Detroit Lions Rumors & News - Pro Football Rumors

Extra Points: Campbell, Murray, Cowboys, Suh

March 8th, 2016 at 11:58am CST by Luke Adams

Contradicting a report from another outlet, Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic writes that the Cardinals aren’t trying to trade Pro Bowl defensive end Calais Campbell, and haven’t received any inquiries from teams asking if he’s available.

Still, while Campbell may not be on the trade block, his situation is still worth keeping an eye on this offseason, as Somers points out. The standout defensive lineman is entering the final year of his contract, and has a cap hit of $15.25MM, making him a prime extension candidate if Arizona wants to keep him around for the long term.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NFL on a busy Tuesday:

There was some discussion about the Cowboys, rather than the Titans, acquiring DeMarco Murray from the Eagles, according to Ed Werder of ESPN.com (Twitter link). However, Werder says Dallas wasn’t on board with the compensation or the guaranteed money necessary to make a deal.
The Dolphins created $16MM in cap room when they restructured Ndamukong Suh‘s contract, a source tells Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). James Walker of ESPN.com breaks down the specifics.
Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press has the details on Tyrunn Walker‘s new one-year deal with the Lions, which features a $150K signing bonus, $550K in total roster bonuses, and $650K in playing-time incentives.
Safety Andrew Sendejo will receive $2.5MM fully guaranteed on his new deal with the Vikings, tweets Ben Goessling of ESPN.com. Goessling adds that Sendejo will make $4MM in the first year and $7MM through two years.

Calvin Johnson Announces Retirement

March 8th, 2016 at 10:02am CST by Luke Adams

Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson has officially retired from the NFL, the team announced today in a press release. According to the Lions, Megatron filed his retirement papers with the NFL. The team added that, with respect to Johnson’s contract, those “matters were settled to the satisfaction of the parties.”

In addition to the team’s press release, the Lions have also issued a statement from Johnson, who indicated that he will not have a press conference to discuss his decision.

“Let me assure you that this was not an easy or hasty decision,” Johnson said within his statement. “I, along with those closest to me, have put a lot of time, deliberation and prayer into this decision and I truly am at peace with it.”

Johnson will retire as the Lions’ all-time leader in receptions (731) receiving yards (11,619) and receiving touchdowns (83). Since leading the NFL with 122 receptions and 1,964 yards in 2012, he had seen his production decline a little. Still, Megatron continued to be one of the league’s more productive pass catchers in 2015, with 88 catches, 1,214 yards, and nine touchdowns, making his retirement announcement somewhat unexpected.

Just days after the regular season, the first reports surfaced suggesting that Johnson was considering retirement. The idea that the 30-year-old would walk away from the NFL after such a productive season was surprising, but all the wear and tear he had endured over his career appeared to play a role in the decision. The longtime Lions wideout had been plagued by ankle and finger issues in recent years.

Had he continued his career, Johnson would have counted for more than $24MM against the Lions’ cap in 2016. Now that the six-time Pro Bowler has retired, the team will no longer be on the hook for his base salary of $15.95MM. The Lions’ reference today to settling Johnson’s contract situation likely refers to the two sides coming to some sort of agreement on whether or not Megatron will return a portion of his signing bonus. Details on that agreement aren’t yet known.

With Johnson no longer in the mix, wide receiver figures to be a priority for the Lions in both free agency and the draft. Golden Tate has been an excellent complement to Johnson since signing with Detroit in 2014, but the club doesn’t have a ton of depth behind him, and it remains to be seen whether Tate’s production will slip if receives extra attention as the No. 1 target in Detroit.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Extra Points: Megatron, JPP, Cardinals, Wallace

March 7th, 2016 at 10:35pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Lions hope to know whether receiver Calvin Johnson will return or retire by Tuesday, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, as his decision will greatly impact how they approach free agency. If Megatron retires or the Lions release him by Wednesday, they’ll open up over $11MM in cap space for 2016. Otherwise, Johnson’s $15.95MM base salary and $24MM-plus cap number will go on the team’s books this year.

Here’s more from around the NFL, including some intriguing notes on pending free agents:

There’s “optimism” that the Giants will be able to re-sign defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, reports ESPN’s Dan Graziano, who adds that the club has offered JPP a one-year deal. Other possible suitors are “hesitant” to offer Pierre-Paul a long-term pact, per Graziano. However, there’s an “aggressive” market for his services, writes Jordan Raanan of NJ.com. Thus, it’s hard to believe he’d have to settle for a one-year deal.
If Pierre-Paul leaves New York, he could go to the Cardinals. They’ll pursue JPP, Mario Williams and the previously reported William Hayes, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link).
The Vikings reportedly wanted to bring back wideout Mike Wallace at a reduced cost as of last Friday, but Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports “would be shocked” if he isn’t released by Wednesday (Twitter link). The Vikings will save $11MM if they part with Wallace.
The Jets and Ryan Fitzpatrick are the best fit for one another, opines the New York Daily News’ Manish Mehta, who expects the two to renew their relationship. Mehta lists a two-year deal with $14MM in guarantees as the floor for Fitzpatrick’s next contract, adding that the ceiling on guarantees could stretch to $18MM.
The Raiders are looking for a replacement for inside linebacker Curtis Lofton, according to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). Last month, $3.5MM of Lofton’s $5.35MM base salary for 2016 became guaranteed. The Raiders had to pay it because Lofton had an arm injury at the time, per Tafur, and a team isn’t allowed to release a player if he’s hurt when he’s due guaranteed money.
Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette examines the Steelers’ need for a cornerback, suggesting this year could be the first time since 1997 that the team uses a first-round pick on a corner.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Free Agent Rumors: Sean Smith, Niners, Raiders

March 7th, 2016 at 1:10pm CST by Zachary Links

The very latest free agent news:

The 49ers have discussed Chiefs free agent cornerback Sean Smith, according to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter). He adds that Smith has been on the Niners’ radar in the past as well. The Chiefs have not reached out to Smith since the start of the tampering period, but they have talked with his agent since the Combine, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star writes.
The Chiefs know they will have to raise the current offer to Smith in order to retain him, but it’s not clear if they will, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports tweets. The Raiders will also be in play for his services, he adds.
The Chiefs have expressed interest in former Raiders receiver Rod Streater, Paylor writes. Streater’s best season came in 2013 when he hauled in 60 catches for 888 yards and four scores.
Seahawks free agent guard J.R. Sweezy is generating a ton of early interest with at least ten teams expressing serious interest, Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets. The Buccaneers, Falcons, Lions, Dolphins, Saints, 49ers, Jaguars, Bears, and Jets, have all made it known that they will be suitors (link).
Donald Penn’s agent met with the Raiders but the tackle is expected to hit the free agent market on Wednesday, Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets.
The Cardinals have expressed interest in Rams free agent defensive end William Hayes, according to Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic (on Twitter). The eight year vet has racked up 21.5 sacks over the last four years.

Safety George Iloka Drawing Interest From Five Teams

March 7th, 2016 at 12:04pm CST by Zachary Links

Safety George Iloka has gotten serious interest from the Falcons, Giants, Lions, Vikings, and the incumbent Bengals, Jim Owczarski of The Enquirer tweets. Iloka is PFR’s top-rated free agent safety for the 2016 offseason.

Iloka, 26 at the end of the month, is poised to receive a nice deal this offseason thanks to his ability and young age. This past season, the strong safety appeared in 12 games (all starts) and recorded 47 total tackles with four pass deflections and one interception. Pro Football Focus (sub. required) rated Iloka as the 15th best safety in the NFL last year, placing him behind fellow unrestricted free agents Reggie Nelson and Rodney McLeod.

The Vikings, who are coached by former Cincinnati defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, have long been connected to Iloka. Recently, it was reported that Minnesota would continue to pursue the safety hard, even after re-signing Andrew Sendejo.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NFC Notes: Cousins, White, Giants, Bucs

March 6th, 2016 at 9:12pm CST by Sam Robinson

Washington and the Eagles lined up their 2016 quarterbacks within days of each other, with Kirk Cousins staying in D.C. on the franchise tag and Sam Bradford signing a two-year deal to remain in Philadelphia.

Washington, however, was concerned the Eagles were going to pursue Cousins if it didn’t apply the franchise tag or designated the fifth-year quarterback with the transition tag, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.

Florio points out Cousins’ familiarity in an offense closer to the West Coast attack Doug Pederson runs would have made the Mike Shanahan-drafted signal-caller attractive to the Eagles.

Here’s more from some NFC destinations as the 2015 league year nears its conclusion.

Roddy White‘s release from the Falcons stemmed from the receiver’s relationship with offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, White’s agent, Jonathan Feinsod, told D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “There is one reason Roddy is no longer with the Falcons and it is Kyle Shanahan,” Feinsod told Ledbetter. “Kyle forced the Falcons to choose between him or Roddy.” White also contended Kyle Shanahan did not feature him much in the Falcons’ offense after he arrived from Cleveland in 2015, with the recently released wideout telling ESPN’s Vaughn McClure “I expected to play a bigger role in the offense, and that’s what I wanted to do. But he didn’t have that in his desires. He had other people that he wanted to play my role, so he wanted me to be out of the [offense].” White’s 43 receptions in 16 games last season were 37 fewer than he caught in 2014 in 14 contests. Falcons coach Dan Quinn denied consulting with Shanahan prior to making the decision to release the 34-year-old White, according to Ledbetter.
A source close to Calvin Johnson tells Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press there’s “nothing to report” on Megatron’s potential retirement. Birkett notes the Lions are expected to pursue receiving help. Johnson is on Detroit’s books for $24.01MM as of now.
The Giants engaged in discussions with Jason Pierre-Paul and Robert Ayers but couldn’t come to terms, Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News reports. He expects both to enter unrestricted free agency and begin talking with teams Monday.
Vacchiano also notes the Cowboys are expected to have interest in former Buccaneers first-round pick Adrian Clayborn, whom the Giants are expected to pursue as well. The 27-year-old Clayborn started five games for the Falcons last season and 16 in both the 2011 and ’13 seasons with the Bucs, respectively. The Cowboys could lose Greg Hardy and will be without Randy Gregory for four games in 2016.
Georgia Southern outside linebacker Antoine Williams worked out for the Bucs, Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times reports. The Bucs are expected to release Bruce Carter and did not tender RFA Danny Lansanah, so they’ll likely be in the market for outside-linebacking help.

Lions Re-Sign Tyrunn Walker

March 4th, 2016 at 8:34am CST by Luke Adams

FRIDAY, 8:34am: The Lions’ contract agreement with Walker has been finalized, with the team announcing the signing in a press release.

THURSDAY, 12:23pm: A year ago, the Lions’ signing of defensive lineman Tyrunn Walker from the Saints was viewed as one of the more solid under-the-radar moves of the offseason. However, Walker’s first year in Detroit came to an early end when he suffered a broken fibula and landed on the team’s injured reserve list in early October.

As he recovers from that injury though, Walker is prepared to sign a new contract with the Lions, According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, the free agent defensive tackle is en route to Detroit today, where he will take a physical and sign a new one-year deal with the club, assuming some contractual language gets finalized.

After signing a one-year, $1.75MM pact last year, Walker will get a similar deal this time around. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Walker’s new one-year contract will be worth $1.6MM, with a chance to max out at $2.25MM. It wouldn’t be surprising if the deal features per-game roster bonuses — because the Tulsa alum only appeared in four contests in 2015, only a quarter of his per-game roster bonuses would count against the cap.

In addition to nearing a contract agreement with Walker, the Lions are in talks to bring back Haloti Ngata, and Birkett expects him to re-sign (Twitter link). As Birkett notes, retaining those two defensive tackles would give the club the flexibility to focus on other positions in free agency next week.

Speaking of free agency, Birkett also reports that the Lions have tendered contract offers to all of their exclusive-rights free agents. The following players have received ERFA tenders, per Birkett:

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rashean Mathis Announces Retirement

March 2nd, 2016 at 5:12pm CST by Luke Adams

MARCH 2: The Lions have officially placed Mathis on the reserve/retired list, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link).

FEBRUARY 16: Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson is reportedly leaning toward retirement, and the team will also see a veteran starter on the other side of the ball call it a career. Detroit cornerback Rashean Mathis told Tori Petry of DetroitLions.com (video link) that he has decided to “hang up the cleats,” and his agent has since congratulated him on his NFL career (Twitter link).

[RELATED: Calvin Johnson likely to retire]

“I’ve been teetering on the fence the last few years,” Mathis said. “I wanted to finish healthy. I wanted to finish on a good note. It was a little sour, my last year in Jacksonville [since] I was coming off an ACL injury, and I think my last three years in Detroit have been amazing…. Being with [Jim] Caldwell for the last two years, I couldn’t ask for anything more to go off on a happy ending.”

Mathis, 35, entered the NFL in 2003 as the 39th overall pick out of Bethune-Cookman. The cornerback spent the first decade of his career with the Jaguars, earning his lone Pro Bowl nod and All-Pro spot in 2006 when he recorded a career-high eight interceptions and 21 passes defended.

Over the course of his 13-year career, Mathis appeared in a total of 175 regular-season games – including 137 for Jacksonville – and totaled 32 interceptions. Although Mathis’ final season with Detroit was cut short by concussion issues, he played a key role on the 2014 squad that earned a playoff berth.

Mathis’ contract with the Lions had featured a $500K roster bonus due to be paid in March, as well as a $1MM base salary for 2016. The team will no longer be on the hook for that money, but will still carry a $375K cap charge on its books for the veteran defensive back this year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Extra Points: Jaguars, Titans, Lions, Garoppolo

March 1st, 2016 at 9:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Some assorted notes from around the league on this Tuesday evening…

The Jaguars have hired former Falcons executive DeJuan Polk as their new assistant director of pro personnel, the team announced today (Twitter link via John Oehser of Jaguars.com). Polk has spent the majority of the last decade working as the pro personnel coordinator in Atlanta.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell goes in-depth to explain why it might make more sense for the Titans to trade down in the draft rather than using the No. 1 overall pick on offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil.
Meanwhile, ESPN.com’s Paul Kuharsky wonders if the Titans would gamble on Jalen Ramsey with the top pick. A defensive back has never been chosen with the first overall pick, but Titans general manager Jon Robinson didn’t necessarily rule out the idea. “I would say with the first overall pick, we’re looking to add an impact player,” he said. “There’s a handful of players that fit into that. A handful could be a couple or it could be 10 according to how big your hands are. But we want to come away with somebody that is going to impact our football team.”
The Lions expect 2015 draftee Quandre Diggs to be a regular contributor in nickel and dime defenses next season, but the team will still need to address the cornerback position in free agency or the draft, writes Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
Tom Brady‘s new contract extension has observers reassessing Jimmy Garoppolo‘s role with the Patriots. However, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com doesn’t think New England’s backup QB will become a potential trade chip until at least 2017, unless another team blows away the Pats with an offer.

Ben Levine contributed to this post.

Calvin Johnson Wants To Retire A Free Agent?

February 28th, 2016 at 7:17pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

SUNDAY, 7:17pm: Megatron’s camp disputes the report money factors into the wideout’s retirement decision. A source close to Johnson informed Yahoo.com’s Charles Robinson the All-Pro receiver’s merely deciding whether or not he wants to play football again. Robinson adds it may be several weeks before Johnson officially lets the Lions know if he’s done or not, even as the March 9 deadline looms.

SATURDAY, 6:40pm: Although nearly a month has passed since news broke of Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson‘s intention to retire, the 30-year-old hasn’t officially made a decision. Johnson still doesn’t want to play, according to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, who adds that it’s possible the nine-year veteran hasn’t retired yet because he would rather do so as a free agent than as a Lion.

As Florio writes, if Johnson steps away from the game while under Lions control, he’ll still be theirs if he ever elects to make a comeback (he has four more years left on his current contract). If Detroit releases Johnson, though, he’ll be free to choose his next destination in the event of a return. Further, the Lions won’t be able to ask for Johnson to pay back his $3.2MM signing bonus if they cut him.

A resolution to Megatron’s situation is likely to come by March 9. If he retires or the Lions release him by that date, they’ll open up over $11MM in cap space for 2016. Otherwise, Johnson’s $15.95MM base salary and $24MM-plus cap number will go on the team’s books this year.

Johnson holds the Lions’ all-time franchise receiving marks in catches (731), yards (11,619) and touchdowns (83). Since leading the NFL with 122 receptions and 1,964 yards in 2012, the ex-Georgia Tech standout has experienced a dip in production. Nevertheless, he remained among the game’s most prolific wideouts last season, pulling in 88 receptions for 1,214 yards and nine scores.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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