HEADLINES

Month: October 2024

Dolphins To Release S Adrian Colbert

August 16th, 2020 at 10:07am CST by Rory Parks

The Dolphins plan to release safety Adrian Colbert, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. Miami signed Colbert off the Seahawks’ practice squad in November, and he played in six games (five starts) for the ‘Fins down the stretch.

Colbert was eligible for restricted free agency this offseason, and while the Dolphins opting against giving him an RFA tender, they did re-sign him several days later. But the club just claimed Jeremiah Dinson off waivers from the Lions, and Dinson will now compete with third-round rookie Brandon Jones, among others, for a backup safety spot.

Meanwhile, Colbert will look to recapture the form he showed in his rookie campaign with another team. The 49ers selected the Miami product in the seventh round of the 2017 draft, and by Week 10 of that season, he had made his way into the starting lineup. He opened the 2018 season as a starting safety but was not as effective as he had been the year before, and he was ultimately placed on IR in October 2018.

San Francisco released him via injury settlement last September, and he caught on with Seattle shortly thereafter before getting his opportunity in South Beach.

Texans’ DL Angelo Blackson Takes Pay Cut

August 16th, 2020 at 9:37am CST by Rory Parks

Texans’ DL Angelo Blackson has agreed to a pay cut, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 reports (via Twitter). Blackson was set to earn nearly $4MM this year, but that number will now drop to $2.5MM.

Blackson was selected by the Titans in the fourth round of the 2015 draft and spent the first two years of his career with Tennessee but was waived prior to the start of the 2017 season. He quickly hooked on with the Patriots’ taxi squad and was signed by Houston a few weeks later.

In 2018, his first full year in Houston, the Auburn product saw the most playing time of his career, appearing in all 16 games and 40% of the team’s defensive snaps. Although Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics ranked him near the bottom of the league’s interior defenders that season, Houston re-signed him to a three-year, $12MM pact last March.

In 2019, Blackson again appeared in 40% of the Texans’ defensive snaps, recording 20 tackles in the process. But his overall game was still a bit lackluster, and if he did not accept a pay cut, he may have been released.

As Berman writes, the Texans have saved about $8MM of cap space between Blackson’s pay cut, Senio Kelemete‘s extension, and Zach Fulton‘s restructure. The team now has about $20MM of room, and due to the expected cap reduction in 2021, any rollover money will be valuable. Plus, the team also needs to stash some funds for the inevitable Deshaun Watson extension.

Jets Sign WR Chris Hogan

August 16th, 2020 at 9:06am CST by Rory Parks

The Jets are adding a veteran to their WR corps. Per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Gang Green is signing 32-year-old wideout Chris Hogan (Twitter link).

New York is quite familiar with Hogan, who started seeing regular playing time with the division-rival Bills in 2014 and who became a key piece of the Patriots’ offense after New England signed him away from Buffalo in 2016 as a restricted free agent.

During his three-year tenure with the Pats — which included two Super Bowl wins — Hogan averaged a regular-season slash of 36/550/4 and averaged over 15 yards per catch (including a league-best 17.9 figure in 2016). He was equally valuable in the playoffs, recording 34 catches for 542 yards and four TDs in nine postseason games.

He hooked on with the Panthers last offseason, and while his 2019 campaign was largely ruined by injury, he could still be an important contributor for the Jets. As Rich Cimini of ESPN.com writes, promising but raw second-round rookie Denzel Mims is battling a hamstring injury, and beyond Breshad Perriman and slot man Jamison Crowder, the team’s receiver depth chart is incredibly thin.

This will sort of complete Hogan’s tour of the AFC East. In addition to his stints with the Bills and Patriots, Hogan, a 2011 UDFA out of Monmouth, spent some time on the Dolphins’ practice squad in the early part of his career.

Washington QB Alex Smith Activated

August 16th, 2020 at 8:35am CST by Rory Parks

One of the most remarkable comebacks in NFL history is complete. Washington Football Team quarterback Alex Smith has been activated off the PUP list and will return to the field, as Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic was the first to report (via Twitter). The team formally announced the move this morning.

By now, most NFL fans know the story. Smith, whom Washington acquired in a trade with the Chiefs in January 2018 and subsequently signed to a four-year, $94MM extension, broke the tibia and fibula in his right leg during a game against the Texans in November 2018. The injury was gruesome to behold, and its aftermath was even worse.

Smith developed sepsis, and the possibility of amputation was very real. The three-time Pro Bowler even indicated that he feels lucky just to be alive. He ultimately underwent 17 operations but vowed to resume his playing career, though his wife, Elizabeth, has understandably been conflicted on the matter.

But in an Instagram post that preceded Jhabvala’s report, Elizabeth wrote, “Hard work pays off! Lots to celebrate in the Smith house tonight,” and uploaded a video showing Alex’s family spraying him with champagne.

Of course, much has changed since Smith’s injury (aside from his team’s name). Washington was 6-3 and in the thick of the the NFC East race before Smith was hurt, but they ended up 7-9 that season and finished third in the division. They drafted Dwayne Haskins in the first round of the 2019 draft to be their QB of the future, and after they limped to a 3-13 record last season, they overhauled their front office and coaching staff, bringing in Ron Rivera as their new field general.

Rivera has previously indicated that Smith would be included in the team’s QB competition if activated, and while it would be surprising to see anyone other than Haskins under center when Week 1 rolls around, it’s clearly unwise to count Smith out. As John Keim of ESPN.com writes, Smith will be on the field when Washington begins full-pad work on Tuesday.

Now 36, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2005 draft will, if nothing else, provide invaluable veteran mentorship for Haskins and Kyle Allen. Smith will carry a $21.4MM cap charge in 2020, but Washington can release him after the season for some significant cap relief. He is due to count $24.4MM against the cap in 2021, but his dead cap hit drops to $10.8MM.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/15/20

August 15th, 2020 at 4:28pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

Cincinnati Bengals

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

Packers, Kenny Clark Agree To Extension

August 15th, 2020 at 11:25am CST by Zachary Links

The Packers have agreed to a four-year, $70MM extension with Kenny Clark (Twitter link via Tom Pelissero of NFL.com). The nose tackle will receive a $25MM signing bonus and he’ll earn $37MM over the first two years of the deal.

[RELATED: Finding WRs For The Packers]

Before, Clark was due $7.69MM in the walk year of his rookie contract. The re-up makes Clark the 12th-highest paid defensive player in the NFL. It’s more money than some expected for Clark, but he made a strong case by registering 12 sacks over the past two seasons. At the age of 24 (25 in October), he’s one of the game’s better interior defenders, and he now has a deal to reflect his status.

His performance is even more impressive when considering that he was slowed by an elbow injury in 2018. Despite the early end to his season, Clark graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 9 ranked interior lineman that year while posting 55 total tackles. This past year, he had a perfect attendance card and set a new career high in stops (62).

Clark’s deal marks yet another major Packers investment in defensive talent. After shelling out big bucks for edge rushers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith, giving safety Adrian Amos a $9MM-per-year contract deal, and drafting two Round 1 defenders, they’ve shored up the middle with Clark.

Texans’ Duke Ejiofor Tears ACL

August 15th, 2020 at 11:24am CST by Zachary Links

Texans outside linebacker Duke Ejiofor tore his ACL at practice this week, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). It’s a season-ender – and familiar territory – for the 2018 sixth-round pick. 

[RELATED: Texans Activate CB Gareon Conley]

Last year, Elijofor saw his season erased by an Achilles tear. Before that, he showed promise in 12 games as a rookie, registering nine tackles, a sack, two pass breakups, and a fumble recovery. The Texans were looking forward to seeing what the Wake Forest product could do in a full, healthy season. Instead, they’ll have to wait until 2021 – his final year under contract – to see if he can put it all together.

Without Ejiofor on the roster, the Texans may look for outside reinforcements. Before the injury, he was slated to backstop Whitney Mercilus at strongside linebacker. On the plus side, they found a promising replacement for Eddie Vanderdoes by picking up former Raiders second-round pick P.J. Hall earlier this month. They also met with Brandon Marshall recently, though he would serve as an inside linebacker rather than an edge rusher.

Raiders, Mychal Kendricks Discussed Deal

August 14th, 2020 at 4:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Raiders have already allocated more resources than usual to their linebacker spots this year, signing Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski. They are still looking for veteran help.

Mychal Kendricks landed on the Raiders’ radar, and the team attempted to sign him, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The former Eagles, Browns and Seahawks linebacker, however, could not come to terms with the Raiders and remains a free agent.

The former Super Bowl starter faces not only a pending court date after pleading guilty to insider trading but is attempting to return to action after suffering an ACL tear. However, Kendricks has been medically cleared and has seen his court date postponed numerous times since his 2018 plea.

Spending the past two seasons in Seattle, Kendricks played 14 games last year. The 29-year-old ‘backer already served an eight-game suspension for the insider trading crime. He bounced back last year, starting 14 games and playing extensively alongside Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright on passing downs. The Seahawks used their base defense often last season; Kendricks played 61% of Seattle’s defensive snaps. He finished with 71 tackles, three sacks, an interception and a forced fumble. The Seahawks, however, drafted Jordyn Brooks in Round 1 and let Kendricks walk in free agency.

Kendricks brings far more starting experience than Kwiatkoski and resides as one of the best remaining free agents. He may need to lower his asking price in order to land with Las Vegas, however.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/14/20

August 14th, 2020 at 4:28pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Friday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the afternoon.

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

Minnesota Vikings

Seattle Seahawks

NFC North Rumors: Vikings, Lions, Patterson

August 14th, 2020 at 4:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

Two weeks after reporting to Vikings camp on time, Dalvin Cook reaffirmed his commitment to the team. Going into a contract year, the Pro Bowl running back surfaced in holdout rumors this offseason. Cook, however, said the holdout noise did not come from him.

“This is where I want to be at. This is what I love to do,” Cook said of his Vikings status, via ESPN.com’s Courtney Cronin. “I was going to be here regardless of whatever the speculations (that) came up or (questions of) if I wasn’t coming. I was going to be here ready to work. … I’m locked up full go, a thousand percent.”

The Vikings and Cook were not the same page financially, and OC Gary Kubiak — save for Terrell Davis and Arian Foster — has used a system that has featured extensive running back turnover during his two-plus decades overseeing NFL offenses. Cook is set to make $1.33MM this season. The Vikings have younger backs Alexander Mattison and Mike Boone in place as backups. While the Vikings would prefer to extend Cook, the $15MM-per-year price point that emerged appears far less palatable now that the cap could plummet by more than $20MM in 2021.

Here is the latest from the NFC North:

  • The Lions workout in which Trevor Siemian participated also included veteran wideout Chris Hogan, per Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Now 32, Hogan is coming off an injury-sidetracked season with the Panthers. However, he was with the Patriots during Matt Patricia‘s run there. Hogan led the NFL with 17.9 yards per catch in 2016. While Hogan was not as effective in subsequent Pats years, he served as a key option for Tom Brady for most of his three-year New England stay. The Lions employ several ex-Patriots, having added a few more this offseason. Friday’s workout also included wide receivers Shelton Gibson, Krishawn Hogan and Keon Hatcher.
  • An interesting development from Bears camp: Cordarrelle Patterson is not working with Chicago’s wide receiver group. Instead, the All-Pro kick returner is practicing as a running back, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes. The Bears had hoped to dial up more plays to capitalize on the veteran’s unique skill set last season, and Garafolo adds that should be something to monitor for the upcoming campaign. Patterson never worked out as a true receiver, but the All-Decade return man has enjoyed success as a gadget piece while seeing some running back snaps in New England.
  • The Vikings have previously mentioned the prospect of Riley Reiff shifting to guard, but they shut that down this year. However, the veteran left tackle said he would be ready to move inside if called upon, per Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Reiff is in Year 4 of a five-year contract. The Vikings drafted tackle Ezra Cleveland in Round 2, but the pandemic will make matters especially difficult on young O-linemen. This would point to Cleveland spending 2020 as a developmental backup. Cleveland, however, is competing for the Vikes’ vacant right guard spot, along with Dakota Dozier and Aviante Collins, Kubiak said.
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