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Month: November 2024

Latest On Le’Veon Bell’s Jets Deal

March 17th, 2019 at 7:07pm CST by Sam Robinson

Coming off one of the boldest attempts to secure a top-market contract in NFL history, Le’Veon Bell landed on his feet. While his market was on the verge of getting to a place that would have made his gamble foolish, with several teams either bowing out early or not having the level of interest previously indicated, the Jets saved the All-Pro back.

Bell’s deal will come with $27MM fully guaranteed, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. That number gives Bell the third-most fully guaranteed money among running backs (and the most among backs attached to veteran contracts, with only rookie-contract players Saquon Barkley and Leonard Fournette standing to earn more over the course of their deals). There is an additional $8MM in injury guarantees, bumping the four-year, $52.5MM deal’s total guaranteed money to $35MM.

While the Jets can get out of this contract after Year 2, after having paid the $27MM due through the 2020 season, Bell’s 2021 salary ($8MM) is guaranteed for injury. That figure becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2021 league year. Bell’s non-guaranteed 2022 salary is $9.5MM, Florio adds. The $8MM signing bonus will be completely paid by January 2020. If Bell is on the Jets’ roster through 2021, he will be due $38MM — without factoring in per-game roster bonuses, which max out at $500K per season.

In terms of per-game incentives, Bell can collect $1.5MM per season — but the thresholds are lofty. In each year of the contract, Bell can earn $500K for surpassing 1,800 yards from scrimmage — something he has done three times, including in 2016 when he only played 12 games. Should Bell exceed 2,000 yards from scrimmage, he would collect an additional $500K. If Bell gains 1,800 yards from scrimmage and the Jets make the playoffs, that means another $500K for their starting running back, Florio notes. No Jet has recorded 1,800 yards from scrimmage since Curtis Martin in 2004.

Bell gave up $14.5MM on the Steelers’ 2018 franchise tag to be in position to command this contract, and while that was a debatable strategy, an injury may have ruined the 27-year-old’s chances of securing it. Bell had suffered key setbacks during the 2014, ’15 and ’16 seasons.

And Just like Antonio Brown‘s gamble depended on the Raiders, who were willing to redo the wide receiver’s deal when other suitors would not, Bell’s market depended on the Jets. The 49ers’ offer did not include guarantees in the vicinity of the Jets’ proposal, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News tweets. This follows a report that placed San Francisco’s three-year, $38MM deal as being “just about fully guaranteed.”

How The Saints Can Replace Max Unger

March 17th, 2019 at 5:00pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Max Unger retired Saturday in a manner befitting his wildly underrated career. He didn’t announce intentions before the 2018 season began, or post a statement on social media. Instead, Unger’s retirement simply showed up on the NFL’s transactions wire when his name was listed on the reserved/retired list. Unger, who came to New Orleans in exchange for tight end Jimmy Graham and a first-round pick in 2015, earned one first-team All-Pro berth, three Pro Bowl nods, and one Super Bowl ring during his excellent 10-year career.

But by hanging up his cleats, Unger has left the Saints in a bit of a lurch. Fully expected to compete for championships for the rest of Drew Brees‘ career, New Orleans now has a gaping hole in the middle of its offensive line. The only realistic option on the Saints’ roster to replace Unger is 2017 undrafted free agent Cameron Tom, who some observers have considered New Orleans’ center-in-waiting.

The Saints are clearly fans of Tom, as they bumped up his practice squad salary during the 2017 campaign in order to keep him from leaving for another club. After two years in the New Orleans system, Tom should be familiar with the club’s offense, but he’s started only one game for the Saints since being promoted in October 2017. Pro Football Focus assigned Tom poor marks for his 178 offensive snaps last year.

If the Saints aren’t comfortable moving forward with Tom as their starting center, they’ll have three paths available via which they could find a new pivot: the upcoming draft, a trade, or by sorting through the remaining free agents. Let’s take a look at each avenue:

Draft

After entering the 2017 draft with the fifth-most draft capital in the NFL, the Saints have since eschewed the concept of acquiring top-end, controllable assets over the past two seasons. With the now-40-year-old Brees under center, it’s difficult to argue with that win-now approach, but the strategy has limited New Orleans’ ability to place multiple bets in the draft. In 2018, the Saints started the draft with only 30.2 point of draft value (29th in the league), and my preliminary calculations have the club in the same range or lower for 2019.

In fact, following a series of trades executed by general manager Mickey Loomis, New Orleans has only one selection — No. 62 — inside the draft’s first 167 picks. The Saints didn’t just give those picks away, of course, as they moved up to acquire defensive end Marcus Davenport in the first round of last year’s draft before picking up veterans Teddy Bridgewater and Eli Apple for third- and fourth-round slots, respectively. But barring a trade down next month, New Orleans will make only one choice within the first five rounds of the 2019 draft.

If the Saints want to find a center via the draft, history tells us they should use that 62nd overall pick to do so. Why? It’s pretty hard to find a center in the later rounds of the draft. I looked at all the centers taken in the fifth round or later of each draft since 2011, the year when the NFL’s new collective bargaining agreement was installed. That CBA put more limitations on practice time, which likely made it harder to develop players at more cerebral positions such as center.

From 2011-17, 18 centers were drafted in Rounds 5-7. Of those 18, only three (16.7%) started more than 10 games during their respective rookie seasons: Jason Kelce (2011 Eagles), Corey Linsley (2014 Packers), and Luke Bowanko (2014 Jaguars). It’s difficult enough to find starting-caliber players at any position in the fifth round or later, but adding a late-round starter at center — where that player will be expected to make protection calls from day one — seems exceedingly risky.

So who could the Saints look at with their second-round pick? Dane Brugler of The Athletic (subscription required) lists four center within his top-80 2019 prospects. North Carolina State’s Garrett Bradbury comes in at No. 14, so he’s unlikely to be available for New Orleans when its 62nd selection rolls around, but Texas A&M’s Erik McCoy (No. 40), Mississippi State’s Elgton Jenkins (No. 44), and Penn State’s Connor McGovern (No. 78) could be in consideration.

Trade

Center depth isn’t plentiful around the NFL, so most teams aren’t going to be lining up to trade their the pivot to the suddenly-needy Saints. And as we’ve already discussed, New Orleans doesn’t have the sort of early-round draft capital needed to target an established starter. More likely, the Saints will need to swap one of its late-round selections — either in this year’s draft or from 2020 — in order to land a current backup.

Here are a few options the Saints could target via trade:

Ethan Pocic (Seahawks): Pocic was the 58th overall pick as recently as 2017, but he wasn’t a key factor on a Seattle offensive line that greatly improved in 2018. Under new offensive line coach Mike Solari, the Seahawks moved from 30th in Football Outsiders’ adjusted line yards — which attempts to parse out responsibility for a club’s run-game success — to 12th in 2018, but Pocic started just four games and played only 296 offensive snaps. Viewed as a poor scheme fit for Seattle, Pocic doesn’t really have a role heading into the 2019 campaign, meaning he could be available for a cheap price.

Billy Price (Bengals): Cincinnati doesn’t typically admit its draft mistakes in short order, so the idea of the club moving on from Price after only one season is probably far-fetched. And it’s not entirely fair to call Price a mistake: while PFF charted him as a bottom-four center and one of the lowest-graded first-round rookies, Price was still recovering from a torn pectoral when the regular season got underway, and later missed six games with a foot injury. Still, the Bengals now have a new coaching staff in place, and placed a second-round tender on 26-year-old restricted free agent Trey Hopkins, who excelled at center in Price’s absence.

Ted Karras (Patriots): New England offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia is a miracle-worker. Two of his former pupils — left tackles Nate Solder and Trent Brown — have reset the offensive line market in consecutive offseasons, and the Patriots’ front five ranked top-three in both adjusted sack rate and adjusted line yards last year. Maybe Karras could bring some of that wisdom to New Orleans? Although he’s only started five games over three seasons, it’s not like Karras hasn’t put anything on tape, as PFF placed him on its All-Preseason team in 2018 after he allowed just one sack and one hurry on 82 pass-blocking snaps.

Free Agency

The first wave of free agency is already over four days after the market officially opened, and the top two free agent centers are off the board. Mitch Morse became the league’s highest-paid center after agreeing to a four-year, $44MM deal with the Bills, while the Panthers landed Matt Paradis on a three-year, $27MM pact. Other veterans capable of playing center, such as Spencer Long, Eric Kush, Jonotthan Harrison are already spoken for, too, leaving the Saints with few options if they want go the free agency route.

However, New Orleans still has a small list of available centers that are capable of starting:

Nick Easton: This is the one free agent center we know the Saints are targeting, as Easton met with New Orleans last week. The 26-year-old Easton has interest from the Vikings — for whom he played from 2015-18 — and at least one other unidentified team, so New Orleans may have to up its offer in order to land him. That could be a problem given left tackle Terron Armstead, left guard Andrus Peat, and right guard Larry Warford will each count for more than $9MM on the Saints’ 2019 salary cap. Easton, for his part, started 12 games at guard and center for the 2018 Vikings, but missed all of last season with a neck injury.

John Sullivan: The Rams opted to decline Sullivan’s option for the 2019 season, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s no longer able to play. Los Angeles would have had to pay Sullivan $4.25MM for next year plus a $2MM option bonus, and that sum would have placed the 11-year veteran inside the top-15 highest-paid centers. At age-33, Sullivan is no longer worth that money. The real problem, though, was Sullivan’s production: while he was as available as ever (16 starts and 95.8% of snaps), Sullivan allowed 37 pressures, the most of any center in the league per PFF.

Travis Swanson: A former third-round pick of the Lions, Swanson has plenty of experience under his belt, having started 53 games over the past five seasons. Working against Swanson is the fact that he was released by the Jets — a team that desperately needed competent offensive linemen — last September. Swanson, rebounded, however, latching on with the Dolphins and eventually becoming Miami’s starter for 12 games after Daniel Kilgore went down with a season-ending injury. He played 92% of the Dolphins’ snaps after taking over, allowing only 2.5 sacks and committing just one penalty, per Stats LLC.

Brett Jones: Jones isn’t a very attractive option if you look only at 2018, as he started just three games after being traded from the Giants to the Vikings in exchange for a seventh-round pick. Jump back one season, though, and Jones looks like a starting-caliber player. A former undrafted free agent, Jones started 13 games and excelled for New York in 2017. PFF assigned him its fourth-highest pass-blocking efficiency score among centers, and charged him with multiple pressures allowed in just one of his starts. That performance was enough for the Giants to utilize a second-round restricted free agent tender on Jones.

Stefen Wisniewski: Still only 29 years old, Wisniewski was benched by the Eagles in Week 5 after a lackluster performance at left guard. Wisniewski hasn’t played center since the 2015 campaign, but it was his primary position from 2011-15 when he made 77 starts for the Raiders and Jaguars. He’s probably a better fit for the Saints as a contingency plan rather than as an outright starter.

Steelers To Sign LB Mark Barron

March 17th, 2019 at 4:44pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Steelers have agreed to sign linebacker Mark Barron to a two-year, $12MM deal, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Barron, 29, was released by the Rams earlier this month in a move that saved Los Angeles $6.5MM in cap space. He was due a $5MM base salary and a $3MM roster bonus in 2019, so Barron won’t recoup his single-season earnings under his new contact with the Steelers.

A former safety, Barron was traded from the Buccaneers to the Rams during the 2014 campaign. In each of his first two full seasons with Los Angeles, Barron posted at least 100 tackles, and compiled 16 tackles for loss in 2016. The No. 7 overall selection in the 2012 draft, Barron has 104 appearances and 93 starts under his belt.

Pittsburgh is in need of help at inside linebacker, as neither Vince Williams nor Jonathan Bostic graded as a top-40 LB league-wide in 2018, per Pro Football Focus. Specifically, the Steelers needed to reinforce their second-level pass defense after ranking 31st in DVOA against opposing tight ends and 15th against running backs, according to Football Outsiders.

The Steelers have only ~$6.8MM in cap space, so Barron’s deal — even if it likely has a cheap cap charge in 2019 — will push them closer to the brink. Given that he was cut, Barron won’t factor into Pittsburgh’s compensatory pick formula.

Montez Sweat Has Pre-Existing Heart Condition

March 17th, 2019 at 2:58pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Mississippi State defensive end Montez Sweat — who is widely viewed as a potential top-15 selection in the 2019 draft — was diagnosed with a pre-existing heart condition at the scouting combine, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

Per Rapoport, doctors gave Sweat a “thorough” evaluation at the combine because of the condition. However, Sweat was still cleared to participate in all combine activities, so it’s unclear how serious of a condition Sweat is working through. Medical professionals deemed Sweat’s issue “low-risk” and didn’t exclude him from the combine, something doctors have done before (including once in 2019, per RapSheet).

“Because of privacy issues we are not allowed to comment specifically,” said Sweat’s agents. “But I will tell you that this is not news. Montez is the same person that was medically cleared to play and dominate the SEC, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL combine. No change in health and no change in domination!”

Sweat, who stands 6’6″, 245 pounds, was a terror for the Bulldogs over the past two seasons, compiling 22.5 sacks and 30 tackles for loss over that span. Following that performance, he proceeded to light up the combine, posting a 4.41-second 40-yard dash, an all-time record speed for a defensive lineman.

Dolphins Sign QB Ryan Fitzpatrick

March 17th, 2019 at 1:40pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Dolphins have signed quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, according to Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s a two-year, $11MM deal that could reach $17-20MM via incentives, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.

Miami traded former starter Ryan Tannehill and a 2019 seventh-round pick to the Titans on Friday, acquiring a 2019 sixth-rounder and a 2020 fourth-round pick while absorbing $5MM of Tannehill’s $7MM 2019 base salary. That left the Dolphins will only two quarterbacks on its roster: former sixth-rounders Jake Rudock and Luke Falk, who have combined to attempt five passes in the NFL (all by Rudock).

Fitzpatrick was the best signal-caller still available on the open market, especially after the Dolphins reportedly tried — and failed — to land both Tyrod Taylor and Teddy Bridgewater. Taylor opted to sign a two-year to backup Philip Rivers with the Chargers, while Bridgewater decided to return to New Orleans on a one-year, fully guaranteed $7.25MM contract.

Fitzpatrick excelled — at times — with the Buccaneers in 2018, but after what was an uneven overall campaign, Tampa Bay indicated it would deploy Jameis Winston as its full-time starter for the upcoming season. Ever mercurial, Fitzpatrick started the first three games of the year while Winston was on suspension, and tossed 11 touchdowns against four interceptions while completing more than 70% of his passes.

Things unraveled against a league-best Bears defense in Week 4, and Fitzpatrick lost his job to Winston. The 36-year-old Fitzpatrick relieved a struggling Winston in Week 7 versus the Bengals and threw four touchdowns the following week, but after five total interceptions in Weeks 9-10, Fitzpatrick was permanently demoted. All told, Fitzpatrick finished the year having completed 66.7% of his passes for 2,366 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 12 picks.

The addition of Fitzpatrick shouldn’t preclude the Dolphins from selecting a quarterback early in the 2019 draft, but it’s unclear if they plan to do so. Miami is embarking on a full-scale rebuild, so the club may attempt to bottom out this season in an effort to compile more long-term assets.

NFC Notes: Verrett, Peppers, Packers

March 17th, 2019 at 12:24pm CST by Rory Parks

The 49ers are placing a lot of faith in their training and medical staffs, as Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle observes (Twitter link). The club’s two major offseason acquisitions, Kwon Alexander and Dee Ford, come with medical red flags, as do new cornerback Jason Verrett and the recently re-signed Jimmie Ward. But Verrett could offer the most bang for San Francisco’s buck.

Verrett’s one-year deal carries a cap charge of just $1.5MM and maxes out at just $3MM. As Branch writes in a separate piece, Verrett has been told that the starting cornerback position opposite Richard Sherman is up for grabs, and Verrett, a 2015 Pro Bowler, is determined to make the most of his chance. He said, “[t]he opportunity is there for me. Wide open. It’s just there for me to take. It’s just for me to get back healthy and get back there on the football field and do what I love to do.” Verrett’s primary competition for the job is Ahkello Witherspoon and Tarvarius Moore.

Now for more from the NFC:

  • Eli Manning will not collect his $5MM roster bonus until tomorrow, per Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv (via Twitter). It had previously been reported that Manning earned his bonus yesterday, all but ensuring that he will remain with the Giants in 2019. But Vacchiano says Manning is still expected to return next season and that he will not be cut within the next 24 hours.
  • Paul Schwartz of the New York Post writes that the Giants are very excited about the acquisition of Jabrill Peppers, part of New York’s return in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade. Per Schwartz, Big Blue sees Peppers as a classic strong safety, but the club will take full advantage of his versatility. Peppers will not line up in the same position from snap to snap and will be asked to line up deep, up near the line, at slot cornerback, and at nickel linebacker. New York brass has been heavily criticized for the OBJ deal, but if Peppers can live up to his draft pedigree, that will go a long way towards the Giants’ rebuild.
  • Eagles top personnel executive Howie Roseman has made it abundantly clear that he does not value the running back position, as Eliot Shorr-Parks of 94WIP.com observes. Roseman has invested neither top dollar nor top draft capital in running backs, and that remains an area of glaring need at the moment. But since Roseman has built a strong offense and a roster that is in win-now mode, and since he has again avoided the free agent market for running backs, one has to think that he will use one of his three picks in the first two rounds of the 2019 draft to add some talent to the offensive backfield.
  • The Packers made a rare foray into the top end of the free agent market this year, and thus far they have dished out free agent contracts with a total value of $184MM (though less than one-third of that figure is guaranteed). But as Pete Dougherty of PackersNews.com notes, Green Bay ranks near the bottom of the league in 2020 salary cap room, and it opted for smaller salary cap hits on its big-ticket FAs this year in exchange for bigger hits down the road. That means that at least a couple of the club’s major signees — Za’Darius Smith, Preston Smith, Adrian Amos, and Billy Turner — will have to pan out, and GM Brian Gutekunst will have to have a successful draft in order to field a competitive team over the next several seasons, as he will not be able to splurge again next year.

Ereck Flowers To Visit Redskins

March 17th, 2019 at 11:31am CST by Rory Parks

Free agent offensive tackle Ereck Flowers is visiting the Redskins tonight, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Flowers was selected by the division-rival Giants in the first round of the 2015 draft but never lived up to his pedigree. New York cut him last October and he subsequently caught on with the Jaguars, starting seven games at left tackle for Jacksonville.

He played decently for the Jags, and surprisingly graded out as an above average offensive tackle in 2018, per Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics. However, his tenure with the Giants was mostly a disaster, as he yielded the most quarterback pressures of any offensive lineman in the league from Week 1 of his rookie campaign to Week 2 of 2018, his last appearance with Big Blue. Even after the Giants switched Flowers from left tackle to right tackle, they did not see an uptick in performance.

But his improved play with the Jaguars has led to some interest from the Redskins. Washington, of course, has Trent Williams entrenched as its starter at left tackle, but Williams has dealt with suspensions and injuries throughout his career, and he will be 31 when the regular season starts.

Morgan Moses, the Redskins’ right tackle, has started every game for the team since the 2015 season, but he wasn’t great in 2018. Flowers could provide an insurance policy for both Moses and Williams, which the Redskins need now that their former swing tackle, Ty Nsekhe, has signed with the Bills.

If signed by Washington, Flowers would reunite with his 2015 draft mate, Landon Collins.

Poll: Which Big FA Spender Made The Most Of Its Money?

March 17th, 2019 at 10:34am CST by Rory Parks

The first wave of free agency is over, and a number of starter-quality players remain available. That list includes the likes of Justin Houston, Ndamukong Suh, and Ziggy Ansah, all of whom could still command lucrative multi-year pacts.

However, much of the big money has already been spent, and while it seems that the the free agency “winners” often have difficulty translating their offseason success into regular season wins, it is always worth taking an early guess at how the top free agents will impact their new teams (or how well the contracts of players who were eligible for free agency but who re-signed with their original clubs will age).

Yesterday, we directed our readers to a page provided by OverTheCap.com that tracks team-by-team spending on all contracts that free agents have signed since the Super Bowl. The page breaks down spending into categories like total contract value, total guarantees, and full guarantees.

For purposes of this poll, we will examine the top five spenders thus far in terms of total contract value. We realize that may be an imperfect measure, given that even blue chip free agents often do not play out the entirety of their contacts, but we also feel as though it accurately depicts which teams were most prepared to make big commitments to immediately improve their rosters. Plus, the list of the top five spenders in terms of total contract value is almost identical to the list of the top five spenders in terms of total guarantees, though the Bills, not the Packers, would be a top-five team if we were using total guarantees as a guide.

In any event, let’s quickly review what the big spenders have done with their money so far.

New York Jets

The Jets entered free agency with the most money to spend, and they did not disappoint. GM Mike Maccagnan, on a quest to keep his job, has doled out contracts worth nearly $200MM, and about half of that money is fully-guaranteed. The big fish, of course, are C.J. Mosley and Le’Veon Bell, both of whom should immediately improve their respective units, although both come with some question marks. Mosley is a high-character, intelligent player who is generally strong against the run but who is not particularly gifted in coverage, so it’s fair to wonder whether he will justify the Jets’ commitment to him. Bell, meanwhile, is undoubtedly explosive, and the Jets structured his contract in a team-friendly way, but he also comes with obvious character concerns and a lot of wear-and-tear. Re-signing Henry Anderson was a more low-key move that could nonetheless pay major dividends.

Green Bay Packers

Packers fans are not used to seeing their team mentioned as a big free agency spender, but the club has given out over $184MM to its signees thus far (though less than one-third of that figure is guaranteed). Green Bay has made a concerted effort to upgrade its pass rush as it prepares to bid adieu to long-time QB hunter Clay Matthews, and to that end, it acquired former Raven Za’Darius Smith and former Redskin Preston Smith. Neither player has a double-digit sack season to his credit, but both are young and come with plenty of upside. Za’Darius Smith has also shown an ability to provide a pass rush from the interior of the line, and Preston Smith is a strong overall edge defender who still has room to grow. Former Bears safety Adrian Amos was also acquired to add some much-needed physicality to the back end of the defense.

San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers made two big splashes at the outset of free agency, signing former Buccaneers linebacker Kwon Alexander and trading for (and extending) former Chiefs pass rusher Dee Ford. Alexander is coming off a season-ending ACL tear, but San Francisco is betting that he can make a full recovery and return to form. The club was also in dire need of someone who can get to the QB, and they believe Ford is that guy. Ford has had an up-and-down career thus far, and though the Niners gave him what appears to be a massive contract (five years, $87.5MM), they can get out of that deal fairly quickly with minimal salary cap ramifications. The club is also taking a low-risk, high-reward gamble on talented but injury-prone corner Jason Verrett, and they added Tevin Coleman to their stable of running backs.

Oakland Raiders

The Raiders grabbed headlines when they traded for star wideout Antonio Brown, but because he wasn’t a free agent, the new deal he landed from the club doesn’t factor into the $165MM worth of contracts that the team has handed out in free agency. That number does include deals for Tyrell Williams — who will pair with AB to lead what could become a prolific passing attack — and Trent Brown, who will likely be tasked with protecting Derek Carr‘s blindside. The Raiders were also in on Bell, and they added safety Lamarcus Joyner to serve as Karl Joseph‘s running mate in their defensive backfield. They still need some pass rush help and could be players in the market for Houston and Ansah.

Detroit Lions

The Lions were projected by many to be active in the free agent market, and they spent some money to try and keep pace in a crowded NFC North. The big-money acquisition was former Patriots defensive end Trey Flowers, who may end up replacing Ansah as the club’s top sack artist (though the Lions have not ruled out re-signing Ansah). The Lions brought in tight end Jesse James, who offers some ability as a pass catcher and who is also a strong pass blocker, and they added Danny Amendola in the hopes that he can provide Matthew Stafford the type of reliable slot target that he lost when the club traded Golden Tate last season. Another free agent acquisition, Justin Coleman, should represent an upgrade at nickel corner.

So have at it. Which of the five big spenders made the most of their money? Let us know what you think in the poll and in the comment section.

Vikings Interested In Josh Kline

March 17th, 2019 at 9:29am CST by Rory Parks

The Vikings are interested in former Titans right guard Josh Kline, per Darren Wolfson of KSTP.com (via Twitter). Kline, whom Tennessee released several days ago, would compete for Minnesota’s starting RG job, which Mike Remmers had held down since the end of the 2017 campaign. The Vikings released Remmers last week.

It is difficult to say, however, whether Kline would be a marked upgrade. He has been a full-time starter since 2015, his last season with the Patriots, and the advanced metrics appreciated his play in 2016 and 2017, his first two years with the Titans. However, he took a noticeable step back last season after signing a four-year, $26MM deal with Tennessee. Pro Football Focus graded Kline 50th among 77 eligible guards in 2018, while Remmers was graded 48th. Remmers, soon to be 30, is less than one year older than Kline.

Of course, advanced metrics don’t tell the whole story, and Kline has proven he is capable of more than what he showed last year. Minnesota’s biggest need entering free agency was the offensive line, and the club has still not made any moves to address that need.

But given the Vikings’ limited cap space, it was clear they would have to wait until the second wave of free agency anyway, and it appears they may be on the verge of two signings. In addition to its interest in Kline, Minnesota has made an offer to Nick Easton, who was expected to serve as the team’s left guard in 2018. Easton, though, suffered a herniated disc in training camp and missed the entire season as a result.

Easton has several offers in hand and is expected to make his decision by tomorrow.

Extra Points: Bell, Steelers, Tannehill

March 16th, 2019 at 10:23pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

There was a lot of confusion surrounding Le’Veon Bell and the Steelers last season. It was widely reported during the early part of the season that Bell planned on playing for the Steelers in 2018. The timeline varied but it was consistently reported that Bell planned on showing up sometime after Pittsburgh’s Week 7 bye week. Then he never did, and we never knew what happened, until now. Bell had previously thought he needed to play six games to earn an accrued season and avoid his franchise tag from tolling over to 2019, but then realized that wasn’t the case, he explained in a recent interview with Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com.

Bell had “absolutely intended” to report after Week 7, “but shortly before then, Bell learned that he didn’t need to play any games to hit free agency. Before then, he thought he needed to play six games for an accrued season, but turns out he was free as long as the Steelers didn’t tag him again,” Fowler writes. Bell apparently learned on social media that he wouldn’t have to play, and took the plan to his agent. Bell also revealed that he came close to returning once more, in Week 11.

“‘I was so close to doing it,’ he said. ‘At the same time, I was so torn. Do I go through that? Will they embrace me or will they not? I eventually decided I sat out 10 games, I can sit six more. At the time, the team was malfunctioning, having problems, a lot of blame on me. I didn’t want to come back and not feel welcome,'” Bell said. It won’t change anything, but it’s nice to finally have some clarity on what went down with Bell and the Steelers as he prepares for his new life with the Jets.

Here’s more from around the league as the free agency frenzy is finally starting to quiet down:

  • Ryan Tannehill is no longer a Dolphin, after he was traded yesterday to the Titans. But he’s leaving behind a significant impact, as Tannehill will leave the Dolphins with $18.423MM in dead cap, according to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. As Florio points out, it only would’ve been $13.423MM in dead cap had they designated him a post-June 1 cut and released him outright. Essentially the Dolphins ate an additional $5MM in dead cap to get back a fourth and seventh round pick, the compensation they got from the Titans in the trade. They also gave up a sixth round pick of their own.
  • Panthers offensive lineman Taylor Hearn was caught on camera getting into a fight outside of a bar and getting knocked out, according to TMZ Sports. Jourdan Rodrigue of The Charlotte Observer tweeted out the Panthers’ statement on the incident, which reads “we are aware of the video, and have been in contact with Taylor and the league about the incident. We will have no further comment at this time.” Hearn, a rookie undrafted free agent from Clemson, appeared in just four games for the Panthers this past season. Already a bottom of the roster type player, this could effect his status with the team.
  • Our friends over at Overthecap.com are out with a great new page to track free agency spending this offseason, keeping track of each team’s signings, how much money they’ve doled out, and how much in guarantees they’ve pledged. So far the Jets have guaranteed by far the most money, as they’re on the hook for at least $115.5MM with the contracts they’ve signed so far. The Lions, Raiders, 49ers, and Bills round out the top five in terms of new money guaranteed. In terms of total spending, including non-guaranteed money, the Packers have been the biggest spenders, dishing out contracts worth a total of $184.1MM.

 

 

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