2014 March - Pro Football Rumors

Texans Release Owen Daniels

March 11th, 2014 at 10:48am CST by Luke Adams

The Texans have released one of their longest-tenured players, parting ways with tight end Owen Daniels, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (via Twitter). Daniels is coming off a fractured tibial plateau that sidelined him for most of the 2013 season.

Daniels, 31, has spent his entire career with the Texans since being drafted by the team in 2006. During his eight years in Houston, he has hauled in 385 passes for 4,617 total yards, and 29 touchdowns. However, his cap number for 2014, the last year of his contract, was an untenable $6.25MM. By releasing him, the Texans will create $4.5MM in cap savings.

Daniels suggested yesterday that he’s fully healthy after last year’s injury, and if that’s the case, he should draw interest from teams this week, particularly considering the lack of elite tight ends available. Given Daniels’ history with new Baltimore offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, the Ravens could be one potential suitor — the club just locked up Dennis Pitta to a long-term deal, but will likely lose Ed Dickson in free agency.

Falcons, Babineaux Nearing Three-Year Deal

March 11th, 2014 at 10:47am CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons and Jonathan Babineaux are closing in on a three-year deal, sources tell Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). The 32-year-old has been in talks with Atlanta for several weeks and it now appears that they will keep him out of the free agent pool with a brand new deal.

Babs was one of many Falcons unrestricted free agents this year and among the team’s higher priorities. Atlanta freed up extra space to re-sign Babineaux and others by convincing cornerback Asante Samuel to restructure his deal and provide the team with ~$4MM in savings. It was rumored that the team would also try and get defensive end Osi Umenyiora, set to earn $3.5MM in 2014, to take a pay cut, but that no longer appears to be the case.

Statistically, this was a less productive season for Babs than previous campaigns as he registered one sack and 28 tackles.

Redskins Rumors: Mitchell, Sproles, Maragos

March 11th, 2014 at 10:42am CST by Zachary Links

The latest from D.C..

There’s nothing imminent between the Redskins and Mike Mitchell, tweets Zac Boyer of the Washington Times. There are still several teams going after the Carolina safety.
Mike Jones of the Washington Post (on Twitter) hears that Darren Sproles is a possibility for the Redskins but another source views it as a longshot. Albert Breer of NFL Network (Twitter link) says the Vikings are a landing spot for the running back.
Seattle safety Chris Maragos could be a possibility for the Redskins, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Margos is known mostly for his special teams work.

FA Rumors: McCown, Pettigrew, Giants, Cards

March 11th, 2014 at 10:32am CST by Luke Adams

Free agency rumors are pouring in, with less than five hours until the market officially opens. Let’s round them up….

Quarterback Josh McCown expects to get a deal done quickly once free agency opens, and has one or two specific teams at the top of his list, as he told SiriusXM NFL Radio this morning (Twitter link).
The Lions continue to talk to tight end Brandon Pettigrew, but a deal before the deadline appears unlikely, so he should hit the open market, says Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter).
Centers Evan Dietrich-Smith and Brian De La Puente appear unlikely to land with the Giants, according to Jordan Raanan of NJ.com.
Expect the Cardinals to pursue free agent linebacker Mike Neal, tweets Mike Garafolo of USA Today.
Free agent tight end Jeff King is highly unlikely to return to the Cardinals, says Craig Morgan of Fox Sports Arizona (via Twitter).
Cornerback Antoine Cason is drawing some interest, but he’ll likely wait until after the top-tier corners sign to find a deal, tweets Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com.
Emmanuel Sanders is among the names on the list of wide receiver targets for the Browns, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com.
Since being released late last month by the Patriots, safety Steve Gregory has received some interest, and expects to sign after the bigger dominos fall, tweets Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald.
It looks like Bears cornerback and ace special-teamer Sherrick McManis will reach the open market today, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.

Ravens Rumors: Monroe, Mack, Jones

March 11th, 2014 at 10:22am CST by Zachary Links

The latest out of Baltimore..

Sources predict that the Ravens and offensive tackle Eugene Monroe will get a deal done before he can hit the open market, writes Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. The two sides were far apart last week but they have apparently made some serious progress since then. The offensive tackle market is quickly shrinking, with an number of players expected to quickly sign deals when free agency opens including Branden Albert (Dolphins), Jared Veldheer (Cardinals) and Rodger Saffold (Raiders).
Meanwhile, if things don’t work out with Monroe, the Ravens’ backup plan is to make a run at Browns offensive lineman Alex Mack, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.
Wilson adds that the Ravens have had productive talks with wide receiver Jacoby Jones.
There’s mutual interest in a return for special teams ace Jeromy Miles, Wilson tweets.
Ravens aren’t close to a deal with middle linebacker Daryl Smith, sources tell Wilson (on Twitter). Smith, who will celebrate his 32nd birthday this week, saw a career high in sacks (5.0) with 57 solo tackles.

Bucs, Michael Johnson Agree To Five-Year Deal

March 11th, 2014 at 10:09am CST by Luke Adams

The Buccaneers have reached an agreement on a five-year contract worth $43.75MM for defensive end Michael Johnson, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN (Twitter link). Anderson reports that the deal, which can’t be finalized until 3:00pm CT, will include $24MM in guaranteed money.

Johnson, who I rated as this year’s fifth-best free agent, ranked behind only New England’s Rob Ninkovich last season in Pro Football Focus’ run grades for 4-3 defensive ends. After recording 3.5 sacks in 2013, Johnson doesn’t appear likely to ever again match the 11.5 sacks he posted in 2012, but that performance at least showed that he’s very capable of rushing the quarterback as well.

The Bengals free agent was expected to draw heavy interest from Minnesota, but the Vikings essentially removed themselves from the mix by re-signing Everson Griffen to a lucrative five-year deal. In fact, Griffen’s five-year contract looks like something of a blueprint for Johnson’s deal, as the Bucs will owe Johnson slightly more than the $42.5MM ($20MM guaranteed) that Griffen received from the Vikings.

Once Johnson is officially locked up, the Buccaneers will have two of the league’s premier run-stopping linemen under contract, pairing Johnson with defensive tackle Gerald McCoy. According to PFF, no defensive tackle graded higher against the run than McCoy in 2013.

Multiple reporters had indicated yesterday and today that the Bucs were seriously pursuing Johnson, including Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bengals Re-Sign Brandon Tate

March 11th, 2014 at 9:56am CST by Zachary Links

Brandon Tate has re-signed with the Bengals, a league source tells Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). With the signing, Cincinnati has locked up their return man before he could be poached by another club. Terms of the deal are not yet known.

Tate, 26, had just one catch for six yards last season but he made his presence known on special teams. The 6’1″, 195 pound return man averaged 9.3 yards per punt return while averaging a solid 26.1 yards per kick return. Tate broke out for a 43 yard punt return for the Colts in December and torched the Jets for a 71 yard kick return earlier in the season.

Giants, Two Others In Mix For Geoff Schwartz

March 11th, 2014 at 9:52am CST by Zachary Links

The Giants are one of three teams currently in the mix for Geoff Schwartz, according to Conor Orr of the Star-Ledger (on Twitter). Earlier this week, we learned that the Rams also have interest in the former Chiefs guard after releasing veteran guard Harvey Dahl.

The 27-year-old moved into the starting lineup at right guard for Kansas City late in the season. The Chiefs will have to work diligently to make sure their offensive line is solid in 2014. In addition to Schwartz, KC’s other primary right guard, Jon Asamoah, is also on the verge of hitting unrestricted free agency.

Schwartz was a seventh-round pick of the Panthers in 2008 and made enough of a mark there to see time in all 16 games during his rookie season, including three starts. In his sophomore campaign, he started all 16 games at right guard. He went a couple of years without another start until this past season with KC.

Falcons To Sign Jon Asamoah

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

The Falcons appear to have a reached an agreement to sign free agent guard Jon Asamoah, according to John Middlekauff of 95.7 The Game (via Twitter). Middlekauff says that Atlanta will sign Asamoah for a deal worth about $4.5MM annually, and Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports is hearing the same thing (Twitter link).

Asamoah has been linked to the Falcons multiple times in the last few days, with a Saturday report indicating that the team was “extremely” interest in him, while a report yesterday suggested it’d be a “small upset” if the free agent guard didn’t land in Atlanta.

When I examined the free agent market for guards last week, I placed Asamoah in the first tier, speculating that he was more likely than fellow Chiefs lineman Geoff Schwartz to sign with a new team. While he didn’t play regularly for the entire 2013 season, Asamoah ranked 20th overall among guards, according to Pro Football Focus’ metrics (subscription required).

Redskins To Sign Andre Roberts

March 11th, 2014 at 9:43am CST by Luke Adams

9:43am: Roberts will sign a four-year deal worth about $16MM, with half of that money guaranteed, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).

9:14am: The Redskins and free agent wide receiver Andre Roberts have agreed to a deal, a source tells Mike Jones of the Washington Post (Twitter link). Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com had reported earlier this morning (via Twitter) that the Redskins, along with the Browns, were among the teams interested in signing Roberts.

Since Roberts remains under contract with the Cardinals for at least a few more hours, nothing can be made official yet, but it sounds like the 26-year-old and the Redskins have an agreement in principle. It’s no surprise that Roberts will be heading somewhere besides Arizona, as he indicated last month that he thought there may not be “enough balls to go around” with the Cardinals. In that same interview, Roberts said he’d like to sign a four- or five-year contract, expressed a willingness to sign a one-year, make-good deal, so we’ll have to see what the terms look like on his new pact with Washington.

Roberts, who spent the first four seasons of his career with the Cardinals, had his best year in 2012, hauling in 64 balls for 759 yards and five touchdowns. With Roberts in the mix, it’s unclear if the Redskins will still consider other free agent receivers to whom they were linked, such as Kenny Britt and Andrew Hawkins.