HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Buccaneers Likely To Use Franchise Tag On S Antoine Winfield Jr.

February 16th, 2024 at 10:36pm CST by Sam Robinson

Baker Mayfield‘s resurgence gives the Buccaneers a host of tasks to complete this offseason, as a handful of cornerstone players are less than a month from hitting the open market. One of them is unlikely to have that option, regardless of how extension talks play out.

The Bucs are likely to use their franchise tag on Antoine Winfield Jr., according to CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones. The tag window opens Feb. 20 and closes March 5, giving teams the customary two-week period to work out a deal before the tender price goes on their cap sheet. With the safety number on the lower end, Winfield makes more sense as the Bucs’ tag recipient than Mayfield or Mike Evans.

[RELATED: Bucs Eyeing Mayfield Deal Before Free Agency]

Suggested here as the likely Bucs franchise player months ago, Winfield closed out his season with a value-cementing stretch. The second-generation NFL DB scored a first-team All-Pro nod, despite being left off the Pro Bowl roster, and will be in line for top-market money at the position. Derwin James‘ $19MM-per-year pact still holds the No. 1 AAV spot at safety, and Jones notes the Bucs will need to give Winfield a deal on that level to lock him down. Unless the sides can reach a monster extension by 3pm CT on March 5, the tag is likely coming out for the former second-round pick.

The safety tag is on track to check in around $17.2MM this year. That is a more reasonable scenario than tagging Mayfield at nearly $36MM. A Bucs-Mayfield resolution, one both sides want to reach, will need to be agreed to by 11am March 11; the legal tampering period’s launch will allow the Bucs QB to negotiate with other teams. Although Mayfield may not be worth that tag, the Bucs would run the risk of losing him if they cannot agree to terms by that March 11 point.

Winfield broke through with a dominant contract year. The Minnesota alum finished with six sacks and an NFL-leading six forced fumbles, including a goal-line strip of DJ Chark that allowed the Bucs to hold off the Panthers in Week 18 — a win vital to the team’s eventual journey to the divisional round. The 25-year-old defender also established new career-high marks in tackles (122) and interceptions (three) last season. There is not much more he could have done to make a case to become the NFL’s new highest-paid safety.

Last year’s free agency divided the top safeties into two tiers: Jessie Bates and the field. The Falcons gave Bates a four-year, $64MM deal. That could serve as Winfield’s floor in Bucs talks. The top of the safety market has not moved since James’ summer 2022 deal, one that came in just north of Minkah Fitzpatrick‘s 2022 Steelers re-up ($18.2MM per year). The Seahawks erred by giving Jamal Adams a monster extension in 2021 — a $17MM-per-year deal that moved the market considerably — but the Chargers, Steelers and Broncos (Justin Simmons) have benefited from authorizing high-end safety accords. Bates also made an impact in his first Atlanta season.

A starter since Day 1 with the Bucs, Winfield played a key role in Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl LV romp over Kansas City — a win that has aged particularly well in light of the Chiefs’ recent success. He joins Tristan Wirfs in that regard. Tampa Bay’s other impact 2020 draftee is signed through 2024, via the fifth-year option, but looks to be in range to reset the tackle market. Unless the Bucs want to move into a tag situation with Wirfs in 2025, their best bet will be to hammer out a big-ticket extension this offseason. Two market-setting extensions and a major Mayfield raise suddenly changes the equation for the Bucs.

The Bucs have done well to keep their homegrown DBs in recent years. They re-signed cornerbacks Carlton Davis and Jamel Dean in 2022 and 2023, respectively, letting each test the market briefly. While eager to keep Winfield paired with the veteran corners, the Bucs do not look ready to let the dynamic safety talk with other teams come March. Thanks to using void years to restructure Winfield’s rookie contract last summer, a small dead-money bill ($1.6MM) will arrive Monday, Jones adds.

Mayfield and Winfield join Evans and Lavonte David as free agents the Bucs are interested in re-signing. The team holds just more than $36MM, but Jason Licht has been one of the more active GMs on the restructure front in recent years. This was due largely to the team’s effort to load up around Tom Brady and then create necessary cap space after the retired QB’s void years-driven bill came due in 2023. Brady’s contract is now fully off the Bucs’ books, opening the door for the team to pursue new deals with its in-house UFAs-to-be.

L’Jarius Sneed Wants To Stay With Chiefs

February 16th, 2024 at 10:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

Chris Jones emphatically stated he is not eager to leave Kansas City. Though, the Chiefs may need to wade into uncharted waters if they want to keep their star defensive tackle off the market. Thanks to Jones being tagged in 2020, the price of a second tag would come in north of $32MM. In the franchise tag’s 31-year history, only the Ravens (Lamar Jackson, $32.4MM) have tagged a player in that neighborhood.

The tag would be a more logical option for the defending champions when it comes to L’Jarius Sneed. The cornerback tender price is expected to come in just above $18MM. But the Chiefs have been rigid at corner for most of Andy Reid‘s tenure. Sneed said during an appearance on Up & Adams he wants the Chiefs to be the team that pays him, but when pressed by host Kay Adams, the four-year veteran doubted the team had the resources to re-sign both he and Jones (video link).

[RELATED: Chiefs Engaged In Early Sneed Extension Talks]

Sneed delivered a borderline-dominant contract year for the Chiefs, regularly covering No. 1 wide receivers and allowing just a 56.2 passer rating as the closest defender. This did not garner the former fourth-round pick an All-Pro nod or a Pro Bowl honor, to the surprise of many, but he has now started for two Super Bowl-winning teams and been a regular defender in three Super Bowls.

Sneed, 27, has also shown the ability to play in the slot. Although the slot corner market remains in a strange place, Sneed has proven himself on the perimeter and will be one of the top UFAs this year — if the Chiefs let him hit the market. Kansas City holds barely $15MM in cap space, before restructures and other maneuvers inflate that total. With cornerback being one of the game’s most valuable positions, the Louisiana Tech find is close to scoring a payday that tops what his former CB teammates received in free agency.

The Chiefs have methodically kept costs low at corner since Sean Smith‘s contract came off the books nearly 10 years ago. Kansas City traded Marcus Peters in 2018. Since then, starters Steven Nelson, Kendall Fuller and Charvarius Ward have scored their paydays with other teams. Ward, who earned an All-Pro honor in his second 49ers season, signed a three-year deal worth $40.5MM. Spotrac expects Sneed to better that, projecting his second-contract AAV to come in beyond $16MM. That is top-10 cornerback money. The Chiefs going from a rookie-deal-only protocol at corner to authorizing such a pact will be asking a lot, given the success they have had with this formula.

Jones has been far more critical for Kansas City’s Steve Spagnuolo-orchestrated defensive resurgence compared to Sneed, but a reality exists in which the back-to-back champions lose both defenders. Seventh-year GM Brett Veach will aim to avoid this, but the Chiefs have younger corners who can be kept on rookie deals through at least 2025. All-Pro Trent McDuffie would anchor a post-Sneed group, and and part-time contributors Joshua Williams and Jaylen Watson— respectively obtained in the 2022 fourth and seventh rounds — have supplied competent work thus far. Pro Football Focus ranked all four of Kansas City’s regular corners in the top 45 this season.

While the prospect of a Sneed tag has been floated, the Bears being set to cuff Jaylon Johnson would only benefit the impact Chiefs defender. If/when Johnson is tagged, Sneed will likely be the top CB available. The Chiefs have until March 5 to decide on unholstering their tag.

Chris Jones Wants To Remain With Chiefs

February 16th, 2024 at 10:16pm CST by Adam La Rose

FEBRUARY 16: The Chiefs have officially “picked up the option on” Jones’ contract, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. As mentioned below, the move was expected, as it allows Kansas City the option to franchise tag Jones moving forward. The move also pays out $4.25MM of incentives that Jones earned over the 2023 NFL season.

Tagging Jones still doesn’t appear to be the preferred route after he was previously tagged in 2020, and should the team choose not to exercise that option, Jones will be set to test free agency.

FEBRUARY 15: Chris Jones is currently slated to be one of the top defenders in the 2024 free agent class. Kansas City is aiming to retain him, however, and the desire for a new deal appears to be mutual.

When speaking at the team’s Super Bowl parade, Jones made it clear he intends to remain with the Chiefs for the foreseeable future (video link). His remarks carry less weight than tangible progress in contract talks, of course, but they point to a continued path existing for a new deal to be worked out. Finalizing an agreement is among the team’s top priorities, something head coach Andy Reid has confirmed.

“Yeah, listen, I think [general manager Brett] Veach has said it before — we’d love to have him back,” Reid said on Wednesday (video link). “They’ve just got to work all that out. But I think the effort will be there probably on both parts to try to get something done.”

Jones’ contract holdout left him out of the lineup for Week 1 of the 2023 season as he attempted to land a long-term deal at or near the level of Aaron Donald in terms of compensation. The Chiefs aimed for a lower AAV, and the parties ultimately reached a one-year agreement which left a franchise tag as an option for 2024. Such a move would come as a surprise, though, since it would cost more than $32MM due to Jones previously being tagged in 2020.

Talks with Jones on a deal which would provide multi-year clarity will, of course, be complicated by the fact L’Jarius Sneed is also set to reach the open market. The latter has proven himself to be a key member of one of the league’s best cornerback tandems while playing alongside 2022 first-rounder Trent McDuffie. Sneed could command a lucrative long-term pact with the Chiefs or another team if he were to reach free agency, but Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda notes the franchise tag could be in play in his case. The CB tag is slated to cost roughly $18.4MM in 2024, but Pauline writes there was chatter at the Senior Bowl Kansas City could use it to at least buy time to continue contract talks.

The Chiefs are currently mid-pack in terms of projected cap space, though new much of the team’s available resources will be needed to re-sign Jones and/or Sneed. Cost-shedding moves will take place in Kansas City in the near future, but the offseason will be defined in large part by the progress of talks with the two defensive stalwarts.

Seahawks Updates: Schneider, Walker, Jackson, Polamalu

February 16th, 2024 at 10:00pm CST by Ely Allen

With the departure of long-time head coach Pete Carroll, who played a distinct role in the team’s roster decisions over the years, Seahawks general manager John Schneider has been handed the reins for personnel in the new regime moving forward. Schneider now also holds a new title. Previously the general manager and executive vice president, Schneider’s new role sees him take on the president of football operations title for 2024, per Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times.

According to Schneider, his new role “largely signifies (that the) coaching staff now reports to him.” The staff used to report to Carroll, but Schneider reportedly had it put into his contract six or seven years ago that he would inherit that responsibility when Carroll’s tenure ended.

While he will now function as their supervisor, Schneider claims that his role in the process of hiring assistant coaches is “very much like support.” He says that the staff will be of new head coach Mike Macdonald‘s making.

Here are a few other staff updates from the Emerald City:

  • The Seahawks interviewed Raiders offensive assistant Fred Walker for their vacant quarterbacks coaching job, according to Jonathan Jones of NFL on CBS. In several previous college coaching jobs, Walker’s focus was often on quarterbacks, working with such passers as former Duke Blue Devil Daniel Jones and former Mississippi State star Dak Prescott. He has spent two years in Las Vegas and is looking to earn his first NFL position coaching gig.
  • Also on offense, Seattle is making the move to hire Frisman Jackson as their new wide receivers coach, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. This will be Jackson’s fourth NFL receivers job. While his first NFL coaching season in Tennessee saw an uninspired group of Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker, and Corey Davis put up pedestrian numbers, Jackson followed that up with a 2020 season in Carolina that saw D.J. Moore and Robbie Chosen reach the 1,000-yard mark with Curtis Samuel (851 yards) not far behind. He spent the past two years mentoring Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, and company in Pittsburgh.
  • Finally, the Seahawks are set to add veteran NFL running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu to the same position in Macdonald’s new staff, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Polamalu has a strong history of building running back tandems over his time in the NFL. After first breaking into the league with the Browns in 2004, Polamalu spent five years coaching up a legendary tandem of Fred Taylor–Maurice Jones-Drew in Jacksonville. After returning to the college ranks for a spell, Polamalu came back to the NFL to build the Dalvin Cook–Alexander Mattison tandem in Minnesota. He’s spent the last two years coaching Josh Jacobs and the Raiders’ backs in Vegas but was not retained when Antonio Pierce took over as the official head coach following his interim tenure.

NFL Draft Rumors: Tackles, Senior Bowl, Rakestraw

February 16th, 2024 at 8:24pm CST by Ely Allen

The 2024 NFL Draft class may feel relatively light at certain positions like quarterback and running back, but there’s one position that has scouts and coaches excited. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, this year’s offensive tackles group has the potential to match 2020’s class, which saw six tackles selected in the first round.

Four names have been regarded as likely first-rounders for about a year now, so the projections of Notre Dame’s Joe Alt (ranks 6th overall in Dane Brugler of The Athletic’s top 100 prospects), Penn State’s Olu Fashanu (9th), Alabama’s JC Latham (13th), and Georgia’s Amarius Mims (17th) come as no surprise. After some impressive performances in Mobile, Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga (16th) and Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton (18th) have joined those four in the range of the first round.

The top-end depth doesn’t end there, either. There are several other prospects that sit just outside that first-round range in Brugler’s rankings that still find themselves in consideration to be Day 1 picks because of strong Senior Bowl performances and a general interest in the position. Arizona’s Jordan Morgan (32nd), Houston’s Patrick Paul (55th), and Texas’ Christian Jones (NR) all sit on that fringe, according to Fowler.

With these nine guys and still more others pushing for Day 1 money, we’re bound to see a change in recent trends of five or fewer tackles taken in the first round. Even if this year’s class fails to match 2020’s six first-round picks, which seems unlikely as of now, the depth in the first two rounds of this class have a lot of teams excited about what’s available.

Here are a couple of other draft rumors from around the country, starting with more updates out of Mobile:

  • In a mailbag Q&A this week, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer gave his take on some prospects who improved their standing after this year’s Senior Bowl. Breer sees Fuaga and Toledo cornerback Quinyon Mitchell (11th in Brugler’s rankings) as big risers coming out of Mobile. While both players were already expected to be Day 1 picks, Breer believes that they’ve played their way into the top half of the first round. He also touts Michigan wide receiver Roman Wilson (45th) as a recent riser. While Wilson may not hear his name called in the first round, Breer thinks he may have pushed his way up to the second.
  • One player who wasn’t able to improve his stock at the Senior Bowl was Missouri cornerback Ennis Rakestraw (48th). Rakestraw had been dealing with a core muscle injury for much of his redshirt junior year before opting to undergo surgery at the close of the season in December, according to Matt Miller of ESPN. After missing out on the college all-star game due to the surgery, Rakestraw, who has been considered a fringe first-rounder, was unable to secure his potential Day 1 status. The young corner has shown a resiliency in coming back from an ACL tear his sophomore year, but his injury history may be enough to push him into the second round.

NFC Coaching Notes: Eagles, Clay, Pettine, Vikings, Panthers, Giants, Lions, Rams

February 16th, 2024 at 4:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Eagles‘ changes at offensive and defensive coordinator show how quickly job security can evaporate in the NFL, and Nick Sirianni‘s seat has heated up as a result. But the Eagles are not changing out all their coordinators. They will extend special teams boss Michael Clay, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. This marks the second straight year in which the Eagles have extended Clay, who is going into his fourth season as their ST coordinator. Just 32, Clay has been a special teams coach in the NFL since 2015, serving as the 49ers’ assistant ST coach for five years. Clay debuted with the Eagles, however, joining Chip Kelly‘s staff in 2014. The Eagles vaulted from 31st to 10th on Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams rankings in 2023.

Philly is adding former Titans inside linebackers coach Bobby King to their staff, ESPN.com’s Tim McManus tweets. While Brian Callahan kept a handful of Mike Vrabel assistants, he did not retain King. Under King’s guidance last season, Titans free agency pickup Azeez Al-Shaair tallied 163 tackles — the most by anyone during the franchise’s 25-season Titans period.

Here is the latest from the coaching ranks:

  • Fired as the Jaguars’ defensive pass-game coordinator last month, Deshea Townsend has another gig lined up. The Lions are hiring the former NFL cornerback in the same capacity, Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz tweets. Townsend, who won two Super Bowls during his 12-year Steelers run as a player, has been in coaching since his 2011 retirement. Prior to his two-year Jacksonville stay, Townsend coached DBs with the Bears, Giants and Titans and Cardinals. The Lions recently lost DBs coach Brian Duker to the Dolphins.
  • After working as a Vikings senior defensive assistant over the past two years, Mike Pettine will have a more defined role this year in Minnesota. The Vikings announced the veteran DC and ex-Browns HC will be their outside linebackers coach in 2024. Still carrying an assistant HC title, Pettine worked with the Vikes’ OLBs under Brian Flores last season. This will be the 57-year-old coach’s 22nd season in the NFL.
  • The Vikings also hired Marcus Dixon to be their defensive line coach. Brought over from the Broncos, Dixon was a Nathaniel Hackett hire in Denver. Ejiro Evero took Dixon with him from the Rams in 2022; he served as the Broncos’ D-line coach for two years. The Broncos are losing their only two pre-Sean Payton defensive assistants this offseason, seeing DBs coach Christian Parker rejoin Vic Fangio in Philadelphia. Evero tried to take both Parker and Dixon with him to the Panthers last year, per 9News’ Mike Klis, but the Broncos blocked the effort and kept them around to work under Vance Joseph.
  • The Giants are doling out some new titles. QBs coach Shea Tierney and DBs coach Jerome Henderson will respectively serve as the team’s offensive and defensive pass-game coordinators. Henderson has been with the Giants since 2020, while Tierney came over from the Bills with Brian Daboll. The Giants also moved former safety Mike Adams from assistant secondary coach to assistant DBs coach.
  • Additionally, Big Blue hired Charlie Bullen to replace Drew Wilkins as outside linebackers coach. Daboll fired Wilkins, a longtime Don Martindale right-hand man, and that choice keyed an explosive conclusion to the Daboll-Martindale relationship. Wilkins is now with the Patriots. Bullen spent last season as Illinois’ OLBs coach; he spent the previous four years coaching linebackers with the Cardinals. The veteran assistant previously worked with Dolphins LBs under Joe Philbin and Adam Gase.
  • The Rams recently interviewed former Packers pass-game coordinator Greg Williams for their inside linebackers coach gig, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones notes. This is not the ex-St. Louis Rams DC better known for Bountygate; the two-G Greg Williams spent time with the Broncos and Cardinals prior to spending last season in Green Bay.

Chiefs Extend ST Coordinator Dave Toub

February 16th, 2024 at 2:19pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chiefs employ three coordinators who were once on the head coaching radar only to have settled in as veteran assistants. After extending Steve Spagnuolo earlier this week, the two-time reigning champions have locked down their special teams coordinator.

Dave Toub has signed a new deal with the Chiefs, the team announced. This will allow the longtime Andy Reid assistant to coach a 12th season with the team. Reid brought Toub to Missouri upon taking the job in 2013. His new deal will cover three years, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter tweets.

Special teams coaches rarely find their way into HC consideration, John Harbaugh‘s 15-plus-year Ravens stay notwithstanding, but Toub was on that radar several years ago. The Broncos and Chargers met with him in 2017, and after the Colts’ Josh McDaniels choice fizzled a year later, Toub emerged on Indianapolis’ radar. None of those connections produced a hire, keeping one of the league’s top ST coaches in Kansas City.

The Chiefs checked in at 14th on Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams rankings in 2023. After being ranked last in that cumulative score in 2022, Kansas City came through with two special teams plays to make its Super Bowl LVII win possible. Skyy Moore‘s punt return late in the fourth quarter against the Bengals helped a gimpy Patrick Mahomes — with a notable assist from Joseph Ossai‘s ensuing late hit — do enough to move the Chiefs into field goal range in the 2022 AFC championship game. Kadarius Toney then set a Super Bowl record with a 65-yard punt return, setting up a walk-in Moore score in the fourth quarter against the Eagles.

Toub, 61, initially coached with Reid on the Eagles from 2001-03. He spent the following nine season as the Bears’ STC. The Chiefs now have Spagnuolo going into his sixth season as DC and Matt Nagy — who joined Spagnuolo in not being tied to any HC jobs this year — set for his fourth year (over two stints) as OC. With the Chiefs set to eye the first threepeat in the Super Bowl era, Reid and his top lieutenants will all be back for that push.

Saints To Hire Rick Dennison

February 16th, 2024 at 1:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

New Saints OC Klint Kubiak is bringing a familiar staffer with him to New Orleans. Rick Dennison will return to coaching, re-emerging after two seasons out of the league.

The Saints are hiring Dennison as their run-game coordinator on offense, Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz tweets. Dennison has an extensive past with Gary Kubiak and Mike Shanahan, who played the lead roles in shaping the offense that has caught on thanks to the rises of Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay.

Dennison, 65, will head to New Orleans as a four-time offensive coordinator. While Dennison’s OC days are probably over, his commitment to join Klint Kubiak with the NFC South team provides a fairly strong indication into the type of offense the new OC plans to implement. Dennison worked with both Kubiaks in Minnesota, being the Vikings’ O-line coach and run-game coordinator from 2019-20. He was on as a senior offensive assistant in 2021.

Mike Shanahan employed Dennison as an assistant throughout his 14-year stay as Broncos HC. The former Broncos linebacker was not in place as offensive line coach when a dominant Denver O-line helped Terrell Davis to the Hall of Fame, though he was in that role as the back half of the team’s assembly line of 1,000-yard rushers formed under Shanahan. The Broncos promoted Dennison to OC in 2006, and he rejoined Gary Kubiak in Houston in 2010. Dennison’s stay as Texans OC overlapped with Arian Foster‘s ascent, which included a rushing title, with the Texans.

Dennison carries three Super Bowl rings from his Broncos days, picking up No. 3 as Gary Kubiak’s non-play-calling OC in 2015. The Bills employed Dennison as a play-calling OC in Sean McDermott‘s first season (2017) but fired him after one season, leading to the Brian Daboll hire. The Bills ranked 22nd offensively under Dennison but sixth on the ground, as LeSean McCoy motored to another Pro Bowl in Buffalo. Dennison came under fire in 2021, refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The Vikings were believed to have kept Dennison on staff but moved him out of his role as O-line coach as a result, as coaches needed to be vaccinated to work directly with players that year.

The Saints are also hiring former Chargers assistant Derrick Foster as their running backs coach, 247Sports.com’s Matt Zenitz tweets. They recently interviewed Keith Williams for their wide receivers coach position as well, NewOrleans.football’s Nick Underhill adds. Williams worked as the Ravens’ assistant wideouts coach last season, being hired during Greg Roman‘s OC tenure but moved to that job under Todd Monken. Williams was also on Pat Hill’s Fresno State staff from 2009-11, a period that overlapped with Derek Carr‘s years with the program.

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