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Andy Mulumba

Minor NFL Transactions: 4/1/16

April 1st, 2016 at 5:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a rundown of today’s minor signings, cuts, and other moves:

  • The Chiefs have inked linebacker Andy Mulumba to a one-year pact, according to his agent (Twitter link via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). Mulumba, who met with the Chiefs on Wednesday, previously drew interest from New England. He spent the first three years of his career in Green Bay, appeared in 22 regular-season contests and recorded three starts. Mulumba was delayed in signing anywhere because of citizenship issues, per Weston Hodkiewicz of USA Today. The native of the Democratic Republic of Congo is a Canadian citizen and has been working to attain U.S. citizenship and residency, but he had to return to Canada after his work visa expired. Mulumba met with the Chiefs and Patriots on a visitor visa. Now that he has found employment again, Mulumba can return to the U.S.
  • In addition to Mulumba, the Chiefs have signed safety Jimmy Wilson to a one-year deal, Pro Football Talk reports (Twitter link). Wilson, 29, appeared in 13 games with San Diego last season before the team released him in December. Since entering the league as a seventh-rounder in 2011, Wilson has played in 73 regular-season games, logged 28 starts, and amassed five interceptions.
  • The Titans have agreed to terms with linebacker Curtis Grant, according to Jim Wyatt of Titans Online (on Twitter). Grant was a member of Atlanta’s taxi squad towards the end of the year and also auditioned for Seattle in January.
  • The Eagles signed Ryan Mueller, according to Zach Berman of The Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter). Mueller previously played linebacker in the NFL, but he’ll be a fullback for Philly. The 24-year-old out of Kansas State spent 2015 with San Diego. It’s a two-year deal, according to Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).
  • The Eagles have waived offensive lineman Tanner Hawkinson, as McLane tweets.

FA Rumors: Norman, Dolphins, Eagles, Chiefs

March 31st, 2016 at 4:25pm CST by Luke Adams

As players like Olivier Vernon and Malik Jackson signed huge, long-term contracts earlier this month, players like Broncos pass rusher Von Miller and Panthers cornerback Josh Norman were forced to watch, unable to land lucrative new mega-deals of their own. As Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) details, Miller and Norman have been frustrated by the franchise tag system, which prevents star players from cashing in like some lesser free agents have.

In Norman’s case, fellow cornerback Janoris Jenkins got a five-year, $62.5MM as an unrestricted free agent, but according to David Newton of ESPN.com, the Panthers haven’t gone to that $12.5MM-per-year range in their extension talks with Norman. If the Carolina corner had been able to reach the open market himself, he likely would’ve surpassed easily, so it’s not a surprise that Miller and Norman would like to see the franchise tag system go away, according to Cole.

Here’s more on free agency:

  • The Dolphins signed Isaiah Pead today, but they continue to seek running back help, and worked out former Buccaneers back Bobby Rainey, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Rainey ran for nearly 1,000 total yards in 2013 and 2014, but had just five carries last season.
  • After paying a visit to Pittsburgh, free agent offensive lineman Stefen Wisniewski met with the Eagles today, a source tells Rapoport (Twitter link). Wisniewski is arguably the top center still on the board, though he’d be unlikely to start in the middle if he were to sign with Philadelphia.
  • The Chiefs hosted free agent safety Jeron Johnson for a visit on Wednesday, a source tells Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star (Twitter link). After serving as a backup DB and a special-teamer for several years in Seattle, Johnson signed with Washington last year and appeared poised to get the opportunity to player more. However, things didn’t work out in D.C., and Johnson was cut earlier this month.
  • In addition to having hosted Johnson, the Chiefs are bringing in another defender, linebacker Andy Mulumba, for a visit, per Weston Hodkiewicz of the Green Bay Press-Gazette (Twitter link). Mulumba, who has played 22 games for the Packers during the last three seasons, also visited the Patriots, according to Hodkiewicz.
  • Free agent defensive lineman Jack Crawford is paying a visit to the Jets, a source tells Brian Costello of the New York Post (Twitter link). Crawford, who visited Pittsburgh this week, picked up four sacks as a part-timer in Dallas in 2015
  • Todd Archer of ESPN.com explains how recently-signed free agent defensive end Benson Mayowa can opt out of his deal with the Cowboys after two seasons and hit the open market again in 2018.

RFA Tender Decisions: 3/9/16

March 9th, 2016 at 9:10pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Unrestricted free agent news will obviously dominate the day, but several clubs also had to make decisions on whether to offer tenders to restricted free agents. We’ll round up those decisions here:

Tendered

Non-Tendered

RFA Tender Decisions: 3/4/16

March 4th, 2016 at 7:21pm CST by Luke Adams

When teams assign first- or second-round tenders to their restricted free agents, like the Raiders did today with quarterback Matt McGloin, we’ll devote full news stories to those moves. But for the most part, RFAs around the league can expect to be either non-tendered or given a low-end tender worth $1.671MM. We’ll round up the players that fall into that group on Friday in the space below, with the latest updates added to the top of the list throughout the day….

  • The 49ers have offered linebacker Michael Wilhoite the low-end tender, reports Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. The 29-year-old has started in all 28 of his appearances over the last two seasons. Despite missing four games in 2015, Wilhoite was second on the Niners in tackles (85), though he graded dead last in overall performance out of Pro Football Focus’ 97 qualifying linebackers (subscription required).

Earlier updates:

  • The Saints aren’t expected to submit an RFA tender to running back Khiry Robinson, according to Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. Katherine Terrell of NOLA.com confirms as much (via Twitter). Robinson, 26, saw his 2015 campaign come to an early end when he suffered a broken leg in November, but he has been a steady contributor in New Orleans’ backfield since 2013, averaging 4.1 yards per carry on 186 total attempts. He’s now on track to reach the open market as an unrestricted free agent.
  • The Eagles have given RFA offensive lineman Matt Tobin the low-end tender, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). Philadelphia now holds the right of first refusal on the 25-year-old lineman, who made 13 starts for the Eagles in 2015. Depending on the moves the team makes in free agency and the draft, Tobin could return to a reserve role in 2016.
  • One restricted free agent who won’t get a tender offer from the Eagles is offensive lineman David Molk, who has decided to retire rather than continuing his career, according to the team (Twitter link). Molk, who started four games at center for Philadelphia in 2014, is widely believed to be the anonymous author of a book called NFL Confidential: True Confessions from the Gutter of Football, which provides a behind-the-scenes look at life in the NFL.
  • The Packers have a pair of players eligible for restricted free agency, and according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (via Twitter), the team won’t be tendering one of them, linebacker Andy Mulumba. Silverstein adds that guard Lane Taylor probably won’t get a tender offer either, which would make both players unrestricted free agents next week.

NFC North Notes: Vikings, Lions, Packers

September 17th, 2014 at 11:31am CST by Luke Adams

For now, the Vikings have placed Adrian Peterson on the exempt list, continuing to pay him while he stays away from the club and doesn’t count against the 53-man roster. However, sooner or later, Minnesota will have to make a more permanent decision on the running back, and Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com thinks terminating his contract – either later this year or next year – is the only route that really makes sense for the team.

Multiple sources who spoke to La Canfora believe the idea of a trade is a non-starter, and Peterson’s salaries and cap numbers are on the rise in coming seasons, making it unpalatable to keep him for the duration of his contract even if there were no off-field factors to consider.

Let’s check in on a few more updates from across the NFC North….

  • Don’t expect the Vikings to make a move to add a running back to their roster, tweets Alex Marvez of FOX Sports. According to Marvez, the team is comfortable moving forward with Matt Asiata, Jerick McKinnon, and Joe Banyard.
  • We’ve heard word of several players auditioning for the Lions in the past few days, and Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun adds a couple more. Per Wilson (via Twitter), offensive lineman Reid Fragel and defensive back Justin Rogers auditioned for the club.
  • The Packers tried out guard James Brown, defensive back Tay Glover-Wright, and defensive tackle Greg Hickman, according to Wilson (Twitter links).
  • Packers linebacker and special-teams ace Andy Mulumba confirmed today on Twitter that he has suffered a torn ACL. While Green Bay has yet to make an official announcement, it appears likely that Mulumba will land on the injured reserve list, ending his season.