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Nate Irving

FA Notes: Freeman, Irving, Moore, Mays

March 16th, 2015 at 4:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Tim Tebow isn’t the only free agent quarterback attempting an NFL comeback. Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report tweets that ex-Buccaneers signal-caller Josh Freeman recently worked out for the Jets and has several other clubs taking a “hard look” at him. Freeman’s NFL success, which included a 4,000-yard season in 2012, was viewed as more sustainable than Tebow’s, so it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise to see a team give him a shot this summer.

Let’s check in on a few other free agent items from around the NFL….

  • Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter links) has updates on a pair of free agent defenders, reporting that linebacker Nate Irving is visiting the Colts, while defensive back Sterling Moore is on track to visit the 49ers after meeting with the Steelers.
  • There’s mutual interest between the Dolphins and quarterback Matt Moore, who has backed up Ryan Tannehill in recent years, writes Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald. However, Moore only wants to return at fair market value, so the free agent quarterback will probably be more inclined to explore his options than to re-sign with Miami for a hometown discount.
  • Washington continues to show interest in safety Taylor Mays, and the sides are trying to work out a possible visit, tweets John Keim of ESPN.com.
  • Ron Parker drew plenty of reported interest during his few days on the open market, but the Chiefs safety said today that the Falcons were the team with the most interest in him, besides Kansas City, tweets Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star.
  • Speaking to reporters today, including Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link), Tyrunn Walker said he was offered a three-year contract by the Patriots but opted for a one-year pact with the Lions instead. I’m guessing the Pats’ offer likely didn’t include any guaranteed money beyond the first year, so opting for Detroit instead will give Walker more freedom, and could land him a larger deal next winter if he has a good year for the Lions.

NFC FA Rumors: Irving, Cowboys, Falcons

March 10th, 2015 at 11:04am CST by Luke Adams

The Cardinals are expected to lock up former Falcons linebacker Sean Weatherspoon to a new contract once free agency opens, but the team has interest in adding two free agent linebackers, not just one, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Rapoport reports that Nate Irving could be that second linebacker, as the former Bronco is likely to visit Arizona this week.

  • The Cowboys have some interest in free agent cornerback Antonio Cromartie, tweets Rapoport. Cromartie has been almost exclusively linked to the Jets, but there’s no agreement in place between the two sides yet.
  • Mike Jones of the Washington Post tweets that he has been told “repeatedly” that the Falcons aren’t real players for Brian Orakpo. However, Jones adds that Atlanta does appear to have interest in another Washington free agent, wide receiver Leonard Hankerson.
  • Running back Antone Smith has yet to hear a whole lot about his free agent status, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com, who says (via Twitter) that the Falcons would like to bring him back. Smith has also reportedly drawn some interest from the Giants.
  • In the wake of the Saints‘ release of Curtis Lofton, there’s mutual interest between the team and Ramon Humber in getting a deal done to help bolster the inside linebacker spot, tweets Katherine Terrell of NOLA.com.
  • No longer a free agent, Randall Cobb told reporters today, including Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link) that he had five other offers when he decided to return to the Packers, and got a sixth after he had made his decision.
  • After offering him a contract, the Vikings remain in contact with quarterback Shaun Hill, who has yet to make a decision, tweets Ben Goessling of ESPN.com.

Dolphins Rumors: Odrick, LBs, Wallace, Shorts

March 6th, 2015 at 2:59pm CST by Luke Adams

Barry Jackson’s latest article for the Miami Herald includes plenty of buzz on the Dolphins, so let’s dive right in and round up some of the highlights….

  • As the Dolphins prepare to make an aggressive bid for Ndamukong Suh, the team has kept its own free-agent-to-be defensive tackle, Jared Odrick, in limbo. Miami had yet to make an offer to Odrick as of Friday morning, and while it’s still possible he returns, the Dolphins may view him as a backup plan to Suh, and he should attract plenty of interest elsewhere. Jackson lists the Colts, Chiefs, Raiders, Bears, and Jaguars as the clubs expected to have interest in Odrick, suggesting a deal in the range of $7MM per year is realistic.
  • With David Harris back under contract for the Jets, the Dolphins figure to turn their attention to linebackers like Mason Foster and Dan Skuta. Jackson names Nate Irving and Brandon Spikes as a couple other potential free agents who may draw interest from Miami.
  • The Dolphins would like to upgrade over Koa Misi at middle linebacker, but could move Misi to the strong side if they can find a replacement.
  • As of Thursday, the Fins remained “genuinely uncertain” about Mike Wallace‘s future, a source tells Jackson. There’s some support in the front office for keeping the veteran wideout, but his cap hit is an issue.
  • Cecil Shorts is among the free agent receivers the Dolphins have discussed internally, per Jackson.

Tuesday Roundup: Cassel, Winston, Peterson

February 24th, 2015 at 8:38pm CST by Rory Parks

Vikings GM Rick Spielman said that nothing definitive has been decided about bringing Matt Cassel back to the team, but Spielman was complimentary of his veteran signal-caller when discussing him earlier this week. “We went through our process, we evaluated all of our players,” Spielman said, according to Brian Hall of FOXSportsNorth.com. “We looked at everything from what they bring to our football team, in the locker room, off the field, what they bring to us on the field. But we also have to look at where they’re at from a standpoint of their contract, where we’re at from a cap standpoint…Matt’s done a great job. Came in and has won some games when he had to play. He’s a great locker-room guy. Matt has a lot of value to us.” Cassel is signed for the 2015 season at a salary of $4.15MM, and he’ll count $4.75MM against the cap.

Now for some more links from around the league on this Tuesday evening:

  • Tahir Whitehead filled in capably for Stephen Tulloch when Tulloch went out last season, and that leaves the Lions with an interesting choice this offseason, as Kyle Meinke of MLive.com writes. Detroit could continue to roll with Whitehead at middle linebacker and carve out some space by parting ways with Tulloch. The 30-year-old is slated to count $5.8MM against the cap next season. Whitehead, meanwhile, costs just $713K.
  • The consensus around the league is that the Buccaneers will draft Jameis Winston with the No. 1 overall pick, according to a tweet from the NFL Network (citing its own Ian Rapoport).
  • The Colts are in dire need of a running back, and Mike Wells of ESPN.com writes that the team will be closely monitoring the Adrian Peterson situation. If Peterson and the Vikings part ways, Indianapolis GM Ryan Grigson, a noted risk-taker, may pull the trigger.
  • Falcons defensive end Osi Umenyiora has no plans to retire, writes Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. Umenyiora, 33, will become a free agent on March 10, and he said he would like to play at least one more season. If he could choose, Umenyiora stated that he would like to finish his career where it started: with the Giants.
  • Packers fullback John Kuhn is one of the last members of a dying breed, but the impending free agent reaffirmed his importance to the Green Bay offense in 2014, earning first team All-Pro honors for the first time in his career. As Weston Hodkiewicz of PackersNews.com writes, there is mutual interest in Kuhn’s return to the Packers.
  • Former Australian rugby star Jarryd Hayne, who has garnered interest from at least a dozen teams, is expected to sign with a club this week, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (writing for the National Football Post).
  • Bill Williamson of ESPN.com believes middle linebacker Nate Irving could be a fit with the Raiders if the impending free agent is not re-signed by the Broncos.
  • Parys Haralson, who signed a one-year deal with the Saints in February, hopes to end his career in New Orleans, writes Katherine Terrell of the Times-Picayune.
  • Jason Fitzerald of OverTheCap.com provides the Panthers‘ salary cap outlook for the 2015 season.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

 

West Notes: Incognito, Bowman, Tate

November 14th, 2014 at 3:16pm CST by Luke Adams

The Broncos are the latest team to bring in free agent guard Richie Incognito for a visit and a workout, and Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report hears that Incognito’s visit to Denver and previous auditions with the Chiefs and Buccaneers went well. One executive even tells Freeman that Incognito looked “excellent” in his tryout. However, considering the former Dolphin is still looking for work, it appears he remains too toxic for any club to seriously consider signing him at this point, writes Freeman. At some point, a team will look past Incognito’s involvement in last year’s bullying scandal in Miami and give him another shot, but it’s looking increasingly unlikely that it will happen this season.

As we wait to see whether Denver or another club picks up Incognito in the second half, let’s check in on a few Friday items from around the NFL’s two West divisions….

  • The 49ers will see one of their standout linebackers return to the field this weekend, with Aldon Smith having been activated after serving his nine-game suspension. However, there’s a “real possibility” that injured linebacker NaVorro Bowman, who is still recovering from a torn ACL and MCL suffered last season, won’t return to action in 2014, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
  • Wide receiver Golden Tate inked a lucrative five-year deal with the Lions back in March, and while that deal may have raised some eyebrows at the time, it’s turning into a great investment, with Tate in the top five in the NFL in both receptions and receiving yards. Tate discussed his free agent process today, admitting that he thought he’d be a “hot commodity,” but “that wasn’t the case at all” (link via Kyle Meinke of MLive.com). Having previously referred to the Seahawks‘ contract offer as “laughable,” Tate didn’t show much sympathy for his old team today. “Their problem,” Tate said of Seattle. “Now they don’t have me or Percy [Harvin].”
  • The Broncos had hoped to keep linebacker Nate Irving in case he could return this season, but the team ultimately decided to place him on season-ending injured reserve yesterday due to his knee injury. Denver head coach John Fox explained the decision today, as Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post details.

Broncos Place Nate Irving On IR

November 13th, 2014 at 4:14pm CST by Zachary Links

The Broncos announced that they have placed linebacker Nate Irving on IR. To fill his spot, Denver has claimed rookie linebacker Todd Davis off waivers, according to Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

Irving suffered a knee injury earlier this month and while the early prognosis was promising, it was apparently more severe than once thought. Irving made four starts in 2013, when he played mainly sam linebacker, and started in each of his eight games this season at middle linebacker. The 26-year-old will be an unrestricted free agent after this season.

Davis, an undrafted Sacramento State product, spent most of the season on the Saints’ taxi squad but saw three games on the NFL roster. He was waived yesterday but he didn’t have to wait long to find his next gig. Davis is a depth signing and Mike Klis of The Denver Post notes that the Broncos are expected to stick with Steven Johnson as their starting MLB with fifth-round rookie Lamin Barrow also in the mix. Davis was let go by New Orleans yesterday in a series of moves that included the signing of running back Brian Leonard.

Injury Updates: Monday

November 3rd, 2014 at 2:14pm CST by Luke Adams

Bears defensive end Lamarr Houston and Jaguars cornerback Will Blackmon have both officially landed on their respective teams‘ injured reserve lists today, though both those injuries were suffered in Week 8 games. Teams are still diagnosing injuries suffered by players in Week 9, so we’ll provide the day’s injury updates in the space below, with the latest items added to the top of the page throughout the day….

  • As first reported by Alex Marvez of FOX Sports (Twitter link), the Dolphins believe safety Michael Thomas‘ season is over due to a pectoral injury. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) and James Walker of ESPN.com have since confirmed that Thomas will be out for the year and that he should land on IR later this week. The loss of Thomas will have an impact on the Dolphins’ special teams and on the nickel package of a defensive unit that’s coming off its best game of the year.
  • Although the Broncos feared that linebacker Nate Irving suffered structural damage to his knee ligaments, the initial diagnosis suggests he has a sprained MCL and should return this season, according to Jeff Legwold and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Still, Irving will undergo more tests before the team determines his potential recovery timetable.
  • Head coach Chip Kelly confirmed today to reporters, including Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link), that Nick Foles has a crack in his clavicle and underwent an MRI this afternoon. The Eagles signal-caller is expected to be sidelined for several weeks as his collarbone heals.