HEADLINES

Haason Reddick

East Notes: Redskins, Dolphins, Jets, Giants

April 4th, 2017 at 9:51pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Redskins have lost $4.5MM in cap space after paying back a “salary cap loan” from the 2011 campaign, as Rich Tandler of CSNMidAtlantic.com explains. Once the lockout concluded in 2011, the league-wide salary cap was set at $120MM per team, a $3MM decrease from the previous capped year. Because of the discrepancy, the NFL allowed clubs to borrow cap space: up to $3MM in 2011, and up to $1.5MM in 2012. Both amounts had to be repaid by 2017, so the bill has now come due for Washington.

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

  • The Dolphins are continuing their search for front seven players by researching draft prospects, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Oklahoma defensive tackle Charles Walker has been invited for a meeting with the Fins, per Jackson, while the club is also showing interest in Temple linebacker Haason Reddick and Villanova defensive end Tanoh Kpassagnon. Meanwhile, Miami worked out cornerback John Ojo — who spent 2016 with the Edmonton Eskimoes of the Canadian Footbball League — on Monday, but he’s expected to sign with another team, according to Jackson.
  • Ohio State safety Malik Hooker will visit with the Jets on Thursday, as Hooker tells SiriusXM NFL Radio (Twitter link). Hooker, considered one of the draft’s top two safeties along with Jamal Adams (LSU), will likely be selected within the top 10 picks later this month. In New York, a Hooker addition could possibly lead to the release of veteran defender Marcus Gilchrist.
  • After indicating he was stepping away from the NFL on Monday, Giants defensive end Owa Odighizuwa tweeted Tuesday that he’s “grateful to be part of Big Blue,” but New York sources (and a few Giants teammates) aren’t sure what is going on with the 25-year-old defender, per Ralph Vacchiano of SNY. While some observers believe Odighizuwa is dealing with “personal” problems, the entire nature of his tweets is still unclear.
  • The Redskins are working out offensive tackle John Kling, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. King signed with Chicago last summer after being undrafted out of Buffalo, but was waived during final cutdowns and never latched on with another team.

North Rumors: Browns, Ravens, M. Williams

April 3rd, 2017 at 9:43am CST by Dallas Robinson

Stockpiling draft assets has been a clear strategy for the Browns under their new regime, as Peter King of TheMMQB.com writes. After trading back several times in the 2016 draft, Cleveland is now armed with nine selections in the first five rounds of this year’s draft (and seven picks in the first four rounds of 2018). Acquiring more capital is all part of the rebuild orchestrated, in part, by chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta.

“We’ve looked ourselves in the mirror and said, ‘Do we think that we are actually superhuman when it comes to picking players?’” said DePodesta. “And we pretty easily answered that with a resounding no. So how are we going to increase our chances? We need to have more picks. So, if we have the same number of picks every year as everyone else, we don’t expect do better than anyone else.”

Here’s more from the NFL’s two North divisions:

  • Clemson wide receiver Mike Williams will attend predraft visits with the Ravens, Browns, and Titans, according to Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. Williams is widely viewed as one of the draft’s top three wideout prospects, along with Washington’s John Ross and Western Michigan’s Corey Davis, and he’s also met with another WR-needy club — the Eagles — earlier this offseason. In January, a scout told Matt Miller of Bleacher Report that Williams favorably compares to Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green, and called him the “best player on the field” during the Alabama-Clemson Championship Game.
  • The Ravens have scheduled a meeting with Temple linebacker Haason Reddick, per Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com. Reddick is capable of playing either inside or outside ‘backer, meaning he could step in next to C.J. Mosley in the middle of Baltimore’s defense, or help replace Elvis Dumervil on the edge. “Outside linebacker in a 3-4 system is most natural to me,” Reddick said at Temple’s Pro Day. “Because of the type of player I am, how fast I can learn the game, I know that if I’m put at inside linebacker I can be the best at that as well.” Reddick posted 9.5 sacks and 22.5 tackles for loss in 2016.
  • Although they recently inked free agent Latavius Murray, the Vikings may consider drafting a running back later this month, writes Ben Goessling of ESPN.com. While Murray signed for three years, Minnesota can cut bait after 2017 with minimal dead money accelerating onto its cap. Fellow running back Jerick McKinnon, meanwhile, is scheduled to become a free agent in 2018. So far, the Vikings have met with Tennessee‘s Alvin Kamara and Oklahoma‘s Joe Mixon.