HEADLINES

Month: February 2014

AFC South Notes: Colts, Richardson, Draft

February 23rd, 2014 at 2:25pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Colts GM Ryan Grigson wants the team’s offensive line play to improve, according to Mike Wells of ESPN.com. Although the unit did give up nine fewer sacks than in 2012, injuries abounded and the interior line play was inconsistent. Grigson, who recently sounded lukewarm on the status of center Samson Satele, may have to look to the draft for improvements, as the center/guard free agent market is not all that strong save for Alex Mack. Advanced metrics differ on the play of the Colts’ offensive line — Pro Football Focus rated them as the 24th best unit, while Football Outsiders marked them as middle of the pack in run-blocking, but excellent in pass protection.

  • Improved offensive line play could be the first step in getting more from running back Trent Richardson, and the Colts expect progress from him in 2014, writes Craig Kelly of Colts.com.
  • Within the same piece, Grigson says “don’t rule anything out” when it comes to trading back into the first round of the draft. The Colts traded their 2014 first-round-pick for Richardson.
  • Texans GM Rick Smith is a believer in the “best player available” strategy it terms of drafting players, writes Tania Ganguli of ESPN.com. “I think the risk is if you take a player that is not reflective of the value,” said Smith. “Because what you ultimately do is you miss on another player you should have been taking that has that value. That’s why we don’t rank our board with any type of consideration for need because when you do that, you make mistakes.” However, Smith did allow that quarterback is by far the most important position on the field, followed by pass-rusher.
  • The Jaguars would likely want a first-rounder and either a second- or third-round-pick in exchange for moving out of the third overall draft position, writes ESPN.com’s Michael DiRocco as part of a mailbag segment. He also notes the Jags will use free agency to bolster their offensive and defensive lines, but will not spend big on marquee names.
  • In his mailbag, Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com argues that the Titans will likely draft a running back in the fourth round or later, ostensibly to pair with Shonn Greene. Fellow ball-carrier Chris Johnson is expected to be released.

NFC Notes: Clowney, Lions, Vikings, Niners

February 23rd, 2014 at 1:44pm CST by Dallas Robinson

South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney would like to be a member of the Falcons — but only if they trade up to get him, writes ESPN.com’s Vaughn McClure. The star Gamecock is widely expected to be selected in the top five picks of the draft, and he realizes this would make it challenge for him to get to Atlanta. “…I hope I don’t fall to No. 6,” said Clowney, hoping for a Falcons draft position swap. “I like Atlanta – a lot. They’re pretty good. They’ve got some guys from South Carolina on the team, also. And it’s close to home.” The Falcons are in dire need of pass rush help, and we learned Friday that they are not averse to attempting to move higher in the draft.

Some other notes from around the NFC:

AFC East Rumors: Jets, Wilfork, Dolphins

February 23rd, 2014 at 1:04pm CST by Rory Parks

It’s been a fairly busy day at the Jets rumor mill. We learned earlier that the team is eyeing veteran QB Josh McCown, and they are also looking at RBs Ben Tate and Donald Brown, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN New York. More quick notes from the AFC East:

  • Given defensive tackle Vince Wilfork‘s age, his recent Achilles tear, and the fact that his contract is up at the end of the 2014 season, Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald writes that the time is now for the Patriots to draft Wilfork’s replacement. Guregian notes that the Pats should target a big defensive tackle early in the draft, and although Florida State’s Timmy Jernigan and Notre Dame’s Louis Nix will likely be gone by the time New England picks with the No. 29 overall selection, there will be some quality options available. Such options include Minnesota’s Ra’Shede Hageman, Pittsburgh’s Aaron Donald, and Penn State’s DaQuan Jones.
  • James Walker of ESPN.com notes that the Dolphins‘ bleak offseason could improve dramatically in the coming weeks. For the second consecutive year, the Dolphins will have a great deal of money to spend in free agency. With the salary cap expected to increase to $130MM, Miami could have up to $36MM in cap space, enough room to target their weaknesses on the O-line and in the secondary, and to re-sign some of their own free agents.
  • Speaking of the Miami secondary, Walker does not see re-signing Chris Clemons as a priority. He notes that the Dolphins would like a more dynamic playmaker to pair with Reshad Jones.
  • We rounded up some Buffalo Bills rumors here earlier today.

Buccaneers To Seek Veteran QB

February 23rd, 2014 at 12:29pm CST by Rory Parks

Earlier today, we learned that the Jets may be in the market for a veteran QB–specifically Josh McCown–to push young signal-caller Geno Smith. Now, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that the Buccaneers are “absolutely” looking to bring in an experienced quarterback to compete with and possibly replace second-year QB Mike Glennon.

With just five picks in the 2014 draft but a great deal of cap space to work with, Tampa Bay plans to be active in free agency, according to Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune. New GM Jason Licht said that, with a new coach and a new regime, he cannot simply “hand the keys over” to the incumbent QB and declare him the starter without at least bringing in some competition. New head coach Lovie Smith agreed, stating, “This roster wasn’t set up with our system in mind. Not that it’s going to be that much different, but we’ll probably change more players than you think.”

Regarding his quarterback situation, Smith added, “In an ideal world, you would like to have some kind of a veteran in the mix instead of three young guys that haven’t played a lot. I think you can maybe get away with it at some of the other positions, but it’s not ideal (at quarterback).”

Of course, as Florio observes, the veterans available on the free agent market are more placeholders than long-term answers. Those options include McCown, Michael Vick, Matt Cassel, and (most likely) Matt Schaub.

Titans Rumors: Locker, Johnson, Verner

February 23rd, 2014 at 12:05pm CST by Rory Parks

Although Titans team president/CEO Tommy Smith recently lent his full endorsement to QB Jake Locker, Locker can expect to have some competition, according to Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean. Although it is expected that the 2014 draft’s top quarterbacks–Johnny Manizel, Teddy Bridgewater, and Blake Bortles–will be off the board by the time the Titans pick with the 11th overall selection, new head coach Ken Whisenhunt noted that there is a lot of talent at the position in this year’s draft and that he would like to have “five or six” of the incoming QBs.

Potential options to provide some younger competition for Locker that could be had after the first round include Derek Carr, Aaron Murray, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Zach Mettenberger, all of whom have enough talent to be starters in the league. Of course, the Titans also have Ryan Fitzpatrick under contract. Although his $2.75MM base salary puts him at risk of being a cap casualty, Titans officials have indicated that they “feel comfortable” with Fitzpatrick. In any event, 2014 seems to be Locker’s last year to prove he is Tennessee’s long-term solution at quarterback.

A couple quick updates on two of the bigger names on the Titans roster:

  • There has been no change in talks with RB Chris Johnson, according to Wyatt (via Twitter). Our Luke Adams noted last week that it is widely expected the Titans will cut Johnson, and since then, GM Ruston Webster indicated the team will be patient when it comes to a decision regarding Johnson. Wyatt tweeted that Johnson will “stick to his word” and will not accept a pay cut.
  • Wyatt also tweets that the Titans are continuing to talk to CB Alterraun Verner, but that nothing is imminent. As Adams pointed out several days ago, the Titans would love to keep Verner but do not want to use the franchise tag on him.

Bills Notes: QBs, Johnson, Dareus, Williams

February 23rd, 2014 at 11:08am CST by Rory Parks

Although it is unusual for a team’s general manager to make definitive statements at this time of year, Bills GM Doug Whaley made it clear that his club will not take a quarterback with its first-round pick, according to ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak. Starting quarterback E.J. Manuel was the only quarterback selected in the first round of last year’s draft, which boasted a weak class of QBs. Given the more talented group of quarterbacks in the 2014 class, and given that Manuel suffered his third knee injury in December, there has been speculation that the Bills would take a QB in the first round for the second consecutive year. Whaley, however, indicated that the Bills would not go in that direction.

More notes out of Buffalo:

  • Wide receiver Stevie Johnson‘s future with the team is uncertain, given that he is due a sizable roster bonus in March. However, head coach Doug Marrone has reached out to Johnson to assure him that the team still wants him. As Tim Graham of the Buffalo News reported, there was some disconnect between Johnson and the Bills’ coaching staff last season, and his “act” was wearing thin among his teammates.
  • Whaley says that a contract extension for defensive tackle Marcell Dareus is “on the radar,” but it does not sound as though it is a priority right now. Since Dareus was a first-round pick under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Bills hold a team option on him for the 2015 season.
  • Although defensive end Mario Williams will cost the Bills a hefty $18.8MM cap hit in 2014, Whaley indicated that he has no intention of restructuring Williams’ deal at this time.
  • In a separate piece for the Buffalo News, Graham indicates that the Bills met with Jairus Byrd‘s agent on Saturday and that the team still hopes to sign Byrd to a long-term deal.

Re-Signing Alex Mack Top Priority For Browns

February 23rd, 2014 at 9:54am CST by Rory Parks

The Browns have made re-signing center Alex Mack their No. 1 priority, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). As our own Rob DiRe observed last week, Mack was unlikely to remain with Cleveland under the team’s old regime. However, after the surprising front office shake-up in Cleveland, new team officials would like to keep Mack in a Browns uniform but would prefer to do so without using the $11MM franchise tag for offensive linemen.

Rapoport’s tweet indicates that the Browns not only want to keep Mack, but that they have put a contract for the talented center at the top of their to-do list.

James Jones Likely Done In Green Bay

February 23rd, 2014 at 9:26am CST by Rory Parks

The Packers have not offered wide receiver James Jones a contract, and they most likely will let him walk when free agency opens on March 11, according to Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal. Citing an unnamed source, McGinn writes that the Packers do not plan to even offer Jones a contract.

Jones’ agent, Frank Bauer, said, “I don’t think [Packer’s GM] Ted Thompson wants him.” Bauer added that he had appointments with a “handful” of teams to discuss Jones. Although Jones has had a solid career for Green Bay, including a league-high 14 TD catches in 2012, his free agent stock will be hurt by his age (he will be 30 in March) and by the fact that the 2014 draft class is very deep at the wide receiver position. Furthermore, the Packers may try to enter into extension talks with top wideouts Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb sooner rather than later, as both players are eligible for unrestricted free agency after the 2014 season.

Another factor in the Packers’ decision to let Jones walk is the emergence of Jarrett Boykin. Last year, in his second season in the league, Boykin caught 49 passes for 681 yards and 3 TDs. McGinn notes that, just as Jones’ presence made it easier for Green Bay to let Greg Jennings walk last spring, Boykin’s presence will make it easier for the team to let Jones depart this offseason.

Seferian-Jenkins Has Fractured Foot

February 22nd, 2014 at 9:50pm CST by Peter Sowards

Washington tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins, considered to be a first-round prospect by most draft prognosticators, has a stress fracture in his foot and will not be back to full strength for six to eight weeks, according to Todd Dybas of the Tacoma News Tribune (via Twitter).

It’s unclear when the 21-year old from Fox Island, Washington suffered the injury. Tight ends did their on-field work today at the NFL Scouting Combine, but Seferian-Jenkins was not among the participants.

SI.com’s Doug Farrar listed Seferian-Jenkins as one of his first-day combine sliders due to a “last minute medical issue” that forced the 6’6″ athlete to bow out. Farrar mention’s the DUI Seferian-Jenkins received in March 2013 as another issue, as well as his decreased production from 2012 to this past season.

Poll: Which WR Will Eagles Keep?

February 22nd, 2014 at 9:19pm CST by Peter Sowards

With the news from The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane that the Eagles are prioritizing Jeremy Maclin over Riley Cooper, we’re interested to see if you think either receiver — or possibly both — will be back next season.

Cooper’s 2013 season was well-documented, starting with video evidence of the fourth-year receiver from Florida using a racial slur at a country music concert in late July. He apologized vehemently, was accepted back by his teammates, and then went on to set career highs in receptions (47), yards (835) and touchdowns (eight). He played in all 16 games, starting 15, and totaled six receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown in Philadelphia’s 26-24 playoff loss to New Orleans.

Maclin’s season was over before it started. He suffered a torn ACL in his right knee in training camp. A first-round pick from Missouri in 2009, Maclin has put up consistently good numbers for the, hovering between 55-70 catches in each season. He has never failed to surpass 750 receiving yards, but he’s never topped 1,000, either.

What do you believe to be the fates of Maclin and Cooper? Feel free to defend your vote in the comments section below.

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