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Latest On Jets’ Star Players, GM Search

May 19th, 2019 at 8:26am CST by Rory Parks

Rich Cimini of ESPN.com passes along a number of interesting notes about the Jets this morning, including a few thoughts and reports on the futures of certain key players and the team’s hunt for a new GM.

For instance, Cimini reports that there is already speculation in league circles that head coach/interim GM Adam Gase is looking to move on from defensive lineman Leonard Williams. That does not mean that Gase wants to trade or cut Williams in 2019, but it sounds as though the new regime would be perfectly willing to allow Williams to sign elsewhere when he becomes a free agent at the end of the year. Cimini suggests that the club could franchise tag Williams or execute a tag-and-trade, but a long-term deal with the Jets does not seem likely at this point.

With respect to Le’Veon Bell, whose signing was a factor in the deteriorating relationship between Gase and former GM Mike Maccagnan, Cimini says it would not be surprising to see the Jets trade Bell after the 2019 season. If they cannot find a trade partner, then Bell can easily be cut after the 2020 season, when all of his guaranteed money will have been paid.

Robby Anderson‘s future with the club is more straightforward. Gase appreciates Anderson’s talent, and if the big-play wideout has a strong 2019, he could be back with Gang Green on a multi-year pact. If he disappoints, he will be gone.

And as far as the club’s GM search is concerned, Cimini says that the rumors connecting Peyton Manning to the job have no substance and that Manning is not on the Jets’ radar at the moment (which jibes with a report from yesterday). Cimini also hears that Eagles vice president of player personnel Joe Douglas remains the odds-on favorite for the job. Douglas has been billed as the front-runner since Maccagnan was fired.

NFC Notes: Pioli, Falcons, Lions, Decker, Giants, Jones, Manning

May 18th, 2019 at 9:55pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Falcons front office exec Scott Pioli raised some eyebrows when he suddenly resigned the other day. Pioli had been an assistant GM and top lieutenant to GM Thomas Dimitroff, so it was a pretty significant departure. Pioli was the Chiefs’ general manager for four seasons before being canned, and he joined the Falcons in 2014. Rumors swirled about the circumstances surrounding his departure and whether he was forced out, but Pioli is insisting nothing happened. In an interview with Jeff Schultz of The Athletic, Pioli said “I’m fine. My family is fine. This was my choice and it’s just time. Time for what, I don’t know, yet,” he said somewhat cryptically.

Dimitroff backed up Pioli’s account, and said his resignation wasn’t to take another specific job. Still, it’s interesting timing considering recent reports that Arthur Blank, the Falcons’ owner, is getting restless with the direction of the franchise. Dimitroff and head coach Dan Quinn are under a lot of pressure to win in 2019, and if they don’t deliver they could be joining Pioli on the open market after the season. With his experience running a team, it’s possible Pioli could be a candidate for future GM openings.

Here’s more from around the NFC:

  • Many members of the 2016 draft class are getting ready to sign extensions. One first round pick from that class who isn’t preparing for that is Lions left tackle Taylor Decker. Decker has battled injuries and inconsistency since Detroit took him with the 16th overall pick a few years ago, and knows he needs to show out the next couple of seasons. “In my mind, I’m going to play two more years before that’s going to happen,” Decker said, referring to a new contract, per Nate Atkins of MLive.com. The Lions recently exercised the fifth-year option on Decker, meaning he’s under team control through the 2020 season. Atkins writes that the team’s current plan is “waiting and seeing” with Decker, and that they aren’t completely sold on him. Decker has been solid but not spectacular during his time on the field, and his development will be very interesting to monitor in 2019.
  •  The conventional wisdom is that the Giants are 100 percent committed to Eli Manning as their starter in 2019, and quite possibly beyond. But in a recent piece, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com argues that Daniel Jones could be given the chance to supplant Manning before the season even begins. That would be in direct contrast with Giants brass’ stated intentions to sit and develop the sixth overall pick, but crazier things have happened. Florio writes that the “team’s hope that this happens could be hiding in plain sight,” referring to the potential for Jones to shine during training camp and the preseason and force them into playing him right away. It’s still very unlikely to happen, but it’s possible Manning’s place atop the depth chart isn’t quite as secure as everyone is assuming.

Chris Long Announces Retirement

May 18th, 2019 at 8:14pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

After debating it last season, defensive end Chris Long has finally decided to call it a career. The veteran pass-rusher posted a tweet announcing his retirement from the NFL.

“Cheers. Been a hell of a journey. Eleven years and I can honestly say I put my soul into every minute of it. Highs and lows. I’ve seen them both and I appreciate the perspective. Gratitude and love to those who lifted me up,” he wrote. Long is the second significant retirement today, after offensive lineman Travis Swanson decided to hang up his cleats earlier Saturday.

Soon after Long’s announcement, the Eagles released a statement of their own on Twitter, congratulating Long on his career. The second overall pick back in 2008, Long had a very solid career. His contributions off the field might end up surpassing anything he accomplished on it, as Long won the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award this past season, and donated his entire 2017 salary to educational charities.

A two-time Super Bowl winner, Long won back to back championships with the Patriots in 2016 and Eagles in 2017. Long spent the first eight years of his career with the Rams, before signing with New England as a free agent. He never did make a Pro Bowl, but he had several Pro Bowl caliber seasons.

In 2011 he had 13 sacks, and he followed it up with 11.5 the next year. In 13 games for the Eagles this past season, all starts, he had 6.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. The son of Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long and brother of Bears offensive lineman Kyle Long, he’ll finish his career with 70 sacks and 14 forced fumbles. After losing Long to retirement and trading away Michael Bennett to the Patriots, the Eagles’ pass-rushing group will be a little thin next season.

The Virginia product has been flirting with retirement for a while now, and at the beginning of this month the Eagles agreed to push back a roster bonus date so he could have more time to decide. All of us at PFR wish Long and his family the best as he transitions into a new chapter.

Extra Points: Offsets, Comp Picks, Watson

May 18th, 2019 at 7:41pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Every year there are a few first round picks that take a while to sign. On rare occasions, like in the case of Joey Bosa a few years ago, it causes them to miss regular season action. Last year, it was eighth overall pick Roquan Smith who took the longest to sign, as his negotiations with the Bears lasted into mid-August. The disputes are almost always about offset language, and we could all end up studying offset discrepancies again if an early pick prolongs the process. Interestingly, every first round pick that has signed so far, including first overall pick Kyler Murray, has had offset language included in their contracts, per Albert Breer of SI.com.

As Breer points out, it’s been a big sticking point ever since the 2011 CBA established slotted rookie contracts. With the amount of money locked in, it’s pretty much the only thing for agents to fight over. Breer writes that this year it’s “notable that teams are winning decisively in this area, considering how it caused dustups in the recent past.” While that’s true for now, the majority of first round picks still aren’t signed and it’s too early to be declaring the process smooth.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Teams are beginning to place more and more of an emphasis on compensatory picks, which isn’t surprising. In an era of professional sports when teams in every league are realizing the value of adding volume in drafts, NFL teams are wising up. Teams like the Patriots have been good at racking up compensatory picks for years, and other teams are starting to catch up. With the deadline for free agents to count against the compensatory pick formula passing recently, outlets are able to make their first projections about what the compensatory scene might look like for the 2020 draft. Our friends over at Overthecap.com came out with their projections, and New England looks likely to cash in once again. They project the Patriots to add two third round picks, for the departures of Trey Flowers and Trent Brown in free agency. The Eagles are projected to get the earliest compensatory pick, for the loss of Nick Foles.
  • Speaking of the Patriots, they signed tight end Ben Watson last week, luring him out of retirement. Now we have more details on his one-year contract, courtesy of Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). His $3MM deal will include $600k guaranteed in the form of a signing bonus. He can also earn a $1.45m base salary, $300k in per-game bonuses, and $650k in incentives assuming he sticks on the roster. Volin writes that it “doesn’t guarantee him a roster spot, but chances are likely” he’ll be on the team. Watson is 38 now so he certainly won’t be replacing Rob Gronkowski‘s receiving production all by himself, but he can play a serviceable role and be a nice veteran leader.

Eagles, Carson Wentz Talking Extension

May 18th, 2019 at 5:58pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

It’s going to be time for the 2016 draft class to start thinking about their next deals pretty soon. Anyone drafted in the second round or later is heading into the final year of their deal, while first-rounders still have their fifth-year options for 2020. A lot of the top players from 2016 will be inked to extensions soon, and it sounds like Carson Wentz could be taken care of in the near future. 

“My belief is that deal will get done at some point this offseason,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter said recently of a new pact between Wentz and the Eagles, per Tim McManus of ESPN.com. Schefter reports that the “two sides have begun talking” and that “both sides are motivated to get it done.” Schefter also cautions that nothing is particularly close, but that everyone thinks it’s going to get done this summer.

Interestingly, that’s in stark contrast to how the Rams are playing things with Jared Goff, the quarterback who went one spot ahead of Wentz in the draft. We heard in late March that Los Angeles hadn’t talked extension with Goff yet, and it didn’t seem like they were in any rush to do so.

Wentz has been unable to stay healthy the past couple of seasons, but the team is obviously all-in on him. They let Nick Foles walk in free agency, so it’s not like they have much of a choice. It’ll be very interesting to see what Wentz gets in the context of the quarterback market.

He was playing at an MVP-level before tearing his ACL and LCL in 2017, but he does have a troubling injury history. His camp isn’t going to take a discount however, and he’ll likely want to break the bank while resetting the market once again. Philly’s division rival, the Cowboys, are getting ready to pay Dak Prescott, and it’ll be fascinating to see how the two deals compare.

Manning Unlikely To Consider Jets Job?

May 18th, 2019 at 4:37pm CST by Sam Robinson

One name certainly overshadows the others thus far connected to the Jets GM job. However, the Jets may be the latest team Peyton Manning turns down.

Connected to positions with other franchises since his retirement, Manning was mentioned as a target in Gang Green’s GM search. But the future Hall of Famer is not viewed as likely to be interested in the position, Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com tweets.

Manning has been linked to jobs with multiple teams — including the Browns and Colts — but neither process seemed to advance too far. This one may not move past the interest stage, either.

The former Colts and Broncos quarterback was also believed to be a target to be part of ESPN’s post-Jason Witten Monday Night Football booth, but that did not come to fruition. Manning, 43, is working with ESPN on multiple other projects, however. Manning’s ESPN work has represented his most public role since retiring in March 2016.

However, he did advocate for Adam Gase to land the Jets’ HC job this year. If Manning were to take a GM post, working with Gase would seem like a fit on the surface. The Jets, though, have taken plenty of heat for their mid-offseason ouster of Mike Maccagnan and are run by a relatively new CEO, Christopher Johnson. Several Jets sources told the New York Daily News’ Manish Mehta they do not exactly have confidence in their current boss’ ability to run a football team.

As for the other executives connected with New York’s GM vacancy, Robinson adds the Eagles have not been contacted about an interview with VP of player personnel Joe Douglas in what’s been a “quiet” search thus far. A former Gase coworker in Chicago, Douglas has been labeled the early favorite.

AFC North Notes: Ravens, Ben, Bengals

May 18th, 2019 at 4:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

Sidelined with a Lisfranc injury that kept him from performing at the Combine, Marquise Brown has resumed running, Jeff Zreibec of the Baltimore Sun tweets. Although Zreibec adds (on Twitter) Brown will miss Ravens OTAs, he is still believed to be in good shape for an on-time debut. A minicamp return was once thought to be a target of Brown’s, the first wide receiver taken in this year’s draft is believed to be ahead of schedule. The Ravens seem to be expecting Brown to be ready by the time their rookies report for training camp. Lisfranc injuries can be quite tricky, so the Ravens showing caution with Brown certainly makes sense. It will be interesting how the Ravens will use the deep threat, considering how their previous long-range target, John Brown, saw his production hit a wall after Lamar Jackson took the reins last season.

Here is the latest from the AFC North:

  • Ben Roethlisberger did not opt to gather Steelers skill-position players together for private workouts in recent years, but that changed recently. The 16th-year quarterback brought several Steelers weapons, including JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Conner, to his lake house in Georgia for some on-field work, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes. This figures to be an interesting offseason for Roethlisberger, who will be working with a younger (and less proven) receiver cast after Antonio Brown‘s ugly departure.
  • The Bengals likely will again turn to Giovani Bernard as Joe Mixon‘s top backup, but the team did add two running backs in the sixth round — Trayveon Williams and a former college backfield stablemate of Mixon’s in Rodney Anderson. The Oklahoma product is coming off an ACL tear that marred his final Sooners season. Anderson, who tore the ligament in September of last year, will not participate in Cincinnati’s offseason program but is expected to be ready by the start of training camp, Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes. Anderson left Oklahoma early despite the injury and comes to western Ohio after a litany of maladies. Prior to the ACL tear, he suffered a broken leg, a neck injury that nullified his 2016 season and ankle tendon damage. But Anderson led the Sooners with 1,161 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns in 2017.
  • On the subject of reserve running backs, Kenneth Dixon‘s Ravens role may be in jeopardy. The team added Mark Ingram in free agency and drafted Oklahoma State’s Justice Hill in the fourth round. The Baltimore backfield houses holdovers in Dixon and Gus Edwards, but Zreibec writes (subscription required) the older player is the more likely player to be the odd man out. Injuries and suspensions have marred the 2016 fourth-round pick’s career. Dixon did average 5.6 yards per carry on 60 totes last season.

Jets Draft Led To Mike Maccagnan’s Firing?

May 18th, 2019 at 3:19pm CST by Sam Robinson

While disagreements about the free agency cost of Le’Veon Bell and C.J. Mosley came up in the wake of the Jets breaking up their newly formed Mike Maccagnan–Adam Gase decision-making duo, the team’s draft appears to have played a bigger role.

The Jets’ pre-draft process did not consist of much input from Gase, with Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reporting Maccagnan did not want his new head coach affecting his scouts’ views on prospects. Gase then remained quiet during the Jets’ draft-related meetings and was not a factor in the team’s decision-making on draft night.

“It pissed Adam off,” a Jets source told Mehta of Maccagnan limiting his input before the draft. “Mike didn’t want him to speak up too much. It’s a weird philosophy.”

While Mehta adds Maccagnan used this strategy with Todd Bowles as well, Gase took his discontent to another level. The new Jets HC, who “badly” wanted to make recommendations on the types of players he wanted for his system, voiced frustration to many in league circles and prior to the draft moved his seat in the team’s war room — which was captured on video for the networks airing the event — away from camera view.

Draft weekend did not feature any Gase objections to Maccagnan’s picks and scant input from what Mehta refers to as a “detached” coach. This marked Maccagnan’s fifth and final draft with the Jets.

“(Gase) literally took his seat and moved it,” a Jets staffer in the war room informed Mehta. “That was extreme.”

The Jets, who currently have Gase in the interim GM role, have taken understandable heat due to the timing of this firing. Some members of the franchise’s brain trust would have given the go-ahead for CEO Christopher Johnson to fire Maccagnan in January, when Bowles was axed, but Johnson was leery of his ability to conduct simultaneous searches for a new coach and a new GM, Mehta reports. However, the awkwardness in the Jets’ draft room looks to have pushed the relatively new decision-maker to break up the Maccagnan-Gase duo.

Latest On Patrick Peterson, Cardinals

May 18th, 2019 at 12:56pm CST by Ben Levine

It wasn’t the best week for Patrick Peterson. After being slapped with a six-game ban from the NFL, reports emerged that the cornerback wanted to restructure his contract in an attempt the lessen the financial blow from the suspension (the Cardinals ultimately said no). Predictably, the veteran came out and apologized for his actions.

“Definitely, definitely sorry for what happened today,” Peterson told ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss on Thursday (via Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com). “For the most part, I think you guys understand my character and also understand my commitment on and off the field and also to my teammates and also the Arizona Cardinals organization. That’s why this is obviously very, very hard for me, because I’ve never been in this situation before and never wanted to have my name attached to anything like this. But I’m looking to move forward, put this behind me.

“I want to thank my family, my teammates, the coaching staff, the Arizona Cardinals’ community and also the organization. I’m looking forward to getting back Week Seven. I’m going to try to keep the smile on my face and getting back to being the best DB in the league.”

The suspension, a result of a violation of the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs, will ultimately cost $3.88MM and impact Peterson’s remaining guarantees. The cornerback believed he could save at least $2MM by adjusting his deal, but the Cardinals had no real incentive to oblige. As Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com points out, the front office will save that $3.88MM in both cap space and cap. Furthermore, his 2019 salary is no longer guaranteed; if the organization wants to move on from the cornerback following his suspension, they can easily do so.

It’s been a tumultuous year for Peterson. The 28-year-old requested a trade back in October, but he proceeded to start all 16 games for the league-worst Cardinals. After recommitting himself to the organization, reports emerged last month that the player was not pleased with his team.

Despite all the turmoil, Peterson continued to perform. He finished last season with 54 tackles, five passes defended and two interceptions. Pro Football Focus ranked Peterson fifth among 112 eligible cornerback candidates. Peterson is signed through the 2020 campaign thanks to the five-year, $70MM+ extension he inked with the club back in 2014.

OL Travis Swanson Announces Retirement

May 18th, 2019 at 11:50am CST by Ben Levine

Travis Swanson is calling it career. The offensive lineman announced on Instagram that he’s decided to retire, with the 28-year-old citing his desire to spend more time with family.

“I decided to retire from the game of football,” Swanson wrote. “Those words are hard to write. However, I have a sense of comfort knowing Emily and I are walking away from this game with offers that were on the table. This ultimately came down to a family decision between Emily and I.

“I have been an offensive lineman for 22 years of my life and will be for the remainder. In my years as a lineman, I have learned so many life lessons. It is extraordinary that this game has the power to take a kid from Kingwood, Texas to places all over the globe.”

The Arkansas product was a third-round pick by the Lions back in 2014, and he proceeded to play the first four seasons of his career in Detroit. He joined the Jets as a free agent last offseason, but he was cut prior to the start of the regular season. He quickly caught on with the Dolphins, and he proceeded to appear in 12 games (11 starts) as he filled in for injured lineman Daniel Kilgore.

With Kilgore returning from injury and the Dolphins adding free agents (Chris Reed, Michael Dunn) and rookies (Michael Deiter, Isaiah Prince) this offseason, it was clear that Swanson didn’t have much of a future in Miami.

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