HEADLINES

Junior Galette

NFC Notes: Bulaga, Winston, Rams, Panthers

September 5th, 2014 at 8:05pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Packers’ offensive line didn’t fare too well after right tackle Bryan Bulaga went down last night, and Green Bay’s front five will be without the 2010 first-rounder for a while longer. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Twitter), Bulaga has suffered a torn MCL. While the Packers are lucky Bulaga didn’t re-tear his ACL, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com tweets that the 25-year-old will miss two-to-four weeks while recovering from the injury. Derek Sherrod, whom Pro Football Focus (subscription required) handed a -6.4 grade on just 42 snaps in last night’s contest, will fill in at RT.

Meanwhile, Demovsky adds (on Twitter) that while Green Bay might consider adding free agent tackle Eric Winston, there’s “nothing concrete” on that front as of yet. Winston, 30, signed with the Seahawks on July 29 but was released just a month later.

Let’s look at some more news items from the NFC:

  • The Rams tried out veteran linebackers Pat Angerer and Kelvin Sheppard today, according to Field Yates of ESPN (Twitter link). Angerer spent most of his career with the Colts before latching on with the Falcons for the summer, while Sheppard was cut by Indianapolis last week.
  • Panthers tight end D.C. Jefferson, a second-year player out of Rutgers, has been suspended four games for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, writes Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. Jefferson is currently on Carolina’s injured reserve after being waived-injured late last month.
  • Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap breaks down the details of Junior Galette‘s extension with the Saints, which includes a roster bonus and escalators which come into play if Galette notches 12 sacks in 2014. Fitzgerald also notes that New Orleans will likely have to restructure the pass-rusher’s deal as soon as next offseason due to its cap management woes.
  • Most teams carry only one fullback and some don’t even bother to have one at all. So why do the Vikings have two in Jerome Felton and Zach Line? “In college, no one has them anymore. They don’t have any fullbacks in college football,” coach Mike Zimmer said, according to Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune. “So typically you’re taking a tight end — if they have those. There’s hardly any blocking tight ends anymore. So you’re taking them and making them fullbacks or taking linebackers and making them fullbacks. When you find one, if you have a fullback offense, you keep them.”

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Extra Points: Watt, Galette, Lions, Dez

September 3rd, 2014 at 10:21pm CST by Zachary Links

In a piece for the Sporting News, Jason Fitzgerald looks at the far-reaching impact of J.J. Watt‘s $100MM contract with the Texans. The large cash payouts on the front end of his contract and the virtually guaranteed nature of those payouts, despite the lack of contract leverage, should have an impact on rookie contracts of all positions going forward. So for the extensions for the 2011 class have come with minimal guarantees and protection in the contracts but this deal, which basically treated Watt as a veteran free agent, could change that. More from around the NFL..

  • Mike Triplett of ESPN.com (on Twitter) confirmed with a league source that Junior Galette‘s $41.5MM deal with the Saints is all new money. That’s in addition to the $4MM he was already due in 2014 and ’15. Triplett adds that value could increase to $48MM if Galette notches 12 sacks this year (link). He got a $3.5MM signing bonus in the contract and is due a $12.5MM bonus next year.
  • The Lions are worked out cornerback Roc Carmichael today, a league source tells Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). Carmichael last played for the Eagles. The Lions also tried out fellow defensive backs Tommie Campbell, Chris Clemons, and Anthony Walters, Howard Balzer of USA Today (Twitter link).
  • Dez Bryant is talking about a new deal with the Cowboys, but he insists his focus in on beating the 49ers in Week 1, writes David Moore of the Dallas Morning News. “Man, look, it’s like this,’’ Bryant said. “My mind is focused on San Fran. It’s the only thing it’s focused on. All the other stuff is going to take care of itself, I promise.’’
  • The Bengals worked out Brendon Kay, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.

Saints, Junior Galette Agree On Extension

September 3rd, 2014 at 2:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The Saints and Junior Galette have reached an agreement on a four-year contract extension which will keep the standout edge defender under team control through the 2019 season, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). According to Rapoport (via Twitter), the new deal is worth $41.5MM, with $23.5MM in guarantees. We’ll have to wait for further details to find out if that’s all new money, and how much is actually fully guaranteed.

Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports first reported yesterday that Galette and the Saints had reached an agreement, but the 26-year-old and his agent quickly shot that down. While the two sides may still have been putting the finishing touches on the agreement, it’s clear that, as we suspected, Getlin was right about the talks becoming serious.

Galette, who inked a three-year deal with the team in March of 2013, technically still had two years remaining on that contract, but New Orleans decided to reward him for a breakout season in which he became a full-time player and recorded 12 sacks. Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required) ranked Galette as the 12th-best 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL last season, out of 42 qualified players.

As Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap details, Galette’s previous deal could have voided after the 2014 season if he recorded 24 total sacks in 2013 and 2014, which further explains why the Saints were interested in getting something done now. If Galette had matched his 2013 production this season, he’d have been eligible to hit the open market in March.

Saints’ Galette Denies Agreeing To Extension

September 2nd, 2014 at 12:25pm CST by Luke Adams

12:25pm: Galette’s agent, Alvin Keels, has also weighed in, confirming (via Twitter) that there’s no new deal in place for his client.

11:18am: Earlier this morning, Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports reported (via Twitter) that the Saints have reached an agreement in principle on an extension for edge defender Junior Galette. However, Galette himself denied the report, tweeting “These rumors have to stop.” Larry Holder of the New Orleans Times-Picayune also heard from Galette, who said he has yet to agree to anything and that he’s “shocked” by the story (Twitter links).

Galette, who inked a three-year deal with the team in March of 2013, technically still had two years remaining on that contract, so if New Orleans is willing to extend his deal at this point, the team would be rewarding him for a breakout season in which he became a full-time player and recorded 12 sacks. Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required) ranked Galette as the 12th-best 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL last season, out of 42 qualified players.

As Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap details, Galette’s deal can void after the 2014 season if he records 24 total sacks in 2013 and 2014, which further explains why the Saints may be exploring an extension. If Galette matches his 2013 production this season, he’ll be eligible to hit the open market in March. For now, the former undrafted free agent is slated to earn base salaries of $1.4MM this year and next, along with $600K annually in roster and workout bonuses.

It seems unlikely that Getlin would be entirely off base with his report, so perhaps the two sides are working toward finalizing an extension before the regular season begins, and someone with the team or with Galette’s camp jumped the gun on confirming an agreement. I doubt either the Saints or Galette would be interested in continuing talks during the regular season, so we should get some clarity on the situation soon, one way or another.

NFC Notes: Saints, Carr, Barr, Hyde

August 2nd, 2014 at 11:41am CST by Matt Feminis

Writing about the Saints, OverTheCap.com’s Jason Fitzgerald says, “On one end of the spectrum they do a pretty poor job with planning for tomorrow due to restructures, void years, etc… but on the other end of the spectrum they also find these really good bargains on players.” Fitzgerald references Marques Colston, Zach Strief and Junior Galette chief among those bargains, deeming Galette the team’s best contract. On the flip side of the coin, however, is Curtis Lofton. Fitzgerald says the veteran linebacker’s guaranteed money is out of whack, and his deal is “littered” with prohibitive roster bonuses and a potentially costly voidable year.

Read on for several more NFC news and notes:

  • Cowboys cornerback Brandon Carr hasn’t joined the Cowboys for training camp yet because he’s been with his cancer-stricken mother, who passed away on Wednesday.
  • Another player who has been sidelined for training camp is 49ers tight end Garrett Celek. He missed four games last season because of a hamstring injury, and is dealing with a back injury right now. Division III product Derek Carrier stands to benefit, writes SFGate.com’s Eric Branch, as Carrier and Celek are the contenders for the third tight end job behind Vernon Davis and Vance McDonald. Offensive coordinator Greg Roman believes in Carrier’s ability: “He’s got a chance to be a productive player in this league. There’s no doubt. Derek’s got a nice feel for the passing game, he’s got good hands, and he can cover some ground now – he can really run. I don’t like to put timetables on people, but this a big year for him. He’s got a hell of an opportunity this year to really take a big step.”
  • Meanwhile, 49ers coaches are raving about the mental prowess of rookie runner Carlos Hyde, going so far as to call him savant-like, writes Matt Barrows in the Sacramento Bee.
  • Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer says there is a “strong” chance first-rounder Anthony Barr could start the season opener, reports Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune.
  • Bears rookie linebacker Christian Jones was one of the highest-profile undrafted free agents because he was key member of the national champion Florida State Seminoles, because he’s an impressive athlete who garnered second-round grades from draft evaluators and because he failed a drug test at the Combine. Not surprisingly, he’s made early waves in training camp for the linebacker-needy Bears, writes ESPN’s Michael C. Wright, who says it would be a surprise if Jones didn’t make the team: “The question now is whether Jones can maintain the momentum. Through the first seven practices, Jones appears to be one of the most athletic linebackers on the team, and probably the only true strongside linebacker at the position.”
  • ESPN’s Pat Yasinkas checks in on a handful of Buccaneers position battles, including the worrisome guard spots: “This one remains wide open. Jamon Meredith, Oniel Cousins, Patrick Omameh and Kadeem Edwards have been taking turns working with the first team and it doesn’t look like anyone has pulled ahead of the pack yet.”

South Notes: Caldwell, Griffin, Washington

February 20th, 2014 at 8:46pm CST by Peter Sowards

Despite owning 10 selections in the 2014 NFL Draft — including No. 3 overall — Jaguars second-year GM David Caldwell cites a robust class of eligible draftees as a reason to trade down and stockpile picks.

“We have 10 picks already and when we did the Eugene Monroe trade, we felt it would be a deep draft,” Caldwell said at his NFL Scouting Combine interview, according to John Oehser of Gaguars.com. “We feel really good about having an extra four and an extra five.”

In addition to its regularly allotted picks in Rounds 1-7, Jacksonville acquired a fifth-round pick with the trade of receiver Mike Thomas to the Lions, along with the aforementioned fourth- and fifth-round picks from the Ravens in the Monroe trade.

With NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock calling this draft class the deepest in the last 10 years, and Steelers GM Kevin Colbert saying it’s the deepest he’s ever seen, one would be hard-pressed to argue with Caldwell’s philosophy, especially with a lineup devoid of blue-chip talent.

More notes from the AFC and NFC South….

  • Titans safety Michael Griffin and receiver Nate Washington are due to make $6.2MM and $4.8MM in 2014, respectively, but it “sounds like they’re going to be OK,” according to Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean (Twitter link).
  • However, Wyatt doesn’t feel so optimistic about right tackle David Stewart, who is scheduled to earn $6.4MM next season. The Titans would not endure a cap hit of any kind if they release Stewart, who is in the final year of a six-year deal and has missed four games in each of the past two seasons due to injury.
  • Saints GM Mickey Loomis said he plans on filling as many needs as possible in free agency, then finding the best players available in the draft, writes John DeShazier of NewOrleansSaints.com. The New Orleans staff has all the reports written on the 2014 NFL draft class, said Loomis, and that it is now in the “fine-tuning” stage of the evaluation process.
  • DeShazier notes that the BPA strategy has paid dividends with Loomis at GM, unearthing gems like Jahri Evans and Marques Colston in the fourth and seventh rounds of 2006, along with Pierre Thomas and Junior Galette as undrafted free agents in 2007 and 2010.