparently upped their offer a second round pick, but the Seahawks still want more according to Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link).
Thomas, one of the last remaining pieces of the Seahawks’ once legendary defense, has held out all offseason in search of a new contract. Seattle has made it clear they have no intentions of giving him one, leading to the current stalemate with no end in sight.
A second round pick is a hefty offer for a player heading into the final year of his deal, so it’s somewhat surprising the Seahawks turned it down, especially considering a second round pick had previously been said to be their asking price. It’s not clear what Seattle’s endgame is here, since Thomas has no plans of reporting to the team anytime soon and appears certain to miss regular season games.
The Cowboys have the potential to have the best defense the team has fielded in years, but could use some help in the secondary. Acquiring Thomas would go a long way toward solidifying their defense as a top unit, so it makes sense why they’re being aggressive here. With the season just days away, this situation could develop further at any moment. Stay tuned.
The few years preceding the dawn of the Kyle Shanahan era in San Francisco were dark times. The 49ers had three coaches in a three year span and experienced a lot of losing. The stress took a toll on many of the team’s veteran players, including longtime left tackle Joe Staley.
Staley, who’s been with the 49ers ever since he was taken in the first round back in 2007, revealed in a recent interview with Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle that he considered retirement amidst all the losing and coaching changes. It’s all behind him now, and he says he feels rejuvenated by the energy Shanahan has injected into the team, but it sounds like Staley very nearly walked away from the game.
Here’s more from the NFC: