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Geoff Schwartz

Cole’s Latest: Kaepernick, Jenkins, Wallace

February 28th, 2016 at 3:23pm CST by Dallas Robinson

A report earlier today indicated that the Texans are not expected to trade for 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and Jason Cole of Bleaher Report (Twitter link) confirms that information, relaying that he was “told strongly” that Houston will not be dealing for Kaepernick. However, the Texans could have interest in Kaepernick if he is released by San Francisco.

Here’s more from Cole:

  • Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins has fired his agent, according to Cole (video link), after Jenkins found Los Angeles’ latest offer of five years and $45MM unacceptable. Jenkins must now wait five days to hire a new agent, during which point the Rams cannot negotiate with him. As Vincent Bonsignore of the Los Angeles Daily News writes, Los Angeles can still the place the franchise/transition tag on Jenkins in advance of Tuesday’s deadline (though the latest reports have the Rams leaning towards using the tag on fellow corner Trumaine Johnson). Jenkins, per Cole, is expected to hire the Schwartz and Feinsod agency for representation.
  • Vikings GM Rick Spielman is set to meet with the agent for receiver Mike Wallace at the combine in the hopes of convincing Wallace to accept a paycut, Cole reports (video link). Wallace is scheduled to count $11.5MM against the cap in 2016, and Minnesota can clear out all that money by releasing him.
  • There is mutual interest between the Dolphins and free agent offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz “down the line,” tweets Cole. The Giants released Schwartz earlier this month, so he’s free to sign with any club immediately.
  • North Dakota State’s Carson Wentz drew rave reviews at the combine, according to Cole (video link), and while he looks like the favorite to be the first quarterback off the board in April’s draft, Cal’s Jared Goff is still in the running, as well.
  • Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan had offseason surgery on his lower back, per Cole (video link), but the operation was considered minor by both club and player. Jordan should be ready for New Orleans’ offseason program.

East Notes: Schwartz, D. Jackson, Galette, Fins

February 15th, 2016 at 8:59am CST by Luke Adams

After watching the Giants post 6-10 records for two consecutive seasons, Geoff Schwartz will be eyeing a contending team in free agency, the recently released offensive lineman told Sirius XM Radio (Twitter link).

“I want to go to a winner. I’m tired of congratulating my friends on winning Super Bowls,” Schwartz said.

Schwartz probably won’t receive a four-year contract like he signed with the Giants two years ago, considering the guard/tackle has only played in 13 games the past two seasons, but the $4.2MM AAV on that deal may still be in the ballpark of what the 29-year-old Schwartz seeks. Pro Football Focus rated him as the league’s 20th-best guard last season, even though he only played 11 games.

Here’s more from around the NFL’s East divisions:

  • DeSean Jackson only has one year left on his contract with Washington, and the team would create nearly $7MM in cap savings by cutting him, but such a move doesn’t really makes sense, according to John Keim of ESPN.com. If anything, Keim writes, Washington should explore the possibility of tacking a couple more years onto Jackson’s deal.
  • Mike Jones of the Washington Post explores another contract situation in Washington, examining what sort of offer the club should make to pass rusher Junior Galette. According to Jones, people familiar with Galette’s thinking believe he might prefer a one-year pact in order to rebuild his value and land a big, multiyear contract a year from now. However, Galette also may be unwilling to sign another low-salary deal, preferring something in the range of $7-9MM. That could be too pricey for Washington, complicating negotiations.
  • James Walker of ESPN.com debates whether the Dolphins should take a rebuilding approach this offseason, or simply retool their roster and attempt to win now. Walker comes down in favor of a rebuild, arguing that quick fixes haven’t worked in Miami and that the team should recommit to building through the draft.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.

Extra Points: Manziel, Schwartz, London

February 6th, 2016 at 5:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

Long thought to be Johnny Manziel‘s career lifeline, the Cowboys may not have been interested in the embattled quarterback at all, Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Team sources told Hill the Browns quarterback who could be facing legal action for his potential role in a domestic assault wasn’t on the Cowboys’ radar even before the ex-Heisman Trophy winner’s latest off-the-field occurrence.

Hill writes the same personnel who advised Jerry Jones to pass on the polarizing Texas A&M quarterback in favor of Zack Martin are still in place. The Cowboys remain very much in search of a quality backup quarterback, but Manziel doesn’t fit that profile and appears to be a non-starter in Dallas.

The Browns are expected to cut Manziel before the new league year begins.

Here’s the latest from around the league.

  • The NFL’s tri-annual showcases in London continue to generate buzz on a franchise spawning in the United Kingdom’s biggest city, and Roger Goodell isn’t doing anything to squelch that notion. “We are considering playing more games in the U.K. It’s a balancing act with our schedule. … As far as a franchise, let’s continue to grow. Let’s continue to see that excitement and enthusiasm, passion and support continue to develop. If it does, I think that’s a realistic possibility,” Goodell told media, via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. The obvious logistical issues remain, as London is an eight hours ahead of the Pacific Time Zone, and such an expansion would be the most daring step among the four major American sports leagues.
  • Goodell stands in favor of the league pursuing a policy that will automatically eject players after they receive their second personal foul in a game, Mark Maske of the Washington Post reports. “I believe that that’s consistent with what we believe are safety issues,” the commissioner told media at his yearly address, “but I also believe it’s consistent with what we believe are the standards of sportsmanship that we’ve emphasized. We should take that out of the hands of the officials.” Any rule change must be approved by at least 24 of the 32 owners. John Mara wants such a rule to be clear as opposed to a gray area regarding low-end personal fouls. “To me, it’d have to be severe enough personal fouls as opposed to something like an incidental facemask,” Mara told Maske. Following the actions of Odell Beckham Jr. and Vontaze Burfict within a span of three weeks, the league would appear to have momentum to pass legislation of this sort.
  • Geoff Schwartz would be hesitant if the Giants were to pursue his free agent brother Mitchell Schwartz, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post reports. The Giants are in need of a right tackle after turning to journeyman Marshall Newhouse last season, and the 26-year-old Mitchell Schwartz is arguably the best available. The Browns’ right-edge presence graded as Pro Football Focus’ sixth-best tackle this season. “I don’t know if we would get along too well playing next to each other for a while, just because of our personalities,” Geoff Schwartz said. “Maybe after a week or so, we’d kind of get tired of each other. He’s a great player, don’t get me wrong. He’s the best right tackle this year, I hope he goes somewhere and gets every cent he can get. I just don’t know if the Giants are in position to pay a right tackle eight-and-a-half-, nine-million dollars.” Geoff Schwartz stands to make $3.9MM in base salary if the Giants bring the injury-prone guard/tackle back for a third season. He does not, however, want his brother to re-sign with the rebuilding Browns. “Obviously, you want to get your money, but you want to win. You don’t want to be on a losing team. He’s had four offensive coordinators in four years. He’s had three or four GMs, three head coaches. I mean, you can’t win that way,” Schwartz said.
  • Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman did not activate the brakes when his Dodge Ram collided with a Honda Civic in October, injuring the other driver, according to the Seattle Times’ Lynn Thompson. Coleman, who played in a career-most 14 games for the Seahawks this season, was going 60 mph in 35-mph zone at the time of the crash, one that left the driver of the Honda Civic with a concussion and a broken collarbone. Coleman suffered a concussion in the accident while losing his hearing aid. Coleman told police he’d smoked a form of synthetic marijuana, not illegal in Washington, an hour before the collision.

Giants Place Geoff Schwartz On IR

December 1st, 2015 at 3:17pm CST by Zachary Links

The Giants announced that they have placed Geoff Schwartz on injured reserve. As previously reported, the Giants will be adding guard Adam Gettis to the active roster off of the Raiders’ taxi squad.

The entire Giants offensive line has been finding it difficult to stay on the field this season. Former first-round pick Justin Pugh was ruled out for Sunday’s contest with a concussion, his second-straight game missed with that injury. Center Weston Richburg was also sidelined on Sunday with a high ankle sprain. John Jerry, Dallas Reynolds, and rookie Bobby Hart have been seeing unexpected playing time because of the rash of injuries to the interior of the offensive line.

Schwartz struggled with injury for the Giants last year, when he played in only two games after signing a decent-sized free agent contract the previous offseason. The team has yet to get a return on investment for the four-year deal worth $16.8MM and $6.2MM guaranteed. Now, it’s fair to wonder what Schwartz’ future will be with Big Blue beyond 2015.

Geoff Schwartz Leaves Game With Fractured Leg

November 29th, 2015 at 1:48pm CST by Rob DiRe

Giants offensive guard Geoff Schwartz exited the contest versus Washington with a fractured lower leg. He has been ruled out, and will be heading to injured reserve according to Paul Schwartz of the New York Post (via Twitter).

The Giants will likely look to add an offensive lineman during the week, either in free agency or from their practice squad.

The entire offensive line has been finding it difficult to stay on the field. Former first-round pick Justin Pugh was already ruled out for today with a concussion, the second-straight game he missed with that injury. Schwartz had already moved to left guard to compensate for that. Center Weston Richburg is also missing with a high ankle sprain.

John Jerry, Dallas Reynolds, and rookie Bobby Hart are seeing unexpected playing time because of the rash of injuries to the interior of the offensive line. In fact, other that the two starting offensive tackles, backup Emmett Cleary is the only other offensive lineman on the active roster.

Schwartz struggled with injury for the Giants last year, when he played in only two games after signing a not insignificant free agent contract the previous offseason. The team has yet to get a return on investment for the four-year deal worth $16.8MM and $6.2MM guaranteed. If this injury is indeed season ending, it could put his future with the team in jeopardy.

Giants, Geoff Schwartz Restructure Contract

March 18th, 2015 at 4:45pm CST by Zachary Links

4:45pm: Schwartz’s new deal also includes up to $500K in playing-time incentives, so he’ll have the opportunity to earn back the full $2MM he agreed to give up, tweets Raanan.

8:34am: After what amounted to a lost season, Geoff Schwartz has agreed to restructure his deal with the Giants, as Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger writes. The offensive lineman has given up a good deal in guarantees under his reworked deal with Big Blue.

The new pact will call for Schwartz scale back his base salary from $3.675MM to $1.675MM. He’ll get a chance to earn $1.5MM back in per-game roster bonuses and he’ll have $500K of his 2016 salary guaranteed. In essence, those two figures could combine to make up for the gap. In the end, the Giants will get a cap hit of $2.845MM for Schwartz in 2015, a lesser blow than what they were slated to pay out before, giving them $2.13MM in additional cap space for this league year. The Giants could use that extra breathing room to help facilitate new deals for Jason Pierre-Paul, Prince Amukamara or Eli Manning.

Schwartz, 28, signed a four-year deal with the Giants when he hit free agency in March, but he barely played for the club in 2014. Sidelined with a toe injury, Schwartz was placed on injured reserve with the designation to return prior to Week 1. The 28-year-old returned for November contests against the Cowboys and Jaguars, but that apparently was the beginning and end of his 2014 campaign.

Schwartz was a seventh-round pick of the Panthers in 2008 and made enough of a mark there to see time in all 16 games during his rookie season, including three starts. In his sophomore campaign, he started all 16 games at right guard. He went a couple of years without another start until 2013 with KC, which he used to springboard into his lucrative deal in New York.

Giants Put Ayers, Kiwanuka, Snyder On IR

December 2nd, 2014 at 5:43pm CST by Luke Adams

5:43pm: Even more bad news for the Giants. The Giants have also placed guard Geoff Schwartz and linebacker Terrell Manning on injured reserve, according to ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano (via Twitter). Meanwhile, running back Chris Ogbonnaya has been added to the roster (link).

Ogbonnaya, 28, saw his second stint with the Panthers come to an end recently when he was waived to make room for the promotion of defensive tackle Micanor Regis. The running back/fullback compiled 50 yards on 14 carries this season, but he hasn’t played since Carolina’s loss to the Saints in late October.

Schwartz, 28, signed a four-year deal with the Giants when he hit free agency in March, but has barely played for the club in 2014. Sidelined with a toe injury, Schwartz was placed on injured reserve with the designation to return prior to Week 1. The 28-year-old returned for November contests against the Cowboys and Jaguars, but that apparently was the beginning and end of his 2014 campaign.

The Giants plucked Manning off of the Bengals’ taxi squad just days ago, but an ankle injury took him off the field. The Giants placed 5 players on IR today but they can only replace four of them since Manning was signed off Cincy’s practice squad last week. NFL rules stipulate that a player signed off of another’s teams practice squad can’t be replaced on the 53-man roster until three weeks have lapsed since the signing.

4:37pm: The Giants’ lost 2014 season took another downward turn today, as the team placed three more veteran players on injured reserve, bringing the total count of Giants players on IR up to 18. According to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter), defensive end Robert Ayers, defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka, and offensive lineman Adam Snyder are the latest New York players to land on the injured reserve list.

As we heard yesterday, Ayers sustained a torn pectoral muscle during Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars, which was expected to end his season. Kiwanuka and Snyder are both on the shelf with knee ailments, and will also see their 2014 seasons end prematurely. For the Giants, these are just the latest in a series of season-ending injuries that have plagued the team all year. Notable contributors like Victor Cruz, Jon Beason, Walter Thurmond, and Prince Amukamara have also been placed on the IR at some point this season.

While Ayers remains under contract for 2015 at an affordable rate and will likely return to the team next season, assuming he makes a full recovery, Kiwanuka and Snyder may have played their last games for the Giants — Kiwanuka’s cap hit increases to an unpalatable $7.45MM next year, while Snyder’s contract expires at season’s end.

As for this season, the Giants will promote three players from their practice squad to fill the newly-created openings on the roster, tweets Dan Graziano of ESPN.com. Linebacker James Davidson, guard Eric Herman, and defensive tackle Dominique Hamilton will receive promotions to the 53-man unit.

Giants Activate Geoff Schwartz, Cut Anderson

November 17th, 2014 at 2:47pm CST by Luke Adams

The Giants have officially activated guard Geoff Schwartz from their injured reserve list, cutting linebacker Justin Anderson to make room on the 53-man roster, tweets Dan Graziano of ESPN.com. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun first reported earlier today that Schwartz would be added to New York’s active roster.

Schwartz, 28, signed a four-year deal with the Giants when he hit free agency in March, but has yet to make his regular-season debut for the club. Sidelined with a toe injury, Schwartz was placed on injured reserve with the designation to return prior to Week 1. The team had until today at 4:00pm eastern time to decide whether to place Schwartz on the 53-man roster or move him to long-term injured reserve, ending his season.

As for Anderson, he had been promoted from the Giants’ practice squad to the 53-man roster in advance of the team’s game against the 49ers. Assuming he clears waivers, Anderson appears to be a candidate to rejoin the taxi squad later this week.

NFC East Notes: Schwartz, Bryant, Melton

November 17th, 2014 at 1:38pm CST by Luke Adams

Let’s take a look at a few Monday items from out of the NFC East, where the Cowboys and Eagles are tied for first place at 7-3, with the 3-7 Giants tied with Washington in the cellar….

  • The Giants are expected to activate guard Geoff Schwartz today based on the progress he has made in his recovery from a toe injury, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Head coach Tom Coughlin has since confirmed that Schwartz will be added to the roster in advance of today’s deadline, per Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (via Twitter).
  • Taking an in-depth look into Dez Bryant‘s contract situation with the Cowboys, Bob Sturm of the Dallas Morning News concludes that something in the range of six years and $84MM, with $28MM in guaranteed money, could make sense for both the team and the wideout.
  • While the Cowboys have been known for their lavish spending in the past, the team’s recent deals have been more club-friendly, often offering protection against injuries or a decline in performance, writes Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com. That doesn’t mean that Bryant won’t get a long-term deal from the Cowboys, but it means that negotiations might be trickier than they would have been a few years ago.
  • In a separate ESPN.com piece, Archer takes a look at defensive lineman Henry Melton, whose deal includes an option that the Cowboys will have to exercise or turn down this winter. Based on Melton’s performance so far, it looks like a sure thing that Dallas will pick up the option, but Melton tells Archer that he’s not thinking about his future for now.
  • At OverTheCap.com, a pair of NFC East quarterbacks show up in Jason Fitzgerald’s weekly list of players whose stocks took a hit over the weekend. Fitzgerald identifies Giants QB Eli Manning and Washington signal-caller Robert Griffin III as players on the decline, suggesting Griffin’s “star hasn’t just dimmed, its completely burned out.”

NFC Notes: Vikes, McDonald, Sims, Schwartz

October 31st, 2014 at 3:24pm CST by Luke Adams

As we wait to see whether or not Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo will be available this weekend for a showdown between two of the NFC’s top teams – Dallas and Arizona – let’s check out a few Friday afternoon items from across the conference….

  • Since Vikings practice squad Chandler Harnish was injured in practice this week, the team has been on the lookout for a replacement. According to head coach Mike Zimmer, three signal-callers worked out for the club today, though he didn’t identify the players by name, per Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter links).
  • Tracey Kaplan of the San Jose Mercury News was among those reporting that Santa Clara County prosecutors are leaning against charging 49ers defensive lineman Ray McDonald with domestic violence. However, while the District Attorney’s office may be leaning that way, the DA announced today that no decision has been made yet, according to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.
  • Players who went on the IR list with the designation to return prior to Week 1 are eligible to be activated for this weekend’s contests, and while Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets that Buccaneers running back Charles Sims figures to come off IR tomorrow, Giants guard Geoff Schwartz won’t be activated for at least one more week, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). Caplan adds (via Twitter) that the Bucs appear likely to promote defensive tackle Matthew Masifilo from their practice squad as well.
  • While it doesn’t appear likely to happen, head coach Ron Rivera believes Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy should be reinstated by the NFL if his trial is postponed until after the season, as ESPN.com’s David Newton details.
  • Given the multiple ACL injuries suffered by quarterback Sam Bradford and tackle Jake Long, Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wonders whether the Rams will be able to count on either player for the 2015 season.
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