HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Chargers Owner Dean Spanos’ Sister Attempting To Force Sale

April 1st, 2021 at 3:51pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

There’s been plenty of NFL ownership drama over the past year, and the Broncos are now no longer the only AFC West team with a power struggle going on. The Chargers have entered the fray, as Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times writes.

A sister of Chargers owner Dean Spanos, Dea Spanos Berberian, has filed a petition in Los Angeles County Court asking a judge to force a sale of the team. Fenno writes that Berberian argues “that mounting debt has imperiled the family’s finances and the only solution is to put the NFL franchise on the market.”

Berberian is a trustee of the family trust alongside Spanos, and she “alleges the trust’s debts and expenses exceed” $353MM. “Every day that passes increases the risks that the charitable beneficiaries and the Spanos family legacy will suffer irreparable financial and reputational damage,” if the team isn’t sold, the petition reads.

According to the court filing this has been going on behind the scenes for quite some time, as Spanos told his siblings in a 2019 letter that he would retain an investment bank at the end of the 2024 season to help sell the team. Berberian is attempting to force a move sooner than that, but either way it sounds like the Spanos family won’t be owning the franchise long-term.

That being said, Spanos and two of his other siblings released a defiant statement in response to this filing, which you can read in full here, denouncing Berberian’s effort.

“For the three of us the Chargers is one of our family’s most important legacies, just as it was for our parents. Unfortunately, our sister Dea seems to have a different and misguided personal agenda. If Dea no longer wishes to be part of this family legacy, the three of us stand ready to purchase her share of the franchise, as our agreements give us the right to do. In the meanwhile, the operations of the Chargers will be entirely unaffected by this matter, which relates only to the 36 percent share of the team that was owned by our parents,” it reads in part.

Spanos is no stranger to controversy, as he became a very polarizing figure among Chargers fans in San Diego after moving the team to Los Angeles a few years ago. This will take months if not years to fully play out, but we’ll keep you posted.

Ravens To Re-Sign L.J. Fort

April 1st, 2021 at 3:39pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

L.J. Fort isn’t going anywhere. The Ravens will be keeping the inside linebacker in the fold with a new contract, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets.

Financial terms weren’t immediately released, but Zrebiec reports it’s a one-year deal for Fort. Fort played a significant role in Baltimore’s defense last year, appearing in 14 games and starting eight. He finished with 53 tackles, two passes defended, and two fumble recoveries (one for a touchdown) while playing less than half the snaps in a rotational role.

Fort has had an interesting career path, as he originally entered the league as an UDFA with the Browns back in 2012. He made the team and played in all 16 games for Cleveland as a rookie, then appeared in only one more regular season game after that until 2016.

After bouncing around a few practice squads he eventually found a home with the Steelers. He signed with the Ravens early in the 2019 season, and started eight games for them. He was handed a two-year, $5.5MM extension in November of that year, but at the beginning of 2020 the team declined his 2021 option which made him a free agent this spring.

Washington Signs WR/KR DeAndre Carter

April 1st, 2021 at 2:24pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Washington is making an interesting special teams addition. The team has signed receiver/returner DeAndre Carter, they announced on Thursday.

Carter entered the league as an UDFA in 2015 originally with the Ravens, but he didn’t see a regular season NFL field until 2018. After grinding for a few years on the practice squads of teams like the Raiders, Patriots, and 49ers, he finally broke through with the Eagles. He played in seven games for Philly before being waived and claimed by Houston, where he made more of an impact.

In seven games for the Texans that year, he caught 20 passes for 195 yards, while also serving as their kick and punt returner. In 2019 he appeared in all 16 games for them, catching 11 passes for 162 yards while once again serving as the kick and punt returner.

He served the same role for the first nine games of 2020 before getting cut and claimed by the Bears. He played the final month of the season in Chicago returning punts. He’s never returned a kick to the house, but has done some damage. Washington doesn’t have any clear better options currently on the roster, so he’ll presumably slot in as the primary returner for 2021.

Lions To Sign Corn Elder

April 1st, 2021 at 2:15pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Lions are making another addition to their defense. Detroit has agreed to terms with free agent cornerback Corn Elder, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.

Rapoport writes that it’s a one-year “prove-it-deal,” so it’s presumably for pretty close to the veteran’s minimum. A Miami product, Elder was drafted by the Panthers in the fifth-round back in 2017. He missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury, then played only on special teams as a sophomore. He was waived during final cuts in 2019, and signed to the Giants’ practice squad.

Not too long after that Carolina signed him back off the Giants’ practice squad, and he ended up making real contributions on defense in 2020. Playing as part of a young Panthers secondary, he appeared in all 16 games and started one. He played a hair under 40 percent of the defensive snaps, racking up 40 tackles, three passes defended, and a forced fumble.

Detroit completely remade their secondary this offseason as they kicked off the Dan Campbell era, jettisoning former starters Justin Coleman and Desmond Trufant, so this dart throw can’t hurt.

Buccaneers To Pick Up Vita Vea’s Fifth-Year Option

April 1st, 2021 at 1:20pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

It’s about that time of year where we’ll start to hear a lot of decisions on the fifth-year options of first-round picks from the 2018 draft class, and we got a significant one on Thursday.

The Buccaneers will pick up the fifth-year option on Vita Vea‘s contract, GM Jason Licht said Thursday, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Unlike in previous years, many of these option decisions won’t be no-brainers or formalities. That’s because starting with this cycle, the fifth-year options are now fully guaranteed. They had previously been guaranteed for injury only.

That means teams will be a lot less loose with picking up these fifth-year options, and it also means Vea’s salary for 2022 will become fully guaranteed when they pick it up. That salary will be about $7.64MM for the Bucs. It’s a significant commitment for two years from now, but it’s also still a very good deal compared to what Vea would fetch on the open market.

The defensive tackle was a huge part of Tampa’s defense last year, and was a massive disruptor before going down with a serious ankle injury after five games. Originally believed to be lost for the season, Vea battled his way back and improbably returned for the NFC Championship Game and Super Bowl.

Vea, the 12th overall pick of the 2018 draft, started all 16 games in 2019, finishing with 35 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and three passes defended. He had two sacks in only four-plus games in 2020, and was looking dominant before the injury.

Teams have until May 3rd to make their fifth-year option decisions on 2018 first-rounders.

Dolphins To Sign John Jenkins

April 1st, 2021 at 12:26pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Dolphins already signed Adam Butler to help replace fellow defensive tackle Davon Godchaux after he signed with the Patriots, and now they’re adding another. Miami has agreed to terms with free agent John Jenkins, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald confirmed on Twitter.

Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post was first to tweet the news. Financial terms weren’t immediately available, but it’s a one-year deal for Jenkins. The Georgia product was originally drafted by the Saints back in 2013. He started 12 games for New Orleans in 2015, but was released midway through the 2016 season and quickly scooped up by the Seahawks.

After that brief stint with Seattle he signed with the Bears, then the Giants, before landing with the Dolphins in 2019. He appeared in all 16 games that year, starting five and racking up 34 tackles and a sack. He signed back with Chicago last season and played a rotational role. Miami will likely be looking for him to play a similar rotational role on running downs.

Colts Sign S Sean Davis

April 1st, 2021 at 11:23am CST by Zachary Links

The Colts have signed safety Sean Davis to a one-year deal, according to agent Drew Rosenhaus (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). Exact terms of the deal are not yet known. 

[RELATED: Retired Andrew Luck “Having The Time Of His Life”]

The Steelers drafted Davis in the second round in 2016, and he spent his first four years in Pittsburgh. That stretch included 31 starts between 2017-18, but he missed almost all of 2019 due to injury. In 2020, he inked a one-year deal worth $5MM with the Washington Football Team. Then, after cuts, he found his way back to Pittsburgh.

Davis was primarily used on special teams last season, but he may have an opportunity to get more traditional safety work, depending on how the rest of the offseason shakes out. Safety Malik Hooker, who is returning from an Achilles tear, is out of contract. The Colts have also lost Tavon Wilson from last year’s secondary — he recently joined up with the Niners.

With Terrell Edmunds and Minkah Fitzpatrick playing in front of him, Davis finished 2020 with just 12 tackles and one pass defensed.

Colts’ T.Y. Hilton: Retired Andrew Luck “Having The Time Of His Life”

April 1st, 2021 at 10:32am CST by Zachary Links

Andrew Luck is “having the time of his life” and he’s never felt like this before, longtime teammate T.Y. Hilton says (Twitter link via Stephen Holder of The Athletic). Hilton’s comments are just the latest indication that Luck will not be returning to the NFL, despite the constant speculation about his plans. 

Luck, who won’t turn 32 until the fall, shocked the world when he retired just before the start of the 2019 season. He was just 29 at the time, but he felt that he could no longer play through the pain of his injuries. Ever since, fans have been wondering if the former No. 1 overall pick could have a change of heart,

“He knows we would love to have him back,’’ owner Jim Irsay said earlier this year. “But only he can answer that question deep in his heart and his soul: ‘Hey, do I really want to come back and be a quarterback for the Colts again in the NFL?’ It’s easy for us. He knows how much we’d love to have him be our quarterback…He knows that he can come back anytime he wants, but at the same time we respect he’s made that decision.’’

Meanwhile, Hilton is on the verge of his 32nd birthday in April. He recently re-signed with the Colts on a one-year deal and acknowledges that it could be his last NFL contract.

“[I] probably need to stop talking to [Luck] so much,” Hilton said. “He might make me retire. He’s making me kind of jealous.”

Latest On Buccaneers, Antonio Brown

April 1st, 2021 at 9:57am CST by Zachary Links

Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians recently said that the team is waiting to hear back on its latest offer to Antonio Brown. However, the two sides aren’t close to an agreement, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com. 

There’s still mutual interest, but the Bucs aren’t on board with Brown’s asking price. It’s not clear what Brown is seeking; nor is it clear whether Brown has offers from anyone but the Bucs. Between Brown’s lingering legal issues and his overall baggage, it’s hard to imagine him having a strong market in free agency. Jason Licht & Co. have offered the wide receiver something in the range of last year’s deal, which paid him $2MM for a half-season.

Earlier this offseason, we saw DeSean Jackson score a one-year, $4.5MM deal with the Rams. One could argue that Brown offers more upside than DJax, but every player’s market is dictated by demand. Right now, it doesn’t seem like there is a ton of demand for Brown outside of Tampa.

Brown, 33 this summer had 45 catches for 483 yards and four touchdowns in eight games. Extrapolated for a full 16-game slate, that would have given him a 90/966/8 line.

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