Today’s minor transactions:
Carolina Panthers
Cleveland Browns
Green Bay Packers
Kansas City Chiefs
Miami Dolphins
The Eagles made a few changes to their practice squad today. The team announced that they’ve signed tight end Dalton Keene and wide receiver Auden Tate. To make room on the taxi squad, the Eagles released running back La’Mical Perine and quarterback Reid Sinnett.
After barely playing as a rookie seventh-round pick, Tate had a bit of a breakout season in 2019, finishing the campaign with 40 receptions for 575 yards. However, he found himself buried on the depth chart in both 2020 and 2021, finishing with only 17 catches between the two seasons. He caught on with the Eagles earlier this offseason but was cut before the end of the preseason. The Eagles are currently rostering only four wide receivers, so there’s a chance he could eventually get elevated to the active roster.
Keene, a 2020 third-round pick by the Patriots, only had three catches during his two seasons in New England. The 23-year-old could see some time on the active roster if any of Dallas Goedert, Jack Stoll, and/or rookie sixth-round pick Grant Calcaterra go down with an injury.
After collecting 295 yards from scrimmage as a rookie in 2020, Perine was limited to only 31 yards with the Jets in 2021. After getting cut by New York at the end of the preseason, he caught on with Philly. With Kennedy Brooks already on the practice squad, the team decided to move on from the 24-year-old.
Sinnett spent much of the 2021 season in the Eagles organization, but he had little chance of cracking the active roster in 2022 with three QBs blocking his way.
After three Patriots stints, Jamie Collins is meeting with some familiar decision-makers. The Raiders are hosting the veteran linebacker on a visit Wednesday, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
Longtime Patriots OC Josh McDaniels and ex-New England executive Dave Ziegler are now running the Raiders, who have former Pats assistant Patrick Graham on board as DC. Graham was Collins’ position coach from 2014-15. This marks the first Collins connection since his most recent Patriots contract expired.
Collins, 32, has ventured out of New England twice previously; each instance brought a nice contract. The Browns, after trading for Collins during the 2016 season, authorized a monster extension not long after. The Lions, who previously had ex-Patriot staffers Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn in place, signed Collins in 2020. After the Browns and Lions cut him, in 2019 and 2021, respectively, Collins made his way back to the Patriots.
Last season, Collins worked mostly as a Pats backup. He played in 10 games (two starts) with the team that took him in the 2013 second round. The hybrid performer was much more productive for the Pats in 2019, when he notched seven sacks, three forced fumbles and three INTs — one of them a pick-six.
The Raiders made changes at linebacker this offseason, designating Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski as post-June 1 cuts. The team also did not re-sign K.J. Wright or Nicholas Morrow. Denzel Perryman remains in place, however, and the AFC West squad signed ex-Titan Jayon Brown. Collins’ history as a part-time pass rusher (26.5 career sacks, including four four-plus-sack seasons) could be of interest here as well, with the Raiders having released Kyler Fackrell with an injury settlement and placing fellow OLB addition Jordan Jenkins on IR.
SEPTEMBER 7: The Rams have ruled Jefferson out for their opener against the Bills. The team has Ben Skowronek, 2021 second-rounder Tutu Atwell and rookie UDFA Lance McCutcheon in place as their other Week 1 WR3 options.
SEPTEMBER 6: For a very short span last season, Odell Beckham Jr.‘s signing bumped Van Jefferson down to the Rams’ No. 4 wideout role. Robert Woods‘ ensuing ACL tear kept Jefferson a regular on offense. With both out of the picture, Jefferson would have a clear path to his previous gig.
But Jefferson is still rehabbing from his second offseason knee surgery. The Rams are preparing as if the third-year receiver will not play Thursday night, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com notes. Sean McVay called Jefferson’s early-August surgery minor but did not guarantee he would be ready for Week 1. While Wilson adds Jefferson returning early in the season would not surprise, he is not expected to suit up against the Bills.
Jefferson caught 50 passes for 802 yards and six touchdowns last season. The Florida alum figures to fly under the radar again this year, with Cooper Kupp being extended and Allen Robinson signing. Beckham’s continued place as a Rams free agent target again leaves Jefferson’s WR3 status as tenuous, should the long-connected parties agree to terms again.
“He’s a guy that, in a short amount of time, we were able to develop a really special relationship,” McVay said of Beckham. “I thought he brought a great spark to our team. I thought he played really well. He’s a great teammate. Without a doubt, want to get Odell back here. That’s the goal and continuing to work toward a solution of him re-signing with the Rams.”
The Rams’ Beckham interest is well known, but Wilson adds OBJ is also interested in returning to play for the defending Super Bowl champs. His crashing of McVay’s wedding this summer may have been a decent indicator here. Although Cam Akers commandeered the talented receiver’s Rams number (3), the team has a locker reserved — nameplate and all — for Beckham going into the season, The Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue tweets.
Beckham, who averaged 38.7 yards per game with the Browns last season and just 38.1 as a regular-season Ram, came through for his third NFL employer in crunch time. The 29-year-old target’s 113-yard performance in the NFC championship game and 52-yard Super Bowl LVI half — prior to his second ACL tear — did plenty to help Los Angeles to the title. Other teams will surely be monitoring Beckham this season, as he is not expected to be ready to return until October or early November, and there will be — as Jefferson re-emerges — needier teams. It will be interesting what a second straight in-season Beckham market will look like. We do know one team that will absolutely be in the mix.
Lamar Jackson has moved his deadline for a 2022 extension agreement up to Friday. The former MVP confirmed this today but added talks have not broken off. This is an artificial deadline, and Jackson added the talks “probably” will end Friday. The sides negotiated into last season, but the agent-less QB is against such a path this year.
Baltimore’s star quarterback has been connected to seeking a fully guaranteed deal, a la Deshaun Watson, while the Ravens are against such a structure. The Ravens are believed to have offered a deal north of Kyler Murray‘s $46.1MM-per-year pact, but Jackson remains unsigned. Two days ahead of this deadline, pessimism defines these talks.
Barring an 11th-hour shift, Jackson is expected to play the 2022 season on his $23MM fifth-year option, Mark Maske of the Washington Post notes. Previously, it was thought Jackson was giving the Ravens until their Sunday opener. But considering this deadline is designed to separate Jackson negotiations from his preparation for the 17-game season, it makes sense the three-time Pro Bowler would want to head into the weekend with this matter — extension or not — behind him.
A 2021 Baltimore offer matched the Bills’ $43MM-AAV Josh Allen extension. Jackson passed. While the Ravens have upped their offer this year and may well have increased it again this week, it is worth wondering where the team’s cutoff point resides.
Russell Wilson‘s five-year, $245MM Broncos extension includes $124MM fully guaranteed. Denver’s deal locks the nine-time Pro Bowler in through at least 2025, due to a March 2024 guarantee trigger. Jackson, 25, being eight years younger than the former Super Bowl winner would give him an excellent case to bridge the gulf between Wilson’s guarantee figure and Watson’s $230MM total. As the Broncos and Cardinals’ offseason deals have shown, teams are determined to make the Browns’ Watson contract an outlier. Whereas Kirk Cousins received his fully guaranteed Vikings deal (three years, $84MM) in free agency, as the Jets lurked, four teams were vying for Watson via trade. The Browns only offered their shocking proposal after being eliminated earlier in the process.
With the Year 5 option and two franchise tags as leverage, the Ravens will not offer a $230MM guarantee. It will be interesting to learn what Baltimore has proposed, guarantee-wise. Those tag possibilities also can work in Jackson’s favor. Even the first of them, should the Ravens give Jackson the exclusive tag, would move toward the $45MM range. That would be an unprecedented cap-clogging figure for the team to navigate ahead of the 2023 free agency period. No deal coming together by Friday would put this saga on track toward tag No. 1 come March.
Two teams that wound up on Russell Wilson‘s list of acceptable destinations last year indeed pursued him in 2022. The Giants and Saints were among the teams to discuss the perennial Pro Bowl quarterback with the Seahawks, Brady Henderson of ESPN.com reports.
The Saints appear to have advanced further during this year’s trade talks. Seattle, however, knew Denver had become Wilson’s preference, so the team kept New Orleans in the mix to prompt an improved Broncos offer. It is unclear if the Broncos did so, as Wilson’s no-trade clause could block a Saints move. The 11th-year veteran’s initial destination list included New Orleans, along with Chicago, Dallas and Las Vegas. Of course, the Saints saw a rather notable change take place this year; Sean Payton walked away after 16 seasons. But Wilson became set on Denver this year.
Seahawks GM John Schneider, who initiated trade talks with the Broncos by texting George Paton at the Senior Bowl, apologized to the non-Broncos teams whom he told Wilson was not available. The Broncos had also become the Seahawks’ preferred trade partner, per Henderson, who writes in an expansive piece Schneider’s interest in Drew Lock drove that effort. Lock, whom Schneider was fond of ahead of the 2019 draft, will begin the season as Geno Smith‘s backup.
New Orleans, which later became a Deshaun Watson finalist, pivoted back to Jameis Winston after the Browns’ $230MM fully guaranteed offer changed Watson’s mind on a Cleveland stay. The Giants, who joined the Broncos in emerging as an acceptable Wilson landing spot late last year, will give Daniel Jones a final chance. The Commanders, who offered three first-round picks and change for Wilson, also joined the Browns, Eagles and Panthers in a wide-ranging Wilson pursuit.
Much of the gradual decay in the Seahawks-Wilson relationship has come out, but Henderson offered one reason Seattle was OK moving on. Although this divorce might not have happened had Wilson and Pete Carroll not butted heads continually during the early 2020s, multiple Seahawks front office staffers believed Wilson was in decline.
The nine-time Pro Bowler’s issues with the Seahawks ranged from Carroll’s run-first philosophy to the team’s offseason efforts — particularly along its offensive line — to fortify a contender, and the Broncos look to agree with Wilson that the Seahawks held him back. No team ran the ball more from 2012-21 than Seattle, and Henderson adds the Seahawks ranked 29th in designed pass-play rate over that time. The Seahawks, conversely, had come to view free agent O-linemen as overpaid commodities, per Henderson. During Wilson’s time on expensive contracts, the team did acquire Duane Brown and Gabe Jackson via trade.
Wilson’s 57.7 QBR ranks 11th in the NFL over the past 25 games, a stretch that began with a 2020 midseason dip following an explosive start. Wilson struggled after that hot, oft-labeled “Let Russ Cook” intro to the ’20 season and did not play well in the weeks following his 2021 finger surgery. He did fare better to close the 2021 season, however. Anonymous executives tabbed Wilson eighth among quarterbacks in both The Athletic’s annual quarterback tiers project and in an ESPN.com poll ranking each position. Although certain Seahawks coaches disagreed the 33-year-old passer was declining, the team moved on in March by picking up eight assets — including Lock, Shelby Harris, Noah Fant and two first-round picks — for the likely Hall of Fame-bound player.
Wilson has since signed a five-year, $245MM Broncos contract ($124MM fully guaranteed — second only to Watson’s outlay) and will attempt to craft a memorable second act. The Seahawks, who were reluctant to go through a third round of Wilson extension talks or pay the new going rate to the talented QB, are likely to be connected to 2023 first-round passers. If the franchise does go that route, it would not need to discuss a quarterback extension for at least four years.
The Cardinals will begin the season without their backup quarterback. Colt McCoy landed on IR Wednesday. Arizona promoted Trace McSorley from its practice squad.
McCoy did not play during Arizona’s preseason slate. While Kliff Kingsbury said the veteran backup was dealing with arm soreness early in training camp, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets the 13th-year passer suffered a strained calf.
Although the Cardinals would hope not to need McCoy this season, given that his participation is tied to Kyler Murray‘s availability, they did need him in 2021. Making three starts for an injured Murray, McCoy helped the Cards to two wins — each over NFC West rivals — that certainly went a long way toward the team booking a wild-card berth.
Despite not seeing much time during his long-term Washington stay, the former Texas Longhorn helped the Giants to a win over the playoff-bound Seahawks in 2020. New York, however, chose to replace McCoy with Mike Glennon — which turned out to be a significant downgrade — in 2021. McCoy completed 74.7% of his passes last season, with both of his wins coming while DeAndre Hopkins was out. McCoy, who turned 36 on Monday, re-signed with the team this offseason on a two-year, $7.5MM deal.
Formerly a Ravens backup, McSorley wound up in Arizona in November 2021; the Cardinals signed him off the Ravens’ practice squad. The team used McSorley frequently during its 2022 preseason but opted to waive him. The former sixth-round pick stayed with the team on a P-squad agreement, but he will now be Murray’s primary backup. McSorley has attempted 10 career passes.
The NFL continues to see quarterback rematches lining its Week 1 schedule. Joe Flacco will now join Russell Wilson and Baker Mayfield in going against a former employer this week.
Flacco will start in place of Zach Wilson in Sunday’s Jets-Ravens tilt, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Although the Jets left the door open to Wilson beginning the season on time, Flacco was viewed as their most likely season-opening starter. The matchup will come against the team with which Flacco spent 11 seasons to start his career.
It will be an extended run for Flacco under center. Robert Saleh said Wednesday the Jets will not have Wilson until at least Week 4. This will bring a second straight season with a prolonged Wilson absence. He missed four games as a rookie. The Jets face the Browns and Bengals in Weeks 2 and 3. Completing their rare all-AFC North start to the season, the Jets face the Steelers in Week 4.
Wilson, who suffered a PCL injury in the Jets’ preseason opener, underwent arthroscopic surgery three weeks ago. Wilson also sustained a knee contusion. Knee trouble was the cause of Wilson’s 2021 hiatus as well. It makes sense for the Jets not to rush the former No. 2 overall pick back and, for this week at least, Flacco starting in the high-end prospect’s place adds intrigue.
Flacco has been gone from Baltimore since 2019, when the Ravens traded him to the Broncos for a fourth-round pick. But he has yet to face his former squad. The Jets, who had initially acquired Flacco in 2020, landed him again — via trade from the Eagles, for a sixth-round choice — in 2021. Flacco re-signed with the Jets, for one year and $3.5MM, in March.
The Jets could save a roster spot by placing Wilson on IR, but that would knock him out for four games. With Wilson’s development being front and center to the Jets’ 2022 cause, the team keeping him on its 53-man roster in hopes of only a three-game absence is logical. Keeping Wilson active will enable him to continue practicing. While the starter continues his recovery, Mike White will be positioned as Flacco’s backup.
Still, this is a tough development for a Jets team eager to see what it has in Wilson. The team has used some high-level resources to build an offense around him. This year alone, the team drafted Garrett Wilson 10th overall and gave Laken Tomlinson a lucrative deal in free agency. The Jets are already without 2020 first-rounder Mekhi Becton for the season. Wilson’s second notable NFL injury adds another bad break for the rebuilding team.
Dawson Knox will not play out a contract year in 2022. The Bills are extending their top tight end, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
The former third-round pick is signing a four-year deal to stay with the team that drafted him. Knox expressed his desire for a second Bills contract earlier this offseason. He will now be tied long-term with Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs, the latter having also signed an extension this year. Knox’s deal is worth $53.6MM and includes $31MM guaranteed, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.
This works out to a $13.4MM-per-year deal. That places Knox near the top of the tight end market but outside the top five. It checks in sixth at the position, coming in behind David Njoku‘s $13.7MM-AAV contract and Hunter Henry‘s 2020 Patriots agreement. Knox, 25, could have potentially positioned himself for a better deal as a 2023 free agent, but he made it clear earlier this year that was not a route he wanted to go.
“First and foremost, I want to be here. I mean, I bought a house here a few months ago, not because I want to be gone in a year,” Knox said this summer. The fourth-year pass catcher had approached the Bills about a new deal. It is not known how long negotiations have transpired, but the Bills have their breakthrough tight end signed for five more seasons now.
Diggs helped key Allen’s rise into one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks in 2020; last season, Knox aided the climb as well. The Ole Miss alum caught 49 passes for 587 yards and nine touchdowns to help the Bills to a second straight AFC East title. Knox tallied two more touchdown grabs in the playoffs.
Although Knox did not top 400 yards in either of his first two seasons, Wednesday morning’s extension indicates the Bills believe the 6-foot-4 target will be able to sustain his 2021 level of play for a while. Knox becomes the latest Ole Miss pass catcher from the 2019 draft class to sign an extension this offseason. A.J. Brown and D.K. Metcalf did so as well.
It certainly did not hurt Knox’s cause that he and Allen are close, and the MVP candidate’s top three targets are now each locked up beyond 2022. Gabe Davis‘ rookie deal runs through the 2023 season. The Bills also re-signed slot/gadget player Isaiah McKenzie this offseason. Jamison Crowder, a free agency pickup, remains in the mix as well.
Knox’s breakout being an indicator a promising career is ahead would check off a key box for a Bills franchise that has not seen too much from the tight end position throughout its modern history. Even going back throughout the team’s 62-season annals, the Bills have never seen a tight end produce an 800-yard year. Only one (Paul Costa in 1967) has surpassed 700. Efforts to establish long-term connections — such as the five-year, $38MM Charles Clay deal in 2015 — have not worked out. The Bills were mentioned as a Zach Ertz trade partner last year, but the team stuck with Knox, who will be locked in as Buffalo’s top tight end for the foreseeable future.
Emmanuel Sanders will not pursue a 13th NFL season. The former Steelers, Broncos, 49ers, Saints and Bills wide receiver announced his retirement Wednesday morning (video link).
While Sanders has been with four teams since the start of the 2019 season, each used the versatile veteran as a starter. The SMU alum helped the 49ers, Saints and Bills venture to the playoffs, most notably trekking to Super Bowl LIV with San Francisco. Sanders’ best statistical seasons came with the Broncos, whom he helped boost to a win in Super Bowl 50.
Sanders, 35, hinted at this possibility in February, after coming off another season as a regular starter. No known discussions took place about a second Sanders Bills contract, but the productive pass catcher was a 13-game starter for a Buffalo team that advanced to the divisional round. The hired gun’s final season produced 626 yards in 14 games. That marked his lowest output since an injury-shortened 2017 season. Sanders will walk away a three-time 1,000-yard receiver and a two-time Pro Bowler.
Faring well as an outside receiver and in the slot during a career that included a host of memorable moments, Sanders also succeeded on the contract front. The Broncos gave him two deals — a free agency accord in 2014 and an extension two years later — with the latter pact worth $33MM over three years. Upon being traded to San Francisco ahead of the 2019 deadline, Sanders made an impact as a key supporting-caster with the 49ers. That work led to a two-year, $16MM Saints contract in 2020. While the Saints bailed on the deal after one season, Sanders caught on with the Bills via a one-year, $6MM deal.
The Steelers used Sanders in a supporting role during his rookie contract but paid Antonio Brown in 2012. While Sanders remained on the WR2 tier for most of his career, the former third-round pick was one of the NFL’s top auxiliary targets for many years. His initial Broncos commitment — a three-year, $15MM agreement that came after the Chiefs nearly signed him — preceded a significant production spike. Replacing departed free agent Eric Decker in 2014, Sanders blew up for a career-high 1,404 receiving yards. He and longtime teammate Demaryius Thomas combined for more than 3,000 yards that year.
Although Peyton Manning‘s prime abruptly ended after that 2014 season, Sanders continued his midcareer boom as the five-time MVP declined in 2015. During Denver’s Super Bowl-winning year, Sanders posted 1,176 yards. As teams focused on Thomas in the playoffs, Sanders (230 receiving yards during the 2015 postseason) became Manning’s top chain-mover en route to the Broncos’ third championship. That production led to Sanders’ big-ticket extension on the eve of Denver’s 2016 opener. The Broncos had Sanders and Thomas each tied to eight-figure per-year deals from 2016-18, and while each again topped 1,000 yards despite Manning’s retirement giving way to Trevor Siemian‘s unexpected 2016 promotion, neither finished out their Broncos extensions.
Denver dealt Thomas at the 2018 deadline and moved Sanders in 2019. The Broncos collected third- and fourth-round picks for Sanders, who tallied 502 yards in 10 49ers games during that season’s stretch run. With Michael Thomas‘ run of injuries beginning in 2020, Sanders was Drew Brees‘ top target in the future Hall of Famer’s final season. Sanders will have retired playing with Manning, Brees and Ben Roethlisberger. It is obviously too early to declare Josh Allen a Hall of Fame-bound player, but Sanders’ career featured some rather high-profile quarterbacks.
Sanders, who played in Super Bowls with three different teams, leaves the game with 704 receptions (52nd all time), 9,245 receiving yards and 51 touchdowns.