2020 April - Pro Football Rumors

Details On Christian McCaffrey’s New Deal

April 13th, 2020 at 7:36pm CST by Zachary Links

On Monday, the Panthers locked up Christian McCaffrey for the long haul – and it did not come cheap. McCaffrey secured the bag and stole the highest-paid-running-back-in-NFL-history mantle from Cowboys star Ezekiel Elliott, who set the record less than a year ago.

Details on the four-year, $64MM deal are starting to trickle out. Often times, the fine print of NFL contracts aren’t kind to players and agents, but that’s not the case here. Well over half of CMC’s deal is guaranteed, Albert Breer of The MMQB (on Twitter) hears, a sign that new head coach Matt Rhule is willing to reward talented players who fit his scheme.

The four years at $64MM represent the “new money” portion of the deal. All together, the deal will take McCaffrey through the 2025 season for roughly $75MM, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The deal, predictably, has made the soon-to-be 24-year-old very happy.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk passes along even more details on the contract, noting that just over $30MM of McCaffrey’s deal — his $21.5MM signing bonus, his $825K 2020 base salary, and $7.74MM of his $8.03MM 2021 base salary — is fully guaranteed at signing. Additionally, another $8.1MM becomes fully guaranteed next March, so unless something unthinkable happens, the practical guarantees exceed $38MM. Florio also passes along the salary figures for the entirety of the deal, and he notes that McCaffrey can earn $200K per year in workout bonuses from 2021-25.

“I’m so excited to continue my career in Carolina,” McCaffrey said in a statement (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter) “I want to thank Mr. Tepper, Marty Hurney, and Coach Rhule for the opportunity to help lead this great franchise, and to all my teammates for their help along the way. And to Panthers fans, KEEP POUNDING!”

McCaffrey’s contract reflects his value as both an elite tailback and a high-end receiving weapon. That was part of the rationale used by the Jets to give Le’Veon Bell his ill-fated monster deal, but that comp would be unfair to McCaffrey. As a younger player with much better conditioning, McCaffrey has a better chance of living up to his deal than Bell ever had.

“To label him a running back, that’s not respectful to him,” Rhule said of CMC recently (via ESPN.com). “He’s a tailback/wideout. He can do it all. I’m anxious to get him out there and to continue to build this thing around him.”

Giants Rumors: Clowney, Golden, Draft, Tomlinson

April 13th, 2020 at 7:17pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s the latest on the G-Men:

Lately, we’ve heard that the Giants aren’t looking to spend big on edge rushers. On Monday, GM Dave Gettleman more or less confirmed that he won’t pursue high-priced options like Jadeveon Clowney and Markus Golden are not in the plans. The Giants are “not in that position now,” Gettleman said (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan). In a recent poll, just ~6% of PFR readers picked the Giants as Clowney’s next destination.
The GM also noted the presence of younger players in-house – guys like Evan Engram, Jabrill Peppers, Saquon Barkley, and Dalvin Tomlinson – who will need new deals soon. There’s only so much cap room to go around and the Giants will need to save those dollars to keep their best. “You can’t manufacture (pass rush), and you can’t overpay for it,” Gettleman said (via Zack Rosenblatt of NJ.com). “So, what it really comes down to is it’s not about who gets the sacks, it’s about how many sacks we get. Really, how much pressure you apply. Some of this is going to have to come through scheme. Obviously we haven’t gone to the draft yet. I feel with where we’re at, would I want two guys to have a 25-sack year? Who doesn’t? But we’re not in that position right now so we’ll just keep building it.”
Gettleman also told reporters that he likes the depth of this year’s tackle class (Twitter link via Raanan). Raanan took those comments to mean that the Giants are targeting tackles early in the draft, and Paul Schwartz of the New York Post got the same impression. For now, the Giants hold the No. 4 pick in the draft, though they’ve entertained the possibility of trading back.

Raiders’ Nicholas Morrow Signs RFA Tender

April 13th, 2020 at 6:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Nicholas Morrow made the jump from undrafted free agency to receiving a second-round RFA tender this year. He is officially back with the Raiders after signing that tender Monday, Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets.

The fourth-year linebacker will see a salary bump from $645K to 3.26MM. The Raiders cut Tahir Whitehead but made multiple moves at linebacker, signaling a likely shift in Morrow’s role.

Morrow’s 730 snaps last season (second among Raider linebackers) ranked in the top 50 among off-ball linebackers, but the Raiders signed both Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski early in free agency. The contracts given to those two point to them being the odds-on favorites to be Las Vegas’ two three-down ‘backers. The Raiders’ top three linebackers will combine to count more than $20MM against their 2020 cap. Littleton is attached to an $11.75MM cap figure; Kwiatkoski’s cap number comes in at $7MM.

The Raiders started Morrow in eight games last season; his role increased after Vontaze Burfict‘s season-ending suspension. Morrow made a career-high 73 tackles and intercepted the first pass of his career last season. He is in line to be an unrestricted free agent in 2021.

Lions Speak With Tagovailoa, Herbert

April 13th, 2020 at 6:28pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Lions denied shopping Matthew Stafford earlier this offseason and have said they are happy with their quarterback situation. They are either doing due diligence on this draft’s top non-Joe Burrow passers or attempting to entice a team to trade up.

Lions brass conducted video conferences with Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes. Detroit’s staff already coached Herbert in the Senior Bowl.

Considering the Lions have discussed trading down from No. 3, this could well be an effort to help accelerate that process and convince teams to up their offers. The Lions have been connected to Ohio State cornerback Jeffrey Okudah with that pick and, should the Redskins surprise and trade out of No. 2, will be expected to draft Chase Young third overall. Okudah is believed to be the Lions’ preference of the non-Young contingent expected to be available at 3.

The Dolphins and Chargers have been the teams most closely connected to Tagovailoa and Herbert, and considering they respectively hold the Nos. 5 and 6 picks, the Lions should not expect a monster trade proposal. However, some teams have extracted value in making short trips down in the top five recently. The Vikings were able to pry fourth-, fifth- and seventh-round picks from the Browns in 2012 — when Cleveland moved up from No. 4 to No. 3 for Trent Richardson. The 49ers did even better five years later, landing two thirds and a fourth from the Bears when they climbed from No. 3 to No. 2 for Mitchell Trubisky.

Stafford, 32, is on the Lions’ payroll at $21.3MM this season; his cap number jumps to $33MM in 2021. Although he has dealt with back injuries over the past two seasons, he ended his shortened 2019 campaign sixth in QBR. Lions owner Martha Ford gave win-now mandates to GM Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia, further pointing to the Lions drafting a player who can best help them win in 2020.

Latest On NFL’s Virtual Draft Plan

April 13th, 2020 at 5:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

Less than two weeks remain until the NFL’s virtual draft. Some additional details of the unique event emerged Monday.

Roger Goodell will announce the picks from the basement of his Westchester County, N.Y., home, Peter King of NBC Sports notes. This will occur on a neutral broadcast, as opposed to ESPN and NFL Network conducting separate airings. ESPN and NFL Network will simulcast the entire draft.
Each team will have a designated drafter that will be connected to the league’s encrypted Microsoft Teams channel, King adds. NFL VP of player personnel Ken Fiore will communicate with teams regarding who will be on the clock when while also serving as an emergency contact if a team cannot make a pick through the Microsoft Teams channel. While each team will still have 10 minutes to pick during the first round, King confirms the NFL will be flexible if a communication issue affects a team’s process.
A separate, secure line will be in place for draft-day trades, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, adding that multiple team executives can be on those calls at once. The mock draft each of the 32 teams will go through next week will include fake trades as well to test this system.
IT personnel have completed their work, installing cameras in the homes of each GM and head coach, Rapoport adds (via Twitter). GMs are permitted to have one IT person in their home during the draft, per Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff (via King).
The league reached out to 58 prospects and a few college coaches, and cameras will be installed in the homes where they’ll watch the draft, King notes. No more than six people can be at players’ respective draft-watching events. This is certainly way down from the number of family members and friends who usually gather for these viewings, but the COVID-19 pandemic has obviously changed just about everything about the draft — except for the dates — this year.

Chargers To Sign XFL TE Donald Parham

April 13th, 2020 at 5:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

Donald Parham‘s NFL career consisted of a 2019 UDFA agreement with the Lions. While he did not make the team, the 6-foot-8 tight end went on to be one of the XFL’s top targets. That will land him another NFL opportunity.

The Chargers reached an agreement to sign Parham on Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (on Twitter). Parham, 22, received five other offers, per Rapoport, but will head to a Chargers team that rosters one of the league’s top tight ends.

Hunter Henry signed his franchise tender Monday, and 10th-year veteran Virgil Green remains with the Bolts. Parham profiles as an interesting addition, however, after starring for the Dallas Renegades in XFL 2.0.

Parham caught 24 passes for 307 yards and four touchdowns in five XFL games. The 307 yards ranked third in the league and led all other XFL tight ends by over 150 yards. Prior to his XFL run, Parham previously saw game action as a college standout at Division I-FCS Stetson.

NFL, NFLPA Agree On Virtual Offseason Plan

April 13th, 2020 at 4:21pm CST by Sam Robinson

The expected virtual offseason put in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic includes more details now. Teams’ respective offseason programs, under this amended format, will begin April 20. The NFL and NFLPA put in place procedures for the 2020 offseason Monday.

No team can report to its facility until all 50 states are cleared from the various lockdown measures the coronavirus has induced, per Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com (on Twitter). The NFLPA’s board voted unanimously to approve the changes after weeks-long negotiations with the league.

Phase 1 of this offseason format will only include voluntary classroom work, while the second phase — which begins May 18 — can include virtual individual workouts, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. Phase 2 is also voluntary, as it is during normal work years. It remains uncertain how workout bonuses will be distributed.

Phase 1 classroom work is capped at two hours per day; so are Phase 2’s virtual workouts. Most teams will have three weeks’ worth of voluntary classroom work allowed. Teams that hired new HCs, however, can hold a veteran minicamp starting May 11. Veterans will receive $235 per day for virtual participation; rookies will collect $135 daily.

Each team’s offseason program cannot run beyond June 26. That is a later date than usual. Minicamps usually wrap up by mid-June at the latest, with players then working out independently before late-July training camp report dates. The league is holding out hope for some type of midsummer pre-training camp ramp-up period, however. That would not commence until late June or early July.

With many players not having access to home gyms, some will certainly possess advantages. However, each team will be mandated to provide players $1,500 stipends to acquire certain workout equipment, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com tweets.

Certain states have quarantines in place until at least June 10, and due to the uncertainty COVID-19 has caused, it now looks like a good bet the NFL’s 2020 offseason will be fully virtual.

Chargers TE Hunter Henry To Sign Franchise Tag

April 13th, 2020 at 3:40pm CST by Zachary Links

Chargers tight end Hunter Henry will sign his franchise tag on Monday afternoon, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). With that, he’ll return to the Bolts on a one-year, ~$11MM guaranteed deal.

Last month, the Chargers made Henry the first tight end to be franchise tagged since Jimmy Graham in 2014. Despite the injury concerns, the Chargers were unwilling to leave things to chance. Now, they have Henry locked in for at least one more year and they have a few months to negotiate a long-term deal with the 25-year-old. If they’re unable to come to terms, they’ll have to wait until after the 2020 season to revisit talks.

The Chargers might not rush matters – Henry missed the entire 2018 season with a torn ACL and missed four games last year with a knee injury, so they might want to see how he looks before making a major commitment.

In just 12 games last season, Henry posted career highs in catches (55) and yards (652). If he can stay healthy for a full year alongside Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, the Chargers will project to have one of the league’s most potent offenses. Of course, it remains to be seen who will be throwing the ball to them. For now, Tyrod Taylor is set to be the man under center.

In March, the Browns made Austin Hooper the highest-paid tight end of all-time with a four-year, $42MM deal. Soon, George Kittle is expected to take over that mantle, but Henry might not be far behind if he can stay healthy and play up to expectations.

Panthers, Christian McCaffrey Agree To Record-Breaking Extension

April 13th, 2020 at 3:10pm CST by Zachary Links

Christian McCaffrey has agreed to a new four-year deal with the Panthers, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The deal, worth an eye-popping $16MM per year, will position CMC as the highest-paid running back in the history of the NFL.

McCaffrey and the Panthers have been discussing an extension for some time, even though the youngster was a long way from free agency. The new deal, worth $64MM over the course of four years, will keep McCaffrey in place for many seasons to come.

The Panthers have overhauled their team in recent months, bidding farewell to head coach Ron Rivera, tight end Greg Olsen, one-time MVP quarterback Cam Newton, and other longtime figures. McCaffrey, of course, remained as a building block of the team’s future.

In September, Cowboys star Ezekiel Elliott broke the RB record with his six-year, $90MM extension. Now, CMC has beaten that $15MM AAV by a cool $1MM. More importantly, he landed his deal on a much shorter term. The Panthers standout will be eligible for free agency while still in his prime, setting him up for even greater riches on his next deal.

Because records are made to be broken – particularly when it comes to NFL contracts – McCaffrey might not hold the mantle for long either. Saints star Alvin Kamara also has youth and accolades on his side, and his camp will certainly have this deal on the radar when it comes time to talk.

McCaffrey won’t turn 24 until June and he already has a First-Team All-Pro selection on his resume. Even in a down year for Carolina, McCaffrey still managed 1,387 rushing yards off of 287 carries, giving him an average of 4.8 yards per tote. he also caught 116 passes for 1,005 yards through the air. All combined, he notched 19 touchdowns on the year.

As great as McCaffrey is, the Panthers’ offer did not come without some serious deliberation. Past market-setting deals for running backs have yielded some seriously mixed results. Todd Gurley, for example, was unable to stay healthy after inking his four-year, $60MM whopper with the Rams. The former Offensive Player of the Year was cut midway through his deal, leading him to a one-year pact with the Falcons earlier this year.

“Obviously, we’ve had internal discussions,” GM Marty Hurney said recently, perhaps understating the status of the talks. “Everybody knows what we think of Christian as a player. Other than that I can’t really say any more.”

Even with one year left of McCaffrey’s contract, plus a fifth-year option for 2021, the Panthers didn’t want to let him get anywhere near the open market. Even after two 1,000-yard campaigns and a total of 2,523 receiving yards over three seasons, the Panthers believe that the best is yet to come.

Seahawks Re-Sign CB Neiko Thorpe

April 13th, 2020 at 2:54pm CST by Zachary Links

The Seahawks have re-signed cornerback Neiko Thorpe, according to a club announcement. Terms of the deal are not yet known.

Thorpe has spent the last four years with the Seahawks as a reserve, following stints with the Chiefs and Raiders. He’ll aim to make the cut and fill a similar role in Seattle this year. Although he’s not a top-tier corner, Thorpe offers depth support at the cornerback position and special teams acumen.

Last year, Thorpe re-upped with the ‘Hawks on a one-year, $1MM deal with a $100K signing bonus and a modest non-guaranteed base of $850K. He went on to appear in seven games for Seattle, before being placed on IR in December.

This year, the Seahawks will return starters Shaquill Griffin and Tre Flowers, though recent acquisition Quinton Dunbar figures to see a key role. They may also pad the CB group in the draft. In the ten drafts run by head coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider, the Seahawks have only passed on CBs once. Still, most of those corners have been taken in the fourth-round or later, and that’s likely how they’d address the position this year given their more pressing needs.