2014 NFL Draft - Pro Football Rumors

Cowboys Sign Zack Martin

June 16th, 2014 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cowboys have signed first-round pick Zack Martin to his rookie contract, according to Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com. Now that they’ve locked up the offensive tackle, Dallas has just one unsigned draftee remaining — second-round edge defender Demarcus Lawrence.

Martin, the 16th overall pick, was something of a surprise selection last month, since Tyron Smith is locked in at left tackle in Dallas, and many observers believed the Cowboys would either select a defender or opt for the splashier pick in Johnny Manziel. Martin was considered one of the top offensive linemen in the draft, and ended up being the fourth tackle off the board, behind Greg Robinson, Jake Matthews, and Taylor Lewan.

Per Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap, Martin will be in line for a signing bonus of $4.842MM, with an overall four-year value of nearly $9MM. As is the case with all of this year’s first-round picks, Martin will also have a fifth-year option on his deal, which the Cowboys will have the opportunity to exercise to keep him under contract for the 2018 season.

Now that Martin has signed, only 16 draftees have yet to put pen to paper, including six other first-rounders.

Lions Sign First-Rounder Eric Ebron

June 13th, 2014 at 12:42pm CST by Luke Adams

First-round pick Eric Ebron has officially signed his contract with the Lions, according to a tweet from the tight end himself. Ebron posted a photo of him putting pen to paper, announcing that it’s a “done deal.” The move ensures that Detroit now has its entire 2014 draft class under contract.

Ebron, 21, was viewed as far and away the best tight end prospect in this year’s draft class after racking up 973 receiving yards on 62 receptions during his junior year at North Carolina in 2013. Still, it was a bit of a surprise when the Lions selected him with the 10th overall pick last month — the team already committed a significant portion of its offseason spending to pass-catchers to complement Calvin Johnson, having signed Golden Tate and Brandon Pettigrew to long-term deals. The Ravens were reportedly very interested if the UNC product had lasted a little longer in the first round.

The eight and final Lions draftee to ink his deal, Ebron will be in line for a signing bonus of more than $7.228MM, per Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap. The four-year value of the contract, which includes a fifth-year team option, will be about $12.249MM. We’ll have to wait to hear details about possible offsets, but the pact will likely be fully guaranteed.

It was believed that the Lions would have to rework another player’s deal to create cap space to formally sign Ebron, so we’ll see if any corresponding moves are reported today. Ndamukong Suh is the most notable restructure candidate on the roster, but the club wouldn’t necessarily have had to do something with his contract in particular in order to sign Ebron.

Minor Moves: Burton, Ogbuehi, Sims, Giants

June 12th, 2014 at 6:40pm CST by Zachary Links

Tonight’s minor moves..

The Colts claimed defensive back Brandon Burton and the Browns claimed tight end Emmanuel Ogbuehi, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports (via Twitter). Burton, 24, was taken by the Vikings in the fifth round of the 2011 draft and has since inked deals with the Bills and Bengals. Ogbuehi was waived by the Dolphins this week to make room for wide receiver Gerald Ford, who is not to be confused with former president Gerald Ford.
The Buccaneers tweeted that rookie running back Charles Sims has officially signed his contract with the club. The third-round pick spent four years at Houston before playing for West Virginia in 2013 and was named co-Big 12 newcomer of the year by rushing for 1,095 yards and eleven touchdowns.
The Giants cut Kris Adams with a failed physical designation, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). Adams was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2011 by the Bears and has also been a member of the Rams, Vikings, and Colts.
The Vikings waived-injured former FAU wide receiver Lestar Jean, Wilson tweets.
The Colts cut former Ohio State guard Marcus Hall, according to Wilson (on Twitter).
The Cowboys placed former NAIA cornerback Jocquel Skinner on injured reserve after he cleared waivers after being waived-injured, Wilson tweets.

Rams Sign Robinson, Donald, Eight Others

June 12th, 2014 at 5:12pm CST by Luke Adams

5:12pm: Donald doesn’t have offsets in his deal either, Breer adds (on Twitter).

5:01pm: The Rams’ deal with Robinson does not have offsets, tweets Albert Breer of NFL Network. He’s the first player to get that concession this year and that could factor into the Jaguars’ talks with Blake Bortles, Breer adds.

4:34pm: The Rams may have waited the longest of any NFL team to get a draft pick under contract, but it didn’t take the team long to complete the process once it was started. According to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter), the Rams have signed all 11 of their 2014 draftees. In addition to the previously reported Lamarcus Joyner, that group includes first-rounders Greg Robinson and Aaron Donald and 249th overall pick Michael Sam.

A year ago, Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that St. Louis head coach Jeff Fisher wanted to take the team’s rookies through “Financial Planning 101” before those players received their signing bonuses. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the Rams did the same thing this year, delaying the signing process to ensure that their players know how to manage their money when they receive it.

Among those signing bonuses, Robinson’s will be the largest — according to Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap, the signing bonus for the No. 2 pick should fall just short of $14MM. As the 13th overall pick, Donald will be in line for a bonus of $5.692MM. The remaining eight bonuses range from about $46K to $638K.

Besides Robinson, Donald, Joyner, and Sam, the Rams now have the following draftees under contract:

Tre Mason, RB, Auburn (3.75)
Maurice Alexander, S, Utah State (4.110)
E.J. Gaines, CB, Missouri (6.188)
Garrett Gilbert, QB, SMU (6.214)
Mitchell Van Dyk, OT, Portland State (7.226)
Christian Bryant, S, Ohio State (7.241)
Demetrius Rhaney, C, Tennessee State (7.250)

Dolphins Sign Second-Rounder Jarvis Landry

June 12th, 2014 at 4:59pm CST by Luke Adams

A flurry of draft picks, including several first-rounders, have signed their contracts so far this afternoon, and we can add one more to the list. Second-round wide receiver Jarvis Landry has inked his rookie deal with the Dolphins, the team announced today (via Twitter).

Landry, the 63rd overall pick, is the sixth of the Dolphins’ eight draftees to be locked up by the team. Only a pair of offensive tackles – first-rounder Ju’Wuan James and third-rounder Billy Turner – remain unsigned.

As Jason Fitzgerald’s figures at Over the Cap show, Landry should receive a signing bonus worth approximately $847K. Overall, the four-year value of the contract for the LSU product will be in the neighborhood of $3.475MM.

Rams Sign Lamarcus Joyner

June 12th, 2014 at 4:25pm CST by Luke Adams

At last count, only 31 members of 2014’s draft class remained unsigned, and 11 of those belonged to the Rams. Head coach Jeff Fisher and his team have gotten into the habit of walking their rookies through “Financial Planning 101” before handing them big signing bonuses, but it seems St. Louis has finally begun to start locking up its draftees. According to agent Sunny Shah of 320 Sports (Twitter link), second-round cornerback Lamarcus Joyner inked his rookie contract today.

Joyner, a member of the Florida State squad that won last season’s BCS National Championship, earned First Team All-ACC and consensus All-American honors in his final year as a Seminole. For the season, the 23-year-old had 69 tackles, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, and 5.5 sacks.

Per Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap, Joyner’s signing bonus as the 41st overall pick should come in at about $1.978MM

Packers Sign Davante Adams, Richard Rodgers

June 12th, 2014 at 4:14pm CST by Luke Adams

4:14pm: Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun confirms (via Twitter) that the Packers have signed Rodgers to his four-year rookie contract, which includes a signing bonus of around $506K.

3:40pm: The Packers have signed second-round wideout Davante Adams to his four-year contract, according to Field Yates of ESPN Boston (Twitter link). Locking up Adams ensures that third-round tight end Richard Rodgers is the only Green Bay draftee who remains unsigned, though the team is also expected to get him under contract today, tweets Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.

Adams, who was selected 53rd overall out of Fresno State, will receive a signing bonus worth about $1.181MM, according to Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap. In total, the four-year contract will have a value in the neighborhood of $3.933MM.

When the Packers get Rodgers signed, they should be the 19th team in the NFL to secure their entire 2014 draft class. You can follow all the draft pick signings using our tracker, right here.

North Notes: Archer, Lions, Suh, Pouncey

June 12th, 2014 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Bengals first-round cornerback Darqueze Dennard signed his contract with Cincinnati earlier this afternoon, as did Packers second-round receiver Davante Adams. According to Field Yates of ESPN Boston (Twitter link), one more player out of the NFL’s North divisions also inked his rookie deal today — Steelers third-round running back Dri Archer. The move leaves Pittsburgh with one draft pick left to lock up, in second-round defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt.

Here’s more from around the two North divisions:

Ndamukong Suh and the Lions have had “intermittent” contract talks since the owners’ meetings this spring, but the club’s minicap ended today without a new agreement in place between the two sides, writes Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. In order to finalize the signing of first-round tight end Eric Ebron, the Lions will have to either restructure Suh’s deal or rework other smaller contracts.
The Lions worked out former San Diego State offensive tackle Bryce Quigley today, tweets Birkett. Quigley went undrafted last month.
The Steelers held a press conference today to announce Maurkice Pouncey‘s new contract extension, and the standout center told reporters, including Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Twitter link), that the possibility of testing free agency was “never on [his] mind,” particularly after last year’s knee injury.
Browns cornerback Buster Skrine vows to fight every step of way to remain starter despite arrival of Justin Gilbert, write Nate Ulrich and George Thomas of the Akron Beacon-Journal. Of course, from the outside, the eighth-overall pick out of Oklahoma State looks like the leading candidate to start opposite of Joe Haden.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Bengals Sign Darqueze Dennard

June 12th, 2014 at 2:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bengals have finished signing their 2014 draft picks, announcing today that first-round cornerback Darqueze Dennard has signed his rookie contract with the club (Twitter link). On the heels of Mike Evans‘ signing with the Bucs earlier today, Dennard becomes the 22nd first-rounder to put pen to paper, meaning there are just 10 still unsigned.

Dennard, 22, was a unanimous All-American selection during his final year at Michigan State, earning All Big-Ten honors and also collecting the Jim Thorpe Award as the top defensive back in college football. Cincinnati nabbed him last month with the 24th overall pick in the draft, making him the third cornerback to come off the board, behind Justin Gilbert and Kyle Fuller.

As the No. 24 pick, Dennard is in line for a signing bonus worth a little over $4.12MM, according to Jason Fitzgerald’s figures at OverTheCap.com. The total value of Dennard’s four-year contract, which also includes a team option for year five, falls just short of $8MM.

Be sure to check out our tracker to see which draft picks still have yet to sign their contracts.

Buccaneers Sign Mike Evans

June 12th, 2014 at 12:18pm CST by Luke Adams

Another first-round pick has signed his rookie contract, according to the Buccaneers, who announced today that they’ve locked up Mike Evans to a four-year deal, with a fifth-year team option for the 2018 season (Twitter link via Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com). By our count, Evans is the 21st of 32 first-rounders to officially ink his deal.

The seventh overall pick, Evans was the second receiver off the board last month, after No. 4 pick Sammy Watkins. The former Aggie was a consensus All-American in 2013 at Texas A&M after racking up 69 receptions for 1,394 yards and 12 touchdowns. The 20-year-old was also the first of six offensive players selected by Tampa Bay in a draft class that didn’t include a single defender. So far, the Bucs have secured four of those players, with only tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins and running back Charles Sims still unsigned.

Per Jason Fitzgerald’s numbers at OverTheCap.com, Evans’ four-year contract should have an overall value of about $14.632MM, with a signing bonus worth in the neighborhood of $8.96MM.