HEADLINES

Matt Harriss

NFC Notes: Seahawks, Cardinals, Saints

February 8th, 2019 at 6:20pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Although Kam Chancellor will likely never play football again, the Seahawks safety cashed in today. $5.2MM of his salary for 2019 became fully guaranteed today, according to Brady Henderson of ESPN.com. As Henderson points out, Chancellor likely would’ve received the $5.2MM anyway because it is fully guaranteed for injury, but the Seahawks are holding off releasing Chancellor outright for cap purposes.

“The Seahawks carried Chancellor on PUP in 2018 because cutting him would have caused his cap number to balloon”, Henderson writes, adding that “the likely outcome, it seems, is that the Seahawks cut Chancellor later this offseason since the cap penalties won’t be nearly as severe as they were last year.” Chancellor suffered a neck injury in Week 10 of the 2017 season that was apparently serious enough to prevent him from ever being medically cleared to play. Chancellor was a longtime member of the team’s vaunted ‘Legion of Boom’ unit, and made four Pro Bowls with the team. Chancellor was a fifth round pick out of Virginia Tech back in 2010.

Here’s more from around the NFC:

  • Speaking of the Seahawks, Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times sat down with former NFL agent and current CBS Sports Analyst Joel Corry to talk all things related to Seattle’s upcoming offseason. Corry opined that the team would likely franchise tag star defensive end Frank Clark to avoid letting him hit the open market. Clark’s agent has made bold claims in the media about not settling for anything less than a massive deal, which Corry took to mean the Seahawks are “almost going to have to franchise him.” Condotta and Corry both agreed that the recent report the team hasn’t talked extension with Russell Wilson isn’t anything to be concerned about, but Corry also seemed to indicate he expected Wilson’s representatives to be patient and drag things out.
  • The Cardinals are hiring Matt Harriss away from the Lions as their new director of administration, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link). Garafolo notes that Harriss will be Arizona’s contracts guy, and that the Lions and Cardinals essentially swapped contract negotiators because Detroit had just hired Mike Disner away from the Cardinals.
  • The Saints changed the language in pass-rusher Alex Okafor‘s contract back in December, and the new deal language automatically voided the 2019 year of Okafor’s contract, a source told Nick Underhill of The Advocate. Underhill writes that the deal was re-worked to give Okafor a $400K bonus even though he came up one sack short of the incentive, and it also guaranteed him free agency. Okafor was having a really good year in 2017 before tearing his Achilles, and then re-signed on a cheap deal with the Saints before the 2018 season started. Now fully healthy, the voided year means Okafor will be an unrestricted free agent this March and he’ll have the chance to cash in with a big contract.

North Notes: Packers, LaFleur, Ravens, Brown

January 8th, 2019 at 8:09pm CST by Zachary Links

It’s a four-year deal with a fifth-year option for the Packers and Matt LaFleur, a source tells Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). LaFleur is a fast riser who is becoming a head coach for the very first time, but he appears to have solid job security in Green Bay. The financial terms of the deal are not yet known, but it would not be a surprise if he was on the lower end of the scale given his age and lack of experience at this level.

Here’s more from the North divisions:

  • Ravens wide receiver John Brown says he’d love to return in 2019, but he’s unlikely to accept a one-year deal this offseason (Twitter link via Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic). Brown, 29 in April, had a bit of a resurgence in Baltimore with 42 catches for 715 yards and five touchdowns in 2018.
  • Ozzie Newsome is transitioning out of his role as the Ravens‘ GM, but he isn’t retiring, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic hears. Newsome will remain under contract with the Ravens for the next couple of years, though his title and duties are not yet known. Per the succession plan, longtime assistant Eric DeCosta will take over as GM from here.
  • The Lions parted ways with VP of football operations Matt Harriss, who was touted as a salary cap expert. To take his place, the Ravens have hired Mike Disner. Disner spent the last six seasons with the Cardinals and was directly involved in their cap planning, so he appears to be a natural replacement.

North Notes: Mack, Browns, Lions, Vikings

January 29th, 2016 at 7:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) this week at Pro Bowl practices, Browns center Alex Mack said that he has yet to make a final decision on whether he’ll opt out of his contract this winter. According to Mack, he’ll start seriously considering his options after the Super Bowl, with a decision to follow within the next month or so.

Cole suggests that Mack will likely exercise that opt-out, which comes as no surprise — even if the veteran center ultimately wants to stay in Cleveland, it would make sense for him to sign a new contract with the team. Mack’s current pact calls for $8MM annual salaries for the next three seasons, and only his 2016 salary would be guaranteed if he opts in, so he should be able to easily exceed that deal on the open market.

As we wait to find out what Mack decides, let’s check in on some other items from out of the NFL’s North divisions…

  • Browns head coach Hue Jackson hasn’t been in touch with quarterback Johnny Manziel yet, but he has sat down and spoken with North Dakota State signal-caller Carson Wentz, writes Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Wentz, a potential target for Cleveland in the first round of this year’s draft, met with Jackson and the Browns at the Senior Bowl. “This just starts the process of getting to know these young players,” Jackson said. “It’s just phase one of the process. It’s just good to be able to talk to as many guys as we could. It was good to talk to him and find out a little bit about him and I’m sure I’ll get an opportunity to find out a little more as we go.”
  • The Lions have hired former Giants director of football operations Matt Harriss as their new vice president of football administration, the team announced today. Harriss is expected to play a significant role in managing the Lions’ salary cap.
  • Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune wonders if the Vikings ought to bring in some competition for punter Jeff Locke in 2016. As Vensel details, Locke’s production has trended in the wrong direction in recent years, so it would make sense for Minnesota to bring in a young punter to push him.