HEADLINES

Russell Shepard

Contract Details: Britt, Wagner, Broncos

March 11th, 2017 at 10:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

Let’s take a look at the details of some recently signed free agent contracts:

  • Kenny Britt‘s four-year Browns deal will provide the ninth-year wide receiver with $10.5MM fully guaranteed at signing, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Britt will collect $17MM over the first two seasons of this deal, Caplan reports.
  • The Lions‘ lavish accord for Ricky Wagner raises the right tackle ceiling, although the base salaries in this contract don’t reflect that early. Wagner will see $3MM in base salary in 2017 and ’18 before those figures spike to $9MM per year from 2019-21, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports. Wagner’s deal provides $17.5MM in true guarantees, with his 2018 salary being fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the ’18 league year, per Birkett. Wagner’s 2019 base salary is guaranteed against injury. He received a $14.5MM signing bonus, while the former Raven’s cap hits will be $5.9MM in each of the next two seasons.
  • D.J. Fluker‘s one-year Giants pact is expected to be worth $3MM, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv reports. That’s quite a bit lower than what the Chargers would have paid him ($8.82MM) if they kept him after picking up his fifth-year option.
  • Menelik Watson‘s three-year, $18.75MM Broncos accord will give the British blocker $5.375MM in fully guaranteed money at signing, Mike Klis of 9News reports. Watson received a $4MM signing bonus. The former Raider will have a $5.5MM guaranteed-against-injury salary in 2018 and is due a nonguaranteed $5.5MM amount in 2019.
  • Ronald Leary‘s four-year contract with the Broncos also comes with a fully guaranteed 2018 salary, which will pay former Cowboy $7.65MM for his age-29 season, per Klis. Leary is slated to make $8.15MM in 2019 and ’20, respectively. His 2019 base salary is guaranteed against injury only, with the ’20 slate being nonguaranteed.
  • Russell Shepard‘s three-year Panthers deal will be worth $10.5MM, Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reports. The contract includes a $2MM signing bonus and $2.5MM guaranteed. Laine notes the former Bucs wideout will make $4MM in 2017.
  • Sealver Siliga‘s one-year Buccaneers deal can max out at $1.5MM, Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The contract contains a $200K signing bonus and a $100K roster bonus for the nomadic defensive lineman.

Panthers Sign Russell Shepard

March 10th, 2017 at 5:32pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Panthers have signed free agent wide receiver Russell Shepard to a three-year deal, reports David Newton of ESPN.com. Shepard was a popular free agent in this cycle, drawing interest from six teams in total. "<strong

The incumbent Buccaneers, Bills, and Lions also worked to sign Shepard this week. Reportedly, some of the teams interested in Shepard believed that he could be a No. 3 receiver, with a chance of being a No. 2 WR. Other clubs reportedly offered to make him “one of the highest-paid special-teams players in the league with multiple offensive packages.”

Shepard showed what he could do on offense last season, recording 23 receptions for 341 yards and two touchdowns. It will be interesting to see how the Panthers use the former Bucs special teams captain.

The Panthers wide receiver depth chart is now headlined by Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess, and Russell Shepard. Brenton Bersin and Damiere Byrd currently project to hold the WR4 and WR5 spots, but lots can change between now and September. Wide receiver Laron Byrd was not retained as restricted free agent and Philly Brown is meeting with other teams.

Panthers Looking To Sign Russell Shepard

March 9th, 2017 at 9:14pm CST by Ben Levine

The Panthers are “working on signing” wideout Russell Shepard, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). It’s realistic the two sides will reach an agreement, a league source tells Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).

The former special teamer emerged as an offensive threat for the Buccaneers last season. After having collected seven receptions through his first four seasons in the league, Shepard hauled in 23 catches for 341 yards and two touchdowns last year. In 57 career games, the 26-year-old has added another 32 tackles. Shepard was the Buccaneers special teams captain the past two seasons.

The Panthers are presumably pursuing Shepard for his special teams prowess, but he could also slide into the team’s wide receiver depth chart. The veteran could compete with Damiere Byrd to play behind Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess, and Brenton Bersin.

FA Rumors: Charles, Hightower, Cutler, Bills

March 9th, 2017 at 2:53pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest free agency rumors from around the league:

  • Jamaal Charles will visit the Seahawks next week, a source tells Mike Florio of PFT. The Seahawks’ interest in Charles was first reported on Thursday morning. If he signs with Seattle, he’ll join Thomas Rawls and C.J. Prosise on the RB depth chart.
  • A Dont’a Hightower/Patriots re-up remains on the table, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting (on Twitter) the parties remain in good communication about keeping Hightower in New England.
  • The Jets‘ interest in Jay Cutler is being reciprocated by the veteran quarterback, Rapoport notes (on Twitter). The Bears released Cutler today after eight seasons.
  • Malcolm Smith will receive a raise from the 49ers after his two years with the Raiders. Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets it’s a five-year, $26.5MM deal for the outside ‘backer, with $13MM guaranteed. This $5.3MM-AAV pact represents quite the bump from his $3.5MM deal in Oakland, one that didn’t come with rave reviews from the advanced metrics community.
  • The Bills remain interested in retaining Lorenzo Alexander, Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News tweets. The sides are continuing to work at completing a deal for the edge defender. Although the Bills are moving to a 4-3 scheme, Alexander — who thrived as a 3-4 outside ‘backer in the form of 12.5 sacks in 2016 — looks to still be part of their plans.
  • It sounds like the Bills and Lions are in the lead for wide receiver Russell Shepard (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler). He could still wind up returning to the Buccaneers.

Sam Robinson contributed to this report.

NFC Rumors: Bucs, Redskins, Seahawks

March 7th, 2017 at 7:22pm CST by Zachary Links

Buccaneers wide receiver and special-teams captain Russell Shepard currently has interest from six teams, including the Bucs, a source tells Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. About half of those teams see him as a No. 3 receiver, with a chance of being a No. 2. The other teams have offered to make him “one of the highest-paid special-teams players in the league with multiple offensive packages,” the source told Laine. I would surmise that this news comes from Shepard’s agent, so it should perhaps be taken with a grain of salt.

More NFC rumors:

  • The Redskins have interest in receiver Marquise Goodwin, per Mike Jones, Master Tesfatsion and Liz Clarke of the Washington Post. The onetime Olympian (track and field) has thus far spent his four-year career in Buffalo, where he has totaled 49 receptions and six touchdowns in 39 games. Goodwin set career highs last year with 15 appearances, 29 catches, 68 targets and 431 yards. He also tied a personal best with three touchdowns.
  • Despite non-tendering him, the Seahawks still would like cornerback DeShawn Shead back in 2017, his agent tells Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times. Shead started in all 15 of his regular-season appearances last year, but the torn ACL he suffered in the Seahawks’ divisional-round loss to the Falcons led the club to non-tender him. Clearly, though, they want like him in the fold at a lesser salary than he would have made if healthy.
  • Along with Shead, the Seahawks have interior offensive lineman Brian Schwenke on their radar, writes Condotta. Schwenke’s a four-year Titan with 41 appearances and 28 starts on his resume. The 25-year-old took part in a career-high 16 games last season, but he only picked up three starts.

Connor Byrne contributed to this post.

Minor NFL Transactions: 4/11/16

April 11th, 2016 at 6:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves:

  • The Patriots cut running back Tyler Gaffney, as Jeff Howe of The Boston Herald tweets. Gaffney was injured throughout his two seasons with New England, though he was not waived with an injury designation today.
  • Buccaneers ERFA defensive end Jacquies Smith and restricted free agent wide receiver Russell Shepard signed their tenders, as Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com writes. Shepard came to Tampa Bay as a waiver claim from Philadelphia just before the start of the 2013 regular season. Smith, meanwhile, came to the Bucs off waivers from Buffalo in September 2014. Smith, 26, cracked the starting lineup in 2014 and ultimately amassed 6.5 sacks that season. In 2015, Smith missed four games, but he still finished the season with 7.0 sacks.
  • The Giants have signed tackle Byron Stingily, as Michael Eisen of Giants.com writes. Stingily played in 20 games with nine starts for Tennessee from 2012-14 but was waived at the end of training camp in 2015. He landed with Pittsburgh in October, but he did not appear in a game for them.
  • Dolphins‘ exclusive-rights free agents Matt Hazel and Tyler Patmon signed their tenders today, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/8/16

March 8th, 2016 at 10:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Tuesday’s minor tender decisions from around the NFL on potential restricted and exclusive-rights free agents:

  • The Texans have assigned the low tender to both cornerback A.J. Bouye and linebacker John Simon, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter links). Both players will earn a $1.671MM non-guaranteed base salary next year.

Earlier updates:

  • The Buccaneers have assigned the low-end tender to RFA wide receiver Russell Shepard, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. Shepard, 25, hasn’t been a major part of the offense since joining the team in 2013, catching just seven total passes, but he has been a key contributor on special teams.
  • The Texans will not tender an offer to running back Jonathan Grimes, nor will they re-sign him to a lesser deal, as Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets.
  • The Ravens have begun extending contract tenders to their ERFAs, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (all Twitter links), who reports that wide receiver Daniel Brown, running back Terrance West, and cornerback Sheldon Price all received offers from the team. Cornerback Jumal Rolle — another ERFA — also received a tender, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
  • The Packers have issued a tender to safety Chris Banjo, who was an exclusive rights free agent, Weston Hodkiewicz of the Press Gazette tweets.