HEADLINES

Frank Summers

Bills Cut Frank Summers, Activate C.J. Spiller

December 19th, 2014 at 12:38pm CST by Luke Adams

12:38pm: The Bills have officially activated Spiller, the team announced in a press release.

FRIDAY, 11:44am: Head coach Doug Marrone confirmed today that Spiller will be added to the Bills’ 53-man roster today and is listed as probable for Sunday’s game against the Raiders (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 2:17pm: The Bills have parted ways with fullback Frank Summers, the team announced today in a press release. The 29-year-old will become an unrestricted free agent, able to sign with any team, assuming he clears waivers tomorrow.

Summers, a former fifth-round pick, joined the Bills prior to the 2013 season, and acted as the team’s regular fullback for the last two seasons. However, he saw his playing time decline a little this year, playing just 129 defensive snaps after logging 232 a year ago. “The Tank” hadn’t seen action on offense for Buffalo since Week 11.

While the Bills have yet to announce a corresponding roster move, Summers’ release clears a spot for C.J. Spiller, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter). The Bills running back is set to come off the injured reserve list this week, and will likely be activated shortly. Still, it’s not clear if Spiller, who is recovering from a collarbone injury, will be healthy enough to play in the team’s Week 16 contest against Oakland.

East Notes: Wilkerson, Snee, Ertz

July 19th, 2014 at 9:00am CST by Matt Feminis

Jets defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson will make a “ridiculously low” $1.2MM this season, writes ESPNNewYork’s Rich Cimini: “[Wilkerson] won’t become a Darrelle Revis-type distraction — Wilkerson vowed not to stage a holdout — but the topic is bound to come up in his dealings with the media. He has two years remaining on his deal…The Jets have time (and leverage) on their side, so they won’t do a deal unless it makes sense for them. With more than $20 million in cap room, why not do it now? It would send a positive message, showing the organization is committed to keeping its own. That hasn’t always been the case. See: Revis.”

Here’s some more AFC and NFC East reading:

  • Center Nick Mangold carries the second-highest cap hit on the Jets, and while his play has slipped a bit, he remains invaluable, says Brian Costello in the New York Post.
  • The rookie season of Bills first-round quarterback EJ Manuel was scrutinized by Pro Football Focus’ Steve Palazzolo. The results? Manuel struggled with deep passing, but perhaps more worrisome is that Manual struggled with a clean pocket.
  • The Bills are unlikely to keep two fullbacks, meaning bubble players Frank Summers and Evan Rodriguez will compete for the job. ESPN’s Mike Rodak makes the case for both players, saying Summers “contributed on both offense and special teams and remains the Bills’ best option as a lead blocker in goal line situations,” while Rodriguez “offers more of that ‘triple threat.'”
  • Veteran Chris Snee will be the Giants’ right guard if he’s healthy enough to handle the job, but his elbow injury prevented him from getting through OTAs and minicamp. Accordingly, NJ.com’s Jordan Raanan views Brandon Mosely as the “healthiest and strongest candidate heading into camp.”
  • The Eagles are anticipating a breakout season from second-year tight end Zach Ertz, who produced 36 receptions for 469 yards and four touchdowns in 450 snaps last season.
  • Redskins safety Bacarri Rambo started three games as a rookie last season, but he sounds like a player on the bubble in the eyes of ESPN’s John Keim: “Rambo did such a poor job in this area last year and there’s no way you can be a backup safety and not contribute on special teams. He will not bump Ryan Clark from the starting job so Rambo had better improve on special teams.”

Minor Moves: Bills, Lions, Jaguars, 49ers

April 22nd, 2014 at 4:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Within this post, we’ll round up all of Tuesday’s minor transactions — players accepting exclusive rights contract tenders, teams signing players without real NFL experience, minor contract restructures, and so on. Any new minor transactions that pop up during the rest of the afternoon and evening will be added to the top of the page throughout the day:

  • The Dolphins have signed punter Matt Szymanski to a contract, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (via Twitter). Given the presence of Pro Bowl punter Brandon Fields on the Dolphins’ roster, Szymanski will likely just be an extra camp leg for the team.

Earlier updates:

  • Exclusive rights free agents Chris Hogan, Antoine McClain, and Frank Summers have re-signed with the Bills, according to ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak (via Twitter). Of the three players, Summers played the most for the club in 2013, appearing in 232 offensive snaps and scoring a pair of touchdowns. Hogan also caught 10 balls and recorded nine special teams tackles.
  • Cory Greenwood, who previously had two years remaining on his contract with the Lions, has eliminated the 2015 season and reduced his 2014 salary and cap number to the minimum ($645K), says Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter). The renegotiation also eliminates a $20K workout bonus for this year, according to Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap.
  • Jaguars fullback Will Ta’ufo’ou has signed his ERFA tender to return to the team, tweets Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com. Ta’ufo’ou, who had 10 carries and a single reception for Jacksonville in 2013, will be eligible for restricted free agency after the 2014 season.
  • The 49ers have waived fullback Alex Debniak, who spent his rookie season on IR with a torn Achilles, the team announced today in a press release.

Contract Updates: Jets, Bills, Ratliff, Titans

March 6th, 2014 at 11:59am CST by Luke Adams

Restricted free agent cornerback Darrin Walls agreed to a new deal with the Jets last night, and agent Jordan Woy tweets that it’s a two-year contract. Ellis Lankster, who also agreed on a new deal with the Jets, will be on a two-year, $1.63MM contract, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). Lankster’s pact appears to be worth slightly more than the minimum.

With free agency looming and several players having already signed new contracts or reworked old ones, we have plenty more contract and cap updates to pass along, so let’s dive right in….

  • The Bills extended contract tenders to all four of their exclusive rights free agents, and cornerback Brandon Smith has accepted his, according to Joe Buscaglia of WGR550 (Twitter links). With Smith set to return to the team on a one-year, minimum-salary deal, offensive guard Antoine McClain, fullback Frank Summers, and wide receiver Chris Hogan will also be back in Buffalo if and when they sign their tenders.
  • Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link) has the details on Jeremiah Ratliff‘s new two-year contract with the Bears. It’s worth a total of $4MM, with $600K guaranteed.
  • The cap figures on Troy Polamalu‘s new three-year contract with the Steelers are $6.387MM (2014), $8.25MM (2015), and $8MM (2016), with respective base salaries of $1.5MM, $6MM, and $5.75MM, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link).
  • The Browns have extended a contract tender to inside linebacker Craig Robertson, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. Robertson, who was an exclusive rights free agent, will be in line for a minimum salary of $570K for 2014.
  • New one-year deals for running backs Jackie Battle (Titans) and Bobby Rainey (Bucs) are both worth the minimum, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean and Tom Pelissero of USA Today, respectively (Twitter links). Battle’s minimum salary ($855K) is a little more substantial than Rainey’s ($570K) due to his extra years of service time.
  • Wyatt also shares (via Twitter) a few more specifics on Bernard Pollard‘s two-year deal with the Titans, which has base salaries of $1.65MM in 2014 and $3.1MM in 2015.