2017 March - Pro Football Rumors

49ers Host Bucs DE Jacquies Smith On Visit

March 24th, 2017 at 2:07pm CST by Zachary Links

Buccaneers defensive end Jacquies Smith is on a visit to the 49ers, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Smith is a restricted free agent, so the Bucs reserve the right to match any offer sheet.

Smith was given the original round/right of first refusal tender by Tampa Bay this offseason. Because he entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2012, the Buccaneers would not receive any draft compensation if they allowed an offer sheet to go unmatched.

Smith, 27, compiled 13.5 sacks between the 2014 and 2015 seasons. He suffered a torn ACL last season, but he is almost fully recovered, according to Rapoport. He was the only Tampa Bay defensive end with more than five sacks in 2015 and the team’s decision to give him the lowest level tender came as a bit of a surprise.

The Bucs currently project to start Robert Ayers and William Gholston at the defensive end spots. Beyond those two, they have Noah Spence, Davonte Lambert, and three other defensive ends under contract, not including Smith.

The Niners, meanwhile, have Arik Armstead and Aaron Lynch at defensive end with Ronald Blair and Zach Moore in support. If healthy, Smith could give them a big boost on the defensive line.

Bengals Re-Sign Wallace Gilberry

March 24th, 2017 at 1:53pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bengals are re-signing Wallace Gilberry, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Heading into today, we had Gilberry ranked as the 12th-best edge defender left in free agency.

Gilberry joined the Lions prior to the 2016 season and was slated to be a situational pass rusher in Detroit. After four games, he was sidelined by an abdominal injury. Detroit subsequently placed him on IR before releasing him midway through the season. When he hit the open market, the Bengals brought him back to Cincinnati.

In his first Bengals stint from 2012-15, he started in 19 games for the team and recorded 16.5 sacks with Cincinnati. Last year, he appeared in five games for the Bengals and tacked on another 2.5 sacks. For his career, Gilberry has 34 sacks across nine NFL seasons.

All of the Bengals’ free agent defensive linemen from this offseason are now spoken for, in one fashion or another. Domata Peko left for the Broncos and Margus Hunt signed with the Colts, but Gilberry will stay thanks to today’s deal.

Jets Rumors: Pryor, Richardson, McCown

March 24th, 2017 at 1:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Jets GM Mike Maccagnan addressed reporters moments ago and touched on a wide range of topics. Here’s a quick look at the highlights:

Maccagnan won’t say if they will pick up safety Calvin Pryor’s fifth-year option, as Brian Costello of the New York Post tweets. Pryor, a first-round pick made by the old regime in New York, is reportedly in some danger of being cut this offseason. The Jets have until early may to make the call on Pryor’s option and it sounds like they are hesitating over guaranteeing his 2018 season for injury. The Louisville product known for his hard hitting had 60 total tackles in 2016.
Maccagnan declined to commit to Sheldon Richardson‘s future with the Jets and says he’ll weigh all options with regards to the defensive lineman (Twitter link via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY). The Jets once dangled Richardson with the hope of getting a first-round pick, but it now seems like they might have to settle for a third-round choice if they move him.
Maccagnan says it’s “highly unlikely” they will add another veteran quarterback, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets. However, he won’t rule out drafting a QB. He also wouldn’t commit to Josh McCown being the team’s starter in 2017, saying that it’s a decision that will be made by coach Todd Bowles. McCown’s deal came with a $6MM guarantee, so it would be a bit surprising if he wasn’t the team’s Week 1 starter.
There were rumblings about Muhammad Wilkerson being out of shape this offseason, but the defensive lineman refuted that talk earlier this week.
The Jets signed Quinton Patton on Thursday, giving them seven wide receivers under contract.

Vikings Waive DL Scott Crichton

March 24th, 2017 at 1:00pm CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings announced that defensive lineman Scott Crichton has been waived. Crichton was a 2014 third-round pick and he was widely expected to be a cap casualty this offseason. The Vikings will save approximately $769K against the cap with $164K in dead money.

To date, the 25-year-old defensive lineman (26 in October) has only compiled 10 total tackles in 21 career games. His 2015 season ended on IR and he was waived/injured in the summer prior to the 2016 season. He reverted to Minnesota’s IR after the transaction, but the team is not interested in finding out whether he can return to health and contribute in 2017.

With Crichton out of the picture, the Vikings are left with 64 players on the active roster.

Extra Points: Peterson, Hankins, Panthers

March 24th, 2017 at 12:53pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest from around the NFL:

Two NFL sources tell ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler (on Twitter) that they believe Adrian Peterson is still a free agent because his initial price was too high. Fowler adds that the Packers were considering having Peterson in for a visit, but have decided against it for the time being. The Packers reportedly have some interest in Peterson, but they’ll likely wait until after the draft to consider him and weigh a Peterson signing against their other options. After losing Eddie Lacy in free agency, Green Bay’s running back depth chart consists of Ty Montgomery, Don Jackson, and the recently re-signed Christine Michael.
Most teams around the league view Giants free agent Johnathan Hankins as primarily being a two-down player, Mike Jones of the Washington Post tweets. That could explain why his own evaluation has been so far off from what the market has been willing to offer him so far. The Dolphins have reached out to Hankins but it’s not clear if they can land him given their budgetary constraints. By the same token, no team seems to be throwing around big money to sign Hankins. He may need to go the Dontari Poe route and accept a one-year deal, but it might come at a lower salary.
Panthers GM Dave Gettleman indicated that team didn’t know the full extent of Charles Johnson‘s back injury when they re-signed him this offseason, Joseph Person of The Charlotte Observer tweets. Still, he indicated that wouldn’t have changed the team’s thinking. Johnson had back surgery earlier this week but is not expected to miss regular season time as a result.

Cowboys Host OT Byron Bell On Visit

March 24th, 2017 at 12:17pm CST by Zachary Links

Free agent tackle Byron Bell is visiting the Cowboys today, Clarence Hill of the Star-Telegram tweets. The Cowboys are in search of a right tackle after Doug Free retired earlier this month and Bell could be a candidate to replace him.

Bell did not play last season after dislocating his ankle during Titans OTAs. In the previous season, however, he started 16 games at three different positions: eight at right tackle, seven at left guard, and one at left tackle. Right now, I have him down as the seventh-best tackle left in free agency.

Bell, 28, spent his first four NFL seasons with the Panthers. In his final season with Carolina, he was asked to play left tackle for the first time and things got ugly. He graded out as the second-worst offensive tackle in football out of 84 qualified players in 2014 with a -33.4 overall rating, according to Pro Football Focus. However, he showed his ability and versatility in 2015.

Jaguars Sign Malliciah Goodman

March 24th, 2017 at 11:15am CST by Zachary Links

The Jaguars have signed Malliciah Goodman, according to agent Chad Speck (Twitter link). Terms of the defensive lineman’s deal are not yet known.

With the exception of the 2014 season, in which he appeared in all 16 of the Falcons’ games and started ten, Goodman didn’t see much action during his four-year career. In 2016, Goodman appeared in one game for the Seahawks before circling back to Atlanta. The Falcons cut him in December, so he didn’t get to join the team for its run to the Super Bowl.

The Jaguars project to start a strong defensive line this year with ends Dante Fowler and Calais Campbell plus defensive tackles. Malik Jackson and Abry Jones. Goodman, for now, will join defensive ends Yannick Ngakoue, Jonathan Woodard, and Chris Smith plus tackles Stefan Charles, Mike Bennett, and Sheldon Day on the bench.

The Jaguars still have defensive end Jared Odrick and defensive tackles Sen’Derrick Marks and Roy Miller floating in free agent limbo.

Seahawks To Sign LB Terence Garvin

March 24th, 2017 at 11:05am CST by Zachary Links

The Seahawks agreed to terms with linebacker Terence Garvin, a source tells Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Seahawks hosted Garvin on a visit Wednesday and, two days later, they have an accord.

Garvin, 27, spent last year with the Redskins and was with the Steelers in the previous three seasons. The veteran has 59 career appearances to his credit, but has only made one start in the NFL. Garvin did the majority of his work on special teams last season. Although he was on the field for all 16 regular season games, he played only 59 defensive snaps.

On Thursday, the Seahawks added another linebacker when they signed former Niner Michael Wilhoite.

Panthers Exercise Kelvin Benjamin’s Option

March 24th, 2017 at 11:00am CST by Zachary Links

Panthers GM Dave Gettleman announced that the team has picked up Kelvin Benjamin‘s fifth-year option for 2018 (Twitter link via Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer). The option is expected to be worth roughly $8MM.

Benjamin, now 26, was taken No. 28 overall by the Panthers in the 2014 draft. He got off to a great start by catching 73 passes for 1,008 yards with nine touchdowns in his rookie season. Unfortunately, a torn ACL suffered in August of 2015 cost him the entire season. He returned to last year and had 63 catches for 941 yards and seven scores. The Panthers’ decision to exercise his fifth-year option was pretty much a no-brainer.

The fifth-year option allows teams to retain first round picks for an additional season at their own discretion. Per the terms of the 2011 CBA, teams can trigger the option as early as January 2 in the year of the player’s fourth season. The deadline to make the call is May 3. The options are guaranteed for injury only.

For now, Benjamin is locked in for an additional season at a below-market rate. However, it’s a good bet that the two sides will discuss a long-term extension between now and when that fifth year kicks in.

Colts Cut DL Arthur Jones

March 24th, 2017 at 10:36am CST by Zachary Links

The Colts announced that they have released defensive lineman Arthur Jones. The move will save the team $5.15MM in cap space.

Jones joined the Colts on a five-year, $33MM deal prior to the 2014 season. He never came close to living up to that contract. In the past three years, he has played in just 17 combined regular season games, including a completely lost 2015 season. This time last year, Jones took a pay cut in order to stay with the team. This time around, he’s being dropped altogether. Injuries and underwhelming production played a major role in his release, but Jones’ PED suspension in 2016 probably didn’t help his cause either.

In the short amount of time he spent on the field in 2016, Jones didn’t really deliver. In eight games, Jones tallied 30 total tackles. When his season ended on IR in December, the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus had him ranked as the No. 120 defensive tackle out of 126 qualified players.