2020 April - Pro Football Rumors

Five Teams Tried To Claim Austin Calitro

April 29th, 2020 at 2:35pm CST by Zachary Links

Austin Calitro is a popular guy. The Broncos, Browns, Jets, and Raiders all tried to claim the linebacker after he was waived by the Jaguars, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Ultimately, they all lost out to the Bengals, who had the league’s worst record last year and top priority on the waiver wire.

The Bengals were happy to welcome Calitro, who suited up in 13 games (including four starts) for the Jaguars last year. He’s got a solid chance of making the roster, where he could see his time split between defense and special teams. If he doesn’t make the cut, it’s a safe bet that at least a couple of these clubs will come calling.

Last year, Calitro registered 40 tackles and a sack while serving as a key special teams contributor for Jacksonville. Over the last two years, he’s logged 432 snaps in the third facet of the game.

Adam Vinatieri Unsure About NFL Future

April 29th, 2020 at 2:20pm CST by Zachary Links

Adam Vinatieri hopes to still be kicking when he celebrates his 48th birthday in December, as NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets. At the same time, he says that quarantine life has hampered rehab on his surgically-repaired knee.

Vinatieri’s contract with the Colts expired at the end of last season, making him an unrestricted free agent. Meanwhile, the Colts are exploring their options. This week, they signed undrafted rookie kicker Rodrigo Blankenship to compete with Chase McLaughlin, who took over for Vinatieri following his injury in December.

On the whole, Vinatieri’s career has been legendary. Over the course of 24 seasons, he’s captured four Super Bowl rings, three First Team All-Pro nods, and countless clutch kicks. His late-year injury resulted in his first missed game since Super Bowl XLIV. And, with the Colts, he had perfect attendance dating back to 2010.

With that said, Vinatieri did show some signs of slowing down in 2019. He made just 17 of his 25 field goal tries and 22 of his 28 extra points. The Colts had issues beyond the special teams unit, of course, but those misses did not help matters as they dropped out of playoff contention.

If Vinatieri returns for another NFL season, it’ll be a historic feat. Currently, quarterback/kicker George Blanda holds the league’s all-time record on that front having played at the age of 48 in the 1975 season.

Falcons Decline Takkarist McKinley’s Option

April 29th, 2020 at 11:41am CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons have turned down Takkarist McKinley‘s fifth-year option, according to a tweet from the edge rusher. With that, the 2017 first-round pick is now set to enter his final year under contract in Atlanta.

This was the expected move – McKinley has not lived up to expectations since being selected with the No. 26 overall pick. In his first two seasons, he did manage a fair amount of sacks – a combined 13 QB takedowns between his first two seasons. Last year, however, he seemed to regress. McKinley finished out with just 3.5 sacks in 15 contests. He also finished the year on IR thanks to a shoulder injury during the Falcons’ upset victory over the Niners in December.

The Falcons gave up a third-round pick in order to move up five spots for the UCLA product. That didn’t pan out, but McKinley’s not the only Thomas Dimitroff draft pick that hasn’t flourished. In February, the Falcons cut ties with Vic Beasley, who had just finished up his own fifth-year option season.

McKinley’s 2021 option would have been guaranteed for injury only, a risk the Falcons were not willing to take. That additional year would have paid him upwards of $10MM – far too pricey given all of the question marks.

This year, the Falcons hope to see better edge results from Dante Fowler Jr., who joined the club on a three-year, $48MM deal in March. The former Ram is coming off of his best season ever, with career highs in tackles (58), sacks (11.5), passes defended (six), and forced fumbles (two).

Cowboys Sign CB Daryl Worley

April 29th, 2020 at 10:06am CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys have signed Daryl Worley to a one-year deal, per a club announcement. The cornerback profiles as a smart low-risk and potentially high-reward addition for 2020. Terms of the deal are not yet known, but Worley probably came at a reasonable rate.

Worley signed with the Eagles in 2018, but he was dropped after a bizarre incident in Philadelphia. Cops said they found the cornerback passed out inside of a car around 6am. When they woke him up, he was allegedly combative – ultimately, they used a taser to subdue him. Afterwards, he faced charges for firearms, driving under the influence, and disorderly conduct. The Raiders picked him up and waited as he served a four-game suspension.

All of that aside, Worley offers veteran experience on a value deal – and he’s still only 25. In this year’s draft, the Cowboys added a pair of cornerbacks in Alabama’s Trevon Diggs (second round) and Tulsa’s Reggie Robinson II (fourth round). They’ve also got Chidobe Awuzie, Anthony Brown, and Jourdan Lewis on hand, so Dallas now has a crowded CB depth chart.

In Oakland, Worley started nearly all of his 25 games across two seasons. Last year, in 15 games, he notched 58 tackles, one interception, and one fumble recovery.

Before the Raiders and the offseason cup of coffee with the Birds, Worley was a 2016 third-round pick of the Panthers. He started in 25 games for Carolina and notched three interceptions.

Jameis Winston Gets $1.1MM Base Salary In Saints Deal

April 29th, 2020 at 9:56am CST by Zachary Links

Jameis Winston won’t earn much as he backs up Drew Brees and Taysom Hill in New Orleans. His one-year deal with the Saints carries a base value of just $1.1MM, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. That sum includes his signing bonus, which is just $148K.

There will be opportunities for Winston to earn more. The deal also includes $3.4MM in total available incentives – $1.76MM tied to playtime, $1.8MM playoff playtime, and $40K if he makes the Pro Bowl (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). Even if he stays on the roster and hits every bonus, Winston is still only looking at $4.7MM in earnings. Of course, Winston won’t get the opportunity to earn those bonuses unless Brees and/or Hill miss time.

Winston reportedly chose the Saints over larger offers because he felt it was his best opportunity to learn and grow as a player. Despite his talent, the former No. 1 overall pick could probably use the seasoning. The Bucs saw the best and worst of what Winston has to offer last year. Winston led the league with 5,109 passing yards, but also led the NFL with 30 interceptions. Those errors, of course, erased his 33 touchdown throws.

For what it’s worth, Winston’s old boss Jason Licht believes that he’ll turn things around eventually.

“Jameis was still part of our plan if things went a different route,” said the GM, who now has Tom Brady under center. “We’ve got a lot of respect for him. I thought he did a lot of great things, and anybody in our office or building would say the same thing. He did some spectacular things for us. I would never say that, personally — and I think I speak on behalf of the organization — that he’s a bust. I think he’s got a bright future ahead of him.”

Lions Sign 7 Undrafted Rookies

April 29th, 2020 at 8:48am CST by Zachary Links

This week, the Lions added seven more rookies to their incoming class:

TE Hunter Bryant, Washington
S Jeremiah Dinson, Auburn
S Jalen Elliott, Notre Dame
S Bobby Price, Norfolk State
FB Luke Sellers, South Dakota State
P Arryn Siposs, Auburn
LS Steven Wirtel, Iowa State

Heading into the draft, Bryant was pegged as an early Day 3 type of prospect by most analysts. When teams passed on him due to medical concerns – including his history of knee injuries – the Lions swooped him up with $60K in guaranteed cash. Bryant will fight for his place on the tight end depth chart, somewhere behind T.J. Hockenson and Jesse James.

Dinson, meanwhile, fetched an $80K guarantee between his $30K signing bonus and $50K base guarantee (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle). He’s also a worthwhile name to watch. The Auburn product has experience at both nickel and safety with four interceptions over the course of his collegiate career.

NFC West Notes: Cardinals, Seahawks, 49ers

April 28th, 2020 at 8:40pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Cardinals used their first-round pick on Clemson’s Isaiah Simmons, widely regarded as one of the more versatile draft prospects in recent memory. Arizona defensive coordinator Vance Joseph told the media Tuesday that Simmons would primarily be a linebacker in the NFL, but that overall he’d be a “problem-solver” for the defense, via Darren Urban of the team’s official site.

Urban notes that Joseph said while he might not be able to do all the things he did in college, he still wants “Isaiah to be Isaiah.” Simmons played safety, corner, and linebacker at Clemson. “”If it’s a job that we think he can do, we will put him out there,” Joseph said. That echoes what Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury has said since the draft, and it sounds like the team still isn’t sure exactly how they’re going to use him.

Speaking of Cardinals linebackers, they also signed De’Vondre Campbell to a one-year deal worth up to $8.5MM this offseason. In his comments to the media Joseph revealed that Campbell was the team’s top free agent target, but they initially didn’t think they would be able to get him because of his price. Eventually, Campbell lowered what he was asking for in exchange for a one-year deal. A 2016 fourth-round pick, Campbell spent the past four years as a starter with the Falcons. Along with Simmons, Arizona is counting on him to help revamp one of the league’s worst units.
The Seahawks did some shuffling on their offensive line the past couple days, releasing veteran interior linemen D.J. Fluker and Justin Britt. Turns out, Britt was released with a failed physical designation, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets. It’s not shocking considering Britt’s 2019 season ended back in October with a torn ACL. As Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times tweets, this could reduce the cap space Seattle gains a bit since they’ll have to pay him a settlement if he doesn’t sign with another team in 2020. Condotta also notes that it’s one reason the release took a while. Still, we’ve heard Britt hasn’t suffered any setbacks with his knee, so the proven starter should land on his feet with a new team at some point.
Longtime 49ers left tackle Joe Staley recently decided to hang up his cleats, and the team acquired Trent Williams as a short-term replacement. They’ve indicated they won’t be ironing out an extension with Williams any time soon, and it’s highly possible he’s a one-year rental. That would leave them in need of another successor, and one potential option could be right tackle Mike McGlinchey. However, the 2018 first-round pick said he has no idea if he’ll ever become a left tackle and that he feels very comfortable on the right side, via Matt Maiocco of NBCSports.com (Twitter link). This echoes what we heard back in March when Staley was still mulling retirement, and it doesn’t sound like the team has any plans to move the Notre Dame product.

AFC Notes: Tunsil, Dalton, Ross, Bengals

April 28th, 2020 at 7:43pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Texans left tackle Laremy Tunsil recently landed a three-year, $66MM extension that easily made him the league’s highest-paid offensive lineman, and he did it without an agent. Tunsil negotiated the contract himself and he’s quite happy he did, writes Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com. Tunsil said he thinks he “started a trend by not having an agent doing my deal,” and that he “wanted to reset the market and become the highest-paid offensive linemen just so all the young players under me [know] that anything is possible.”

During the press call Tunsil revealed that he first started talking with the Texans back in February, and that he was insistent on signing a shorter-term deal so he could re-enter free agency again when he was still young. Tunsil is locked up through the 2023 season now, and he’ll still only be 29 when he hits free agency in the spring of 2024. This could become a growing trend in the league, and Tunsil said he spoke with Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner, who also negotiated his own contract, during the process. “You just have to bet on yourself, and that’s what I did, and I got the deal done,” Tunsil declared. “I’m extremely proud of myself and the team. I’m still speechless, even though it was a couple of days ago they made the announcement. I’m still speechless.”

Here’s more from the AFC:

The draft came and went, and the Bengals were unable to find any takers for Andy Dalton. They’ve been trying to trade their former starting quarterback for a while, and Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic thinks they will end up releasing him shortly after failing to unload him over the weekend. It looks like Cincy is about to finally give up on trading Dalton and the nearly $18MM he’s owed for 2020. We heard shortly before the draft that the Bengals hadn’t ruled out keeping him, but that was likely just a ploy to try to keep his trade value alive. The game of quarterback musical chairs has pretty much ended, and there aren’t many teams out there still looking for a veteran signal-caller. The Patriots have been rumored as an option, and it’ll be very interesting to see where Dalton ends up signing once he gets released. The Colts apparently sniffed around before opting to sign Philip Rivers.
Speaking of the Bengals, the draft also spelled bad news for receiver John Ross. Dehner writes that the selection of former Clemson receiver Tee Higgins at the top of the second-round “does pretty much confirm this will be Ross’ last year in Cincinnati.” The Bengals drafted Ross ninth overall in 2017, and his career got off to a very bumpy start. Injuries limited him to only three games and zero catches as a rookie, and he had only 210 yards in 2018. This past season he got off to a torrid start, racking up 270 yards and three touchdowns in the first two weeks of the season. He cooled off quickly after that though, and ended up missing another eight games due to injury. He finished with 506 yards in eight games, but the progress apparently still didn’t inspire much confidence within the organization. The Bengals will have to decide this week whether or not to pick up Ross’ fifth-year option for 2021, and Dehner makes it sound like that isn’t too likely.

Latest On 2020 NFL Season

April 28th, 2020 at 6:03pm CST by Rory Parks

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL has been considering a number of contingency plans for its regular season and postseason schedules, and now we have a couple of details on those contingencies.

Per John Ourand and Ben Fischer of the Sports Business Journal, the league and its broadcast partners are doing whatever possible to play a full 16-game slate and to play the Super Bowl in February. One way in which that could happen would be to have the regular season start on October 15, to eliminate bye weeks and Pro Bowl week, and to play the Super Bowl on February 28. Ourand and Fischer have more details on the logistics of such an arrangement, so their piece is worthy of a full read.

That is obviously less than ideal, but it may be the best the NFL can hope for. The schedule is due to be released on May 9, but there are some within the league office who are still wondering if any announcement should be made that soon (the worry is that a schedule release will look like a challenge to politicians like California Governor Gavin Newsom, who has previously expressed skepticism that professional sports can resume in 2020).

Regardless, the schedule will look like the usual 17-week, 16-game affair, but it will be designed to allow for a number of changes like those referenced above, and it will be released with an emphasis on the possible contingencies. And, while Tampa Bay Sports Commission Executive Director Rob Higgins remains focused on having his city host the Super Bowl on February 7 as scheduled, conversations about pushing it back one week have already taken place, and it seems as if every Sunday in February is on the table at this point.

Meanwhile, the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission has already announced that the 2021 NFL Draft will be held from April 29-May 1, 2021, in downtown Cleveland, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes. Hopefully, that event will be able to move forward as planned.

Bengals Claim RB Samaje Perine, LB Austin Calitro

April 28th, 2020 at 5:14pm CST by Rory Parks

The Bengals have claimed RB Samaje Perine and LB Austin Calitro off waivers, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Perine had been waived by the Dolphins, and Calitro had been waived by the Jaguars.

It will be a reunion between Cincinnati and Perine. The Bengals claimed the Oklahoma product off waivers from the Redskins last September, but he saw just five offensive snaps for the team before he was waived. He cleared waivers and was re-signed to the Bengals’ practice squad, but the Dolphins plucked him off the p-squad towards the end of the season.

Washington selected Perine in the fourth round of the 2017 draft, and he generated some buzz in his rookie campaign, compiling 603 yards and a score (albeit with a modest 3.4 YPC average). Since then, though, he has managed a grand total of 13 carries. But the Bengals did not pick up a running back in this year’s draft, and as Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic tweets, Cincinnati believes Perine has some untapped potential. He will compete for snaps behind former Sooner teammate Joe Mixon and current RB2 Giovani Bernard.

Calitro, meanwhile, played in 13 games (four starts) for Jacksonville last season. He put up 40 tackles and a sack and also served as a primary special teams contributor. The Bengals have made some investments at LB in free agency and the draft, but if he makes the team, Calitro could squeeze out some playing time on defense and on special teams.