2019 March - Pro Football Rumors

Raiders To Work Out Kyler Murray

March 25th, 2019 at 4:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jon Gruden reiterated Monday that Derek Carr will be the Raiders’ starting quarterback this season, after saying as much at the Combine. But the Raiders will still explore this year’s top passing prospects.

Raiders representatives will conduct a workout with Kyler Murray next week, according to Albert Breer of SI.com, who adds the team’s previously reported workout with Dwayne Haskins will take place next week as well.

Gruden has praised Murray throughout the offseason, but the noise at the Combine has not cooled down. The Cardinals are heavily linked to the 5-foot-10 quarterback. This may make the Haskins meetings more important. The Ohio State-developed prospect also has a Dolphins workout scheduled, along with meetings with the Giants, Broncos and Redskins. He is expected to be a top-10 pick. The past four drafts’ second quarterback selected has been no later than No. 10 overall.

Should the Raiders select Murray or Haskins, Carr’s run as the team’s starter will likely come to an end soon. He has four years and a non-guaranteed $78MM remaining on his contract.

“Yeah, he’s going to be our quarterback,” Gruden told Jim Trotter of NFL.com. “I’m not going to address all the rumors. I could care less about the rumors, you know? He threw for 4,100 yards. Threw for almost 70 percent in a very dire, tough circumstance. So I’ve got a lot of confidence in Carr, what he can do with Antonio Brown, with Tyrell Williams, with Trent Brown coming in here to help our offensive line, with a better defense. I’m excited about Carr.”

Ravens Plan To Keep Jimmy Smith

March 25th, 2019 at 4:09pm CST by Zachary Links

It sounds like the Ravens will keep Jimmy Smith in the fold. While at the owners’ meetings, Ravens GM Eric DeCosta all but confirmed that the team will be moving forward with Smith, as Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets.

“One of the greatest strengths of our team right now is our secondary. I think it would be foolish for us to make a strength a weakness for no reason,” DeCosta said.

Smith, 31 in July, is under contract for one more season with a whopping $15MM cap number. The Ravens and Smith agreed to a 2017 restructure, ballooning his cap figure to this level. Releasing Smith would save $9.5MM against Baltimore’s cap, but it would also leave the club with $6.4MM in dead money. That’s not exactly an ideal scenario for the Ravens, so an extension or restructuring could make more sense than an outright release.

Last year, Smith served a four-game suspension for an alleged domestic violence incident. In 2017, he also missed four games due to an Achilles tear that coincided with a four-game suspension for PEDs.

The Ravens lost Terrell Suggs, C.J. Mosley and Eric Weddle from their top-tier defense. They will still have one of the league’s oldest secondaries, with the soon-to-be 30-year-old Earl Thomas coming in to join 30-somethings Smith, Brandon Carr and Tony Jefferson. Both Carr and Smith were potential cap casualties, but each is instead set to be part of an experienced Ravens DB corps.

Eagles Could Still Re-Sign Jay Ajayi

March 25th, 2019 at 3:31pm CST by Zachary Links

Jay Ajayi’s free agency is in a bit of a holding pattern, but it could end with the running back landing with the Eagles. Agent Drew Rosenhaus says he is maintaining discussions with the Eagles about his client, as Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets.

Ajayi recently visited the Colts and Rosenhaus says the meeting went well, even though the two sides left without a deal in place. It could be a little while before Ajayi signs because, as Rosenhaus puts it, he’s expected to be ready for the start of the season, but not much before that point.

Ajayi, 26 in June, is arguably the best back still available on the open market after Le’Veon Bell, Tevin Coleman, and Mark Ingram came off the board during the first week of free agency. The Eagles pursued Coleman, but didn’t sign him, which leaves a big need in the backfield.

Buccaneers To Sign Blaine Gabbert

March 25th, 2019 at 3:11pm CST by Zachary Links

The Buccaneers are expected to sign quarterback Blaine Gabbert in the next 24 hours, according to Greg Auman of The Athletic (on Twitter). Once signed, Gabbert will be primed to serve as the backup to starter Jameis Winston.

Gabbert, 30 in October, spent last season as Marcus Mariota‘s primary backup but was released by the club earlier this month. In eight games (three starts), Gabbert completed 60.4% of his passes for 626 yards, four touchdowns, and four interceptions. The 2011 first-round pick has had stints with the Jaguars, 49ers, Cardinals, and Titans during his eight-year career, and he’ll don a new uni in 2019.

Gabbert entered the league as the No. 10 overall pick in the 2011 draft, but he hasn’t lived up to the billing. In 48 starts, he has a career 13-35 record and a 56.2% completion percentage. He also has a nearly 1:1 TD-INT ratio.

However, he could be a worthwhile emergency option behind Winston, who has been largely healthy save for shoulder trouble in 2017.

Extra Points: McDowell, Broncos, Browns

March 25th, 2019 at 2:59pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Malik McDowell is still looking to play football again. The talented defensive lineman was taken by the Seahawks in the second round of the 2017 draft, but has never played a down in the NFL. An ATV accident before his rookie year resulted in serious injuries that up until this point have prevented him from playing. The Seahawks finally decided to move on and waived him earlier this month after he couldn’t gain clearance. He still wants to play however, and recently met with the Cowboys.

McDowell’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, revealed today that McDowell had been cleared to play again by independent doctors (Twitter link via Calvin Watkins of The Athletic). However, the Cowboys’ team doctors have been unable to clear him yet. Clarence Hill Jr. of the Forth Worth Star-Telegram tweeted that Rosenhaus also said the Cowboys remain interested his client, but it sounds like there’s still a big medical hurdle to clear. It seems Dallas’ interest is legitimate, and if their doctors are able to clear him there’s a very good chance he’d sign. He was the 35th overall pick out of Michigan State for a reason, so if he’s ever able to get back on the field it could prove to be a great pickup.

Here’s more from around the league:

Center Matt Paradis left the Broncos this offseason, and signed a big deal with the Panthers. We heard shortly before he signed with Carolina that Denver was working to re-sign him, but that apparently wasn’t a realistic effort. The Broncos essentially lowballed Paradis, offering him a one-year “look-see” deal that they knew he wouldn’t accept, according to Mike Klis of Denver 9News. Despite the reported effort, it sounds like the Broncos never truly intended to retain Paradis, who got three years and $27MM from the Panthers.
Speaking of the Broncos, their ownership dispute could be inching toward a resolution. Brittany Bowlen, one of the daughters of owner Pat Bowlen vying to take over the team, will soon start a job in Denver’s front office, Broncos CEO Joe Ellis told Klis (Twitter link). There’s been a drawn out dramatic dispute playing out between members of the Bowlen family for a while now, and Brittany is believed to be the favorite of Broncos and league brass. Klis calls it a “potential huge step” toward her one day taking over the team.
We heard a couple of weeks ago that the Browns were shopping Emmanuel Ogbah, and that’s apparently still the case. Ogbah is still being shopped, a source told Tony Grossi of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Additionally, Grossi reports that “there’s a lot of interest” in the defensive end. Ogbah is still only 25 and on his rookie deal, so it makes sense that there’s legit interest. With Olivier Vernon now in the fold opposite Myles Garrett, the Browns don’t have much of a need for Ogbah.

Damon Harrison Asks Lions For New Contract

March 25th, 2019 at 1:55pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Damon Harrison is coming off his first season as a member of the Lions, and he’s looking for a raise. The player also known as ‘Snacks’ has approached Detroit’s front office about getting a new deal, a source told Kyle Meinke of MLive.com.

Harrison had been with the Giants the past several seasons, but New York traded him to the Lions at the trade deadline this past year for a fifth round pick. A defensive tackle, Harrison is widely regarded as an elite stuffer. Last year he received a 92.1 grade from Pro Football Focus, their third-highest grade for any defensive lineman.

Interestingly, Harrison played in 17 games last season since he was traded before the Giants had their bye week but after the Lions already had their’s. A 2016 first-team All-Pro, Harrison had 81 tackles and 3.5 sacks last year. Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Jets back in 2012, Harrison has two years left on his deal.

Harrison is set to make a $6.75MM base salary in 2019 and $9MM in 2020, and apparently feels he’s underpaid. He’s still only 30, and wants to be locked up longterm by the Lions. Detroit might be hesitant to negotiate with him still having two years left on the deal, but Harrison played great down the stretch for the Lions and could be worth it as Matt Patricia continues to rebuild his defense.

Cowboys To Ask Allen Hurns To Take Pay Cut

March 25th, 2019 at 1:35pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Allen Hurns’ agent Drew Rosenhaus said today that the team hasn’t asked his client to take a pay-cut or restructure his contract yet, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t coming. “It is only a matter of time” and the team does plan to ask him to take a pay cut, a source told Clarence Hill Jr. of The Forth Worth Star-Telegram (Twitter link.)

The Cowboys exercised Hurns’ 2019 option a couple of weeks ago, but apparently don’t actually want to pay him that salary. Hurns signed a two-year, $12MM deal with Dallas last offseason, and is slated to have a cap hit of $6.25MM this year. Given his level of production last season, it’s not surprising that the Cowboys want to reduce that.

With Dez Bryant gone, Hurns was supposed to compete for one of the Cowboys’ top receiving jobs after Dallas signed him away from Jacksonville. But he never showed much chemistry with Dak Prescott, and he quickly got buried on the depth chart after the emergence of rookie Michael Gallup and the trade for Amari Cooper. Hurns caught 20 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns during the regular season.

His season ended with a devastating ankle injury suffered in the first round of the playoffs against the Seahawks. The injury was gruesome, but Hurns is recovering well, and Calvin Watkins of The Athletic tweets that Rosenhaus said he’s hoping to be ready by training camp. With Cole Beasley now gone to the Bills, perhaps Hurns can take on a bigger role next season, assuming the two sides can get his contract sorted out.

49ers To Keep Jerick McKinnon

March 25th, 2019 at 12:19pm CST by Zachary Links

Jerick McKinnon‘s first season with the 49ers did not go according to plan, but he’ll have an opportunity to show what he can do for the team in 2019. Niners GM John Lynch says the running back will be on the team past April 1 when his salary becomes fully guaranteed (Twitter link via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area). Furthermore, Lynch confirmed that McKinnon fits into the team’s plans for the upcoming season.

The 49ers signed McKinnon to a four-year $30MM contract last March, but a torn ACL wiped out his first would-be season in SF. It was a huge disappointment for the team and player alike – McKinnon flashed serious potential in Minnesota and many expected him to bust out big plays in the 49ers’ offense.

In 2017, his final year with the Vikes, McKinnon enjoyed career highs in receptions (51) and receiving yards (421). With capable hands and the athleticism to break out of early tackles, McKinnon has the ability to go for long-distance runs and serve as a security blanket for Jimmy Garoppolo. Both players are expected to be healthy for the start of the 2019 season, which should result in a much better year for the franchise.

Bengals Re-Sign Darqueze Dennard

March 25th, 2019 at 12:04pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bengals are re-signing cornerback Darqueze Dennard, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Chiefs and a mystery club were also in the mix for him, but the former first-round pick ultimately re-upped with Cincinnati. He’ll return on a one-year deal, according to an announcement from the team.

Dennard’s market was slow to develop despite other slot corners receiving lucrative deals around the NFL. His visit to Kansas City late last week marked his first known outside interest of the offseason . Cincinnati was initially willing to re-sign Dennard at around $8.5MM annually, so it will be interesting to see whether the price went up or down.

The Bengals are often reticent to field young players during the early portions of their respective careers, and that was never more evident than in Dennard’s case, as the former Michigan State Spartan played fewer than 600 defensive snaps in his first three pro seasons.

Dennard became Cincinnati’s full-time slot corner in 2017, and saw action on roughly three-quarters of the Bengals’ snaps in each of the past two years. Football Outsiders ranked Dennard 29th among 85 qualifiers in yards allowed per pass attempt in 2018 but just 49th in success rate, while Pro Football Focus graded Dennard as the league’s No. 52 CB.

Ezekiel Ansah Won’t Sign Until April

March 25th, 2019 at 11:41am CST by Zachary Links

Ezekiel Ansah stands as one of the best pass-rushers remaining on the open market, though many expected him to be off the board by this point in the offseason. As it turns out, teams want to learn more about his surgically repaired shoulder, according to his agent (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com).

The plan, for now, is to wait until Ansah’s follow-up appointment in mid-April to determine his readiness for the upcoming season. That appointment will (roughly) mark the four-month anniversary of his operation, which should give a clearer picture of where Ansah stands in his recovery.

Ansah appeared in just seven games for the Lions last year before his shoulder took him out of action. However, Ansah has shown serious potential in the past with two 12+ sack seasons. As recently as 2017, Ansah profiled as one of the best edge rushers in the game.

The Bills and Saints have both shown interest in Ansah and the Jets could be a potential suitor for him.