2019 April - Pro Football Rumors

Lions Sign QB Tom Savage

April 9th, 2019 at 5:55pm CST by Rory Parks

The Lions have signed free agent QB Tom Savage, per Tim Twentyman of the team’s official website (via Twitter).

Savage has had a tough go of it since entering the league as a fourth-round pick of the Texans in 2014. He served as a backup in his rookie campaign, missed all of 2015 with a shoulder injury, worked primarily as a backup to Brock Osweiler in 2016, and finally got his chance to start in 2017. But he made it through just the first half of the first game of the 2017 season, and he was benched at halftime in favor of Deshaun Watson, whom the team had drafted in the first round that year. He reentered the starting lineup when Watson went down with an ACL injury, but he ended up putting together a 1-6 record and a 71.4 quarterback rating.

Savage signed with the Saints last April but was cut before the start of the regular season, and he bounced on and off of the 49ers’ roster for several months. He finished out the 2018 campaign with the Bengals, who claimed him off waivers in November, but he did not see a regular season snap last year.

For his career, Savage has a 2-7 record and has thrown for five touchdowns against seven interceptions. With Detroit, he will compete to serve as Matthew Stafford‘s backup. The only other QB currently on the Lions’ roster is Connor Cook, though the club may select a passer in this month’s draft.

As Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com observes, the Savage signing means that the Lions will not be bringing back last year’s No. 2 signal-caller, Matt Cassel.

Dolphins Sign Kenneth Farrow, Three Others

April 9th, 2019 at 5:34pm CST by Rory Parks

The Dolphins have signed AAF standout Kenneth Farrow, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Miami, which is in full rebuild mode, has raided the now-defunct AAF, adding linebackers Tyrone Holmes and Jayrone Elliott and offensive lineman Michael Dunn in recent days.

Farrow signed with the Chargers as a UDFA out of Houston in 2016 and saw action in 13 games (2 starts) that year. He totaled 262 yards from scrimmage, most of which came after a late-season injury to Melvin Gordon created an opportunity for playing time. Farrow’s 2017 season was wiped out by a shoulder injury, and Los Angeles waived him last April. He bounced on and off the Patriots’ taxi squad in 2018, but he did not see game action.

As a member of the AAF’s San Antonio Commanders, though, Farrow compiled 372 rushing yards (tied for second in the league) and four TDs. He added 12 catches for 95 yards, and he may get an extended look on the talent-needy Dolphins.

As Jackson writes, the Dolphins have also added former AAF players Joey Mbu (DT), Reece Horn (WR), and Jaryd Jones-Smith (OT).

NFL, NFLPA Discuss New CBA

April 9th, 2019 at 5:11pm CST by Rory Parks

As promised, the NFL and the NFLPA met today to discuss a new collective bargaining agreement. After the meeting, the two sides released the following joint statement:

“Today, the members of the NFL’s Management Council and the NFLPA’s Executive Committee met to discuss negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement. The League and the Union have committed to meet regularly in the coming months, which will involve staff, NFL leadership, members of the NFLPA Executive Committee and Player Representatives.”

The current CBA expires after the 2020 season, and the league and union hope that by beginning talks now and continuing to meet regularly, they can avoid a lockout like the one that shut down operations in 2011. The union has consistently advised players to prepare for a lockout after 2020, but there is at least cause for optimism at this point.

Some of the players’ goals for the new CBA include increasing their overall revenue from the 47 percent threshold that was established by the 2011 agreement, bringing more guaranteed money into contracts, addressing the length of time it takes to become a free agent, and potentially updating the drug policy.

The current CBA will reportedly not be extended, and will be replaced by a new agreement.

Colts Host Spencer Ware

April 9th, 2019 at 4:55pm CST by Rory Parks

The Colts hosted free agent running back Spencer Ware, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Indianapolis has a young and talented RB tandem, with Marlon Mack and 2018 fourth-rounder Nyheim Hines — an excellent receiver out of the backfield — at the top of the depth chart.

Jordan Wilkins, another 2018 draft choice, averaged 5.6 yards per carry on 60 totes in his rookie campaign, so the Colts do not really need to add a free agent back. But Ware would provide a solid veteran presence in the rotation if the clubs elects to carry four RBs, and he could theoretically push Wilkins for playing time while serving as insurance should one of the top backs get hurt.

Ware first made noise in 2015 when he ran for 403 yards with the Chiefs and averaged 5.6 yards per carry in a limited sample. In 2016, he was the Chiefs’ starter and amassed 921 yards with a 4.3 yards-per-tote average. His usage fluctuated over the course of three healthy years in KC, but the 27-year-old’s career 4.7 YPC shows promise.

He appeared to be primed for stardom after that ’16 season, but a torn PCL cost him the 2017 campaign. Last year, he had an opportunity to shine again after Kareem Hunt was cut, but a hamstring injury took him out of the running for the final stretch. He returned for the AFC title game, but didn’t have a major role in the loss to the Pats.

Ware visited the Lions last month.

Raiders Host Shane Ray

April 9th, 2019 at 4:39pm CST by Rory Parks

The Raiders hosted free agent edge rusher Shane Ray, as ESPN’s Field Yates tweets. The club recently signed another former Broncos defender, Brandon Marshall, and Ray could follow suit.

Ray, whom Denver selected in the first round of the 2015 draft, hasn’t exactly lived up to his draft pedigree, but he has shown flashes of promise. The 25-year-old (26 in May) amassed four sacks as a reserve in his rookie season and tallied a career-high eight sacks in 2016. Injuries have derailed him somewhat, however, as he has just two sacks in the last two years combined.

But the Raiders are in dire need of pass rush help, and Ray makes plenty of sense as an upside play. Ray would likely serve as a defensive end in the club’s 4-3 scheme, and the top two DEs on the roster at the moment are Josh Mauro and 2018 third-rounder Arden Key, so if the two sides reach an agreement, Ray may have plenty of opportunity to rebuild his value.

Ray visited the Colts last month but left Indy without a deal.

Patriots To Re-Sign K Stephen Gostkowski

April 9th, 2019 at 4:04pm CST by Rory Parks

The Patriots are re-signing long-time kicker Stephen Gostkowski to a two-year contract, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter).

The timing of the deal is interesting, as we hadn’t heard any updates on negotiations between the two sides for nearly three weeks. Earlier today, however, a report that the 49ers were interested in Gostkowski surfaced, and perhaps that was the push that New England needed to pull the trigger.

Gostkowski, 35, has served as the Patriots’ place kicker since 2006, and he just finished a four-year, $17.2MM pact that he signed in 2015, but the Pats elected to not use the franchise tag on him and allowed him to hit the free agent market for the first time. After paying Gostkowski an average of $4.3MM per year over the last four seasons, New England was said to be waiting for a “market correction” (in other words, they wanted to pay him less this time around).

Other teams were reportedly interested in his services, but before today, we did not have any specifics in that regard.

Gostkowski is the third-most accurate kicker in league history. Last year, he made 27 of his 32 field goal attempts, good for an 84.4% conversion rate that ranked 20th in the NFL. He missed only a single extra point, and the Patriots ranked 17th in Football Outsiders‘ field goal/extra point metric.

New England selected Gostkowski in the fourth round of the 2006 draft, and he and punter Ryan Allen — who re-signed with the club last month — will work as the Pats’ kicking specialists for the seventh straight year.

Zach Miller Hasn’t Ruled Out NFL Return

April 9th, 2019 at 2:52pm CST by Zachary Links

Bears tight end Zach Miller underwent nine surgeries to fix his leg after a scary injury in 2017. At one point, doctors floated the idea of an amputation, but Miller persevered and now indicates that he hasn’t ruled out a return to football (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Jeff Dickerson).

Either way, Miller says a final decision should come soon. And, if he decides to return to the game, he already has a contract in place with the Bears that takes him through the 2019 season.

Miller, who spent the first three seasons of his career as an afterthought in Jacksonville, did his best work with the Bears between the 2015 and 2017 seasons. In 2016, Miller caught a career-high 47 passes and 486 yards with four touchdowns. In ’17, he was on pace for similar stats with 20 grabs for 236 yards and two TDs before his devastating injury in October.

Eagles Sign WR Charles Johnson

April 9th, 2019 at 1:22pm CST by Zachary Links

Wide receiver Charles Johnson is back in the NFL. The former Viking and AAF standout has signed with the Eagles, according to a team announcement.

Johnson entered the NFL as a seventh-round pick of the Packers in 2013, but he first made his mark in 2014 when he caught 31 passes for 475 yards and two scores for the Vikings. He wasn’t used a whole lot in his 2015 follow-up, but he managed 20 catches for 232 yards in 2016, his last season in the NFL.

This year, Johnson hooked on with the Orlando Apollos of the AAF and established himself as one of the best offensive talents in the short-lived league. In eight games for the Orlando Apollos, Johnson registered 45 grabs for 685 yards and five scores.

49ers Interested In Stephen Gostkowski

April 9th, 2019 at 12:22pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers are showing interest in kicker Stephen Gostkowski, according to a source who spoke with Matt Maiocco of NBCSportsBayArea.com. It’s a curious development since the club recently placed the franchise tag on kicker Robbie Gould.

Gould is the league’s No. 2 all-time kicker in accuracy, but Gostkowski is not far behind at No. 3. For his career, Gould has sank 87.745% of his tries. Gostkowski, a multiple-time Super Bowl champion, has nailed 87.381% of his attempts.

The Niners tagged Gould with a one-year, $4.971MM tag in March, but he not yet signed the deal. Instead, Gould says he wants to explore unrestricted free agency and potentially reunite with the Bears. For what it’s worth, GM John Lynch recently said that an extension with Gould is still possible.

“That’s not dead, either,” Lynch said. “I think the franchise gives you some flexibility in that the player is a part of you, but we’re still trying to figure it out and (will) probably take another go at trying to figure this out. It takes everyone wanting to do that. We’ll see if that’s a reality or not.”

Gostkowski has played his entire 13-year career with Patriots, but we’ve heard very little chatter about negotiations as of late.

Falcons To Sign DE Adrian Clayborn

April 9th, 2019 at 11:37am CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons are signing Adrian Clayborn, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The defensive end will return to Atlanta on a one-year deal worth up to $4MM.

This marks a homecoming for Clayborn, who spent 2015-2017 with the Falcons. In his final Atlanta season, Clayborn registered a career-high 9.5 sacks, but his 2018 follow-up with the Patriots (2.5 sacks) was not quite as impressive.

In mid-March, the Pats cut him loose. The Patriots used Clayborn as a pass-rushing specialist and employed him in 14 regular season games. All in all, he played in 30% of the team’s defensive snaps last year, but he was a healthy scratch in the final two contests of the season.

Even if he’s lost a step, Clayborn fills a need for the Falcons on the defensive line.