Cowboys, C Travis Frederick Talking Extension
The Cowboys have begun discussing an extension with center Travis Frederick, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones says (via Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News). Frederick is under control through the 2017 season thanks to his recently exercised fifth-year option. Dallas is hoping to lock him down for years beyond that point. 
[RELATED: Cowboys Easing Up On Backup QB Pursuit?]
Frederick has started every game at center since the Cowboys took him in the first round of the 2013 draft. His rookie deal was a four-year, $6.87MM contract, as prescribed by his draft slot. This year, he’ll make $1.34MM before jumping up to $8.821MM in 2017. Dallas will presumably try to smooth out that cap hit in ’17 while giving him more long-term security on a multi-year pact. Two years ago, Dallas inked a team-friendly deal with left tackle Tyron Smith, who shares the same agent with Frederick.
The center has started 48 consecutive games, earning a Pro Bowl nod and a second team All-Pro selection in each of the last two seasons. Frederick is (literally) at the heart of the Cowboys’ stellar offensive line and they are taking every measure possible to keep that core in place.
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Cowboys Easing Up On Backup QB Pursuit?
The Cowboys are no longer rushing to acquire a veteran quarterback, a team source tells Ed Werder of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Cowboys, of course, were heavily linked to free agent Nick Foles before he signed with the Chiefs on Wednesday night. Dallas has also been linked to trade targets like Josh McCown of the Browns and Mike Glennon of the Buccaneers. 
Dallas was anxious to get a veteran backup on the roster following Kellen Moore‘s broken ankle, particularly since they were planning on giving Tony Romo every third day off in practice. However, the team has apparently changed course, believing that they can simply give more reps to rookie Dak Prescott and Jameill Showers.
The Buccaneers say they are not interested in trading Glennon anyway and that makes sense given the lack of experience they have at QB outside of the 6’7″ signal caller. One would imagine that the Browns are open to trading McCown given that they have RGIII under center and are in a rebuilding year. In any event, neither team should expect Dallas to blow up their phones this week.
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Bengals CB William Jackson Suffers Torn Pec
THURSDAY, 11:49am: Bengals coach Marvin Lewis says Jackson could return this season after having surgery to reattach his pec muscle, Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets.
TUESDAY, 12:15pm: Jackson is seeking a second opinion to find out whether he’ll be out for the season or just placed on IR-DTR with the possibility to return, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
11:45am: Bengals first rounder William Jackson III has suffered a torn pectoral muscle, a source tells Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). At minimum, Jackson can be expected to miss a few months as a result of the injury.
Jackson, a University of Houston product, turned heads with a 4.37 second 40-yard-dash time at the NFL combine. Jackson not only came with a great deal of promise, but the Bengals were banking on using him as a key cog in their cornerback rotation this year.
Over the last two years at UH, Jackson allowed just 40% of passes thrown his way to be completed. After watching him perform in college and excel at the combine, scouting guru Dave-Te Thomas was high on his potential and cited his aggressiveness as a positive:
Jackson was considered a “lockdown corner” for the Houston Cougars after he appeared in thirteen games and finished second in the American Athletic Conference with ten pass breakups in 2014. He also picked off two passes and tallied 37 tackles. Last season, the All-American led the nation and set a Houston single-season record with 23 pass deflections. He also led the nation in passes defended with 28, finishing 20th with five interceptions. He concluded his career ranked third on the UH career passes broken up chart with 40, despite only playing three seasons.
Some other “good news” numbers include Jackson recording six turnovers and coming up with 22 third-down stops…Jackson is certainly not going to impress you with being a great physical presence on the field, but he does demonstrate excellent speed and jump- ball timing. He is very consistent in being “getting into the face” of a receiver. He opens his hips well when asked to handle switch-offs on deep patterns and moves well in space, but he certainly lacks any sort of punch and physicality when required to deliver press coverage (recorded ten reps in the 225-pound bench press drill). His leaping ability helps him get to most balls though and he always seems to get his hands on the pigskin, even when he isn’t in great position.
As shown on their depth chart, the Bengals are currently slated to start Dre Kirkpatrick and Adam Jones at the cornerback spots with Darqueze Dennard as the third corner. Without Jackson, 2015 fourth-round pick Josh Shaw could see an increased role in the coming year. The Bengals could also look to the open market for CB help.
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Ravens Rookie Bronson Kaufusi Done For Year
Sadly, Bronson Kaufusi‘s season is over before it could even start. The third-round defensive end is likely done for the year thanks to a broken ankle, coach John Harbaugh told reporters on Thursday morning (via the Ravens on Twitter). 
[RELATED – Impact Rookies: Baltimore Ravens]
Kaufusi, a defensive end out of BYU, went on a Mormon mission before starting college and was one of the oldest player’s in this year’s class at 25 years old. Before he landed on the NFL radar, Kaufusi his split time between football and basketball. Once he zeroed in on football, he attempted to drop down in weight and shift to outside linebacker, but that experiment did not work out. Still, Kaufusi impressed as a bookend and despite projections that he would go in the fourth or fifth round of this year’s draft, he wound up being selected with the seventh pick in the third round.
Kaufusi was expected to be in the rotation at DE for Baltimore this year, supporting Lawrence Guy and Timmy Jernigan. With the rookie sidelined, there should be greater opportunities for 2014 fourth-round pick Brent Urban, fifth-round rookie Matt Judon, and Kapron Lewis-Moore.
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Broncos Waive Marlon Brown
Marlon Brown‘s time in Denver did not last long. On Thursday morning, the Broncos waived Brown to make room for former Colorado State offensive lineman Sam Carlson, as Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post tweets. 
[RELATED: Broncos Place Phil Taylor On IR]
Brown suffered a back injury during camp a few days ago, according to Wolfe, and the team ostensibly did not want to wait for him to heal up. The former Ravens wide receiver signed on with the Broncos roughly one week ago, but did not get a chance to even hang up his coat. With Brown out of the picture, the Broncos still have ten wide receivers on the 90-man roster. Receivers including Bralon Addison, Jordan Taylor, and DeVier Posey are fighting for a roster spot, as shown on Roster Resource. The Broncos’ receiving group is headlined by Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders with support from Cody Latimer, Bennie Fowler, and Jordan Norwood.
Brown, who turned 25 in April, spent the last three seasons in Baltimore, though he saw his role in the offense decline since making his debut in 2013. In his rookie season, the Georgia product caught 49 balls for 524 yards and seven touchdowns. He has failed to reach the end zone since then, and recorded just 14 receptions and 112 yards in 2015.
While Brown contributed occasionally on special teams, wasn’t a key piece of that unit in Baltimore last year. When taking into account his reduced role on offense, it was no surprise that the team opted not to extend him an RFA tender earlier this offseason. The Ravens re-signed Brown to a lesser salary in mid-March, but dropped him from the roster in May.
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Saints Interested In Cowboys OL Ronald Leary
Back in May, offensive lineman Ronald Leary requested a trade from the Cowboys. Months later, Leary remains in Dallas, but that’s not necessarily for a lack of interest. The Saints have been pursuing a Leary trade for months to no avail, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 
[RELATED: Nick Foles Signs With Chiefs, Despite Cowboys Offer]
Meanwhile, NFL GMs hear that the Cowboys are thinking about trading La’el Collins somewhere in order to acquire a defensive end, Ed Werder of ESPN.com tweets. However, when Werder asked a Cowboys source about those rumblings, the team official replied, “That’s stupid.”
Leary started at left guard for the Cowboys in 2013 and 2014. In 2015, he started the season in the same role, but Collins – who was graded as a first-round talent before his infamous draft day slide – eventually took the job from him. The Cowboys are planning to start Collins at left guard once again in 2016, but they want all of the help they can get on the offensive line with Tony Romo returning from injury and rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott leading the team’s running back committee.
Leary was on the field for only 137 pass snaps and 84 run snaps in 2015, according to the stats compiled by Pro Football Focus (subscription required). Although he did not qualify to be ranked based on that limited sample size, Leary was given an overall grade of 72.2, which would have placed him among the top 30 guards in the NFL last season.
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49ers Sign NaVorro Bowman To Extension
The 49ers and NaVorro Bowman have reached agreement on a contract extension, the team announced on Thursday night. The new pact will keep him in place through the 2022 season. The new four-year extension is worth $44MM with $20MM guaranteed, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
“Over the last six years, NaVorro has become a cornerstone of our organization and securing his future in the Bay Area was a priority for us,” said general manager Trent Baalke. “The perseverance he displayed while overcoming adversity and returning to his All-Pro form provides a great example of what can be accomplished through hard work and self-belief. This contract extension reaffirms our core philosophy of rewarding our own players and we are thrilled to know NaVorro will play his entire career with the 49ers.”
The news comes as a surprise since the Niners had three years until Bowman could reach the open market again. We should know more about the impetus for this move come Friday, but for now it appears that the 49ers simply wanted to do right by one of their star players. When putting the two deals together, Bowman now has himself a seven-year, ~$67.55MM pact.
That yearly average of $9.65MM puts him ahead of Lawrence Timmons, making him the league’s third-highest paid inside linebacker in terms of AAV behind Luke Kuechly and Bobby Wagner. In terms of overall value, Bowman has the highest-paying contract of any inside linebacker as his $67.55MM deal bests Kuechly’s $61.8MM pact with the Panthers which takes him through the 2021 season.
In the playoffs following the 2013 season, Bowman suffered a serious knee injury which kept him out of action for the entire 2014 campaign. The linebacker came back in a big way in 2015, however, leading the NFL with 154 total tackles plus 2.5 sacks and two passes defensed. Bowman’s remarkable comeback earned him First-Team All-Pro honors and a Pro Bowl nod.
Since entering the league in 2010 as a third-round pick, Bowman has earned First-Team All-Pro selections and three trips to the Pro Bowl. In total, the SF standout has 733 tackles, 11.5 sacks, three interceptions, six forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, and 25 passes defensed to his credit.
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Bears Place Brandon Boykin On IR
8:58pm: The Bears signed cornerback Joel Ross to take Boykin’s place on the roster, the team announced (on Twitter). Ross spent time with the Cowboys and Buccaneers in 2015-16 after coming into the league as a UDFA from Appalachian State last year.
8:04pm: Boykin indeed tore a pectoral muscle, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). He may have to write 2016 off after his initial free agency foray resulted in an action-packed year for the wrong reasons.
7:58pm: Both Brandon Boykin and the Bears have enjoyed a turbulent summer, and the sides’ patterns continued after B
oykin’s latest team placed him on IR, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
Boykin signed with the Bears just last Wednesday after being connected to many teams — and catching on with the Panthers before being released after the draft — this offseason. But we heard earlier today the well-traveled cornerback was dealing with a problematic pectoral injury that was going to induce Chicago to sign another corner. That problem appeared to be quite troublesome for the Bears, who chose to end Boykin’s chances of playing for them this season.
The 26-year-old corner also visited the Falcons and Cowboys, and was rumored to be dealing with a severe hip injury. But the Bears agreed to sign him, making them Boykin’s fourth employer in the past year. The Eagles traded him to the Steelers just before last season. Respected by the analytics community, Boykin did not see much time in Pittsburgh despite being a quality slot stopper in Philadelphia. And the 2016 offseason has been by far his least stable in the NFL.
Injuries, though, haven’t been a problem for Boykin during the season. He’s played all 64 regular-season contests for his Pennsylvania-stationed teams the past four years and played a key role for the Steelers in the playoffs last season despite only making one start during the regular season.
The 5-foot-9 corner made 21 tackles but graded out well in the opinion of Pro Football Focus. Boykin’s best season came in 2014, when he intercepted six passes and amassed 136 return yards.
The Bears have now lost another potential contributor they’d signed this offseason. Chicago already saw recently signed offensive linemen Manny Ramirez and Nate Chandler retire.
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Cardinals To Work Out Alan Ball
Alan Ball will work out for the Cardinals on Thursday, Aaron Wilson of National Football Post reports. Ball remains a free agent after playing on a one-year deal with the Bears last season, and the Cardinals may be in need of some veteran help now.
Arizona signed Mike Jenkins just before training camp but saw him break a bone in his hand, an injury which required surger
y, and he’ll be out for multiple weeks.
Beyond Patrick Peterson and Justin Bethel, the Cardinals are devoid of any healthy veteran corners. Roster Resource shows third- and sixth-round rookies Brandon Williams and Harlan Miller comprise the next two options for the defending NFC West champions. Williams is a converted running back who began playing corner full-time as a senior last season at Texas A&M.
Like Jenkins, Ball is a 31-year-old corner who began his career with the Cowboys. The two were teammates from 2008-11 in Dallas, although Jenkins joined the team as a first-round pick a year after Ball came to Texas as a seventh-rounder in 2007. Ball made 16 starts for the Cowboys in 2010 and then made 22 for the Jaguars in 2013-14.
The Bears used Ball as mostly an off-the-bench contributor last season, and the journeyman defender hasn’t been linked to any teams this offseason.
Ball has six career interceptions, two of which coming in 2013 for the Jags during a season in which he also deflected a career-high 14 passes. He made 18 tackles for the Bears last season.
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Chiefs Join Nick Foles Pursuit
The Chiefs have joined the Nick Foles pursuit, emerging as a “sleeper team” vying for the services of the former Eagles and Rams quarterback, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
The Cowboys are the most connected to Foles thus far, with executive VP Stephen Jones confirming the team has engaged in talks with the recently released passer’s agent. Kansas City, though, has a similar issue on its quarterback depth chart.
After Chase Daniel‘s departure to the Eagles, the Chiefs did not opt to replace him with a veteran this offseason. Instead, Kansas City’s quarterback corps behind Alex Smith consists of three signal-callers who have never attempted an NFL pass in a regular-season game.
Both Tyler Bray and Aaron Murray have been with the franchise for at least two years, Bray arriving as a UDFA in 2013 and Murray joining the team a year later as a fifth-round pick. Kevin Hogan arriving as a fifth-round pick this year makes the Chiefs even more dependent on Smith’s health since none of their three reserve options is proven to be viable at this point.
Smith hasn’t put the Chiefs in the same type of predicament Romo placed the Cowboys in last season, though. He’s started all but two regular-season games in his three years in western Missouri and missed just one, Week 17 in 2014, due to injury.
Andy Reid also coached the Eagles when they drafted Foles, in the third round of the 2012 draft, making the fit even more logical. Kansas City, though, does not possess much cap space after failing to reach an extension with Eric Berry and lower his cap number this season. The Chiefs sit at $1.37MM in space, which represents the second-smallest number in the league.
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