HEADLINES

Shaquil Barrett

West Rumors: Broncos, Seahawks, Raiders

May 31st, 2017 at 9:30pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Although Broncos linebacker Shaquil Barrett won’t require surgery for his ailing hip, he’s still expected to miss a good deal of time leading up to the 2017 campaign, and could potentially be sidelined for the beginning of the regular season, according to Mike Klis of 9News. Additionally, because Barrett injured his hip doing a plyometric exercise outside the Broncos’ purview, Denver could choose to place the 24-year-old edge rusher on the non-football injury list. If the Broncos opt for that course of action, they would have the right to rescind a portion of Barrett’s $615K base salary, per Klis. A former undrafted free agent with two accrued seasons under his belt, Barrett is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2018.

Here’s more from the NFL’s two West divisions:

  • Earl Thomas was taking “nearly every rep” during Seahawks practice sessions today, an excellent sign as the veteran safety recovers from a broken leg, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The news surrounding Thomas and his rehabilitation has been nearly all positive since his December injury, as Seattle head coach Pete Carroll said Thomas was “way ahead of schedule” in March before indicating earlier this month that Thomas will be ready for the 2017 season opener. Seattle has added reinforcements in the defensive backfield this offseason, so the club should be well-prepared if Thomas is forced to miss any time. In addition to making a value signing in Bradley McDougald, the Seahawks used a third-round pick to draft Michigan safety Delano Hill.
  • Now that a new regime is running the 49ers, players signed or drafted by the previous decision-making group aren’t assured of playing time or roster spots, as Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee details. Tight end Vance McDonald and linebacker NaVorro Bowman, notably, have been mentioned in trade rumors, and Bowman is now expected to be forced to compete for snaps with Reuben Foster and Malcolm Smith. Fellow linebacker Ray-Ray Armstong, signed to an extension last year, could fall from a potential starting gig to a third-string role, per Barrows, while 2016 first-round pick Joshua Garnett isn’t a lock to be a starter, either.
  • Derek Carr has already indicated he won’t discuss an extension once the regular season begins, but Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk opines that the Raiders quarterback may not want to negotiate a new deal until the campaign concludes. At that point, Carr would be able to exert enormous leverage over Oakland, as the club would be forced to deploy the exclusive franchise tag to ward off potential suitors. Thanks to the extraordinary value of the quarterback franchise tag, Carr could demand north of $90MM in three-year cash flow, and could also extract concessions such as having his future salaries tied to a percentage of the salary cap, per Florio.

AFC Notes: Barrett, Cassel, Browns, Texans

May 31st, 2017 at 2:43pm CST by Sam Robinson

Shaquil Barrett won’t be participating in any further Broncos offseason workouts after suffering a hip injury away from the team’s facility recently, but the outside linebacker won’t need surgery, Mike Klis of 9News reports (on Twitter). The third-year outside linebacker contributor will still be out “a while,” per Klis, who notes (via Twitter) this injury could keep him out of some training camp time. Barrett is expected to be the Broncos’ No. 3 outside ‘backer behind Von Miller and Shane Ray, with the group thinning out after DeMarcus Ware‘s retirement. The Broncos signed Kasim Edebali after the Saints didn’t extend him an RFA tender this offseason but didn’t further address the position. A lengthy Barrett absence could lead the team to explore potential edge defenders in free agency.

Here’s the latest from the AFC.

  • The Titans have a slightly more prominent player in the same boat, with Matt Cassel expected to be out six weeks after injuring his throwing thumb, Jim Wyatt of Titans.com tweets. The 13th-year veteran will have surgery on the thumb, according to Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com. Cassel is signed for another year as Marcus Mariota‘s backup. This timetable puts him in line to be able to rejoin the team come training camp, per Mike Mularkey. Alex Tanney resides as Tennessee’s third-stringer.
  • Isaiah Crowell addressed his contract situation from Browns OTAs, saying “both sides are trying to get something done,” Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal tweets. Crowell reported late to Cleveland’s voluntary workouts. He signed his RFA second-round tender earlier this month and is entering a contract year. The 24-year-old managed to gain nearly 1,000 yards last season despite being a 1-15 team’s primary running back. After the Browns beefed up their line this offseason, Crowell is in better position to play well in a possible audition season for other teams, should the sides be unable to get a deal done before this season. The Browns have $57MM in cap space and signed Christian Kirksey to an extension earlier this week.
  • Corey Coleman will be held out of remaining Browns offseason practices after the second-year wideout fell on the ball while making a catch last week, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. Hue Jackson steadfastly denied Coleman broke a bone during the tumble, but it looks like the 2016 first-rounder won’t re-emerge on the practice field until camp. Coleman missed six games last season because of a broken hand.
  • Duane Brown is again a no-show as the Texans continue their voluntary workouts, and John McClain of the Houston Chronicle confirms (Twitter link) this absence is contract-related. The Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson reported last week the longtime left tackle wants a new contract and is staying away for the time being. McClain wonders if the 31-year-old Brown will show for mandatory minicamp next month. Two years remain on Brown’s six-year, $53.4MM extension. He has non-guaranteed base salaries of $9.65MM and $9.75MM on tap for 2017 and ’18.

Extra Points: Carr, Barrett, Cowboys

May 30th, 2017 at 9:23pm CST by Ben Levine

Derek Carr emphasized today that he has no interest in discussing a contract extension with the Raiders once training camp starts.

“I wouldn’t even answer my phone,” Carr said (via ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez). “The money isn’t the thing that drives me. … What drives me is making sure I’m giving everything that I have with my abilities, and making sure that we win. And I don’t want anything distracting my thought process at all.

“Now, that’s not a jab, or anything like that. That’s just me saying I’m not going to deal with anything that’s not helping me just focus on winning.”

The former second-round pick is entering the final year of his rookie contract, and he’s certainly in line for a significant raise on the $1.15MM he’s set to make this year. Last season, the quarterback completed 63.8-percent of his passes for 3,937 yards, 28 touchdowns and six interceptions.

Let’s check out some additional notes from around the NFL…

  • Broncos outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett is expected to miss the rest of the offseason after suffering a hip injury, reports Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post (via Twitter). The 24-year-old hasn’t missed a game over the past two seasons, compiling 86 tackles, seven sacks, and five forced fumbles. While the defender will presumably be ready for the regular season, Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post wonders (on Twitter) if the team might pursue a replacement, citing the team’s lack of linebacker depth.
  • The Cowboys learned last week that defensive end David Irving is facing a four-game ban after failing a test for performance enhancing drugs. That was followed by yesterday’s news that cornerback Nolan Carroll was arrested for driving while intoxicated. Predictably, executive vice president Stephen Jones wasn’t particularly happy with these developments. “We just have to continue to try to educate these young men that there’s consequences and there’s accountability that you have to have for the bad decisions you make,” Jones said during an interview on the team’s website (via Jon Machota of the Dallas News). “Then we have to move forward and do the very best we can. We know it’s frustrating and disappointing to our fans and all the people who support us…At the same time, they have to know that we’re dealing with young people who aren’t going to be perfect, and we’ll obviously try to continue to draft the right kind of guys, but the right type of guy can make a bad decision every now and then as well.”
  • The Cowboys lost a pair of team leaders this offseason in safety Barry Church and cornerback Brandon Carr. Following the news of Irving’s potential suspension and Carroll’s arrest, David Moore of the Dallas News writes that the team isn’t “off to a good start replacing” those veterans’ positive locker room presence.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/7/17

March 7th, 2017 at 7:04pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Unrestricted free agent news will obviously dominate the day, but several clubs also had to make decisions on whether to offer tenders to restricted and exclusive rights free agents. All RFA tenders listed are original round/right of first refusal (worth $1.797MM), and all links go to Twitter:

RFAs:

Tendered:

Non-Tendered:

ERFAs:

Tendered:

Non-Tendered:

West Notes: 49ers, Manning, Broncos

December 2nd, 2015 at 8:26pm CST by Zachary Links

The deadline for the 49ers to activate Daniel Kilgore is fast approaching. For his part, the center says that he’s good to go, as Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee writes.

“I’d like to have something to build off of for the offseason, see where I am,” Kilgore said Wednesday. “It’s been over a year now. And I’ve been doing all this training. So I’d like to do something. I don’t want to do all this training for nothing.”

Kilgore’s fill-in, second-year player Marcus Martin, has struggled so far through 11 games with Pro Football Focus rating him as the NFL’s worst center in 2015.

Here’s more out of the West divisions:

  • When asked about his future beyond 2015, Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning told reporters that he hasn’t arrived at a decision or even pondered it, as Troy Renck of The Denver Post tweets. “This is when ‘they’ and ‘sources’ seem to show their heads. I haven’t thought about anything but getting healthy,” Manning said.
  • Broncos linebacker Shaquil Barrett for has hired agents Drew Rosenhaus and Jason Katz of Rosenhaus Sports for representation, per Rand Getlin of NFL.com (on Twitter). Barrett, 23, is earning a paltry $435K this season and will make $525K in 2016 under the contract he signed as a UDFA in 2014. In 2015, the Colorado State product has appeared in 11 games with 4 starts, racking up 33 tackles, 3.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
  • The Seahawks auditioned tight end Anthony McCoy on Wednesday, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter). McCoy could be an option to help fill the role of star tight end Jimmy Graham.

Broncos Offered First-Rounder For Joe Thomas?

November 3rd, 2015 at 12:19pm CST by Luke Adams

12:19pm: According to Mike Klis of 9NEWS (via Twitter), the Broncos talked to the Browns about Thomas some time ago, but didn’t make a firm offer — the two sides “talked conceptually,” says Klis. Of course, it’s possible that just means the Broncos indicated they’d be willing to give up a first-round pick, even if they didn’t officially put that offer on the table.

10:12am: According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter), the Browns were asking for two first-round pick for Thomas. While reports on Cleveland’s asking price for Thomas have varied slightly, it seems clear that a lone first-rounder won’t get it done.

9:15am: After the Broncos’ starting left tackle, Ryan Clady, went down earlier this year, the team engaged in trade talks with the Browns, offering Cleveland a first-round pick for Joe Thomas, reports Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com. However, according to Grossi, the Browns also asked for second-year linebacker Shaquil Barrett, and the Broncos balked.

Those trade discussions reportedly occurred early in the season, before the Broncos’ lost another left tackle, Ty Sambrailo, to a season-ending injury of his own. As such, it’s possible Denver will increase its offer for Thomas as today’s trade deadline approaches. Still, Jeff Schudel of The News-Herald tweets that he’d be shocked if Cleveland moves its standout left tackle, adding that a club would have to overpay to land Thomas.

Jason Cole of Bleacher Report and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com have also weighed in with the latest on the Browns’ asking prices, with Cole tweeting that an NFC GM told him Cleveland wants a first- and second-round pick for Thomas. Rapoport adds (via Twitter) that Cleveland wants a third-round pick for either Alex Mack or Barkevious Mingo, so none of the club’s trade candidates will come cheaply.

If those asking prices are met, the Browns could become the NFL’s biggest seller at today’s deadline, but it’s also possible the team ends up simply standing pat — GM Ray Farmer and company have less than six hours to make decisions on Thomas, Mack, and others.

Broncos Place Quanterus Smith On IR

January 10th, 2015 at 4:58pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Broncos have decided to place defensive end Quanterus Smith on injured reserve, reports Mike Klis of the Denver Post (via Twitter).

The team has promoted linebacker Shaquil Barrett to the active roster to replace Smith.

Smith has played just over a quarter of the Broncos’ defensive snaps this season, but struggled with a knee injury and was ruled out for this Sunday’s game against the Colts. The team needed the extra depth at linebacker, especially with Brandon Marshall‘s status uncertain, and needed to make space on the roster for Barrett, reports Jeff Legwold of ESPN (via Twitter).

Practice Squad Updates: Wednesday

October 22nd, 2014 at 1:57pm CST by Luke Adams

We’ll keep tabs on Wednesday’s practice squad signings and cuts right here, as teams look to fill out their units and make sure they have insurance for positions hit hard by injuries. Here’s the latest:

  • The Saints have filled the 10th and final opening on their practice squad by re-signing linebacker Todd Davis, who was waived earlier this week, tweets Mike Triplett of ESPN.com.

Earlier updates:

  • Despite being in London for the week, the Lions have made a change to their practice squad, signing safety Jerome Couplin, per Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com (Twitter links). The unlucky roster casualty is running back William Powell, who will have to return stateside.
  • After being cut by the team and clearing waivers, defensive lineman Jacobbi McDaniel has returned to the Browns‘ practice squad, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal, who tweets that the club has also added wide receiver L’Damian Washington.
  • As anticipated, linebacker Shaquil Barrett has officially re-signed with the Broncos‘ practice squad, tweets Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com.

Practice Squad Updates: Tuesday

October 21st, 2014 at 7:00pm CST by Luke Adams

We’re keeping tabs on today’s minor moves that affect 53-man rosters right here, but we’ll use the space below to track transactions involving teams’ practice squads:

Earlier updates:

  • The Panthers have announced a pair of practice squad additions, confirming (via Twitter) that they’ve signed safety Robert Lester and offensive tackle Martin Wallace using their two open spots.
  • The Jaguars have signed cornerback Lou Young to their practice squad, filling the 10th and final opening on the unit, the club announced today (Twitter link).
  • The Cowboys have released edge defender Michael Sam from their practice squad, the team announced today in a press release. Although Sam spent several weeks on Dallas’ taxi squad, he never got the opportunity for a promotion to the 53-man unit, and figures to draw some attention around the NFL as he looks for a new job. Using the two openings on their practice squad, the Cowboys added linebacker Troy Davis and defensive tackle Ken Bishop, according to the team.

Minor Moves: Monday

October 20th, 2014 at 9:11pm CST by Luke Adams

We’ll keep tabs on today’s minor transactions from around the NFL right here, with the latest moves added to the top of the list throughout the day:

  • The Seahawks have signed former Northern Iowa linebacker L.J. Fort to their practice squad, according to NFL Draft Diamonds. The signing has been confirmed by Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (on Twitter). Fort, who has spent time with the Browns, auditioned for the Jaguars and Titans this offseason after missing the Broncos’ final cut.
  • Dolphins defensive end Dion Jordan has been reinstated from his six-game suspension, according to Howard Balzer (Twitter link). Jordan, the third overall pick in the 2013 draft, will have a one-week roster exemption.

Earlier updates:

  • The Broncos have promoted running back Kapri Bibbs to the active roster, tweets Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com. As Legwold adds (via Twitter), several teams were interested in signing away Bibbs. Denver now has five RBs on its 53-man roster.
  • The following players have been cut by their respective teams, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun: Broncos linebacker Shaquil Barrett (Twitter link), Browns defensive lineman Jacobbi McDaniel (Twitter link), Saints linebacker Todd Davis (Twitter link), and Titans tight end Brett Brackett (Twitter link).
  • The Jaguars have promoted defensive end Chris Smith from their practice squad to their 53-man roster, says Wilson (via Twitter). Moving Paul Posluszny to injured reserve opened up a spot for Smith.
  • Wilson also tweets that the Saints have signed tight end Tom Crabtree, placing defensive end Glenn Foster on injured reserve in order to make room on the roster.
  • The Rams have released wideout Emory Blake from their practice squad, tweets Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com.
  • The Dolphins are signing wideout LaRon Byrd to their practice squad, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Miami had been carrying nine players on its unit, so no corresponding move will be required.
  • Ravens head coach John Harbaugh confirmed today that long snapper Morgan Cox has been placed on injured reserve after tearing his ACL during yesterday’s game, tweets Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. As first reported by Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter), the club has signed long snapper Kevin McDermott to replace Cox. Earlier today, Wilson had tweeted that the Ravens were working out McDermott and fellow long snapper Patrick Scales.
  • On the heels of a loss in which they failed to run the ball effectively, the Browns have waived fullback Ray Agnew, the team announced today (Twitter link). An undrafted free agent, Agnew signed with the team in May and had two carries and two catches in his six games as a Brown. Fellow fullback Kiero Small has been promoted from Cleveland’s practice squad to take Agnew’s place on the roster.
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