HEADLINES

Month: February 2014

Vince Young Hopes To Earn NFL Roster Spot

February 11th, 2014 at 3:25pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Pro Bowl quarterback Vince Young hasn’t thrown a pass in a regular season NFL game since the 2011 season, but he intends to pursue a roster spot this summer. According to David Barron of the Houston Chronicle, Young released a statement today indicating that he plans to train in San Diego for the next several weeks in the hopes of earning an NFL opportunity.

“I am pleased with the quick resolution of my bankruptcy case,” Young said, referring to a case which was dismissed after he reached settlements in a pair of lawsuits, allowing him to pay back his principal creditor, Pro Player Funding. “With all these battles behind me, I am able to devote my sole focus on family, football and pursuing all opportunities in front of me.”

Young was in camp with the Packers in 2013 and the Bills in 2012, but was waived prior to the regular season in both instances. He hasn’t seen any real playing time since 2011 with the Eagles, when he started three games for the club. In his limited action that season, Young threw just four touchdowns to nine interceptions, which has reduced the likelihood of him receiving another opportunity.

Still, Young is just 30 years old, and his previous success makes him a good bet to at least earn an audition in an NFL training camp this summer. If he plays well and isn’t plagued by off-field issues, there’s a chance the former Texas signal-caller could land at least a third-string job.

North Notes: Browns, Suh, Porter, Bears

February 11th, 2014 at 2:45pm CST by Luke Adams

After announcing several front office moves earlier today, the Browns will add one more new executive, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. Schefter reports (via Twitter) that former Chiefs VP of player personnel Bill Kuharich will join the Browns to assist new GM Ray Farmer. Kuharich and Farmer worked together in Kansas City.

With a new group of decision-makers taking over football operations in Cleveland, several players’ futures could be affected. We have details on those possibilities, as well as updates on a few more AFC and NFC North teams, so let’s dive in….

  • The Browns have a much more realistic chance of re-signing star center Alex Mack, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who says (via Twitter) that Mack appeared to be a sure thing to depart in free agency under the old regime. Rapoport adds (via Twitter) that receiver Greg Little was certain to be waived by the old regime, but may be retained for another season by the new decision-makers.
  • After Schefter reported that Jay Z and Roc Nation Sports would advise Lions defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh in some capacity, fellow ESPN.com scribe Darren Rovell added that Roc Nation would represent Suh for both contract negotiations and marketing. We had heard back in January when Suh fired his previous agents that Jay-Z was expected to be involved in the 27-year-old’s new representation.
  • Longtime Steeler linebacker Joey Porter had been hired by his old team as a defensive assistant, and figures to work with the current group of linebackers in Pittsburgh, tweets Bob Labriola of Steelers Digest.
  • The Bears aren’t likely to use their own franchise tag this offseason, but they’ll be keeping an eye on which other teams around the league designate franchise players, since it could affect their free agent pursuits, writes John Mullin of CSNChicago.com.

Pro Football Rumors iPhone/iPad App

February 11th, 2014 at 1:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pro Football Rumors iPhone/iPad app is now for sale in the iTunes store, and it’s free! If you’re an iPhone/iPad user, you can download our app today at no charge, and get the following features:

  • Custom push notifications: Pick your favorite players and teams and receive alerts when they’re involved in rumors, trades, or signings.
  • Read Pro Football Rumors posts in an iPhone/iPad-friendly format.
  • Filter headlines to show rumors for a specific team.
  • Read and create comments through Disqus.

Check out the Pro Football Rumors iPhone/iPad app today!

49ers Links: Kaepernick, Free Agents, Dawson

February 11th, 2014 at 12:57pm CST by Luke Adams

After seeing the Seahawks handily dispatch the Broncos in the Super Bowl this month, the 49ers likely felt as if they were a Richard Sherman deflection away from being champions themselves. They’ll aim for a different result next season, but before they do, there are several roster decisions facing the club. Let’s take a look at a few of them….

  • In an Insider-only piece, ESPN.com’s Mike Sando takes an in-depth look at Colin Kaepernick‘s next contract with the 49ers. While conventional wisdom dictates that the team would be wise to lock up its quarterback as soon as possible, sources who spoke to Sando didn’t get the impression that San Francisco considers Kaepernick “irreplaceable” yet, suggesting that the club could wait on a new deal. If the two sides do work out an agreement with offseason, Sando expects it to be something in the neighborhood of $45MM for three years.
  • Wide receiver Anquan Boldin, safety Donte Whitner and cornerback Tarell Brown are among the 2013 starters who the 49ers would like to re-sign, but none of them appears to be a realistic candidate for the franchise tag, writes Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. While Boldin and Whitner were key contributors in San Francisco this past season, the projected franchise salaries of approximately $11.5MM for receivers and $8MM for safeties are likely a little too pricey for the Niners.
  • Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk explains why using the franchise tag on kicker Phil Dawson isn’t a viable option for the 49ers. Having already been franchised twice, Dawson would be eligible to earn the franchise salary for a quarterback rather than a kicker if he were tagged.

Umenyiora Optimistic About Return To Falcons

February 11th, 2014 at 12:09pm CST by Luke Adams

The Falcons parted ways with one big-name defender last week for cap purposes, officially releasing cornerback Asante Samuel and creating more than $4MM in cap savings. Atlanta may not be done making moves, but veteran defensive end Osi Umenyiora remains optimistic about returning to the Falcons, in spite of his $4.75MM cap number for 2014.

“I would love to stay, and I think I am,” Umenyiora told Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. “But you really never know what’s going to happen.”

While Samuel struggled through an injury-plagued 2013, Umenyiora remained fairly productive in his first year with the Falcons, recording 47 tackles and 7.5 sacks, forcing three fumbles, and even returning an interception for a touchdown. Still, although Umenyiora remains an asset, releasing him would create $3.5MM in cap space for the club, which could be put toward multiple young players. The Falcons figure to retool their defensive line this offseason in an effort to improve their pass rush, but even in a situational role, the 32-year-old feels like he’s earning his pay.

“To say that money is not a lot would be crazy because that’s a lot of money, period,” Umenyiora said of his cap number. “But if you look at it strictly in football terms and what the top-tier defensive ends are getting paid. … Mario Williams, who is making like, what, $16MM per year? It’s tough for me to answer that [money] question because it all depends on what my perceived value to the team is.”

Whether or not the Falcons ultimately decide to retain him for 2014, Umenyiora intends to continue his playing career through this season and beyond, telling McClure that he hopes to play three more seasons in the NFL.

Latest On Browns’ Front Office Shakeup

February 11th, 2014 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

The Browns shocked the football world today when they announced that Ray Farmer has been promoted to general manager, replacing Michael Lombardi, who is leaving the organization. Meanwhile, CEO Joe Banner is also on his way out, though not immediately. The Browns held a press conference this morning to discuss the front office overhaul, but before they did, a number of reports about the moves surfaced:

  • A league source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that owner Jimmy Haslam felt like Lombardi had to go and that Farmer deserved to have complete control over the football decisions, “unfettered by Banner’s authority” in football operations.
  • Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports suggests (via Twitter) that failing to deliver on who they could hire to replace former coach Rob Chudzinski may have doomed Lombardi and Banner in Cleveland.
  • NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport passes along a few notable tidbits on the Browns’ coaching search, tweeting that Farmer wasn’t present during Pettine’s interview. Rapoport adds that if Cleveland had been able to hire Adam Gase of the Broncos, the club wanted to pair him with Seahawks exec Scot McCloughan, replacing Lombardi (Twitter link).
  • Rapoport also reports (via Twitter) that the team secretly interviewed Wisconsin’s Gary Andersen back in January. The Badgers coach confirmed as much to Bruce Feldman of CBS Sports (Twitter link): “After our initial conversation, I decided not to pursue the position.”
  • Lombardi and Banner were surprised and “devastated” by the Browns’ decision, according to Will Burge of Bleacher Report (via Twitter). Burge also hears from a source (Twitter link) that Haslam made the announcement rather abruptly in a meeting this morning.

At today’s press conference, Haslam began by taking questions from reporters on his own, addressing many lingering questions, including a few of the topics mentioned in the above list. Here are the highlights from Haslam (all link go to various reporters’ Twitter accounts):

  • Banner will continue to work in a transitional role in the organization until May or June.
  • Farmer, head coach Mike Pettine, and team president Alec Scheiner will all report directly to Haslam.
  • Haslam had nothing but praise for Banner and Lombardi, suggesting that the duo had left the team in a good position with regard to the draft and cap space.
  • The team has no regrets about its head coach and is happy with the one it landed, in Pettine. Haslam added that reports of candidates not wanting to speak to the Browns are inaccurate.
  • Haslam shot down the idea of the Browns as a dysfunctional organization, or one without any continuity, pointing to the fact that Farmer has been in the front office for a year and the team’s scouts are already in place, so it’s not a complete overhaul.
  • Today’s moves are the last major changes coming to the Browns organization. Presumably, that statement applies to the 2014 offseason.
  • Farmer will have the final say on the Browns’ 53-man roster, while Pettine will make the decisions on game-day rosters.
  • Farmer played a key role in the Browns’ coaching search. However, that role primarily involved information gathering rather than actually being in on the interviews.
  • Haslam wouldn’t say whether any coaching candidates told him they wouldn’t accept the job if Banner or Lombardi was employed.
  • Haslem didn’t promise Farmer the Browns’ GM job to get him to remove his name from the Dolphins’ GM search.

Finally, Farmer took to the microphone and spoke to the media about a number of topics. Here were the noteworthy takeaways from the new GM’s portion of the presser (all Twitter links):

  • Farmer has signed a four-year deal with the Browns, which should keep him under contract through the 2017 season.
  • The Dolphins GM job was “not right” for Farmer, according to the new Browns GM, dismissing the idea that he withdrew his name from consideration because he knew the promotion in Cleveland was coming.
  • Farmer sidestepped football-related questions about the franchise tag and D’Qwell Jackson‘s contract situation, indicating that those decisions will be made at a later date.
  • While Farmer had been in communication with Haslam for a few days about the upcoming front office changes, he didn’t know definitively until last night that he’d be promoted to GM.
  • The team is in contact with troubled receiver Davone Bess, and the Browns’ top priority is making sure he gets any help he needs.

AFC East Notes: Edelman, Bills, Dolphins

February 11th, 2014 at 10:26am CST by Luke Adams

Let’s round up a few of the latest updates from around the AFC East….

  • Tom E. Curran of CSNNE.com doesn’t expect the market for Julian Edelman this offseason to exceed $6MM per year, in which case he believes there’s a good chance the free agent receiver returns to the Patriots.
  • Governor of New York Andrew M. Cuomo has appointed the first five members to group known as the New Stadium Working Group, which will be tasked with exploring the possibility of building a new stadium for the Bills, according to Gene Warner and Jonathan D. Epstein of the Buffalo News. New York State, Erie County and the Bills will all be responsible for appointing up to seven members to the board, which is poised to meet “within the next two weeks” to begin discussions.
  • Even if the Dolphins can extract a sixth- or seventh-round pick out of another team in exchange for Jonathan Martin, Miami should simply cut him rather than keeping him on the roster through potentially lengthy trade negotiations, argues Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Releasing Martin and allowing Richie Incognito to sign elsewhere would at least symbolically close the door on last year’s bullying scandal, allowing the team to move forward, says Salguero.
  • ESPN.com’s James Walker wonders if the Dolphins might have interest in offensive lineman Gabe Carimi, who was released yesterday by the Buccaneers.

Terrance Knighton May Seek New Contract

February 11th, 2014 at 9:52am CST by Luke Adams

Defensive tackle Terrance Knighton signed a two-year contract with the Broncos last offseason, which puts him another year away from free agency. However, after starting every game for the team in 2013, Knighton and his reps believe he has outperformed his deal, and they’ll be seeking a new agreement this offseason, a source tells Brandon Krisztal of the Denver Post (Twitter link).

Knighton, 27, earned a base salary of $1MM in 2013, to go along with $1MM in bonuses. For 2014, he’s on the Broncos’ books for a base salary of $1.5MM, with a $1MM roster bonus still to come. Presumably, if he were to negotiate a new deal this offseason, Knight would be seeking a sizable bump in annual salary, along with multiple additional years tacked on beyond ’14.

The Broncos have a little wiggle room under the cap for now, but have many key contributors facing free agency now, including Knowshon Moreno, Eric Decker, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, and Zane Beadles. Giving Knighton a raise could compromise the club’s ability to bring back some of those free agents, so we’ll have to wait and see if Denver can reach a compromise with its starting defensive tackle. Knighton was a major piece of the Broncos’ defensive line in 2013, recording 43 tackles to go along with three sacks, an interception, and a fumble recovery.

Farmer In, Lombardi Out As Browns GM

February 11th, 2014 at 8:59am CST by Luke Adams

The Browns have officially named Ray Farmer the team’s new general manager, the club announced today. Michael Lombardi, the previous GM in Cleveland, has been let go, while Joe Banner is stepping down from his position as CEO and will transition out of the organization within the next few months, says Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). According to Vic Carucci of ClevelandBrowns.com (Twitter link), the Browns will hold a press conference at 11:30am ET to discuss the front office shakeup.

“The purpose of these moves is to unify our team with one, unequivocal goal: Provide our fans with the winning organization they have long deserved,” said owner Jimmy Haslam in a statement.

The organizational changes have already raised eyebrows among reporters and fans, since Banner and Lombardi had essentially only been with the team for one full season, and the new roles are taking effect right before many key offseason dates. For his part, Banner left his role as Eagles president in 2012 after spending nearly two decades with the franchise, as Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer notes (via Twitter). Now, less than 18 months after joining the Browns, Banner is on his way out.

While the Browns didn’t have an overly successful year on the field in 2013, the team continued to add young players and maintain cap flexibility, as well as landing a first-round pick from the Colts in exchange for Trent Richardson. However, according to Albert Breer of NFL Network (Twitter link), “word was rampant that Haslam was embarrassed by how the Browns were viewed locally in January,” prompting organizational changes. Haslam also gave former head coach Rob Chudzinski only one season in Cleveland, firing him at season’s end and replacing him with Mike Pettine.

As for Farmer, he had been in the mix for the Dolphins’ general manager position, but pulled out of the mix, a decision that makes sense in retrospect, assuming he knew these changes were in the works in Cleveland.

Brent Grimes Seeking Multiyear Contract

February 11th, 2014 at 8:30am CST by Luke Adams

Brent Grimes is scheduled to hit the open market one month from today, but the Dolphins may use their franchise tag on the cornerback well before the free agent period begins. As Grimes tells Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald though, he’s hoping to sign a multiyear deal to remain with the Dolphins, since that franchise tag “is not what anybody wants.”

A report last week suggested that re-signing Grimes will be a top priority for Miami this offseason, and based on Jackson’s latest story, it sounds as if the All-Pro defensive back is interested in continuing his career a Dolphin. At age 30, Grimes likely recognizes that his window to secure one last long-term contract is closing, meaning this offseason may represent his best chance at one last lucrative deal.

It may also be in Miami’s best interest to work out a long-term agreement with Grimes, as Jackson notes. With the franchise tag value for cornerbacks expected to exceed $11MM, using the tag on Grimes would severely cut into the club’s 2014 cap space. Although a multiyear deal might leave the Dolphins on the hook for more guaranteed salary, that money would be stretched over multiple seasons, and Grimes’ cap number for ’14 would almost certainly be smaller than $11MM.

As our list of notable offseason dates shows, NFL teams can begin designation franchise players next Monday.

Load More Posts