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East Notes: Jennings, Eagles, Cowboys

April 24th, 2015 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

When Greg Jennings reached a contract agreement with the Dolphins earlier this week, we learned almost immediately that it was a two-year, $8MM pact. Now, Alex Marvez of Fox Sports has a breakdown of the specifics. Per Marvez (Twitter link), the wideout’s deal features a $3MM signing bonus, base salaries of $900K (2015) and $3.9MM (2016), and annual workout bonuses of $100K. That means Jennings’ cap hit for this season should be $2.5MM before jumping to $5.5MM in ’15.

According to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (via Twitter), before the Vikings released Jennings, they offered him a pay cut to $4MM, plus $3MM in incentives. However, that offer didn’t include any guarantees, so it makes sense that the veteran would elect to hit the open market instead.

Here are a few more Friday morning items out of the NFL’s East divisions:

  • UConn cornerback Byron Jones, who has already visited the Eagles and has been cited as a potential target for the club, is working out for Philadelphia’s brain trust this morning, tweets Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net. According to Pauline, Huskies wideout Geremy Davis and defensive tackle B.J. McBryde are also participating in the Eagles’ workout.
  • The Cowboys are working out Mississippi State linebacker Benardrick McKinney today, per Pauline, who notes (via Twitter) that the club is sending a defensive line coach to attend the workout.
  • Even if they expect Greg Hardy to have to serve his full 10-game suspension, the Cowboys aren’t likely to elevate pass rusher above running back or cornerback when it comes to their draft needs, writes David Moore of the Dallas Morning News.
  • Washington is sending its defensive staff to Macon, Georgia to meet with University of Kentucky edge rusher Bud Dupree on Monday, a source tells Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (Twitter link).
  • Florida defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. told Alex Marvez of SiriusXM NFL Radio (on Twitter) that the Giants called him Thursday night to chat as a part of their pre-draft process. The Giants pick at No. 9, but Fowler could very well be gone by that point.
  • In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Field Yates identifies five general managers who need a strong draft in 2015, lest they find themselves in hot water after the season. Bills GM Doug Whaley tops Yates’ list.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Extra Points: Dez, Johnson, Cooper, Draft Visits

April 17th, 2015 at 10:03pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The recent falling out between Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant and longtime mentor David Wells makes it unlikely Bryant will stay in Dallas long term, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link). The Cowboys view Wells as crucial to keeping Bryant out of trouble off the field, and if Wells isn’t going to continue on as part of Bryant’s life, Cole doesn’t expect the team to risk giving the wideout a long-term deal. Bryant, on whom the Cowboys placed the franchise tag earlier this offseason, is scheduled to become a free agent next year.

Rounding up the rest of the latest NFL news as Friday comes to a close:

  • Colts receiver Andre Johnson spent the first 12 years of his career with the Texans and caught over 1,000 passes before the team released him in March. Despite subsequently signing with AFC South rival Indianapolis, Johnson doesn’t harbor ill will against his old team. “It wasn’t about circling (game) dates or nothing against the Texans. I had 12 great years [in Houston],” Johnson said Friday, according to Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle. “I have nothing bad against the Texans.” 
  • The Giants could draft a receiver with the ninth overall pick, according to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan (Twitter link), who believes Amari Cooper of Alabama tops their wideout big board. However, Raanan tweets that it’s unlikely Cooper will fall to the Giants.
  • Speaking of Cooper, multiple teams rate him as the best player in the draft, per Peter King of TheMMQB.com (Twitter).
  • University of Kentucky edge rusher Bud Dupree visited the Rams on Friday, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter).
  • Sacramento State wide receiver DeAndre Carter will visit the Patriots on Monday, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter).
  • Washington visited with University of Pittsburgh linebacker Todd Thomas on Friday, tweets Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.Net.
  • The Colts on Friday hosted a pair of safety prospects – Northwestern’s Ibraheim Campbell and Samford’s Jaquiski Tartt – per Pauline (Twitter).

AFC Notes: Chargers, Bills, Dolphins, Jets

April 14th, 2015 at 12:35pm CST by Luke Adams

The Chargers appear to be contemplating the post-Philip Rivers era in San Diego, as they take a closer look at Oregon signal-caller Marcus Mariota today. After working out Mariota, the team’s brass will head to Los Angeles to put UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley through a workout of his own, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

GM Tom Telesco and head coach Mike McCoy have repeatedly stated they want Rivers to retire as a Charger, so there may be no need to identify his successor quite yet. But Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune believes this offseason is the prime time for San Diego to trade Rivers in a deal to snag Mariota, arguing that all the factors in play point to it being a win-win move for the franchise and for the veteran quarterback, who is entering the final year of his contract.

We still have a little more than two weeks until the draft gets underway, so it will be interesting to see if the Rivers trade rumors pick up steam or die down as April 30 approaches. In the meantime, here are a few more notes from across the AFC:

  • Free agent wide receiver Brad Smith is paying a visit to Buffalo to meet with the Bills, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com details. Smith played for Rex Ryan on the Jets, but it’s not clear if there’s a spot for him on Ryan’s new club, with players like Percy Harvin, Marcus Easley, and Marcus Thigpen already in the mix as potentially versatile offensive weapons, returners, or special-teamers.
  • Given where we’ve seen running backs drafted in the last couple years, it would be surprise to see one go as high as No. 14 overall this year. Nonetheless, the Dolphins, who hold that pick, are hosting Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon for a visit next week, per Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter).
  • Outside pass rushers Bud Dupree and Shane Ray will be visiting the Jets, reports Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (Twitter links). Although there has been plenty of chatter linking Mariota to New York, the team is in a good spot at No. 6 to add a top pass rushing prospect.
  • The Steelers hosted Washington State defensive tackle Xavier Cooper, Ohio State tight end Jeff Heuerman, and UAB tight end Kennard Backman on pre-draft visits today, tweets ESPN.com’s Scott Brown. Cooper met with the Saints in New Orleans yesterday, but we haven’t heard much to date about the tight ends.
  • Florida State cornerback Ronald Darby is visiting the Colts today, according to Rapoport (via Twitter).
  • On the heels of the Raiders‘ agreement with free agent wide receiver Michael Crabtree, Bill Williamson of ESPN.com shares a few initial thoughts on the deal, outlining why the former Niner is worth the risk on a one-year investment.

Draft Updates: Mariota, White, Falcons, Jags

April 9th, 2015 at 12:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The previously-reported visits for top draft prospects Marcus Mariota, Leonard Williams, and Dante Fowler Jr. are all happening today for the Titans, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. Although the Titans are getting a closer look at Mariota, another team in the top five apparently won’t get an opportunity to do so. Albert Breer of the NFL Network tweets that Washington had planned to bring in Mariota for a visit, but the two sides couldn’t work out a time, so that trip is now off.

The news may not mean anything significant, but Charles Robinson notes in his latest piece for Yahoo! Sports that sources around the league are skeptical that Washington is truly interested in selecting Mariota with the No. 5 overall pick. “They’re trying to create leverage to get someone to [trade] up,” said one AFC personnel source.

With a report today suggesting that the Browns have real interest in moving up for Mariota, the Oregon quarterback is certainly generating the most draft buzz this week, but we have plenty of updates on other prospects as well. Here’s the latest:

  • Within Robinson’s previously-linked piece, he notes that Buccaneers ownership will ultimately make the final call on whether or not to draft Jameis Winston, adding that there have been some internal questions about the community relations impact of selecting Winston.
  • Kevin White, arguably the top receiving prospect in this year’s class, said today that he’s setting up visits with the Jets, Bears, Rams, and Giants, per Ross Tucker of SiriusXM NFL Radio (Twitter link).
  • The Falcons are hosting a pair of top-tier pass rushers today, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who reports (via Twitter) that Clemson’s Vic Beasley and Kentucky’s Bud Dupree are in town.
  • Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union provides a full list of the 20 prospects that visited the Jaguars this week. While we’ve passed along many of those names already, there are also plenty of new ones: Javorius “Buck” Allen (RB, USC), T.J. Yeldon (RB, Alabama), Amari Cooper (WR, Alabama), Rashad Greene (WR, FSU), DeAndre Smelter (WR, Georgia Tech), Cedric Ogbuehi (T, Texas A&M), Andrus Peat (T, Stanford), Eli Harold (DE, Virginia), Arik Armstead (DL, Oregon), Landon Collins (S, Alabama), and Trae Waynes (CB, Michigan State).
  • In addition to visiting the Eagles, UCF wide receiver Breshad Perriman met with the Raiders, Colts, and Steelers this week, according to Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter).
  • Washington cornerback Marcus Peters, Stanford cornerback Alex Carter, and Virginia linebacker Max Valles made visits to Pittsburgh to meet with the Steelers today, tweets Scott Brown of ESPN.com.
  • The Giants, Steelers, and Texans have hosted visits for Ohio State cornerback Doran Grant, who has also worked out for the Cowboys, Raiders, and Buccaneers, sources tell Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post.

NFC Notes: Staley, Draft, Cowboys, Lions

April 6th, 2015 at 9:13pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers converted Joe Staley‘s option bonus to a signing bonus, affecting his cap number for 2015, as CBSSports.com’s Joel Corry (Twitter links) explains. Staley’s cap number has gone from $6.4MM to $7.6MM after his $6MM option bonus was converted. San Francisco, meanwhile, will get a salary cap credit of $1.2MM in 2016. The accounting move won’t result in a salary increase for the offensive tackle. Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap explicates the transaction.

Here’s more the NFC…

  • The Buccaneers‘ private workout with Oregon QB Marcus Mariota is set for tomorrow in Eugene, Albert Breer of NFL.com tweets.
  • The Cowboys have filled most their 30 allowed spots for draft visits, writes Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, who reports the following players have headed or will head to Valley Ranch in the coming days: running backs T.J. Yeldon, Todd Gurley, Melvin Gordon, Tevin Coleman, Jay Ajayi, and Ameer Adbullah; defensive lineman Bud Dupree and Danielle Hunter; linebacker Benardrick McKinney; and defensive backs Josh Shaw and Damarious Randall.
  • The Cowboys will also take a look at a defensive lineman tomorrow, as they’ll meet with UCLA DE Owa Odighizuma, per Rapoport (Twitter link), who adds that the former Bruin will also visit with the Saints. Odighizuma has already visited the Eagles.
  • Dallas will be flush with prospects on Tuesday, as the Cowboys will also visit with both versatile Washington product Shaq Thompson and UCLA linebacker Eric Kendricks, according to Rapoport (Twitter link).
  • Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com takes an overview of the Lions’ roster, noting that while linebacker is a deep position group, Detroit could afford to spend draft resources on the interior of both the offensive and defensive lines.

Zach Links contributed to this post.