HEADLINES

Greg Orton

Tender Updates: Tuesday

March 10th, 2015 at 4:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s tender decisions:

  • The Buccaneers have signed running back Bobby Rainey to a one-year tender worth $1.54MM, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. The Bucs will now have right of first refusal if another club offers Rainey a deal.
  • The Falcons chose not to tender an offer to restricted free agent Drew Davis, Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com reported. The wide receiver will now become an unrestricted free agent.
  • The Packers elected not to tender new contracts to wide receiver Jarrett Boykin or running back DuJuan Harris, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN (via Twitter).
  • Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun reports that the Ravens didn’t tender an offer to cornerback Anthony Levine, who already has other teams interested in his services. He still might end up back in Baltimore, per Wilson.
  • Ben Volin of the Boston Globe tweets that the Patriots declined to make a qualifying offer to receiver Brian Tyms. He’s now a free agent. Further, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, the Pats also didn’t make an offer to Tyms’ fellow wideout Greg Orton.
  • In other Pats news, Volin reports that the team made qualifying offers to fullback James Develin, defensive tackle Sealver Siliga and linebacker James Morris. All three will return to New England.
  • The Texans tendered a contract to quarterback Case Keenum, according to the Houston Chronicle’s John McClain.
  • The Vikings have opted to let go a pair of exclusive rights free agents, linebacker Dom DeCicco and offensive lineman Josh Samuda, per Matt Vensel of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
  • Safety Michael Thomas will return to the Dolphins after signing his ERFA tender, tweets James Walker of ESPN.com.
  • Green Bay issued an exclusive rights free agent tender to safety Chris Banjo, his agent tells Tom Silverstein of the Journal Sentinel (on Twitter).
  • The Packers have issued an exclusive rights free agent tender to safety Chris Banjo, his agent tells Tom Silverstein of the Journal Sentinel (on Twitter).
  • James Develin is returning to the Patriots after signing his exclusive rights tender, a source tells Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald tweets.
  • The Colts announced that exclusive rights free agent outside linebacker Cam Johnson has signed his tender. Johnson was first acquired by the Colts in a trade with the 49ers in September of 2013.
  • The Packers tendered RFA offensive lineman Don Barclay at the lowest level ($1.542MM), per agent Joe Linta (Twitter link via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com).
  • The Vikings tendered a contract offer to restricted free agent offensive tackle Mike Harris, but their other RFA-eligible player, linebacker Dom DeCicco, didn’t get a tender, tweets Mark Craig of the Star Tribune.

Earlier updates:

  • The Jaguars re-signed exclusive rights free agent tackle Austin Pasztor, tendering him a contract, tweets John Oehser of Jaguars.com.
  • The Dolphins tendered defensive end Derrick Shelby with the second-round tender of $2.35MM, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald tweets. Shelby, 26, appeared in 15 games last season, recording 26 tackles and 3.0 sacks.
  • The Bengals (on Twitter) extended a tender offer to cornerback Chris Lewis-Harris. Lewis-Harris, an ERFA, has appeared in 12 games for Cincy over the last three years.
  • The Bengals will not extend a tender offer to defensive tackle Devon Still, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. However, the Bengals have offered Still a one-year deal and he’s mulling that over while also taking matters involving his family into account, Coley Harvey of ESPN.com tweets.
  • The Packers have tendered safety Sean Richardson at the ROFR (right of first refusal rate) of one-year, $1.542MM, according to Tom Silverstein of the Journal Sentinel (on Twitter). That’s a sizable committment to Richardson, he adds.

Minor Moves: Packers, Jaguars, Chargers

July 23rd, 2014 at 3:39pm CST by Ben Levine

It’s been a busy Wednesday in the NFL, with a handful of veteran signings (including Jason Babin), a confirmed suspension and a retirement. Let’s take a look at some of the more under-the-radar moves from this afternoon…

  • The Packers have signed linebacker Korey Jones, the player’s agent told Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The former Wyoming player spent 2013 with the BC Lions of the CFL after a brief stint with the Cardinals.
  • The Jaguars have announced the signing of rookie defensive back Deion Belue. The team subsequently waived rookie running back Beau Blankenship. Belue, a former standout for Alabama, has already spent time on the Dolphins and Steelers rosters. Blankenship had a 15-touchdown season for Ohio University in 2012 and was signed by the Jaguars in May.
  • The Cardinals announced that they have cut rookie wide receiver Kelsey Pope. The former Samford Bulldog broke multiple Southern Conference receiving records during his collegiate career.
  • The Chargers have waived (failed physical) former second-round pick Jonas Mouton, the team announced. The linebacker made three appearances in three seasons with the team.
  • The Vikings have waived defensive end Spencer Nealy and signed tight end Michael Higgins, the team announced on Twitter. Nealy, a former undrafted rookie, is suspended for the first four games of the 2014 season. Higgins previously spent time with the Saints.
  • The Patriots have released wide receiver Tyler McDonald and re-signed wideout Greg Orton, reports the Boston Herald’s Jeff Howe (via Twitter). McDonald, a former Maine Black Bear, was signed by New England less than a week ago. Orton spent last season on the Patriots practice squad.

Extra Points: Matthews, Gordon, Rams, Pats

May 22nd, 2014 at 9:32pm CST by Zachary Links

It’s a new day when it comes to rookie contracts in the NFL, writes former exec Andrew Brandt for The MMQB. Of course, salaries and contract length are now predetermined for every pick, taking the negotiating out of the process. Because of that, many players are questioning why they need to have an agent to handle rookie contracts at all. Here’s more from around the league..

  • Falcons first round pick Jake Matthews will receive a $10.269MM signing bonus on his four-year, $16.435MM guaranteed deal, tweets Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. As is the case for the rest of his fellow first-rounders, the deal for the No. 6 overall pick also includes a fifth-year option.
  • Browns General Manager Ray Farmer said that he doesn’t think a superstar receiver is crucial to a team’s success, which may not bode well for Josh Gordon‘s long-term future with the club, writes Mary Kay Cabot of the Plain Dealer. “I would say ‘how important are those guys?”’ Farmer told 92.3 The Fan. “Name the last big-time receiver to win a Super Bowl. Name the last mega-guy. (Gordon) matters to me because I like the guy and I think he’s a really good player, but at the end of the day, when you look at the teams that have these mega-receivers, name the last guy that won a Super Bowl?… There are none. The last guy that really helped his team get there was T.O. (Terrell Owens).”
  • The Rams signed undrafted free agent wide receiver Jordan Harris, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. The Baylor product racked up over 2,200 yards over the last two years.
  • The Patriots announced that they have signed first-year defensive back Daxton Swanson out of Sam Houston State and undrafted free agent defensive lineman L.T. Tuipulotu from Utah. To make room, the Pats released rookie free agent safety Jeremy Deering (Rutgers) and first-year wide receiver Greg Orton (Purdue).
  • Packers free agent Jermichael Finley tweeted out that he has received “Awesome News!” with the hashtag “#IWillRiseAgain” which could be an indictation that he has been cleared to play. Finley, once regarded as one of the best tight ends in the NFL, missed the bulk of last season.

Pats Rumors: Blount, Edelman, Talib

January 20th, 2014 at 3:42pm CST by Luke Adams

LeGarrette Blount is headed for unrestricted free agency, but he indicated today that he’d like to return to the Patriots, according to Mary Paoletti of CSNNE.com (via Twitter). While Blount’s comment came with the caveat that “we’ll have to see what happens in the offseason,” Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) gets the sense that the Pats have interest in re-signing the 27-year-old this winter. Here’s more on the AFC’s runner-up:

  • The Pats signed everyone on their practice squad except Marcus Forston to a futures contract, tweets Howe. So in addition to signing Mattes and McGuffie, who are mentioned below, the Pats also inked offensive linemen Jordan Devey and Braxston Cave, receivers Reggie Dunn and Greg Orton, and linebacker Taylor Reed to deals.

Earlier updates:

  • During his weekly appearance on WEEI in Boston, Tom Brady had nothing but praise for his top receiver, saying that Julian Edelman, a free agent this offseason, “deserves the best” (link via CSNNE.com). Still, Brady suggested that free agency and personnel decisions will be in the hands of New England’s front office and head coach.
  • Speaking of those decisions, Bill Belichick told reporters today, including Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (Twitter link), that it will likely take four to eight weeks to make decisions on the club’s in-house free agents like Blount and Edelman.
  • Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk examines the decisions facing the Patriots’ in the next couple months, including whether or not to re-sign Blount, Edelman, and Aqib Talib.
  • Offensive lineman R.J. Mattes and wide receiver Sam McGuffie have signed futures contracts with the Pats, tweets Howe. Both players had been on New England’s practice squad.