Eric Berry

AFC Notes: Jets, Rice, Chiefs, J. Harrison

January 22nd, 2016 at 4:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jets may undergo some changes at the running back position this offseason, with their top three backs all eligible for free agency. The team appears to be doing its homework in preparation for possible changes, and GM Mike Maccagnan acknowledged today during a WFAN appearance that Ray Rice is one veteran back whose name has come up, but it doesn’t sound like Rice will be a Jet anytime soon, as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com details.

“You know, we’ve talked about that at various points in time,” Maccagnan said. “But I’d probably say that would be one … I’d have to sit down and talk with Todd [Bowles] and Woody [Johnson], but I don’t foresee that at this point in time.”

Here’s more from around the AFC:

Chiefs general manager John Dorsey fully expects running back Jamaal Charles to remain on the team’s roster for 2016, as Adam Teicher of ESPN.com notes. “I love him to death, love how dirty tough he is,” Dorsey said of Charles, who is recovering from a torn ACL. “Yeah, he’s a Chief.”
Dorsey also said this week that he’s had “various discussions” with the representatives for Eric Berry, and will continue to talk to Berry’s reps (Twitter link via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star). The longtime Chiefs safety is eligible for free agency this winter.
After being eliminated from the playoffs last weekend by the Broncos, Steelers outside linebacker James Harrison isn’t ready to make a decision on whether or not he’ll continue his playing career, as he tells Sam Werner of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “If you were to ask me something like that right after a loss, nobody wants to go out with a loss,” Harrison said. “It’s going to be an immediate, ‘Yeah, I’m coming back,’ not taking into account everything else. Right now, I’m not ready to make that decision.”
The Dolphins have been tight-lipped about what they plan to do with former first-round pick Dion Jordan, whose substance abuse suspension is expected to run through at least April 27, writes Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald. It’s hard to imagine Jordan playing another game for the team, even if he’s reinstated this spring.

West Notes: Berry, Hali, Seahawks, Rams

January 18th, 2016 at 9:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

As expected, Andy Reid didn’t do much prioritizing when it came to pinpointing which of the Chiefs‘ free agents will return, but he did single out the one likely residing at the top of the itinerary.

“I think he wants to be here. We want him to be here. The agents and our people need to get with him, they’ll deal with all that, work through all that. But I like Eric Berry. I can tell you, I love Eric Berry,” Reid told media, including Dave Skretta of the Associated Press.

Berry will be the top safety on the market and one of the top players available as an unrestricted free agent. The Pro Bowl safety played out his entire rookie contract, a six-year deal worth $60MM, from the old CBA that was much friendlier to first-round selections.

“Obviously,” Berry told media, when asked if he wants to return to the Chiefs. “This is family. At the same time, we’ll sit down and talk about it when we talk about it. But right now I’m just thankful for my teammates, my coaches and everybody that has something to do with me being back on the field this year. This is something special.”

The Chiefs could have their franchise tag ready if talks with the 27-year-old cancer survivor stall. The remainder of the Chiefs’ free agent class includes a number of expiring deals from their top-flight defense. Sean Smith, Derrick Johnson, Tamba Hali and Jaye Howard are free agents.

Kansas City possess $31.62MM in salary cap space, according to OverTheCap.

Here is the latest coming out of the Western divisions.

Hali’s path may lead to retirement or back to Kansas City, with Skretta noting it’s unlikely the 32-year-old outside linebacker will head elsewhere. The former first-round pick and career Chief told media after the Chiefs’ loss to the Patriots he would contemplate his future after spending most of this season not practicing due to knee trouble. Hali renegotiated his deal last season to help Kansas City with its cap. Of course, with the Chiefs having some lucrative free agents to consider retaining in hopes of keeping that strong defense intact, Hali’s third Chiefs contract won’t be nearly as hefty as the five year, $60MM deal he signed in 2011. Though Hali, a Pro Bowler this season and a top-10 edge player as graded by Pro Football Focus, could still command a reasonable accord on the open market if he sought such a path. “I know some of these (free agents) are going to return. That’s how it rolls. Which ones and how it works into the (salary) cap and all that, that’s (GM John) Dorsey‘s baby there,” Reid said.
The Chiefs will have their lowest first-round pick in 20 years after their 11-5 season ended in the divisional playoffs. They will pick 28th, lowest of the teams eliminated this weekend, according to Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk. The Steelers, Seahawks and Packers will pick 25th, 26th and 27th, respectively, based on a schedule strength tiebreaker.
Bruce Irvin told media, including Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com, he will take less money on his second contract to stay with the Seahawks. Irvin said both John Schneider and Pete Carroll asked him if he’d accept a below-market deal Monday. “Pete and John asked me that when I met with them today. If it came to that, I would definitely come back. $3, $4 million? $3, $4, $5 million? I would definitely come back because I’m established here,” Irvin said. The Seahawks did not pick up Irvin’s fifth-year option last year, making the edge-rusher an unrestricted free agent. The January gesture may not hold a lot of weight come March, per Joel Corry of CBSSports.com, who tweets Irvin’s agent, Joel Segal, won’t be interested in seeing Irvin take a hometown discount after he pushed the Chiefs to give Justin Houston a record deal last summer. Russell Okung, Jeremy Lane and Jermaine Kearse are among the Seahawks’ notable UFAs, with Marshawn Lynch‘s $6.5MM in cap savings likely to benefit toward this cause as well.
Carroll told media, including Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times, he’d like to bring back Christine Michael, a UFA who bounced around this year before re-signing with Seattle. Michael averaged 4.9 yards per carry with the Seahawks and 3.4 per rush with the Cowboys this season.
Stan Kroenke is borrowing approximately $1 billion from JPMorgan Chase for his new Inglewood stadium, Daniel Kaplan of Sports Business Daily tweets. The stadium’s expected to cost a record $2.7 billion, and Kroenke’s $1 billion loan would represent one of the largest ever taken for a stadium, according to Elyse Glickman of the Los Angeles Business Journal.

King’s Latest: Chiefs, Steelers, Packers, Lynch

January 18th, 2016 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of the weekend’s divisional playoff games, Peter King of TheMMQB.com takes a look at what’s next for the four teams eliminated from the postseason, and passes along several notable tidbits. Here are the highlights:

Odds are that Chiefs head coach Andy Reid will promote quarterbacks coach Matt Nagy to replace Doug Pederson as Kansas City’s offensive coordinator, says King. Brad Childress has been viewed as a candidate for that job as well.
With Derrick Johnson and Tamba Hali eligible for free agency, King expects the Chiefs to retain one of those two players, at most — the team is more likely to spend on its free agent defensive backs, Sean Smith and Eric Berry.
Michael Vick doesn’t appear to be in the Steelers‘ plans going forward, so the team should bring in a backup quarterback to challenge Landry Jones, King suggests. The MMQB scribe would also like to see Pittsburgh use a high draft choice on a tight end.
With Jordy Nelson back next year and the Packers developing some promising young receivers, James Jones may be a luxury that GM Ted Thompson decides he can’t afford. King writes that Green Bay also needs to invest in a pass rusher and perhaps draft Eddie Lacy‘s replacement.
“Even the most ardent Marshawn Lynch fan has to see it’s over for him,” according to King, who suggests that the Seahawks are likely to cut their longtime running back to create cap room for other core players.

NFL Pro Bowlers In Contract Years

December 23rd, 2015 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

The NFL announced its Pro Bowlers for the 2015 season on Tuesday night, and while those rosters will certainly undergo some changes in the coming weeks – as players with injuries or on Super Bowl teams bow out and are replaced by alternates – it’s worth noting that several players in this initial crop are in contract years, and will be eligible for free agency this winter.

Currently, there are eight players in contract years among the Pro Bowlers, and not all of them are players you might expect. When we ranked the top free agents of 2016 earlier this month, we placed Bears wideout Alshon Jeffery second overall, but Jeffery didn’t get a Pro Bowl nod, partly due to the injuries that have slowed him down this season, and partly due to the star-studded group of receivers he was up against.

Similarly, our list of this offseason’s top 10 potential free agents included a pair of left tackles, Russell Okung of the Seahawks and Cordy Glenn of the Bills. However, given the strong group of left tackles that are locked up to long-term deals – including Tyron Smith (Cowboys), Jason Peters (Eagles), Joe Thomas (Browns), and others – neither Okung nor Glenn could crack the initial Pro Bowl roster.

Here are the eight potential free agents who earned Pro Bowl berths:

Eric Berry, S (Chiefs)
Doug Martin, RB (Buccaneers)
Von Miller, OLB (Broncos)
Reggie Nelson, S (Bengals)
Josh Norman, CB (Panthers)
Mike Tolbert, FB (Panthers)
Muhammad Wilkerson, DL (Jets)
Charles Woodson, S (Raiders)

Berry, Miller, Norman, and Wilkerson earned spots on our top-10 list, and each of those four standout players should be in line for either the franchise tag or a lucrative long-term contract. However, the extension cases for the other four players on this list aren’t quite to cut-and-dried.

Woodson, of course, has an expiring contract, but isn’t expected to sign another one, having announced earlier this week that he’ll retire after the season. That takes him out of the extension equation entirely.

Martin is having an excellent bounce-back season in Tampa Bay, and is the most logical candidate to receive the biggest free agent deal for a running back this offseason. As we saw last winter though, not many running backs sign massive free agent contracts, and 2015’s biggest deal – DeMarco Murray‘s – won’t exactly encourage teams to invest heavily at the position. So there’s a ceiling on how much Martin will earn this winter, despite his Pro Bowl berth.

Nelson and Tolbert are interesting cases. Nelson’s counting stats (an NFL-best eight interceptions) and Pro Football Focus grades (10th among safeties) suggest he’s had a very strong year, but he’ll also be entering his age-33 season, so it’s fair to question whether he’s deserving of a contract in the range of the ones that Berry and perhaps Eric Weddle will sign.

As for Tolbert, his Pro Bowl nod comes at one of the league’s least-valued positions, and he’s also now on the wrong side of 30, which is generally bad news for running backs. I expect he’ll draw interest from plenty of teams if the Panthers don’t lock him up, but as a 30-year-old fullback, his earning potential is limited.

One more player worth mentioning is Browns center Alex Mack. Technically, Mack still has three years remaining on his contract, but he’ll have the opportunity to opt out this winter, and coming off a Pro Bowl season, there’s a good chance he’ll take advantage of that option.

Ultimately, these eight players – plus Mack – aren’t likely to get a huge boost to their annual salaries on their next contracts simply because they made the Pro Bowl. In fact, Tuesday’s Pro Bowl announcement may very well have a more tangible impact on players with Pro Bowl bonuses in their current contracts.

Still, you can bet that the representatives for these potential free agents will be sure to point to this year’s Pro Bowl roster to help make their case that their clients are among the best players in the NFL at their respective positions.

AFC Notes: Geno, Raiders, Browns, Chiefs, Broncos

September 25th, 2015 at 7:32pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Geno Smith‘s prospects when it comes to turning into a viable starting quarterback in the NFL ostensibly aren’t good, but one of his Jets teammates – receiver Brandon Marshall – thinks the 24-year-old has a bright future.

“But like I said from the beginning — and I’ll stand by this — Geno is going to have a monster year, but unfortunately he’s not in it right now,” Marshall said Friday on SiriusXM Radio, according to Newsday’s Kimberley A. Martin. “But he’ll get his shot. He’s still young and he has a long career ahead of him.”

Smith was supposed to be the Jets’ starter this year, but ex-teammate IK Enemkpali broke Smith’s jaw with a punch in August. Since then, Ryan Fitzpatrick has taken the reins and helped lead the Jets to a 2-0 start. As a result, Fitzpatrick has earned a vote of confidence from head coach Todd Bowles. Even without Fitzpatrick to take into consideration, the fact is that Smith hasn’t played well during his career. The 2013 second-round pick’s completion percentage sits in the high-50s and he’s thrown 25 touchdowns against 34 interceptions in 30 games.

Other news and notes from the AFC:

Oakland city and stadium officials have restarted exploratory talks on a new stadium with the Raiders, ESPN’s Bill Williamson reports. The Raiders have set a deadline for Oakland to figure out a new stadium plan by year’s end. If no progress is made, the Raiders – whose lease expires at the end of the season – could relocate to Carson, Calif.
The Browns had two first-round picks in the 2014 draft. They came out of the round with cornerback Justin Gilbert and quarterback Johnny Manziel. Gilbert’s career has been an abject disaster thus far, and Manziel’s hasn’t been a whole lot better. The Browns’ Sunday opponent is the Raiders, whose first two picks in 2014 were star linebacker Khalil Mack and blossoming QB Derek Carr. With that in mind, Tom Reed of Cleveland.com took a look at what could have been for the Browns.
In other Browns news, they tried out free agent receiver Jerry Rice Jr. this week, tweets Pro Football Talk. The son of the greatest wideout ever went undrafted out of UNLV in 2014 and has spent time with Washington and Baltimore.
Chiefs safety Eric Berry, who won an offseason battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, has regained his spot as a starter in the team’s base defense, coordinator Bob Sutton said (link via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star). This comes on the heels of the three-time Pro Bowler playing 71 of 73 snaps in the Chiefs’ Week 2 loss to Denver. Berry’s increase in playing time means a decrease for Hussein Abdullah, who played 37 percent of snaps in Week 2 compared to 86 in Week 1.
The Broncos’ defense has allowed the fewest yards per game and the seventh-fewest points per game this year. Their players and coaches believe third-year tackle Sylvester Williams has played a key role in their success. “It’s exciting to start to see him develop into the type of player that we all know that he can be,” linebacker Von Miller said, according to Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post. “He’ll have a heck of a year. He’s truly a hard worker,” added defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. “He’s got talent, but a lot of guys have talent and they don’t work how he does.”

AFC Notes: Incognito, Berry, Steelers, Browns

August 9th, 2015 at 7:01pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and league-appointed investigator Ted Wells are drawing plenty of criticism for how they’re handling Tom Brady‘s DeflateGate case, but Bills guard Richie Incognito tore into them Saturday for how they dealt with his own scandal a couple years ago.

The league suspended Incognito from November 2013 to February 2014 after a bullying case involving then-Dolphins teammate Jonathan Martin. Incognito, who subsequently sat out all of last season and then signed with Buffalo this past winter, told Newsday’s Bob Glauber: “Ted Wells came in slanted against me and everything in his report was slanted against me. There were some things in there that would have helped my cause that were left out.”

Incognito noted there was “teammate testimony” that would’ve helped his cause, but Wells didn’t pay it any mind. Further, Albert Breer of NFL Network tweeted that “a lot of Dolphins coaches felt their voiced weren’t heard by Wells.”

Regarding Goodell, Incognito said, “I just think it’s bogus, the whole system in how it’s set up with Roger and the complete, absolute power he has.”

“You have to get a little power out of [Goodell’s] hands and get [an independent arbitrator] to take a look at it.”

Eric Berry Cleared To Practice

July 29th, 2015 at 8:43am CST by Zachary Links

Eric Berry has been cleared by doctors to return to practice and is expected to join the Chiefs on the field later today, as Dave Skretta of the Associated Press writes. Berry diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease late last season and has been sidelined ever since.

Berry experienced discomfort in his chest in a late season contest against Oakland and Chiefs trainers discovered a mass on the right side of his chest. Further testing showed that the safety had Hodgkin’s disease and he began treatment in early December. Berry went through the final round of treatment in June, and doctors now feel that he’s strong enough to get back to football.

“He’s kept himself in good shape, believe it or not,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said on Tuesday, before Berry was cleared to return. “He’s really done a good job there.”

Berry, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2010 draft, has played his entire career in Kansas City. He missed all of the 2011 season with a torn knee ligament, but returned to start all 16 games the following year. He has started 53 games in all, piling up 323 tackles with 5.5 sacks and eight interceptions.

The return of Berry is wonderful news for the player, his family, and concerned fans everywhere. From a football perspective, the 26-year-old is regarded as one of the best run-stopping safeties in the game and the Chiefs clearly need him. Kansas City graded out as one of the worst run defenses in the NFL in 2014.

Extra Points: Chiefs, Berry, Brady, Ravens

July 28th, 2015 at 9:35pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a quick look around the NFL..

Chiefs coach Andy Reid told Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter) that he doesn’t anticipate adding any big-name guys with his remaining roster spot.
Reid gave reporters, including BJ Kissel of KCchiefs.com (on Twitter), an update on safety Eric Berry. “Eric is going through some tests right now. We’ll have more information in a day. Everything has been positive so far,” said Reid. The Chiefs safety has been battling Hodgkin lymphoma and it sounds like we may be getting close to hearing a timetable for his return.
Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap (on Twitter) believes that the Patriots will rework Tom Brady‘s contract to bring the suspension money down significantly.
The Ravens are expected to stick with reserve quarterbacks Bryn Renner and Jerry Lovelocke heading into camp, sources tell Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). Still, the Ravens tried out Doug Williams’ son, D.J. Williams, sources tell Wilson (on Twitter) as well as quarterback Austin Trainor and quarterback/wide receiver Trent Steelman (link).

West Rumors: Wilson, Manning, Berry

June 14th, 2015 at 11:26am CST by Sam Robinson

With talks between the Seahawks and Russell Wilson on the fourth-year quarterback’s second contract at a standstill, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times looks at why that’s the case.

One factor, Condotta points out, for the offseason impasse is how Seattle operates offensively. In Wilson, who rated as Pro Football Focus’ 13th-best quarterback last season, leading a run-heavy attack with a perennially menacing defense acting as a safety net, the team may view a player whose potential for growth beyond the lofty heights to which he’s already ascended is limited based on what he’s asked to do.

“That could be a consideration from Seattle, at least currently, as to why they have not offered a top-of-the-market contract just yet,’’ OverTheCap’s Jason Fitzgerald told Condotta. “When you look at some of the contracts they have offered — whether it was Marshawn Lynch, Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman, Percy Harvin and so on — cost was never an issue.

“ … The fact that they are not doing the same for Wilson could indicate that they feel what you see now is his ceiling and there is no more upside.”

As Condotta points out, Wilson’s 96.8 career passer rating ranks behind only Aaron Rodgers among active quarterbacks, so the Seahawks’ reported four-year, $87MM offer won’t cut it when the Super Bowl-winning signal-caller, due to make the 44th-most money ($1.5MM) among quarterbacks this season, has outperformed his rookie deal to this degree. And the lack of urgency for the 2016 free agent, a label that’s pretty insignificant at this point since Wilson is highly unlikely to have that option any time soon, could work in his favor.

“Whenever you have a good-to-great player, the longer you wait, the more it’s going to cost you,” CBSSports.com’s Joel Corry told Condotta.

Let’s look at some other Sunday news items from the Western NFL locales.

Mired in a battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphomy, Chiefs Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry “looks really good,” Travis Kelce noted after helping out with one of Berry’s youth camps recently, reports Vahe Gregorian of the Kansas City Star. The sixth-year safety who remains without a return timetable was reportedly fully engaged in the camp’s operation.
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post looks at Peyton Manning‘s status entering his age-39 season a tanner, fitter player. The Broncos future Hall of Famer’s legendary work ethic’s seeped into his latest challenge, with Cody Latimer noting how in tune Manning already was with new coach Gary Kubiak‘s playbook when the 2014 second-round pick participated at Manning’s Duke camp. Kubiak’s system, while new to Manning, doesn’t quite have the nuances of his previous setup, possibly accelerating this learning curve.

AFC West Notes: Houston, Rivers, Berry

May 26th, 2015 at 8:54pm CST by Zachary Links

The Raiders have a solid backup plan at quarterback thanks to the presence of Christian Ponder, Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com writes. “This offense is a little different than what I ran in Minnesota, but some of the things carry over,” Ponder said. “It is nice to be out there getting reps. I didn’t get many last year (in Minnesota) with Matt Cassel and Teddy (Bridgewater). When you’re in a new situation, the added playing time certainly helps you get your feet wet.” So far, Bair says that Ponder’s transition has been a smooth one. More from the AFC West..

As expected, Justin Houston missed the Chiefs’ first OTA workout, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star writes. In a poll on Monday, 41% of PFR readers said that Houston will probably wind up signing his one-year franchise tender.
Despite his contract issues with the team, Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers is going about his business just as he does every offseason, Kevin Acee of U-T San Diego writes. Rivers said he was “certain” to play out the final year on his deal if something was not done before training camp began. There hasn’t been a whole lot of talk between the Bolts and Rivers’ agent in recent weeks.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid gave reporters an update on standout defensive back Eric Berry, who is currently battling Hodgkin’s lymphoma. “He’s been through all the treatments,” Reid explained, according to the team’s website. “Now the doctor’s going to sit down with him and go over exactly what the results of that are. We don’t have that. Eric doesn’t have it quite yet. Everything up to this point has been very positive from the doctor and from Eric, so I think we’re headed in the right direction.”

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