HEADLINES

Julian Edelman

AFC East Notes: Edelman, Bills, Dolphins

February 11th, 2014 at 10:26am CST by Luke Adams

Let’s round up a few of the latest updates from around the AFC East….

  • Tom E. Curran of CSNNE.com doesn’t expect the market for Julian Edelman this offseason to exceed $6MM per year, in which case he believes there’s a good chance the free agent receiver returns to the Patriots.
  • Governor of New York Andrew M. Cuomo has appointed the first five members to group known as the New Stadium Working Group, which will be tasked with exploring the possibility of building a new stadium for the Bills, according to Gene Warner and Jonathan D. Epstein of the Buffalo News. New York State, Erie County and the Bills will all be responsible for appointing up to seven members to the board, which is poised to meet “within the next two weeks” to begin discussions.
  • Even if the Dolphins can extract a sixth- or seventh-round pick out of another team in exchange for Jonathan Martin, Miami should simply cut him rather than keeping him on the roster through potentially lengthy trade negotiations, argues Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Releasing Martin and allowing Richie Incognito to sign elsewhere would at least symbolically close the door on last year’s bullying scandal, allowing the team to move forward, says Salguero.
  • ESPN.com’s James Walker wonders if the Dolphins might have interest in offensive lineman Gabe Carimi, who was released yesterday by the Buccaneers.

Patriots Notes: Franchise Tag, Wilfork

February 9th, 2014 at 8:57am CST by Rory Parks

Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald examines what, if anything, the Patriots will do with the franchise tag this offseason. She notes that, after the 2012 season, New England had three players who were considered legitimate candidates for the tag: Aqib Talib, Wes Welker, and Sebastian Vollmer. Of course, the Pats let Talib hit the open market, eventually re-signing him to a one-year deal. They locked up Vollmer to a long-term contract, and they let Welker walk.

This year, there are only two Patriots free agents who could realistically receive the tag: Talib and Julian Edelman. Although the cost of the franchise tag for cornerbacks and wide receives is fairly similar, somewhere in the $11MM ballpark, Guregian believes New England will not consider tagging Edelman. After all, Welker was not tagged last season–when the cost of the tag for wide receivers was $11.4MM– and he had a more extensive history of productivity and chemistry with Tom Brady.

However, given Talib’s importance to the defense and the possibility that the cost for all talented defensive backs might spike with the recent play of the Seahawks’ secondary, it will not be so easy to let him test free agency for the second straight year. Nonetheless, Guregian, perhaps with the Patriots’ relatively small cap space in mind, thinks Talib will indeed have a chance to shop his services to other teams, while New England will look to negotiate a long-term deal with him. She believes the team will not tag Talib to buy extra time to work out a deal, as they did with Vince Wilfork in 2010.

Speaking of Wilfork, ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss believes the Patriots will not cut the big defensive tackle just yet. He will cost the team $11.5MM against the cap, but even at age 32, Reiss feels Wilfork’s performance will still justify the price. As noted previously, Joel Corry on CBSSports.com sees the Patriots trying to restructure Wilfork’s contract to gain some cap flexibility for 2014.

AFC Notes: Talib, Welker, Edelman

February 8th, 2014 at 10:48pm CST by Peter Sowards

Early indications are that free agent market for Patriots cornerback Aqib Talib will be “more robust” in 2014 than it was a year, ago, a league source told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

Talib returned to the Patriots in 2013 on a one-year, $5MM contract. According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Albert Breer, Talib turned down a five-year deal in hopes of “cashing in afterward.”

Now is his chance.

Citing injury concerns, ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss projected a three-to-four year deal for Talib with around $8MM per season and $12-14MM guaranteed. Talib totaled four interceptions and 13 passes defended in 2013, earning his first Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors.

Other notes from the AFC:

  • Broncos receiver Wes Welker carries with him an $8MM hit against the cap in 2014, writes Florio.
  • Should the two sides want to work out a new deal, there is little time to do so, as Welker’s $6MM in compensation becomes official in March.
  • If no new deal can be reached, and the Broncos deem Welker too expensive, Florio names Patriots‘ receiver and Welker-clone Julian Edelman as a possible replacement.
  • Florio even goes so far as to mention New England as a possible landing spot for Welker, but is quick to point out how ludicrous that would be, given Bill Belichick‘s recent comments regarding his former Pro Bowl slot receiver.

AFC East Notes: Talib, Edelman, Wilkerson

February 2nd, 2014 at 1:39pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Patriots want cornerback Aqib Talib to return, but it’s a matter of price tag, writes Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com. Talib is a highly effective player when healthy, but injury concerns figure to drive his contract demands down. Reiss projects a three-to-four-year deal at around $8MM annually, with guarantees in the neighborhood of $12-14MM, figures similar to those in Antonio Cromartie‘s contract signed before the 2011 season. Like last year, it stands to be a buyer’s market in terms of cornerbacks, with other options like Brent Grimes, Alterraun Verner, and Vontae Davis available. Reiss ultimately believes Talib will re-sign with the Patriots.

Other notes from the AFC East:

  • Within the same post, Reiss indicates that Julian Edelman could approach the salary range of Danny Amendola, who was guaranteed $10MM over five years. While the Patriots could likely afford this, Reiss sees Edelman moving on, and identifies the Texans, with former Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien now in charge, as a top suitor.
  • The Patriots could stand to improve with regards to signing veteran free agents. Last season, they paid about $14MM to Amendola, Adrian Wilson, Tommy Kelly, and Leon Washington, and got little to no return.
  • Some in the industry believe Jets defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson should hold out during training camp in an attempt to get a new contract, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. Wilkerson is due only a maximum of $7.2MM over the next two seasons, assuming the Jets exercise his 2015 option.
  • Cimini urges the Jets to get involved in any Larry Fitzgerald trade discussions, although he notes that Fitzgerald’s $18MM 2014 cap hit could be troublesome.

Extra Points: London, Cromartie, FA Tryouts

January 31st, 2014 at 11:57am CST by Luke Adams

During his State of the NFL presser this morning, commissioner Roger Goodell downplayed speculation about the possibility of the Rams moving to Los Angeles, but sounded more bullish about the city of London getting an NFL team. According to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link), Goodell said that selling out three games for the 2014 season helped push London “further down the road” toward a franchise. Meanwhile, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald tweets that, in his opinion, the question isn’t whether or not London will eventually get a team, but rather whether it will be via expansion or relocation.

  • Jets head coach Rex Ryan indicated today that he hopes cornerback Antonio Cromartie regains his form in 2014, but didn’t commit to him being on New York’s roster for next season, as Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News details. Cromartie is owed a $5MM roster bonus in March and carries a cap number of nearly $15MM for ’14.
  • Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun passes along word of several free agent tryouts, reporting via Twitter that defensive tackle Torrey Davis auditioned for the Packers, linebacker Alex Hall tried out for the Cardinals, and wide receiver C.J. Akins worked out for the Panthers.
  • Unsurprisingly, Patriots owner Robert Kraft told reporters today, including Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (Twitter links), that he’d like to bring back both of the team’s top two free agents, receiver Julian Edelman and cornerback Aqib Talib.
  • As Russell Wilson prepares to play in his first Super Bowl, a handful of teams around the league are undoubtedly thinking about the opportunity they had to draft the third round pick in 2012. The Eagles are one team that came close to snatching Wilson off the board in the second round, writes Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
  • In a pair of Dallas Morning News chats, Rainer Sabin explains why he believes the Dan Bailey contract extension was the right move for the Cowboys, while Kevin Sherrington argues that what the Cowboys call being “aggressive” with the cap is actually mismanagement.

East Notes: Incognito, Edelman, Rolle

January 30th, 2014 at 4:43pm CST by Luke Adams

Neither Jonathan Martin nor Richie Incognito figures to play for the Dolphins in 2014, but Martin said earlier this week that he wants to continue his playing career, and Incognito conveyed the same sentiment today, tweeting, “I need a job.” Unlike Martin, whose agent will likely work with the Dolphins to find a trade partner, Incognito is a free agent this offseason, so he’ll be able to sign with any team willing to bet that his role in last year’s bullying scandal won’t be a locker-room distraction.

Let’s check in on a few more items from out of the AFC and NFC East…

  • Asked by Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald if he wants to re-sign with the Patriots, Julian Edelman didn’t exactly vow to return at all costs, but his response (“Who doesn’t? It’s a great franchise”) did suggest a desire to remain in New England.
  • With one year left on his contract with the Giants, Antrel Rolle doesn’t plan on going anywhere and would be open to discussing an extension, says Zach Braziller of the New York Post.
  • Because of the schemes run by Chip Kelly, the Eagles may find it easier to recruit free agents on offense, writes Jimmy Kempski of Philly.com, who adds that Philadelphia could be a tougher sell for free agent defensive linemen.

AFC East Rumors: Pats, Fitzgerald, Dolphins

January 28th, 2014 at 4:08pm CST by Luke Adams

While Larry Fitzgerald has long been considered a logical trade target for the Patriots, there haven’t been many substantial reports over the years linking the Pats to the Cardinals receiver. However, Tom E. Curran of CSNNE.com hears from a “very well-placed” source that New England had legitimate interest in acquiring Fitzgerald last offseason, sending out feelers to gauge the feasibility of such a move. As Curran writes, things likely didn’t progress too far, and it’s not clear if the Pats would still have interest in Fitzgerald, who is due a significant pay bump for 2014.

Here’s more from out of the AFC East:

  • In his latest mailbag at ESPNBoston.com, Mike Reiss predicts that free agent receiver Julian Edelman will draw offers in the neighborhood of the deal Danny Amendola signed last year (five years, $28.5MM), with the Texans and Browns among the teams that could make it hard for the Patriots to re-sign Edelman.
  • The Dolphins introduced new general manager Dennis Hickey at a press conference this afternoon, with Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel and Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald among the reporters passing along highlights. Some notable items from the presser: Owner Stephen Ross stressed that Hickey will have full control of the 53-man roster and that Hickey doesn’t “have to listen” if Ross tells him to draft, pursue, or play a specific player. Hickey added that the structure of the front office is “completely clear” to him and that he’s already spoken to the team’s medical and personnel staff about the team’s free agents (all four Twitter links).
  • The Bills announced today that they’ve granted the Browns permission to interview defensive line coach Anthony Weaver. If Weaver is eventually hired by the Browns, he’d be the latest in an increasingly lengthy line of Bills coaches following Mike Pettine to Cleveland.

Patriots Notes: Amendola, Edelman, McCourty

January 26th, 2014 at 12:24pm CST by Rory Parks

The Patriots may cut Danny Amendola this offseason, according to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe. The Patriots are facing a difficult cap situation, with $127MM already committed to the team’s top 51 players, not to mention the dead money created by players that have already been cut. In order to alleviate some of their financial constraints, the Pats may elect to designate Amendola as a post-June 1 cut. If the team were to cut Amendola before June 1, the team would immediately take a $4.8MM cap hit. However, if they made Amendola a post-June 1 cut, they would take a $1.2MM hit in 2014, and a $3.6MM hit in 2015.

New England could then use some of the money they save on Amendola to pay free agent Julian Edelman, who emerged as quarterback Tom Brady‘s favorite target after the departure of Wes Welker and in the absence of tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. Amendola has had difficulty staying healthy throughout the course of his career, but he was able to parlay his flashes of excellence with the Rams into a five-year, $28.5MM free agent contract with the Patriots last March. Despite his continued injury problems in his first season with New England, he would generate significant interest if the Pats were to cut him. Matt Zenitz of the Carroll County Times tweets that the Ravens would likely take a good look at Amendola should he hit the open market again.

New England might also look to extend safety Devin McCourty to free up some more cap room. Christopher Price of WEEI.com notes that McCourty’s salary is due to take a significant hike for the 2014 season, from $920K to about $3.92MM. His cap hit would be an even larger $5.115MM. As such, Price writes that the Pats would do well do extend McCourty, whose strong ball skills and leadership in the secondary make him a valuable part of the team’s success. McCourty is entering the final year of his rookie contract and would be a free agent at season’s end.