2020 May - Pro Football Rumors

Bills Say They Had No Interest In Sammy Watkins Reunion

May 16th, 2020 at 6:45pm CST by Zachary Links

Chiefs wide receiver Sammy Watkins recently told Tyler Dunne of Bleacher Report that the Bills tried to bring him back to Buffalo this past offseason. However, Bills GM Brandon Beane says that’s not true.

“That’s 100% false. We never spoke to Sammy Watkins or any of his representation about trading for him. Secondly, we never discussed him with anyone in our building that matters. End of discussion,” Beane said (Twitter link via Sal Capaccio of WGR 550).

The Bills did have wide receiver on the to-do list, but they checked that box in mid-March by trading for Vikings star Stefon Diggs. Even before that point, Beane says they did not want to get back into business with Watkins. The former No. 4 overall pick performed when he was healthy and on the field, but he played in just 37 of 48 possible regular season games, and he didn’t finish all of them. Watkins averaged 66 catches, 1,064 yards, and seven touchdowns per 16 games, but his rookie year (2014) marked his only full 16-game slate.

Meanwhile, Watkins tells Dunne that he was in a dark place during his time in Buffalo.

“I would go out and get wasted. Wasted, wasted,” Watkins said. “I just went into a shell where I blocked out the world. I was down. Real bad. Everything around me was bad…I went home into that dark place and was like: ‘F—.’ My whole life is in shambles.'”

Fortunately, Watkins feels at home with the defending world champs. This offseason, he renegotiated his contract to rejoin the Chiefs for one more year with a base salary of $9MM. The deal also includes a no-trade clause, so any teams that are interested in Watkins during the year will need his approval in order to trade for him.

NFC Notes: Seahawks, Dunbar, Lions, Davis

May 16th, 2020 at 6:28pm CST by Zachary Links

Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar surrendered to police, hours after his alleged accomplice Deandre Baker did the same on Saturday. Dunbar’s attorney Michael Grieco shared the news on Instagram and, just like Baker’s attorney, he vehemently denied the accusations against his client.

“As I write this an innocent man sits in jail, facing charges that hold no water,” Grieco wrote. “His career and reputation have been put in jeopardy as a result of an overzealous [Miramar, Florida police department] that was so excited about arresting a pro football player that they tweeted out their celebration and even tagged his employer in their virtual touchdown dance…When this case gets dropped ,I wonder if the Miramar cops will be tweeting out their apology too.”

Dunbar is facing four felony counts of armed robbery with a firearm. Regardless of the legal outcome, he could be in for a world of trouble with Roger Goodell & Co.

Here’s more from the NFC:

The Seahawks addressed their need for a veteran backup quarterback by re-signing Geno Smith on Thursday, but there’s still more mid-offseason work to be done. In addition to their obvious need for edge rushing help, they could still use some experience at running back, plus a run-stuffing defensive tackle to help replace the void left by Al Woods‘ departure, Brady Henderson of ESPN.com tweets.
Even though the Lions turned down Jarrad Davis‘ option for 2021, the linebacker says that he’s more motivated than ever to perform. “I’m here to win games and to go out and compete each and every day,” Davis said (via Benjamin Raven of MLive.com). “We’ve got a lot of guys in the room right now that are going to breathe a lot of competition at our linebacker position and make us a better defense. I’m really excited just to get back to work. Fifth-year option situation, it is what it is.” This year, Davis will look to restore his value and cash in as a free agent in 2021. The former first-round pick hasn’t lived up to expectations so far, but new Lions ‘backers Jamie Collins and Reggie Ragland should help to take some of the pressure off.
On Friday, the Saints added running back Ty Montgomery to their stable. Montgomery showed tremendous promise with the Packers in 2016, when he averaged 5.9 yards per carry. He could shine once again in a smaller role with the Saints, playing behind Alvin Kamara and Latavius Murray.

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/16/20

May 16th, 2020 at 6:06pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Miami Dolphins

Waived: RB De’Lance Turner

Longest-Tenured Head Coaches In The NFL

May 16th, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Zachary Links

Things move fast in today’s NFL and the old adage of “coaches are hired to be fired” has seemingly never been more true. For the most part, teams change their coaches like they change their underwear.

A head coach can take his team to the Super Bowl, or win the Super Bowl, or win multiple Super Bowls, but they’re never immune to scrutiny. Just ask Tom Coughlin, who captured his second ring with the Giants after the 2011 season, only to receive his pink slip after the 2015 campaign.

There are also exceptions. Just look at Bill Belichick, who just wrapped up his 20th season at the helm in New England. You’ll also see a few others on this list, but, for the most part, most of today’s NFL head coaches are relatively new to their respective clubs. And, history dictates that many of them will be elsewhere when we check in on this list in 2022.

Over one-third (12) of the NFL’s head coaches have coached no more than one season with their respective teams. Meanwhile, less than half (15) have been with their current clubs for more than three years. It seems like just yesterday that the Cardinals hired Kliff Kingsbury, right? It sort of was – Kingsbury signed on with the Cardinals in January of 2019. Today, he’s practically a veteran.

Here’s the list of the current head coaches in the NFL, ordered by tenure, along with their respective start dates:

Bill Belichick (New England Patriots): January 27, 2000
Sean Payton (New Orleans Saints): January 18, 2006
Mike Tomlin (Pittsburgh Steelers): January 27, 2007
John Harbaugh (Baltimore Ravens): January 19, 2008
Pete Carroll (Seattle Seahawks): January 9, 2010
Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs): January 4, 2013
Bill O’Brien (Houston Texans): January 2, 2014
Mike Zimmer (Minnesota Vikings): January 15, 2014
Dan Quinn (Atlanta Falcons): February 2, 2015
Doug Pederson (Philadelphia Eagles): January 18, 2016
Sean McDermott (Buffalo Bills): January 11, 2017
Doug Marrone (Jacksonville Jaguars): December 19, 2016 (interim; permanent since 2017)
Anthony Lynn (Los Angeles Chargers): January 12, 2017
Sean McVay (Los Angeles Rams): January 12, 2017
Kyle Shanahan (San Francisco 49ers): February 6, 2017
Matt Nagy (Chicago Bears): January 7, 2018
Matt Patricia (Detroit Lions): February 5, 2018
Frank Reich (Indianapolis Colts): February 11, 2018
Jon Gruden (Las Vegas Raiders): January 6, 2018
Mike Vrabel (Tennessee Titans): January 20, 2018
Kliff Kingsbury (Arizona Cardinals): January 8, 2019
Zac Taylor (Cincinnati Bengals): February 4, 2019
Vic Fangio (Denver Broncos): January 10, 2019
Matt LaFleur (Green Bay Packers): January 8, 2019
Brian Flores (Miami Dolphins): February 4, 2019
Adam Gase (New York Jets): January 11, 2019
Bruce Arians (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): January 8, 2019
Ron Rivera (Washington Redskins): January 1, 2020
Matt Rhule (Carolina Panthers): January 7, 2020
Mike McCarthy (Dallas Cowboys): January 7, 2020
Joe Judge (New York Giants): January 8, 2020
Kevin Stefanski (Cleveland Browns): January 13, 2020

Redskins’ Cody Latimer Arrested, Charged With Felonies

May 16th, 2020 at 1:16pm CST by Zachary Links

Redskins wide receiver Cody Latimer was arrested in Colorado on Saturday morning, as Ryan O’Halloran of The Denver Post writes. He faces five charges, including three felonies and two misdemeanors.

Police in Douglas County responded to a call of shots being fired inside an apartment. No injuries were reported, but they believe Latimer was the shooter. He’s facing charges of assault in the second degree, menacing, illegal discharge of a firearm, prohibited use of a weapon, and reckless endangerment.

Latimer’s arrest comes on the heels of another troubling event in Florida, said to involve Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar and Giants cornerback Deandre Baker. Like Dunbar and Baker, Latimer is subject to fines, suspensions, and other discipline from the league office, even if this ultimately does not result in a court case or a conviction.

Latimer, 27, was a second round pick of the Broncos in 2014. In Denver, they waited and waited for his big breakout season, but that never came. After four years with the Broncos, he moved on to the Giants in 2017. Last year, Latimer had 24 receptions for 300 yards and two touchdowns. For his career, he has a grand total of 70 catches for 835 receiving yards and six scores. He may, or may not, have an opportunity to build on those totals with the Redskins in 2020.

In addition to Latimer, the Redskins have Terry McLaurin, Kelvin Harmon, Trey Quinn near the top of their WR depth chart. They also replenished the group by drafting Liberty’s Antonio Gandy-Golden in the fourth round last month.

Release Candidate: Jets LB Avery Williamson

May 16th, 2020 at 11:15am CST by Zachary Links

In the 2018 offseason, the Jets pounced early to land linebacker Avery Williamson. At the time, the three-year, $22.5MM deal made plenty of sense, even though the $16MM in guaranteed cash was on the high side.

Williamson, then 26, was tough and durable, having missed only one game for the Titans since entering the league as fifth-round pick. In his walk year, Williamson started all 16 games and notched 52 tackles and three sacks. Pro Football Focus anointed him as the NFL’s tenth-best linebacker and the Jets figured they were getting a top-end defender in his prime.

In Year One, the deal seemed to be panning out. Williamson racked up a career-high 120 stops, recorded two forced fumbles, and matched his three sacks from the previous year. Then, 2019 happened – his whole season was wiped out before it could even begin, thanks to a torn ACL in August.

The Jets shopped Williamson before the draft, but they were unable to find any takers. Now, they have a decision to make. If they’re unable to find a suitable trade between now and September, do they bet on Williamson coming back healthy and reprising his ’18 season (when he ranked 20th on PFF’s LB list), or do they cut ties and save ~$6.5MM against the 2020 cap?

It seems likely that the Jets will opt for the latter. Whether Gregg Williams leans more towards a 3-4 or a 4-3 set this year, the Jets can use C.J. Mosley, Blake Cashman, Patrick Onwuasor, and James Burgess to hold down the ILB spot(s). There’s tons of questions about Mosley, of course, but releasing him is simply not an option right now – his five-year, $85MM deal includes $43MM in fully guaranteed money, and the Jets would be saddled with a $30MM dead cap hit for dropping him. Since signing that deal, Mosley has suited up for just two games in green and white.

The Jets – who are aiming to fill their cornerback need by signing Logan Ryan – could shed Williamson’s contract soon in order to make the numbers work.

Falcons To Reopen Facilities

May 16th, 2020 at 10:15am CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons will reopen their facilities on Tuesday, per a club announcement. Many more teams are expected to follow suit after Roger Goodell gave the greenlight on Saturday.

We won’t see all 32 teams reopen their facilities on Tuesday, of course, but more than two-thirds of the league will at least have the option. The clubs that do reopen will have to follow the league’s guidelines, and they won’t have coaches or players in attendance. Front office executives and medical personnel can be in the building, but they’ll be capped 50% of staff and no more than 75 total employees.

“Our goal is to reopen facilities safely and in a way that is consistent with medical and public health guidance, as reflected in the protocols; is permitted by current government regulations; and respects principles of competitive equity,” the commissioner wrote in the memo.

After that, the league will play things by ear and continue to ease the restrictions, phase-by-phase.

“This first phase of reopening is an important step in demonstrating our ability to operate safely and effectively, even in the current environment,” Goodell wrote. “After we implement this first phase, and as more states and localities enact policies that allow more club facilities to reopen, I expect that additional staff, likely including coaching staff, will be allowed to return to club facilities in a relatively short time.”

Giants CB DeAndre Baker Surrenders To Police

May 16th, 2020 at 9:50am CST by Zachary Links

Giants cornerback Deandre Baker turned himself in to police on Saturday morning, his lawyer announced (via Instagram). Baker is facing a number of felony counts in connection with an armed robbery, though he maintains his innocence.

“Police reports are just that, reports of what was told to them or said to them,” said attorney Bradford Cohen. “Court is what we use to then examine those reports, investigate those claims and allow the defendant an opportunity to confront the evidence. Don’t rush to judgement.”

The witness statement and police reports claim that Baker held people at gunpoint while fellow NFL cornerback Quinton Dunbar grabbed the loot. Police are pursuing a total of eight charges against Baker while Dunbar is looking at four. The Giants, Seahawks, and the NFL have all declined to comment on the matter, except to say that they are aware of the situation. Dunbar, presumably, will follow suit by cooperating with the authorities.

In his final year at Georgia, Baker won the Jim Thorpe Award, given to the nation’s top collegiate defensive back. In that season, he finished out with 40 tackles, two sacks, nine passes defended, and two interceptions. The 5-foot-11 cornerback started and struggled for most of his rookie season; the Giants were hoping to see a major step forward from him in 2020. At this point, his availability for this year is very much in doubt.

Jaguars Won’t Pursue High-Priced QBs

May 16th, 2020 at 9:06am CST by Zachary Links

The Jaguars are “pretty much done” with their quarterback search, head coach Doug Marrone told Adam Schein of SiriusXM (Twitter link). Marrone didn’t specifically address questions about Cam Newton, but it sounds like the Jaguars won’t be in the mix for the former MVP.

The Jaguars signed Mike Glennon earlier this month, giving them three quarterbacks behind presumptive starter Gardner Minshew. They’ve also got Joshua Dobbs – Ben Roethlisberger‘s one-time backup – and sixth-round rookie Jake Luton on hand. That leaves little room for Newton, despite all of his career accomplishments.

Early on in his free agency, Newton was set on being a starter. Now, he’s eased his expectations. Newton is reportedly willing to sign on as someone’s backup QB, though he might not be willing to completely slash his asking price. Earlier this spring, former No. 1 overall pick Jameis Winston signed with the Saints on a one-year deal with a paltry base salary of $1.1MM. We have a hard time imagining Newton – who has made $100MM+ over the years – doing the same.

With four QBs on hand, the Jaguars are content with what they have. That means they won’t be in the mix for Newton or Joe Flacco. And, it probably goes without saying, but they won’t make a play for old friend Blake Bortles either.

DeAndre Baker’s Attorney Says He’s “Innocent Of All Charges”

May 16th, 2020 at 8:53am CST by Zachary Links

DeAndre Baker’s attorney Bradford Cohen maintains that his client is “innocent of all charges” (via Cohen’s Instagram). Baker and Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar are both wanted for felony charges stemming from an armed robbery, though Dunbar’s lawyer has also denied the allegations.

“I want to thank [the Miramar, Florida police department] for being professional in regards to surrendering and issues with the case,” Cohen wrote. “We understand that the officers can only base warrants on what was told to them at the time. We have had affidavits from several witnesses that also dispute the allegations and exculpate our client. Our investigator has had them for some time. We would have rather presented them to the court at the proper time, rather than in the media, but in this day and age, people rush to judgment. Where some seek publicity, we seek justice. I look forward to moving this case forward to proper conclusion, as we believe our client is innocent of any charges.”

At a party on Wednesday, police allege that Baker held people at gunpoint while Dunbar stole cash and watches from them. Cops say there was also a third masked man involved and some witnesses claim that Dunbar was also armed. Both cornerbacks are facing four felony counts of armed robbery with a firearm while Baker is looking at four additional counts of aggravated assault with a firearm. Although neither player is in custody as of Saturday morning, it does sound like they will cooperate with authorities.

Baker, 22, was hoping to redeem himself this year after a disappointing rookie campaign. Dunbar, 27, was traded from the Redskins to the Seahawks earlier this year – he was looking for a fresh start, as well as a new contract.