2019 July - Pro Football Rumors

AFC Notes: Caserio, Patriots, Green, Bengals, Griffin, Ravens

July 27th, 2019 at 10:03pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Patriots exec Nick Caserio addressed the media today for the first time since the Texans’ ill-fated attempt to make him their general manager. Caserio dodged most of the questions, but while he outwardly expressed commitment to the Patriots, the press “session did nothing to kill the belief that Caserio isn’t happy with the way things played out,” writes Tom Curran of NBC Sports. “I love being here, and right now we’re focused on trying to get the team ready for this season. I’m happy to be here and I love what I do on a day-to-day basis,” Caserio said when asked if he was disappointed with the way things played out.

If he really is unhappy, fortunately he won’t have to wait too long. Caserio’s contract with the Patriots expires after the 2020 draft, and the Texans are widely expected to make another run at him then. Asked whether he wants to run a team some day, he did his best Bill Belichick impression. “I’m not really focused on the hypotheticals. I’m focused on today. Honestly, I’m focused on trying to be the best version of myself each and every day,” he said. It sounds like the Caserio/Patriots partnership is just waiting to end.

Here’s more from around the AFC on a busy Saturday:

There was a lot of panic earlier today when A.J. Green went down with a lower leg injury and had to be carted off at Bengals practice. Fortunately, it doesn’t appear it’s as bad as it could’ve been. The injury is believed to be an ankle sprain, sources told Albert Breer of SI.com, “but Green will have an MRI to make sure it isn’t something more serious.” The Bengals have already had bad injury luck this offseason, with projected starting left tackle Jonah Williams getting knocked out for the year, and this the last thing they needed. Green was hampered by injuries last year, and limited to nine games due to recurrent toe problems. If the Bengals are going to have any success under first-year coach Zac Taylor, they need Green at 100 percent.
Green wasn’t the only notable AFC North player to go down on Saturday. Ravens backup quarterback Robert Griffin III “has a small fracture in his thumb,” sources told Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic (Twitter link). He’ll be sidelined for a while, but the team is “still optimistic he’ll be ready for Week One.” Griffin injured his thumb when it banged against a defender’s helmet toward the end of Baltimore’s practice, Zrebiec explained in a separate tweet. Starter Lamar Jackson and rookie Trace McSorley are now the only two healthy quarterbacks on the roster, so the Ravens will likely be adding another passer in the next day or two.
In case you missed it, the Steelers are discussing an extension with cornerback Joe Haden.

Rams Give Raise To Robert Woods

July 27th, 2019 at 9:10pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Rams are taking care of one of their own. Los Angeles is giving receiver Robert Woods a raise for the 2019 season, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

According to Schefter, the Rams are “adding an additional $1 million to 2019 Base Salary, and fully guaranteed a new $2 million Roster Bonus for next year.” He notes that there aren’t any extra years being added or strings attached, and that it’s just a straight raise. It’s a gesture of good will that doesn’t happen too often in the NFL. Woods has been playing at a level well above what he’s being paid, so it does make sense why the Rams are feeling generous.

In March of 2017, Woods signed a five-year, $34MM contract with the Rams. He’s locked in for another three seasons, and that deal looks like an absolute steal for the team now. He had a career year last season, racking up 1,219 yards and six touchdowns on 86 receptions. He also played a big role as a runner/decoy with Sean McVay’s frequent jet motions, carrying the ball 19 times for 157 yards and a touchdowns.

Woods led one of the league’s best offenses in receiving yards last season, and he’d shatter the less than $7MM annually he’s earning under his current deal if he were to hit the open market now. Woods was a solid player his first handful of seasons in Buffalo, but he’s taken his game to a new level under McVay. Alongside Cooper Kupp and Brandin Cooks, he’ll be apart of one of the game’s best receiving corps in 2019.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/27/19

July 27th, 2019 at 8:44pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Today’s minor transactions:

Cleveland Browns

Signed: RB A.J. Ouellette
Waived: OT Ka’John Armstrong

Denver Broncos

Signed: TE Moral Stephens
Waived: P Justin Vogel

Green Bay Packers

Claimed off waivers from Bengals: RB Darrin Hall
Waived: OG Larry Williams

Houston Texans

Waived: S A.J. Hendy
Waived/injured: WR Isaac Whitney

New York Giants

Signed: WR Amba Etta-Tawo

Philadelphia Eagles:

Waived: DT Anthony Rush

San Francisco 49ers

Signed: DL Jordan Thompson

Seattle Seahawks

Signed: LB Jawuan Johnson

Tennesse Titans

Signed: DB Jonathan Crawford

Cardinals Release Robert Nkemdiche

July 27th, 2019 at 8:36pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Robert Nkemdiche‘s time with Arizona is officially over. The Cardinals announced they were releasing the former first-round defensive lineman on Saturday night.

The move is hardly surprising, as the writing has been on the wall for a while now. The Cardinals drafted Nkemdiche 29th overall back in 2016, and he never panned out. Nkemdiche was the top recruit in the nation coming out of high school a handful of years ago, and he didn’t quite live up to the hype at Ole Miss either. Nkemdiche was due a roster bonus this week, so the timing makes sense.

The defensive lineman is coming off an ACL tear, and we heard just yesterday that he showed up to camp out of shape, which was likely the final straw. Nkemdiche’s health will determine how much cap space the Cards will save with this move, as we’ve heard that he could be able to recoup more of his money if he qualifies for the CBA’s injury protection. Making matters even worse for Nkemdiche, he’s facing a possible suspension stemming from a June arrest.

Still, because of his draft pedigree, Nkemdiche will likely resurface somewhere relatively quickly. He’ll be labeled as a bust for now though unless he’s able to reinvent himself elsewhere, as he only appeared in 27 games over three years for Arizona. He made just six starts during his time in the desert, all of which came last year. He finished 2018 with 32 tackles and 4.5 sacks, the first sacks of his NFL career.

Chargers, Melvin Gordon $2-3MM Apart?

July 27th, 2019 at 7:14pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We heard yesterday that there was “mounting pessimism” surrounding the Melvin Gordon situation, and that it was looking increasingly likely the Chargers running back would miss regular season time.

Los Angeles’ GM Tom Telesco said recently that he did make Gordon an extension offer and we know the Wisconsin product is seeking top of the running back market money, but we didn’t know the exact details of what either side wanted. Until now. The “talks are $2-$3 million apart in average salary,” reports Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

Robinson writes that the Chargers are hoping to give him something slightly more than what Devonta Freeman got from the Falcons (five-years, $41.25MM), while Gordon is “aiming closer” to what the Cardinals gave David Johnson (3 yrs, $39 mil). Robinson adds that he thinks “$12 mil per yr w/ incentives would get it done.” Gordon has been a workhorse for the Chargers the past few seasons, but they seem hesitant to commit that much money to him.

Los Angeles has genuine Super Bowl aspirations, and this situation not only threatens the offense but the locker room chemistry as well. Philip Rivers‘ comments yesterday that the team was “deep” at running back caused quite a firestorm online. While it sounds like the two sides aren’t too far apart, neither side seems willing to budge. Now that we’ve defined where each camp stands, it’ll be very interesting to see who blinks first.

Steelers Notes: Colbert, Tomlin, Burns, Haden

July 27th, 2019 at 6:20pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Steelers staved off questions about Mike Tomlin’s job status, at least temporarily, by giving him a one-year extension recently. They didn’t do the same for GM Kevin Colbert, and that was apparently at his request. Colbert told reporters at training camp today that “he’s not getting an extension because he wanted to go year-to-year based on ‘personal request’ to organization,” per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Fowler notes that Colbert is only under contract until May of 2020, and that the GM said his age could be a factor in whether or not he steps away. Colbert, 62, has been Pittsburgh’s front office head since 2010.

This is the first we’ve heard of any potential retirement for Colbert, so as Fowler points out, this is a “big development.” Steelers owner Art Rooney chimed in, saying “at this stage of the game, he’s really not looking to do any long-term planning,” per Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “We talked and we agreed he’d rather wait till after the season to talk about the contract.” Fowler noted in a follow-up tweet that Colbert indicated he could still be around for several more years, but he’s got “wiggle room” now. The Steelers have undergone a lot of change the last couple of years, and this would be another huge one.

Here’s more from Pittsburgh:

Tomlin’s job security has been a hot topic in recent years, and he’s one of the more polarizing coaches out there. He usually receives two-year extensions, so it was notable that this time around he only got one. When asked what he thought about that, Tomlin insisted it didn’t matter to him. “Nothing,” he told reporters, per Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. “I really don’t think a lot about it to be quite honest with you. I focus on the task at hand, and if you do that, contractual things take care of themselves.” Tomlin has been the coach since 2007, but he’ll be under intense pressure to win in 2019. If the Steelers struggle, his seat will start getting awfully hot.
Tomlin’s old contract had an option year that was triggered due to hitting a certain number of wins, Dulac tweets. A source told Dulac that Tomlin’s new recently signed contract doesn’t have any similar provisions.
The Steelers don’t only have to worry about the contract situation of their coach and general manager, some players need to be decided on as well. Pittsburgh didn’t pick up the fifth-year option on former first-round pick Artie Burns back in May, which led to a lot of speculation that he’d be cut. Burns was due an $800K roster bonus this weekend, so a decision was always going to have to be made right around now. Burns will in fact collect the $800K and he’ll be a member of the Steelers in 2019, reports Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (Twitter link). Burns hasn’t lived up to his draft status, but he did start six games last year and all 16 the year before that.
In the same tweet, La Canfora notes that the team is “working on extending” cornerback Joe Haden. Haden is entering the final year of the three-year, $27MM deal he signed after being released by the Browns back in 2017, and we heard a couple of days ago that the two sides had begun talking.

Seahawks Sign DeShawn Shead

July 27th, 2019 at 5:11pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

DeShawn Shead is coming home. The defensive back is returning to the place he made a name for himself and signing with the Seahawks, his agency announced on Twitter.

It’s a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum, tweets Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times. In a separate tweet, Condotta notes that Shead visited with the team on Friday and had a workout earlier today, and that the plan is to play him at safety. Shead originally entered the league as an undrafted free agent out of Portland State in 2012, and he turned into quite the diamond in the rough for Seattle.

After playing sparingly his first couple of years in the league, Shead became a big part of the defense at cornerback. Between 2015 and 2016 he started 21 games, racking up 129 tackles, two interceptions, and 22 passes defended. He was a full-time starter in 2016, but suffered a torn ACL in the playoffs.

That injury limited him to just two games in 2017, and he ended up signing a one-year, $3.5MM deal with the Lions last offseason. Snead was cut by Detroit right before the start of the season, but then re-signed a couple weeks later. He ended up appearing in 12 games, making one start. He had a quiet market this offseason, as the first we heard of him was when he worked out for the Saints a few days ago. Shead will have the chance to carve out a role as a safety, and if nothing else he’ll be a nice nostalgia piece for the fans, as he’ll be one of the only players still on the team from Seattle’s legendary ‘Legion of Boom’ defense.

Eagles To Sign Orlando Scandrick

July 27th, 2019 at 4:55pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Eagles are adding some secondary depth. Philadelphia is signing veteran cornerback Orlando Scandrick, a source told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link).

As Garafolo points out, the back-half of the Eagles’ defense is a bit banged up at the moment, so the move makes some sense. We hadn’t heard anything about Scandrick all offseason, and then suddenly his market started heating up. He worked out for the Vikings a few days ago, and we heard earlier this morning he was visiting Philly. The Eagles apparently liked what they saw enough to offer the 32-year-old a contract.

After playing the first ten years of his career with the Cowboys, Scandrick signed a two-year, $10MM deal with the Redskins last offseason. He didn’t even make it out of camp with them before he was released, and he was then scooped up by the Chiefs. He played out the year in Kansas City’s league-worst secondary, making seven starts.

Eagles corners Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby both haven’t been cleared to play yet, so Scandrick will get plenty of reps in camp for the time being. In an ideal world, he won’t have to play much once the regular season starts. Injuries have sapped most of Scandrick’s effectiveness, and he can’t be counted on to play a large role anymore.

Theo Riddick To Visit Saints

July 27th, 2019 at 4:40pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Theo Riddick was surprisingly cut by the Lions earlier today, and he isn’t wasting any time searching for a new home. The veteran running back will take his first visit with the Saints, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

The Lions drafted Riddick in the sixth round back in 2013, and he’d been with them ever since. Riddick has always operated primarily as a pass-catcher out of the backfield, and he often shined in that role with Detroit. In each of the past four seasons, he eclipsed 50 receptions, and he was a nice safety blanket for Matthew Stafford. Riddick had been set to enter the final year of a three-year, $11.5MM extension he signed in 2016. Last year he had 40 carries for 171 yards and 61 receptions for 384 yards. His best year was in 2015, when he had 80 receptions for 697 yards.

There were some inklings that the Lions might move on, so he likely wasn’t caught too off-guard. The Lions signed C.J. Anderson this offseason, and also wanted to give promising second-year player Kerryon Johnson more playing time. The Saints aren’t going to be the only team interested in Riddick, but they’ll have the chance to sign him first. Still only 28 and never used too much as a runner, he should have plenty left in the tank physically

New Orleans’ interest is intriguing since they already have Alvin Kamara as an excellent pass-catcher out of the backfield. The Saints did lose Mark Ingram this offseason but his style of play isn’t at all similar to Riddick’s, and they also signed Latavius Murray to backup Kamara. Still, the Saints struggled for consistent receiving options behind Michael Thomas and Kamara last year, and Sean Payton can never have too many weapons. We’ll keep you posted as we hear anything else.

Giants Sign T.J. Jones

July 27th, 2019 at 2:42pm CST by Zachary Links

In the wake of Golden Tate’s four-game suspension and Corey Coleman’s season-ending injury, the Giants have added reinforcements. On Saturday, they signed fifth-year wide receiver T.J. Jones and former practice squad player Amba Etta-Tawo, per a team announcement.

Jones, 27, had 64 total catches for 814 yards and four touchdowns in his first four NFL seasons with the Lions. Etta-Tawo, 25, spent some time on the Giants’ practice squad and played for the Birmingham Iron of the Alliance of American Football League.

To make room, the Giants formally placed wideout Coleman on injured reserve and waived kicker Joey Slye in corresponding moves to free space.