2024 March - Pro Football Rumors

Month: November 2024

Browns Nearing Extensions With Kevin Stefanski, GM Andrew Berry

March 25th, 2024 at 10:19pm CST by Sam Robinson

Notorious for making GM and HC changes during their time as Browns owners, Jimmy and Dee Haslam are close to finalizing agreements to keep their current decision-makers in place.

Rumors surfaced about about extensions for Andrew Berry and Kevin Stefanski in February; the Haslams said Monday (via cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot) the deals are close to being completed. This would be a rare development for a Browns franchise that has not seen many coaches or GMs worthy of extensions since rebooting in 1999.

Since Jimmy Haslam acquired the Browns in October 2012, he has employed six full-time head coaches (Pat Shurmur, Rob Chudzinski, Mike Pettine, Hue Jackson, Freddie Kitchens, Stefanski) and six front office bosses (Tom Heckert, Michael Lombardi, Ray Farmer, Sashi Brown, John Dorsey, Berry). Before the Stefanski-Berry tandem, none of the Haslam-era HCs or GMs made it through a third season. Extensions were not exactly on the radar, but the Stefanski-Berry partnership has bucked the trend.

The Browns are 2-for-4 in playoff berths since hiring Berry and Stefanski in 2020; they were previously 1-for-21 since the NFL gave Cleveland an expansion franchise in 1999. While the Browns have not seen their Deshaun Watson move pay off yet, ownership still appears comfortable with handing out its extensions for a head coach or general manager.

Coming in as yet another HC-GM pairing (Dorsey-Kitchens) did not pan out, Berry and Stefanski saw their first offseason precede the Browns’ first playoff berth since 2002. Stefanski earned Coach of the Year honors that year and has since collected a second such honor, doing so as the Browns lost Watson, Nick Chubb and both starting tackles yet advanced to the postseason anyway. Stefanski coaxing stunning play from Joe Flacco, who lingered in free agency until November, secured the ex-Vikings OC the second award. It looks like the latter offering, which came three years after Stefanski helped Baker Mayfield rebound from a woeful 2019 season, will lead to a second Cleveland contract.

Berry’s extension case is a bit more complicated. He has been the GM in place for the team’s recent upswing, having helped build up a high-end offensive line. Berry was in place for the Jack Conklin signing and hammered out the extensions for Wyatt Teller and Joel Bitonio. Berry also extended Dorsey draftees Chubb and Denzel Ward. Of course, the Watson move has been Berry’s defining act as GM. Jimmy Haslam also placed the idea on fully guaranteeing Watson’s $230MM contract at Berry’s feet.

Berry is one of the NFL’s youngest GMs, at 36. He also was in place as a Brown lieutenant as the team attempted one of the more radical rebuilds in NFL history. Berry was with the Browns during their infamous 1-31 stretch from 2016-17, holding the VP of player personnel title during that period. He left to join the Eagles, returning in 2020 to become a GM at just 33. While his second Cleveland run has brought QB hiccups, the Browns assembled a quality roster — one DC Jim Schwartz helped maximize last season — as they have attempted to fix the signal-caller concerns.

Given the early returns on that controversial trade, hatching the idea of fully guaranteeing Watson’s deal could shift to blame soon. But the Browns retooled their coaching staff to better accommodate Watson this offseason; the Berry-Stefanski pairing will have a chance to continue this path beyond their initial Browns deals. Despite struggles in 2021 and ’22 due largely to Mayfield’s shoulder injury and then Watson’s 11-game suspension, the Browns are moving forward with contracts that will presumably run into the late 2020s.

Giants Owner John Mara OKs First-Round QB

March 25th, 2024 at 10:00pm CST by Ely Allen

The Giants’ quarterback situation in 2024 is, as usual, an interesting one. For the sixth year in a row, it seems like New York will enter the season with a plan to start Daniel Jones at quarterback while also hedging their bets a bit. To wit, team owner John Mara reportedly gave his coaching staff and personnel department the green light to draft a quarterback with their No. 6 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.

With a top-ten selection in a strong quarterback class, the opportunity is certainly there to add one of the draft’s top quarterbacks. Unfortunately, a strong quarterback class doesn’t mean a deep one. Due to NIL opportunities convincing mid- to late-round passers to stay in school, this year’s quarterbacks crop is a bit top-heavy, so if you need to add a young arm to the roster, you may be forced to do so early.

It appears that seems to be the plan in New York. The team has hosted Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy and North Carolina’s Drake Maye, both favorites at one point to go No. 2 overall behind USC quarterback Caleb Williams. Although it would likely take a massive trade to acquire him, the Giants have done their homework on Williams, as well, sending general manager Joe Schoen to his pro day in Los Angeles.

Regardless of the work being put in by the team’s personnel group, the plan is for Jones to be under center in Week 1 of the 2024 season. Mara has been adamant recently in his belief in Jones, citing the quarterback’s 2022 season as an indicator of what the 26-year-old is capable of doing in an interview with Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. This won’t stop the team from adding to the room this offseason as Jones works his way back from a torn ACL.

Still, this past season is also an example of what we’ve seen with Jones in his career. Including the 2022 season, in which he sat out Week 18 before the playoffs, Jones has yet to play in every game of an NFL season. Ignoring the technicality of the 2022 absence, Jones has still missed 23 of a possible 83 regular season games through the first five years of his career. This season also saw the troubling return of Jones’ struggles with turnovers, though the team points to his injuries this season as the cause for that. You can have all the confidence in the world in Jones, but it’s still smart to consider investing in a young arm in case Jones continues to miss games or in case the Jones from 2022 never shows up again.

In addition to voicing his support for Jones, Mara also backed head coach Brian Daboll after a turbulent 2023 season. According to Connor Hughes of SNY, while he sometimes wishes Daboll would “tone it down,” Mara doesn’t believe that the coach acts irrationally and hasn’t asked him to change.

RB Damien Harris Retires At 27

March 25th, 2024 at 8:27pm CST by Ely Allen

On Instagram today, former Patriots and Bills running back Damien Harris made the announcement that he would be retiring from the NFL. It’s a short, five-year playing career for the 27-year-old from Kentucky, but it’s one he can look back on with pride.

Harris entered the NFL after a four-year collegiate career at Alabama. After sitting behind Derrick Henry as a true freshman, Harris took over lead back duties for the Crimson Tide, rushing for 2,040 yards and 13 touchdowns over the next two years. Increased roles from Josh Jacobs and Najee Harris meant decreased production for Damien as a senior, but he still led the team in carries and yards. He left Tuscaloosa with two rings denoting national championships.

As a third-round rookie for the Patriots, Harris saw very little action behind Sony Michel, James White, and Rex Burkhead during Tom Brady‘s final season in New England. An injury to Michel and a new offense led by Cam Newton allowed Harris to take lead back duties in his sophomore season. In his third year, with a rookie Mac Jones, Harris delivered his career-defining season, rushing for 929 yards and an eye-catching 15 touchdowns, all while a rookie Rhamondre Stevenson also got his share with 606 yards and five touchdowns. A bigger role in Stevenson’s sophomore season meant a reduced role for Harris, who was hampered with a hamstring injury early in the season.

His rookie contract over, Harris signed a one-year deal with his first team’s division rival, the Bills. Buffalo brought Harris in to serve the same RB2 role he had played behind Stevenson but with James Cook now taking RB1 snaps in front of him. Unfortunately, in mid-October, Harris suffered an awkward-looking stinger that created a scene immediately reminiscent of Damar Hamlin. While Harris remained conscious, he was ruled out with a neck injury and taken to the hospital for further testing. He was placed on injured reserve and wouldn’t return for the remainder of the season.

It’s unclear whether or not this serious neck injury has anything to do with Harris’ decision to hang up his cleats. Perhaps, in the near future, Harris will disclose the reasons behind his decision, but for now, he used the text in his Instagram post, rightfully, to thank his coaches, trainers, teammates, and family. His post ends with a promising “y’all will be seeing me soon,” perhaps hinting at a future role in coaching or the like.

Texans Sign CB Myles Bryant

March 25th, 2024 at 7:30pm CST by Ely Allen

After watching three of their top five cornerbacks depart in free agency, the Texans continue to retool the room around Derek Stingley and Desmond King. They’ve brought in a number of players to replace the production lost through the free agency of Steven Nelson, Shaquill Griffin, and Tavierre Thomas, and the latest to join the crew is former Patriots cornerback Myles Bryant. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tells us that he’ll head to Houston on a one-year deal.

The Patriots leaned heavily on Bryant last season, using him on 128 more defensive snaps than the next closest cornerback. The team entered 2023 with Jack Jones, Jonathan Jones, and rookie first-round pick Christian Gonzalez leading the position room. They also figured that Marcus Jones could step in if any of those three were forced to miss any time and that Bryant would be relied on after all that.

Jack Jones only appeared in four games, getting placed on injured reserve and ultimately being waived from the team. Gonzalez went down with a season-ending injury, also only playing in four contests. Marcus Jones only appeared in two games before being placed on IR for the remainder of the season. Just like that, Jonathan Jones and Bryant were the top two corners on the team.

Bryant, a former undrafted player out of Washington, availed himself quite well in his first extended action as a starter, grading out as the 54th-best cornerback in the league, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), not a bad showing for someone who was expected to serve the season as CB5 on the depth chart. He had also started six of the final nine games of New England’s 2022 season but really only served time in certain packages. The team had no choice but to deploy him full-time in 2023, and Bryant responded with his strongest season to date. In the last two years, he has two interceptions, 13 passes defensed, 147 total tackles, and seven tackles for loss.

In Houston, Bryant will have an opportunity to compete for a starting role once again. The Texans return Stingley as a starter on the outside and King, who shared a big role in the slot with Thomas. The team brought in Jeff Okudah and C.J. Henderson to compete for the outside corner job opposite Stingley, and while Bryant can play on the outside, he spent most of his time in the slot last year, so he’ll likely fill the role of the departed Thomas, sharing the nickelback job with King while adding depth on the outside.

Bryant arrives as the fourth new cornerback to the roster in a new-look group in Houston. He’ll take his newly acquired starting experience from New England and try to work it into another starting job with the Texans. He also brings in experience as a punt returner, but with a healthy Tank Dell, Houston likely won’t need him there.

Eagles Sign DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson

March 25th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Ben Levine

MARCH 25: The Eagles will guarantee Gardner-Johnson $10MM on this deal, 94WIP.com’s Eliot Shorr-Parks tweets. The team used void years through 2029 to spread out the cap hits.

MARCH 12: C.J. Gardner-Johnson is heading back to Philly. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that the veteran defensive back is signing with the Eagles.

The veteran is inking a three-year deal worth up to $33MM, according to Pelissero. Following a one-year stop in Detroit, Gardner-Johnson is now back with his former squad.

After getting traded by the Saints to the Eagles prior to the 2022 campaign, Gardner-Johnson proceeded to start 12 games for Philadelphia, missing a chunk of midseason games thanks to a lacerated kidney. Despite the absence, he finished the season with 67 tackles and a league-leading six interceptions. He also started each of the Eagles’ three playoff games, including a Super Bowl loss where he compiled four tackles.

That performance earned him a one-year, $8MM contract from the Lions last offseason. However, his lone season in Detroit was highlighted by injuries. He suffered a non-contact injury during training camp that was expected to wipe out his season, but the MRI provided a brighter outlook. Gardner-Johnson was able to return in time for the start of the regular season, but he suffered a torn pectoral muscle in Week 2 that wiped out most of the campaign.

He got back to the field for the regular season finale, and he subsequently played in at least 50 percent of Detroit’s defensive snaps in each of their three playoff games. The 26-year-old still showed he had something left in the tank during the postseason, collecting 12 tackles and an interception.

The Eagles still have Darius Slay and James Bradberry atop their depth chart, but the team did lose some depth when they cut Avonte Maddox last week. Gardner-Johnson’s experience will likely provide him with a path to plenty of playing time as a backup or nickelback.

Panthers Still Pursuing Jadeveon Clowney

March 25th, 2024 at 3:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Panthers have made multiple additions at outside linebacker, but given what the team lost, more help will be needed ahead of Week 1. One such pursuit is ongoing, despite some notable interest from another team.

Carolina is still in on the Jadeveon Clowney market, with GM Dan Morgan indicating Monday (via The Athletic’s Joe Person) the team is staying in touch with the former No. 1 overall pick’s camp. The Panthers hosted Clowney on a visit early in free agency, but as of late, the Jets have been the team most closely connected to the veteran edge rusher.

A recent report indicated the Jets are “highly motivated” to land Clowney, with the sides being in constant contact since a recent meeting took place. The Panthers met with the South Carolina native first, doing so on the same day they hosted Chase Young and D.J. Wonnum. Young signed with the Saints, with a neck issue affecting his market; no team cleared Young on a physical this offseason. Wonnum did commit to Carolina, which also took a flier on former Jacksonville first-rounder K’Lavon Chaisson. But these two would not form a starter-caliber edge duo, keeping the Panthers in the market for an upgrade.

The Panthers, of course, traded Brian Burns to the Giants for a 2024 second-round pick, a 2024 fifth-rounder and a swap of 2025 fifths. This brought an underwhelming conclusion — from the Panthers’ end, at least — to a saga that famously included a Rams offer of two first-rounders and a third back in 2022. Former starter Yetur Gross-Matos, who could not quite justify the Panthers’ second-round investment, also signed a two-year, $18MM deal with the 49ers.

Clowney, 31, has a history of taking his time in free agency. A lucrative extension or free agency agreement never materialized for the one-time mega-prospect; instead, he has made quite a bit of money hopping around the league on one-year deals. If Clowney lands another one-year pact, it would be his fifth. He also played the 2019 season — with the Seahawks — on the franchise tag. Clowney waited until September 2020 to join the Titans while agreeing to his two Browns contracts in April 2021 and May 2022. He did not join the Ravens last year until August, forming a duo of late-summer OLB acquisitions with Kyle Van Noy.

Both Clowney and Van Noy were productive in Baltimore, which will likely lead to a better 2024 deal compared to his 2023 payment ($2.5MM). Clowney matched his career high with 9.5 sacks. Carolina totaled just 27 as a team; Burns was responsible for eight of those. The Panthers will likely look to the draft as well here, though they do not have a first-round pick, but Clowney would represent a nice stopgap solution for Ejiro Evero this season.

Rams Planning To Have QB Stetson Bennett At Offseason Workouts

March 25th, 2024 at 3:24pm CST by Sam Robinson

Stetson Bennett disappeared from the Rams’ depth chart in September, going from a player who had a path to becoming Matthew Stafford‘s backup to one out of the mix entirely. Last year’s stay on the Rams’ reserve/NFI list further delayed the NFL career of a player who spent six years in college.

It is not clear what led Bennett off the Rams’ roster in September, but in January, Sean McVay stopped short of guaranteeing the two-time national championship-winning quarterback would be with the team in 2024. GM Les Snead provided an update on Bennett from the league meetings today, indicating (via the Los Angeles Times’ Gary Klein) the Rams expect the reserve QB to be with them for offseason workouts. Bennett has been preparing for Rams workouts in Dallas.

The Rams targeted Bennett as a potential long-term Stafford backup last year, drafting him in the fifth round. The team had done extensive scouting on a player that, despite his status as a multiyear Georgia starter during the most dominant stretch in that program’s history, was not on early-round draft radars. Bennett, who began his time at Georgia as a walk-on before spending time at a junior college, will also turn 27 later this year. That obviously would put him on track to begin his career later than most QBs in NFL history, but the prospect of Bennett being ready to resume his career is certainly encouraging for the Rams.

A route to Bennett being the Rams’ QB2 does not appear to exist right now. The team gave Jimmy Garoppolo a one-year, $4.5MM deal to replace Carson Wentz as Stafford’s backup. (The team also retained reserve Dresser Winn via a futures contract.) Stafford’s injury history made the acquisition of a veteran backup rather important, and Bennett’s NFI placement last year qualifies him an unreliable option. But the Rams hope to see more of the former SEC standout soon.

Elsewhere on the Rams’ roster, the previously mentioned Ernest Jones extension talks do not appear to have brought progress. Snead said the team is not planning to extend the contract-year linebacker in 2024. “We prioritized spending our resources on additions rather than re-signing from within,” Snead said, via ESPN.com’s Sarah Barshop.

GM-speak generally preaches the inverse of this strategy, making it interesting Snead would indicate months in advance the Rams were not planning to extend Jones. The former third-round pick has shown improvement, putting together his best season in 2023. But the Rams have a history — during the McVay years, at least — of letting linebackers and safeties fetch their second contracts elsewhere. Among linebackers, Cory Littleton‘s 2020 free agency exit best represents this strategy.

The team’s previous blueprint featured a host of stars coming in, and their contracts made hitting on Day 2 and Day 3 rookies paramount. Jones has become one of those hits, but as of now, he will be looking to audition for other teams — though, the Rams still retain exclusive negotiating rights until March 2025 — rather than being the focus of 2024 extension talks.

Offers Come In For Jets’ Zach Wilson

March 25th, 2024 at 2:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

With a $5.45MM guarantee due for Zach Wilson, the Jets are unlikely to receive much in the way of trade compensation for a player on track to become one of the biggest whiffs in modern draft history. But it does appear some interest exists.

Offers have indeed emerged, with Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio indicating the team has received proposals for the former No. 2 overall pick. These proposals have not intrigued the Jets, and Joe Douglas said Monday (via NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo) the team is not close to hammering out a trade. The Jets gave Wilson permission to seek a trade during the Combine.

Woody Johnson may be a factor in Wilson not being moved. While the compensation being proposed is not known, Florio adds the owner is believed by some as the person preventing a deal from coming to pass. This would certainly be an interesting development, given Johnson’s comments about Wilson’s 2023 ineffectiveness. That said, Johnson was also believed to be the person who stood in the way of the Jets making an effort to acquire a better backup QB — due to the money poured into Aaron Rodgers — once the team’s future Hall of Fame passer went down in Week 1.

While denying he has nixed any trade — instead pointing to any such efforts being Douglas’ call — Johnson said Monday (via the New York Post’s Brian Costello) the Jets will keep Wilson if they cannot find a trade partner. It has long been expected the BYU alum will not be part of the 2024 Jets, and with trade offers potentially in the mix, it would seem the Jets have a way out without releasing the disappointing passer.

“I feel badly about Zach in some ways,” Johnson said. “Last year would have been great, it would have been the first time he could just sit back and watch a master at work. He’s never had that. He’s been in the fire from Day 1. I think that’s what he needs. He needs to be in a place where he can observe for a while. He’s got the skill. He can do everything. There’s a reason we drafted him at No. 2 overall. I have confidence that he’ll get there at some point.”

It is possible teams want the Jets to remain responsible for most of Wilson’s guarantee. Should Johnson have a potential role in Wilson remaining on the Jets, the financial component may be driving that. For now, Wilson would not have an immediate path to playing time as a Jet once again. The team gave Tyrod Taylor a two-year, $12MM deal to back up Rodgers, ending Wilson’s period in the New York spotlight after three woeful seasons.

Steelers Sign QB Kyle Allen, DL Dean Lowry

March 25th, 2024 at 1:41pm CST by Sam Robinson

Moving on from their entire 2023 quarterback group, the Steelers have an interesting replacement setup on tap. Russell Wilson and Justin Fields comprise the core components of the 2024 QB room, but the team added a third piece Monday.

Kyle Allen is joining the Steelers, per ESPN.com’s Brooke Pryor. The well-traveled passer spent last season with the Bills as Josh Allen‘s backup. As long as both Wilson and Fields are on the Steelers, the former Carolina, Washington and Houston backup stands to hold steady at No. 3 on Pittsburgh’s depth chart.

Additionally, GM Omar Khan said the team is adding defensive lineman Dean Lowry as well. An eight-year veteran, Lowry operated as a Packers D-line starter for several seasons. He signed a two-year Vikings deal in 2023 but found himself a cap casualty earlier this month.

To close last season, the Bills’ two-Allen plan comprised the depth chart on the AFC East champions’ active roster. The team dressed only the Allens at QB against Pittsburgh in the wild-card round. With Mitch Trubisky moving from a Steelers cut back into a role as the Bills’ QB2, Kyle Allen is on the move. The six-year veteran, as of now, has a clear path to becoming the Steelers’ QB3.

A former UDFA, Allen has 19 starts on his resume. Most of them came for the 2019 Panthers, who lost Cam Newton to a season-ending foot injury early that year. Allen then followed Ron Rivera to Washington, factoring into a QB room housing Dwayne Haskins and Alex Smith. Both 2020 Washington passers were out of the picture by 2021, with Haskins a backup in Pittsburgh and Smith retiring. Allen stood as Taylor Heinicke‘s backup for most of the ’21 season. He overtook Davis Mills as a Texans starter for two games in 2022 but ceded the job back to the former third-round pick soon after, ultimately relocating as the team signed Case Keenum last year.

Over his career, Allen is a 62.6% passer who is 7-12 as a starter. He has thrown 26 touchdown passes, a number that notably tops Kenny Pickett‘s total amassed in 24 career starts, compared to 21 INTs. Unless the Steelers part with Wilson or Fields this year, Allen would seem positioned as a third-stringer. The Steelers also may look to the draft to round out this position, but considering they have expressed interest in having both Wilson and Fields come back for 2025 — a setup that would seem untenable — a rookie arm may not be in the cards next month.

Lowry, 29, made 80 starts for the Packers from 2017-22. The former fourth-round pick was one of the more durable players during much of this stretch, not missing a game from 2017-21. Lowry played opposite Kenny Clark in the Packers’ 3-4 scheme and was brought in to start in Minnesota. But Lowry’s two-year, $8.5MM contract only produced four starts. The Vikings benched the veteran interior D-lineman, who needed an IR stint for a second straight season.

The longtime Green Bay starter needed pectoral surgery while in Minnesota, but Jonathan Bullard had seen more time up front last year. Lowry’s ironman run ended late in the 2022 season, when he sustained a calf injury. During his most recent full season (2021), Lowry totaled five sacks and four pass deflections. He started for three straight Packers teams that secured playoff byes.

The Steelers still have stalwart Cameron Heyward under contract, ahead of what would be a 14th NFL season, and re-signed Larry Ogunjobi last year. A rotational role seems likely for Lowry at this point.

Commanders Sign OL Michael Deiter

March 25th, 2024 at 1:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

Michael Deiter‘s Texans contract ended up producing more starts than expected, as the AFC South champions needed the ex-Dolphins draftee due to injuries along their front. But the sides will part ways.

The Commanders reached an agreement to bring in Deiter, according to the team. The five-year veteran interior O-lineman is coming off a 10-start season. The former third-round pick has worked at center and guard as a pro.

Washington released starting center Nick Gates but added Tyler Biadasz early in free agency, giving the team a clear-cut favorite to become the starting snapper. Guard Nick Allegretti also signed with Washington. However, guard starter Saahdiq Charles left to join the Titans recently. Deiter stands to at least provide swing depth for the rebuilding team.

The Commanders’ O-line will look different next season; Charles, Gates and left tackle Charles Leno are no longer on the roster. The team still has a need on the blind side, and while right tackle Andrew Wylie and right guard Sam Cosmi remain under contract, Biadasz and Allegretti are on track to start. Deiter provided important depth for a resurgent Texans team that employed a rookie quarterback chosen second overall; his Washington role could be eerily similar.

Deiter played on a one-year, $1.23MM deal in Houston but ended up being needed extensively at center. The team lost its primary 2022 starting pivot, Scott Quessenberry, to a season-ending injury last summer and then saw guards Kenyon Green and Kendrick Green go down for the year. Second-round pick Juice Scruggs, who had been tapped to play center coming out of Penn State, debuted well into the season due a significant hamstring setback sustained during the preseason. This turn of events moved Deiter into a starting job, and the team kept him there when Scruggs recovered. With Scruggs potentially set to take over at center in Houston, Deiter is moving on.

Pro Football Focus graded Deiter 26th among centers last season. The Dolphins demoted him following a 15-start rookie year, one that came for a Miami team beginning a rebuild, but used him as an eight-game starter in 2021. The Wisconsin alum’s starter experience — particularly for rebuilding teams — should be key for a Commanders team breaking in some new faces up front.

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