HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

49ers Hosting Jason Verrett; Texans, Chiefs On Deck

March 13th, 2019 at 4:20pm CST by Rory Parks

Free agent cornerback Jason Verrett is visiting the 49ers, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets that the Texans are presently scheduled to host Verrett after his trip to the 49ers, and the Chiefs are on the docket after that.

The former first-round pick of the Chargers has played in just five games in the last three years due to injury, and he missed the entire 2018 campaign after suffering a torn Achilles during a conditioning test last July.

Because of his health concerns, San Francisco is making a physical part of Verrett’s visit, and Houston and Kansas City may do the same. Rapoport indicated that Verrett was garnering significant interest, and that certainly seems to be the case.

Verrett was a Pro Bowler in 2015 and looked primed to establish himself as one of the best young corners in the league, but his career has been sidetracked in a big way. However, he reportedly looked like his old self in minicamp last year before the Achilles injury, and if he can make good on a one-year prove-it deal, he may be able to really cash in next offseason.

The 49ers have made major upgrades to their defense this week, signing Kwon Alexander and trading for (and extending) Dee Ford. They are also looking to bolster their secondary and made an offer to cornerback Bradley Roby, who ultimately chose to sign with the Texans.

But even with the addition of Roby, Houston could stand to add to its stable of CBs, and Kansas City is also in the market for corner help. The Chiefs are meeting with Ronald Darby tonight.

If healthy, Verrett could be in store for plenty of playing time if he lands with any of these clubs.

Vikings Receiving Trade Interest On CB Trae Waynes

March 13th, 2019 at 4:13pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Vikings are fielding calls from clubs with interest in trading for cornerback Trae Waynes, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Waynes is scheduled to earn $9.069MM in 2019 under the terms of his fifth-year option. Now that he’s made it to the 2019 league year while still on the Vikings’ roster, Waynes will see that total become fully guaranteed. As such, he’s in no danger of being released, but it seems possible that could be dealt.

Waynes, the 11th overall pick in the 2015 draft, has become a full-time starter over the past two seasons, but it’s difficult to say he’s lived up to his draft billing. However, he’s been a serviceable corner, and Pro Football Focus graded him as the No. 49 CB among 112 qualifiers last year. Football Outsiders charted Waynes as 27th in success rate and 37th in yards allowed per pass attempt.

Speculatively, Minnesota may believe it can reap draft pick compensation in a year in which the free agent market isn’t exactly overloaded with available options (Justin Coleman has secured the largest free agent total at $36MM). Additionally, the 2019 draft isn’t believed to be full of top-end cornerback talent, so Waynes should hold some appeal around the NFL.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/19

March 13th, 2019 at 4:05pm CST by Zachary Links

Here is the latest news involving restricted free agents and exclusive-rights free agents, with updates coming throughout the day:

ERFA

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

RFA

Tendered at second-round level: 

Tendered at original-round level:

Non-tendered: 

Packers Tender WR Geronimo Allison

March 13th, 2019 at 3:48pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Packers have tendered restricted free agent wide receiver Geronimo Allison at the original round level, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link). Allison will collect $2.025MM for the 2019 season.

Allison is a former undrafted free agent, so Green Bay won’t receive any compensation if he signs elsewhere. However, the Packers have secured the right of first refusal, meaning they’ll be able to match any offer sheet that Allison receives.

Allison, 25, managed 20 receptions in four games last season before being placed on injured reserve with hamstring and groin issues. Despite his limited track record, Allison could be in for an expanded role next year, playing as Green Bay’s No. 3 receiver behind Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.

Additionally, the Packers have opted not to tender restricted free agent safety Kentrell Brice, tweets Ryan Wood of PackersNews.com, who notes Brice became obsolete after Green Bay signed fellow defensive back Adrian Amos.

NFL Draft Rumors: Murray, Haskins, Giants

March 13th, 2019 at 3:29pm CST by Zachary Links

Although Kyler Murray threw at Oklahoma’s pro day Wednesday, and fared well during that portion of his workout, he did not go through the full process. The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner did not add any more fuel to the fire regarding his height, not taking part in another measurement. Murray only weighed in, stepping on the scale at 205 pounds, according to NFL.com’s Andrew Groover, on Twitter). This is two pounds down from Murray’s Combine weight. Murray measured at 5-foot-10 in Indianapolis. Additionally, the tantalizing prospect did not run the 40-yard dash at today’s event, per NFL.com’s James Palmer, despite the school planning on him doing so (Twitter links via James Palmer and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). So, teams will not have that figure going into the draft. Murray remains expected to be a top-10 pick, with a No. 1 overall ceiling.

  • Tyree Jackson is holding his pro day at the Bills‘ facility, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Buffalo University product is viewed as a rising prospect, with Schefter adding that many believe the 6-foot-7 passer will be a higher-than-expected draft choice.
  • The Giants now have two of the 2019 draft’s first 17 selections, which could point to them taking a quarterback with one of them. They have been most closely tied to Dwayne Haskins, but the Ohio State product may not enamor the team to the point of being worth the No. 6 overall pick, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY notes. It’s widely anticipated either Haskins or Murray will be the first quarterback selected, and both are viewed as likely top-10 picks. The Giants have been doing extensive research on Haskins, who burst onto teams’ radars with a dominant 2018.

Cowboys To Retain T Cameron Fleming

March 13th, 2019 at 3:28pm CST by Sam Robinson

Cameron Fleming‘s one-year deal with the Cowboys will entice the franchise to retain him on a longer-term contract.

Dallas will bring back the veteran tackle on a two-year deal worth up to $8.5MM, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes (on Twitter).

Fleming served primarily as the Cowboys’ swing tackle last season, lining up as an in-case-of-emergency option behind Tyron Smith and La’el Collins. With both of Dallas’ first-string tackles due back, this will likely be Fleming’s role again.

He did start three games last season, keeping with his career pattern. The Patriots used Fleming as a part-time player as well but did not opt to keep him last year. He provides quality depth for the Cowboys, who are paying him a higher-end backup salary to work as insurance.

Buccaneers Re-Sign RB Peyton Barber

March 13th, 2019 at 3:18pm CST by Zachary Links

The Buccaneers are keeping Peyton Barber in the fold. On Wednesday, the Bucs re-signed the running back rather than placing the low-round tender on the restricted free agent, as Greg Auman of The Athletic tweets.

The low-round tender, worth $2.02MM, would have given the Bucs the first right of refusal. However, they would have received no compensation for the former undrafted free agent if they chose not to match. Conversely, with the second-round tender, the Bucs probably would have been able to scare away any other interested team. That tender, meanwhile, would have cost them just over $3MM for 2019. They avoided that whole mess by simply hammering out a one-year deal with him.

Barber, 25, ran for 871 yards off of 234 carries last year, giving him a 3.7 yards per tote average. That mark was a career low for him, while his 234 carries were far and away his career best.

Dolphins Release Josh Sitton

March 13th, 2019 at 3:17pm CST by Sam Robinson

Josh Sitton expected the Dolphins to make him part of their roster cuts, as they venture in a rebuilding direction. That happened Wednesday afternoon.

Minutes after the 2019 league year began, the Dolphins parted ways with Sitton. The former Pro Bowl guard was limited to one game in Miami, with an injury shelving him after Week 1.

A longtime Packer-turned-two-year Bear, Sitton has played 11 NFL seasons. Should he opt to continue his career and land elsewhere, he will be entering his age-33 campaign. Sitton made Pro Bowls with both Green Bay and Chicago, his most recent coming in 2016. The Bears declined his 2018 option last year.

Sitton tore a rotator cuff, cutting short his Dolphins tenure. While he has been one of this decade’s better guards, Sitton will almost certainly have to accept a one-year deal — and at a lower rate than the two-year, $13.5MM pact he signed with the Dolphins — if he is to play in 2019.

The Dolphins have now cut ties with two of their guards, with Ted Larsen being the other departure, and saw their efforts to keep right tackle Ja’Wuan James end with the Broncos making James the NFL’s highest-paid right tackle. Brian Flores’ team will have a new-look line next season.

Chiefs Release Eric Berry

March 13th, 2019 at 3:16pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Chiefs have released Eric Berry, the club announced today.

“I’d like to thank Eric for his contributions to our team and the Kansas City community over the last nine years,” head coach Andy Reid said. “Seeing his passion and watching his love for the game has been truly remarkable. He’s a special person, and we wish him the best as his career moves forward.”

Berry, 30, was widely expected to be cut after Kansas City inked fellow safety Tyrann Mathieu to a three-year, $42MM. The two defensive backs could have complemented each other in the Chiefs’ secondary, but most teams are simply reluctant to spent an exorbitant amount of cap and cash on a single positional group.

Berry signed a six-year, $78MM extension with the Chiefs in 2017, and that deal had kept him as the NFL’s highest-paid safety until Landon Collins topped him earlier this week. Kansas City will designate Berry as a post-June 1 release (Twitter link via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk), meaning it will take on $6.95MM in dead money this year and $8MM in 2020. The Chiefs will see $9.55MM in cap relief, but they won’t receive that until this summer.

A terrific safety when on the field, Berry has been limited by health issues throughout his career. In five of his nine pro seasons, Berry has failed to play more than five games. He’s been available for only three total regular season contests over the past two years after rupturing his Achilles in September 2017. In spite of that, Berry doesn’t plan to undergo offseason surgery to correct his nagging heel concerns.

Berry’s market will be one to watch in the coming weeks, as the safety position has mostly been picked over in free agency. That should leave Berry as one of the more attractive options still available, but it also means many clubs have already filled their safety void. Given his injury history, it won’t be a surprise if the three-time All-Pro is forced to settle for a one-year deal.

Dolphins Meeting With Teddy Bridgewater

March 13th, 2019 at 3:07pm CST by Zachary Links

Teddy Bridgewater has agreed to a new deal with the Saints, but it might not be in the books just yet. The Dolphins are making a late push to sign the quarterback, according to Dianna Russini of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Indeed, Bridgewater is meeting with the Dolphins today, tweets Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, who notes reports of Bridgewater’s contract with New Orleans may have been premature.

With the Saints, Bridgewater would serve as the backup for and heir apparent to Drew Brees. However, the Dolphins have a starting job available and Bridgewater is from Miami. There’s reason to believe that Bridgewater would be interested, but there’s no word yet on whether he would entertain the idea of backing out of his Saints pact.

The Dolphins were believed to be eyeing former Browns quarterback Tyrod Taylor for a starting role, but Taylor signed a two-year deal to become Philip Rivers‘ backup with the Chargers. Miami is fully expected to move on from Ryan Tannehill this offseason, either via trade or release, and embark on a “tanking” strategy for at least the next year or so. The club will still need someone under center, however, and the 26-year-old Bridgewater would give the Dolphins a youthful option with experience.

Bridgewater, of course, suffered a gruesome leg injury in 2016 that knocked him out of action for the following two seasons. He inked a one-year deal with the Jets last offseason, but was eventually dealt to the Saints for a third-round pick. Bridgewater started New Orleans’ final regular season game, completing 14-of-22 passes for 118 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.

Bridgewater started 28 games for the Vikings from 2014-15, averaging 3,075 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions during that time. Among the 30 quarterbacks who attempted at least 500 passes in those two seasons, Bridgewater ranked 22nd in passer rating, 25th in adjusted net yards per attempt, and 29th in touchdown percentage

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