2017 March - Pro Football Rumors

FA Rumors: Butler, Poe, Z. Brown, Raiders

March 16th, 2017 at 6:32pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Restricted free agent cornerback Malcolm Butler didn’t emerge from his Saints visit on Thursday with a deal, but the meeting “went well,” a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). As of now, there remains motivation on both sides to hammer out an agreement, Rapoport adds. PFR’s Zach Links laid out a few potential scenarios earlier this week involving Butler, who would surely net the Patriots a quality return in a trade.

More free agency-related news:

The offer that defensive tackle Dontari Poe accepted from the Falcons on Thursday was worth less than the Jaguars’ proposal, reports ESPN’s Josina Anderson (Twitter link). Before taking a one-year, $8MM deal (plus incentives) with the reigning NFC champions, Poe turned down the Jags’ fully guaranteed $9MM (and incentives). Head coach Dan Quinn was key in talking Poe into joining the Falcons, relays Anderson.
It doesn’t appear that linebacker Zach Brown‘s powwow with the Raiders will lead to a deal, as a source told ESPN’s Adam Caplan that it “looks like a no-go right now” (Twitter link). Although Brown had a stellar 2016 with Buffalo and currently ranks as PFR’s top available linebacker, the market for his services has been tepid.
Wide receiver Andre Holmes met with the Bills on Thursday, one day after there were reports that he had signed with them, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (via Twitter). It turns out the Bills offered Holmes a three-year, $4.5MM accord, which the NFLPA accidentally documented as a done deal.
Linebacker Dekoda Watson visited the Seahawks on Thursday, tweets ESPN’s Field Yates. The 29-year-old Watson is a journeyman who has played for five teams, including the Broncos last season. He served as an integral special teams cog in Denver, which would like to re-sign him.

Latest On Jimmy Garoppolo

March 16th, 2017 at 6:06pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Few NFLers have been involved in more trade rumors over the past several months than Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, but “there’s a persistent belief within league circles” that the team wants to retain Tom Brady‘s backup, a high-level employee of an AFC team told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

While Garoppolo would likely fetch a haul in a trade, perhaps from the draft-pick rich Browns, the Patriots are cognizant of the fact that Brady isn’t immortal, notes Florio. As excellent as the five-time Super Bowl champion still is, 2017 will be his age-40 season, so there’s some question as to how much longer he’ll play. By keeping the 25-year-old Garoppolo, the Pats would protect themselves against a sudden retirement or decline from Brady.

Garoppolo will only take up $1.1MM-plus of New England’s spending space next season, his fourth in the league, meaning his presence wouldn’t be onerous to the club’s cap in 2017. Then, if Brady’s still in the fold next winter, the Pats could attempt to re-sign Garoppolo – it seems unlikely they’d succeed, granted, given that he’d be able to find a starting job and more money elsewhere – or even place the franchise tag on him.

In the opinion of head coach Bill Belichick, Patriots third-string quarterback Jacoby Brissett isn’t the long-term answer, suggests Florio, making it all the more realistic that Garoppolo will stay in their plans. Like Brissett, Garoppolo has limited NFL experience, but the latter made good on his first two career starts last year. Garoppolo began the season as New England’s starter because of Brady’s four-game Deflategate ban, and he completed 42 of 59 passes for 496 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in wins over the Cardinals and Dolphins. The second game was Garoppolo’s final start of the year – and perhaps his last for a while, if the Pats keep him – as he suffered a sprained AC joint on a hit from Miami linebacker Kiko Alonso and sat out for the remainder of Brady’s suspension.

Raiders Sign QB EJ Manuel

March 16th, 2017 at 5:45pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Raiders have signed free agent quarterback EJ Manuel, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). With Derek Carr entrenched as the Raiders’ starting signal-caller, Manuel will presumably compete with Connor Cook for the No. 2 role.

The 26-year-old Manuel now represents the only first-round passer on the Raiders’ roster, having gone 16th overall to the Bills in the 2013 draft. Manuel was never able to grab a strong hold of the starting job in Buffalo, though, as both Kyle Orton and Tyrod Taylor bumped him from the job during his four-year tenure there.

A large portion of Manuel’s action with the Bills came in his rookie season, during which he started in all 10 of his appearances in an injury-shortened campaign and completed 58.8 percent of passes, threw 11 touchdowns against nine interceptions and averaged 6.4 yards per attempt. He has since picked up 17 appearances and seven starts, and has continued to post backup-caliber numbers.

Manuel now reunites with Raiders offensive coordinator Todd Downing, who was the Bills’ quarterbacks coach in 2014.

Rams To Sign Connor Barwin

March 16th, 2017 at 5:28pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Rams have announced an agreement with free agent pass rusher Connor Barwin. It’s a one-year deal with a maximum value of $6.5MM, tweets ESPN’s Adam Caplan.

After serving as a defensive end in the Eagles’ 4-3 scheme last year, Barwin will function as an outside linebacker in Rams coordinator Wade Phillips’ 3-4. Barwin previously played under Phillips in Houston from 2011-12, when he started all 32 of the Texans’ games and picked up 14.5 sacks. He then moved on to Philadelphia and added 64 more starts in a row over the past four seasons, during which he registered another 31.5 sacks. Five of those sacks came last year for Barwin, but his overall performance ranked just 100th among Pro Football Focus’ 109 qualified edge defenders amid concerns he wasn’t a fit for Jim Schwartz‘s scheme.

Unsurprisingly, after they were unable to move him in a trade, the Eagles cut Barwin last Thursday and saved $7.5MM in cap room. Barwin didn’t take long to find work, though, and he also drew interest from the Bengals. In Los Angeles, he’ll join Aaron Donald and Robert Quinn as the top pass rushers on a team that tied for 24th in the NFL with 31 sacks last season and has since dealt William Hayes to the Dolphins.

Adrian Peterson Done In Minnesota

March 16th, 2017 at 5:05pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

With the newly signed Latavius Murray set to occupy their backfield, the Vikings have closed the door on the possibility of re-signing Adrian Peterson, general manager Rick Spielman announced Thursday (Twitter link via the team).

The fact that the Vikings are moving on from Peterson comes as no surprise in the wake of the Murray acquisition. However, after the Vikings declined Peterson’s $18MM option in February, it seemed possible they’d bring him back at a far more reasonable figure. Instead, the club didn’t make the soon-to-be 32-year-old an offer.

Peterson will go down as one of the greatest Vikings ever, having earned seven Pro Bowls trips, five first-team All-Pro nods and an MVP (2013) since they selected him in the first round of the 2007 draft. He’ll depart Minnesota 16th on the all-time rushing list (11,747), 10th in rushing touchdowns (97) and third in yards-per-carry average (4.9), though he no longer possesses the sparkling reputation he had when he entered the league.

Peterson’s character took a hit in 2014, when he violated the league’s personal conduct policy in an incident of abusive discipline toward his then-4-year-old son. Peterson missed 15 of 16 games that season as a result, but he bounced back in 2015 to win the league’s rushing title. Unfortunately for Peterson, 2016 represented another step backward. Thanks to the meniscus tear he suffered last September, Peterson appeared in just three games and totaled a mere 37 carries in his final year as a Viking.

Now, on account of his age, the injury and his paltry 1.9 YPC last season, Peterson is having difficulty finding work in free agency. Several rumored suitors – the Texans, Patriots, Raiders, Giants – have shown little to no interest in Peterson, while the Seahawks visited with him but then opted to sign Eddie Lacy instead. Peterson will undoubtedly land somewhere in the coming months, but it’s obvious things haven’t broken his way since the Vikings declined his option.

Raiders To Sign Jared Cook

March 16th, 2017 at 4:14pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The best tight end remaining in free agency is coming off the board. The Raiders are signing Jared Cook to a two-year contract worth up to $12.2MM, including a fully guaranteed first year, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links). Cook will earn $5MM in 2017, reports ESPN’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter).

Oakland was among several teams that targeted Cook, who nearly re-signed with the Packers and also drew interest from the Bills, Seahawks, Lions and Vikings. Minnesota made a strong effort to sign Cook, relays Caplan (on Twitter), but his meeting with the Raiders on Thursday went well enough for a deal to come together with Oakland. Star quarterback Derek Carr helped convince the 29-year-old pass catcher to sign, per Caplan, who tweets that the two “spent a lot of time” with each other – including watching tape – and “bonded.”

Before Carr recruited Cook to the Raiders, he helped lure in receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. Those two will provide further weaponry in a high-octane passing attack whose best options are wideouts Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree. Cook will move atop the Raiders’ tight end depth chart and slot in ahead of Clive Walford and Lee Smith, giving the team an impressive trio at the position.

The Raiders will be the fourth team for Cook, a 2009 third-round pick who has combined for 303 receptions and 17 touchdowns in stints with the Titans, Rams and Packers. In his lone season in Green Bay, Cook appeared in 10 games and caught 30 of 51 targets for 377 yards and a TD. He was far more impressive in the Packers’ two-game playoff run, in which he combined for 13 receptions on 23 targets, 181 yards and two scores.

Thanks to Cook’s agreement, PFR’s top-ranked unsigned tight end is now Luke Willson.

Dolphins Re-Sign Jermon Bushrod

March 16th, 2017 at 4:04pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Dolphins have re-signed free agent guard Jermon Bushrod, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN (Twitter link).

Miami entered the offseason hoping to land two affordable guards, and it now has after agreeing to deals with both Bushrod and Ted Larsen. The club reportedly only viewed the 32-year-old Bushrod as a fallback option as of Tuesday, but he’ll nonetheless return to the Dolphins for a second season. Although Bushrod started all 16 of the Dolphins’ games last season, Pro Football Focus graded him as one of the four worst guards in the NFL.

Bushrod, who divided the first nine years of his career between New Orleans and Chicago, has 112 starts, five 16-start seasons and 124 appearances on his resume. He’s slated to spend his 11th season on a Miami line consisting of him and Larsen at the guard spots, Mike Pouncey at center and Laremy Tunsil and Ja’Wuan James at the tackle positions.

Bills Match Rams’ Offer Sheet For Ryan Groy

March 16th, 2017 at 3:42pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bills are matching the offer sheet for offensive lineman Ryan Groy, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan (on Twitter). The Rams signed him to an offer sheet earlier this week, but they’ll have to look elsewhere for a center.

Groy will now remain in Buffalo on a two-year deal worth $5MM with $3.5MM guaranteed. The Bills rolled the dice a little by giving Groy an original-round tender – which called for zero draft compensation if the former undrafted free agent was signed away – but everything worked out alright for the Bills. They have retained their the interior lineman at a reasonable price.

The Rams cut former starting center Tim Barnes earlier this month and they were hoping to make Groy his replacement.

Jets Re-Sign DT Mike Pennel

March 16th, 2017 at 3:18pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jets have signed/re-signed defensive tackle Mike Pennel to a one-year deal, according to agent Andy Simms (on Twitter). The Jets claimed Pennel off waivers in February.

[RELATED: Jets Sign CB Morris Claiborne]

Pennel comes with some unfortunate baggage. In 2016, he served a pair of four-game suspensions for substance abuse. The second ban was supposed to be for ten games, but Pennel fought with the NFL and NFLPA to ultimately get the second suspension chopped down.

Between suspensions, Pennel appeared in eight games, played in 103 defensive snaps and totaled seven tackles. In his best year, 2015, he established career highs in games (16), starts (five), tackles (24) and sacks (one).

The Jets are short on talent, so they are willing to roll the dice on Pennel, despite his past transgressions.

Jets Sign CB Morris Claiborne

March 16th, 2017 at 3:04pm CST by Zachary Links

We could be in the midst of another run on cornerbacks. Moments after Brandon Carr signed a free agent deal with the Ravens, the Jets have reached agreement on a deal with cornerback Morris Claiborne, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. It’s a one-year deal worth $5MM, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Rapoport adds that the Jets have offered up more money than the Cowboys. The Jets announced the move.

This marks the Jets’ first significant free agent signing of the offseason. Gang Green made a serious effort to lure Dont’a Hightower away from the Patriots, but that was ultimately fruitless. Hightower, as expected, re-signed with the Patriots on Wednesday, despite a better offer from the Jets.

The Jets’ cornerback group is now led by Claiborne, 2016 draft pick Juston Burris, and Buster Skrine. Skrine, who came to the Jets on an expensive free agent deal in 2015, could be on the chopping block.

Claiborne, 26, was widely labeled as a draft bust for underperforming ever since he was taken No. 6 overall in the 2012 draft. In 2016, he had his best season to date and was ranked as Pro Football Focus 12th-best corner last year year. Unfortunately, however, injuries forced Claiborne to miss more than half of the regular season, though he did return for the playoffs. If not for the injury, Claiborne could have gotten something closer to A.J. Bouye‘s monster deal with the Jaguars.

The Ravens appeared to be Claiborne’s most fervent suitor and they were offering roughly $5MM per year before turning their attention to Carr. Now, it will be interesting to see how Dallas fortifies their cornerback group after losing two playmakers in a matter of minutes.