HEADLINES

King Dunlap

AFC Notes: Ginn, Titans, Jaguars, Dunlap

March 3rd, 2015 at 10:11pm CST by Zachary Links

A quick look at the AFC, which will now include star running back LeSean McCoy..

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Chargers, King Dunlap Agree To Extension

February 25th, 2015 at 9:39pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

WEDNESDAY: Dunlap will earn $9MM in the first year, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

TUESDAY: Dunlap’s extension contains $13MM in guaranteed money, $6.5MM of which comes in the form of a signing bonus, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

FRIDAY: The Chargers and left tackle King Dunlap have agreed to a four-year extension, according to the team (Twitter link). The deal is worth $28MM, per the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Michael Gelhken, and will keep Dunlap from hitting the free agent market March 10.King Dunlap

Dunlap, 30, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Eagles before signing with the Chargers in 2013. He has appeared in and started 27 regular-season games for the Bolts, emerging as their most dependable offensive lineman. Dunlap’s teammates named him San Diego’s Lineman of the Year in 2014 and Pro Football Focus (subscription required) rated him the 23rd-best tackle in the league out of 84 qualifiers. That followed an even more impressive sixth overall ranking in 2013.

With Dunlap staying in San Diego, a shallow class of upcoming free agent left tackles becomes that much weaker. The only established unsigned starter at the position is Tennessee’s Michael Roos. However, according to Joe Fann of the Titans’ official website, Roos was contemplating retirement as recently as December.

Combining the lack of suitable veteran replacements for Dunlap with his strong play, the fact that he chose to re-sign in San Diego is clearly a boon to the organization and Philip Rivers. The quarterback heaped praise on Dunlap last season, in fact. “He’s been awesome,” Rivers said, according to the Union-Tribune’s Mark Inabinett. “A guy like that, left tackles aren’t just walking around a dime a dozen.”

The return of Dunlap will also benefit his fellow O-linemen, of course, especially in the wake of offseason retirements by Charger mainstays Nick Hardwick and Jeromey Clary. Those two joined the Bolts in 2006 and combined to make 229 starts during their nine-year careers. With them out of the picture, Dunlap becomes the elder statesman of a line that Pro Football Focus ranked fourth worst in the league last season.

Even after signing Dunlap, the Chargers have a fair amount of cap room to address other areas of concern. The website OverTheCap.com listed San Diego’s space upward of $27MM prior to its move to re-up Dunlap. The Chargers have decisions to make on some of their other key free agents – namely cornerback Brandon Flowers, wide receiver Eddie Royal and running back Ryan Mathews – as well as upgrades to make elsewhere.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

 

AFC Notes: Ngata, Bills, Spiller, Chargers

February 19th, 2015 at 10:14pm CST by Zachary Links

Speaking to Luke Jones of WNST.net, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh expressed plenty of confidence that Baltimore will get a new deal worked out with defensive lineman Haloti Ngata. In all likelihood, the two sides will come to an agreement that reduces Ngata’s $16MM cap number for 2015, and extends his contract beyond the coming season. Of course, the two sides were also working on a new deal last offseason but those talks did not prove to be fruitful. More from the AFC..

  • Appearing today on WGR 550, Bills general manager Doug Whaley said the team has sent a proposal to Jerry Hughes‘ representatives, who countered with a proposal of their own (link via ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak). There’s an “open line of communication” between the two sides, according to Whaley, who said he’s meeting with Bills VP of football administration Jim Overdof today to determine if the club is close to anything with Hughes.
  • Whaley will meet with C.J. Spiller‘s representatives in Indianapolis to try and hammer out a new deal with the Bills, Chris Brown of BuffaloBills.com writes. The rival Jets have been heavily connected to the tailback.
  • Whaley indicated that if linebacker Brandon Spikes wants an every-down role, it probably won’t happen with the Bills. “So that one’s going to be more of, ‘Hey, do you want to come back and be a one-, two-down player, or do you want to try to go out there and see if you can [be] an every-down player?” Whaley said of Spikes in an interview with John Murphy of BuffaloBills.com (audio link).
  • As expected, the Chargers won’t use their franchise tag on anyone this offseason, general manager Tom Telesco said today, according to Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). King Dunlap and Brandon Flowers had been the most viable candidates, but as I wrote last month, a franchise-tag salary would be an overpay for either player.
  • If Raiders owner Mark Davis has to move the team to the NFC to make the move to Los Angeles happen, Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter) doesn’t see that being a deterrent. On Thursday, the Raiders and Chargers announced a plan to build a shared stadium in the Los Angeles area.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Panthers Links: Free Agents, Offseason

January 18th, 2015 at 6:02pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Packers are officially in offseason mode, but their front office still needs a little time to adjust to a devastating loss to the Seahawks, blowing a 16-0 halftime lead and wasting a great defensive effort against Russell Wilson and company.

We will surely check in with them later on. For now, we’ll turn our focus to the Panthers – the team eliminated by the Seahawks a week ago (in far less dramatic fashion) – as their offseason is in full swing.

Here are some stories surrounding the Panthers 2014 season as they head into a very important offseason where they try to win the NFC South for a record-extending three straight years.

  • Head coach Ron Rivera might be disappointed in how the team’s season ended, but he is looking forward to taking the next step in 2015, writes Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. “I got off the airplane excited about it, when I had the opportunity to talk to the team, it really was about going forward more than anything else,” said Rivera. “I think if we can take a big step we can put ourselves in position to win the Super Bowl. We’re close. I think we can get even closer.”
  • Person also hands out some grades to position groups for the 2014 NFL. Among the positions that received awful grades are the offensive tackles, safeties, and special teams units. Those positions need to improve if the Panthers want to take that next step, and with Person giving the coaching staff a C grade, Rivera himself needs to be better next year.
  • The Charlotte Observer also puts together a list of the contract status for every Panthers player, including not only those under contract, but free agents (restricted, unrestricted, and exclusive rights) as well.
  • While Person is focused on some of the players the Panthers will look to retain, his colleague Jonathan Jones examines the free agent market at some of their positions of need. Assuming a few big name players re-sign with their current teams, the Panthers could realistically benefit from the additions of players like offensive tackle King Dunlap, cornerbacks Kareem Jackson and Walter Thurmond, and safeties Nate Allen and Da’Norris Searcy. Jones also picks out four receivers the team should target in Randall Cobb, Cecil Shorts, Torrey Smith, and Dwayne Bowe.

AFC Notes: Revis, Clay, Rubin, King, Mallett

December 19th, 2014 at 2:58pm CST by Rob DiRe

Darrelle Revis will count for $25MM against the cap in 2015, and many fans and pundits expect him to move on to free agency after his lone season with the Patriots. Even Revis himself has not committed to staying a Patriot, according to Conor Orr of NFL.com. In advance of the matchup against his former teammates for the Jets, Revis was asked about his chances of playing with the Patriots or returning to the Jets this offseason. “I don’t know what my future holds, like I said,” Revis said. “We’ll see. The future will take care of itself.”

Here are some other notes from around the AFC:

  • Chargers‘ left tackle King Dunlap has been phenomenal in the final year of his contract, and that could lead to a big raise this offseason, writes Michael Gelhken of the U-T San Diego. “I’m just trying to focus on the now,” Dunlap said. “I know it’s coming. … Time’s not going to move any faster or any slower. Just focus on the now and let the rest take care of itself. … I’m still a work in progress. I’m not even close to being finished yet. I’m still working. “
  • Dolphins‘ tight end Charles Clay has been a reliable weapon for Ryan Tannehill this season, and as he approaches free agency is focused on staying with the team, writes James Walker of ESPN.com. “Just being here and knowing the guys, knowing the coaches, the city, this is definitely somewhere I want to spend the rest of my career,” Clay said. “I was saying that the second I got drafted. Yeah, I definitely want to [re-sign].”
  • Browns‘ nose tackle Ahtyba Rubin is set to hit unrestricted free agency this March, but doesn’t plan to explore free agency. He wants to be a Brown for life, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (via Twitter).
  • Ryan Mallett of the Texans doesn’t have the long history with his franchise that Dunlap, Clay, and Rubin do, but he would also like to remain with his team, writes Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). He did note that the season is still in progress and that it is early to discuss his future with the team.